Adolescents with PCOS and obesity have more 'unhealthy' gut bacteria

Teens with obesity and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have more "unhealthy" gut bacteria suggesting the microbiome may play a role in the disorder, according to new research published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

PCOS is complicated endocrine disorder affecting 6 percent to 18 percent of women of reproductive age and work in adult women indicates that changes in bacteria be involved. The. The hormone disorder is characterized by elevated testosterone levels in the blood that cause acne, excess hair growth and irregular periods. Teens with PCOS often also struggle with obesity and have a higher risk for type 2 diabetes, infertility, and depression.

 We found that in adolescents with PCOS and obesity, the bacterial profile (microbiome) from stool has more "unhealthy" bacteria compared to teens without PCOS. The unhealthy bacteria related to higher testosterone concentrations and markers of metabolic complications."Melanie Cree Green, M.D., Ph.D., study's corresponding author, Children's Hospital Colorado in Aurora, Colo

The researchers studied 58 teens with obesity and found that girls with PCOS have an altered gut microbiome compared to those without the condition. These girls had more "unhealthy" bacteria in their stool which was related to higher testosterone levels and other markers of metabolic syndrome, such as higher blood pressure, liver inflammation and plasma triglycerides

"The gut microbiome may play a role in PCOS and its related metabolic complications, and these changes can be found in teenagers who are early in the course of the condition," Green said.

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Being bullied ups mental illness risk in teens

Being bullied can change the physical structure of the adolescent brain, increasing the risk of mental illness, a study has found.

Researchers  suggest that the effects of constantly being bullied are more than just psychological.

The study, is the first to suggest that chronic peer victimisation during adolescence impacts mental health via structural brain changes.

Researchers analysed data, questionnaires and brain scans of 682 participants from England, Ireland, France and Germany.

As part of this project, high resolution brain scans of participants were taken when they were 14 and 19 years old.

At the ages of 14, 16 and 19 these participants also had to complete questionnaires about whether they had been bullied, and to what extent.

Overall, the results showed that 36 of the 682 young people were found to have experienced chronic bullying.

The data of these participants were compared with those of the others who had experienced less chronic/severe bullying.
 
Changes in brain volume as well as the levels of depression, anxiety and hyperactivity at age 19 were taken into account.

The subsequent findings validate and extend the literature linking peer victimisation with mental health problems.

However, the novel finding is that bullying is linked to decreases in the volume of parts of the brain called the caudate and putamen.

These changes were found to partly explain the relationship between high peer victimisation and higher levels of general anxiety at age 19.

"Although not classically considered relevant to anxiety, the importance of structural changes in the putamen and caudate to the development of anxiety most likely lies in their contribution to related behaviours such as reward sensitivity, motivation, conditioning, attention, and emotional processing," said lead researcher of the study.

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New intervention aims to improve treatment adherence among teen kidney transplant recipients

Innovative trial combines digital technology and coaching to improve adherence to treatment among young kidney transplant patients.

Learning to become self-sufficient and responsible is part of life's journey through the teen and young adult years. Mistakes are often made, and lessons are learned. However, for young kidney-graft patients, any mistake or failure in keeping to their strict immunosuppressive therapy can lead to tragic results. In fact, low-adherence to medication remains a major contributor to the high level of organ rejection in this age group.

Transplant specialists and researchers from eight leading pediatric medical centers have united to help make a difference. Led by a pediatric nephrologist and scientist,  the team conducted a clinical trial named TAKE-IT aimed at testing a new intervention to improve adherence to treatment among adolescent kidney transplant recipients.

"Missing your anti-rejection medicine, even only a few times, can lead to graft failure," says corresponding author of the study, who is also a researcher and a professor of Medicine. "Given the shortage of organs available for transplant, every failure is not only a loss for the patient but also a loss for the transplant community."

Medication non-adherence is a major problem in the 15 to 30 per cent of children in North America who have a chronic illness, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. It is also believed to be responsible for millions of dollars in potentially avoidable healthcare costs.

TAKE-IT: Multiplying tactics to help young patients follow treatment

The TAKE-IT intervention used a combination of electronic medication monitoring and meetings with a personal coach every three months to encourage and develop adherence behaviour. The researchers followed 169 adolescent and young adult kidney transplant recipients (aged 11 to 24) for a year. Participants used the electronic pillbox,  to monitor their medication-taking. The cohort of patients was divided into two groups. The first group (81 patients) could customize the monitoring system to send them digital nudges like emails or text messages if they did not take their medicine on time. They also received coaching from people who were not part of or did not interact with the clinical team. Members of the second group, known as the control group (88 patients), didn't receive electronic messaging or adherence coaching.

