Therapist Unlimited Blog

Parents should do their best to keep their children away from air pollution and family problems to protect them from strong chances of suffering from asthma.
Recent studies have shown that children constantly exposed to air pollution and family stress makes them susceptible to asthma.
Based on the study conducted by the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) it was learned that the risk of asthma associated with traffic-related pollution was significantly higher for children of parents reporting high levels of stress. Stress, as well as low parental education, was also associated with larger effects of
exposure to tobacco smoke during pregnancy.
Principal investigator Rob McConnell, M.D., professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and Deputy Director of the Children’s Environmental Health Center at USC revealed they found out that it was the children who were exposed to the combination of air pollution and life in a stressful environment who were at highest risk of developing asthma.
It was learned that asthma is the most common chronic childhood illness in developed countries and has been linked to environmental factors.
The study drew upon data from the USC Children’s Health Study, a longitudinal study of respiratory health among children in 13 southern California communities.
To get the data, researchers followed 2,497 children with no history of respiratory problems over three years, tracking whether they developed asthma starting in kindergarten or first grade.
The researchers also measured parental stress and parental education as an indicator of socioeconomic status using a questionnaire, and collected information on exposure to traffic-related pollution and whether the children had been exposed to tobacco smoke in utero.

Children should keep away from air pollution and family stress to avoid getting inflicted with asthma.

It was learned in the study that the results showed that parental stress alone did not increase the risk that children would develop asthma.
However, when children had a combination of parents with stressful lives and also lived near high levels of traffic-related pollution, their risk of asthma increased compared with children only exposed to pollution.
McConnell explained air pollution can promote inflammatory responses in the airways of the lung, which is a central feature of asthma.
McConnell added stress may also have pro-inflammatory effects and this may help explain why the two exposures together were important.
Moreover, McConnell said children whose parents perceived their lives as unpredictable, uncontrollable, or overwhelming were susceptible to the effects of pollution.
He said stress associated with poverty may help explain why asthma rates are often higher in lower socioeconomic status communities.
He added childhood asthma is a complex disease that probably has many contributing causes.
The medical expert said further study of effects of exposure to air pollution in combination with stressful environments associated with poverty and other social factors could contribute to our understanding of why the disease develops.

According to the latest medical research blacks had 51 percent higher prevalence of obesity, and Hispanics had 21 percent higher obesity prevalence compared with whites.

Based on the research conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention it was learned that greater prevalence of obesity for blacks and whites were found in the South and Midwest than in the West and Northeast.
Hispanics in the Northeast had lower obesity prevalence than Hispanics in the Midwest, South or West.
To get the result the researchers examined data from 2006-2008.
Doctor William H. Dietz, Director of CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity, explained this study highlights that in the United States, blacks and Hispanics are disproportionately affected by obesity.
Diaz added if we have any hope of stemming the rise in obesity, we must intensify our efforts to create an environment for healthy.

Black people around the world need to be careful with regards to their health since study shows they are prone to eating disorders.

Moreover, the researchers said in their research they also found out that in 40 states, obesity prevalence among blacks was 30 percent or more.
In five of those states, Alabama, Maine, Mississippi, Ohio, and Oregon, obesity prevalence among blacks was 40 percent or greater.
For blacks, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 23 percent to 45.1 percent among all states and the District of Columbia; among Hispanics in 50 states and DC, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 21 percent to 36.7 percent, with 11 states having an obesity prevalence of 30 percent or higher. Among whites in 50 states and the District of Columbia, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 9 percent to 30.2 percent, with only West Virginia having a prevalence of 30 percent or more.

