** Latest News ** - The Office of Minority Health

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	The study of Epigenetics An article in the FASEB journal explains the science of epigenetics or the study of genetics across life spans, finding that a lack of nutrients for a pregnant mother results in smaller offspring predisposed to being undernourished.
	Exercise Benefits Overweight Children A study out of the Medical College of Georgia found that overweight children who exercise daily boosted self esteem and reduced depressive symptoms.
	Parents are Key Factor in Obesity Researchers out of UCLA have found that a strong link to teens and obesity is the amount and types of food they consume because they follow their parents’ eating habits.
	Ritalin Leads to Brain Changes Methylphenidate, sold as Ritalin for treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, causes changes to neurons in the reward areas of the brain similar to those seen in cocaine users, according to new research from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
	Leukemia Relapse Indicator Identified Scientists have identified the gene mutations that indicate the likelihood of leukemia relapse in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, according to an article in the Jan. 29 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
	Measurement of Kidney Function Improves To determine how much kidney function a child with chronic kidney disease has, scientists have modified the formula that measures the rate that fluids flow through capillaries of the kidneys. This allows the measurement to be more accurate and for the doctor to adjust the dosage of medicine to prevent kidney failure.
	Studies show Spirituality May Help Teens Two studies out of the University of Cincinnati have found that teens with chronic illnesses cope better if they have a sense of spirituality in their lives.
	Combating Third-hand Smoke According to a journal article in the January issue of Pediatrics, parents who smoke outside of the house or while their children aren’t around, may still be exposing their offspring to harmful toxins. “Toxic particulate” matter is released from cigarette smoke and can rest in hair and clothing, which is referred to as third-hand smoke.
	Views of Alcohol, Coercion Vary Greatly for Boys, Girls A UK study found that boys and girls opinions varied greatly when presented with different scenarios about teens having sex and when it may be acceptable to for a person to be forced into having intercourse. The use of alcohol as a means to getting a person’s way was viewed as acceptable in the boys’ focus groups.
	Hormone Therapy Produces Miracle Growth Growth hormones have been proven to increase a child’s final height regardless of whether the child is hormone growth deficient, according to a study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. An average of three inches were added to final heights and seemed to work better in children of parents with average heights.
	Diabetes linked to Language Delays in Children According to an article in Pediatrics, children of women with pregnancy-related diabetes are twice as likely to experience language development problems.
	School-based Program Focuses on Chronic Disease A study in the December issue of the Journal of School Health details the program Kickin’ Asthma and how it is used within a target school to teach children disease-management skills.
	Secondhand smoke raises odds of fertility problems in women Females exposed to secondhand smoke, at any age, are more likely to be infertile and experience miscarriages, according to a report from scientists at the University of Rochester.
	Place of Birth Contributes to Asthma Disparity A person’s birthplace seems to play a role in whether or not asthma develops, according to researchers from Tuft University who compared rates between American-born and foreign-born individuals. The study appears in the Journal of Asthma.
	Study Pinpoints “hidden homeless” and Link to Poor Health A study out of Boston University finds that children in Boston who experience frequent moves are more likely to have poor health.
	Study Examines Rare Injuries of High School Athletes A study from researchers at the Center for injury Research and Policy have found that 3.5 percent of injuries are deemed rare injuries and can lead to surgery and possibly death, according to an article in the Journal of Athletic Training.
	Exercise Relieves Children’s Anger A study out of the Medical College of Georgia that looked at 208 children, found that regular exercise reduced the amount of anger children expressed.
	Sleep Linked to Weight A study out of the University of Montreal finds that 26 percent of children who did not get enough sleep—at least 10 hours—were overweight by age 6. Some of the causes for fewer hours of sleep were episodes of bed-wetting, nightmares and teeth-grinding.
	Study Finds Teens Susceptible A study appearing in the journal BMC Pediatrics found that teens who did not use drugs, but who smoke, drank alcohol and were sexually active were more likely to use methamphetamines.
	Researchers Link Autism to Environment The cause for autism in “genetically vulnerable children” seems to point toward several environmental factors, according to researchers at Cornell University and their article published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
	Removing Sodas from School doesn’t Affect Consumption A study published in the November/December issue of Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior found that even when sodas were removed from a Maine high school, the level of children’s soda consumption was similar to students in high schools where soda was available.
