Food Allergies

A food allergy occurs when your body's immune system responds to harmless food as if it were a threat to your body. It is actually a 2-step process. When you have your first exposure to a food that your body is allergic to, your immune system produces immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies to that allergen. The next time you are exposed to that allergen, you will have an allergic reaction to that food.

Symptoms of food allergy

If you are allergic to a particular food, you may experience some or all of the following symptoms:

- Itching in your mouth or swelling
- GI symptoms, such as vomiting, diarrhea, or abdominal cramps and pain
- Hives or eczema
- Tightening of the throat and trouble breathing
- Drop in blood pressure

If you have any of these symptoms, it is important to seek medical help immediately, especially if you have trouble breathing. Severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) can lead to death.

You may need to see an allergist to figure out which food(s) you are allergic to. Once you know the foods that cause on allergic reaction, it is important to avoid them. Some foods are obvious and are easy to avoid, but if you are allergic to something like peanuts, for example, it is important to read food labels which now have warnings on them about allergies.

If you have food allergies, you should wear a medical alert bracelet that identifies your allergies in case you have a severe reaction and are unable to communicate.

Here are some links to more detailed information about food allergies:

Food Allergy (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

Tips to Remember: Food Allergy (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology)

Allergy Blood Testing (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)

Allergy Skin Tests (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Food Allergies: Reducing the Risks (Food and Drug Administration) - PDF

Egg, Milk or Wheat Allergies: What to Avoid (InteliHealth, Harvard Medical School)

Exercise for your Health

I figured since there will be many folks who overindulge on candy and regular food around the Easter holiday, I'd post some information on exercise to help you work off those extra calories! Before starting any exercise program, check with your doctor first.

Exercise is a must for everyone. It will help many aspects of your health. If you don't get enough exercise, you are at an increase chance of:

Heart disease
Type 2 diabetes
High blood pressure
High blood cholesterol
Having a stroke

The ideal goal is to have at least 2 1/2 hours of moderate aerobic exercise a week (1/2 hour of exercise five days a week). You should also do strengthening exercises at least 2 days a week (push-ups, sit-ups, lifting weights).

Some examples of moderate exercise are:

Biking slowly
Canoeing
Dancing
General gardening (raking, trimming shrubs)
Tennis (doubles)
Using your manual wheelchair
Using hand cyclers— also called arm ergometers
Walking briskly Water aerobics

After you have adjusted to the moderate exercises, you may want to turn it up a notch and increase your exercises to a more vigorous level. Again, make sure you check with your doctor first. Some examples of vigorous exercise are:

Aerobic dance
Basketball
Fast dancing
Jumping rope
Martial arts (such as karate)
Race walking, jogging, or running
Riding a bike on hills or riding faster
Soccer
Swimming fast or swimming laps Tennis (singles)

If you want more detailed information on exercise, check out these links:

Be Active Your Way: A Guide for Adults (Dept. of Health and Human Services) - PDF

Physical Activity for Everyone Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Fitness Fundamentals: Guidelines for Personal Exercise Programs (President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition)

Tips to Help You Get Active National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

Guide to Physical Activity (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

Alzheimer's Disease

You may have seen on the news that Alzheimer's diagnostic guidelines have been updated for first time in decades. The NIH-supported revision also proposes staging of disease, potential use of biomarkers.

I have some information about those changes and at the end of this post are some links to general information on Alzheimer's disease as well as important information for caregivers.

To reflect what has been learned, the National Institute on Aging/Alzheimer's Association Diagnostic Guidelines for Alzheimer’s Disease cover three distinct stages of Alzheimer's disease:

Preclinical — The preclinical stage, for which the guidelines only apply in a research setting, describes a phase in which brain changes, including amyloid buildup and other early nerve cell changes, may already be in process. At this point, significant clinical symptoms are not yet evident. In some people, amyloid buildup can be detected with positron emission tomography (PET) scans and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis, but it is unknown what the risk for progression to Alzheimer’s dementia is for these individuals. However, use of these imaging and biomarker tests at this stage are recommended only for research. These biomarkers are still being developed and standardized and are not ready for use by clinicians in general practice.

Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) — The guidelines for the MCI stage are also largely for research, although they clarify existing guidelines for MCI for use in a clinical setting. The MCI stage is marked by symptoms of memory problems, enough to be noticed and measured, but not compromising a person’s independence. People with MCI may or may not progress to Alzheimer's dementia. Researchers will particularly focus on standardizing biomarkers for amyloid and for other possible signs of injury to the brain. Currently, biomarkers include elevated levels of tau or decreased levels of beta-amyloid in the CSF, reduced glucose uptake in the brain as determined by PET, and atrophy of certain areas of the brain as seen with structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). These tests will be used primarily by researchers, but may be applied in specialized clinical settings to supplement standard clinical tests to help determine possible causes of MCI symptoms.

Alzheimer's Dementia — These criteria apply to the final stage of the disease, and are most relevant for doctors and patients. They outline ways clinicians should approach evaluating causes and progression of cognitive decline. The guidelines also expand the concept of Alzheimer's dementia beyond memory loss as its most central characteristic. A decline in other aspects of cognition, such as word-finding, vision/spatial issues, and impaired reasoning or judgment may be the first symptom to be noticed. At this stage, biomarker test results may be used in some cases to increase or decrease the level of certainty about a diagnosis of Alzheimer's dementia and to distinguish Alzheimer's dementia from other dementias, even as the validity of such tests is still under study for application and value in everyday clinical practice.

Here are some other links to check out:

Alzheimer’s Association Report: 2011 Alzheimer’s disease facts and figures

National Institute on Aging: Alzheimer’s Disease Fact Sheet

Understanding Alzheimer's Disease (National Institute on Aging)

Caregiver Guide (National Institute on Aging)

Caregiver Stress (Alzheimer's Association)

National Stress Awareness Day

To recognize National Stress Awareness Day (April 18th) I decided to post some information on stress that includes some links to more detailed information.

Since everyone has experienced stress at some point in their lives it’s important to learn how to cope with it. There are different kinds of stress that have different symptoms and treatment approaches and it is important to be able to distinguish them so you know how to deal with them.

Acute Stress:

Acute stress is the most common form of stress. It lasts only for a relatively short period of time: getting your taxes paid on time, a fender bender traffic accident, or a project deadline are examples of things that can cause acute stress. The most common symptoms are:

- emotional distress, including anger or irritability, anxiety, and depression
- muscular problems including tension headache, back pain, jaw pain,
- stomach and bowel problems such as heartburn, acid stomach, diarrhea, and irritable bowel syndrome;
- short term stress can lead to elevation in blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, sweaty palms, heart palpitations, dizziness, migraine headaches, cold hands or feet, shortness of breath, and chest pain.

Episodic Acute Stress:

Episodic acute stress is when you experience frequent occurrences of acute stress—you’re always in a rush but you’re always late; you can never seem to get organized; you’re always worrying about something.

The symptoms are:

elevation in blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, sweaty palms, heart palpitations, dizziness, migraine headaches, cold hands or feet, shortness of breath, and chest pain.

Chronic Stress:

Chronic stress grinds at people day after day and causes wear and tear on the body. Chronic stress includes experiences like dysfunctional families, poverty, or unhappiness with one’s job.

Chronic stress can lead to suicide, violence, heart attacks and other problems. Depression may set in and lives are destroyed. Treatment often involves both medical and behavioral interventions.

DEALING WITH STRESS:

You can prevent or reduce stress by:

- Planning ahead
- Preparing for stressful events

Some stress is hard to avoid. You can find ways to manage stress by:

- Noticing when you feel stressed
- Taking time to relax
- Getting active and eating healthy
- Talking to friends and family

For more information on managing stress, visit Stress Management from the American Heart Association.

