Childhood Meningitis Tied to Reduced Education, Employment Prospects

TUESDAY, April 23 (HealthDay News) -- Some young adults who had bacterial meningitis during childhood have less education and are less financially self-sufficient than those in the general population, a new study from Denmark found.

Survivors of childhood bacterial meningitis are at risk for hearing loss, seizure disorders, and physical and mental impairments. Learning disabilities are a common problem among survivors.

Several types of germs can cause bacterial meningitis. This study looked at nearly 3,000 Danish adults who had meningococcal, pneumococcal or H. influenzae meningitis as children between 1977 and 2007. They were compared to control groups of adults the same age who had never had meningitis.

Among those who had meningococcal meningitis during childhood, 11 percent fewer had completed high school and about 8 percent fewer had received higher education by age 35, compared to those without meningitis.

Among those who had pneumococcal meningitis during childhood, about 10 percent fewer had completed high school and about 9 percent fewer had higher education, compared to those who never had the condition.

Among those who had H. influenzae meningitis during childhood, 5.5 percent fewer had completed high school and 6.5 percent fewer had higher education, compared to people who had never had meningitis, found the study, which was published in the April 24 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Compared to adults in the control group, nearly 4 percent fewer meningococcal patients, nearly 11 percent fewer pneumococcal patients and more than 4 percent fewer H. influenzae meningitis patients went on to become economically self-sufficient as adults, according to a journal news release.

As for receiving disability pensions, 1.5 percent more of those who had meningococcal meningitis, nearly 9 percent more of those with pneumococcal meningitis and nearly 4 percent of those with H. influenzae meningitis were likely to do so than adults who had never had the condition.

The findings suggest that follow-up into adulthood and possible psychological support may be important for children who have bacterial meningitis, said Dr. Casper Roed, at Copenhagen University Hospital, and colleagues.

Although the study tied childhood meningitis to reduced job and educational prospects, it did not establish a cause-and-effect relationship.

-- Robert Preidt
Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved. SOURCE: Journal of the American Medical Association, news release, April 23, 2013

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Colic May Be Linked to Childhood Migraine, Study Says

Expert suspects disrupted sleep cycles might play a role in both disorders

By Serena Gordon

HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, April 16 (HealthDay News) -- Although colic has always been considered a gastrointestinal illness, new research suggests that migraines might be to blame.

The study, published April 17 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found the odds were nearly seven times higher that children with migraine were colicky babies than were not.

"It is already known that migraine can show with intestinal pain in childhood," said study senior author Dr. Luigi Titomanlio, head of the pediatric migraine and neurovascular diseases clinic at APHP Hospital Robert Debre in Paris, France. That is termed abdominal migraine.

"Our results suggest that infantile colic could represent a form of migraine with age-specific expression," Titomanlio said.

As a colicky child gets older, be aware that he or she may be more likely to have migraine headaches, he added. "By extrapolation [from the study's findings], having had colic could be a risk factor of migraine in teens with recurrent headaches," said Titomanlio.

Colic affects as many as one in five infants, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Babies with colic cry for more than three hours a day, usually at the same time each day, at least three days a week. The exact cause of infant colic is unknown, but it usually gets better by 12 weeks of age.

When babies with colic are crying, their abdomens often appear swollen and they may draw their legs up to their bellies. These symptoms appear to originate in the digestive tract, but treatments aimed at easing digestive system symptoms aren't very effective at making babies with colic calm down.

Migraine is a common cause of headaches in children, according to the study. Another type of headache in children is a tension-type headache, and children who have tension-type headaches are believed to have increased pain sensitivity. Links between these and other types of headaches and colic have been suggested, but they haven't been well-studied, the researchers noted.

This latest research includes more than 200 children 6 to 18 years old who were diagnosed with migraine headaches. The study also included 120 children who had tension-type headaches, and 471 control children who were treated for minor traumas.

