Dr. House
Dr. House
Thursday, December 20, 2018
Daily Milk Cereal Drinks Increases Obesity Risk Later in Childhood
In five-year-old children, the risk for being overweight is almost twice as high if they at 12 months had consumed milk cereal drinks every day, a study in the journal Acta Paediatrica shows.
“Milk cereal drinks are not bad as such; how it’s used is the problem. That is, when it’s seen not as a meal but as an extra, to supplement other food,” says Bernt Alm. Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg.
The researchers behind the study have previously linked consumption of milk cereal drinks at age six months to high body mass index (BMI) at ages one year and one and a half years. The study now presented is of the same group of children, several years later. https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/news/daily-milk-cereal-drinks-increases-obesity-risk-later-in-childhood-313268?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68506561&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--IbSohAVe3Y6eAb0V4C4nLMbO2hAovnSJQ69J_9eu8sktu4G9ZDT9qtKj5V4t95LrwRduBvukF-PXRvGsThIXEMk9hEg&_hsmi=68506561
Americans Getting Heavier, Wider But Not Taller, CDC Data Indicate.
reports new data compiled by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics indicate that over the past 20 years, Americans “have gotten heavier and thicker” as obesity has reached “epidemic levels in the United States.” The report indicates “women’s waists grew more than 2 inches, from 36.3 in 1999-2000 to 38.6 inches in 2015-16.” Meanwhile, men’s waistlines “increased just over an inch, from 36.3 to 38.6 inches during the same period.”
The AP (12/20, Stobbe) reports the average American adult “is overweight and just a few pounds from obese,” and people are heavier although they are not taller. According to the survey, “the average height for men actually fell very slightly over the past decade,” but there was no observable change for women. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2018/12/20/all-americans-getting-fatter-men-getting-shorter-u-s-report/2363150002/
Patients Taking A Fixed-Dose Combination Of Phentermine And Topiramate–ER Lost Over 15% Of Their Body Weight At 12 Months,
Patients who took a fixed-dose combination of phentermine and topiramate–extended release (ER) lost over 15% of their body weight at 12 months,” research indicated. The findings were presented at Obesity Week 2018. https://www.mdedge.com/endocrinology/article/191575/obesity/real-world-weight-loss-meds-approximates-rct-results
Medical uses
Topiramate is used to treat epilepsy in children and adults, and it was originally used as an anticonvulsant.[7] In children, it is indicated for the treatment of Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a disorder that causes seizures and developmental delay. It is most frequently prescribed for, the prevention of migraines.[7] It decreases the frequency of attacks.[8][9]
Pain
A 2018 review found topiramate of no use in chronic low back pain.[10] Topiramate has not been shown to work as a pain medicine in diabetic neuropathy, the only neuropathic condition in which it has been adequately tested.[11]
Other
Off label use for bipolar disorder treatment.[12][13][14] A more recent review, published in 2010, suggested a benefit of topiramate in the treatment of symptoms of borderline personality disorder, however the authors note that this was based only on one randomized controlled trial and requires replication.[15]
Topiramate has been used as a treatment for alcoholism.[16] The VA/DoD 2015 guideline on substance use disorders lists topiramate as a "strong for" in its recommendations for alcohol use disorder.[17]
Other uses include treatment of obesity[18][19] and antipsychotic-induced weight gain.[20][21] It is being studied to treat post traumatic stress disorder.[22] Phentermine also known as α,α-dimethylphenethylamine, is a psychostimulant drug of the substituted amphetamine chemical class
Substance Use May Be Higher Among Adults With T1D Compared With Overall US Population
“Use of substances such as alcohol, opioids and sedative medications may be higher among adults with type 1 diabetes [T1D] compared with the overall U.S. population,” researchers concluded in a 4,311-adult study. The findings were published online in the journal Diabetes Education. https://www.healio.com/endocrinology/diabetes/news/in-the-journals/%7B9692093b-ec64-4c7f-a2ef-b2166073d0f3%7D/substance-use-higher-among-adults-with-type-1-diabetes-vs-general-population
Wednesday, December 19, 2018
Breast-Feeding May Be Linked To Smaller Waist Size In Mothers, Study Suggests.
reports an analysis published in the Journal of Women’s Health found that breast-feeding “for longer than six months may lead to a smaller waist size for the mother...and the effect persists for as long as a decade.” The study “used data on 678 women enrolled in two studies who were followed for an average of 11 years after giving birth.” https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/18/well/family/breast-feeding-tied-to-smaller-waist-size-in-mother.html
It may be that women who breast-feed longer may be more health conscious in general than those who do not. But the researchers controlled for age, pre-pregnancy body mass index, gestational weight gain, blood pressure, smoking, diet quality, education, race and other health and behavioral characteristics.