According to a latest medical study African Americans have more chances to suffer from hypertension and kidney disease than white Americans.
Based on the study conducted by the Physician-scientists from NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center it was believed that a heightened level a certain growth factor in the blood may explain explained why blacks have a greater prevalence of hypertension and kidney disease compared to whites.
Recent medical statistics from the National Institutes of Health’s U.S. Renal Data System it was shown that African Americans constitute about 32 percent of all patients treated for kidney failure in the U.S. and are four times more likely to develop renal disease than whites.
With their discovery, researchers hoped that someday their study will lead to the development of a new class of anti-hypertensive and kidney disease drugs that target the TGF-b1 protein Dr. Manikkam Suthanthiran, first author of the study and attending physician at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell explained he believe their study is a took for the world to understand the great puzzle: why the black population has a greater prevalence of hypertension and kidney disease.

African Americans need to be vigilant at all times since they are at higher risk of hypertension and kidney disease than the white Americans.

Suthanthiran revealed after controlling for race, sex and age, TGF-b1 protein levels were highest in hypertensive blacks (46 ng/ml).
Non-hypertensive blacks also had higher levels (42 ng/ml) compared to hypertensive whites (40 ng/ml) and non-hypertensive whites (39 ng/ml), demonstrating that even healthy black patients may be at higher risk for future hypertension and renal disease compared to healthy and hypertensive whites.
Moreover, Suthanthiran and his team revealed many black patients may have a disadvantage from the start having a higher baseline level of TGF-b1.
Dr. Phyllis August, senior author and attending physician in the division of hypertension at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center for his part said while the exact mechanisms of TGF-b1 require further study, he believe that in black patients, higher levels of the growth factor are correlated with lower renin activity an enzyme that constricts blood vessels and raises blood pressure.
It is said that high blood pressure is the leading risk factor for end-stage kidney disease.
The researchers perceive it may be possible that higher levels of TGF-b1 boost retention of sodium salt within the kidneys, leading to higher blood pressure in the kidney and also lower levels of renin.
The researchers also concluded greater levels of TGF-b1 in blacks were also positively associated with body mass index (BMI) an indicator of body fatness compared to height and metabolic syndrome, a group of abnormalities that is associated with atherosclerotic vascular disease and diabetes.
They believe future clinical studies must be done so we may fully understand the specific role of TGF-b1 in how the kidney handles sodium, blood pressure and kidney disease.

Those individuals who love to regularly check their body weight better consult a doctor now since such actions are strong signs they could be suffering from eating disorders.
A noted psychologist revealed those persons who weigh themselves at frequent intervals, sometimes many times a day could be suffering from a form of eating disorder.
Dena Cabrera, PsyD, a noted psychologist at the Remuda Programs for Eating and Anxiety Disorders revealed those people who regularly check their fatness, bones and any physical change in their body to subconsciously or consciously motivate their eating disorder behavior.
Cabrera explained those persons who frequently examined their weight and body become obsessed with the daily weight fluctuations that are a normal part of the body and would otherwise pass unnoticed.
Cabrera added the movements on the scale then determines their mood and eating patterns.

Do you love to regularly check your body weight? If your answer is yes, better seek medical help since you could be suffering from eating disorders.

She said body checking is influential in maintaining dissatisfaction with shape and appearance.
The noted psychologist identified other common behaviors associated with body checking such as looking in the mirror (or at reflective surfaces); measuring body parts with tape measures or hands; pinching or touching body parts; assessing the tightness of
particular items of clothing or accessories; looking down at one’s body and touching collar bones to check for boniness.
Furthermore, Cabrera said there is a need to assess the time spent on body/weight checking behavior as well as the consequences to determine if there needs to be a change in behavior.
Cabrera said most of the time body/weight checking needs to be stopped in an effort to uncover other influential factors that may trigger eating disorder behaviors, such as emotional regulation issues, trauma and maturity fears.
She hoped her study would serve as driving force to those persons who love to regularly check their weight to be more vigilant so that they would not suffer from eating disorders.

Those men who are too focus on their physical appearance better be careful since they are at high risk of suffering from eating disorders.
In a recent study he conducted, Dr. John Morgan, a consultant psychiatrist and director of the Yorkshire Centre for Eating Disorders in Leeds revealed a growing numbers of young men are increasingly dissatisfied with their bodies.
Morgan said because of their dislike to their body, a number of young boys engage in unhealthy eating habits, just to be thin and sexy.
However, it is a sad note that due to these unhealthy eating habits these young men eventually suffer from eating disorders.
He added some men who showed signs of eating disorders even refused to undergo treatment since they are afraid to be stigmatized as the only man in the clinic.

