ADHD Incidence May Be Reduced In Breastfed Children

Main Category: ADHD
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology;??Nutrition / Diet
Article Date: 16 May 2013 - 1:00 PDT Current ratings for:
ADHD Incidence May Be Reduced In Breastfed Children

Breastfeeding has a positive impact on the physical and mental development of infants. A new study suggests that breastfeeding may protect against the development of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) later in childhood. The study is reported in Breastfeeding Medicine, the Official Journal of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Breastfeeding Medicine website.*

A team of Israeli researchers led by Aviva Mimouni-Bloch, MD compared breastfeeding history and other factors in a group of children 6-12 year of age diagnosed with ADHD to control groups of children who did not have ADHD. The results demonstrated that overall, the children with ADHD were less likely to have been breastfed at 3 and 6 months of age than the children without ADHD. This association between ADHD and lack of breastfeeding was statistically significant.

"Breastfeeding has been shown to have a positive impact on child development, good health, and protection against illness. Now, another possible benefit of breastfeeding for three months and especially six months or longer has been identified," says Ruth Lawrence, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Breastfeeding Medicine and Professor of Pediatrics, University of Rochester School of Medicine. "This study opens another avenue of investigation in the prevention of ADHD."

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19 May. 2013. APA

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Hepatic Encephalopathy Reduced By Probiotics

Main Category: Liver Disease / Hepatitis
Also Included In: Psychology / Psychiatry;??Nutrition / Diet;??Neurology / Neuroscience
Article Date: 28 Apr 2013 - 0:00 PDT Current ratings for:
Hepatic Encephalopathy Reduced By Probiotics

Probiotics could emerge as a treatment plan to manage hepatic encephalopathy (HE) therapy after a new study announced at the International Liver Congress? 2013 found they significantly reduced development of the notoriously difficult-to-treat disease.

The study analysed the efficacy of probiotics in preventing the development of HE in 160 cirrhotic patients over a period of approximately nine months and found significant improvements in reducing patients' arterial ammonia levels after three months of treatment with probiotics.

Ammonia, produced by gut bacteria, is thought to be one of the main mediators of cerebral dysfunction in HE. Probiotics work by enriching the gut flora with a non-urease producing microorganisms, which decrease ammonia production. Probiotics are live microorganisms (mostly bacteria) that produce a health benefit on the host when administered in adequate amounts.

Twice as many patients taking a placebo developed overt HE (the study's primary endpoint) compared to patients taking probiotics in the form of a capsule.

EASL's Treasurer, Prof. Mauro Bernardi welcomed the findings and said they would provide a positive impact for cirrhotic patients at risk of developing HE for whom the prognosis is typically very poor.

Prof. Bernardi said: "Hepatic encephalopathy is an insidious disease that's caused by an accumulation of toxins in the blood that are normally removed by the liver. Treatment normally involves the use of antibiotics or laxatives to suppress the production of toxic substances in the intestine but there is still a great deal of room for improvement so it will be exciting to see the results of further studies to determine if clinicians have a new form of treatment on the cards."

Hepatic encephalopathy is a spectrum of neuropsychiatric abnormalities including personality changes, intellectual impairment and reduced levels of consciousness in patients with liver failure, after exclusion of other known brain disease.

Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click 'references' tab above for source.
Visit our liver disease / hepatitis section for the latest news on this subject. Disclaimer: the data referenced in this release is based on the submitted abstract. More recent data may be presented at the International Liver Congress? 2013.

1 M.K Lunia, AN OPEN LABEL RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIAL OF PROBIOTICS FOR PRIMARY PROPHYLAXIS OF HEPATIC ENCEPHALOPATHY IN PATIENTS WITH CIRRHOSIS. Presented at the International Liver CongressTM 2013

2 A. Agrawal, Secondary Prophylaxis of Hepatic Encephalopathy in Cirrhosis, An Open-Label, Randomized Controlled Trial of Lactulose, Probiotics, and No Therapy. Available http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/767674_3 [Accessed 9/4/13]

3 World Health Organization and Food and Agriculture Organizationof the United Nations. Health and Nutritional Properties of Probiotics in Food including Powder Milk with Live Lactic Acid Bacteria. Ava http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/fs_management/en/probiotics.pdf [Accessed 9/4/13]

European Association for the Study of the Liver

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6 May. 2013. APA

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