Jim Liebelt's Youth Culture Watch

Just One Egg Daily Reduces Nutrient Gaps Among U.S. Adolescents

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by News-Medical.

In a recent study published in The Journal of Nutrition, researchers in the United States analyzed data from the US NHANES study to evaluate the nutritional status of US adolescents and the impacts of added egg consumption on observed patterns. Alarmingly, over 60% of adolescents were at risk of inadequacy in one or more of calcium, magnesium, choline, and essential vitamins ((e.g., vitamins D and E), potentially due to unhealthy eating behaviors (e.g., late-night snacks).

Encouragingly, the consumption of primarily egg-based dishes was found to improve nutritional outcomes, with consumers exhibiting significantly higher choline, vitamin B2, vitamin D, selenium, lutein + zeaxanthin, docosahexaenoic acid, and protein levels than their egg-avoiding counterparts. These findings emphasize the need for policymakers to enhance the publicity, accessibility, and availability of eggs and similar nutrient-rich foods to reduce the widespread risk of nutrient inadequacy and address the growing concerns of nutrition insecurity in the country and abroad.

The study aimed to evaluate the nutritional contributions of eggs (nutrient exposure scores) on the micronutrient and protein aspects of dietary recommendations (DRI, DGA, and Thrifty Food Plan). It further modeled the potential benefits of adding one daily egg to the diets of former adolescent participants of the NHANES (2007-2018) study.

Alarmingly, almost half (49%) of the study cohort never consumed eggs, while 36% and 15% consumed primarily egg dishes and egg-ingredient dishes, respectively. Adolescents consuming primarily egg-based diets and experiencing food security presented significantly better nutritional metrics than other cohorts, particularly in protein and essential micronutrient categories. Modeling the addition of one egg per day to the diet significantly improved nutrient intakes across all groups, including those at high risk of nutrient inadequacy. The study showed that even food-insecure adolescents benefited from egg consumption, particularly in areas of choline, vitamin D, and protein intake.

Source: News-Medical
https://www.news-medical.net/news/20240923/Just-one-egg-daily-reduces-nutrient-gaps-among-US-adolescents-study-shows.aspx

Rising Injury-Related Mortality Rates Among U.S. Children and Adolescents

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by News Medical.

Injury-related mortality rates, including firearm-related deaths, among children and adolescents increased in almost every state between 2018-2022, according to findings from the University of Michigan.

Researchers from the U-M Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention analyzed mortality data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Wide-ranging Outline Data for Epidemiologic Research and found that nearly 90% of states saw an increase in mortality rates among children and adolescents overall during the study period.

North Dakota's numbers show the largest increase among states at 65% and Rhode Island saw the largest decrease at 20%. The researchers noted that while mortality rates for children aged 1 to 9 increased, the majority of the overall rate increase was among those ages 10 to 19 years old.

The data also showed that six states saw decreases in injury-related mortality rates and three states reported decreases of more than 10%.

The research defines children and adolescents as ages 1-19. In 2022, institute researchers found that firearms surpassed motor vehicles as the leading cause of death among children and teens in the United States.

The newest analysis is published as a research letter in JAMA Pediatrics.

The study also found that states with the highest per-capita mortality rates among children and adolescents tended to have firearm injuries as the leading cause. States with the lowest per-capita mortality did not include firearms as a top-two cause. Motor vehicle-related deaths, malignant neoplasms and suffocation were found to be in the top two causes of child and adolescent death in multiple states.

Source: News-Medical
https://www.news-medical.net/news/20240904/Rising-injury-related-mortality-rates-among-US-children-and-adolescents.aspx

Childhood Sleep Patterns May Influence Adolescent Alcohol and Marijuana Use

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by News Medical.

A good night's sleep is essential for children's health and development, but childhood sleep patterns may also be linked to future substance use. A new study, led by a team of Penn State researchers, found that adolescents were more likely to have consumed alcohol or tried marijuana by age 15 if they went to bed later and slept fewer hours during childhood and adolescence. The team published their findings in Annals of Epidemiology.

The research team explored childhood sleep at different developmental stages within the same sample of children to see if there's an impact on later substance use, which few studies have investigated. They focused on two different facets of sleep health -; total duration of sleep and time of sleep or bedtime. The researchers explained that if children, especially school-aged children, go to bed later, it could affect their ability to sleep well.