The researchers found that nearly 73 percent of children who had migraines also had colic as babies, while just 26.5 percent of those without migraine reported colic. Slightly more children who had migraine without aura (without visual and other sensory disturbances) reported having had colic than those who had migraine with aura. Overall, the odds that someone with a migraine had colic as a child were 6.6 times higher than the odds they didn't have colic, the study found.

The researchers didn't find an association between tension-type headaches and colic.

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More Evidence Links BPA to Childhood Obesity

Study finds preteen girls who had high levels of common chemical were twice as likely to be overweight

By Brenda Goodman

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, June 12 (HealthDay News) -- There's fresh evidence that the chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, may play a part in childhood obesity.

BPA is a chemical that is widely used in food packaging. Government studies have shown that 92 percent of Americans have detectable levels of BPA in their bodies.

There's intense scientific interest in BPA because it is chemically similar to the hormone estrogen, and there's some concern that it may mimic estrogen's effects in the body, causing harm to the brain and reproductive organs, particularly in children.

Last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration formally banned BPA from baby bottles and sippy cups, though manufacturers had already stopped using it. The agency declined to ban it from other food containers, pending further research.

In a new study published online June 12 in the journal PLoS One, researchers measured BPA levels in the urine of more than 1,300 children in China and compared those levels to their body weights.

The study authors also asked the kids about other things that may influence body weight, such as how often they ate junk food, fruits and vegetables, how much exercise they got, whether their parents were overweight and how long they played video games, on average, each day.

After taking all those factors into account, the investigators found that girls aged 9 to 12 who had higher-than-average levels of BPA in their urine were about twice as likely to be obese as those with lower-than-average levels. The researchers didn't see the same association for boys or for older girls.

One explanation for the results may be that girls who are entering puberty are uniquely vulnerable to the effects of hormone-disrupting chemicals, said study author Dr. De-Kun Li, an epidemiologist at Kaiser Foundation Research Institute and the Stanford School of Medicine, in California.

"Human studies are starting to confirm animal studies that show BPA can disrupt energy storage and energy metabolism," said Li.

One of the most recent questions raised about BPA is whether or not it may be an obesogen, or a chemical that contributes to the development of obesity.

In laboratory studies, BPA produces many of the molecular hallmarks of obesity. It makes fat cells bigger, it blocks the function of a protein called adiponectin, which protects against heart disease, and it disrupts the balance of testosterone and estrogen -- hormones that are important for maintaining a healthy body mass.

One expert found the study results troubling.

"Clearly, unhealthy diet and physical activity are still the leading causes of the childhood obesity epidemic worldwide, but this study adds further concern to the notion that environmental chemicals may be independent contributors," said Dr. Leonardo Trasande, an associate professor of pediatrics, environmental medicine and health policy at NYU Langone Medical Center, in New York City.

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Genes and Early Wheezing Tied to Childhood Asthma Risk

Common cold symptom increased odds for asthma in study

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, March 27 (HealthDay News) -- Certain genetic factors and wheezing early in life are associated with a greatly increased risk of asthma in children, a new study says.

Researchers examined data from nearly 500 children and found that about 90 percent of those who had two copies of a common genetic variation and who also experienced wheezing when they had a cold early in life developed asthma by age 6.

These children, all from families with a history of asthma or allergies, were nearly four times more likely to develop asthma than those who did not have the genetic variation and did not wheeze, according the study in the March 28 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

The genetic variation is found on chromosome 17 and is common. Half of the children in the study had one copy and 25 percent had two copies. The researchers also noted that colds are extremely common and affect nearly all infants.

The increased risk is associated with wheezing during colds caused by a human rhinovirus infection, the University of Chicago Medical Center researchers said.

"We found that the interaction between this specific wheezing illness and a gene or genes on a region of chromosome 17 determines childhood asthma risk," study author Carole Ober, a professor of human genetics at the University of Chicago, said in a medical center news release. "The combination of genetic predisposition and the child's response to this infection has a huge effect."

The researchers said it is not clear how this gene variation and wheezing interact to increase the risk of developing asthma. It also should be noted that the research showed only an association between them, and not a cause-and-effect relationship.

