Three For Tuesday: Tamiflu, School Nutrition, and Kids Bone Health

Three headlines caught my eye just now for two reasons:

1. They all have value for the health of kids
2. They most definitely fall into the "does this really need to be looked at more to believe" category.

I'm a big believer in thorough scientific study and research is important. But, let's face it, do we have to continually study medications and facets of life where the answers are already there??

So, without further adieu, the headlines that stopped me in my tracks just now leaving me scratching my head and then propelling me to my computer (by the way, these are the actual headlines of the stories - no editing, just the real deals!):

Flu drug link to abnormal behavior probed
FDA advisors mull whether to strengthen Tamiflu warnings for children

As I discussed yesterday on NECN, this is a serious issue and it is important parents understand the dangers of Tamiflu. For a good year now there have been a number of reports of kids all over the world becoming delirious and dying after taking this drug. So, FDA, why the need to mull?? "Mulling" to me is something you do when deciding between two outfits to buy or which vacation spot to consider. Where kids health is concerned, action is needed that is definitive and strongly worded. The flu season is upon us so let's hope that the "mulling" doesn't take too long but in the meantime we all know better than to use this medication in children.


Helping kids eat healthy at school isn't so hard
Study shows children are just as willing to buy nutritious lunches

I love headlines that pie-face us grownups and this headline does just that. Sometimes we need a study to remind us adults that kids are not who we think they are, and have needs different then we envision. I think what we are seeing is that kids in general are being exposed to more healthy foods every where and are actually buying into the concept of needing to eat those foods. The problem is that many schools are not offering enough of the healthy stuff as we already know many homes don't have 'em because of the childhood obesity epidemic. So, spending money on a study like this is money well spent because it proves many points and will help allocate needed funds to improve our kids schools.

Unhealthy habits put kids at bone-breaking risk
Too little milk, sunshine and exercise leading to rise in rickets in children

The problem with this headline is that when you read the story it ends up not quite fitting. Buried in the middle of the story explaining a very comprehensive study of many kids and their bone density and growth at different ages is this line:

"Ultimately, the question is what level is cause for concern."

The bottom line is that this is a potential set up for problems in our kids bones, namely rickets and osteoporosis - that we can say and the experts agree upon. What is not known is if or when the bomb will explode.

One point this study highlight is that obesity and lack of exercise is clearly going to be a contributor to many kids later bone problems. What's sad to me is that this problem is preventable if only they would shed those pounds while they still have growth on their sides.

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So, that's my run down of stories with a twist for today. If you want a more light hearted look at the "did they really have to study this" topic, check out this post at Mom Logic.

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