Those men who are too conscious on their body better be careful since they are prone to eating disorders.

Moreover, Morgan explained the definition of sexy body as beautiful by the society drove many men to engage in unhealthy eating habits, which would later result in a disaster among them.
Morgan said this medical finding should serve as eye opener to men around the world that a healthy well-being is far more important than their physical image.

Those people who drink an average four glassess of wine and beer a week are prone to suffer from binge drinking.
This was the result of a study made by the the University of Montreal and University of Western Ontario both in Canada where researchers discovered that that Canadians from all ages regardless of gender, who regularly drink liquor end up suffering from binge drinking.
Binge drinking is defined as the drinking of alcoholic beverages with the primary intention of becoming intoxicated by heavy consumption of alcohol over a short period of time.
Researchers also found our in their study that purposeful drinking style that is popular in several countries worldwide, and overlaps somewhat with social drinking since it is often done in groups.

Those who drink an average four glasses of beer and wine a week are most likely to suffer from binge drinking.

The researchers from both universities also found out that infrequent drinkers rarely exceed two servings when they do consume alcoholic beverages
The co-author of the study Andrée Demers, a Université de Montréal sociology professor and director of the Research Group on the Social Aspects of Health and Prevention explained the relationship between drinking frequency and consumption per occasion might be both cultural and biological.
Demers revealed the Canadian drinking culture has a ‘time-out’ depiction of drinking wherein alcohol is a boundary mark between week and weekend, work and leisure, and therefore between routine and time off.
He said regardless of drinking preferences, the study found that many Canadians consume alcoholic beverages on a daily basis to experience its mood-altering affects.
To get the data, the researchers revealed close to 11,000 respondents consisting of 5,743 women and 4,723 men were asked to report on their alcohol consumption within the last 12 months.

Looks like being a vegetarian has countless benefits attached to it.
Based on a latest medical study it was discovered that vegetarians are 12 per cent less likely to develop cancer than meat eaters are.
In a study conducted by the Cancer Research scientists in Oxford University involving 61,000 vegetable and meat eaters for over 12 years, it was discovered that 3,350 were diagnosed with cancer.
The researchers found out that the risk of being diagnosed with cancers of the stomach, bladder and blood was lower in vegetarians than in meat eaters.
The researchers revealed the most striking difference was in cancers of the blood including leukaemia, multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
The risk of these diseases was 45 per cent lower in vegetarians than in meat eaters.
Professor Tim Key, who is part of the research team, explained their large resulted to the findings that likelihood of people developing some cancers is lower among vegetarians than among people who eat meat.

Vegetarians had reasons to smile these days since they are less likely to develop cancer than meat eaters are.

Key said that in particular vegetarians were much less likely to develop cancers of the blood, which include leukaemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
However, more research is needed to substantiate these results and to look for reasons for the differences.
Furthermore, Key said the study looked at 20 different types of cancers.
The differences in risks between vegetarians and meat eaters were independent of other lifestyle behaviours including smoking, alcohol intake and obesity, which also affect the chance of developing cancer.

Those women, who survived cancer during their childhood, need to closely monitored since recent medical studies has shown that they are at higher risk of birth complications.
Dr. Sharon Lie Fong, of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Erasmus MC University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands and her colleagues get the data after studying the pregnancies of 40 women who had been treated for cancer during their childhood, the majority of them for leukaemia, but also for solid tumours.
Fong said from their subjects, six had had radiation treatment directly to the abdomen.
She said the data they gathered were compared with those from a control group of more than 9,000 women who had not had cancer treatment.
She added all data were obtained from The Netherlands Prenatal Register, a nationwide database of pregnancy outcomes.
The medical expert said data were matched for age at pregnancy, year and month of delivery, and the number of times the woman had given birth.
The medical expert added the team did not investigate overall fertility and miscarriage rates, but they believe that it is possible that the fertility of all the cancer survivors will be compromised.
Fong said the ovarian reserve or capacity of the ovary to provide eggs capable of fertilisation, is established in the foetus and decreases during a woman’s reproductive lifetime.