About 25 percent of children who had no wheezing from a human rhinovirus infection developed asthma, and 40 percent of those who experienced wheezing in the first three years of life but lacked the risk-related gene variants developed asthma.

That rose to nearly 60 percent among those with one copy of the gene variant and to 90 percent for those with two copies.

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Women Abused in Childhood at Higher Odds of Having Child With Autism: Study

Title: Women Abused in Childhood at Higher Odds of Having Child With Autism: Study
Category: Health News
Created: 3/20/2013 4:36:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 3/21/2013 12:00:00 AM

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ADHD in Childhood May Raise Risk for Obesity in Adulthood

Study found boys with the disorder were twice as likely to have a higher body-mass index when they were men

By Dennis Thompson

HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, May 20 (HealthDay News) -- Boys who are diagnosed with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are twice as likely to become obese adults as those who didn't have the disorder when they were young, a new 30-year study shows.

Researchers found that men with childhood ADHD tended to have a higher body-mass index (BMI) and obesity, even if they no longer had symptoms of the disorder. Socioeconomics made no difference; well-off or poor, they tended toward obesity.

"The bottom line is, boys who were hyperactive when followed up for more than 30 years turn out to be more likely to be obese than comparable kids from their same communities," said study co-author Dr. Francisco Xavier Castellanos, a professor of child and adolescent psychiatry in the Child Study Center at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City.

"That really seems to be reflective of their early hyperactivity. It doesn't matter what their current diagnosis is so much, so we think these are longstanding issues that likely arose in early adolescence," he added.

A lack of impulse control and poor planning skills, symptoms often associated with ADHD, could lead to poor eating habits and food choices as well as the tendency to overeat, the study authors speculated.

"It fits with other studies, and suggests that the inability to control one's impulses, the tendency to be relatively reward-driven, may represent a risk of obesity over time," Castellanos said.

The study, published online May 20 and in the June print issue of Pediatrics, tracked 111 men diagnosed with childhood hyperactivity, touching base with them at ages 18, 25 and 41. By adulthood, 41 percent had become obese, compared with a non-hyperactive control group that had a 22 percent obesity rate.

The results are somewhat confounding, Castellanos said.

"The pattern of results to a certain extent was counterintuitive," he said. "We thought we would get the strongest effect in those men who manifested ADHD as adults, and that wasn't the case. That suggests that it's not something that is very tightly related to the current diagnosis, but the tendency to have the diagnosis."

The findings run counter to an earlier study that showed that hyperactive adult men had a greater tendency for obesity than men who left childhood ADHD behind, said Dr. Craig Surman, scientific coordinator for the Adult ADHD Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

"So, the simple story here would be we don't know, because you have to replicate studies to know," he said. "The question now becomes why the findings are different."

Future research also needs to consider whether women with childhood ADHD are as likely as men with childhood ADHD to become obese, and whether controlling hyperactivity through the use of medication can have an impact, Surman said.

ADHD is more common in boys than girls, with 12 percent of U.S. boys aged 3 to 17 receiving the diagnosis, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The link between ADHD and obesity has become a topic of great interest as elevated rates of obesity have been reported in children with the disorder, Surman said. Obesity can lead to heart disease and diabetes later in life.

"It's very important to understand the ways ADHD affects life and self-care," Surman said. "We've known for some time that it's not just people's desks and houses that are messy. For some people, it's a lack of ability to control how to care for themselves as well."

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Childhood Depression May Be Tied to Later Heart Risk: Study

For these kids, obesity, smoking and inactivity more likely in adolescence, preliminary research shows

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, March 15 (HealthDay News) -- Teens who were depressed as children are more likely to be obese, to smoke and to be sedentary, a new study finds.

The findings suggest that depression during childhood can increase the risk of heart problems later in life, according to the researchers.

The study included more than 500 children who were followed from ages 9 to 16. There were three groups: those diagnosed with depression as children, their depression-free siblings and a control group of unrelated youngsters with no history of depression.

