4.25 (4 votes)
Young American women of childbearing age have borderline levels of iodine, that is only just above what would be regarded as iodine deficiency, according to a new report released this week by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
This age group (20 to 39 years of age) also had the lowest iodine levels of any age group of women, according to the CDC's Second National Report on Biochemical Indicators of Diet and Nutrition.
Iodine is an essential nutrient that the body needs for healthy functioning of the thyroid, whose hormones help regulate growth and development.
Women of childbearing age need a good supply of iodine for the healthy development of the fetus during pregnancy.
Insufficient iodine leads to mental retardation, goiter (swelling in the thyroid gland), cretinism (stunted physical and mental growth), hypothyroidism (insufficient thyroid hormone) and other growth and development disorders.
Dietary salt is one of the major sources of iodine in over 70 countries, including the US and Canada, that have salt iodization programs.
Seaweed (eg kelp, nori, kombu, and wakame) is one of the richest food sources of dietary iodine. Other good food sources include seafood, dairy products, grains and eggs.
Fruits and vegetables also contain iodine, but the amount varies according to the iodine content of the soil they grow in, and how they are fertilized and irrigated.
Dairy products, especially milk, and grain products are the major contributors of iodine to the American diet.
Pregnant women who do not consume enough dairy products may be particularly at risk of iodine deficiency, according to information from the Office of Dietary Supplements, part of the National Institutes of Health.
A study published in 2010 by researchers at Central Michigan University suggests that iodine deficiency might be more likely among women who restrict their dietary salt intake than among women who don't.
Overall, the CDC report finds that the US population has good levels of some essential vitamins and nutrients, but higher deficiency rates in some groups are a cause for concern.
As well as highlighting the borderline iodine levels in childbearing age women, the report says Vitamin D deficiency is much higher in black Americans, and iron deficiency is higher among preschool Mexican-American children and non-Hispanic black and Mexican-American women of childbearing age.
Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today
Pokazywanie postów oznaczonych etykietą Among. Pokaż wszystkie posty
Pokazywanie postów oznaczonych etykietą Among. Pokaż wszystkie posty
poniedziałek, 23 kwietnia 2012
Lung Cancer Among Women Still Rising, UK
2 (1 votes)
Cases of lung cancer among women in the UK continue to rise, according to new figures released by Cancer Research UK on Friday.
The leading charity says the rate of lung cancer among women in the UK has risen from 22.2 in every 100,000 women in 1975, to 39.3 today.
In 1975 there were fewer than 8,000 cases of lung cancer diagnosed among UK women, in 2009 this figure was more than 18,000.
The disease is still more common among men in the UK, where there were more than 23,000 cases in 2009.
But unlike women, rates of lung cancer among men in the UK have been falling steeply. In 1975 the rate of lung cancer among men in the UK was 110 per 100,000, whereas now it is 58.8.
The figures also show nearly 35,000 people (19,410 men and 15,449 women) died from lung cancer in the UK in 2010.
The charity says the difference in lung cancer cases for men and women mirrors their different smoking patterns in previous two to three decades.
In the 1960s, around 45% of UK women were smokers; a prevalence that is clearly portrayed in today's popular American TV series "Mad Men", which is set in that era. Nowadays the prevalence of smoking among UK women is 20%.
During World War II and the rest of the 1940s, 65% of UK men were smokers, nowadays that figure has fallen to 22%.
Lung cancer was the most common cancer in the UK until the mid-1990s when it was overtaken by breast cancer. However, it still accounts for 11% of all new cancer cases among women, and 14% among men.
Anti-smoking measures, such as banning tobacco advertising and smoking in public places, has reduced the number of smokers in the UK. New measures recently introduced include banning large shops and supermarkets from displaying tobacco products. Smaller shops have to follow from 2015.
The UK government is about to consult on package branding. If this goes ahead, it would mean the colourful packaging of cigarettes, with unique company branding, would be replaced by a uniform colour, size and shape.
The EU is also considering introducing large picture warnings on both sides of the pack.
Cancer Research UK says these measures should reduce one of the remaining ways that tobacco is marketed to children.
Jean King, director of tobacco control at Cancer Research UK told the press it was crucial to end the "packet racket", and put all cigarettes in plain packs with large health warnings:
"It's vital that the UK closes one of the last remaining loopholes that portrays smoking as something glamorous and normal, rather than the lethal product it truly is."
She said no one wants children to take up smoking, and putting cigarettes in plain packs will give them one less reason to do so.
Cancer Research UK's information director, Sarah Hiom, said:
"... it's never too late to give up smoking - you will reduce your risk of developing lung cancer and other serious diseases. Your GP or local pharmacy can advise you where to find your local NHS support services."
Hiom said for every five cases of lung cancer, four are a direct result of smoking. But, she added, this also means one out of five is not, so if you have a cough that lasts for more than three weeks, or a long-standing cough that gets worse, go and get it checked out.
Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today
Cases of lung cancer among women in the UK continue to rise, according to new figures released by Cancer Research UK on Friday.
The leading charity says the rate of lung cancer among women in the UK has risen from 22.2 in every 100,000 women in 1975, to 39.3 today.
In 1975 there were fewer than 8,000 cases of lung cancer diagnosed among UK women, in 2009 this figure was more than 18,000.
The disease is still more common among men in the UK, where there were more than 23,000 cases in 2009.
But unlike women, rates of lung cancer among men in the UK have been falling steeply. In 1975 the rate of lung cancer among men in the UK was 110 per 100,000, whereas now it is 58.8.
The figures also show nearly 35,000 people (19,410 men and 15,449 women) died from lung cancer in the UK in 2010.
The charity says the difference in lung cancer cases for men and women mirrors their different smoking patterns in previous two to three decades.
In the 1960s, around 45% of UK women were smokers; a prevalence that is clearly portrayed in today's popular American TV series "Mad Men", which is set in that era. Nowadays the prevalence of smoking among UK women is 20%.
During World War II and the rest of the 1940s, 65% of UK men were smokers, nowadays that figure has fallen to 22%.
Lung cancer was the most common cancer in the UK until the mid-1990s when it was overtaken by breast cancer. However, it still accounts for 11% of all new cancer cases among women, and 14% among men.
Anti-smoking measures, such as banning tobacco advertising and smoking in public places, has reduced the number of smokers in the UK. New measures recently introduced include banning large shops and supermarkets from displaying tobacco products. Smaller shops have to follow from 2015.
The UK government is about to consult on package branding. If this goes ahead, it would mean the colourful packaging of cigarettes, with unique company branding, would be replaced by a uniform colour, size and shape.
The EU is also considering introducing large picture warnings on both sides of the pack.
Cancer Research UK says these measures should reduce one of the remaining ways that tobacco is marketed to children.
Jean King, director of tobacco control at Cancer Research UK told the press it was crucial to end the "packet racket", and put all cigarettes in plain packs with large health warnings:
"It's vital that the UK closes one of the last remaining loopholes that portrays smoking as something glamorous and normal, rather than the lethal product it truly is."
She said no one wants children to take up smoking, and putting cigarettes in plain packs will give them one less reason to do so.
Cancer Research UK's information director, Sarah Hiom, said:
"... it's never too late to give up smoking - you will reduce your risk of developing lung cancer and other serious diseases. Your GP or local pharmacy can advise you where to find your local NHS support services."
Hiom said for every five cases of lung cancer, four are a direct result of smoking. But, she added, this also means one out of five is not, so if you have a cough that lasts for more than three weeks, or a long-standing cough that gets worse, go and get it checked out.
Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today
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