Women who survived cancer during their childhood need to be careful since they are at higher risk of birth complications.

Fong added women with a poor ovarian reserve are less likely to conceive, even with assisted reproduction therapies, than those with a normal number of eggs.
She said women might also have an earlier menopause, as their stock of eggs is exhausted at a younger age.
She revealed long-term, multi-disciplinary follow-up for female child cancer survivors is mandatory.
Furthermore, the researchers said although at the start of treatment, future fertility may not be of great concern to care providers; it is to the patient’s parents.
The researchers added during follow-up, survivors should be made aware of the possible late effects of their treatment.
They said in addition to the deleterious effects of abdominal radiotherapy on reproductive function, radiotherapy to the head can also cause problems by causing the hypothalamus to reduce the production of follicle stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone, both important in promoting ovulation.
The team believe that it is particularly important for all female children who are treated for cancer, and their parents, to be made aware of this risk.
They said their research has also shown how important it is that, if they do become pregnant, childhood cancer survivors should be closely monitored throughout their pregnancy and that they are delivered in a clinical setting, rather than at home.
The researchers concluded that even if at first fertility seems normal for childhood cancer survivors, there may be problems later in life.
 

A recent study from the medical experts has revealed that those smokers who quit their habit without proper planning are most likely to fail in their quest to stop cigarette addiction.
Based on the data, gathered by researchers it was discovered that  almost 40 percent of subjects reported that their most recent quit attempt started without any advance planning, suggesting that for some smokers, setting an advance quit date may not be as necessary as once thought.
The researchers revealed while a period of planning prior to quitting has long been thought to allow smokers time to prepare themselves for their quit attempt, the study explores the various reasons as well as demographic and psychographic data, which may contribute, to a smoker deciding to quit spontaneously.

To gain success, smokers should carefully plan their action or they would end up a failure in their quest.

Dr. Saul Shiffman, professor in the departments of psychology and pharmaceutical science at the University of Pittsburgh and study co-author, explained, the study examines the possibility that while quit attempts may seem like spontaneous efforts on the surface, they may actually be the result of prolonged subconscious dissatisfaction with or concern about one’s smoking.
Shiffman added the results do not discredit planning a quit attempt, however, a smoker needs to determine what may be the best approach to ensure long-term cessation.
Furthermore, Shiffman said all smokers should consider ways to manage tough situations such as cravings and withdrawal symptoms to ensure long-term success.

According to a latest medical study, those children who are physically abused are most likely to end up having cancer when they reach adulthood.
Based on the research it is discovered that childhood physical abuse is associated with 49 per cent higher odds of cancer in adulthood.
Lead researcher Esme Fuller-Thomson, a faculty in Social Work and Department of Family and Community Medicine from the University of Toronto said few talk about childhood physical abuse and cancer in the same breath.
Thomson said from a public health perspective, it is extremely important that clinicians be aware of the full range of risk factors for cancer.
The lead researcher said through their study should provide important new knowledge about a potential childhood abuse-cancer relationship.

More care should be given to physically abuse children since they are prone to cancer.

Meanwhile, co-author Sarah Brennenstuhl, a doctoral student at Uof T, notes that various psychophysiological factors could help to explain the link between childhood physical abuse and cancer. Brennenstuhl revealed one important avenue for future research is to investigate dysfunctions in cortisol production - the hormone that prepares us for ‘fight or flight’ as a possible mediator in the abuse-cancer relationship.
The researchers hoped that the result of their study would compel the parents and the government in general to care more for physically abused children so that they will not end up having cancer when they reaches adulthood.