What’s the Big Deal About “Friendly” Bacteria?

Friendly bacteria are vital to:

• the proper development of the immune system
• protection against agents that could cause disease
• the digestion and absorption of food and nutrients

Each person’s mix of bacteria varies. Interactions between a person and the microorganisms in his body, and between the microorganisms themselves, can be crucial to the person’s health and well-being.

This bacterial “balancing act” can be thrown off in two major ways:

• By antibiotics, when they kill friendly bacteria in the gut along with unfriendly bacteria
• “Unfriendly” microorganisms, such as disease-causing bacteria, yeasts, fungi, and parasites

Whenever your doctor prescribes an antibiotic, you should discuss this matter with him/her. Specifically ask them about probiotic products and how they may help. One of the best known probiotic sources is yogurt.

NOTE: Portions of this posting are courtesy of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

Reactions lead to higher risk for asthma, other respiratory problems, CDC report says.

(SOURCE: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, news release, Oct. 22, 2008)

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 22 (HealthDay News) — The number of American kids with food allergies has soared 18 percent in the last decade, with an estimated 4 percent of children and teens now affected with the condition, a new federal report says.

In 2007, approximately 3 million children under the age of 18 were reported to have had a food or digestive allergy in the previous 12 months, compared to slightly more than 2.3 million children (3.3 percent) in 1997, according to the report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Eight types of foods account for 90 percent of all food allergies — milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, and wheat. Allergic reactions to these foods can range from a tingling sensation around the mouth and lips, to hives and even death, depending on the severity of the reaction, the report’s authors said.

The report also said that children with food allergies are two to four times more likely to have asthma or other allergies, compared to children without food allergies.

It’s not really known how a person develops a food allergy. They are more common in children than adults, and the majority of children with food allergies will “outgrow” them as they get older. But for some, a food allergy can become a lifelong concern, the report said.

Other highlights in the report can be read here.

Instructional booklet altered attitudes about indoor salons.

(SOURCE: American Cancer Society, news release, Oct. 20, 2008)

MONDAY, Oct. 20 (HealthDay News) — Giving young women educational materials about the risks of indoor tanning helps them find healthier alternatives for changing appearances, a study says.

Six months after 430 college-age women received a booklet focused on the damaging effects of tanning and ultraviolet radiation, specifically related to indoor tanning, on the skin’s appearance, about 35 percent of the women reduced their time in tanning booths from the previous year. Similar changes in attitude toward future intentions to tan were also noted.

Visit HealthDay News for more details.

International analysis finds 11% issued ‘black box’ warnings by FDA

By Amanda Gardner
HealthDay Reporter

(SOURCES: Lisa Saubermann, Pharm.D., associate director, clinical pharmacy services, University of Rochester Medical Center, New York; Phil B. Fontanarosa, M.D., executive deputy editor, Journal of the American Medical Association; Oct. 22/29, 2008, Journal of the American Medical Association)

TUESDAY, Oct. 21 (HealthDay News) — New research shows that almost one-quarter of biologic therapies approved in the United States and Europe since 1995 have been the subject of at least one safety-related regulatory action in the decade since they were approved.

Eleven percent, including Remicade (infliximab), used to treat Crohn’s disease and rheumatoid arthritis, and Avastin (bevacizumab), used to treat cancer, have been issued a “black box” warning.

The findings, from Dutch scientists, are published in the Oct. 22/29 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, a themed issue on the Health of the Nation.

“We’ve always known that because biologics were going to modulate the immune system, there would be this risk,” said Lisa Saubermann, associate director of clinical pharmacy services at the University of Rochester Medical Center. “Any time we modulate the immune system, that’s the problem, because we know that the immune system is preventing other things from happening, like cancers.”

Read the rest of this article at http://www.healthfinder.gov/news/newsstory.aspx?docID=620466.