PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Vitamin D supplements do not increase bone density in healthy children

2010-10-06
(Press-News.org) Giving vitamin D supplements to healthy children with normal vitamin D levels does not improve bone density at the hip, lumbar spine, forearm or in the body as a whole, according to a new Cochrane Systematic Review.

Building bone density in children helps protect against osteoporosis in later life. Osteoporosis is a condition where bones are weak, brittle and break easily. Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium from food, reduces losses of calcium from the body and encourages calcium deposition into bone. Bone density is a major measure of bone strength and measures the amount of bone mineral present at different sites.

Study leader Dr Tania Winzenberg, from the Menzies Research Institute Tasmania, Hobart says, "By measuring bone density, you can assess how well an intervention such as vitamin D supplementation improves bone health."

The researchers set out to discover whether boosting levels of vitamin D in healthy children encouraged their bones to lay down greater amounts of calcium. They searched existing literature for carefully conducted (randomised controlled trials) research studies that had compared giving children vitamin D supplements with giving placebo. They found six studies that together involved 343 participants receiving placebo and 541 receiving vitamin D. All participants had taken vitamin D or the placebo for at least three months and were aged between one month and 19 years old.

"Vitamin D supplementation had no statistically significant effects on bone density at any site in healthy children. There was, however, some indication that children who had low levels of vitamin D in their blood might benefit from supplementation," says Dr Winzenberg.

"We now need randomised controlled studies focused on vitamin D deficient children to confirm if vitamin D supplements would help this particular group," she said.

This study adds to the existing reports published in The Cochrane Library that look at the effect of giving vitamin supplements to children. These include investigations on whether vitamin C can prevent colds or help children with asthma, and whether vitamins A and D can help children with cystic fibrosis.

INFORMATION:

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Finasteride reduces symptoms and disease progression associated with enlarged prostates

2010-10-06
When compared with placebo and other drugs, long-term use of finasteride improves urinary tract symptoms associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia, and reduces disease progression. This conclusion comes from combining the findings of 23 randomized clinical trials that evaluated almost 21,000 men, and is published this month in The Cochrane Library. Finasteride is frequently given to men who have lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) such as frequent voiding at night (nocturia), incomplete emptying, hesitancy, weak stream, and frequent and urgent urination. The symptoms ...

Asthma exacerbation and large doses of inhaled corticosteroids

2010-10-06
There is no evidence that increasing the dose of inhaled corticosteroids at the onset of an asthma exacerbation, as part of a patient-initiated action plan, reduces the need for rescue oral corticosteroids. This is the conclusion of work published in The Cochrane Library this month. There are two mechanisms acting in the lungs of people with asthma. The first is called bronchoconstriction, which is when people's airways constrict during an asthma attack, making it much harder for them to move air in and out of their lungs. The first line treatment for this sort of acute ...

Specific kidney cell could be key in the treatment of kidney failure in diabetes

2010-10-06
Diabetes is the leading reason for kidney failure in the world, resulting in patients requiring dialysis or kidney transplantation. New research has found a cell in the kidney called the podocyte could be the key to understanding why this happens. The study led by Dr Richard Coward, in the School of Clinical Sciences at the University of Bristol, is published in Cell Metabolism and funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC). Diabetes related kidney disease has previously been thought to be mainly due to the high levels of sugar in the blood damaging the small blood ...

Building a smaller, lighter future: Understanding polymer behaviors below 1 nanometer

2010-10-06
Kyoto, Japan -- Knowing how to build nanosized assemblies of polymers (long molecular chains) holds the key to improving a broad range of industrial processes, from the production of nanofibers, filters, and new materials to the manufacture of low-energy, nanoscale circuits and devices. A recent paper in Nature Communications sheds light on key behaviors of polymers in specially engineered confined spaces, opening the door to a level of control that has previously been impossible. Scientists in Japan at Kyoto University and Nagoya University have succeeded in manufacturing ...

MEPs and health professionals call for urgent action to tackle chronic diseases

2010-10-06
Members of the European Parliament are calling on the Presidency of the EU and Member States to tackle urgently the problem of chronic non-communicable diseases that are responsible for 86% of all deaths in the WHO European Region. Their call is supported by an alliance of European health professionals, including ECCO – the European CanCer Organisation – and ESMO – the European Society for Medical Oncology. After a meeting later today (Tuesday) between MEPs and the Chronic Disease Alliance of ten not-for-profit European organisations that represent over 100,000 health ...

