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Whether abusive parents, drug addiction or gun violence are to blame, the fallout from childhood traumas can reverberate until a person’s final days of life, new research shows. “We found that early-life trauma in particular, especially physical abuse by parents, was strongly related to end-of-life pain, loneliness and depressive symptoms,” said senior study author Dr. Ashwin Kotwal, of the University of California, San Francisco’s division of geriatrics and the San Francisco VA Medical Center. Traumatic events in childhood may lead to poor health habits, social and emotional isolation and an increased risk of subsequent trauma, he explained in a UCSF news release. His team looked at data from a study that followed about 6,500 Americans over age 50 who died between 2006 and 2020. Their average age at death: 78. Study participants completed questionnaires about their experiences with 11 traumatic events and their psychosocial well-being and were interviewed every other year until they died. A final interview with a family member or friend with power of attorney provided insights about their final year of life. In all, 2 in 5 participants had experienced traumas during childhood, including exposure to relatives’ drug or alcohol abuse or getting into trouble with the law. The most common potential source of childhood trauma was being held back a grade in school. Life-threatening illness or having a spouse or child… read on > read on >

A new, large study from France underscores the link between adult hearing loss and dementia. “Given the major burden of cognitive decline and the absence of curative treatment, identifying modifiable risk factors is of importance,” a team led by Dr. Baptiste Grenier, of the Université Paris Cité, wrote Oct. 1 in the journal JAMA Network Open. They said thinking skills may decline not only because people with hearing loss become socially isolated but also because they go for a long periods without auditory input. In addition, hearing loss is linked to loss of volume in critical areas of the brain. Even so, researchers said hearing aids for patients with disabling hearing loss should be prescribed based on potential benefit to quality of life and not to ease cognitive decline. For that, they wrote, more research is needed. For the study, Grenier’s team analyzed data from more than 62,000 people in France (average age: 57) recruited between January 2012 and December 2020. Participants age 45 and older underwent cognitive testing at the outset. In all, 49% had normal hearing; 38% had mild hearing loss; and 10% had disabling hearing loss but did not use a hearing aid; 3% wore a hearing aid. Participants took both hearing and cognitive tests. In all, 27% of participants with mild hearing loss and 37% with disabling hearing loss had cognitive… read on > read on >

The large majority of people with food allergy, and the caregivers of kids with such allergies, say the condition has led to psychological distress, a new study finds. However, only about 1 in every 5 such people have ever been assessed and counseled on their anxieties, the same report also found. “Our research highlights a major unmet need for psychological support for food allergy,” said Rebecca Knibb, a professor of psychology at Aston University in Birmingham, England. The main source of worry: The danger of anaphylaxis, a severe reaction to even small amounts of the food the person or their child is allergic to. The new study centered on an online survey of more than 1,300 adults with food allergy, as well as more than 1,900 caregivers of children with food allergy. Respondents to the survey came from more than 20 countries. In total, almost 68% of the adults with food allergy surveyed said that they’d had “direct experience” of psychological distress linked to their condition, as did nearly 78% of those caring for a child with such allergies. Most of those people said their main source of anxiety was the possibility of anaphylaxis, but “over half felt sadness about the impact of food allergy on their lives [54.1%],” Knibb’s team reported. Among caregivers of kids with food allergy, about 35% worried that the condition… read on > read on >

Japanese researchers have successfully used a transplant of human stem cells to close a hole in a key part of a monkey’s retina. They say the achievement could pave the way for better treatment of small gaps that form in the macula, the central part of the eye’s retina. These macular holes can cause distorted or blurred vision, making it hard to see fine details, read or drive a car. “Our results suggest that this method could become a practical, safe and effective treatment option with minimal invasive risks, particularly for difficult macular hole cases,” said senior study author Dr. Michiko Mandai, of Kobe City Eye Hospital in Japan. However, experts stress that the results of research in animals don’t always pan out in people. While treatment advances over the past decade have successfully closed more than 90% of macular holes, stubborn cases that defy treatment persist, researchers explained in background notes. Managing care after surgery is also difficult. While retina transplants are able to close the holes, they do little to improve vision. Mandai’s team wondered whether a transplant of human stem cells might overcome these obstacles. In this new study, published Oct. 3 in the journal Stem Cell Reports, they successfully transplanted retinal tissue derived from human stem cells to close a macular hole in a monkey’s eye. The transplant grafted successfully and… read on > read on >

