Kids cholesterol

Overweight Parents Put Child at Risk

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 20:06:00 +0000

This Article featured on Mississippi Public Broadcasting explores why parents have such an important role to play in their kids health. As we know parents share more than DNA with their offspring, notably how they eat and how they spend their leisure time. Both of these habits are key to a healthy lifestyle and there's no getting around the fact that modeling good behavior is a powerful way for parents to influence how their kids will act as they grow. So take them for a walk today! Plan a healthy home cooked meal and have your kids help with the preparation. These are both proven techniques for cholesterol lowering and weight management. If you can't do it today, promise you'll try it tomorrow. If you can only do it once this week do it twice the next week and keep on ramping it up till you're happy with the results for you and them.

Carotid ultrasound at age 35 confirms risks of adolescent lipid abnormalites

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 19:19:00 +0000

Looking at LDL and HDL cholesterol as predictors of atherosclerosis, investigators from Bogalusa Louisiana, Finland and Australia followed 1700 adolescents prospectively to age 29-39. They used a non-invasive measure of atherosclerosis in the caroitd artery as a risk marker and found that those with higher LDL-C or lower HDL-C as teens had 1.6-2.5 times more atherosclerosis than those with normal levels of these 2 important lipoproteins. The test they used, carotid intimal medial thickness(CIMT), is becoming an important marker which correlates quite well with risk for heart attack and stroke. The study by Magnussen et al is published in the March issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The importance of this study is that it confirms the critical nature of early detection and management of lipid abnormalities.

Overweight adolescent faces health risk similar to smoking

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:56:00 +0000

A new study from the British Medical Journal reported in the New York Times quantifies the effect being overweight as a teen has on future health. The authors compared mortality at age 60 among 45,000 Swedish army recruits who were teens in 1969-70. They compared those who were overweight to those who were not and found the effect on mortality of being overweight was similar to the effect of smoking 1/2 pack of cigarettes a day. Since nearly 3 times as many teens are overweight as smoke, this finding makes adolescent obesity one of the most important and widespread modifiable risk factors we know of.

Exercise and diet work much better for kids.

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 18:06:00 +0000

An article in the NY Times discusses something that puzzles me and puzzles a lot of you too: how do those before and after pictures used to sell the latest fad in exercise equipment relate to reality? We've all seen the flabby,soft lumps transformed into svelte well toned muscles. Well surprise surprise, they're hype. The reality is 6 weeks or even 6 months is too short a time to see visible changes after a new exercise regimen and 30 minutes three times a week on any machine is not enough. The good news is that for kids things are different than for us adults. I've seen major improvements in looks in children and teenagers in short periods of time because they have one factor adults don't have-GROWTH. Kids who lose a modest amount of weight with diet and exercise or even just maintain their weight in a few short months look remarkably better and are much healthier than before. I've seen it happen time and again in my practice. All it takes is a desire on their part, the right advice, and a family willing to change the home environment to support them. So don't despair, get started now.

More on Red Yeast Rice

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 10:56:00 +0000

Don't be confused. A new study shows that a Chinese food product, Xuezhikang, derived from rice is effective in reducing heart disease risk. The investigators studied 5000 men for 5 years and found an impressive forty-five percent reduction in heart disease in those on the 600mg/d supplement compared with the controls who received a placebo. The lead author, Dr David Capuzzi, explains in the NY Times that the compound used in this study referred to as red yeast rice is different from the red yeast rice extract available in U.S. Health food stores."This study,” Dr. Capuzzi said, “was done with a carefully constituted compound totally different from what is available over the counter.” The encouraging part of this study is that it demonstrates a powerful heart disease prevention effect from a natural food product in a randomized controlled trial, the gold standard for medical research. The unfortunate part is that the authors refer to the substance tested with the same name as a widely available and potentially ineffective and toxic product. (See post here from January 2008). Hopefully this new compound will become available here soon; in the meantime we should avoid using red yeast rice.

