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Posted on 05/05/2005 7:36:01 AM PDT by pwatson
Edited on 05/05/2005 7:42:24 AM PDT by Sidebar Moderator. [history]
Subject: Re: Children's Diet Link To Disorders
Children's Diet Link To Disorders Study Shows Dramatic Effect of Fish Oil Supplement Study abstract follows.
By Felicity Lawrence for the Guardian, UK. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1474653,00.html
British children are suffering behavioural and learning disorders because their diets are deficient in vital nutrients needed for their brains to function normally, a study reveals today.
Rigorous scientific research shows that the performance of underachieving children, some of whom were also disruptive, improved dramatically when their diets were supplemented with fish oils. The fish oils contain omega-3 fatty acids that are essential for brain development and function but are largely missing from modern processed diets.
The study, published in this month's issue of the American journal Pediatrics and conducted by researchers from Oxford University's department of physiology, found that some 40% of the children made dramatic improvements in reading and spelling when given supplements high in omega-3 essential fats.
The data also shows a significant improvement in concentration and behaviour. Symptoms of the sort associated with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were reduced by an order of magnitude usually achieved with stimulants such as Ritalin. Parents reported that other health problems, such as eczema and asthma, also improved, although no specific data on these other conditions has been published in the study.
The research looked at 117 children aged five to 12 in 12 schools in Co Durham who were of normal ability but were underachieving and were suspected of having problems with coordination or motor skills, a condition known as dyspraxia. Dyspraxia is thought to affect at least 5% of British children to varying degrees - they may struggle to tie shoelaces or balance, for example.
The disorder frequently overlaps with dyslexia and ADHD, and is part of a range of condi tions that include autistic spectrum disorders. Researchers have been trying to establish why there has been a fourfold rise in these types of disorders in the past 15 to 20 years.
The Durham study followed a rigorous scientific method called a randomised double blind placebo-controlled trial.
Children were assessed for their motor skills, IQ, reading, spelling and behaviour. Testing confirmed they had dyspraxia.
Half were given supplements of essential fats, over three months, and half were given placebos of olive oil. Neither the children nor the assessors knew which was receiving which. After three months, the placebo group were also given the supplements.
Children on the supple ments of omega-3 fatty acids made nine to 10 months' progress in their reading in three months, compared with the control group, who made the normal progress of three months. When the group on placebos was switched to active supplements, it too made similar leaps in progress.
None of the children had been diagnosed as suffering from ADHD, although a third were found to have sufficient problems to put them in this category. After three months of fish oils, half of them showed so much improvement that they no longer fell into this category.
The early results of the research, which began in 2002, were so dramatic that they attracted considerable publicity before the codes to establish which group had been on the fish oils and which had been on placebos had been broken. Now that the full data is available it proves what has been increasingly feared by parents and teachers - that children's diets today are inadequate for their basic needs.
Dr Alexandra Richardson, who led the research, said: "Food affects behaviour. If you paid attention to diet, you could really make a difference."
ping
and sugar?
Doesn't sugar weaken the immune system? And from what I have read, don't children get flu and colds especially between Halloween and Christmas because of all the sugar intake?
For your edification, ping.
Old saying: You are what you eat.
The Brits are doing a lot of database extrapolation studies lately. It amazes me how all their conclusions lead to politically correct lefty solutions. My own opinion is that generations of socialism and life on the dole have produced a population of mental and physical cripples. More social engineering such as a state mandated "healthy" diet is more likely to exacerbate the problem than cure it.
Thanks for posting.
There is truth to that.
Our diets are atrocious. There is little nutrients needed for proper development. Too often in our fast paced world we resort to junk food.
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interesting. I believe it - after all, you brain is something like 60% fat. All the trans fats in cheap peanut butter, goldfish, chips, etc. probably screw with the balance of different types of fats.
On your side here, but surely eating fish isn't all that leftwing?
I would bet that the flu and colds (which adults also experience an increase) during that time happens because the weather gets bad, thus forcing kids to stay indoors in close proximity more, and also turning up the heat reduces humidity, leading to dry membranes in the nose which make the virus more likely to stick and infect you.