Avoiding couches and chairs might be a good way of keeping your back pain from getting worse, new research suggests. Finnish researchers found that when people with back pain sat even a little less each day, their pain was less like to progress over the next six months. “If you have a tendency for back pain or excessive sitting and are concerned for your back health, you can try to figure out ways for reducing sitting at work or during leisure time,” advised study lead author Jooa Norha, of the University of Turku. There’s not been a lot of study into the effects of prolonged sitting on back health and back pain, Norha’s group noted. So, they asked 64 overweight or obese people with heart risk factors to reduce the time they spent sitting each day by 40 minutes. All of the participants were already battling some level of back pain when they entered the study. After six months, “back pain intensity increased significantly more in the control group than in the intervention [less sitting] group in which back pain intensity remained unchanged,” Norha’s team concluded. He said he wasn’t surprised by the finding, which was published recently in the journal BMJ Open. “Our participants were quite normal middle-aged adults, who sat a great deal, exercised little and had gained some extra weight,” said Norha,… read on > read on >

THURSDAY, Oct. 3, 2024 (HeathDay News) — Moms-to-be have long known about breast milk’s multiple benefits. Now, a global study confirms that antibodies passed from to baby in breast milk can indeed shield against disease. Immune system antibodies against one common infection, rotavirus, were especially protective, said a team from the University of Rochester in New York. “It was encouraging to see such a clear link between higher antibody levels and a delay to rotavirus infection,” said study lead author Dr. Kirsi Jarvinen-Seppo, a professor of allergy and immunology at the university’s Golisano Children’s Hospital. The new study was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and published recently in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. The research involved analysis of breast milk samples from 695 women in Finland, the United States, Pakistan, Peru and Bangladesh. Jarvinen-Seppo and her colleagues measured levels of certain IgA and IgG immune system antibodies produced in breast milk, and pitted them against 1,607 proteins from 30 disease-linked germs. The participants’ global diversity was key to the research. “We would expect to find differences in antibody levels in different countries, due to different diseases circulating among areas of the world, but this is one of the first times that there’s been a head-to-head comparison for dozens of pathogens across several continents,” Jarvinen-Seppo explained in a university news release. The study… read on > read on >

If you’re a 20-something who is unattached, having good friends is a key to happiness, new research shows. “The quality of your friendships is a key factor for your well-being, especially if you’re single,” a team led by Lisa Walsh, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of California, Los Angeles, reported Oct. 2 in the journal PLOS One. “We found that singles who were satisfied with their friendships tended to be happy with their lives, while those dissatisfied with their friendships were less happy,” they added in a journal news release. Other research has found that Americans in their early 20s tend to be less happy than at other times of life — and a growing percentage of folks in that age group are not in long-term relationships. While researchers are increasingly looking at single folks as a group, few studies have zeroed in on sub-groups, such as younger adults. This one analyzed responses to a survey of 1,073 single adults between the ages of 18 and 24. They were asked about their overall happiness as well as five factors that predict happiness: self-esteem, neuroticism, outgoingness, satisfaction with family and satisfaction with friends. The study was built on what is known as latent profile analysis — an assumption that individuals aren’t all the same and that differences among them fit diverse categories. Researchers found… read on > read on >

