Dr. Howard Smith Reports

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/qkRJ7UIEFVM

The myth that falling asleep to the TV is good for children is now dispelled by a study from the University of ‘Massachusetts-Amherst.  Developmental specialists and neuroscientists there studied some 470 preschoolers and their parents using electronic sleep monitoring and questionnaires for behavioral assessment.

Thirty-four percent of the kids had TVs in their bedrooms, and those children slept 17 fewer minutes per 24 hours than those without bedroom TVs.  They tended to require longer daytime naps and spent an average of 12 minutes more asleep during the day.

TV viewing during the day also had effects on sleep patterns.  The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics both recommend limiting TV viewing for 2 to 4 year olds to one hour of high quality, educational programming a day, and the viewing should occur with a parent if possible.  

The study showed that only 46% of kids had viewing habits that met these guidelines. Those children whose daily TV screen time did meet guidelines and amounted to less than one hour a day were found to clock 22 more minutes of nighttime sleep.

Like any other children’s activity, screen time should be thoughtfully planned and carefully monitored.  As always, moderation is the best policy.

Abigail F. Helm, Rebecca M.C. Spencer. Television use and its effects on sleep in early childhood. Sleep Health, 2019; DOI: 10.1016/j.sleh.2019.02.009

#TVtime #sleep #screentime #parenting

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/qkRJ7UIEFVM

The myth that falling asleep to the TV is good for children is now dispelled by a study from the University of ‘Massachusetts-Amherst.  Developmental specialists and neuroscientists there studied some 470 preschoolers and their parents using electronic sleep monitoring and questionnaires for behavioral assessment.

Thirty-four percent of the kids had TVs in their bedrooms, and those children slept 17 fewer minutes per 24 hours than those without bedroom TVs.  They tended to require longer daytime naps and spent an average of 12 minutes more asleep during the day.

TV viewing during the day also had effects on sleep patterns.  The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics both recommend limiting TV viewing for 2 to 4 year olds to one hour of high quality, educational programming a day, and the viewing should occur with a parent if possible.  

The study showed that only 46% of kids had viewing habits that met these guidelines. Those children whose daily TV screen time did meet guidelines and amounted to less than one hour a day were found to clock 22 more minutes of nighttime sleep.

Like any other children’s activity, screen time should be thoughtfully planned and carefully monitored.  As always, moderation is the best policy.

Abigail F. Helm, Rebecca M.C. Spencer. Television use and its effects on sleep in early childhood. Sleep Health, 2019; DOI: 10.1016/j.sleh.2019.02.009

#TVtime #sleep #screentime #parenting

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/R6j4W6aPTgc

Kids with teeth that protrude are at significant risk for a lifetime of dental problems.  An Australian study of more than 50,000 children and adolescents was just published in the journal Dental Traumatology.

The data reveals that children under the age of six with teeth that protrude more than 3 millimeters are more than 3 times more likely to sustain serious dental trauma.  Children and adolescents older than 6 years with dental protrusions of more than 5 millimeters have double the  risk of injury.  When injuries do occur, they may negatively impact continued dental development, complicate future orthodontia efforts, or necessitate later dental implants.

Children with protruding teeth should be fitted with protective mouth guards for use during sports and other vigorous play.  They should be considered prime candidates for aggressive and proactive orthodontia in order to normalize their dental profile and reduce risk of injury.

George P Arraj, Giampiero Rossi‐Fedele, Esma J. Doğramacı. The association of overjet size and traumatic dental injuries – a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Dental Traumatology, 2019; DOI: 10.1111/edt.12481

#Dentalprotrusion #buckteeth #dentalfracture #orthodontia #mouthguard #dentalimplant

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/R6j4W6aPTgc

Kids with teeth that protrude are at significant risk for a lifetime of dental problems.  An Australian study of more than 50,000 children and adolescents was just published in the journal Dental Traumatology.

The data reveals that children under the age of six with teeth that protrude more than 3 millimeters are more than 3 times more likely to sustain serious dental trauma.  Children and adolescents older than 6 years with dental protrusions of more than 5 millimeters have double the  risk of injury.  When injuries do occur, they may negatively impact continued dental development, complicate future orthodontia efforts, or necessitate later dental implants.

