Posted by VicPlough on Jul 31, 2012 in
Health Editor’s note: Dr. Jennifer Shu, CNNHealth’s Living Well expert doctor, is a practicing pediatrician and mother of two.
Much research has focused on the effects that severe child abuse can have on a person’s mental well-being. But a new study published in the July issue of the journal Pediatrics takes a look at the possible link between mental health disorders and harsh physical punishment in the absence of abuse. The findings may persuade parents not to spank at all.
Researchers from Canada found that physical punishment (such as slapping, hitting, pushing and shoving) — even without child neglect or physical, sexual or emotional abuse — was linked to mood disorders, anxiety disorders, substance abuse and personality disorders.
When does spanking become abuse?
While it may be true that many of today’s parents were spanked as children and are now well-adjusted, previous studies have also shown that those who were spanked are at a higher risk to be depressed; use alcohol; hit their spouse or own children; and engage in violent or criminal behaviors.
Physical punishment doesn’t help, it hurts
The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Canadian Paediatric Society discourage spanking and other forms of physical punishment. It is unlawful in 32 countries — not including the United States or Canada — for parents and other caregivers to use physical punishment against children.
The new study’s lead author, Tracie Afifi, said she believes that physical punishment should not be used on children of any age and that positive parenting strategies should instead be encouraged.
Preferred methods of discipline do not include physical punishment. For example, withholding privileges, using time-outs and offering consequences (for example, “If you throw your toy and it breaks, you won’t be able to play with it anymore”).
African-Americans most likely to use physical punishment
Dr. Howard Bennett, a pediatrician in Washington and clinical professor of pediatrics at George Washington University School of Medicine, recommends praising children when they are behaving well and using time-outs or a process called “time off,” in which the child must go to another part of the house for as long as it takes to stop the offending behavior and behave normally again.
What are your thoughts on spanking? If you are a parent who uses spanking for discipline, will this study change your mind? Where do you draw the line between physical discipline and abuse?
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Dr. Jennifer Shu.
Posted by VicPlough on Jul 22, 2012 in
Health A version of the Tube map has been produced to show how life expectancy varies from station to station.
In 2008, the London Health Observatory showed that if travelling east on the Tube from Westminster, every two Tube stops represented more than a year of life expectancy lost.
This work inspired Dr Cheshire's latest research, which uses data based on government statistics showing life expectancy at birth for those living around the stations.
"I wondered if different patterns emerged across the Tube network," he said.
He said he chose to use the Tube map as "it's famous the world over and something most Londoners can relate to".
Dr Cheshire said the map showed that "if you're impoverished as a child, your diet may be poor and sadly it can follow you for the rest of your life".
Other disparities depicted on the map are no less striking.
For example, if you travel eastbound between Lancaster Gate and Mile End – 20 minutes on the Central line – life expectancy decreases by 12 years.
But not all the Tube lines show a trend depending on which direction you travel.
"London is a city that's very diverse and one of its great characteristics is that rich and poor people live side by side," Dr Cheshire said.
Stations serving east London's Olympic Park fair badly and contrast with the Olympic volleyball venue at Earl's Court, in west London, whose spectators will be passing through areas with far higher life expectancies and lower child poverty.
Shadow Health Minister Diane Abbott, who is MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, an area where life expectancy is plotted as being relatively low, said the map showed "a tale of two cities".
"You need to send more money to where it is needed, and that's the poorer boroughs," she said.
She suggested the government "needs to look at children's diets, fizzy drinks machines in schools, school meals and stopping the advertising of junk food".
Public Health Minister Anne Milton said: "The link between life expectancy and deprivation is well established.
"That is why from next April, for the first time we are introducing a ring-fenced public health budget for local communities to better target the causes of poor health in their area."
Michael Marmot, a UCL professor who has advised the government on public health, said the map "captures how stark the health equalities are in a very small geographical area".
"If you want to see a difference in life expectancy between countries of 11 years, you can fly from London to Guatemala," he said.
"But if you are worried about your carbon footprint, you could just catch the Tube east.
