Doc’s World

Recent research has found that regular consumption of nut products during pregnancy raises the odds of your child having asthma symptoms by nearly 50 percent.

About 4 percent of American children have food allergies, and roughly 3 million people in the U.S. are allergic to peanuts or tree nuts. It’s already recommended that children under 3 not be given nuts or nut products, because their immune systems are still developing and may be more susceptible to allergens.

Daily consumption of nut products increases the odds that a child will have wheezing by 42 percent, shortness of breath by 58 percent, and steroid use to ease asthma symptoms by 62 percent.

Overall, the odds of developing asthma symptoms for a child whose mother ate nuts daily are 47 percent higher.

Toronto’s department of public health has advised teenagers and young children to limit their use of cell phones, in order to avoid potential health risks. The advisory is the first of its kind in Canada.

Officials have warned that because of possible side effects from radio frequency radiation, children under eight should only use a cell phone in emergencies, and teenagers should limit calls to less than 10 minutes.

For many years, most government health agencies were dismissive of any risk. But with more studies, a pattern is emerging that suggests people who have used their cell phones for a long period of time are at greater risk of certain kinds of brain tumors.

Do you have sore feet, ankles, or legs? Do your hips or low back hurt? Do you wear flip-flops?

If you said yes to the last question, and if you have any of the other symptoms, your flip-flops may be causing your problem(s). A study done at Auburn University shows when you walk in flip-flops, you alter your gait. This can result in foot, ankle, leg, hip, and/or lower back pain. The price of your flip-flops does not seem to matter much. The study included well-known retailers and manufacturers. Prices ranged from $5 to $50 (I’ve never seen flip-flops costing $50).

If you are interested in the complete study, go to http://wireeagle.auburn.edu/u/news/359

According to the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet (www.ki.se), golf prolongs your life expectancy – provided you walk the course instead of riding in a cart (my italics). The study goes on to say the death rate for golfers is 40 percent lower than for other people of the same sex, age, and socioeconomic status. This equals a five-year increase in life expectancy. If you want to see the article for yourself, look in the “Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports.” They actually gathered data from 300,000 Swedish golfers.