Singulair helpful for kids with asthma, allergies
The asthma controller Singulair (generic name, montelukast) appears useful and economical for the treatment of children with asthma and allergic rhinitis, according to US researchers.
“Childhood asthma and allergic rhinitis frequently coexist ... and result in substantial costs for the family and the health care system,” said lead author Dr. Alan Luskin from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Birth Weight: Set And Match
Two independent pieces of research published in this week’s Nature (Vol. 417, No. 6892 27 June 2002) could explain why some babies are born small, and could also lend credence to evolutionary theories about the competition between male and female genes.
Babies with low birth weights are more likely to die as newborns and have an increased chance of physical or mental development problems. Low birth weight is also linked to an increased risk of coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and respiratory problems later in life.
Drivers Ed: Keep Your Eyes on the Road!
Chatting on a cell phone while driving may have gotten a bad rap in recent years as a common cause of car crashes, but a new study shows cell phones can’t hold a candle to good, old-fashioned rubbernecking when it comes to causing a highway pile up.
With data collected by Virginia state troopers, researchers conducted one of the largest studies to date on crashes involving distracted drivers.
The results: looking at other accidents, traffic, or roadside incidents caused the largest number of accidents, while cell phone use ranked only sixth.
American Diabetic Association recognizes FAMHS diabetes education
Diabetes affects 17 million people in the United States according to Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, who also said that the number of people with diabetes has risen eight percent according to the 2000 U.S. census.
Diabetes has no cure, but it can be controlled so that people with diabetes enjoy a healthy life.
Diabetes Risk Factors
Although the causes of diabetes are unknown, the following risk factors may increase your chance of developing diabetes.
A family history: If a parent or sibling in your family has diabetes, your risk of developing diabetes increases.
Diabetes Facts
Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. The cause of diabetes continues to be a mystery, although both genetics and environmental factors such as obesity and lack of exercise appear to play roles.
Approximately 17 million people in the United States, or 6.2% of the population, have diabetes. While an estimated 11.1 million have been diagnosed, unfortunately, 5.9 million people (or one-third) are unaware that they have the disease.
Mediterranean Diet Goes Online
The Mediterranean Diet has always been popular. It’s a diet that is styled after the eating habits of the Southern Mediterranean region. Weight loss super-site eDiets have just created an entire Mediterranean plan and added it to their extensive selection of diets.
Some of the benefits of a Mediterranean-type diet—rich in vegetables, fruits, legumes and olive oil and light on red meat—may stem from the diet’s effect on inflammation, new research suggests.
In a study from Greece, markers of inflammation and blood clotting that are related to heart disease were lowest in people who adhered most closely to the traditional Mediterranean diet.
Oppression of women may be killing men
The tradition of male dominance over women in many societies may be one of the reasons men have a higher death rate, according to UK researchers.
In an analysis of statistics from 51 countries, they concluded that patriarchy --the systematic dominance by men over women—may explain nearly half of the discrepancy between female and male death rates. The greater that the oppression of women was in a given country, the researchers report, the higher was the male death rate at any given age.
Vitamin’s effect on cancer varies by smoker status
High intake of beta-carotene seems to decrease the risk of tobacco-related cancers among people who’ve never smoked, but to increase the risk among current or past smokers, new research suggests. Although the findings are based on a study of women, the researchers believe that similar results would be obtained in men.
“Based on the findings from our study and others, I would advise against beta-carotene supplements for current or past smokers,” senior author Dr. Marie-Christine Boutron-Ruault, from INSERM in Villejuif, France, told Reuters Health. “For beta-carotene-rich foods, the message is less clear, since they often contain other vitamins that may counteract the interaction of beta-carotene with smoking.”
Beer and spirits boost colon tumor risk
Beer and spirits drinkers face a higher risk of colorectal tumors, but wine drinkers may have a lower risk, according to a report in the American Journal of Gastroenterology.
“Alcohol is pernicious with regard to colorectal” tumors, Dr. Joseph C. Anderson from Stony Brook University, New York told Reuters Health. “Lifestyle plays a role as genetics does in the development” of these tumors.
Obesity alone not linked to fatal heart attacks
Being overweight or obese, in the absence of high blood pressure, does not clearly increase the risk of death from heart attack or stroke, French researchers report in the journal Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association.
“The role of obesity and overweight as independent risk factors for (heart attack and stroke) is still debated,” Dr. Athanase Benetos and colleagues from the Centre d’Investigations Preventives et Cliniques in Paris write.
Patients who choose depression treatment do better
Allowing depressed patients to select their own treatment—drug therapy, counseling or a combination of both—may improve outcomes, researchers in Seattle report.
The findings are based on a study of 335 adult with a clinical diagnosis of depression. The subjects were surveyed regarding their preferred therapy and this was compared with the actual treatment received.
Birth weight linked to high blood pressure risk
Men born at below-average weight are slightly more likely to have high blood pressure as young adults, a relationship that does not appear to be related to genetics or socioeconomic factors, the results of a large study from Sweden shows.
The findings support the theory that poor growth in the womb may cause disorders of the metabolism, such as high blood pressure (hypertension) or diabetes, known as the “fetal programming hypothesis,” Dr. Niklas Bergvall of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm and colleagues report in the September issue of Epidemiology.
