New Evidence Links Air Pollution to Autism, Schizophrenia

A new study describes how exposure to air pollution early in life produces harmful changes in the brains of mice, including an enlargement of part of the brain that is seen in humans who have autism and schizophrenia. The mice performed poorly in tests of short-term memory, learning ability, and impulsivity. Study authors say the findings are very suggestive that air pollution may play a role in autism, as well as in other neurodevelopmental disorders.

Source:

University of Rochester Medical Center

New Attention Disorder: Sluggish Cognitive Tempo

More than six million American children have received a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, heightening the concern that the condition is being significantly misdiagnosed and over-treated with prescription medications. Yet an immerging disorder could vastly expand the number of young people being treated for attention issues.  Called sluggish cognitive tempo, the condition is characterized by lethargy, daydreaming and slow mental processing. Researchers estimate it is present in perhaps two million children.

New publications have proposed that recognition of sluggish cognitive tempo could help resolve some longstanding confusion about A.D.H.D, which despite having hyperactivity in its name includes about 2 million children that are not hyperactive, merely inattentive.

“ When you start talking about things like daydreaming, mind-wandering, those types of behaviors, parents with a son or daughter who does this excessively says ‘I know about this from my own experience.’ They know what you’re talking about.” Said Keith Burkett, a professor of psychiatry at the University of California in San Francisco.

Experts pushing for more research into sluggish cognitive tempo say that it is on its way to being recognized as a legitimate disorder. Others including Dr. Allen Frances, an emeritus professor of psychiatry at Duke University, are of the opinion that while there are kids that meet the criteria for the disorder, it is not worth further investigation. “The enthusiasts here are thinking of missed patients.  What about the mislabeled kids are called patients when there’s nothing wrong with them? They are not considering what is happening in the real world,” stated Dr. Frances.

Source: NY Times

Obesity Negatively Affects Sperm Health in Men

findings can hopefully encourage perspective fathers to maintain a healthy weight not just for themselves but for their future children too

Obesity raises a slew of health concerns for the American people. One in particular is an issue surrounding perspective fathers’ weights during time of conception.

Recent findings published by the Research Center for Reproductive Health at the University of Adelaide in South Australia, find that a father’s weight during conception can negatively affect the genes given to their offspring increasing their chances for diabetes. They also found that these genes could negatively affect the second generation too. Dr. Tod Fullston states "Fathers should aim to be as healthy as possible at the time of conception to give future generations the best possible chance of good health."

These findings can hopefully encourage perspective fathers to maintain a healthy weight not just for themselves but for their future children too.

Perceived Children’s Weight by Parents Contrasts Actual Children’s Weight

In a study conducted in the Netherlands, opinions were collected from 800 parents of children 4yrs-5yrs of age regarding their child’s current weight. When shown a visual BMI scale of a child and asked to match their child’s weight to one an astounding 95% of parents chose a BMI lower than that of their child's.

What makes this information more weighty is that parents were also asked to report real data on their childen’s body such as height and weight, yet still perceived a lower image to match their children’s current weight. Parents with normal weight children often chose a Body Mass Index (BMI) one size smaller than actual, and parents of overweight or obese children chose on average three sizes smaller.

Conclusively, even though many parents were unaware of what an average healthy weight of children was, they were willing to receive information on healthy weight management for children no matter what their children’s current weight was. This information poses a need for health education classes for parents of younger aged children, especially since starting a healthy lifestyle at a young age could set them up for a healthy future.

A good child BMI calculator is available at:

http://kidshealth.org/parent/growth/growth/bmi_charts.html

For more information please read:

Luttikhuis et al. How do parents of 4- to 5-year-old children perceive the weight of their children? Acta Paediatrica, 2010; 99: 263-267 DOI: 10.1111/j.1651-2227.2009.01576.x

or

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/w-mpd012810.php

The Natural Sweetener Xylitol May Prevent Ear Infections in Children

A Look at Natural Earache Remedies

Acute Otitis Media is defined as the first 3 weeks of a process in which the middle ear shows the signs and symptoms of acute inflammation. This is also the most common condition parents seek medical therapy for children under 5 years of age. 

