Bath Time Injuries

We had a fall the other night in the shower. My almost 6-year-old (I can't believe he's that old) slipped on the tile as he was getting out and got a large bump behind his ear. I typically worry about drowning when it comes to bath time dangers so I didn't realize falls were so common. I had to really watch him to make sure he didn't have a concussion. Have your kids ever fallen in the bath tub/shower?

FROM NBC:Bath time is a nightly ritual that precedes bedtime in nearly every household with kids -- but new statistics show how many children are injured in the tub. More than 43-thousand kids and teens are hurt in bathtubs or showers each year. Children under age 4 accounted for more than half of those incidents. Since 80-percent of the injuries were from slips and falls, researchers recommend adding non-slip mats or coatings in bathtubs and showers. The study is from Ohio State University and the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Ohio. This study used data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission from 1990 to 2007.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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The Truth about Organic Food

Many people believe organic foods offer nutritional benefits over inorganic foods, but as Melissa Long reports in today's Health Minute, a new study says that actually may not be the case. Organic food -- pesticide free, better for the environment, and some even say more tasty, but is it more nutritious?

A new study says probably not. The study assessed nutrient differences between organic and conventionally processed foods over the last 50 years, and really didn't find any significant nutrient differences. Clinical nutritionist Cheryl Williams -- who is not affiliated with the study in the Journal of Clinical nutrition -- says, don't let the word "organic" fool you.

There's a number of things consumers should take into account when buying organic products, but if it's just simply because you think it's going to give you more nutrients, that's probably not the best reason. Organic potato chips can have just as much sodium, fat and calories as conventional ones. Organic chocolate chip cookies -- my patients come in and say, "oh, but I bought it at a certain health food store and it has cane syrup!" Same amount of calories, same amount of fat, same amount of sodium.

Williams also says organic food tends to cost 30-to-50 percent more, so the bottom line is: The choice to buy organics should come down to consumer preference.

I guess it depends on what you consider nutritional benefits. Personally, I think no pesticides is a nutritional benefit. I go in spurts with organic food because of the cost. Sometimes I splurge. Sometimes I don't. If money were no object I would always buy organic milk and produce (at least the produce where you eat the skin.) What organic items do you buy for your family?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Afraid to wear shorts? Do you have unwanted hair? Embarrassed by unsightly varicose or spider veins? You don't have to be afraid to wear shorts because you are embarrassed by unwanted hair or unsightly varicose veins. Call 674-Skin to schedule your FREE leg vein or hair removal consultation at Soderstrom Skin Institute.

Soderstrom Skin Institute is positioned to be a comprehensive, full service skin care facility. Visit www.soderstromskininstitute.com to learn what Soderstrom Skin Institute can do for you.

Medication that gives kids cancer

If you know anyone who has kids with these disorders, please forward this story to them. This is scary.

FROM NBC: A study by the Food and Drug Administration links certain drugs used for many inflammatory disorders to be cancerous for kids. The drugs often are used to treat juvenile arthritis and Crohn's disease. The medications include Remicade and other TNF blocker drugs.

Those medicines will now come with a boxed warning highlighting the increased risk of cancer in children and adolescents. An FDA investigation found TNF blockers increased the risk of cancer within an average of 2 1/2 years after beginning treatment.

FROM HEALTH DAY NEWS: Drugs widely used to fight rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease and other inflammatory disorders must now carry an updated "black box" warning label cautioning patients and doctors that the medicines may boost cancer risk in children and adolescents, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday.

The drugs, called tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blockers, work by interrupting a protein that causes inflammation and damage to bones, cartilage and other tissue. They include Remicade (infliximab), Enbrel (etanercept), Humira (adalimumab), Cimzia (certolizumab pegol) and Simponi (golimumab).

"FDA announced that it has completed its analysis of TNF blockers and has concluded that there is an increased risk of lymphoma and other cancers associated with the use of these drugs in children and adolescents," according to FDA spokeswomen Crystal Rice.

"This new safety information is now being added to the boxed warning for these products," she said.

TNF blockers already carry FDA-mandated warning labels for other potential safety issues, including fungal infections. Tuesday's announcement follows on the agency's move last year to review several dozen reports of children who developed cancer while taking the medications. That investigation started in June 2008. The analysis took into account a number of reports of cancers in children treated with these drugs. The malignancies tended to arise about 30 months after starting on the medications.

About half of the cancers were lymphomas and some of the children died, according to the FDA.

The issue gained more prominence in July 2008 when doctors reporting in the New England Journal of Medicine outlined the case of a woman with Crohn's disease who took a TNF blocker and then developed lung cancer. When she ceased using the drug, her cancer disappeared.

The agency is working with manufacturers to find new ways to define the risk of cancer in children and adolescents who use these drugs.

