Lifestyle « Weekly Gravy

Your long-term happiness in marriage may hinge on the genes you and your partner bring to the union. A Yale University study suggests marital bliss could be influenced by a genetic variation that affects oxytocin, the so-called “love hormone” that is involved in social bonding. “This study shows that how we feel in our close relationships is influenced by more than just our shared experiences with our partners over time,” said lead author Joan Monin, an associate professor in the Yale School of Public Health. “In marriage, people are also influenced by their own and their partner’s genetic predispositions,” she said in a Yale news release. The study included 178 married couples ranging in age from 37 to 90. The participants were asked about their feelings of marital security and satisfaction, and each provided a saliva sample for genetic testing. When at least one partner had a genetic variation known as the GG genotype within the oxytocin gene receptor, the couple had greater satisfaction and feelings of security in their marriage compared with couples with different genotypes, the researchers found. Previous studies have linked the oxytocin receptor variant, OXTR rs53576, to personality traits such as emotional stability, empathy and sociability. This study is believed to be the first to examine its role in marital satisfaction. The Yale researchers also found that people with the GG… read on >

Feeling trapped behind a desk, a counter or on the factory floor does no favors for the mind. Now, research helps confirm that women with jobs that demand long hours may be more prone to depression. Researchers found that compared with women who worked a standard 40-hour week, those who were on the clock 55 hours or more typically reported more depression symptoms. The same was true of women and men who usually worked weekends as well as weekdays. The findings, based on thousands of British adults, do not prove that long work hours were the culprit. “Workers are complicated creatures,” said lead researcher Gillian Weston, of University College London. “And it’s not possible to [account for] every potential influence when looking for associations in an observational study.” Still, she said, her team was able to factor out a number of factors that affect depression risk — such as income and education, and whether people were married or had children. And still, long work weeks remained linked to a higher risk of depression symptoms. The findings have implications in a world where people are increasingly expected to work outside the traditional 9-to-5 window, according to Weston’s team. Theresa Nguyen is a licensed clinical social worker and vice president of policy and programs for the nonprofit Mental Health America. She said that in recent years technology… read on >

The actual number of childhood cancer cases worldwide is nearly double the recorded number, a chilling new study finds. “Our model suggests that nearly one in two children with cancer are never diagnosed and may die untreated,” said study author Zachary Ward. He is a researcher at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston. The study, published Feb. 26 in The Lancet Oncology, found records of 224,000 childhood cancer diagnoses worldwide in 2015. Researchers estimated the actual number at 397,000. Previous estimates have been based on data from cancer registries, but 60 percent of countries have no registry and those that do may cover only a small percentage of the population, the researchers explained. The new study makes predictions for childhood cancers in 200 countries. It estimates that undiagnosed cases could represent more than half the total in Africa, South Central Asia and the Pacific Islands. In North America and Europe, only 3 percent of childhood cancer cases are undiagnosed, the study authors said. If no improvements are made, about 2.9 million of 6.7 million new childhood cancer cases worldwide will go undiagnosed between 2015 and 2030, according to the report. Accurate estimates are essential for setting health care priorities, and planning for effective diagnosis and treatment of all kids with cancer, Ward said in a journal news release. “While underdiagnosis has been… read on >

If life looks gray and cloudy when you smoke, you might not be imagining it. Heavy smoking may actually damage color and contrast vision, researchers report. They looked at 71 healthy people who smoked fewer than 15 cigarettes in their lives and 63 people who smoked more than 20 cigarettes a day. The participants were aged 25 to 45 and had normal or corrected-to-normal vision. But the heavy smokers showed significant changes in their red-green and blue-yellow color vision and also had greater difficulty discriminating contrasts and colors than nonsmokers. “Our results indicate that excessive use of cigarettes, or chronic exposure to their compounds, affects visual discrimination, supporting the existence of overall deficits in visual processing with tobacco addiction,” said co-author Steven Silverstein, director of research at Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care. “Cigarette smoke consists of numerous compounds that are harmful to health, and it has been linked to a reduction in the thickness of layers in the brain, and to brain lesions, involving areas such as… the area of the brain that processes vision,” he added in a university news release. And, he noted, “Previous studies have pointed to long-term smoking as doubling the risk for age-related macular degeneration and as a factor causing lens yellowing and inflammation.” Nicotine and smoking harm the body’s circulatory system, and these findings indicate they also damage blood… read on >

Obese young children may have less risk for high blood pressure if their mother took the omega-3 fatty acid DHA — found in fish oil — during pregnancy, new research suggests. The findings could be important since rising numbers of American children are obese and experiencing hikes in blood pressure. That could have long-term consequences for their health, said study co-author Susan Carlson. She’s professor of nutrition at the University of Kansas. “It is known that blood pressure tracks over time, such that people with higher blood pressure early in life are more likely to have higher blood pressure later in life,” she said in a university news release. The study tracked 171 children born in the Kansas City area. During pregnancy, half of the children’s mothers took 600 milligrams a day of DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) — which is found in prenatal vitamins, fish oil supplements and fish — while the other half took a placebo. The children’s blood pressure was then checked a number of times between the ages of 4 and 6. Among kids who were overweight or obese, higher blood pressure was found in those whose mothers took a placebo during pregnancy, but not in those whose mothers took DHA during pregnancy, the researchers found. On average, overweight/obese children of mothers in the placebo group had 3.94 mm Hg higher systolic (top… read on >

