Rising diseases challenge to treat

By Keith Purtell
Phoenix Staff Writer

August 02, 2008 11:47 pm

— Among three diseases that are on the rise in children — autism, obesity and asthma — the causes, as well as treatments, range from unknown to frustrating.
Scientists are continuing the search for the cause of the neurodevelopmental disease of autism. Obesity’s causes are well known but embedded in the American lifestyle and difficult to address. Pollution is seriously suspected as a cause of asthma.
Marty Richerson, whose 9-year-old daughter Britney has autism, said she is infuriated by the lack of progress in the medical profession.
“We shouldn’t have to fight the medical professionals too,” she said. “They don’t listen to parents, the money for research is not out there, and they don’t know more. It would help if parents could get a diagnosis before the child is 2.”
Richerson also is disappointed in the way support may be cut off for research in the United States. She mentioned one study of the rise in autism where funding was cut off, and it took a Canadian team to pick up and carry on.
But, she knows that her daughter’s condition is lifelong.
“I’m not looking for a cause or a cure,” she said. “It’s my job now to get her the help she needs so that she can be whatever she can be in life.”
There are concerted efforts to deal with obesity and asthma, which are medically better understood.
Dr. Timothy Holder, Maternal and Family Practice Associates Inc., and pediatrician Dr. Mike Stratton both spoke about the struggle to deter obesity.
“There is a big push in a lot of schools to get pop machines out, and to get high-calorie, high-carbohydrate foods out,” Holder said. “Other problems are sedentary lifestyles, watching too much TV, and playing computer and video games, as well.”
Stratton listed a variety of methods a family can use to deal with obesity:
• Use things other than food or TV as a reward.
• Eat family meals together.
• Limit any type of electronic entertainment activity to two hours a day.
• Keep the TV off during meal times.
• Choose water and low-fat milk consumption over juice and soda.
Stratton emphasized that parental involvement is a powerful tool to keep children healthy.
“The solution is to get involved with their child as far as what the child is eating and to act as a role model,” he said. “Most obese adolescents are more likely to be obese as adults.”
Dr. Stanley Handshy, in family practice in Tahlequah, spoke about ways to deal with childhood asthma.
“The first one is to make sure their vaccinations are updated,” he said. “The second one is to absolutely quit smoking even though that’s extremely difficult; and a lot of really good parents are badly addicted to the nicotine.”
Handshy said that, even if parents don’t smoke around children, the second-hand nicotine from the smoker’s skin and clothing and from the smoker exhaling has a substantial effect on the children.
“In fact, at least one study showed that to decrease the effect of the parents’ smoking on the children, they had to shower and change clothes before they came into the house,” he said. “So, even though they try, as long as they smoke, they’re still affecting their children.”
Parents need to make sure a child with asthma gets flu shots, Handshy said.
“Also, if they have a lot of allergy problems, a good allergist can usually do wonders with improving that,” he said. “And if they have persistent problems with the asthma, sit down with their health care provider, because there is a ‘step-wise’ treatment system for asthma that has become commonplace nationwide.”
Handshy said the most common mistake with asthma is overuse of a rescue nebulizer, which can create a situation where suddenly the child is severely ill and in the emergency room.
“What you don’t want to do is have a situation where a child just keeps taking more and more of their rescue nebulizer and doesn’t have a different plan if they’re having to use those frequently,” he said. “The intent is good because if a little bit helps, then a little more helps, and they keep increasing the amount until they get in trouble, rather than adding some other therapy along with it.”
Reach Keith Purtell at 918-684-2925 or Click Here to Send Email