Studies indicate that xylitol chewing gum, lozenges or syrup may reduce the occurrence of acute otitis media by as much as 25%.  Other preventive measures is control of nasal inflammation in children, whether caused by an allergy or by recurrent infection, appears to decrease the recurrence of acute otitis media.

Some of the risk factors for acute otitis media can be removed by not sending your child to day care where many infections are passed on, providing a tobacco-free living space, and stopping bottle use in children older than 1 year.

Most recurrent ear infection are caused by allergies in children. As a naturopathic physician I identify the allergen and the ear infections resolve. 

Earliest Sign of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Infants

“A new glimpse on Autism” - Warren Jones, PhD, director of research

This study investigates the association between eye contact and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in the earliest of developmental stages.

New research on ASD suggests that the earliest signs of ASD can be seen in infants as early as 2 months of age. Researchers from the Marcus Autism Center with Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Georgia, and Emory University School of Medicine enrolled 110 infants enrolled into two groups; one group consisting of those with a family history of ASD and the other group being the first case. The study followed the participants from birth to age 3. Observations of infants subsequently diagnosed with ASD suggested that eye contact began to decline compared to a typical developmental progression between 2 months to 6 months of age.

Due to this compelling study there is new hope in identifying ASD in the first few months of life.

For more information on this study please visit: 

published online November 6 in Nature

Obese Children Should be Checked for High Cholesterol

Children who are obese need to be checked for high blood pressure and high cholesterol.  Obese children have an increase risk for heart disease, cancer and diabetes.  Obese children as young as six years old can have plague on their arterties.  Weight loss including eating a healthy diet and exercising can reverse these illnesses in a child. As naturopathic physicians we look at healthy diet and lifestyle as the most effective treatment for most illnesses. 

Probiotics May Protect Against Respiratory Illness in Infants

Beneficial flora (aka the “good bacteria”) play an important role in keeping our immune systems healthy.

Beneficial flora (aka the “good bacteria”) play an important role in keeping our immune systems healthy. Finnish researchers from the University of Turku recently found that probiotics given to babies during their first months of life appeared to be protective against respiratory illnesses.  Compared with the control group, infants whose daily diets included the probiotic species known as Bifidobacterium animalis (subspecies BB-12) experienced a 30 percent reduction in respiratory infections.  

Over a period of eight months, 109 infants were divided into two groups and monitored.  At the beginning of the trial period, all participants were about one month old.  Infants in the first group received a probiotic twice per day while infants in the second group received placebo.  Although the researchers did not note significant differences between the groups in overall gastrointestinal health, they did observe differences when it came to respiratory health. 

The researchers involved in this study admit their findings are only preliminary and that additional research is needed before any definitive conclusions can be made.  Still, they are confident that the results of this study will help contribute to new preventative treatment options for respiratory infections and other types of childhood illnesses. 

Although many probiotic products available today have fairly good safety records and have little or no side effects in most people, there are large differences when it comes to quality, purity, and effectiveness.  Some probiotics are well-researched and documented in the medical literature, while others are not.  For your child’s health and safety, it’s important to do the necessary research and talk to your trusted healthcare practitioner prior to use of a particular product. 

Studies like the one briefly mentioned above can serve to remind us of the important role that breastfeeding can play in the normal and healthy development of children.  There are many strains of beneficial flora that have evolved with the human body, some of which are known to be passed from mother to child in the form of breast milk.  Breastfeeding alone can be an important way of making sure infants receive the protective flora that will help them develop into healthy adults.  Of course, this requires that breastfeeding mothers have optimal levels of their own beneficial flora!  This can be achieved through healthy diet and lifestyle choices as well as appropriate probiotic supplementation if needed.     

Dr. Shana McQueen

Source:  http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=7978241