West Newsmagazine 6/3/15

42 I HEALTH I
June 3, 2015
WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
@WESTNEWSMAG
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MU researchers found that teens served
an afternoon pudding snack made with soy
protein experienced improved appetite control
and diet quality. (University of Missouri photo)
Coming to Chesterfield Valley
A new St. Luke’s Urgent Care Center
and physician office is slated to open early
next year at 17417 Chesterfield Airport
Road in Chesterfield Valley.
St. Luke’s Urgent Care will treat patients
of all ages for minor medical emergencies
and will offer on-site laboratory and X-ray
services, pre-operative testing, sports
physicals, workers’ compensation care and
other corporate health services. Treatment
will be provided on a walk-in basis from 8
a.m.-8 p.m., seven days a week.
The on-site physician office will serve
patients for ongoing primary healthcare needs.
May contain milk
People who are allergic to milk should be
aware that even if it is not listed as an ingredient
on a chocolate bar, the candy still may contain
milk and could cause an allergic reaction.
After receiving reports that people experienced
harmful reactions after eating dark
chocolate, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) tested nearly 100 dark
chocolate bars from different parts of the
country for the presence of milk.
In a consumer update issued last month,
FDA officials said:
“Unfortunately, you can’t always tell if
dark chocolate contains milk by reading the
ingredients list. FDA researchers found that
of 94 dark chocolate bars tested, only six
listed milk as an ingredient. When testing the
remaining 88 bars that did not list milk as an
ingredient, FDA found that 51 of them actually
did contain milk. In fact, the FDA study
found milk in 61 percent of all bars tested.”
One reason for the finding, officials said,
is that most dark chocolate is produced on
the same equipment used to produce milk
chocolate, and traces of milk sometimes
inadvertently wind up in dark chocolate.
The FDA noted also that advisory messages
on dark chocolate products about the
possible presence of milk should be taken
seriously, and consumers should read the
word “may” as “likely.” That is because upon
testing dark chocolate products labeled “may
contain traces of milk,” “may contain dairy”
and similar messages, the agency found milk
was present in 75 percent of the products.
Some dark chocolates even contained milk
levels as high as those found in products that
declared the presence of milk.
In fact, FDA officials said, consumers
should not assume that dark chocolate contains
no milk if the label does not mention it at all.
Finally, the FDA advised that consumers
who are sensitive or allergic to milk should consider
dark chocolate to be a high-risk food and:
• Start by checking the ingredients list to
see if a product contains milk.
• Read all label statements on dark
chocolate products and avoid those with
an advisory statement for milk, even if
product labels contain statements such as
“dairy-free” or “vegan.”
• View with caution even those products
with dairy-free claims or without any mention
of milk, unless the manufacturer is a trusted
source and/or uses dedicated equipment for
making milk-free chocolate products.
Adolescent appetite control
Eating a high-protein afternoon snack is
an effective way to reduce unhealthy evening
snacking among teens, according to
a study from the University of Missouri-
Columbia (MU).
Researchers assessed the effects of afternoon
snacking on a group of normal weight
and overweight boys and girls aged 13-19.
Specifically, they looked at how snacking
affected participants’ appetites, drive to eat
and food choices later in the day and their
cognitive performance and mood.
“Our research showed that eating highprotein
snacks in the afternoon helps teens
improve the quality of their diets as well as
control appetite,” said Heather Leidy, assistant
professor of nutrition and exercise physiology
at MU. “Standard meals tend to go by
the wayside for kids this age – particularly
from mid-afternoon to late evening – and
many of the convenient ‘grab-and-go’ snacks
are high in fat and sugar. When kids eat high
protein snacks in the afternoon, they are less
likely to eat unhealthy snacks later in the day,
which is particularly important for kids who
want to prevent unhealthy weight gain.”
The high-protein snacks also improved
certain aspects of mood and cognitive
function, Leidy said.
Researchers noted that while the highprotein
snack used in the study – soyprotein
pudding – is not available to the
public, similar protein sources should
result in similar benefits.
Delayed diagnoses
Early identification of autism spectrum
disorder (ASD) is associated with better
outcomes, but too often, health care providers
downplay parental concerns about
young children’s development, resulting in
delayed autism diagnoses.
That was the finding of Oregon researchers
who looked at the experiences of families
of children with ASD.
“We know that early identification of
ASD is beneficial to children and their
families,” researcher Dr. Katharine Zuckerman,
of Oregon Health & Science University,
said. “Unfortunately, many families
experience long delays between when they
first have concern and when their child gets
diagnosed with ASD.”
For their study, researchers compared
health care provider responses to parents of
more than 1,400 children with ASD with
provider responses to parents of nearly
2,100 children with intellectual disabilities/developmental
delays (ID/DD).
In most cases, parents first expressed
concern about ASD when their children
were about 2 years old and about ID/DD
when children were closer to age 3.
Study results showed that compared to
kids whose parents suspected ID/DD:
3-2665
• Children whose parents suspected ASD
were nearly 15 percent less likely to be
referred for developmental testing or consultation
with a specialist.
• Children with ASD were more likely to
have a health care provider reassure their
parents that the child would “grow out of it.”
Further, researchers learned that parents
whose children’s doctors were least proactive
about their ASD concerns waited much
longer to pursue a clear diagnosis than parents
who spoke with more proactive doctors.
Overall, children with ASD were not properly
diagnosed until about the age of 5 – nearly
three years after their parents first brought
their concerns to a health care provider.
Research has shown that parental concern
is a good predictor of developmental
problems in children, yet for some reason,
many doctors seem reluctant to take a proactive
approach when parents express their
concern about ASD.
“This study implies that the behavior
of health care providers is likely a very
important factor in delayed autism identification,”
Zuckerman said.
The study utilized data from the 2011
Survey of Pathways to Diagnosis and Services,
a nationally-representative, parentreported
survey. The findings were published
in The Journal of Pediatrics.
On the calendar
“Arthritis: How Many Types Are
There?” is from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Monday,
June 8 at the St. Louis Frontenac Hilton,
1335 S. Lindbergh Blvd. Missouri Baptist
Medical Center presents a panel discussion
of the different types of arthritis and available
treatments, including physical therapy, medications,
diet and surgery options. Admission
is free. To register, visit missouribaptist.org,
or call (314) 996-5433.
• • •
“Hypnosis for Weight Management” is
from 7-8:30 p.m. on Monday, June 8 at the St.
Luke’s Hospital Institute for Health Education,
222 S. Woods Mill Road in Chesterfield.
A licensed professional counselor and national
board-certified clinical hypnotherapist facilitates
a group experience for those seeking
information on how hypnotherapy can be used
for weight management. The class is offered
free of charge. To register, call (314) 542-4848.