The study drew on data from 1,514 children in the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a diverse longitudinal birth cohort of children from 20 cities across the United States. Parents reported their child's regular weekday bedtime at ages three, five and nine. They also reported their child's sleep duration at ages five and nine.

When the research team evaluated the relationship between childhood bedtime and sleep duration with future alcohol and marijuana use as teens, they found a longitudinal association. Teens were 45% more likely to try alcohol by age 15 if they had a later bedtime at age nine when compared to other children with earlier bedtimes at age nine. However, bedtime at age five wasn't associated with future alcohol use, nor was sleep duration at ages five or nine. When it came to marijuana use, later bedtime at age five was associated with 26% increased odds of trying marijuana by age 15, while sleeping an hour less at age nine was associated with 19% increased odds of trying marijuana by age 15.

The research team also examined data from adolescents at age 15, who self-reported their bedtime, sleep duration and alcohol and marijuana use. They found that teens with a later bedtime had a 39% greater chance of drinking alcohol and a 34% greater chance of trying marijuana. Sleeping one hour less was associated with 28% increased odds of ever trying alcohol but wasn't associated with marijuana use.

Source: News Medical
https://www.news-medical.net/news/20240813/Childhood-sleep-patterns-may-influence-adolescent-alcohol-and-marijuana-use.aspx

Too Much Time Watching Screens in 20s Raises Heart Attack Risk

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by MedicalXpress.

Spend your youth glued to your phone, computer and TV and you cut your odds of making it to 60, a new study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine warns.

Data from a study tracking the health of more than 4,000 young adults for over 30 years found higher odds for heart attack for those who'd spent a lot of time watching TV in their early 20s.

"Our findings suggest that the amount of time young adults spend watching screens can significantly influence their risk of developing serious heart conditions later in life," said study lead author Dr. Jason Nagata.

"More screen time can displace important activities like sleep and physical activity," he added. "This underscores the importance of promoting healthy screen habits early in life to prevent future heart disease and stroke."

The new data comes from the longstanding Coronary Artery Risk and Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study, which has tracked the heart disease risk of thousands of adults for decades.

Every additional hour spent watching television when participants were 23 years of age was tied to a 26% higher odds for developing heart disease over the course of the study. It was also linked with a 16% higher odds for heart attacks and/or strokes, the UCSF team found.

Screen time wasn't only dangerous in youth: Every additional hour of daily TV time during midlife also raised a person's odds for coronary heart disease by 55%, stroke by 58%, and overall heart disease by 32%, the study found.

Source: MedicalXpress
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-08-screens-20s-heart-experts.html

New Study Reveals How Screen Time Affects Preteen Sleep

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by MedicalXpress.

The US Surgeon General recently recommended a warning label for social media platforms due to concerns about their impact on youth mental health. The Surgeon General's Advisory on Social Media and Youth Mental Health highlighted potential links between social media use and poor sleep quality in youth. Considering these concerns, what specific actions can adolescents and parents take to improve sleep?

A new national study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, offers insights into screen habits linked with better sleep.

"Ensuring adolescents get enough sleep is vital, as it supports their physical and mental growth and development," says lead author Jason Nagata, MD, associate professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. "Our research found that leaving notifications on, even in silent mode, leads to less sleep compared to turning the phone off completely or keeping it outside the bedroom."

The researchers analyzed data from 9,398 preteens aged 11-12 who are part of the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, the largest long-term study of brain development and child health in the United States. Data were collected from 2018-2021.

The adolescents and their parents answered questions about their sleep habits and youth were asked about their screen and social media use at bedtime. A quarter of preteens had sleep disturbance. 16.2% reported being woken up by phone calls, text messages, or emails while sleeping at least once in the past week. Furthermore, 19.3% reported using their phone or another device if they woke up overnight.

"Adolescents can be extremely sensitive to phone notifications, often waking up instantly when they hear their phone," said Nagata. "Even if a phone is on silent or vibrate, adolescents may still check it overnight. Once they start reading or responding to messages, they can become more alert and activated."

Source: MedicalXpress
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-07-reveals-screen-affects-preteen.html

Ultra-Processed Food Makes Up Almost Two-Thirds of Calorie Intake of UK Adolescents

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by ScienceDaily.

Adolescents consume around two-thirds of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods (UPFs) new research has found.

The study found that UPF consumption was highest among adolescents from deprived backgrounds, those of white ethnicity, and younger adolescents.

