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| Sunday, 30 January 2005 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Stress in Young Children : are parents responsible? Children as young as five years are suffering from stress-related disorders, says Dr. R. A. R. PERERA, a clinical psychologist who discusses the issue.
Child Psychologists say they are treating more children for anxiety and depression. The stress of multiple activities, the hectic rhythms of households and the pressure to succeed academically, athletically and socially are literally making these children sick. Physicians and Child Psychologists say that we are over programming and over scheduling our children. Their bodies are crying out and saying: 'enough'. One teenager who was seen by a psychologist said that he is a 'B' student and said that his parents told him that it is not good enough. His parents were obsessed that he should get 'A's for all his subjects and that is causing him a lot of stress because he is trying his best to do a thing which he is not capable of. For many children, the aches and pains are the result of hours spent on racing from sports practice, band practice, to music lessons to the tutor, and not eating a balanced diet. It's what happens when some parents hyper-manage play time, yet fail to pencil in down time. In Sri Lanka one of the major problems seen in young children is backache. There is a direct correlation between this symptom and the weight of the school bag (backpack). So many children are suffering from stress-related illnesses that some hospitals in developed countries have begun offering yoga, meditation and other alternative medical services to help youngsters relax. Psychologists believe that these are better than giving any medications such as anti depressants of tranquillises to these young children. A child should be taught to say 'no' to any stressful events that they can undergo due to parents' pressure. This has to be promoted when the child is about five years, because by elementary school, it is too late. Psychologists say that the parents need to look at their own motivations, because the stress they put on their children depends on the parents level of success, and the parents level of work achievement, and how they view being busy. Generally a parent who wanted to become a doctor or an engineer but who failed to achieve this ambition will try hard for their child to become a doctor or an engineer. They try to fulfil their failed ambition through their child. This can cause immense stress for a child who wants to do something else as his life ambition. The result is an increase in young children suffering from irritable bowel syndrome, chest pains, tension headaches and fatigue. And there is an increase in parents asking therapists to help their children manage the stress of their young lives. This situation has promoted some counselling therapists to advise these parents that, just to play games like 'hide and seek', or riding a bicycle is better than an organised sport. Another cause of childhood stress is the 'demanding' nature of schools. They create a tremendous amount of pressure in a young child's mind. Children are told. 'You have got to do your homework, you have got to practice, you have to go to tuition class and you have to go to religious education centres. It could be safely state now that 'children do not have as much time as they need to, just to be children. Think 'ayurvedically' to maintain good health Ayurveda is a very comprehensive medical system which has been practised for generations in India and Sri Lanka based on the fundamental principles of life observed in deep meditations by ancient seers. Ayurveda is a science of life which focuses on the subtle energies in all things living and non-living and also in our thoughts, emotions and actions. First have confidence and trust in yourself. You know your mind and body very well, though often you, inner wisdom may be seen obscured by habits detrimental to your health. Currently in the west, Ayurveda is used primarily for prevention of digestive disorders. The very first step to maintain good health is to make sure that you have good digestion. This prevents ama (Toxin) and builds healthy tissues which results in sufficient Ojas Ojas, (if not depleted through a poor lifestyle) and will give you good immunity, both physical and mental. The Ayurveda way of improving digestion, is by following certain guidelines. For example, there are certain factors that are disturbing your agni. They include: Excessive eating or drinking; Prolonged eating; Eating between meals; Depressed emotions; Ignoring the rules of eating especially poor food combination; Taking inappropriate food; Eating at unsuitable times; Eating heavy Frozen, cold or stale food. These factors disturb the agni and production ama which causes diseases. Regular exercise helps to improve digestion. It raises agni. It keeps the channels unobstructed, expels the wastes of cell metabolism and keeps the muscles supple. Almost everyone will benefit from exercise. Too much exercise however is not good. Ayurveda says that you should exercise to half of your capacity. When you have had optimum exercise you begin to perspire on your forehead, under your armpits and along your spine. Yoga, walking and swimming are good exercise options. Sufficient but not excessive exercise throughout the day is beneficial for good health. A short walk after meals promote digestion. Eating at regular times and observance of rules of eating as mentioned in basic Ayurvedic is also important. The rules include observing: The natural qualities in food; How the natural qualities in food can be altered; The effect of combining food; The quantity of food eaten; The place/places and climate where the food had been grown; The ways of preparation; The effect of the seasons and times of the day. General guidelines on eating habits and consumption of food. Spices and herbs stimulate appetite and improve digestion by increasing secretion of digestive juice by promoting absorption in intestine by reducing gases. There are some spices that should be in every home. For example, heating or cooling coriander gives the body cooling effect and black pepper turmeric, cinnamon, ginger, clove, nutmeg stimulate agni accelerate the digestive system. Inappropriate diet with poor and unbalanced food combinations is the major cause of chronic constipation and gases. Lack of sleep, anxiety, and other factors may also contribute to constipation and gases. Habitually suppressing the natural urge for defecation or excessive use of laxatives may also result in constipation. Since they all upset the body use your natural intelligence to regulate them. Dr. E.D.T. P. Gunarathna. Smokers lose a decade of life On and average, cigarette smokers die 10 years younger than non-smokers, according to a 50-year-long study of smoking and death among doctors published in the British Medical Journal. But stopping at the age of 50 halves the risk - and stopping at 30 avoids almost all of it, say the researchers. The study, funded by the Medical Research Council, Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation, also demonstrates the benefits of quitting smoking at any age. Stopping smoking at ages 60, 50, 40 or 30 gains, respectively, about 3, 6, 9 or 10 years of life expectancy. The initial results were published by Richard Doll, Emirates Professor of Medicine, clinical