Health ShortsMarch 2004Washing Helps but No Protection Against Food-borne Hepatitis A
Several outbreaks of food-borne hepatitis A in late, 2003 were traced to green onions from a Mexican supplier who may have washed them with contaminated water. Experts recommend washing fresh vegetables with cold water to reduce the risk of food-borne illness. When they have been grown in soil or washed with water containing hepatitis A or E. coli, however, washing offers no protection and the vegetables must be thoroughly cooked to be safe.
[SOURCE: "Cooking Ensures Safe Vegetables, CDC Says," Hepatitis Weekly, December 22, 2003] Vaccine Reduces Hepatitis A Threat
Before widespread use of the hepatitis A vaccine, outbreaks of hepatitis were common in some areas of the country, particularly in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Immunization is now recommended for all American Indian and Native Alaska children and all persons living in communities with historically high rates of hepatitis A. Hepatitis A virus is found in the feces of infected persons and is passed along by close personal contact and food or water that has been contaminated. In contrast to hepatitis B and C, hepatitis A causes mostly short-term illness but can lead to severe problems in someone with existing liver disease.
[SOURCE: "Hepatitis A: A Vaccine-Preventable Disease," Indian Health Service, National Epidemiology Program; "Viral Hepatitis Markers Found in a Canadian First Nations Community, Hepatitis Weekly, December 8, 2003] Hepatitis Often Leads to Cirrhosis
Persons who are long-term carriers of hepatitis B or C may not look or feel sick, but they are usually experiencing progressive liver damage. The liver has a great capacity to regenerate itself, but when there is repeated inflammation followed by healing, scar tissue forms. The medical term for this is cirrhosis. When the scarring becomes extensive, the liver becomes unable to carry out its normal functions. Without a liver transplant, the person is at risk of death.
[SOURCE: Suzy Cohen, "Hepatitis C: A Cause for Concern," Drug Topics, June 16, 2003] HIV Gets Attention; Hepatitis May Be Greater Threat to Teens
The possibility of HIV/AIDS infection should be enough to encourage adolescents to practice safe sex and avoid use of contaminated needles. But hepatitis B and C are blood-borne illnesses transmitted in the same way, and given current health trends, hepatitis infection is more likely. Of 300,000 new hepatitis B infections each year, about 70 percent occur in youth between the ages of 15 and 39. A hepatitis B vaccine is available, but school-based immunization programs rarely reach homeless adolescents.
[SOURCE: Bettina M. Beech, Leann Myers, Derrick J. Beech, "Hepatitis B and C Infections Among Homess Adolescents," Family and Community Health, July, 2002] About Sleep, Children Know Best
If you see a doctor because of your child's sleep problems, it's important to let your child answer the doctor's questions. For children under age 12, one study found, the child's answers, given separately, differed significantly from the parents' responses. Only 19 percent of parents, but 70 percent of children, said their children had nightmares. Only 25 percent of parents, but 84 percent of children, said the children were sleepy at bedtime. For children over age 12, the study found less significant differences between the responses of children and those of parents.
[SOURCE: "Sleep Problems," Pediatrics for Parents," August, 2001] Sleepy Kids May Be 'Tired but Wired'
For adults, daytime sleepiness is a common symptom of a sleep disorder such as obstructive sleep apnea, but children with sleep disorders may not show sleepiness during the day and may even resist naps. A sleep-deprived child is more likely to be "tired but wired." As a result, a sleep problem may be mistaken for a sign of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
[SOURCE: Heidi Splete, "Frequent Snoring Linked to Academic Setbacks: Poorest Performance in Science," Family Practice News, January 1, 2004] TV Viewing Linked to Sleep Problems
How much television a child watched was found to be a significant factor in the development of healthy sleep habits, according to one recent study. Among 429 children, kindergarten through fourth grade, sleep problems were more likely among children watching television most frequently, particularly just before bedtime. "In particular, the presence of a television set in the child's bedroom may be a relatively under recognized, but important, contributor to sleep problems in schoolchildren," the authors wrote.
