Idea #323 for January 7th, 2010: Changing Labels or Inaccuracies in Calorie Counts

Don’t always believe labels. That’s the message coming from a study of the accuracy of caloric labels on packaged foods and restaurant meals. The study analyzed ten frozen meals and about 30 restaurant meals to find their true calorie counts. In both types of meals, the actual numbers did not agree with what the labels purported; the true calorie amounts were significantly higher.

While this was not a very comprehensive study, there a couple of interesting points to consider here. First, consumers should be skeptical of calorie counts on prepared foods. Food producers might be skewing the data to make their products more attractive to weight-conscious consumers. Another issue here is the FDA’s role in policing nutrition data. Apparently food producers are punished more for under-providing than over-providing. In other words, giving the consumer less than what they paid for — even calories — is a greater concern to the FDA than the opposite. That policy should be reconsidered in light of the misrepresentation that is currently occurring.

Read more about this issue here.

Idea #322 for January 6th, 2010: Sugar Is Still Sugar or Replacing HFCS With Sucrose Not Necessarily Healthful

Public opinion is beginning to turn on high fructose corn syrup, the ubiquitous corn-based sweetener that is partly blamed for the nation’s obesity epidemic. Because of mounting consumer pressure, some manufacturers are starting to offer products with traditional sucrose sugar in place of corn syrup. Even Pepsi is going to sell a version of their soft drink with sucrose. But consumers shouldn’t assume that soft drinks and other sugary snacks are suddenly healthful when corn syrup is replaced with an equal amount of sugar.

Sucrose is a disaccharide consisting of both fructose and glucose, while corn syrup is a mixture of free glucose and fructose molecules. Fructose has been singled out in some research as the compound responsible for many of the health effects related to corn syrup consumption. If that is the case, then consuming sucrose, which has as much fructose per unit as corn syrup, will not offer any additional health benefits. On top of that, drinking large quantities of sugary drinks and all the calories that go with them is a bad idea anyway. So don’t be duped by products boasting about their switch from corn syrup to other sweeteners, they will still likely remain junk food.

Read more about this here.

Idea #321 for January 5th, 2010: Getting Through or Texting in Teen Healthcare Holds Promise

If you want a teen to get a message, the best way is probably through texting. Healthcare workers are finding that to be the case, and have used texts to deliver potentially life-saving information to teens who may otherwise be difficult to reach. Johns Hopkins doctors have found that text messages can effectively transmit information to patients with HIV, diabetes, asthma, and other conditions that require close monitoring. Texts can remind them to take life-saving medications on schedule.

A 2008 study on diabetic patients found that text messages increased medication adherence rates significantly. Text reminders hold a lot of promise in this context, but there are still issues to be worked out. For one, the patient must agree to some privacy waivers before beginning the program. Also, the costs of texts in some mobile plans can be prohibitively expensive. But if these hurdles can be overcome, texting could become a vital component of teen healthcare in the future.

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Idea #320 for January 4th, 2010: Measuring Up or The Importance of Properly Measuring Liquid Medications

When measuring out a dose of liquid medication, is a kitchen spoon a good enough utensil? Pouring a spoonful of cough medicine may seem like a harmless estimation, but research shows that this practice is unnecessarily dangerous. Not all spoons are created equal, so a teaspoon of medicine may fill each kitchen spoon differently. A study showed that people attempting to measure out a certain volume of liquid medicine in kitchen spoons of various sizes were off by an average of about 10%.

Administering a mis-measured dose of medicine to a child could have dire consequences. The best way to avoid mistakes is to use measuring caps or dosing spoons that were provided along with the medication. The few seconds you might save by eyeballing the liquid in a kitchen spoon is not worth the potential risk of over-medicating a child.

Read more about this issue here.

Idea #319 for January 3rd, 2010: App Appetite or Smartphones and Eating Disorders

Smartphone applications are providing people with easier ways to keep track of nutrition and caloric intake. While technology like that can be a great tool for people looking to lose weight, there is also potential down side. Some health professionals are worried about people with eating disorders possibly taking advantage of the apps. The danger is that having easy access to information like this could steer some teens towards obsession with their weight and caloric intake. This potential for abuse doesn’t mean we should try to restrict the use of dieting apps in general, but parents should at least be aware of the issue if they suspect their teenage kids are having food issues.

