Health posts
- July 9, 2016
- 04:11 AM
- 271 views
Pregnancy paracetamol use and "autism spectrum symptoms" (again)
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
Continuing something of a research theme whereby pregnancy paracetamol (acetaminophen) use has been *correlated* with a few offspring developmental outcomes (see here and see here), the paper by Claudia Avella-Garcia and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) makes for some blogging fodder today.Including data from some 2,600 mother-child pairs living in Spain, researchers prospectively gathered data on maternal paracetamol use ("never, sporadic, persistent") during pregnancy alongside deve........ Read more »
Avella-Garcia CB, Julvez J, Fortuny J, Rebordosa C, García-Esteban R, Galán IR, Tardón A, Rodríguez-Bernal CL, Iñiguez C, Andiarena A.... (2016) Acetaminophen use in pregnancy and neurodevelopment: attention function and autism spectrum symptoms. International journal of epidemiology. PMID: 27353198
- July 8, 2016
- 03:00 AM
- 280 views
Cow's milk allergy and risk of psychiatric disorder
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Psychiatric disorders are frequent and severe in pre-school children with cow's milk allergy."That research 'bottom line' reported by Topal and colleagues [1] looking at the possibility of behavioural correlations accompanying an immune response to milk caught my eye recently. Building on the idea that atopic or allergic disease might elevate the risk of various behavioural outcomes (see here) or vice-versa, researchers set about comparing rates of various behavioural conditions using the "Earl........ Read more »
Topal E, Catal F, Soylu N, Ozcan OO, Celiksoy MH, Babayiğit A, Erge D, Karakoç HT, & Sancak R. (2016) Psychiatric disorders and symptoms severity in pre-school children with cow's milk allergy. Allergologia et immunopathologia. PMID: 27240441
- July 7, 2016
- 02:53 AM
- 342 views
Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) associated with autism?
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) refers to a collection of conditions also headed under the label of connective tissue disorder. EDS affects the 'cellular glue' that basically gives biological tissues their shape and stability such as cartilage. There are various types of EDS and symptoms can vary from person-to-person but one of the most frequent characteristics of the syndrome is joint hypermobility.I've speculated a few times on this blog about the possibility that EDS and/or joint hypermobility ........ Read more »
Cederlöf, M., Larsson, H., Lichtenstein, P., Almqvist, C., Serlachius, E., & Ludvigsson, J. (2016) Nationwide population-based cohort study of psychiatric disorders in individuals with Ehlers–Danlos syndrome or hypermobility syndrome and their siblings. BMC Psychiatry, 16(1). DOI: 10.1186/s12888-016-0922-6
- July 6, 2016
- 08:50 AM
- 345 views
Why do we eat spices?
by Alice Breda in la-Plumeria
I love curries. My favorite is Indian tikka masala which is prepared with tomato, yogurt and many different spices including turmeric, ginger, garlic, cardamom, cumin, paprika, cloves and cinnamon. But I’m not the only one, because the passion for spicy dishes is shared among humans of all regions and ages. We eat them fresh, dried, whole, ground, raw or cooked, and our love for these tasty substances led explorers such as Polo, Magellan and Columbus to undertake risky expeditions in searc........ Read more »
Sherman, P., & Billing, J. (1999) Darwinian Gastronomy: Why We Use Spices. BioScience, 49(6), 453. DOI: 10.2307/1313553
Billing J, & Sherman PW. (1998) Antimicrobial functions of spices: why some like it hot. The Quarterly review of biology, 73(1), 3-49. PMID: 9586227
- July 6, 2016
- 03:00 AM
- 268 views
Pregnancy infection and offspring autism risk meta-analysed
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
Another day, another short post about a meta-analysis; this time based on the suggestion that maternal infection during the critical 'nine months that made us' might elevate the risk of offspring autism and reported on by Hai-yin Jiang and colleagues [1].Based on the collected analysis of 15 peer-reviewed studies covering some 40,000 people diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the authors concluded that yes, "maternal infection during pregnancy was associated with an ........ Read more »
Jiang HY, Xu LL, Shao L, Xia RM, Yu ZH, Ling ZX, Yang F, Min-Deng, & Ruan B. (2016) Maternal Infection during Pregnancy and Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Brain, behavior, and immunity. PMID: 27287966
- July 5, 2016
- 09:40 PM
- 258 views
Mmmm…Raw Cookie D’oh!