"The difference between Hackney and the West End is the same as the difference between England and Guatemala in terms of life expectancy."
Sir Michael said life expectancy was affected by "early child development, education, employment and working conditions, having the minimum income to live a healthy life, the environment and the issues of smoking, obesity, drinking and diet".
Posted by VicPlough on Jul 13, 2012 in
Health Limiting the time we spend sitting to just three hours a day could add an extra two years to our life expectancy, scientists calculate.
A growing body of evidence suggests the more time we spend sitting, the less healthy we may be.
Several studies have linked sitting and television viewing to conditions like diabetes and heart disease as well as an increased overall risk of death.
But finding a link is not the same as proving one thing actually causes the other.
And although this latest piece of research does not claim to be proof, the researchers themselves acknowledge there are flaws that make its findings less than reliable.
The work looked at a large sample of people – almost 167,000 in total – but did not scrutinise the different lifestyles these individuals led.
It is not clear how many of these people were less healthy to begin with and who, therefore, might spend more time sitting down as a result.
And the studies relied on the participants accurately recalling and reporting how much time they spent lounging around.
Dr Peter Katzmarzyk and Prof I-Min Lee who carried out the review stress that their estimates are theoretical.
But given that the adults in their research spent, on average, half of their days sitting "engaged in sedentary pursuits", the findings could provide an important public health warning.
Natasha Stewart, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said: "This research only suggests a causal association between sedentary behaviour and a shorter life expectancy. It also used American data so we'd need to see more research to understand what it means for the UK population.
"However, it does highlight what we already know about sedentary behaviour being a risk factor for developing heart disease. And recent UK guidelines suggested we should all minimise the time we spend sitting down.
"We all need to be regularly active to keep our hearts healthy. So whether it's by walking to the local shop rather than driving, or playing sport rather than watching it on TV, there are lots of ways to be more active and improve your health."
Posted by VicPlough on Jul 10, 2012 in
Health Editor’s note: Dr. Jennifer Shu, CNNHealth’s Living Well expert doctor, is a practicing pediatrician and mother of two.
Much research has focused on the effects that severe child abuse can have on a person’s mental well-being. But a new study published in the July issue of the journal Pediatrics takes a look at the possible link between mental health disorders and harsh physical punishment in the absence of abuse. The findings may persuade parents not to spank at all.
Researchers from Canada found that physical punishment (such as slapping, hitting, pushing and shoving) — even without child neglect or physical, sexual or emotional abuse — was linked to mood disorders, anxiety disorders, substance abuse and personality disorders.
When does spanking become abuse?
While it may be true that many of today’s parents were spanked as children and are now well-adjusted, previous studies have also shown that those who were spanked are at a higher risk to be depressed; use alcohol; hit their spouse or own children; and engage in violent or criminal behaviors.
Physical punishment doesn’t help, it hurts
The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Canadian Paediatric Society discourage spanking and other forms of physical punishment. It is unlawful in 32 countries — not including the United States or Canada — for parents and other caregivers to use physical punishment against children.
The new study’s lead author, Tracie Afifi, said she believes that physical punishment should not be used on children of any age and that positive parenting strategies should instead be encouraged.
Preferred methods of discipline do not include physical punishment. For example, withholding privileges, using time-outs and offering consequences (for example, “If you throw your toy and it breaks, you won’t be able to play with it anymore”).
African-Americans most likely to use physical punishment
Dr. Howard Bennett, a pediatrician in Washington and clinical professor of pediatrics at George Washington University School of Medicine, recommends praising children when they are behaving well and using time-outs or a process called “time off,” in which the child must go to another part of the house for as long as it takes to stop the offending behavior and behave normally again.
What are your thoughts on spanking? If you are a parent who uses spanking for discipline, will this study change your mind? Where do you draw the line between physical discipline and abuse?
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Dr. Jennifer Shu.
Posted by VicPlough on Jul 6, 2012 in
Health Story By: by Pauline Bartolone
California began implementing the Affordable Care Act, well before the Supreme Court decided its fate. Even with the state forging ahead, it’s still going to be hard to meet the federal government’s deadlines.