THE Wii BY NINTENDO

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Fri, 16 May 2008 19:28:00 +0000

Many of my patients are video gamers and many of their parents are concerned their kids spend too much time gaming. The Wii is a revolutionary new type of gaming system which can include physical activity. I recently got one to evaluate its potential and have found that it can make it fun to work up a sweat, with Wii Sports particularly. Wii Sports is a series of 5 simple yet engaging games that includes training modules. If you're not a natural athlete, you can the learn the skills of the game to improve your play and enjoyment, which may result in more and longer sessions.
Parents need to know that in order to ensure that they're kids are getting a benefit from the Wii they need to supervise them. For maximum benefit the players should move around with their bodies like they're actually participating in the sport. The games can be played mainly with the wrist which defeats much of the workout potential of the system. That being said, Wii Sports can be a good compromise particularly when the outdoors is not inviting for a youngster( see earlier post on jogging indoors v outdoors.) Here's a NY times article about a new accessory for the Wii that may help parents get into the game as well. I'll let you know more about as soon as I've had time to evaluate it. It certainly looks promising for adults,I don't know about kids.

Exercise Outdooors vs Indoors

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Fri, 09 May 2008 14:05:00 +0000

Better to run outdoors or on the treadmill? The NY times reporter Anahad O'Connor writes that outdoor running burns more calories for the same distance (about 5% more probably because of wind resistance and uneven terrain), but running on the treadmill has the advantage of producing less injuries. So there are trade offs. For kids an exercise prescription must be adjusted to their situation. Many overweight teens in particular are easily embarrassed and won't exercise if it has to be done in public, so a treadmill at the gym doesn't work for them and running outdoors where peers may see them is equally unfeasible. What they may need is an individualized program that may include walking outdoors(not obvious that they're exercising) , a stationary bike at home or a setup where they can dance to their favorite music in private. Another option may be video sports game like wii sports or a dance pad like DDR. Sometimes a few sessions with a personal trainer geared to their age group can teach them some basic things to do with light dumbell weights or bands that they can use at home. The message is that a variety of approaches need to be available so each child or adolescent can find what works for them. Most important of all don't give up if one approach doesn't work for you, try something else

Sugar Sweetened Drinks Linked to Gout

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 18:14:00 +0000

A new study in the British Medical Journal underscores the importance of limiting intake of sugar sweetened beverages(SSB's), like soda and sweetened teas or sports drinks, particularly those with fructose. The Study looked at 46,000 US and Canadian men and found over seven years the incidence of gout was highest in those with the highest intake. This is another reason why its important to limit soda and other SSB's. Kids are better off with water, skim milk and limited portions of juice as their first choice of drink with soda, sweet teas and sports drinks as sometime treats.

Fitness Level Important in Preventing Heart Disease, a New Study Shows

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 14:03:00 +0000

A new large study has reinforced the importance of maintaining our level of fitness in preventing deaths from heart disease. This study looked at exercise capacity by treadmill test. The investigators found that the men in the top 25% in fitness level had a 70 % lower death rate over 7 years than did the least fit group. This study showed these findings for both whites and blacks and after taking into account risk factors like cholesterol, blood pressure, and BMI. So remember to keep your level of fitness high with 5-6 days per week of 30+ minutes of regular activity for you and your kids. This activity does not have to be strenuous, a good walk is fine.

RED YEAST RICE ALERT

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 19:07:00 +0000

Many parents have asked me what I think of red yeast rice which is sold as a dietary supplement to lower cholesterol. I personally don't feel RYR is a sensible thing to take and I never recommend it for children. Here's why. RYR contains a mixture of statins which are the active ingredients of drugs like Zocor, Lipitor, or Crestor yet because RYR is sold as a supplement, there are less stringent controls on dose and contaminants then they are with drugs. So you can't be sure what your getting. Because the active component of RYR is a stain, if you're taking it, you need your liver and muscle enzymes checked regularly as well but this is not commonly done with supplements. I am aware of no scientific studies testing RYR for safety or efficacy in adults or children. Whereas the Statin drugs have been studied extensively for over 20 years in thousands of patients and have proven safe and lifesaving. If you want more information, check out this link to the Mayo Clinic Site

Meanwhile if you want a dietary supplement which has been proven to be safe and effective in lowering cholesterol, consider plant sterols and stanols in products like Smart Balance, Benechol, Cholestoff or Promise Activ.

Gene for carb sensitivity found

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 23:29:00 +0000

Researchers at University of Wisconsin have found that mice with a gene called SCD-1 are more carb sensitive than controls. If these findings can be replicated in humans it may help explain why some of us find low carb dieting effective for weight loss while others don't. It could some day lead to new types of medication for obesity, hypertriglyceridemia or metabolic syndrome as well. In the mean time this study reminds us of the importance of avoiding high fructose corn syrup and other simple carb containing foods, preferring instead whole grains, fruits and vegetables.
Read more on the University of Wisconsin website.