[SOURCE: J. Owens, R. Maxim and M. McGuinn, et al, "Television-Viewing Habits and Sleep Disturbance in School Children," Pediatrics, 1999; 104(3):27-41; The Brown University Child and Adolescent Behavior Letter, January, 2000] Most Teens Don't Get Enough Sleep
If you fall asleep within 10 minutes of hitting the bed, you're probably not getting enough sleep, according to one of the criteria of the Multiple Sleep Latency Test. By this standard and others, most experts believe that adolescents ordinarily need eight and a half to nine and a quarter hours of sleep a night to be fully rested. On school nights, only about 15 percent of teenagers say they get as much as eight and a half hours of sleep. Many sleep six and a half hours or less.
[SOURCE: Kyle P. Johnson, "The Sleepy Teenager," Harvard Mental Health Letter, November, 2001] Sun Exposure Increases Moles, Risk
The more moles you have on your body, the greater your risk of developing melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer. And studies indicate that in children exposure to high-intensity sunlight increases the number of moles. One study of German children, aged two to seven years, found that the number of moles on a child increased with age and that the increase was strongly associated with the number of holiday days spent in areas with intense sun exposure.
[SOURCE: Mitchel L. Zoler, "Intermittent, Intense Sun Triggers Nevi Formation," Skin & Allergy News, July, 2003] Melanoma Incidence Growing
An American living in 1935 had a lifetime risk of 1 in 1,500 of developing melanoma. A comparable person in, 2003 had a 1 in 67 risk. Scientists attribute most of that increase to overexposure to ultraviolet radiation. Although there is more effective screening in the United States today than in 1935, melanoma rates have also been increasing rapidly in countries where there is still little screening or education.
[SOURCE: Mike Wyndham, "Pharmacy Update: Malignant Melanoma," Chemist & Druggist, February 14, 2004; Mitchel L. Zoler, "Lifetime Risk of Melanoma in U.S. Increased to 1 in 67: Incidence Rates Soar," Family Practice News, August 1, 2003 "Shedding Light on Melanoma," Harvard Women's Health Watch, September, 2001] Don't Overlook Your Feet When Checking for Melanoma
One recent study found that the five-year survival rate for a melanoma on the foot or ankle was only 52 percent, compared to a survival rate of 84 percent for a lesion on the leg, knee or thigh. The authors theorized that the lower survival rate could be due to late diagnosis. A lesion between the toes or on the sole of the foot is easy to overlook. A melanoma on the foot may not have the appearance expected of a suspicious mole or it may be hidden or distorted by callused skin.
[SOURCE: Nancy Groves, "Don't Forget the Feet: Foot Melanoma Survival Rate Significantly Lower than leg, Knee, Thigh Cancers," Dermatology Times, November, 2003] Vegetarian Diet, Strength Training Recommended To Combat Arthritis
Miriam E. Nelson of Tufts University, co-author of the book Strong Women and Men Beat Arthritis, recommends a vegetarian diet plus strength training as a way of improving the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis patients in her 16-week strength training session improved their physical function by 44 percent. Nelson's anti-arthritis diet is high in omega-3 fatty acids, natural anti-inflammatory agents found in foods such as flaxseeds and walnuts. It also includes five to servings of fruits and vegetables and avoids the oils in processed foods that may make inflammation worse.
[SOURCE: "Pain, Away! (Scoop: Health Fitness Nutrition Diet Supplements Personal Care Environment," Vegetarian Times, March, 2003] Tart Cherries Ease Joint Pain
Tart cherries have as many as 17 different antioxidant substances, and studies have shown they are several times more effective than aspirin or ibuprofen in easing joint pain and inflammation. Wild blueberries are high in anthocyanin, an antioxidant that may also play a role in fighting inflammation.
[SOURCE: "Antioxidants in Tart Cherries Fight Arthritis Pain and Inflammation," Immunotherapy Weekly, December 19, 2001] Reducing Saturated Fats Brings Improvement in Arthritis Symptoms
A healthy diet low in saturated fats (but with higher levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids) was effective in reducing arthritis symptoms and decreasing the need for medication, according to a Moscow study. Two thirds of the subjects reported a marked decrease in joint pain after two weeks. Twenty-four percent were able to lower their intake of ibuprofen and prednisolone.
[SOURCE: "Arthritis Diet Remedies: Fact or Folklore?" PDR Family Guide to Nutrition & Health, Annual, 2001] | 
