Dentistry

Smiles and Health Headlines: May 2, 2016

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My links for May 2, 2016:

Controversial foot doctor Pierre Dupont accused of using ‘knock-off’ implants

A controversial foot doctor is now facing accusations about the use of questionable implants on patients without their knowledge.

Go Public and Radio-Canada recently reported how, after being banned from dentistry in Quebec following serious problems with patients

, Pierre Dupont reinvented himself as a foot specialist in Ontario. One of his Ottawa patients contacted us after having trouble healing from foot surgery done by Dupont.

Pancreatic cancer risk tied to specific mouth bacteria

The presence of certain bacteria in the mouth may reveal increased risk for pancreatic cancer and enable earlier, more precise treatment, report investigators. Pancreatic cancer patients are known to be susceptible to gum disease, cavities, and poor oral health in general, say the study authors. That vulnerability led the research team to search for direct links between the makeup of bacteria driving oral disease and subsequent development of pancreatic cancer, a disease that often escapes early diagnosis and causes 40

,000 US deaths annually.

A spoonful of sugar? Swapping sugary drinks for water and dairy seems the best medicine

New research may have an impact on the sugar tax debate. The research team observed overall changes in dietary patterns in overweight children

, including a decrease in consumption of sugary drinks

, when additional water or milk is added to their diet.

Have a great day!

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Health

The Healthy Flap: May 24, 2013

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Weight-Scale.jpg

These are my healthy news health headlines for May 24, 2013:

  • Children of married parents less likely to be obese
    “Children living in households where the parents are married are less likely to be obese, according to new research from Rice University and the University of Houston.”Childhood obesity is a significant public health issue in our country, with nearly one-third of all U.S. children ages 2-17 overweight or obese,” said Rachel Kimbro, study co-author, associate professor of sociology at Rice and director of Rice’s Kinder Institute Urban Health Program. “Despite this, very little research has been conducted to explore the impact of family structure on this epidemic.””
  • Stress may be causing your cravings
    “What do drug addicts, serial dieters and children from troubled homes have in common?

More than you might think.

Stress can play a pernicious role in triggering a vicious cycle that leaves these groups overwhelmed by uncontrollable impulses and           distracted by negative feelings — all of which may, in turn, spark subsequent cycles of relapse, bingeing and failure.

Through a career that spans almost three decades, Rajita Sinha, psychologist and head of the Yale Stress Center, has sought to understand the processes underlying these stress cycles in hopes they may one day be prevented.”

  • New California health insurance rates unveiled
    “Amid anxiety over rising costs from the federal healthcare law, California received better-than-expected insurance rates for a new state-run marketplace, but many consumers still won’t be spared from sharply higher premiums.Three years after President Obama’s landmark law was passed, the state unveiled the first details Thursday on what many Californians can expect to pay for coverage from 13 health plans offering policies in the state’s exchange, in which as many as 5 million people will shop for coverage next year.Developments in California are being watched carefully around the country as an important indicator of whether the healthcare law can deliver on its promise to expand health coverage at an affordable price. Many Republicans, insurance executives and other critics of the law have been warning that consumers are in for a shock next year when insurance companies raise rates to comply with the law’s many new requirements.”
  • Heartburn Tied to Throat Cancer
    “Frequent heartburn increases the risk for throat cancer, a new study has found, and over-the-counter antacids may provide protection.Researchers studied heartburn incidence and medication use in 631 patients with squamous cell cancers of the throat and vocal cords who were not heavy smokers or drinkers, matching them with 1,234 healthy controls. The study was published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.After controlling for age, sex, race, smoking, alcohol consumption, HPV 16 infection, education and body mass index, they found that people who had reported a history of frequent heartburn were 78 percent more likely to have cancer than those who did not. Those with frequent heartburn who took antacids reduced their risk for cancer by 41 percent, compared with those whose heartburn was untreated.”
  • Novo obesity drug could launch in U.S. end 2014
    “Danish drug maker Novo Nordisk said it could launch obesity treatment liraglutide in the United States by the end of next year and rejected some analysts’ doubts over the medicine’s commercial potential.
    The world’s biggest insulin producer is hoping the treatment for severe obesity will help to at least partly offset the delay to its next generation insulin treatment Tresiba after U.S. regulators asked for more tests.Novo said on Thursday a final stage clinical trial showed patients treated with 3 mg of liraglutide – which is already on sale as a treatment for type-2 diabetes under the brand name Victoza – had an average 8 percent weight loss.But some analysts on Friday questioned whether the results were strong enough to secure the drug’s success.

    “The modest efficacy supports our hypothesis that the drug is unlikely to be a significant commercial success,” Deutsche Bank analysts said, adding they were also concerned by the high price of the injectable drug.”