Twenty-two percent of the kids who were depressed at age 9 were obese at age 16, the study found. "Only 17 percent of their siblings were obese, and the obesity rate was 11 percent in the unrelated children who never had been depressed," study first author Robert Carney, a professor of psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, said in a university news release.

The researchers found similar patterns when they looked at smoking and physical activity.

"A third of those who were depressed as children had become daily smokers, compared to 13 percent of their nondepressed siblings and only 2.5 percent of the control group," Carney said.

Teens who had been depressed as children were the least physically active, their siblings were a bit more active and those in the control group were the most active, according to the study, which is scheduled for presentation Friday at the annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society in Miami. Although the study showed an association between childhood depression and obesity, smoking habits and inactivity later in life, it did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.

These findings are cause for concern because "a number of recent studies have shown that when adolescents have these cardiac risk factors, they're much more likely to develop heart disease as adults and even to have a shorter lifespan," Carney said.

"Active smokers as adolescents are twice as likely to die by the age of 55 than nonsmokers, and we see similar risks with obesity, so finding this link between childhood depression and these risk factors suggests that we need to very closely monitor young people who have been depressed," he said.

Data and conclusions presented at meetings are typically considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.

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Childhood Bullying Can Leave Lifelong Scars

Title: Childhood Bullying Can Leave Lifelong Scars
Category: Health News
Created: 2/20/2013 4:35:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 2/21/2013 12:00:00 AM

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Those Childhood Piano Lessons Should Start Early

Title: Those Childhood Piano Lessons Should Start Early
Category: Health News
Created: 2/14/2013 12:36:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 2/15/2013 12:00:00 AM

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Stroke During Childhood May Raise Risk for Epilepsy, Study Says

Title: Stroke During Childhood May Raise Risk for Epilepsy, Study Says
Category: Health News
Created: 2/7/2013 12:35:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 2/8/2013 12:00:00 AM

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Is Childhood Intelligence Linked to Pain Problems in Adulthood?

Title: Is Childhood Intelligence Linked to Pain Problems in Adulthood?
Category: Health News
Created: 12/4/2012 6:37:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 12/5/2012 12:00:00 AM

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Social Media May Help Fight Childhood Obesity

Title: Social Media May Help Fight Childhood Obesity
Category: Health News
Created: 12/4/2012 5:19:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 12/5/2012 12:00:00 AM

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Rates of Childhood Obesity Fall Slightly

Dec. 25, 2012 -- New data suggest that we may have turned an important corner in the childhood obesity epidemic.

While rates of obesity and extreme obesity in preschoolers rose from 1998 to 2003, they began to plateau soon thereafter. And childhood obesity rates decreased slightly in 2010.

"We are very encouraged by this data," says study researcher Heidi M. Blanck, PhD, of the CDC in Atlanta. "It's pretty exciting and a nice turning of the tide. But we have to stay vigilant or it will go in the other direction."

Researchers looked at data on 27.5 million children aged 2 to 4 from 1998 to 2010. These children were from 30 states and Washington, D.C. Many were eligible for government assistance.

The rate of child obesity rose from 13.05% in 1998 to 15.21% in 2003. But it fell to 14.94% in 2010.

The rate of extreme child obesity declined from 2.22% in 2003 to 2.07% in 2010, the study shows.

The findings appear in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

What makes the data even more promising is that many of the national initiatives aimed at lowering rates of childhood obesity hadn't been started or were not at full force during most of the study period, Blanck says.

For example, efforts aimed at making it easier for new moms to breastfeed are just now gaining traction. Breastfeeding has been shown to help prevent obesity. There are also new programs that help people on food stamps purchase healthier foods.

There's also a lot that families can do in their own homes to encourage healthy lifestyles. These include getting more physical activity during the day and less screen time. "Walk the family dog together to get exercise," Blanck says.

Also, get rid of sugary drinks and beverages in the home, and make fruits and vegetables available. "We know that childhood obesity tracks into adulthood, so it's important to make these changes early and maintain them," she says.

