IN BRIEF (Page 19)

Diseases threaten speech

Diseases, head injuries or genetic defects of the brain can all hamper childhood speech development, reports the German Professional Association of Speech Therapists.

Affected children have problems with speech, comprehension and grammar.

Childhood aphasia is a notable example. It is commonly associated with limited speech development followed by the loss of speech faculties.

Affected children are mute for a period of time, after which they recover, but with a limited vocabulary. They seldom speak and have trouble with comprehension, reports the association. School-age children often have significant problems with reading and writing.

More bad news for gorgers

Overeating disrupts entire networks of genes in the body, causing not only obesity, but diabetes and heart disease, in ways that may be possible to predict, researchers reported recently. The researchers developed a new method of analyzing DNA and used it to discover that obesity is not only complex - something already known - but complex in ways that had not been previously understood.

Bleak fake butter findings

A chemical used to give butter flavor to popcorn can damage the lungs and airways of mice, US government experts reported recently. Tests on mice show that diacetyl, a component of artificial butter flavoring, can cause a condition known as lymphocytic bronchiolitis, said the team at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health.

Aspirin aids asthma: report

People who take aspirin regularly can reduce their risk of asthma, US researchers reported. They found women who took a small dose of aspirin - 100 mg every other day - were 10 percent less likely to develop asthma over 10 years than women given placebos.

Diesel fumes a brain strain

Inhaling diesel exhaust triggers a stress response in the brain that may have damaging long-term effects on brain function, Dutch researchers said. Previous studies have found very small particles of soot, or nanoparticles, are able to travel from the nose and lodge in the brain. But this is the first time researchers have demonstrated a change in brain activity.

Allergies take toll on kids

Allergies can not only make children out of sorts during the day, but can interfere with their sleep, too, researchers reported in a study released on Monday. The survey of hundreds of parents and doctors found spring was by far the worst allergy season, according to three-fourths of respondents.

Fruit overload leads to gas

Eating too much fruit can cause gas, stomach cramps and diarrhea in sensitive people who have fructose intolerance, says the German allergy and asthma association.

A healthy adult usually cannot tolerate more than 25 g of fructose per day. The amount is lower for people with an allergy to fructose whose intestines have a basic problem absorbing and transporting fructose.

Many parents believe giving their young children a lot of fruit is good for them, but caution is advised. Among children who drink apple juice, parents should consider that it is often sweetened with fructose and one serving alone can have 25g of fructose, says Sonja Laemmel, a nutrition adviser to the association. Thus, to achieve a balanced diet, it's better to eat more vegetables, she says.

The recommended daily amount of fruit for adults is 500 g, half that for children. To digest fructose, it helps not to eat fruit on an empty stomach. It should be mixed with yogurt or curd, the association says. Fruits with a lot of fructose include apples, pears, plums, dates, figs, mangos and pineapples.

Agencies

(China Daily 03/19/2008 page19)