Children with protruding teeth should be fitted with protective mouth guards for use during sports and other vigorous play.  They should be considered prime candidates for aggressive and proactive orthodontia in order to normalize their dental profile and reduce risk of injury.

George P Arraj, Giampiero Rossi‐Fedele, Esma J. Doğramacı. The association of overjet size and traumatic dental injuries – a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Dental Traumatology, 2019; DOI: 10.1111/edt.12481

#Dentalprotrusion #buckteeth #dentalfracture #orthodontia #mouthguard #dentalimplant

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/G3--3Vsow-c

The ready availability of marijuana had both positive and negative impacts on the use of hospital services in the state of Colorado.  Cardiologists and epidemiologists at UC-San Francisco studied some hospital records from Colorado comparing utilization before and after pot legalization.

 On the positive side, there were fewer hospitalizations for chronic pain.  This statistic is a tribute to the effectiveness of cannabis and its components THC and CBD as agents for pain management.  On the negative side, hospital admissions rose due to marijuana-driven motor vehicle accidents, alcohol abuse, and cannabis overdosing.  The net effect on hospital utilization was zero.

The lesson learned is that mind-altering drugs can have health benefits.  Their ready availability dictates the need for public education about responsible, moderate use.   This is particularly true in the context of heavy machinery operation.

Francesca N Delling, Eric Vittinghoff, Thomas A Dewland, etal. Does cannabis legalisation change healthcare utilisation? A population-based study using the healthcare cost and utilisation project in Colorado, USA. BMJ Open, 2019; 9 (5): e027432 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-027432

#Cannabis #pain #motorvehicleaccidents #drugoverdose #drugabuse

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/G3--3Vsow-c

The ready availability of marijuana had both positive and negative impacts on the use of hospital services in the state of Colorado.  Cardiologists and epidemiologists at UC-San Francisco studied some hospital records from Colorado comparing utilization before and after pot legalization.

 On the positive side, there were fewer hospitalizations for chronic pain.  This statistic is a tribute to the effectiveness of cannabis and its components THC and CBD as agents for pain management.  On the negative side, hospital admissions rose due to marijuana-driven motor vehicle accidents, alcohol abuse, and cannabis overdosing.  The net effect on hospital utilization was zero.

The lesson learned is that mind-altering drugs can have health benefits.  Their ready availability dictates the need for public education about responsible, moderate use.   This is particularly true in the context of heavy machinery operation.

Francesca N Delling, Eric Vittinghoff, Thomas A Dewland, etal. Does cannabis legalisation change healthcare utilisation? A population-based study using the healthcare cost and utilisation project in Colorado, USA. BMJ Open, 2019; 9 (5): e027432 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-027432

#Cannabis #pain #motorvehicleaccidents #drugoverdose #drugabuse

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/RQhzQKE1s0M

Inflammatory bowel disease is best treated by simultaneously applying therapies that focus both on the gut and the brain.  A study from Sweden’s University of Gothenberg just published in journal Gastroenterology emphasizes the need a comprehensive, holistic approach to the disease.

The researchers studied 400 patients with IBD and matched controls using quantitative measures of intestinal sensitivity and motility as well as a questionnaire to explore the subjects neurological and psychological issues.  Their studies were particularly focused on the so call gut-brain axis which is the link between these components of IBD.

The study concludes that the most severe forms of IBD were accompanied by multiple problems in the gastrointestinal tract and in the psyche.  Effective treatment was only possible when each component of the disease was recognized and managed holistically with not only pharmaceuticals such as anti-depressants but also cognitive behavioral therapy and hypnotherapy.

Magnus Simrén, Hans Törnblom, Olafur S. Palsson, Lukas Van Oudenhove, William E. Whitehead, Jan Tack. Cumulative Effects of Psychologic Distress, Visceral Hypersensitivity, and Abnormal Transit on Patient-reported Outcomes in Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Gastroenterology, 2019; DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2019.04.019

#IBS #holisticmedicine #hypnotherapy

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/RQhzQKE1s0M

Inflammatory bowel disease is best treated by simultaneously applying therapies that focus both on the gut and the brain.  A study from Sweden’s University of Gothenberg just published in journal Gastroenterology emphasizes the need a comprehensive, holistic approach to the disease.

The researchers studied 400 patients with IBD and matched controls using quantitative measures of intestinal sensitivity and motility as well as a questionnaire to explore the subjects neurological and psychological issues.  Their studies were particularly focused on the so call gut-brain axis which is the link between these components of IBD.