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Idea #318 for January 2nd, 2010: Pill Police or Fighting Prescription Drug Abuse

Prescription drug abuse remains a major issue in the US, and the problem is growing more widespread. Between the years 2006 and 2007, prescription drug abuse jumped by more than 10% while use of street drugs declined. Meanwhile, in the decade preceding 2007, the number of prescriptions filled jumped 72%. This greater availability of prescription meds may be related to the rise in abuse.

People are able to obtain these drugs in a few ways. More than half are able to get them from a friend or relative who may have leftover drugs that were legitimately prescribed to them. Some are able to order drugs from the internet without a valid prescription. And others are able to convince a provider to prescribe them drugs for a faked medical condition. Cracking down on the illegal sale of prescription drugs online may curb the abuse to some extent. But the biggest challenge will be to curb the sharing of medications that are legitimately prescribed.

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Idea #317 for January 1st, 2010: Smoke Free 2010 or New Year’s Resolution For Health

With the new year upon us, there may be no better time to begin a smoking cessation program. Quitting smoking is one of the most popular new year’s resolutions, and with good reason. To help ensure success, there are a few things smokers should keep in mind before starting the process. For starters, seeking the advice of a healthcare provider and considering medications to ease the withdrawal symptoms may prove beneficial. Also, exercising can help reduce stress and prevent weight gain associated with quitting. And joining a support group may make the process easier to deal with. No matter what method is used to get there, quitting smoking is one of the healthiest choices you can make in 2010.

Read more about quitting here.

Idea #316 for December 31st, 2009: Out In The Cold or Winter Weather Can Increase Heart Attack Risk

In colder regions of the country, winter weather poses more than just risks of hypothermia. Many people are unaware that risk of heart attack also increases when the temperature drops. In the cold, blood vessels tend to constrict in an effort to conserve body heat. As a result, blood pressure increases and the amount of oxygen that can get to the heart decreases. Couple that with strenuous winter activity — like shoveling snow — and you have a recipe for heart attack in susceptible people. For people at increased risk of of heart disease, experts recommend avoiding strenuous cold-weather activity, and they should be aware of heart attack symptoms to ensure immediate response if one occurs.

Read more about this here.

Idea #315 for December 30th, 2009: Passing Muster or Stricter Device Approval Guidelines At The FDA

The FDA has announced plans to implement a more strict process for the approval of medical devices. This decision comes after several journal articles brought to light flaws in the current approval process. For instance, an article in JAMA showed that the approvals of a number of cardiovascular devices in the last decade were based on a single study. Also, only about half of the outcomes in the studies were compared to control groups. Rigor has certainly been lacking in these FDA approvals. It might be a case of too little, too late, but at least the FDA has admitted to the problem and will make an effort to address it.

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Idea #314 for December 29th, 2009: The Link Between Disinfectants And Resistant Pathogens

Misuse of antibiotics has been associated with the rise of resistant strains of pathogens that have plagued hospitals in the US. New research suggests that misuse of disinfectants may also play a role in the spread of superbugs. Researchers examined whether benzalkonium chloride, a common disinfectant, might lead to resistant strains of a certain bacterium known to cause disease in people with weakened immune systems.

Their results showed that the bacteria eventually became resistant to the disinfectant, as well as the antibiotic Cipro. Since the research took place in a lab, we shouldn’t necessarily jump to conclusions about its relevance to real-life situations. However, the scientists behind the research have a few recommendations about household use of disinfectants. For one, they should not be diluted, as that may allow some bacteria to survive and breed other resistant bacteria. Also, ample time should be afforded to let the disinfectants work so that the vast majority of bacteria are killed. Disinfectants shouldn’t be avoided altogether, they should just be used more wisely to avoid contributing to the superbug epidemic.

Read more about this issue here.