UPFs are food items that are manufactured from industrial substances and contain additives such as preservatives, sweeteners, colourings, flavourings, and emulsifiers. UPFs vary greatly, but tend to indicate poor dietary quality, with higher levels of added sugars, saturated fat, and sodium, as well as decreased fibre, protein, and micronutrient content. They have been suggested as one of the key drivers of the global rise in diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cancer.

Globally, the availability and sales of UPFs have increased over time and previous evidence suggests that this has led to increased consumption among adolescents. To look at trends within the UK, researchers from Cambridge and Bristol analysed data from four-day food diaries of almost 3,000 adolescents in the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey between 2008/09 and 2018/19.

In research published in the European Journal of Nutrition, the researchers found that a mean of 66% of adolescents' energy intake came from UPF consumption during this period, though there was a slight fall from 68% to 63% between 2008/09 and 2018/2019.

Dr Yanaina Chavez-Ugalde from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge, the study's first author, said: "Adolescents' food patterns and practices are influenced by many factors, including their home environment, the marketing they are exposed to and the influence of their friends and peers. But adolescence is also an important time in our lives where behaviours begin to become ingrained.

"It's clear from our findings that ultra-processed foods make up the majority of adolescents' diets, and their consumption is at a much higher level than is ideal, given their potential negative health impacts."

Source: ScienceDaily
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/07/240717121107.htm

Teens Struggling With Mental Abilities Face Triple Risk Of Stroke By Age 50

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by Medical Daily.

Individuals experiencing poor mental abilities in their teenage years could face a triple risk of stroke by the age of 50, a new study revealed.

A stroke, also known as a brain attack, is a sudden cardiovascular medical emergency where blood flow to the brain gets disrupted, impacting a person's speech, eating, movement, and other bodily functions. This can happen either due to a blood clot (ischemic stroke) or from bleeding in the brain tissue (hemorrhagic stroke). Around half of stroke patients may experience long-term impairments.

According to the results of the study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, teens with poor concentration, problem-solving, and learning abilities are at a heightened risk of early-onset stroke.

"Alongside adolescent obesity and hypertension, lower cognitive function may be a risk factor for early-onset stroke," the researchers concluded in the study.

The study results hold special significance given the rising incidence of stroke among individuals under 50 years old.

The research team utilized data from a nationally representative sample of 1.7 million young Israelis who underwent comprehensive cognitive function tests before mandatory military service. The study has data of participants between the ages of 16–20 years, from 1987 to 2012.

"Among those scoring low to medium on mental ability, the incidence of both types of stroke was higher, particularly that of ischemic stroke. After accounting for potentially influential factors, those with low mental ability were more than 2.5 times as likely to have a stroke before the age of 50 as those with a high level, while those with a medium level were 78% more likely to do so," the news release stated.

After accounting for potentially influential factors, the risk was almost double among those with a medium level of mental ability and more than 3 times higher among those with a low level in their teenage years.

Source: Medical Daily
https://www.medicaldaily.com/teens-struggling-mental-abilities-face-triple-risk-stroke-age-50-study-471900

Depression in Adolescents Linked to Increased Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by MedicalXpress.

Depression affects about 8% of adolescents worldwide and is a known risk factor for premature cardiovascular disease (CVD) in adulthood. While the reasons for this risk are not well understood, a study from The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) has found that certain subgroups of adolescents with depression have an even higher risk of developing CVD.

CVD refers to a group of conditions that affect the heart and the blood vessels. Routine screening methods in place today rely heavily on body measurements to assess eligibility for preventive measures against CVD.

"Preventative cardiology in adolescents is important, as early interventions are known to diminish the more serious consequences of CVD later in life," says Dr. Brian McCrindle, a Senior Scientist in the Child Health Evaluative Sciences program and Section Head of Preventative Cardiology & Epidemiology at SickKids.

The new research published in JAACAP Open and led by Dr. Daphne Korczak, Associate Scientist in the Neurosciences & Mental Health program and a Staff Psychiatrist in the Department of Psychiatry, is delving deeper into how those risk factors present in adolescents MDD.

"By identifying the heterogeneity of depression in adolescents and better understanding the intersection between mental and physical health we hope to be able to provide more personalized and effective care for this vulnerable population," says Korczak, who is also the SickKids Chair in Child and Youth Medical Psychiatry.

The study recruited 189 adolescents with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) from the Children's Integrated Mood and Body (CLIMB) depression program at SickKids and assessed their mental health symptoms and cardiovascular risk factors, such as blood pressure, cholesterol and body mass index (BMI).