The study concludes that the most severe forms of IBD were accompanied by multiple problems in the gastrointestinal tract and in the psyche.  Effective treatment was only possible when each component of the disease was recognized and managed holistically with not only pharmaceuticals such as anti-depressants but also cognitive behavioral therapy and hypnotherapy.

Magnus Simrén, Hans Törnblom, Olafur S. Palsson, Lukas Van Oudenhove, William E. Whitehead, Jan Tack. Cumulative Effects of Psychologic Distress, Visceral Hypersensitivity, and Abnormal Transit on Patient-reported Outcomes in Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Gastroenterology, 2019; DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2019.04.019

#IBS #holisticmedicine #hypnotherapy

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/UoXTh9OtlzA

Electronically monitoring a child’s day-to-day breathing patterns and their responses to medicine improves asthma management.  Pediatricians at the University of Utah developed a smartphone app they call eAsthmaTracker and tested it with more than 300 children receiving care at 11 clinics statewide.

The app tracks a child’s respiratory symptoms and peak flow rates and their impact on everyday activities permitting parents and clinicians to detect impending acute asthma attacks and use proactive medication adjustments to prevent or at least moderate such episodes.  Use of the app improved asthma control, reduced ED visits by 60%, diminished the need for rescue steroids by 35%, led to 60% fewer missed school days, and drove an improved quality of life.

The Utah app is not yet ready for prime time, but the good news is that there are several free asthma tracking apps already available on the iOS and Android App stores.  These apps appear to provide some of the same tracking and predictive benefits as the eAsthmaTracker.  I’ll provide links to these apps in the references.

If your child or you have asthma, I would urge you to try one of these apps.  They will keep the asthma under better control and hopefully reduce the need for excessive medication.

Flory L. Nkoy, Bernhard A. Fassl, Victoria L. Wilkins, Joseph Johnson, Eun Hea Unsicker, Karmella J. Koopmeiners, Andrea Jensen, Michelle Frazier, Jordan Gaddis, Lis Malmgren, Stacey Williams, Heather Oldroyd, Tom Greene, Xiaoming Sheng, Derek A. Uchida, Christopher G. Maloney, Bryan L. Stone. Ambulatory Management of Childhood Asthma Using a Novel Self-management Application. Pediatrics, 2019; e20181711 DOI: 10.1542/peds.2018-1711

https://asthma-app.com

https://www.asthmamd.org/

#smartphoneapp #asthma #peakflow #AppStore

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/UoXTh9OtlzA

Electronically monitoring a child’s day-to-day breathing patterns and their responses to medicine improves asthma management.  Pediatricians at the University of Utah developed a smartphone app they call eAsthmaTracker and tested it with more than 300 children receiving care at 11 clinics statewide.

The app tracks a child’s respiratory symptoms and peak flow rates and their impact on everyday activities permitting parents and clinicians to detect impending acute asthma attacks and use proactive medication adjustments to prevent or at least moderate such episodes.  Use of the app improved asthma control, reduced ED visits by 60%, diminished the need for rescue steroids by 35%, led to 60% fewer missed school days, and drove an improved quality of life.

The Utah app is not yet ready for prime time, but the good news is that there are several free asthma tracking apps already available on the iOS and Android App stores.  These apps appear to provide some of the same tracking and predictive benefits as the eAsthmaTracker.  I’ll provide links to these apps in the references.

If your child or you have asthma, I would urge you to try one of these apps.  They will keep the asthma under better control and hopefully reduce the need for excessive medication.

Flory L. Nkoy, Bernhard A. Fassl, Victoria L. Wilkins, Joseph Johnson, Eun Hea Unsicker, Karmella J. Koopmeiners, Andrea Jensen, Michelle Frazier, Jordan Gaddis, Lis Malmgren, Stacey Williams, Heather Oldroyd, Tom Greene, Xiaoming Sheng, Derek A. Uchida, Christopher G. Maloney, Bryan L. Stone. Ambulatory Management of Childhood Asthma Using a Novel Self-management Application. Pediatrics, 2019; e20181711 DOI: 10.1542/peds.2018-1711

https://asthma-app.com

https://www.asthmamd.org/

#smartphoneapp #asthma #peakflow #AppStore