Hormone Replacement Therapy Shown to Increase Breast Cancer Recurrence Risk
A Swedish study of 345 post-menopausal women with a history of breast cancer was halted early when results showed those who took Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) to relieve the symptoms of menopause were three times as likely to have their breast cancer recur compared to the women in the study who did not take the hormones.

Over the past few months American and British researchers also stopped their HRT trials when their results began to show increased risk of breast cancer, stroke, and blood clots.

Dr. Sears comments: I’ve reported on this over the past few months, and I urge women to discuss this issue with their gynecology health care provider. Scientists around the world seem to be reaching a consensus that HRT is riskier than previously thought.

Fats in the News
Several interesting news items appeared this month regarding the dangers of “trans” or “hydrogenated” fats:

Tyson Foods, a company known for it’s chicken products, announced that it has begun removing these bad fats from it’s fully cooked chicken products such as breaded chicken nuggets, patties, and tenders. The product labels will reflect this change in the next few months.

Low-fat Diet not as Healthy as a Right-fat Diet. New York researchers showed that dieters who eat a healthy fat diet (plant-based fats) lose as much weight as those who eat a low-fat diet. However, those who eat a right-fat diet showed a healthier cholesterol balance as well as other blood markers for a healthy heart, compared to dieters on a low-fat diet who actually showed a worsening in their cholesterol balance.

Goldfish Crackers are making the change to Trans-fat free. Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers seem to be a staple food for toddlers. By September of this year, the company will offer Goldfish Crisps, a trans-fat (or hydrogenated fat) free alternative.

Dr. Sears comments: I applaud these companies for their efforts. I have often used the Goldfish example in my nutrition talks as one of the most common foods that parents should NOT feed their kids because of the trans fats. I am happy to see this company make a change. Trans or hydrogenated fats are one of the biggest contributors to childhood and adult obesity and heart disease. Click here to read more about how to eat a healthy fat diet and protect your child’s health.

Prolonged Breastfeeding Shown to Decrease Childhood Obesity Risk
A study of 177,000 U.S. kids showed that those who were fully formula fed or breastfed for less than 4 months were more likely to be obese by age 4 compared to infants who breastfed for more than 4 months.

Study Shows Breastfed Babies are More Easily Aroused from Sleep
This may seem like a bad thing, but the researchers in this study state that this could explain one reason why breastfed babies show a lower risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). The latest theory on SIDS suggests that it occurs because an infant’s arousal instincts fail to wake up the baby. SIDS occurs most often between 3 and 4 months of age, and this study showed that the greatest difference between breast and formula fed infant arousal was at 2 and 3 months of age.

Dr. Sears comments: The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding for AT LEAST one year for some very good reasons. Click here to read more about the advantages of breastfeeding.

Vaccine Shortage
Over the past few months there has been a shortage of Prevnar Vaccine, which protects against Pneumococcal bacterial meningitis in infants and young children. Infants are supposed to get this shot at 2, 4, 6, and 15 months of age. The CDC is recommending that doctors NOT give the 15-month shot to ensure that there is enough for younger infants until the shortage subsides.

Flu Shot May Not Be As Protective for Children with Asthma as Previously Thought
It has been a standard recommendation for kids with asthma to get a flu shot, since catching the flu can theoretically cause more severe respiratory problems in people with underlying asthma. This Dutch study of 700 kids, however, did not show this benefit. Overall, 42 asthma flare-ups occurred during the flu season. Those who did NOT get the shot actually had fewer asthma flare-ups, but those that DID get the shot had shorter flare-ups. Both groups had an equal number of flare-ups total. The researchers clearly stated that this study raises more questions than answers, and more research is needed to see if asthmatics truly benefit from the shot.

Dr. Sears comments: Click here to read about whether or not your child should get the flu shot next year.