Proportion Of US Adults Trying To Lose Weight Increased Over Last Three Decades
reports an analysis of survey data suggests that the proportion of adults trying to lose weight increased “from 53 percent to 66 percent over roughly the past three decades.” The results also indicate “that over the same period, the proportion of overweight and obese adults trying to lose weight dropped from 56 percent to 49 percent.” The findings were published in JAMA. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-obesity-dieters/more-u-s-adults-may-be-trying-to-lose-weight-after-all-idUSKBN1OH2JD
Mindfulness-Based Eating May Help People With Obesity Lose Weight,
reports researchers found that “people in an intensive weight management program who received training on mindfulness-based eating strategies lost more weight over six months than others who did not get the training.” The program “included discussions of the difference between mindful and mindless eating,” along with “an introduction to Compassionate Mind Therapy.” The findings were published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
Newsweek (12/18, Gander) reports the “researchers enlisted the help of 53 people signed up to a weight management program at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust in the U.K.” The article explains that “the researchers weighed the participants at the start and finish of the study, and asked them about their eating habits and attitudes towards food,” and then had 33 of them attend “four sessions teaching mindfulness in relation to eating,” while “the remaining 20 participants acted as the control and skipped the course.”
Endocrine Today (12/18, Schaffer) reports the researchers found that the “adults with obesity who attended group sessions teaching mindfulness-based eating techniques lost an average of 2.85 kg more than similar adults who attended group classes without mindful eating strategies.” https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2018/12/18/study-mindfulness-classes-help-people-lose-weight/U3wSxHT1JSHimSwKOyRDnK/story.html
Tuesday, December 18, 2018
Food Labels Really Do Affect Consumer Choice
In a pooled analysis of studies that included food labeling on menus, product packaging, or other point-of-purchase materials such as placards on supermarket shelves, the researchers found that labeling reduced consumers’ intake of:
- Calories by 6.6 percent.
- Total fat by 10.6 percent.
- Other unhealthy food options by 13 percent.
Labeling also increased consumers’ vegetable consumption by 13.5 percent.
In contrast, labeling did not significantly impact consumer intakes of other targets such as total carbohydrate, total protein, saturated fat, fruits, whole grains, or other healthy options. https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/news/food-labels-really-do-affect-consumer-choice-313198?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68416126&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--gAJ4JuImtph7hKMbJEGqd-_cHsjU7fzKrQ05mXyLQVvN3RxdP5Fum4JpFTJRWK1NXWylexQMItd1FlYJ1sg_nClsFhA&_hsmi=68416126
Renal Denervation May Help With Glycemic Control BP reduction not the only effect observed in small non-diabetic cohort
Aside from a modest benefit in hypertension, renal denervation may also help normalize glucose homeostasis, according to a research group in Germany.
Six months after renal denervation, non-diabetic patients showed better insulin control through their pancreatic beta-cells:
Fasting glucose was down from 97.1 mg/dL to 92.3 mg/dL (P=0.010)
Hemoglobin A1c dropped from 5.82% to 5.58% (P=0.008)
Insulin resistance as assessed by the homeostasis model went from 2.25 down to 1.94 (P=0.004)
https://www.medpagetoday.com/cardiology/pci/76981?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2018-12-18&eun=g721819d0r&pos=1111&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Headlines%202018-12-18&utm_term=NL_Daily_DHE_Active
Women With Migraine Have Lower Likelihood Of Developing Type 2 Diabetes
reports that in the “prospective longitudinal study, women with active migraine had a 20% reduction in the risk of developing pharmacologically-treated type 2 diabetes – which rose to a 30% reduction in multivariate modeling – than women without a history of migraine.” Additionally, “among women who developed incident diabetes during the study, the prevalence of active migraine declined in the years leading up to a diabetes diagnosis and plateaued after.” The findings were published in JAMA Neurology. https://www.medpagetoday.com/neurology/migraines/76978
Monday, December 17, 2018
A Killer on Your Skin
Staphylococcus epidermidis is an ubiquitous colonizer of healthy human skin, but it is also a notorious source of serious nosocomial infections with indwelling devices and surgical procedures such as hip replacements.
