Emma Roberts out shopping in LA

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'Sensory-Focused' Autism Therapy Shows Early Promise

In small study, parents used variety of methods to stimulate boys' senses

By Mary Brophy Marcus

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, June 5 (HealthDay News) -- Smelling essential oils, walking across textured surfaces, immersing hands in warm water -- these are just some of the therapeutic experiences that boys with autism had while participating in a small new study.

The scientists wanted to learn how "sensory-motor" therapy compared to traditional behavioral therapy methods in boys with autism.

Twenty-eight boys aged 3 to 12 and their parents participated in the six-month-long study, published online May 20 in Behavioral Neuroscience. The boys were split into two groups. Both groups of children participated in daily behavioral therapy, but 13 of the boys also received environmental enrichment, another term for sensory-motor therapy.

The environmental enrichment therapy had a significant positive effect on these children with autism, the study authors said.

"What we've done here for the first time is give humans a sensory-enriched environment and found out that a neurological disorder -- autism -- responds favorably. We saw a 600 percent greater likelihood of having a positive clinical outcome in individuals that had enriched environments compared to those receiving the standard care that children have been receiving for autism up to this point," said study author Michael Leon, a professor of neurobiology and behavior at Center for Autism Research and Treatment at the University of California, Irvine.

However, an autism expert who wasn't part of the study cautioned that other sensory-based therapies showing early promise haven't proven effective so far.

For the new study, parents of the children in the sensory enrichment group were given a kit that contained a broad range of materials aimed at stimulating their child's senses of smell, temperature, texture, sight and movement. Vials of essential oils scented of apple, lavender, sweet orange and vanilla, were among the items. Squares of different textured materials included smooth foam, hardwood flooring, sponges, felt and sandpaper.

The children were also given the opportunity to play with objects: beads, a small piggy bank with plastic coins, pictures of famous art, a can of Play-Doh, a bowl to hold warm or cool water and more.

The researchers asked parents to conduct two therapy sessions a day with their child, and to run four to seven different exercises during each session that involved different combinations of the items in the kit. Sessions ranged from 15 to 30 minutes. The children also listened to classical music once a day.

As the six-month period progressed, parents were encouraged to offer more complex enrichment exercises. For example, a child would be given the chance to select a textured square and in addition to feeling it would be encouraged to match it to another square of the same material.

By the end of the six months, Leon said the enrichment group children had significantly improved compared to the children who received standard therapy alone. He said 42 percent of the boys in the enrichment group improved in their ability to relate to other people and in their ability to respond to sights and sounds, compared with 7 percent of the standard care group.

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Barack Obama and the Easter Bunny at the White House

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Listeria Food Poisoning Hits Elderly, Moms-to-Be Hardest: CDC

Most recent cases linked to soft cheeses, produce

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, June 4 (HealthDay News) -- Soft cheese and raw produce have caused many recent listeria outbreaks in the United States, and at least 90 percent of cases typically occur among seniors, pregnant women, newborns and people with weakened immune systems, a new U.S. health report says.

Pregnant women are 10 times more likely to get this serious form of food poisoning than others in the general population, and the risk is 24 times higher among pregnant Hispanic women, according to the Vital Signs report, released Tuesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

People aged 65 and older are four times more likely to get listeria infection than those in the general population, said the CDC researchers who analyzed 2009-2011 data on listeria illness rates and foods associated with listeria outbreaks.

"Listeria strikes hard at pregnant women, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems, sending many to the hospital and causing miscarriage or death in as many as one in five," CDC director Dr. Tom Frieden said in an agency news release.

"We need to develop new cutting-edge molecular technologies to help us link illnesses and outbreaks to foods faster to prevent illness and death, which is why the President's budget proposes investing in new tools to advance this work," Frieden added.

The findings highlight the need to educate people about how to prevent listeria infections, the report stated.

More than 1,650 listeria illnesses were reported to the CDC during the three-year study period, the report authors found.

About 20 percent of the infections caused a death, most of which occurred among seniors or as miscarriages or stillbirths. Pregnant women with listeria infections often have only mild symptoms or a fever, but their infections can result in miscarriage, premature labor and serious illness or death in their newborns, the report noted.

Twelve listeria outbreaks sickened 224 people in 38 states over the study period. These outbreaks included the large 2011 outbreak linked to cantaloupes from one farm. Of the 10 outbreaks with an identified food source, six were linked to soft cheese (mostly Mexican-style cheeses) and two to raw produce (whole cantaloupe and pre-cut celery).

Improved technology and regulatory changes led to a 25 percent drop in rates of listeria illness in the United States between the 1990s and early 2000s, largely because of changes affecting meat and poultry. But declining rates have since leveled off, and this report shows the need for additional measures to further reduce consumers' risk of developing listeria illness from foods, the CDC authors noted.

No one should drink unpasteurized milk or eat soft cheese made from unpasteurized milk, and hot dogs should be cooked until they're steaming hot, the CDC states. Also, proper cleaning, storage and refrigeration can help prevent listeria outbreaks.

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FDA Approves 1st in New Class of Type 2 Diabetes Drugs

Title: FDA Approves 1st in New Class of Type 2 Diabetes Drugs
Category: Health News
Created: 3/29/2013 6:35:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 4/1/2013 12:00:00 AM

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surpassed my first goal

My son is 1 already, when I started this, he was only 2-3 months old. I'm pleased to say that after tipping the scales to 335 3 weeks after he was born, now 3 weeks after his first birthday, I'm looking down at 292.5. Goal 1: break below 300--check! (I had never seen then number on the scale, it scared me.) Goal 2: break below pre-baby weight (286)--here I come!

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Another Study Sees No Vaccine-Autism Link

Title: Another Study Sees No Vaccine-Autism Link
Category: Health News
Created: 3/29/2013 10:35:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 3/29/2013 12:00:00 AM

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