Risk calculator for adults

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 18:34:00 +0000

http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/atpiii/calculator.asp?usertype=prof

This link takes you to a calculator for finding out your ten year risk of heart attack its used by adult lipidologists and preventive cardiologists to decide on LDL-cholesterol targets and on treatment. It's useful for parents but won't help make decisions for children, teens or young adults with Familial Hyperchoelstrolemia because it will underestimate their risk. At your office visit be sure to ask me to help you with these calculation if you need help either doing or interpreting them.

lp(a) as a risk factor for early heart disease.

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 16:23:00 +0000

WebMd, a reliable source of health information in my experience, reports a study from the Womens Health Study that lp(a), an LDL associated blood protein that we have tesing for using the VAP test for the past ten years or so is associatd with increased risk for heart disease. Note that the lp(a),pronounced "lp little a", must be very high 66- 130 mg/dl to be dangerous. I don't recall ever seeing one that high in a child althought tehy reprot 1 in 10 women with levels of 65mg/dl or greater. Niaspan is the one drug known to lower lp(a). No diet factors have been identified to either lower or raise lp(a).

http://www.webmd.com/content/article/127/116751

Extremely High Lipoprotein(a) Level Doubles Odds of Heart Disease
By Daniel DeNoon
WebMD Medical News Reviewed By Louise Chang, MD
on Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Sept. 19, 2006 -- It's long been suspected of aiding and abetting bad cholesterol. Now medical detectives looking for a heart disease culprit say very high levels of a blood protein called lipoprotein(a) nearly double heart disease risk.

This dangerous substance helps cholesterol stick to the walls of your arteries. But it's been hard to make a case against it -- mainly because there's been no reliable way to measure the protein.

But technology -- and researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital -- finally has caught up with lipoprotein(a).

The researchers did it by using a state-of-the-art lipoprotein(a) test to analyze frozen blood samples collected 10 years ago from nearly 28,000 middle-aged women in the Women's Health Study. The women were healthy at the start of the study.

As it turns out, most of us have little to worry about from lipoprotein(a). Only very high levels of the protein are linked to heart disease. In fact, the study suggests it is dangerous only at levels more than twice as high as those previously thought harmful.

However, when lipoprotein(a) levels are high, it's bad news. One in 10 women has a lipoprotein(a) level of 65.5 mg/dL or greater. Those women have a 66% higher risk of heart disease.

One in 100 women has a level of 130.7 mg/dL or greater. That doubles a woman's risk of heart disease.

Lipoprotein(a) doesn't do its dirty work alone. It teams up with LDL cholesterolLDL cholesterol -- the bad cholesterol.

The link between lipoprotein(a) and heart disease is strongest among women with above-normal LDL cholesterol levels, find Jacqueline Suk Danik, MD, MPH, and colleagues.

Because lipoprotein(a) showed increased risk only at very high levels, and because there is no proof yet that lowering lipoprotein(a) levels lowers heart risk, the researchers don't advise routine testing.

"Determination of lipoprotein(a) levels should … be reserved for high-risk subsets of the population, such as individuals with premature [heart attacks] who have otherwise normal risk profiles or are at particularly high risk because of circumstances such as [inherited high cholesterolhigh cholesterol]," Danik and colleagues suggest.

Plant Stanol - A New Study from McGill U

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 12:30:00 +0000

New study from McGill U. shows plant stanol plus exercise lowers cholesterol, view

They used a plant sterol (a plant based cholesterol- like compound) in conjunction with regular exercise to lower cholesterol. The study shows that a combination of exercise with diet change is better than either alone. A good reminder for us all.

Plant sterol is available as Benecol brand margarine or salad dressing. For kids it may be challenging to get the needed 3-4 servings a day into the diet. An anternative for those who can swallow large pills, is the plant stanol contained in Cholest-OFF. Sterols and stanols derived from plants have been shown to lower LDL cholesterol 15%(average results are more like 5-10% in my experience) Side effects like gas and bloating are very rare and mild.

Welcome

noreply@blogger.com (Daktah) — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 12:13:00 +0000

This blog has been established to serve as a meeting place and forum where kids and parents can communicate and discuss their concerns and knowledge about any aspect of cholesterol (for example: its role in their health, its relation to heart and blood vessel diseases, its relation to diet and lifestyle, its medical treatment).

This blog is moderated by Marc S Jacobson MD, a professor, scientist and clinician in the field since 1979. I hope it will become an active discussion site for advancing prevention and health.