It has not been known whether all members of the S. epidermidis population colonizing the skin asymptomatically are capable of causing such infections, or if some of them have a heightened tendency to do so when they enter either the bloodstream or a deep tissue.
High-risk genotypes are identified proactively
FCAI (Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence) scientists Johan Pensar and Jukka Corander joined a team of microbiologists and geneticists to unravel this mystery. By combining large-scale population genomics and in vitro measurements of immunologically relevant features of these bacteria, they were able to use machine learning to successfully predict the risk of developing a serious, and possibly life-threatening infection from the genomic features of a bacterial isolate.
This opens the door for future technology where high-risk genotypes are identified proactively when a person is to undergo a surgical procedure, which has high potential to reduce the burden of nosocomial infections caused by S. epidermidis.
This article has been republished from materials provided by University of Helsinki. Note: https://www.technologynetworks.com/informatics/news/a-killer-on-your-skin-313165?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68375338&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--JU94-mKGEM79PVVbWWGg_6yxf1SgBKCywlO8eNOPaBcdK7dgG916VdR4FVXJqf3fA5v9CjQhwilSjUEAZVB2sX7AIsg&_hsmi=68375338
Rheumatoid Arthritis, Thyroid Disease May Increase Risk Of Hippocampal Sclerosis In Older Patients With Dementia,
reported researchers found that “rheumatoid arthritis and thyroid disease were found to increase the risk for hippocampal sclerosis (HS) in a cohort of patients aged ≥90 years with dementia.” The findings were published in Neurology. https://www.neurologyadvisor.com/neurodegenerative-diseases/hippocampal-sclerosis-risk-association-autoimmune-disease/article/821183/
Friday, December 14, 2018
Women Who Undergo Surgical Menopause May Be More Likely To Experience Insomnia, Report Lower Quality Sleep,
reports that “women who have surgery to remove their ovaries go through menopause abruptly, and” research “suggests this comes with an increased risk for the kinds of sleep troubles many women experience when they go through menopause gradually.” Investigators found that “women who underwent surgical menopause were more than twice as likely to experience insomnia and reported lower quality sleep compared with women who went through natural menopause.” The findings were published online in Menopause. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-women-menopause/sleep-problems-may-be-worse-when-menopause-is-hastened-by-surgery-idUSKBN1OC2YU
Thursday, December 13, 2018
Brief Program May Prevent People From Gaining Weight During Holiday Season,
reports researchers found that “a brief program that encouraged people to track their weight and to be mindful of the excess energy in every holiday cookie or cup of nog seems to have helped participants get through the holiday season without gaining weight.” The findings were published in The BMJ. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-weight-holidays/self-weighing-self-awareness-may-prevent-holiday-weight-gain-idUSKBN1OB2GM
Cannabis May Help UC Patients: Gastro Endo News Report Also, probiotics associated with adverse GI effects
A recent analysis found that consuming probiotics may contribute to small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and metabolic acidosis, which can cause "brain fog" in some patients. https://www.medpagetoday.com/gastroenterology/generalgastroenterology/76868?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2018-12-13&eun=g721819d0r&pos=1&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Headlines%202018-12-13&utm_term=NL_Daily_DHE_Active
A New Formulation Helps the Medicine Go Down
The team used chitosan, a naturally-occurring sugar polymer found in the exoskeleton of shellfish and the cell walls of certain fungi, to coat the oil-core of capsules and bind the drug together, while stabilising the capsule and helping to preserve it.
In its nanocapsule form, the drug would be 100 times more soluble than its current tablet form https://www.technologynetworks.com/drug-discovery/news/a-new-formulation-helps-the-medicine-go-down-313073?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68298142&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_Mrq2y_JuIAw1ft-xJoADZxav9LxoMtViyJSB6Mb4xWOKL1FpLWi-UBpooolOlYznnkSOJnt5GOZXOrn9dquExwJdXpA&_hsmi=68298142
Wednesday, December 12, 2018
Controlling Our Cravings
“Craving influences what people eat and their body weight, but there are some components of our behavior and diet that we do have control over,” Myers said. “Being mindful of these desires gives us more control of them.” Myers was the lead author of “Food Cravings and Body Weight: a Conditioning Response.”