Dr. Patience White, chief public health officer at the Arthritis Foundation, said the risks and benefits of these drugs need to be weighed and the final decision whether to take them or not must be an individual one.

However, "it's good to have this information out there," White said. "It gives people with arthritis an opportunity to go to their doctor and talk about the risk/benefits."

People with these inflammatory illnesses are already at an increased risk for cancer, White noted.

"Then you are giving a drug that probably increases the risk as well. But are both of those worth not taking the drug, and being disabled? That's the discussion," she said.

The hard part for patients will be to balance these risks and benefits, White added. "The risks of the side effects are often very small, but the chance that a person with juvenile arthritis will be disabled and deformed is very high if they don't take therapy," she said. "People often focus on risks and forget the benefits."

Deciding whether or not to take these drugs should be based on the type of disease and a family history of cancer, White said. "It really matters to have a discussion about this," she said. "There isn't really one risk/benefit profile that fits for everybody."

According to the FDA's Rice, patients taking these drugs should:

• Be aware that taking TNF blockers may increase the risk of developing lymphoma, leukemia, and other cancers.
• Be aware that taking TNF blockers may increase the risk of developing psoriasis and may worsen pre-existing psoriasis.
• Review the accompanying medication guide.
• Do not stop or change medicines that have been prescribed without first talking with a knowledgeable health care professional.
• Pay close attention for any signs or symptoms of cancer such as unexplained weight loss or fatigue, swollen lymph nodes in the neck, underarms or groin, or easy bruising or bleeding. Promptly discuss any signs and symptoms with a health care professional.

More information

For more information on TNF blockers and cancer risk, visit the FDA.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Afraid to wear shorts? Do you have unwanted hair? Embarrassed by unsightly varicose or spider veins? You don't have to be afraid to wear shorts because you are embarrassed by unwanted hair or unsightly varicose veins. Call 674-Skin to schedule your FREE leg vein or hair removal consultation at Soderstrom Skin Institute.

Soderstrom Skin Institute is positioned to be a comprehensive, full service skin care facility. Visit www.soderstromskininstitute.com to learn what Soderstrom Skin Institute can do for you.

Vitamin D Deficiency is higher than most think

We have been hearing about vitamin D deficiency since research was released last year. Now, new research is showing the problem is greater than we thought. My baby is due in just a few weeks and now I am wondering if I should be giving him a liquid supplement. I doubt I will be taking him out much this winter. We keep getting reports about the swine flu spreading like crazy this fall.. then there's RSV... and the list goes on. I am not saying I will make him a hermit or anything, but I doubt he will be getting 15 minutes of direct sun a day. So I think this is something I should consider.What are your thoughts?

FROM NBC: We're all used to hearing about the dangers of getting too much sun: tonight, a warning about how our kids aren't getting enough. The proof is in what researchers are calling "shockingly low" levels of Vitamin D, the one we get from sunshine, found in kids' bloodstreams. Here's NBC Chief Medical Editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman. Naomi Fowler already knows that sunshine is important for her three-month-old son Griffin. "My pediatrician expressed concern that children and adults don't get enough Vitamin D, so she suggested a multi-vitamin to supplement the D." In a study in the Journal Pediatrics, researchers report seven out of ten American children have very low levels of Vitamin D, levels too low putting them at potential risk of heart disease, weak bones..even rickets. DR. MELAMED "We were rather shocked when we saw the numbers ." Roughly 9 percent of those age 1 to 21 -- about 7.6 million children, adolescents and young adults -- have Vitamin D levels that could be "deficient" Another 50.8 million -- have higher levels of vitamin D, but still low enough to be considered "insufficient" And one group at particular risk -- African American girls. Their dark skin filters the sun automatically lowering Vitamin D levels. In the 1930's Vitamin D was added to milk and pediatricians believed weak bones and rickets would become problems of the past. But children substituting sports drinks for milk and spending hours in front of one screen or another is taking a toll. Dr. Melamed, "4 hours a day of using computers or watching TV or playing video games they were 60% higher Vitamin D deficiency." Getting Vitamin D is free. It means going out in the sun for just 10 - 15 minutes a day. That amount of time without sunscreen is not enough to hurt you and could ward off serious illnesses--illness like osteoporosis, high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes. Disease pediatricians are seeing early and that can follow people well into adulthood.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Afraid to wear shorts? Do you have unwanted hair? Embarrassed by unsightly varicose or spider veins? You don't have to be afraid to wear shorts because you are embarrassed by unwanted hair or unsightly varicose veins. Call 674-Skin to schedule your FREE leg vein or hair removal consultation at Soderstrom Skin Institute.

Soderstrom Skin Institute is positioned to be a comprehensive, full service skin care facility. Visit www.soderstromskininstitute.com to learn what Soderstrom Skin Institute can do for you.

