Expectant Mom's Exercise Keeps Newborn's Birth Weight Down

MONDAY, April 5 (HealthDay News) -- Regular moderate-intensity exercise during pregnancy reduces an infant's birth weight, which may lower the child's risk of obesity later in life, researchers say.

In a new study, 84 first-time pregnant women were randomly assigned to exercise or control groups, with those in the exercise group participating in a weekly maximum of five 40-minute sessions on a stationary cycle. They did this program until at least 36 weeks into their pregnancy.

Babies born to mothers in the exercise group were an average of 143 grams lighter than infants born to mothers in the control group, and also had a lower body-mass index (a measurement that takes into account height and weight), the researchers found.

The exercise training had no effect on the mothers' body weight or body-mass index during late pregnancy, and had no effect on insulin resistance from the start of the study to late gestation, according to the report published online in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

"Our findings show that regular aerobic exercise alters the maternal environment in some way that has an impact on nutrient stimulation of fetal growth, resulting in a reduction in offspring birth weight," study co-author Dr. Paul Hofman, of the University of Auckland in New Zealand, said in an Endocrine Society news release. "Given that large birth size is associated with an increased risk of obesity, a modest reduction in birth weight may have long-term health benefits for offspring by lowering this risk in later life."

Hofman added that the "physiological response to pregnancy appears to supersede the chronic improvements in insulin sensitivity previously described in response to exercise training in non-pregnant individuals. This may be an important finding for athletes who want to continue regular training during their pregnancy as it suggests that training will not have a major adverse impact on insulin resistance."

SOURCE: The Endocrine Society, news release, April 5, 2010

HealthDay

data obtain from: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_97212.html

Read more

Barotrauma

What is Barotrauma?

Barotrauma refers to injury sustained from failure to equalize the pressure of an air-containing space with that of the surrounding environment. The most common examples of barotrauma occur in air travel and scuba diving. Although the degree of pressure changes are much more dramatic during scuba diving, barotraumatic injury is possible during air travel.

Barotrauma can affect several different areas of the body, including the ear, face and lungs. Here we will focus on barotrauma as it relates to the ear.


What are the Symptoms of Barotrauma?

Symptoms of barotrauma include “clogging” of the ear, ear pain, hearing loss, dizziness, ringing of the ear (tinnitus), and hemorrhage from the ear.

Dizziness (or vertigo) may also occur during diving from a phenomenon known as alternobaric vertigo. It is caused by a difference in pressure between the two middle ear spaces, which stimulates the vestibular (balance) end organs asymmetrically, thus resulting in vertigo. The alternobaric response can also be elicited by forcefully equalizing the middle ear pressure with the Politzer maneuver, which can cause an unequal inflation of the middle ear space.

What Causes Barotrauma?

Barotrauma is caused by a difference in pressure between the external environment and the internal parts of the ear. Since fluids do not compress under pressures experienced during diving or flying, the fluid-containing spaces of the ear do not alter their volume under these pressure changes. However, the air-containing spaces of the ear do compress, resulting in damage to the ear if the alterations in ambient pressure cannot be equalized. Rarely, barotrauma may be the result of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Slow compression hyperbaric oxygen therapy is associated with a lower risk of otoc barotraumas than traditional hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

Barotrauma can affect the outer, middle, or inner ear.

How is Barotrauma Diagnosed?

Diagnosis is initially based on careful history. If the history indicates ear pain or dizziness that occurs after diving or an airplane flight, barotrauma should be suspected. The diagnosis may be confirmed through ear examination, as well as hearing and vestibular testing.

How is Barotrauma Treated?

For outer ear barotrauma, the treatment consists of clearing the ear canal of the obstruction, and restricting diving or flying until the blockage is corrected and the ear canal and drum return to normal.

For middle ear barotrauma, treatment consists of keeping the ear dry and free of contamination that could cause infection. Topical nasal steroids and decongestants may be started in an attempt to decongest the eustachian tube opening. The presence of pus may prompt the use of appropriate antibiotics. Most tympanic membrane perforations due to barotrauma will heal spontaneously. If the eustachian tube demonstrates chronic problems with middle ear equalization, the likelihood of recovery is drastically reduced.

Prevention of air barotraumas to the middle ear has been attempted with dasal decongestants or vasoconstrictors with mixed results. “Pressure equalizing” ear plugs claiming to prevent in-flight barotrauma are available in many airports for purchase. A trial evaluating the effect of these earplugs to placebo found them to have no effect on barotrauma.

For inner ear barotrauma, treatment consists of hospitalization and bed rest with the head elevated 30 to 40 degrees. Controversy exists whether this type of injury needs immediate surgery. Once healed, a diver should not return to diving until hearing and balance function tests are normal.

this information is taken directly from American Hearing Research Foundation. More information can be obtain at its website.

Read more

Another Reason To Quit Smoking

CIGARETTES may contain traces of pigs' blood, an Australian academic says with a warning that religious groups could find its undisclosed presence "very offensive".

University of Sydney Professor in Public Health Simon Chapman points to recent Dutch research which identified 185 different industrial uses of a pig - including the use of its haemoglobin in cigarette filters.

Prof Chapman said the research offered an insight into the otherwise secretive world of cigarette manufacture, and it was likely to raise concerns for devout Muslims and Jews.

Religious texts at the core of both of these faiths specifically ban the consumption of pork.

"I think that there would be some particularly devout groups who would find the idea that there were pig products in cigarettes to be very offensive," Prof Chapman said today.

"The Jewish community certainly takes these matters extremely seriously and the Islamic community certainly do as well, as would many vegetarians.

"It just puts into hard relief the problem that the tobacco industry is not required to declare the ingredients of cigarettes ... they say 'that's our business' and a trade secret."

The Dutch research found pig haemoglobin - a blood protein - was being used to make cigarette filters more effective at trapping harmful chemicals before they could enter a smoker's lungs.

Prof Chapman said while tobacco companies had moved voluntarily list the contents of their products on their websites, they also noted undisclosed "processing aids ... that are not significantly present in, and do not functionally affect, the finished product".

This catch-all term hid from public view an array of chemicals and other substances used in the making of tobacco products, he said.

At least one cigarette brand sold in Greece was confirmed as using pig haemoglobin in its processes, Prof Chapman said, and the status of smokes sold was unknown.

"If you're a smoker and you're of Islamic or Jewish faith then you'd probably would want to know and there is no way of finding out," Prof Chapman said.

The Sydney office of British American Tobacco Australia was contacted by AAP.

A spokeswoman said a comment would be provided although it was not immediately available.

Read more