Drinking Patterns and Factors Involved

Teenage Drinking: Parents or the Media?

"The environment plays a substansial role in a young adolescents drinking habits. Interesting enough, these findings showed that there was an important shift in drinking patterns between Year 9 and Year 11. The younger group reported that one in five of those who had ever had alcohol had been drunk multiple times in their life before. The other group reported that about half in the older group admitted to having been drunk numerous times and approximately 79 percent had been drunk at least once before in their lifetime." (http://www.vision.org/visionmedia/current-health-articles/teen-drinking/46097.aspx, The Best Shot for Responsible Drinking Patterns, Vision Insights and New Horizons)

The timing of this increased drinking may suggest that their is a large biological factor influencing these habits. Family habits noticed during the teenage years correlates to a teens desire to spend more time with friends rather than family, thus party more/socialize.

Suprsing as well, the influence of celebrities and the media, play a much smaller role than family and friends. People seem to be very assuming that this is the dominant issue, when really statistics show that it isn't. Another study examined the correlation between excessive drinking and what films the teens were allowed to watch in their household. Those who were allowed to watch R rated films had a greater chance of drinking excessively. Lack of parental involvement in the childs life which was truly reflected the drinking patterns of most teens. Family members, friends and close relatives need to set a good example as well to avoide this issue.

Medtronic's Bryan Cervical Disc

New Cervical Disc Approved by FDA

The FDA has recently approved the Medtronic’s Bryan Cervical Disc. The Bryan Cervical Disc, designed to help to alleviate neck pain, finally will be put on the market, but their will be a post market study, including the tracking of patients' neck disability index scores, radiographic information, and neurological status.The Bryan is used to mimic natural disc shock absorption.

It is composed of titanium and polyurethane, and has a metal on metal like design. Its compostiton is what essentially raised awareness to the FDA panel on it's safety, however short term use is not the use, the are of long term use is of concern, and will be under surveillance for the next ten years or so.

The Bryan (Medtronic), Prestige (Medtronic) and ProDisc-C (Synthes) are currently the only cervical artifical disc replacements available in the U.S, Medtronic has not yet announced further details or information regarding the approval and commerical availability of Bryan yet.

Health Risks Associated With Late Working Hours

Night Shifts Lead to Poor Health In Women

Apparently women who work on rotating shifts are more susceptible to certain diseases, specifically the number one killer in the United States, Heart Disease. Long term shift work is a percursor to raised cortisol levels (the stress hormone) leading to a more signficant risk factor to certain illnesses.

"The researchers, led by Pan and senior author Frank Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology, analyzed data on more than 69,269 U.S. women, ages 42 to 67, in the Nurses’ Health Study I, tracked from 1988 to 2008, and 107,915 women, ages 25 to 42, in the Nurses’ Health Study II, tracked from 1989 to 2007. About 60% of the nurses performed more than one year of rotating night shift work at baseline; about 11% in Nurses’ Health Study I had more than 10 years of rotating night shift work at baseline, and about 4% in Nurses’ Health Study II worked more than 10 years of rotating night shifts at baseline, and this proportion increased during the follow-up." ( http://healthblogs.org/2012/03/11/rotating-night-shift-work-linked-to-increased-risk-of-type-2-diabetes-in-women/#more-388 )

Of course taking into account other risk factors such as eating habits, poor health habits such as smoking, sleeping patterns, and of course genetics help to explain the relationship between poor health and long/late working shifts. One study done showed a signifcant increased risk of type 2 diabetes among women working rotating night shifts. Rotating night work can change the circadian rhytms that are closey linked with diabetes, obesity, and even glucose dysregulation. Studies have also shown over the years, that lack of sleep is closely associated with weight gain, and with this a higher chance of obesity, heart problems, and type 2 diabetes.

Little White Lies Your Doc May Be Telling You

How Sick Are You?

Not all doctors may be telling you the truth, more likely what you may want to hear in the moment. For doctors to have disclosed serious medical errors to a patient, this would result in malpractice or unprofessional relationships with their patients or drug companies. Medical companies are a business, so for a doctor to be honest with you on whether or not you need a drug may be a bit of a moral dilemma to them. In fact, more than half of doctors have admitted that they have down played a patients prognosis rather than given the evidence in which the facts may support.

Fear of malpractice, fear of overstepping their financial boundaries with the relationship between patients and their drug companies, and also, the human incentive to not be the bearer of poor news, may all be reason for your doctor to tell you a little white lie every now and then. If you choose not to speak up and demand the facts sometimes, you may be surprised.

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2077274,00.html