trial service unit Oxford University; in the BMJ in June 1954, confirming that smoking tobacco caused lung cancer. He published the 50-year results on the exact 50th anniversary (June 26, 2004) of those initial results, showing that the overall risks are much greater than originally suspected. Sir Richard Peto, Professor of Medical Statistics and Epidemiology at Oxford, who has collaborated on the study for 30 years, said: "On average, those who continue to smoke lose 10 years of life but stopping smoking at ages 60, 50, 40 or 30 gains 3, 6,9 or the full 10 years of life expectancy. half of those who continued to smoke, were killed by their habit." Sir Richard Doll said: "Over the past few decades prevention and better treatment of disease have halved non-smoker death rates in the elderly in Britain. But these improvements have been completely nullified by the rapidly increasing hazards of tobacco for those who continue to smoke cigarettes. In Britain, tobacco has caused six million deaths over the last 50 years. But worldwide, tobacco will soon be causing six million deaths each year. Hepatitis C virus discovery Researchers in the United Kingdom have made a significant advance in the understanding of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) by identifying new genetic factors associated with clearing the virus spontaneously without the necessity for additional treatment. Their findings were published in the science magazine. Hepatitis C virus infects the liver and leads to serious permanent liver damage. The infection affects about 170 million people worldwide. Most people who come into contact with HCV contract a long-term or chronic infection and, as a consequence, run a significant risk of liver failure-necessitating liver transplantation-or liver cancer. The new multi-centre study was jointly led by researchers from Southampton University's School of Medicine, the National Genetics Institute, United States, and the Johns Hopkins Hospital, US. More than 1,000 patients from the UK and the US were involved in the study, some of whom were chronically infected and some who had cleared the virus. Researchers identified a specific protection against HCV. Dr. Salim Khakoo of Southamption's Infection, Inflammation and Repair Division, who co-authored the paper with Professor Mary Carrington of the National Genetics Institute in the US, said: "These favourable genes control the functions of NK (natural killer) cells. NK cells are part of the innate immune system, a branch of immunity that has not been well studied in HCV to date. The researchers believe that the findings could eventually lead to new treatment strategies for HCV. 'Silent' genes and weight gain A conflict between genes inherited from our parents may affect our ability to adapt to life after birth and have lasting effects on our weight, according to a UK report. We inherit similar sets of genes from both parents but, in the case of a small number of genes, only one of the copies is active, the copy from the other parent being 'imprinted' to be silent. But it can still have an effect on behaviour apparently. The research group at the UK's Babraham Institute headed by Dr. Gavin Kelsey have published a study in Nature Genetics that describes the effects of altering an imprinted gene in mice that specifies a controller of hormone action. This shows that imprinting has important effects on the way the young interact with their mothers and how they regulate their food intake and metabolism. The discovery work provides more evidence that instead of cooperating, some genes that we inherit from our parents can be in conflict. The imprinted genes received from fathers make greater demands on mothers and imprinted genes from mothers are more conservative. It appears to be crucial that we have the right balance of imprinted genes. From 'London Press Service' Obesity can boost risk of kidney stones Obesity and weight gain can increase the risk of developing kidney stones, according to a new study. Researchers believe that a larger body size leads to increased excretion in the urine of calcium and uric acid, thus boosting chances for calcium-containing kidney stones, the study noted. The study, to be published in the January 26 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), found that men weighing more than 100 kilos (220 pounds) had a 44 percent greater risk of developing kidney stones than men weighing 68 kilos (150 pounds) or less. Women between the ages of 27 and 44 who weighed over 100 kilos had a sharply higher risk of developing kidney stones (92 percent), while those aged 34-59 with a similar weight had an 89 percent greater risk. Men who gained more than 15 kilos after the age of 21 saw their risk climb 39 percent, compared with men who maintained their weight. Led by Eric Taylor of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, the study looked at more than 200,000 people. (AFP) Fat moms often make fat kids by Maggie Fox The children of overweight mothers are 15 times more likely to be obese by age 6 than children of lean mothers, U.S. researchers have reported. The children start piling on the pounds at age 3, the team at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania found.
"We found dramatic increases in body fat between ages three and six," said Dr. Robert Berkowitz, who led the study. "We should be doing prevention and treatment programs at a much earlier age," Berkowitz added. "Everyone knows how difficult it is to take weight off once you are overweight." Berkowitz said his team is now examining the eating and exercise habits of the families they studied but said other studies clearly show genes play an important role. The dramatic spike in weight between ages 3 and 6 support this, he said. "This suggests that some genes controlling body weight may become active during this period," Berkowitz said. Writing in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Berkowitz and colleagues said they studied 70 children at the hospital over a six-year period. About half had overweight mothers and half had lean mothers. While babies, the two groups of children looked much the same in terms of weight and body fat. But one-third of the children of overweight women gained weight quickly after turning 3. Of the 37 children of healthy weight women, only one became overweight, the researchers said. And, as seen in adults, children from poorer families were more likely to be overweight. Berkowitz said certain children must carry a combination of genes that make them much more vulnerable to what he calls the "toxic" Western environment, where it is difficult to exercise and food abounds. He does not believe poor diet alone is to blame. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 15 percent of U.S children are overweight. More than 60 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese. (Reuters) |
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| Produced by Lake House |
Child psychologists and paediatricians are seeing children as young as
5 years suffering from stress-related health problems typically found in
harried adults. They are reporting a rise in chronic fatigue, stomach
aches and sleep disorders in children as young as five years.
The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,
suggests that doctors need to start watching out for the children of
overweight parents very early - by age 4 at the latest, the researchers
said.