by Bill Sullivan in The 'Scope
The FDA recently put out a stern warning not to eat raw cookie dough. Here's what cookie dough might do to you and why.... Read more »
Thorpe, C. (2004) Shiga Toxin--Producing Escherichia coli Infection. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 38(9), 1298-1303. DOI: 10.1086/383473
Obrig, T. (2010) Escherichia coli Shiga Toxin Mechanisms of Action in Renal Disease. Toxins, 2(12), 2769-2794. DOI: 10.3390/toxins2122769
- July 5, 2016
- 02:50 AM
- 243 views
Autism and asthma meta-analysed.. or is it?
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"In conclusion, the results of this meta-analysis do not suggest an association between asthma and ASD [autism spectrum disorder]. Further prospective studies ascertaining the association between asthma and ASD are warranted."So said the results of the meta-analysis by Zhen Zheng and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) and with it some research that made me think a little. Think because, on more than one occasion, I've talked about research suggesting that there might be a link betw........ Read more »
Zheng Z, Zhang L, Zhu T, Huang J, Qu Y, & Mu D. (2016) Association between Asthma and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis. PloS one, 11(6). PMID: 27257919
- July 4, 2016
- 03:07 AM
- 286 views
Autism: visual stress and coloured overlays?
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
The small study from Amanda Ludlow & Arnold Wilkins [1] is introduced for your reading pleasure today and the idea that "atypical sensory behaviours and symptoms of visual stress" were not uncommon features when it came to a diagnosis of autism and/or Tourette's syndrome (TS). As per that opening sentence, this was a small study - 12 children with autism, 12 children with TS and 12 controls - but that doesn't mean that the results might not be important...So far you might be slightly un........ Read more »
Ludlow AK, & Wilkins AJ. (2016) Atypical Sensory behaviours in children with Tourette's Syndrome and in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Research in developmental disabilities, 108-116. PMID: 27286465
- July 2, 2016
- 04:37 AM
- 251 views
The gut microbiome and coeliac disease risk
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Elective caesarean delivery and repeated maternal urinary tract infections during pregnancy are associated with increased risk of CD [coeliac disease] onset during childhood, suggesting the role of dysbiosis during early life."Those were some of the rather surprising findings reported by Fredinah Namatovu and colleagues [1] (open-access) following their pretty well-powered study covering "1 912 204 children born between 1991 and 2009, 6 596 of whom developed CD before 15 years of........ Read more »
Namatovu, F., Olsson, C., Lindkvist, M., Myléus, A., Högberg, U., Ivarsson, A., & Sandström, O. (2016) Maternal and perinatal conditions and the risk of developing celiac disease during childhood. BMC Pediatrics, 16(1). DOI: 10.1186/s12887-016-0613-y
- July 1, 2016
- 02:34 AM
- 272 views
Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE): another over-represented condition in autism
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
Returning to the idea that not every symptom/characteristic present in cases of autism is necessarily 'due to autism' are the findings reported by Heifert and colleagues [1] and the observations that: "Children with ASD are more likely to be diagnosed with EoE [Eosinophilic esophagitis] compared to controls" and further: "A diagnosis of feeding disorder was strongly associated with EoE."EoE is something that has been discussed before on this blog in relation to the myriad of gastrointe........ Read more »
Heifert TA, Susi A, Hisle-Gorman E, Erdie-Lalena CR, Gorman G, Min SB, & Nylund CM. (2016) Feeding Disorders in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Are Associated with Eosinophilic Esophagitis. Journal of pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition. PMID: 27276430
- June 30, 2016
- 02:08 AM
- 299 views
Gestional exposure to Group B Streptococcus and an autism model
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Overall, these data show for the first time that gestational exposure to GBS [Group B Streptococcus] plays an important role in the generation of neurodevelopmental abnormalities reminiscent of human autism spectrum disorders (ASD)."I chose to discuss the findings reported by Marie-Julie Allard and colleagues [1] on this blog for various reasons. That this research team already have some research 'form' when it comes to looking at GBS [2] is one; another is the idea that they rep........ Read more »
