The peak risk for misusing prescription pain relievers occurs in mid-adolescence, specifically about 16 years old and earlier than many experts thought, according to a new study by Michigan State University researchers.
The results, based on recent nationwide surveys of nearly 120,000 U.S. adolescents, suggest prevention programs may need to be introduced earlier, in childhood and early adolescence, said James C. Anthony of MSU’s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics.
Recent trends show clinicians and public health professionals are prescribing more pain relievers, and research suggests an increased misuse of these drugs and increased rates of overdose deaths, said Anthony, who supervised the research of postdoctoral fellow Elizabeth Meier and graduate student Jonathan Troost.
“While much of the previous thinking was that misuse of these drugs emerged in the final year of high school and during the college-age years, we found that for adolescents the peak risk of starting to misuse these painkillers generally occurs earlier, not during the postsecondary school years,” Anthony said. “We suspect many physicians, other prescribing clinicians and public health professionals, will share our surprise in this finding.”
The study, supported by grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse and MSU, was published today in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, a network publication of the Journal of the American Medical Association. [continue reading…]
When children with autism were randomly compared with typically developing children or children with other developmental disorders, biomarkers correctly identified more than thirty percent of autistic children without incorrectly identifying a single non-autistic child. Image: istockphoto
Autism is difficult to diagnose because of a lack of specific biological markers and a variability of symptoms, ranging from mild in some individuals to severely disabling in others.
Now a team of University of Washington and Battelle scientists have identified metabolites in urine that could potentially predict young children at risk of developing autism.
The varying degrees and manifestations of this developmental brain condition are collectively called autistic spectrum disorder. ASD is characterized by impaired social interactions, difficulty in communicating, and repetitive behaviors. Many other symptoms also can be present, including anxiety, depression, learning disabilities, sleep disorders, and gastrointestinal problems.
Currently, diagnosing a child with ASD requires a thorough evaluation by a team of health professionals from a wide range of specialties. Early intervention often can reduce or prevent the more severe symptoms and disabilities associated with ASD.
Autism specialists and many other people look forward to a day when a test for a biological marker might detect autism risk in young children. To this end, Seattle researchers evaluated porphyrins in the urine of children to determine if the levels of these metabolites could predict ASD. [continue reading…]
The flavanoids in strawberries and blueberries could help delay dementia. EPA/Bilawal Arbab
People who eat greater amounts of blueberries and strawberries could delay their cognitive ageing by years, according to data from a large-scale study conducted over more than three decades.
In a paper published in the journal Annals of Neurology, German and US researchers report that cognitive decline could be delayed by up to 2½ years in elderly people who eat more of the flavonoid-rich berries.
Flavonoids are compounds found in fruits, nuts and vegetables that have been linked to disease prevention through their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Berries are particularly high in a type of flavonoid called anthocyanidins, which can cross the blood–brain barrier to areas of learning and memory. [continue reading…]
Commonly prescribed anti-depressants appear to be doing patients more harm than good, say researchers who have published a paper examining the impact of the medications on the entire body.
“It’s important because millions of people are prescribed anti-depressants each year, and the conventional wisdom about these drugs is that they’re safe and effective.”
“We need to be much more cautious about the widespread use of these drugs,” says Paul Andrews, an evolutionary biologist at McMaster University and lead author of the article, published today in the online journal Frontiers in Psychology.
Andrews and his colleagues examined previous patient studies into the effects of anti-depressants and determined that the benefits of most anti-depressants, even taken at their best, compare poorly to the risks, which include premature death in elderly patients.
Anti-depressants are designed to relieve the symptoms of depression by increasing the levels of serotonin in the brain, where it regulates mood. The vast majority of serotonin that the body produces, though, is used for other purposes, including digestion, forming blood clots at wound sites, reproduction and development.
What the researchers found is that anti-depressants have negative health effects on all processes normally regulated by serotonin.
The findings include these elevated risks:
developmental problems in infants
problems with sexual stimulation and function and sperm development in adults
digestive problems such as diarrhea, constipation, indigestion and bloating
The peak risk for misusing prescription pain relievers occurs in mid-adolescence, specifically about 16 years old and earlier than many experts thought, according to a new study by Michigan State University researchers.
The flavanoids in strawberries and blueberries could help delay dementia. EPA/Bilawal Arbab