20 February, 2013

Caffeine tied to low birth weight babies

Caffeine, the primary constituent of coffee has been found to be associated with low birth weight babies and may also prolong pregnancy, says a Swedish study.

A research team from the Norwegian Institute for Public Health, investigated the impact of maternal caffeine during pregnancy on babies, relying on information about mother's diet and birth details collected over 10 years.

After excluding women with medical and pregnancy-related conditions, nearly 60,000 pregnancies were included in the study. All sources of caffeine were monitored in the study: coffee, tea, fizzy drinks, as well as food including cocoa-containing cakes and deserts and chocolate, the journal BMC Medicine reports.

The World Health Organisation currently suggests a limit of 300mg per day during pregnancy but some countries recommend a limit of 200mg, which can be less than a single cup of coffee from some high street cafes.

Verena Sengpiel, from Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden, who led the project said: "Caffeine consumption is strongly correlated with smoking which is known to increase the risk for both pre-term delivery and the baby being small for gestational age at birth (SGA)."

However, "we found no association between either total caffeine or coffee caffeine and pre-term delivery but we did find an association between caffeine and SGA," added Sengpiel, according to a Sahlgrenska statement.

In fact, they found that caffeine from all sources reduced birth weight.

Caffeine from all sources extended pregnancy by five hours per 100 mg caffeine per day, but caffeine intake from coffee was tied to an even longer gestational length, eight hour extra for every 100 mg caffeine per day.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

20.02.2013

A new method to treat kidney failure

Patients undergoing dialysis can now benefit from a new procedure that removes additional toxins and may increase their longevity, says a study.

A technique that removes additional toxins during dialysis may prolong kidney failure patients' lives, said a clinical trial appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN).

In light of these results, the technique may become standard for dialysis patients, reports Science Daily.

Retrospective studies suggest that on-line hemodiafiltration (OL-HDF), which is different from standard dialysis, uses so-called high convective transport to remove additional substances over a wide range of sizes may reduce kidney failure patients' risk of dying prematurely compared with standard hemodialysis.

The findings by the team at Hospital Clinic, Barcelona, Spain indicate that OL-HDF may indeed prolong kidney failure patients' lives compared with conventional hemodialysis.

"In view of this study's results, OL-HDF may become the first-line option in hemodialysis patients," said Francisco Maduell, who was part of the study team.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

20.02.2013

Dedication is not what others expect of you, it is what you can give to others