For example, one proven way to reduce the longing for a certain food is to eat it less frequently. In other words, it's better to remove something from your diet than to try to eat smaller helpings of it.
“The upside of craving is that it is a conditioned response that you can unlearn,” said John Apolzan, PhD, director of Pennington Biomedical’s Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism Laboratory. “It’s not easy, but it can be done.”
Other takeaways from their review included that:
Losing weight reduces food craving.
Beware: exercise can increase cravings.
Cravings account for as much as 11 percent of eating behavior and weight gain, more than genetics currently explains.
Many obesity drugs — phentermine, lorcaserin, semaglitude and liraglitude among others — reduce craving.
Different demographic and socioeconomic groups may have different responses to food cravings. But little is known about these potential differences, and more investigation is needed.
“Food craving is an important piece of the weight-loss puzzle. It doesn’t explain weight gain 100 percent,” Myers said. “A number of other factors, including genetics and eating behavior, are also involved.” https://www.technologynetworks.com/tn/news/controlling-our-cravings-313047?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68259996&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9_by_Q00A6425FOw8T6khvyfncuK5Z_ZmOHRjXUNUXHuYomJB-Pdpl78BDsg05ZfSfH6tm3_aCR4b83ZYreF7hfD-vDQ&_hsmi=68259996
Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Obesity Researchers Still Do Not Know A Lot About Why Some People Respond Better To Diets Than Others.
summarizes the latest research presented at the “recent meeting of the Obesity Society” on “which diet is best” to control obesity. It turns out researchers still do not know a lot about why some people respond better to diets than others and even to what extent added sugar is contributing to the world’s obesity epidemic. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/10/health/diet-weight-loss.html
Bacterial ‘Sleeper Cells’ Undermine Host Defenses During Antibiotic Treatment
New research, from scientists at Imperial College London, unravels how so-called bacterial persister cells manipulate our immune cells.
The work potentially opens new avenues to finding ways of clearing these bacterial cells from the body, and stopping recurrence of the bacterial infection.
The latest findings, published in the journal Science, may help explain why some people suffer from repeated bouts of an illness, despite taking antibiotics. In the study, funded by the Medical Research Council, the Lister Institute and EMBO, the scientists, in collaboration with the Vogel lab at the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research in Germany, studied bacterial cells of Salmonella called persisters.
Previously, it was thought persisters are completely dormant. However the reality we revealed here is much scarier - Dr Peter Hill, study author
Whenever bacteria such as Salmonella invade the body, many of the bugs enter a type of stand-by mode in response to attack by the body immune system, which means they are not killed by antibiotics.
These bacteria persister cells stop replicating and can remain in this dormant, ‘sleeper-cell’ state for days, weeks or even months. When antibiotic treatment has been stopped, if some of these bacterial cells spring back to life, they can trigger another infection.
Dr Sophie Helaine, senior author of the research from the MRC Centre for Molecular Bacteriology and Infection in Imperial’s Department of Medicine explained: “Persisters are often the culprit for repeat or hard-to-treat infections. The classic scenario is a person suffers some type of illness – such as a urinary tract infection or ear infection, and takes antibiotics that stop the symptoms, only for infection to return a few weeks later.”
These persister cells are formed when bacteria are taken up by macrophages, which are human immune cells that have a key role in protecting the body against infections by engulfing bacteria and viruses. Once inside the macrophage, the persister can exist in this state in which antibiotics can’t kill it for weeks, or even months. https://www.technologynetworks.com/cell-science/news/bacterial-sleeper-cells-evade-antibiotics-and-weaken-defence-against-infection-312997?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68220069&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8ZAKhmZmlscK8Gd-xEwPi_gIDvap1VxJCQanfcDR6fw0SOPOP8tusE4quD8s6Z1adt4bmsHPXZuQrAT7_wHG6VDmlVoA&_hsmi=68220069
Monday, December 10, 2018
Diagnosing Early Lupus from Mimics Certain clinical features may distinguish early SLE from other conditions
They found that features that were more common in early SLE than in SLE‐mimicking conditions included:
Unexplained fever 34.5% versus 13.7%, respectively (P<0.001)
Anti-double-stranded DNA, anti-β2-glycoprotein I antibodies, positive Coombs' test results, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, hypocomplementemia, and leukopenia
Features that were less common in early SLE than in SLE‐mimicking conditions included:
Raynaud's phenomenon (22.1% versus 48.5%, P<0.001)
Sicca symptoms (4.4% versus 34.4%, P<0.001)
Dysphagia (0.3% versus 6.2%, P<0.001)
Fatigue (28.3% versus 37.0%, P=0.024)
https://www.medpagetoday.com/rheumatology/lupus/76793?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2018-12-10&eun=g721819d0r&pos=1&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Headlines%202018-12-10&utm_term=NL_Daily_DHE_Active
Wasp Venom Repurposed as an Antibiotic Drug
The venom of insects such as wasps and bees is full of compounds that can kill bacteria. Unfortunately, many of these compounds are also toxic for humans, making it impossible to use them as antibiotic drugs.