Tax it, and fewer folks will buy it. So it goes with sugar-sweetened drinks, new research suggests. The California city of Berkeley introduced the nation’s first soda tax in 2014, and within months people were buying 21 percent fewer sugary drinks. Three years later, 52 percent fewer of these drinks were being sold while consumption of water rose 29 percent, the researchers found. “This just drives home the message that soda taxes work,” said study author Kristine Madsen, faculty director of the Berkeley Food Institute at University of California, Berkeley’s School of Public Health. “Importantly, our evidence comes from low-income and diverse neighborhoods, which have the highest burden of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, not to mention a higher prevalence of advertising promoting unhealthy diets,” Madsen said in a university news release. The study shows that a soda tax can influence what people buy and can be effective in encouraging healthier drinking habits. This could potentially reduce diseases like diabetes, heart disease and tooth decay, which have been linked to sugar, the researchers added. Sugar-sweetened drinks are very cheap, but cost America billions each year, Madsen said. “They’d cost much more if the health care costs were actually included in the price of the soda,” she added. “Taxes are one way of taking those costs into account.” For the study, Madsen and colleagues polled some 2,500… read on >

It may still be winter, but it’s never too early to plan for your kids’ summer camp. And now’s the time to think about preparing them to handle allergies and allergic reactions, according to experts at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI). “Kids who suffer from seasonal allergies, food allergies or asthma also wonder about their health. For them, additional preparation is necessary to keep them safe and happy, so they can enjoy their time away from home,” ACAAI president Todd Mahr, said in a college news release. The ACAAI has five tips to help make the summer camp experience a great one. If your child suffers from asthma or food allergies, consider sending him or her to a camp that specializes in these conditions. Specialty camps can have trained staff who know how to treat asthma and allergies. You can search the internet for camps that focus on your child’s needs. Before sending your child off to camp, consult with your allergist and make sure prescriptions are up-to-date and your child has everything needed to treat their allergies or asthma. The allergist can also provide a plan to share with the camp. Be sure the camp’s staff is prepped on your child’s allergies and asthma. They should know if asthma makes some activities difficult. Be sure the medical staff knows about… read on >

If supermarket circulars influence your grocery shopping, you could be saving money at the expense of your health. That’s because studies show the offerings are often far from the healthiest food choices. Researchers looked at a year’s worth of circulars from a small Midwestern grocery chain to see how the nutritional quality of sale items compared to that of the average American diet, which itself scores low. They found that sales reflected a tendency to eat too much protein and not enough fruits and vegetables. While 25 percent of sale items were for protein-based foods, only 8 percent were for vegetables and 7 percent for fruits. Worse still, less than 3 percent were for the most healthful dark green, red and orange vegetables. So, it’s important not to let these circulars dictate your eating habits. Eating healthy doesn’t have to cost as much as you might think. The difference can be as little as $1.50 more per day. Interestingly, some studies have shown that even people who spend the most money on food don’t automatically select healthier choices. Regardless of budget, the average family spends the biggest chunk of their food budget — about 35 percent — on items like snacks, treats and frozen dinners. That means shifting just some of your shopping dollars may be enough to boost your diet. Once you’re at the… read on >

(HealthDay News) — Dry, cold air can trigger asthma attacks, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America says. Breathing in the winter air can cause airways to restrict, making it difficult to breathe. The foundation offers suggestions to reduce asthma attacks during winter: Cover your mouth with a scarf. Exercise indoors, not outdoors. Always carry your quick-relief inhaler with you. Talk to your doctor about pretreatment plans.

Obesity and severe obesity have been added to the list of conditions that put children and teens at increased risk for early heart disease. So says a new scientific statement from the American Heart Association (AHA). “Parents need to know that some medical conditions raise the chances of premature heart disease, but we are learning more every day about how lifestyle changes and medical therapies can lower their cardiovascular risk and help these children live their healthiest lives,” statement writing group chair Dr. Sarah de Ferranti said in an AHA news release. She is chief of the Division of Cardiology Outpatient Services at Boston Children’s Hospital. The latest statement is an update of a 2006 statement. Other conditions that increase the risk of early heart disease in children and teens include type 1 and type 2 diabetes, familial high cholesterol, congenital heart disease, and surviving childhood cancer. Severe obesity and obesity are now included as moderate-risk and at-risk conditions, respectively, because research shows they significantly increase the risk of heart disease later in life, according to the AHA. For example, a study of nearly 2.3 million people who were followed for over 40 years found that the risk of dying from heart disease was two to three times higher if they had been overweight or obese as teens. In general, a gradual approach to weight… read on >