I guess he colds and flu taper off after Christmas probably because the common strains have already swept through, people had them and got better, and immunities to those strains become more common.
I don't make this stuff up. LOL
Four Habits that Weaken the Immune System
Certain foods and environmental influences can keep the immune system army from doing a good job. Watch out for these threats to your body's defenses.
1. Overdosing on sugar
Eating or drinking 100 grams (8 tbsp.) of sugar, the equivalent of one 12-ounce can of soda, can reduce the ability of white blood cells to kill germs by forty percent. The immune-suppressing effect of sugar starts less than thirty minutes after ingestion and may last for five hours. In contrast, the ingestion of complex carbohydrates, or starches, has no effect on the immune system.
2. Excess alcohol
Excessive alcohol intake can harm the body's immune system in two ways. First, it produces an overall nutritional deficiency, depriving the body of valuable immune- boosting nutrients. Second, alcohol, like sugar, consumed in excess can reduce the ability of white cells to kill germs. High doses of alcohol suppress the ability of the white blood cells to multiply, inhibit the action of killer white cells on cancer cells, and lessen the ability of macrophages to produce tumor necrosis factors. One drink (the equivalent of 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1 ounces of hard liquor) does not appear to bother the immune system, but three or more drinks do. Damage to the immune system increases in proportion to the quantity of alcohol consumed. Amounts of alcohol that are enough to cause intoxication are also enough to suppress immunity.
3. Food allergens
Due to a genetic quirk, some divisions of the immune army recognize an otherwise harmless substance (such as milk) as a foreign invader and attack it, causing an allergic reaction. Before the battle, the intestinal lining was like a wall impenetrable to foreign invaders. After many encounters with food allergens, the wall is damaged, enabling invaders and other potentially toxic substances in the food to get into the bloodstream and make the body feel miserable. This condition is known as the leaky gut syndrome.
4. Too much fat
Obesity can lead to a depressed immune system. It can affect the ability of white blood cells to multiply, produce antibodies, and rush to the site of an infection.
http://www.stopgettingsick.com/template.cfm-1696
Shhhhh! Don't you know that sugar is sacred? That sugar is innocent? Don't you know that *all* of these problems are the result of genetics or bad parenting? Yes, it does suppress the immune system. Yes, it wreaks havoc on blood sugar and insulin levels. Yes, sugar can interfere with the absorption of crucial minerals and nutrients. Yes, sugar can cause mood swings- just to mention a few things. But you can't question sugar unless you want people to think you're some kind of nut! Americans feed their kids TONS of sugar - and if you criticize it, you're criticizing their parenting skills and that's just asking for trouble.< /tounge-in-cheek >
Sanchez, A., et al. Role of Sugars in Human Neutrophilic Phagocytosis, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Nov 1973;261:1180_1184. Bernstein, J., al. Depression of Lymphocyte Transformation Following Oral Glucose Ingestion. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.1997;30:613
Ringsdorf, W., Cheraskin, E. and Ramsay R. Sucrose, Neutrophilic Phagocytosis and Resistance to Disease, Dental Survey. 1976;52(12):46_48.
"Certain foods should be avoided. These include foods with simple sugars. When you digest sugar, the activity of a type of disease-fighting white blood cell slows down. Remember: if you eat sugar throughout the day, you slow down your immune system throughout the day.
Nancy Appleton, Ph.D., in her book, "Lick the Sugar Habit" documents some 77 consequences of sugar. These include hyperactivity in children, kidney damage, mineral deficiency and imbalance, weakened eyesight, arthritis, asthma, candida, and hormonal imbalance. Supplements may help boost your immunity. Echinacea and garlic are proven immune enhancers. A study conducted at Ball State University, Muncie Center for Medical Education, showed that green barley extract may increase leukocytes- white blood cells important in immunity."
http://www.aim4health.com/hccaim6.htm
LOL. Not only funny, but true.
They must not be getting enough fish and chips.
Fact is, there are good fats, bad fats, and fats in between. The Omega 3's you get from fish oils are very good fats. Look at the latest baby formulas that are supplemented with DHA's, ie, good fats.
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