Lifestyle choices and freedoms limit effectiveness of public health interventions

2010-10-06
The Government's ability to intervene directly to protect people's health and well-being has reached its limits in modern society because the health issues of today are closely tied in with individual lifestyle choice and freedoms, a leading academic will say today (October 5). Public health issues have previously been more amenable to government intervention and included improving sanitation or air quality, or controlling infectious disease. But public health issues today, like smoking, drink and diet, have meant that legislation is a blunt instrument in tackling these ...

Anti-tumor drugs tested by microfluidic device

2010-10-06
Washington, D.C. (October 5, 2010) -- A prototype device developed in Hong Kong will allow laboratory researchers to non-invasively test drugs for their ability to kill tumors by subjecting cancerous cells with different concentration gradients. The new device is built upon microfluidics -- a set of technologies that allows the control and manipulation of fluids at the sub-millimeter scale -- and is described in the American Institute of Physics' journal Biomicrofluidics. Microfluidic valves within the device, said Hongkai Wu of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, ...

For future chips, smaller must also be better

2010-10-06
Washington, D.C. (October 5, 2010) -- The explosion of portable communication devices that we enjoy today -- such as cell and smart phones, Bluetooth hands-free units, and wireless Internet networks -- has resulted in part from the development of a wide variety of integrated circuits that create, process and receive the microwave frequencies on which the communication is based. Continuing demand for higher performance over a wider range of frequencies has shrunk the physical size of circuits and fueled the development of new materials in thin-film forms, tested in detail ...

Model unfolds proteins gently

2010-10-06
Washington, D.C. (October 5, 2010) -- Protein molecules inside cells are constantly reorganizing themselves, driven by very tiny forces exerted by all the other molecules in their crowded environment. Most experimental techniques and theoretical/computational models are necessarily built around much greater driving forces. A new theoretical model reported in the Journal of Chemical Physics investigates the unfolding of fibronectin under gentler conditions. "Typical models study very fast processes and consume a lot of CPU time," says author Alessandro Pelizzola of the ...

The effects of hydrogen on growing carbon nanotubes

2010-10-06
Washington, D.C. (October 5, 2010) -- Carbon nanotubes -- long, hollow cylinders of carbon billionths of a meter in diameter -- have many potential uses in nanotechnology, optics, electronics, and many other fields. The exact properties of nanotubes depend on their structure, and scientists as yet have little control over that structure, which is determined during the initial formation -- or growth -- of the nanotubes. In fact, says chemical engineer and materials scientist Eray Aydil of the University of Minnesota, "we do not know precisely how the nanotubes grow." In ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Community partners key to success of vaccine clinic focused on neurodevelopmental conditions

Low-carbon collaborative dual-layer optimization for energy station considering joint electricity and heat demand response

McMaster University researchers uncover potential treatment for rare genetic disorders

The return of protectionism: The impact of the Sino-US trade war

UTokyo and NARO develop new vertical seed distribution trait for soybean breeding

Research into UK’s use of plastic packaging finds households ‘wishcycle’ rather than recycle – risking vast contamination

Vaccine shows promise against aggressive breast cancer

Adverse events affect over 1 in 3 surgery patients, US study finds

Outsourcing adult social care has contributed to England’s care crisis, argue experts

The Lancet: Over 800 million adults living with diabetes, more than half not receiving treatment, global study suggests

New therapeutic approach for severe COVID-19: faster recovery and reduction in mortality

Plugged wells and reduced injection lower induced earthquake rates in Oklahoma

Yin selected as a 2024 American Society of Agronomy Fellow

Long Covid could cost the economy billions every year

Bluetooth technology unlocks urban animal secrets

This nifty AI tool helps neurosurgeons find sneaky cancer cells

Treatment advances, predictive biomarkers stand to improve bladder cancer care

NYC's ride-hailing fee failed to ease Manhattan traffic, new NYU Tandon study reveals

Meteorite contains evidence of liquid water on Mars 742 million years ago

Self-reported screening helped reduce distressing symptoms for pediatric patients with cancer

Which risk factors are linked to having a severe stroke?

Opening borders for workers: Abe’s profound influence on Japan’s immigration regime

How skills from hospitality and tourism can propel careers beyond the industry

Research shows managers of firms handling recalls should review media scrutiny before deciding whether to lobby

New model system for the development of potential active substances used in condensate modifying drugs

How to reduce social media stress by leaning in instead of logging off

Pioneering research shows sea life will struggle to survive future global warming

In 10 seconds, an AI model detects cancerous brain tumor often missed during surgery 

Burden of RSV–associated hospitalizations in US adults, October 2016 to September 2023

Repurposing semaglutide and liraglutide for alcohol use disorder

[Press-News.org] Vitamin D supplements do not increase bone density in healthy children