Children and teens who get less sleep, especially those who spend less time in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, may be more likely to be overweight, according to a report in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

Xianchen Liu, MD, PhD and colleagues studied 335 children and adolescents age 7 to 17 years. For three consecutive nights, participants’ sleep was monitored through polysomnography, which assesses total sleep time, time spent in REM, the time it takes to fall asleep and other variables. Weight and height were measured to calculate BMI.

Compared with children at a normal weight, those who were overweight slept about 22 minutes less per night and had lower sleep efficiency (percentage of time in bed that an individual is asleep), shorter REM sleep, less eye activity during REM sleep and a longer wait before the first REM period.

After adjusting for other related factors, one hour less of total sleep was associated with two-fold increased odds of being overweight and one hour less of REM sleep was associated with three-fold increased odds.

“Although the precise mechanisms are currently under investigation, the association between short sleep duration and overweight may be attributed to the interaction of behavioral and biological changes as a result of sleep deprivation,” the authors write.

“Given the fact that the prevalence of overweight among children and adolescents continues to increase and chronic sleep insufficiency becomes more prevalent in modern society, family- and school-based sleep interventions that aim to enhance sleep hygiene and increase sleep duration may have important public health implications for the prevention and intervention of obesity and type 2 diabetes in children,” the authors conclude.

Archives of General Psychiatry – August 2008;65:924-932.

archpsyc.ama-assn.org

Eating oily fish at least once a week may reduce age-related macular degeneration (AMD) which is the major cause of blindness and poor vision in adults in western countries and the third cause of global blindness, according to a study published today in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

 There are two types of AMD, wet and dry. Of the two, wet AMD is the main cause of vision loss. Participants were interviewed about their dietary habits including how much fish they ate and what type. Information on the main omega 3 fatty acids (docosahexaenoicacid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) ) was obtained by linking dietary data with food composition tables.

 The findings show that people who habitually consume oily fish at least once a week compared with less than once a week are 50% less likely to have wet AMD. There was no benefit from consumption of non oily white fish. There was a strong inverse association between levels of DHA and EPA and wet AMD. People in the top 25% of DHA and EPA levels (300 mg per day and above) were 70% less likely to have wet AMD.

 ”This is the first study in Europeans to show a beneficial association on wet AMD from the consumption of oily fish and is consistent with results from studies in the USA and Australia. Two 3oz servings a week of oily fish, such as salmon, tuna or mackerel, provides about 500 mg of DHA and EPA per day,” comments study author Astrid Fletcher,

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition – August 2008;88:398-406.

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Researchers in China report on a case of a 15-year-old girl with idiopathic scoliosis that was significantly reduced with chiropractic care.

 The patient had “experienced right thoracic scoliosis for 4 years. She received regular rehabilitation and brace treatment for 4 years, but the curvature of the thoracic spine still progressed. The Cobb angle was 46 degrees and surgical intervention was suggested to prevent significant deformity, which may be accompanied by cardiopulmonary compromise.”

 ”This patient was treated with spinal manipulation two times per week for 6 weeks at the outset, which was gradually decreased in frequency. After 18 months of consecutive treatment, follow-up radiographs and examinations were conducted. The Cobb angle decreased by 16 degrees. Meanwhile, the patient’s lower backache eased and there was also an improvement in defecation frequency, which had been problematic.”

 ”This suggests that in at least some severe and progressive cases of scoliosis, chiropractic treatment including spinal manipulation may decrease the need for surgery.”

Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine – July 2008;14:749-51.

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