"The news is definitely encouraging," says Leslie Lam, MD. He is a doctor at The Children's Hospital at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City.

William Muinos, MD, says the new findings have not trickled down to his patients yet. He is the associate director of pediatric gastroenterology at Miami Children's Hospital. "My childhood obesity clinic is growing in leaps and bounds," he says. "We can do a lot better."

Shari Barkin, MD, is also not sold on the fact that rates are declining yet. She is a professor of pediatrics at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. "I'm heartened because we are holding our own," she says. "It is good news that we have stabilized, but these current rates, even stabilized, are unacceptable."

Her advice to families is to aim for 30 minutes a day of physical activity. "More is great, but we should all start here," she says. "The best way to get preschoolers active is to get the family involved. "Parents are the best teachers."

And make it fun. "We don't call it exercise, we call it play."

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Social Media May Help Fight Childhood Obesity

BySalynn Boyles
WebMD Health News Reviewed byLouise Chang, MD

Dec. 4, 2012 -- Kids and teens increasingly keep in touch through social media, and all that texting, tweeting, and online networking can be a powerful tool for combating childhood obesity, according to the American Heart Association (AHA).

In a newly released statement, the group calls for more research to help doctors and health policy makers incorporate social media into existing obesity prevention and management programs.

“Almost all kids have Internet access and many have smartphones,” says Duke University chief of pediatric cardiology Jennifer S. Li, MD. “We need to take advantage of social networking to connect with them because it is the way they are connecting with their friends.”

Social Networking Can Fight Fat

An AHA committee led by Li evaluated the research on Internet-based interventions designed to promote weight loss, physical activity, and healthy eating.

The group concluded that the studies have been mixed, and more research is needed to develop strategies for optimizing the use of Web-based interventions in the fight against childhood obesity.

Greater involvement by parents, counselors, and peers was linked to better weight loss outcomes among overweight children and teenagers who participated in one online program, Li says.

She adds that the traditional methods of attempting weight loss, such as seeing a doctor or joining a support group, lack the immediacy of going online.

But the statement warned of potential downsides to social media, including possible exposure to cyber bullying, privacy issues, and spending too much time in front of the screen.

“Because of their limited capacity for self-regulation and susceptibility to peer pressure, adolescents can be at risk as they navigate social media,” the AHA writing group noted.

The report was published Dec. 3 online and it will appear in the Jan. 15 issue of the journal Circulation.

Half of Teens Use Social Media Daily

According to a recent survey of 13- to 17-year-olds, 9 out of 10 teens have used social media, and more than half (51%) use it daily.

Seattle pediatrician Robert Pretlow, MD, created the web site Weigh2Rock more than a decade ago to help children and teens struggling with weight issues. He says the site averages between 50,000 and 100,000 hits a month.

Last May, he discussed the potential power of social networking to help children and teens lose weight and stay active at the European Congress on Obesity in Lyon, France.

“What most kids who are overweight can’t do in the real world is talk about their weight with anyone,” he says. “They don’t talk about it at school, or with their friends, or at home because they are too embarrassed. They don’t want to call attention to it. Ever.”

He says the kids and teens who visit Weigh2Rock seem to like the anonymity of the site, which offers online forums, chat rooms, success stories, and tips for healthy eating and weight loss.

He adds that more than 99% of visitors never post on the site but are content to view the postings of others.

But that doesn’t mean that these "lurkers," as he calls them, don’t benefit.

“Kids who are overweight often feel like they are all alone,” he says. “When they go on the site and see post after post from kids who have the same experiences and problems they have had, it makes them realize this isn’t true. Even if they never post a word, this can be very powerful.”

View Article Sources

SOURCES:

Li, J.S. Circulation, Jan. 15, 2012.

Jennifer S. Li., MD, division chief of pediatric cardiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, N.C.

Robert Pretlow, MD, pediatrician, Seattle, Wash.

News release, American Heart Association.

Common Sense Media: "Social Media, Social Life: How Teens View Their Digital Lives."

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