	Relying on the Grandparents According to a study out of John Hopkins, utilizing grandparents to care for children instead of organized daycare cut child injury rates in half. This study appears in the November 2008 issue of Pediatrics.
	Counseling Needed for Violence Victims A study out of John Hopkins finds that children who are victims of violence respond better after receiving one-on-one counseling and mentoring.
	TV Programming linked to Teen Pregnancy A study from the RAND Corporation found that teens who watch television programming that contains sexual content were twice as likely to become pregnant than their peers, according to the November issue of Pediatrics.
	At-risk Adolescents Lagging Behind According to a study published in the November issue of Pediatrics, adolescents who may be at a higher risk for getting the flu and battling its complications are not receiving the vaccination.
	Drug Use Increases among Young A study out of Saint Louis University finds that children, ages 10 to 14, have more than doubled their use of drugs for obesity-related diseases.
	Aggressive Phototherapy Improves Babies' Odds In the Oct. 30 New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that aggressive phototherapy led to decreased rates of premature babies developing blindness, deafness or cerebral palsy.
	Study reveals Importance of Treating Jaundice A study by NIH found that treating severe jaundice in premature infants decreased their rate of brain injury, according to the article in the Oct. 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
	The risk of flaxseed At the University of Montreal, researchers have found that the consumption of flaxseed oil, during the last two trimesters by pregnant women, quadrupled their risk of giving birth prematurely.
	Breastfeeding and Obesity Link Temple researchers conducted a study to find out how breastfeed is linked to lower obesity rates in children. They found that children who are breastfed were able to tell when they were full, while children who were bottle fed were less likely to know they were full and had a higher BMI rate.
	Researchers id Puberty Disorder Gene Researchers at the Medical College of Georgia have pinpointed a gene that can lead to puberty disorders, infertility, cleft palates, mental retardation and an inability to smell.
	Extra Cash leading to more calories A cash-incentive program begun by the Mexican government and modeled in the US is aimed at alleviating poverty. And while the outcomes have been positive for children, a UC Berkley study shows that the results have had a downside for parents and even led to greater risks of obesity.
	Asthma-related Virus may hide in Lungs A virus that can lead to asthma and was once thought to clear up over time may still be present in the lungs to cause recurrent episodes of wheezing and chronic airway disease.
	Health Factors effecting GPA
	Bred for Obesity Researchers have tested which factors determine fetal overgrowth and whether or not a child will have a greater chance of being obese based on a pregnant mother’s food consumption.
	Early Drug Exposure Leads to Health Risks Research out of Duke University has found a connection between drug use during a person’s teen years and health factors when that person is in their thirties. Although this may be considered common knowledge, the authors of the study classified their survey participants as “good” or “bad” kids and found that both groups incurred similar results, such as pregnancies, criminal convictions and sexually transmitted diseases, at similar rates.
	Disparities in Cardiovascular Health Linked to Race An article published in the American Journal of Human Biology suggests that the likeliness of cardiovascular problems later in life may be linked to low birth weight and that a baby’s low birth weight may be attributed to social factors instead of genetics, making it possible for a great-grandmother’s health to affect her great-grandson.
	Marijuana’s effect on teenage brain Researcher presented at the annual American Academy of Pediatrics meeting on Oct. 12 revealed that brains of teens who use marijuana are working harder than teens who abstain from the drug. The effects were even more noticeable in females and resulted in a compromise of the prefrontal cortex, which is in charge of concentration, planning and decision making.
	Study of boys who commit dating violence A qualitative study, which appeared in the September issue of the American Journal of Men’s Health, focuses on the lives of teen boys who are violent toward girls. Several common themes among the boys studied were witnessing violence in the home, failing in school and family troubles.
	The Perks of Walking A study conducted at the University of Illinois found that children with ADHD showed increased attention levels and decreased symptoms after a 20-minute walk in the park, compared to a walk in a more urban setting for the same length of time.
	Treatment for Eye Muscle Problem Researchers have found a more effective way to treat a common problem with children’s eye muscle coordination. Based on a 12-week study, results showed that children who received in-office therapy from a trained therapist and then received at-home treatments did better than children who only received in-office treatment.
