Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 9 January 2004 — Page 16

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THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2004

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raised users’ rtsks ot’heart attack, stroke and breast cancer. That study examined combinations of estrogen and progestin; whether estrogen alone, used only by women who’ve had a hysterectomy, is as risky remains under study. To see howdifficult quitting is, Grady surveyed 377 randomly chosen Kaiser patients in northern California who tried. Roughly three-fourths of women will have either no or tolerable symptoms when they stop hormone therapy, she reported this month in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology. A quarter of the Kaiser patients had menopause symptoms, mostly hot flashes, return to such a degree that they resumed the pills. Tapering off didn't seem to help, although Grady stressed that most didn’t taper slowly enough - she advises six months to a year. Women who really need estrogen, especially if they’re otherwise at low risk of heart disease or cancer, shouldn’t be scared away from it, Grady stresses. Female doctors don’t seem to be. A new poll of American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ members found half of female ob/gyns who are bothered by menopause use some form of hormone therapy themselves. Key is taking as little as possible for as short a period as possible. But antidepressants like Eflfexor and those in the Prozac

Study says third of kids eat fast food daily

family help some women conquer hot flashes, an option that isn't widely known but is slowly gaining interest. There’s no count of how many women try it, but in that ob/gyn poll, 13 percent of menopause-bothered doctors said they are. Nobody knows why they work. But small studies suggest the antidepressants reduce hot flashes by about 60 percent, not as good as estrogen although better than other options so far have proved. Doses are half or even less of the starting dose for depression treatment, so low that side effects mostly are decreased libido and some weight fluctuation, doctors say. Other options: • Trazodone, commonly used for sleep problems can help women whose hot flashes are worse at night and thus sleepdisrupting, Herr says. It's considered very safe; some women feel a hangover effect common with sedatives. • Clonidine. a blood pressure medicine. The main side effect is blood pressure dropping too low. • Black cohosh, an herb that's the most-touted estrogen alternative. Research is mixed on whether it actually works; a major study that may settle the issue is under way. “Don’t give up too soon," advises Santoro. “It’s not necessary to live with symptoms that make you miserable.”

CHICAGO (AP) - Every day, nearly one-third of U.S. children aged 4 to T9 eat fast food, which likely packs on about six extra pounds per child per year and increases the risk

of obesity, a study of 6,212 youngsters found. The numbers, though alarming, are not surprising since billions ofdollars are spent each year on fast-food advertising directed

at kids, said lead author Dr. David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children’s Hospital Boston. The findings suggest that fastfood consumption has increased fivefold among children since 1970, Ludwig said. The nationally representative study included boys and girls from all regions of the country and different socio-economic levels. The highest levels of fast-food consumption were found in youngsters with higher household income levels, boys, older children, Blacks and children living in the South. The lowest levels were found in youngsters living in the West, rural areas, Hispanics and those aged 4 to 8, but more than 20 percent of youngsters in each of those groups still reported eating fast food on any

given day. Fast-food lovers consumed more fats, sugars and carbohydrates and fewer fruits and nonstarchy vegetables than youngsters who didn't eat fast food. They also consumed 187 more daily calories, w hich likely adds up to about six pounds more per year, the study found. The results are based on children questioned in government surveys from 1994 to 1996 and 1998. The study lacks data on the children’s weight. Children’scurrentlevelsoffastfood consumption probably are even higher because of an increase in the number of fast-food restaurants and in fast-food marketing since the late 1990s, Ludwig said. The study appears in the January issue of Pediatrics.

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First weightloss drug for children OKd From HealthDayNews The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first-ever weight-loss drug for children. Hoffman-La Roche's Xenical (orlistat) is now permitted to treat obese 12- to 16-year-olds, the company said in a statement. In a ;)4-week trial involving 539 adolescents in this age range, 27 percent of those who took Xenical achieved a five percent reduction in their body mass index (BM1, a ratio of height to weight), vs. 16 percent who achieved that goal without the medication. Approved for adults in 1998, Xenical works by blocking about 30 percent ofthe body’s absorption of dietary fat. As in studies on older people, the medication did have several negative side effects in the studies on children, including loose stools and bowel control problems. In blocking fat absorption, the drug also stems absorption of certain vitamins and nutrients, including vitamins A, D, E, and K, and beta-carotene. The manufacturer recommends that people w ho take Xenical also take a daily vitamin supplement.

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Back pain takes big toll on U.S. health dollar

By ADAM MARCUS HealthDayNews Oh, my aching wallet! The medical costs of back pain in this country now exceed $90 billion, with more than $26 billion of that coming from direct treatment of the condition, a new study has found. The $90 billion figure represented one percent of the nation's gross domestic product in 1998, while direct treatment costs of back pain accounted for 2,f> percent ofthe country’s total health care outlay that year. Experts have long known that back pain - bad discs, spine disorders, injuries - is a major sponge for health-care dollars. But previous estimates have been based on 1977 data that were periodically adjusted to reflect present-day dollar values. The latest study, by researchers at Duke University Medical Center, provides the most up-to-date picture ofthe toll back pain takes on the nation’s health-care budget. Their report appears in the January issue of Spine, 1 lowever, even the study authors admit their work is incomplete. The figures don’t include information about back pain in nursing home patients, who in the 1977 research accounted for about 20 percent of medical costs. As a result, the costs of care for hack pain almost certainly top $100 billion. Nor does the Duke study > include non-medical costs of hack pain, such as lost productivity. A recent study in the Journal ofthe American Medical Association found chronic pain conditions, including arthritis, hack problems and other ailments, drain $61.2 billion a year from the U.S. economy. Back pain accounted for about a quarter ofthe lost or unproductive work, second only to headaches as the most frequent pain complaint of workers. That study didn’t include t he costs associated with people knocked out ofthework

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force by chronic pain. Back pain’s cost to society is “enormous,", says study author Walter Buzz Stewart, director of the Center for Health Research and Rural Advocacy at the Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pa. The figures for health-care expenses are "larger than I would have predicted." About eight in 10 Americans will suffer a bout of hack pain before they die. At any given time, between 15 percent and 20 percent ofthe country is complaining ofthe problem. Not surprisingly, people with back pain consume more healthcare dollars than those without

hack problems. The difference in 199nvras $3,498 vs. $2,177, or about 60 percent. The gap persisted among all categories of expenditures, from inpatient care to prescription drugs to emergency room \ isits. I low ever, a relatively small segment ofthe population consumes the vast bulkofthe resources when it comes to treating hack pain, says Xuemei Luo, a Duke University health systems researcher and leader ofthe new study. A quarter of people with hack pain account for 7'> percent of the costs, she says, while only 10 percent of patients drive more than half the patient spending.

HEALTH BRIEFS

January is national volunteer blood donor month To help ensure an adequate blood supply, Indiana Blood Center (IBC) has joined with the American Association of Blood Banks to stress the importance of giving the gift of life through the donation of blood. WTHR Channel 13 joins the IBC in the annual "Gift of Life" blood drive Jan. 9 from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Jan. 10 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Each blood donor will receive a limited edition hat. For more information call 916-5150.

Indy in motion program expanding The Marion County Health Department's Indy in Motion community fitness program is expanding with a variety of free exercise opportunities at Raymond Park Middle School/ Indy Island beginning this month. Raymond Park/Indy is located at 8575 E. Raymond St. Low impact aerobics, toning and stretching classes will be held Tuesday through Thursday from 3 to 4 p.m. All programs are free and open to the public. For more information contact Corey Wilson at 221-3122.