Allard MJ, Bergeron JD, Baharnoori M, Srivastava LK, Fortier LC, Poyart C, & Sébire G. (2016) A sexually dichotomous, autistic-like phenotype is induced by Group B Streptococcus maternofetal immune activation. Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research. PMID: 27220806
- June 29, 2016
- 02:49 AM
- 223 views
Antipsychotic prescribing trends in autism meta-analysed
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Almost 1 in 10 antipsychotic-treated youth were diagnosed with ASD [autism spectrum disorder] and/or ID [intellectual disability], and 1 in 6 youth with ASD received antipsychotics."The findings reported by Su Young Park and colleagues [1] have not surprisingly garnered some media attention (see here). Meta-analysing the available peer-reviewed data on "the frequency of youth diagnosed with ASDs and/or ID among antipsychotic-treated youth, as well as antipsychotic use in you........ Read more »
Park SY, Cervesi C, Galling B, Molteni S, Walyzada F, Ameis SH, Gerhard T, Olfson M, & Correll CU. (2016) Antipsychotic Use Trends in Youth With Autism Spectrum Disorder and/or Intellectual Disability: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 55(6), 456-4680000. PMID: 27238064
- June 28, 2016
- 02:07 AM
- 260 views
An excess of ADHD among children born to glyphosate appliers?
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
The job of pesticide applicator is one that has been discussed on this blog before (see here). Minus any scaremongering, the conclusion of that post was that under certain circumstances (e.g. a high pesticide exposure event - HPEE), the effects of that particular occupation might be pretty far-reaching for the 'cognitive' as well as physical health of the individual concerned.Today I'm talking about other potential effects "needing confirmation by further studies" related to perhaps one of ........ Read more »
de Araujo, J., Delgado, I., & Paumgartten, F. (2016) Glyphosate and adverse pregnancy outcomes, a systematic review of observational studies. BMC Public Health, 16(1). DOI: 10.1186/s12889-016-3153-3
- June 27, 2016
- 03:03 AM
- 196 views
Eating difficulties in adolescents with CFS/ME
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
I tread quite carefully when discussing the paper by Sarah Harris and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) on the potential causes and effects of 'eating difficulties' when it comes to adolescent chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME).Careful because (i) I don't want to confuse eating difficulties with eating disorder (they are not one and the same) and (ii) the suggestion that some of the young adults included for study "recognised how their eating difficulties were ........ Read more »
Harris S, Gilbert M, Beasant L, Linney C, Broughton J, & Crawley E. (2016) A qualitative investigation of eating difficulties in adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis. Clinical child psychology and psychiatry. PMID: 27215228
- June 25, 2016
- 03:42 AM
- 241 views
HBOT and autism systematically reviewed
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Current evidence indicates that HBOT [Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy] is not an effective treatment for children and youth with autism."That was the conclusion reached by Cynthia Goldfarb and colleagues [1] following their "systematic review of the literature evaluating the clinical impact of HBOT on behavior and development in ASD [autism spectrum disorder]." Drawing on guidance from the American Academy of Neurology and their "Classification of Recommendations", authors lo........ Read more »
Goldfarb, C., Genore, L., Hunt, C., Flanagan, J., Handley-Derry, M., Jethwa, A., Jones-Stokreef, N., Kirkpatrick, S., Richards, A., Rojnica, L.... (2016) Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the treatment of children and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders: An evidence-based systematic review. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 1-7. DOI: 10.1016/j.rasd.2016.05.004
- June 24, 2016
- 02:31 AM
- 221 views
Is autism underdiagnosed in prisoners? Probably not...