	Fumes from Stove Aggravate Asthma In the October issue of Environmental Health Perspectives, researchers studied asthma flare-ups in children from poor, inner-city neighborhoods and found that attacks were related to the presence of nitrogen dioxide, which is often emitted from unvented gas stoves.
	Families Benefit from Sports This study involving more than 2,000 students and 800 parents found that communication is often better in families whose children play sports and that girls living in urban settings are less likely to have opportunities to play.
	Navigating the Maze The Department of Defense is offering its online toolkit tailored to military parents of children with special needs. The kit contains sample letters, parent resources and intervention tools.
	Protecting Your Family from Lead Poisoning The CDC will offer two new podcasts for parents who are looking to protect their family from lead poisoning, especially for families living in homes built before 1978.
	Tracking Your Child’s Developments The CDC is offering information and interactive tools to help parents monitor their child’s development beyond the usual signs parents look for, like height and weight. Although the site provides information for parents who may be concerned about autism, developmental signs are available to any parent who desires to see if their child’s behavior corresponds with his or her age.
	NIH Site Reveals Info on Clinical Trials and Minors The new Web site from NIH uses videos to discuss the reasoning behind involving children in clinical trials and what trials are being conducted across the nation. The site is aimed at parents and health care providers and explains the different methods of research and what can be expected if a child participates in a clinical trial.
	Vending Machines still Offer Calories Despite changes, researchers from Temple University found that of the seven participating middle schools they looked at, the vending machines still offered items ranging from no calories (water) to items with 480 calories. One of the goals of the HEALTHY Study, funded by NIH, is to curb the risk for Type II diabetes in middle school children. “The program’s goal is to ultimately remove all juice and sugar added beverages, offer water instead and eliminate candy from vending machines,” said Amy Virus, senior health services coordinator for the study and president of the Pennsylvania Dietetic Association.
	Parent-controlled Asthma According to a study published in the October issue of Pediatrics, researchers found that “parents’ expectations and perceptions are key factors” when it comes to how effectively children use prescribed medications.
	Parents Unaware of Risks Survey results presented at the American Scientists of Gastroenterology’s annual conference, found that less that 13 percent of parents do not view their children’s risk for obesity correctly. Although all of the parents surveyed had children whose weight was high compared to children of the same height, less than one third of parents were aware of this fact, which increases a child’s risk of having gastrointestinal problems later in life.
	Online Bullying Common among Young Internet Users According to a study published in the Journal of School Health, online bullying is not a rarity among students, ages 12 to 17, who frequently use the internet. More than 70 percent of survey participants encountered one incident in the previous year and more than 80 percent of them also experienced a bullying event at school.
	NIH Focuses on Little Ears NIH’s National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders rolled out their new program on Oct. 2, targeting the parents of children, ages 8 to 12. The goal is to educate parents and their children about the importance of protecting a child’s hearing. Their site, Noisy Planet, can be used to target questions from parents and children about possible causes of hearing loss in everyday life.
	Asthma Rate Higher in Sexually Abused In a study released in the Sept. 2008 issue of American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, researchers studied a sample of more than 1,300 Puerto Rican children and their parents. They found that children who are physically or sexually abused were twice as likely to develop asthmas as their peers.
	Jumping toward Health A study involving a group of 99 children underwent an eight-month process of jumping for 10 minutes twice a week to measure the effects of the weight-bearing exercise on bone mass. The study revealed that the jumping warm-up improved muscle and bone strength, particularly in the hips and lower spines of the girls and increased fat loss in the boys.
	Combating Childhood Obesity A report issued during the third week of August draws attention to the fact that obesity rates in adults have risen in every state except for Colorado, leaving rates above 20 percent in the 49 states. Oregon State University Researcher Stewart Trost views obesity as a problem that begins during childhood and encourages 60 minutes of daily activity for young people.
	Sleep Linked to Blood Pressure A study published in the Aug. 19 issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association found a link between lack of sleep or poor sleep habits and higher blood pressure rates in teens.
	Child’s Play can Hurt Doctors find that overtraining due to year-round sports can lead to early onset of injuries in children as early as kindergarten.