Results of the trial show that the young kidney transplant recipients who used the digital health medication management and adherence solution in combination with coaching had a 66 per cent higher adherence to the anti-rejection medicine. Better adherence is likely to lead to better graft survival.

Reactions to the intervention program varied. "Some people loved it and didn't want to give the pillbox back, but others hated it and stopped using it for reasons such as the pillbox being unwieldy. Based on this feedback, the device is being re-designed," the Dr. says. "Most teens, however, liked meeting with the coach."

"These results are exciting because they show that a multidisciplinary approach can really help teens and young adults stick to their treatment plan, which is so important for their continued well-being," adds study co-author. "The coaching has a big impact as it does in sports and other activities - the encouragement and personal connection is important, because it's not easy to be a teen or young adult with a chronic health condition."

The Dr. also emphasizes that remembering to take meds can be difficult when a lot of other things are happening in the lives of these young patients, and points out the benefit of text message and email reminders for a population who grew up using cellphones.

"This is one of the largest clinical trials on adherence to daily medication ever conducted in the kidney transplant population. Identifying an approach that is effective in promoting adherence in patients with chronic conditions is a major advance," says the Dr. "Better adherence will lead to healthier patients and is likely to save healthcare dollars by preventing serious complications that would need treatment or hospitalization."

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Just one hour of social media a day can ruin your sleep

We all know that using your phone before bed is a bad idea but now there’s evidence that using it throughout the day can impact on your sleep.

Which isn’t great news for…anyone, really.

A study –  looked at data from 5,242  pupils aged 11 to 20, who were taking part in the Survey.

Researchers measured the respondents’ sleep duration against the recommended ranges of nine – 11 hours per night at 11–13 years of age, eight – 10 hours at 14–17, and seven to nine hours per night for those aged 18 years or over.

And the results weren’t pretty – using social media (they included WhatsApp as social media, as well as the usual Facebook and Snapchat) for just one hour a day greatly affect how much sleep the children got.

Only 36.4% of students met or exceeded the recommended sleep duration, meaning 63.6% slept less than they should.

Almost three quarters (73.4%) of students surveyed said they use social media for at least one hour a day, and those who use it for even longer suffered the consequences when it came to getting a good night’s rest.

The odds ratios for not getting enough sleep were 1.82 for those using social media for an hour a day, rising to 2.98 for those spending at least five hours a day on social.

‘The impact social media can have on sleep patterns is a topic of great interest given the well-known adverse effects of sleep deprivation on health,’ says senior author.

‘Electronic screen devices are pervasive in today’s society and we are just starting to understand their risks and benefits.’

However, we should note that the study focuses on youngsters – what would the result have been with adults?

School children have their screen time broken up with lessons, whereas adults with desk jobs can be staring at a screen for most of the day, so does it affect adults even more so?

Is it screen time that causes the sleep disruption, or social media specifically?

It’s easy to lose an hour scrolling mindlessly before bed, and it’s been shown that using your phone before bed disrupts melatonin production, which can cost you an hour’s sleep in itself.

 Not getting enough sleep can negatively impact on your mental health, so if you’ve been struggling lately, it might be worth assessing how you use your phone and seeing where you can cut down.
 

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Teens glued to screens not happy

Smartphone and social media overload may be contributing to teenage angst, new research suggests.

Teens who spend large amounts of time glued to phone and computer screens are markedly less happy than those who prefer "real world" activities, a study has found.

Psychologists analysed data from a study, a major survey looking at the lives of more than a million young people.

They found playing computer games, using social media, texting and video chatting were all associated with less happiness.

Adolescents who invested more time in non-screen activities such as playing sport, reading newspapers and face-to-face social interaction were significantly happier.

Lead scientist  said: "Although this study can't show causation, several other studies have shown that more social media use leads to unhappiness, but unhappiness does not lead to more social media use."

The trend was reflected in historical records since the 1990s, said the researchers, whose findings appear in a journal.

Over time, the increasing proliferation of screen devices coincided with a general decline in reported happiness among  teenagers.

The life satisfaction, self-esteem and happiness of young people plummeted after 2012, the year when the proportion of people owning a smartphone rose above 50 per cent.

"By far the largest change in teens' lives between 2012 and 2016 was the increase in the amount of time they spent on digital media, and the subsequent decline in in-person social activities and sleep," said a Prof.

"The advent of the smartphone is the most plausible explanation for the sudden decrease in teens' psychological well-being."

Total screen abstinence was not a recipe for happiness either, the study found.

The happiest teenagers were those who used digital media a little less than an hour a day.

After a daily hour of screen time, levels of unhappiness rose steadily.

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