  • CDC Warns Of Spread Of Deadly Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria -An antibiotic-resistant family of bacteria continues to spread throughout the U.S. health care system and is now prompting warnings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The bacteria, Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), kill up to half of the patients who get the bloodstream infections from the disease. The disease has evolved a resistance to carbapenems, also called last-resort antibiotics.In addition, the CRE bacteria can reportedly transfer its resistance to other bacteria within its family. The transfer of resistance can create additional life-threatening infections for patients in hospitals, longer-term health care facilities, and possibly otherwise healthy people, according to the CDC.
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Obesity

Boulder Colorado Again Leads in Lower Obesity Rate

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Gallup est Oesity Chart

According to the latest Gallup Poll.

For the third consecutive year, residents of the Boulder, Colo., metro area are the least likely to be obese, at 12.5% in 2012. Residents of McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas, continue to be the most likely to be obese, at 38.5%. Adult obesity rates are higher than 15% in all but two of the 189 metro areas that Gallup and Healthways surveyed in 2012.

Here is the chart for the worst areas for obesity.

Gallup Worst Obesity ChartObesity continues to be a problem in the United States and follows demographic trends.

Nationwide, 26.2% of Americans aged 18 and older were obese in 2012, unchanged from 26.1% in 2011. Of the 189 reportable metro areas surveyed in 2012, 102 had obesity rates lower than the national average. Nineteen of the 25 most populous metro areas surveyed boasted obesity rates lower than the national average. Smaller metro areas were more likely to have above-average obesity rates, consistent with past reporting.

In the 11 metro areas with the highest obesity rates, the average annual wages are lower than in the 10 areas with the lowest obesity rates, reflecting the link between obesity and poverty. The average annual wage in the 11 areas with the highest obesity rates is $38,550, this compares with an average annual income of $47,783 for the 10 areas with the lowest obesity rates. Additionally, residents in the most obese areas, on average, earn $7,240 below the national mean wage of $45,790, while residents of the least obese areas average $1,993 more annually than the national mean wage.

Residents in the areas with the highest obesity rates are also 7.9 percentage points less likely than are those in the areas where obesity is lowest to have enough money to be able to buy food at all times. They are also 6.5 points less likely to have enough money for healthcare and medicine.

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Obesity

Gallup Poll: 2012 Obesity Rate Stable in America

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Gallup Poll on obesity

 

According to the latest Gallup Poll

Americans were as likely to be obese in 2012 as they were in 2011. But the 26.2% who were obese in 2012 remains slightly higher than the 25.5% recorded in 2008. Another 36.1% of Americans were overweight in 2012 and about as many were a normal weight — 35.9%.

The 2012 data comprise more than 350,000 surveys of American adults. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index uses respondents’ self-reports of their height and weight to calculate body mass index (BMI) scores. Individual BMI values of 30 or above are classified as “obese,” 25 to 29.9 are “overweight,” 18.5 to 24.9 are “normal weight,” and 18.4 or less are “underweight.”

The World Health Organization further classifies BMIs of 30.00 or higher into one of three classes of obesity:

Obese class I = 30.00 to 34.99
Obese class II = 35.00 to 39.99
Obese class III = 40.00 or higher

Those with BMIs of 40 or higher — obese class III — are often considered “morbidly obese.” Based on self-reports of height and weight, 3.6% of American adults were “morbidly obese” in 2012. This is on par with 3.4% in 2011 and 3.5% in 2009 and 2010.

Here is a Gallup chart on obesity and demographic groups:

Gallup chart on obesity and demographicsThe bottom line is that there is much to do for better health.

Obesity is a preventable condition and with better education, Americans will be able to live longer and healthy.

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Health

Poll Watch: Obesity and Chronic Diseases Stable Across the United States in 2011

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According to the latest Gallup Poll.

Colorado had the lowest adult obesity rate in the nation in 2011, as it did last year, and is the only state where fewer than 20% of adults are obese. West Virginia holds onto the negative distinction of being the state with the highest obesity rate; 35.3% of residents living there are obese, the highest for any state that Gallup and Healthways have found since 2008.

The national obesity rate declined slightly to 26.1% in 2011, from 26.6% in 2010. Across states, obesity rates remained statistically unchanged from 2010 to 2011 in all but two — New Jersey and Kentucky — where they declined. This marks a positive change from the recent past. Obesity had inched up in 2009 and 2010 compared with 2008 nationwide and in some states.

These data, collected as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, are based on respondents’ self-reports of their height and weight, which are used to calculate Body Mass Index (BMI) scores. Americans who have a BMI of 30 or higher are classified as obese.

The obesity rate continues high, but at least it did not increase this past year. Is the word getting out about the problem?

Here is a chart about the best and worst states:



High Blood Pressure, Diabetes Rates Also Hold Steady Across States

It is interesting that the states in the South and the Midwest lag the other states and have higher rates of obesity and chronic diseases. They also have the higher rates of smoking.

There needs to be more awareness and education about the needs to eat right, exercise regularly and not smoke – for a more healthy and productive life.

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