Blood Test to Save Babies

A NEW BLOOD TEST THAT COULD SAVE THE LIVES OF HUNDREDS OF UNBORN BABIES IS BEING DEVELOPED BY BRITISH RESEARCHERS.

THE TEST WOULD BE USED TO IDENTIFY BABIES CONSIDERED TO BE AT RISK OF DEVELOPING CONDITIONS LIKE DOWNS SYNDROME AND CYSTIC FIBROSIS - REMOVING THE NEED FOR INVASIVE PROCEDURES LIKE AMNIOCENTESIS, WHICH CAUSES SOME WOMEN TO MISCARRY.

Testing for Down Syndrome in the womb can offer a mother reassurance - or if detected, a possibly difficult decision about whether to continue with the pregnancy. An 'amnio' test is usually offered at between 16 and 20 weeks, and it can take 2 weeks to get the result. Now researchers at University College Hospital London are assessing a new blood test, which, if it proves to be as accurate as the amnio test, could remove the risk of triggering a miscarriage.

Prof. Lynn Chitty/Institute of Child Health: "The new test is based on the fact that we now know that the baby's DNA, the baby's genes, circulate in the mother's blood. And therefore if we can analyze the baby's mother's blood and extract the baby's DNA an analyze that then we can get information about the baby's genetic makeup by taking a blood sample from the mother rather than by taking an invasive test. Large-scale trials have just begun of the new blood test, to assess whether the results are as accurate as with the standard amnio test.

Luckily, I haven't had to have an amnio test. I do think most women would much rather have simple blood draw than the test. There are risks associated with it and miscarriage seems to be the big one. Has anyone had an amniocentesis?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Afraid to wear shorts? Do you have unwanted hair? Embarrassed by unsightly varicose or spider veins? You don't have to be afraid to wear shorts because you are embarrassed by unwanted hair or unsightly varicose veins. Call 674-Skin to schedule your FREE leg vein or hair removal consultation at Soderstrom Skin Institute.

Soderstrom Skin Institute is positioned to be a comprehensive, full service skin care facility. Visit www.soderstromskininstitute.com to learn what Soderstrom Skin Institute can do for you.

Water Aerobics for Labor

So my original pregnancy plan was to do Body Pump up until my due date. Then, the contractions started, so I switched to water aerobics. Then I had to stop exercising because my cervix started changing. In the back of my head I was planning on going back to water aerobics a couple weeks before I was due. That plan is squashed too because the baby is breech. Now I don't want to go into labor for fear the baby will come fast (like my other births)and it will be an emergency c-section.
If I could, I would love to take a class of "water aerobics for labor." I labored in the tub with my first and it was great! Has anyone tried water aerobics for labor or maybe even a water birth?

Many pregnant women are hoping to have natural childbirth -- without pain medication and without an epidural. Some women in Texas are doing water aerobics to prepare for labor. Instructor Andrea Mayard guides the expectant mothers through an hour of low impact moves, concentrating on the muscles that wrap around the stomach.. She says it's little like preparing for a marathon.

DESIREE TANGUAMA IS EXPECTING HER FIRST CHILD IN JANUARY AND WANTS A NATURAL CHILDBIRTH..ONE WITHOUT DRUGS.. "I know that I am exhausted when I get out of the water, but I feel fine the next day. I feel like I do get a workout, but while I'm doing it, it's not hard at all."

MISTY BROOM IS EXPECTING HER SECOND CHILD IN NOVEMBER. SHE STOPPED EXERCISING DURING HER FIRST PREGNANCY AND NEEDED PAIN MEDICATION.. "And I immediately began experiencing back pain and all of the other pains that people associate with pregnancy and then giving birth. I was not able to to use the natural childbirth method." "It's like running a race, if you don't work out before the race, you can't run the race, if you do then you are more in control of your body and your muscle structure while you are pushing that baby out, so yes, it will be a little bit easier for them."

BAYLOR-DALLAS OB-GYN YOLANDA LAWSON SAYS 25 PERCENT OF HER PATIENTS CHOOSE NATURAL CHILDBIRTH AND WATER AEROBICS. "Number one, it's buoyancy, it feels good to them, it's relaxing, it's a little bit of therapy for their joints, their muscles and it's believed to be the compression effects of the water."

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Afraid to wear shorts? Do you have unwanted hair? Embarrassed by unsightly varicose or spider veins? You don't have to be afraid to wear shorts because you are embarrassed by unwanted hair or unsightly varicose veins. Call 674-Skin to schedule your FREE leg vein or hair removal consultation at Soderstrom Skin Institute.

Soderstrom Skin Institute is positioned to be a comprehensive, full service skin care facility. Visit www.soderstromskininstitute.com to learn what Soderstrom Skin Institute can do for you.