Skip Navigation.

March 2004 Vol.9 No. 3

Pay attention to your enemies, for they are the first to discover your mistakes.
Isak Dinesen-writer

Table of Contents:Antibiotics may Increase Breast Cancer Risk
Antidepressants and Suicide in Children:Why Did the Warnings Take so Long?
Stress Is a Major Reason Why People Get MS
Dairy-Based Formula Linked to High Blood Pressure
Obesity Cuts Life Short

Antibiotics may Increase Breast Cancer Risk 

Women who used antibiotics had more than double the risk of breast cancer as women who did not take any. Find out how the bacteria in your gut may play a major role in this connection, and how to protect yourself.
Journal of the American Medical Association February 18, 2004;291(7):827-35

Antidepressants and Suicide in Children: Why Did the Warnings Take so Long?   

Antidepressants are frequently recommended as the treatment of choice when dealing with depression despite the fact that studies have shown them to be ineffective and capable of increasing the risk of suicide in children.

The prescribing rate for antidepressants in young people has increased steadily in the past decade. Many studies show that antidepressants have little to no effectiveness compared to placebos.  There is a large gap between the quality of evidence needed to get a drug to market and the actual treatment needs of patients.

In addition to their weak or nonexistent evidence of efficacy, antidepressants may have serious side effects in children beyond suicidal behavior, including agitation, irritability and behavioral disinhibition.  Patient reports of adverse drug reactions are commonly dismissed as anecdotal or unscientific.  There has been no formal response to this crisis from leaders in child psychiatry, many of whom were investigators in both published and unpublished trials.  All trial participants and–the broader public–should have access to the results of clinical trials.  Study data must be subject to analysis by independent experts who are alert to conflicts of interest that may distort the interpretation of data.

Guidelines for physicians need to be rewritten so they reflect the full body of evidence, both published and unpublished.
Canadian Medical Association Journal (Full-Text Article) February 17, 2004; 170(4):487
Canadian Medical Association Journal (Full-Text Article) February 17, 2004; 170(4):489

Stress Is a Major Reason Why People Get MS   

This study shows that parents who lose a child have an increased risk of developing multiple sclerosis. The study found that parents whose child died were 50 percent more likely to develop MS than parents who did not lose a child. The results show that psychological stress may play a role in the development of MS. Researchers have believed that stress plays a role in MS, but this is the first study to examine a large group of people beginning before they developed MS and follow them for several years.

Losing a child is not the only stressor that can trigger these autoimmune diseases. Just about any serious one will do it. My experience is that they are typically related, like the above, to close family members. So disturbed relationships with spouses, parents, siblings or children, deaths and divorces are very common triggers.

Cod liver oil is absolutely an essential tool in the prevention and treatment of MS as it is loaded with beneficial omega-3 fats but also vitamin D. It is clear that inadequate sunshine is a major risk factor for MS, so if one is unable to have regular access to the sun, cod liver oil sure make sense. Two studies earlier this year prove this point.
Neurology March 9, 2004;62, 76

Dairy-Based Formula Linked to High Blood Pressure  

A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that infants fed milk-based baby formula grew up to have higher blood pressure than babies who were breastfed. Researchers at the University of Bristol followed up with 951 babies born between 1972 and 1974 who were either given a milk-based baby formula or were breastfed.

Those babies who consumed the most dried milk had a 6.1 mm Hg greater systolic blood pressure and a 2.3 mm Hg greater diastolic blood pressure than those who consumed the least.

It is unclear whether milk’s high sodium, fat, or calorie content are to blame, or if mothers who breastfeed tend to encourage healthier eating habits in their children. It is certain, however, that breastfeeding provides many long-term health benefits.
Martin RM, McCarthy A, Smith GD, Davies DP, Ben-Shlomo Y. Infant nutrition and blood pressure in early adulthood: the Barry Caerphilly Growth study. Am J Clin Nutr 2003;77:1489-97.

Obesity Cuts Life Short  

It’s no secret that obesity fuels a great many illnesses, but now researchers have estimated how many years of life may be lost when weight problems are left untreated. Data from previous studies on individuals aged 18 to 85 were analyzed, and body mass index (a measure of body weight adjusted for height) was calculated. Young black men with a BMI above 45 faired worst, reducing their lifespan by 20 years. Young black women with similar obesity levels reduce their lifespan by 5 years. Young white men and young white women with a BMI greater than 45 lost 13 and 8 years of life, respectively. Optimal BMI is 23 to 25 for white people and 23 to 30 for black people.
Fontaine KR, Redden DT, Wang C, Westfall AO, Allison DB. Years of life lost due to obesity. JAMA 2003;289:187-93.