Using machine learning, and a statistical method called cluster analysis, the researchers identified four distinct groups of adolescents with depression, two of which demonstrated higher CVD risk. Of the two high-risk subgroups, one had high levels of low-density lipoproteins (LDL, or "bad" cholesterol) but appeared healthy on physical examination.

Adolescents in this group demonstrated this dyslipidemia—a condition known to lead to CVD and characterized by abnormal levels of lipids in the bloodstream—despite being of a healthy weight and having normal blood pressure.

"Our findings suggest that there may be a subgroup of adolescents with depression that would not be identified using usual physical examination indicators but are at increased risk for heart disease later in life," Korczak says.

Based on these findings, Korczak believes that a more tailored approach to treatment aligned with Precision Child Health, a movement at SickKids to deliver individualized care to each patient, could be provided that incorporates preventative heart health care to adolescents at a higher CVD risk, sooner.

Source: MedicalXpress
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-06-depression-adolescents-linked-cardiovascular-disease.html

Early Peanut Introduction Reduces Allergy Risk by 71% in Adolescents

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by News Medical.

Feeding children peanuts regularly from infancy to age five reduced the rate of peanut allergy in adolescence by 71%, even after many years when the children ate or avoided peanuts as desired.

The new findings provide conclusive evidence that introducing peanuts into babies' diets early will achieve long-term prevention of peanut allergy.

Results from the LEAP-Trio trial are published in the NEJM Evidence by researchers from King's College London and sponsored and co-funded by the US National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

Peanut allergy is rising in Western countries. The prevalence of peanut allergy is about 2% in young children in North America, UK, Western Europe, and Australia. For some, even small amounts of peanuts can lead to a life-threatening allergic reaction. This, as well as conflicting advice, has made parents and caregivers fearful of introducing peanuts into diets.

The study results found that 15.4% of participants from the early childhood peanut-avoidance group and 4.4% from the early childhood peanut-consumption group had peanut allergy at age 12 or older. These results show that regular, early peanut consumption reduces the risk of peanut allergy in adolescence by 71% compared to early peanut avoidance.

Professor George Du Toit, Co-Lead Investigator from King's College London said: "This is a safe and highly effective intervention which can be implemented as early as 4 months of age. The infant needs to be developmentally ready to start weaning and peanut should be introduced as a soft pureed paste or as peanut puffs."

The researchers also found that although participants in the LEAP peanut-consumption group ate more peanut throughout childhood than the other participants overall, the frequency and amount of peanut consumed varied widely in both groups and included periods of not eating peanut. This shows that the protective effect of early peanut consumption lasts without the need to consistently eat peanut products throughout childhood and early adolescence.

Source: News Medical
https://www.news-medical.net/news/20240527/Early-peanut-introduction-reduces-allergy-risk-by-7125-in-adolescents.aspx

Study Finds Heart Damage in 'Couch Potato' Kids

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by HealthDay.

Children and young adults who are couch potatoes could wind up with enlarged hearts, increasing their risk of heart attack, stroke, and early death.

Sedentary behavior contributed as much as 40% to the total increase in heart size between the ages of 17 and 24, researchers found.

Further, a lack of movement helped enlarge teens’ hearts independent of other risk factors like obesity or high blood pressure, researchers found.

Childhood and teenage sedentary behavior amounts to a “ticking time bomb,” researcher Andrew Agbaje said in a news release. He's an associate professor of clinical epidemiology and child health at the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio.

“There is growing evidence that childhood sedentariness is a health threat that needs to be taken seriously,” he said.

On the other hand, children who regularly engaged in light physical activity reduced their increase in heart mass by 49%, researchers said.

“Light physical activity is an effective antidote to sedentariness. It is easy to accumulate three to four hours of light physical activity daily,” Agbaje said.

Examples of light physical activity include outdoor games, walking a dog, running errands, walking and biking to stores or to school, taking a stroll in the park, playing in the forest, gardening, and casual games of basketball, soccer, golf, frisbee, he said.

For the study, researchers followed nearly 1,700 young people in the U.K. from 11 through 24 years of age. Participants wore motion-tracking devices on their waists for four to seven days at ages 11, 15 and 24, to get a sense of how much physical activity they got.

The kids started out spending an average six hours a day in sedentary activities, which increased to nine hours a day by young adulthood, researchers said.

The study was published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.

Source: HealthDay
https://www.healthday.com/health-news/child-health/study-finds-heart-damage-in-couch-potato-kids