Links to more information:
Stress: Constant Stress Puts Your Health at Risk (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Listening to the Warning Signs of Stress (American Psychological Association)

Stress Symptoms: Effects on Your Body, Feelings and Behavior (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

New Study about Teens Involved in Traffic Accidents

I came across this press release from State Farm about a study involving teen drivers and I thought it was worth sharing:

Philadelphia, April 11, 2011 - A recent study by The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and State Farm Insurance Companies® hones in on the most common errors teen drivers make that lead to a serious crash. Teen drivers are involved in fatal crashes at four times the rate of adults. The findings were published in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention.

Researchers analyzed a nationally-representative federal database of more than 800 crashes involving teen drivers and identified a few common "critical errors" that are often one of the last in a chain of events leading up to a crash. Seventy-five percent of these crashes were due a critical teen driver error, with three common errors accounting for nearly half of all serious crashes. Among crashes with a teen driver error:

- Twenty-one percent occurred due to lack of scanning that is needed to detect and respond to hazards.
- Twenty-one percent occurred due to going too fast for road conditions, (for example, driving too fast to respond to others, or to successfully navigate a curve)
- Twenty percent occurred due to being distracted by something inside or outside the vehicle.

The researchers note that environmental conditions, such as poor weather, vehicle malfunction, aggressive driving, or physical impairments such as drowsy driving were not primary factors in most crashes. "This study helps dispel the myth that most teen crashes are due to aggressive driving or thrill-seeking," said Allison Curry, Ph.D., lead author and a researcher at CHOP's Center for Injury Research and Prevention (CIRP). “Promoting safe driving skills is as important as preventing problem behaviors."

By getting very specific about the types of teen driver errors that are most likely to precede a crash, this study makes it possible to target policies, programs, driver education and other strategies to reduce those critical errors and prevent crashes from happening.

"Laws and policies that address distractions by limiting the number of peer passengers and prohibiting cell phone use among novice drivers will help reduce crash rates, but will only address part of the problem," says study co-author Dennis Durbin, MD, MSCE, who co-directs CIRP. "Many crashes will still occur due to the inability of teen drivers to detect and respond to a hazard in time. Formal teen driver training and parent-teen practice drives should focus on building scanning and hazard awareness skills."

Scanning involves observing the surroundings far ahead of the vehicle and side-to-side, not just immediately in front of the hood. It is a higher-level skill that experienced drivers develop over time. The study authors note that developing effective ways to teach this skill sooner in the learning-to-drive process could reduce teen crash risk. Pilot tests of this type of training have shown promise in increasing hazard detection and response skills among novice drivers.

"This research gets us one step closer to understanding why teens crash and what we can do to help prevent future crashes," says Cindy Garretson, Director of Auto Technology Research. "Strong graduated driver licensing laws, along with educational programs that are focused on common teen driver errors, will help keep our roads safer for everyone."

Germs and hygiene

Germs can be spread in many ways, including through the air and on surfaces. That’s why it’s important to take measures to stop the spread of germs. Some tips to stop the spread of germs are:

- Covering your mouth and nose when you sneeze or cough
- Cleaning your hands often
- always before you eat or prepare food, and after you use the bathroom or change a diaper
- Avoiding touching your eyes, nose or mouth

Frequent handwashing is one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of germs. Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. (If you sing Happy Birthday through twice, that takes about 20 seconds.) If you don’t have access to soap and water, alcohol-based hand sanitizers or disposable wipes work well.

Kitchen safety:

When preparing food, it is important to use proper sanitizing techniques to avoid the spread of germs. Here are some tips to help keep things safe:

- Wash your hand frequently when handling food
- Wash cutting boards and utensils thoroughly before using and when switching between foods
- Wash all fruits and vegetables under cold running tap water
- Do not cross-contaminate foods:
- use separate cutting boards for meat and vegetables
- use separate utensils when handling meats and vegetables or wash them thoroughly between foods,
- wash your hands thoroughly after touching meat

Cook foods to the proper temperature:

Beef, Veal, Lamb Steaks and Roasts
145 °F

Fish
145 °F

Pork
160 °F

Beef, Veal, Lamb Ground
160 °F

Egg Dishes
160 °F

Turkey, Chicken and Duck
Whole, Pieces & Ground
165 °F

Links to helpful information on Germs:

Ounce of Prevention Keeps the Germs Away: Seven Keys to a Safer Healthier Home (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF

Germs: Understand and Protect against Bacteria, Viruses and Infection (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Stopping Germs at Home, Work and School (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Hand Washing: Do's and Dont's (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Teen Drug Use

A national study confirms teen drug use trending in wrong direction: Marijuana, Ecstasy use up since 2008. After a decade of decline, a new study released by The Partnership at Drugfree.org and MetLife Foundation indicates a dramatic increase of teen use of marijuana and Ecstasy. There was a 67% increase in the number of teens who admitted to using Ecstasy in the past year and a 22% increase in marijuana use. The study also describes alcohol consumption, as well as abuse of other drugs. For the full report, visit Teen Drug Use

For more information on teen drug use, visit the MedlinePlus Drugs and Young People page.

Child Abuse Prevention Month

Since April is Child Abuse Prevention Month I thought I’d provide some general information on child abuse, as well as some links to more detailed information. Child abuse is a common problem in the United States. Approximately three million cases of child abuse and neglect involving almost 5.5 million children are reported each year.

It is important to recognize the signs and symptoms of child abuse.

Physical Signs
- Any injury (bruise, burn, fracture, abdominal or head injury) that cannot be explained
- Genital pain or bleeding, as well as a sexually transmitted disease

Behavioral Changes that Raise Concern about Possible Abuse
- Fearful behavior (nightmares, depression, unusual fears)
- Abdominal pain, bedwetting (especially if the child has already been toilet trained)
- Attempts to run away
- Extreme sexual behavior that seems inappropriate for the child’s age
- Sudden change in self-confidence
- Headaches or stomachaches with no medical cause
- Abnormal fears, increased nightmares - School failure
- Extremely passive or aggressive behavior
- Failure to gain weight (especially in infants) or sudden dramatic weight gain - Desperately affectionate behavior or social withdrawal
- Big appetite and stealing food Neglecting a child is also a form of child abuse.

Be on alert for any of these signs of neglect.

Consider the possibility of neglect when the child:
- Is frequently absent from school
- Begs or steals food or money
- Lacks needed medical or dental care, immunizations, or glasses
- Is consistently dirty and has severe body odor - Lacks sufficient clothing for the weather - Abuses alcohol or other drugs
- States that there is no one at home to provide care

The major reasons for physical and psychological mistreatment of children within the family often are parental feelings of isolation, stress, and frustration. It’s important for parents to learn how to control their emotions so they don’t take things out on their children. Parents need companionship from other adults who will help them by listening during times of frustrations and other problems. There are also support groups to help.

To prevent abuse from outside the home, it is important for parents to be involved in their child’s activities and to know the people they hang around with. Do not allow them to wander into unfamiliar places and to be around unfamiliar people. It’s important to teach your children to be careful, while at the same time not frightening them. Make sure they know it is ok to tell you if someone does something to them that frightens them.

For more information on child abuse, visit these web sites:
Recognizing Child Abuse and Neglect: Signs and Symptoms (Children's Bureau)

Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect (Children's Bureau)

Tips for Being a Nurturing Parent (Children's Bureau) - PDF

Responding to a Disclosure of Child Abuse (National Network for Child Care) – PDF

Responding to a Disclosure of Child Abuse (National Network for Child Care) – PDF (Although this contains some local information for Nevada, it also contains some very helpful general tips)

Smoking Deaths in the U.S.

I just read an article from Reuters with this headline: "Smoking causes half a million deaths each year in the U.S., killing slightly more men than women, new statistics show." Worldwide, the number of smoking deaths is between 5 & 6 million. That is a lot of preventable deaths. If you want to read the complete article from Reuters, here is the link: Half a million die from smoking yearly in U.S.

For links to all kinds of information on smoking, visit the MedlinePlus Smoking page.