After performing a systematic study of the antimicrobial properties of a toxin normally found in a South American wasp, researchers at MIT have now created variants of the peptide that are potent against bacteria but nontoxic to human cells.
In a study of mice, the researchers found that their strongest peptide could completely eliminate Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a strain of bacteria that causes respiratory and other infections and is resistant to most antibiotics. https://www.technologynetworks.com/biopharma/news/antibiotics-generated-from-wasp-venom-312966?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68181628&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8WwDOiXDlO55yplg4oVYYSgQQOpIsiJKugsODN6xXy0i-0D90L01Jh2wIRGr_qHfVYeK0om61P8MkwTNlJysusGXrG8w&_hsmi=68181628
Friday, December 7, 2018
Hysterectomy Appears To Cause Short-Term Memory Loss In Rats,
“Hysterectomy can impair some types of memory in the short term following the surgery,” researchers found working with rats. The findings were published online Dec. 6 in Endocrinology.
Research https://endocrinenews.endocrine.org/hysterectomy-may-be-linked-to-brain-function/
Thursday, December 6, 2018
No Increased DVT Risk From Testosterone Replacement.
“Despite the 2014 FDA warning of an increased risk for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) with testosterone replacement therapies,” a chart review of 1180 patients published in Urology found that “the rate of deep vein thrombosis in treated hypogonadal men was just 0.8% over 2 years of follow-up.” https://www.renalandurologynews.com/hypogonadism/study-testosterone-replacement-does-not-increase-dvt-risk/article/818600/
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Bacterial Protein Promotes Cancer
Currently, approximately 20% of cancers are thought to be caused by infection, most are known to be due to viruses," said Dr. Gallo. "Mycoplasmas are a family of bacteria that are associated with cancers, especially in people with HIV. Our work provides an explanation for how a bacterial infection can trigger a series of events that lead to cancer. Of particular importance, the infection did not need to persist and the protein did not need to be continuously present in all cancer cells. The study also provides a mechanism for how some bacterial infections can interfere with specific cancer drugs." https://www.technologynetworks.com/cancer-research/news/bacterial-protein-promotes-cancer-312850?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=68068217&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-90cKjKDrQsRavIN3H_sk3lvuaByDHDPvIzAEDsLiAtGGz5LvZ01E7OoqvgFOIOHnKtEt95QjeOPIoyDoxcpNP5Te56gw&_hsmi=68068217
Tuesday, December 4, 2018
More Than A Quarter Of People With Diabetes Have Skimped On Needed Insulin Due To The Drug’s High Cost
More than one-quarter of people with diabetes have skimped on needed insulin because of the drug’s soaring price tag,” researchers concluded after “surveying nearly 200 Americans with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.” Investigators “found 26 percent had underused insulin because of cost.” The findings were published online in a research letter in JAMA Internal Medicine. https://consumer.healthday.com/diabetes-information-10/insulin-news-414/high-cost-has-over-1-in-4-diabetics-cutting-back-on-insulin-740214.html
Certain Chemicals Found In Personal Care Products May Be Associated With Early Puberty In Girls,
“Girls who are exposed before birth to chemicals commonly found in toothpaste, makeup, soap and other personal care products may hit puberty earlier than their peers who aren’t exposed to these chemicals in” utero, research indicated. Investigators found, for example, that “with every doubling of mothers’ urine concentrations of triclosan, girls started menstruating one month earlier.” The findings were published online in the journal Human Reproduction. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-puberty-endocrine-chemicals/chemicals-in-cosmetics-soaps-tied-to-early-puberty-in-girls-idUSKBN1O301I
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