Nearly 8 in 10 Americans go through the day in a fog that interferes with their jobs, their moods and their relationships. Chalk it up to sleepiness: A new survey shows that 54% of Americans think they just don’t get enough sleep. “Daytime sleepiness is more than just an inconvenience — it can affect our ability to function our best, impacting everything from work productivity to personal relationships,” said sleep specialist Dr. Alexandre Abreu, a spokesman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), the survey sponsor. The online poll of more than 2,000 adults was conducted in mid-May and revealed that daytime sleepiness is taking a big toll. Nearly half (47%) of respondents said it hampers their productivity, making it hard to focus and complete work efficiently. One-third (31%) said sleepiness affects the quality of their work — a complaint more often voiced by men than by women. A similar percentage (34%) of respondents see effects of sleepiness on their memory and mental recall, and 16% said it affects their reaction time behind the wheel. Notably, nearly a quarter (24%) said it affects their relationships with family and friends. “These statistics paint a clear picture of the widespread impact of daytime sleepiness,” Abreu said in an AASM news release. The academy says adults need seven or more hours of sleep a night. It recommends… read on > read on >

Even air pollution levels considered safe by U.S. standards appear to cause differences in the brains of growing children, a new review suggests. “We’re seeing differences in brain outcomes between children with higher levels of pollution exposure versus lower levels of pollution exposure,” said corresponding author Camelia Hostinar, an associate professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis. In all, she and her colleagues reviewed 40 studies. Most linked outdoor air pollution with differences in children’s brains, including the amount of the brain’s “white matter.” These differences affect thinking skills and may even be early markers for Alzheimer’s. Because their brains are still developing, air pollution poses a special risk to kids and teens. Relative to their weight, they absorb more contaminants than adults, researchers explained. As such, the authors called on parents and policymakers to add air filters to homes and schools near freeways to protect children from outdoor air pollutants. They urged other researchers to incorporate air quality measures into studies related to brain health and other health outcomes. The new review looked at research from the United States, Mexico, Europe, Asia and Australia that compared pollution levels with brain outcomes at various ages, from newborns to age 18. Some relied on brain imaging. Some looked at chemical changes in the body that affect brain function. Others looked for tumors in the… read on > read on >

If you sweat excessively, you’re likely to have sensitive skin as well, with new research confirming the two go hand-in-hand. A team led by Adam Friedman of George Washington University and Linqing Zhang of Virginia Tech used machine learning models to examine survey data from more than 600 people who sweat excessively. It uncovered a significant link excessive sweating — a condition known as primary hyperhidrosis — and sensitive skin. People with primary hyperhidrosis sweat four times more than needed to cool the body — even when they’re not exposed to high temperatures or exercising. The condition affects specific areas such as the hands, feet, face and armpits. People with sensitive skin often experience itching, burning and tightness when exposed to heat, sweat, skincare products and stress. Researchers found that folks with hyperhydrosis are more likely than most people to have sensitive skin. Sensitivity often goes beyond areas that sweat excessively, showing that perspiration isn’t the cause of their skin sensitivity. “Someone with primary hyperhidrosis is more likely to have sensitive skin than the general public, even in areas where there is no excessive sweating,” said Friedman, head of dermatology at GWU School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Friedman’s team suspects the connection is more complex than has previously been recognized. They theorize that abnormal nerve signals connected to sweating may be involved. The study… read on > read on >

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Trauma at Life’s Beginning Can Mar Its End, Study Finds

Hearing Loss Can Raise Risks for Cognitive Decline

Food Allergies Spur Serious Anxiety in Most of Those Affected, Survey Finds

Stem Cell Therapy Might Repair Vision-Robbing Holes in Retinas

Sitting Less Helps Prevent Back Pain From Getting Worse

Antibodies in Mom’s Breast Milk Are Protecting Babies

Good Friendships Crucial to Young Adults’ Happiness, Study Finds

Most Americans Struggle With Poor Sleep, Daytime Drowsiness: Survey

Air Pollution Could Be Changing Children’s Brains

Science Finds Link Between Excessive Sweating, Sensitive Skin