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
The UK media today is awash with the result of 'that referendum'.Life however goes on here at Questioning Answers and today the recent opinion piece by Sarah Ashworth [1] talking about autism being 'underdiagnosed' in the prison population provides the starting material for today's post.Being careful not to generalise nor also 'excusing' the often important reasons why people end up in prison, I'm particularly interested in this area of discussion given what is increasingly being recognised with........ Read more »
Ashworth S. (2016) Autism is underdiagnosed in prisoners. BMJ (Clinical research ed.). PMID: 27255544
- June 23, 2016
- 08:55 AM
- 92 views
Weird stuff found in recreational drugs: Pot/LSD edition
by Rosin Cerate in Rosin Cerate
This is the fourth post in a series on strange substances accidentally or intentionally added to street drugs. When you're done here, check out the posts on alcohol, meth, opioids, and cocaine.In the autumn of 2007, hospitals near Leipzig, Germany admitted 29 people after they inadvertently smoked weed contaminated with lead. Yep, some dealer or grower decided it was a good idea to drop a bunch of small lead particles into the marijuana they were selling, presumably to increase its weight (lead ........ Read more »
Busse F, Omidi L, Timper K, Leichtle A, Windgassen M, Kluge E, & Stumvoll M. (2008) Lead poisoning due to adulterated marijuana. The New England Journal of Medicine, 358(15), 1641-1642. PMID: 18403778
- June 23, 2016
- 02:53 AM
- 163 views
ADHD symptoms improved with allergic rhinitis treatment
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
The findings reported by Ming-Tao Yang and colleagues [1] make for some brief blogging fodder today and the idea that: "Higher ADHD [attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder] scores in children with AR [allergic rhinitis] compared with healthy controls decreased significantly with AR treatment." Said AR treatment consisted of "nonpharmacologic intervention, oral antihistamines, and topical steroids."I know furrowed brows and eye-rolling might be the response of some people to........ Read more »
Yang MT, Chen CC, Lee WT, Liang JS, Fu WM, & Yang YH. (2016) Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder-related symptoms improved with allergic rhinitis treatment in children. American journal of rhinology , 30(3), 209-14. PMID: 27216352
- June 22, 2016
- 03:07 AM
- 163 views
Still 'nothing good comes from exposure to lead'
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
Consider this short-ish entry a sort of extension of other discussions on this blog on the topic of lead (Pb) (see here). As per the blog title, the systematic review published by Maryam Daneshparvar and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) adds to the quite voluminous peer-reviewed literature indicating that lead exposure, particularly during infancy and childhood, seems to be associated with nothing but adverse outcomes in terms of development and behaviour.Surveying the research litera........ Read more »
Daneshparvar M, Mostafavi SA, Zare Jeddi M, Yunesian M, Mesdaghinia A, Mahvi AH, & Akhondzadeh S. (2016) The Role of Lead Exposure on Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder in Children: A Systematic Review. Iranian journal of psychiatry, 11(1), 1-14. PMID: 27252763
- June 21, 2016
- 08:17 AM
- 240 views
Weird stuff found in recreational drugs: Opioid edition
by Rosin Cerate in Rosin Cerate
This is the third post in a series on strange substances accidentally or intentionally added to street drugs. When you're done here, check out the posts on alcohol and meth.Opioids are drugs that affect the human body by binding to a group of related proteins conveniently known as opioid receptors. By connecting to these receptors in a certain manner, they convince receptor-bearing cells in the brain, spinal cord, and intestine to do useful things like reduce the sensation of pain (while making ........ Read more »
Brett M, Hallas G, & Mpamugo O. (2004) Wound botulism in the UK and Ireland. . Journal of Medical Microbiology, 53(6), 555-561. DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.05379-0
Fahn S, & Sulzer D. (2004) Neurodegeneration and neuroprotection in Parkinson disease. . NeuroRX, 1(1), 139-154. DOI: 10.1602/neurorx.1.1.139
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