HEALTH UPDATE: FIVE STUDIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

And this time they deal with hot topics like aging, obesity, and the impact of (gasp!) pornography.  Read on:

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Here's a roundup of five medical studies published this week that can give you new insights into your health, mind and body. Remember, correlation is not causation – so if a study finds a connection between two things, it doesn't mean that one causes the other.

The entire world is getting fat
Journal: The Lancet
In what is the most comprehensive look at global obesity in decades, scientists said they can’t find a single positive note in the fight against the epidemic.
In every single country they studied - there were 188 of them - the obesity rates stayed the same or got worse.
Nearly 30%, or almost one out of every third person on this planet, is overweight or obese, according to the study. In 1980 there were 857 million people considered overweight or obese. In 2013, that number was 2.1 billion.
Obesity is more of a common problem in the developed world, but it has become a growing problem in poorer countries.
The country with the most obese people is the United States. About a third of American adults are overweight, which accounts for 13% of all the heavy people worldwide. The United States is only a little over 4% of the world's population, so that's a startling statistic.
Women saw the bigger gains. Between 1980 and 2013, the rate of women who are obese increased from 29.8% to 38%. For men it increased from 28.8% of the population to 36.9% of the population.
Read more from PLOS Blogs

Men who watch a lot porn may have smaller brains
Journal: JAMA Psychiatry
Men who watch a lot of porn are a little lighter when it comes to their gray matter, according to a  study out of the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin.
Scientists made brain scans of a small group of 64 healthy men from 21 to 45 as they looked at pornographic images. Researchers also assessed how often the men typically looked at porn.
The study may be the first to establish a link between the amount of pornography consumption and brain size. The study does not determine whether men who watch a lot of porn have smaller brains to begin with or whether the volume of their brains has shrunk over time.
The study did show that the region of the brain that activates when someone experiences sexual stimuli is less active in those men who typically watch a lot of porn.
Read more from TIME.com
Want to look younger? Avoid the sun, smoking and high-calorie diets
Journal: Cell Press
Forget special creams and surgeries to look younger - what you really need is to avoid cigarettes and sunshine, according to scientists at the University of North Carolina.
If you avoid “gerontogens" - that’s the fancy word for stuff in the environment that may make you age - you may look younger and may even live longer.
Other “gerontogens” include the chemicals used in chemotherapy. A low-calorie diet may also slow aging, as may a low-stress environment, according to the study.
We still don’t know why some people age faster than others. But the researchers hope their study will someday lead to a blood test that would allow doctors to look at someone’s DNA for biomarkers of aging. Those biochemical signatures would help determine how fast a person is aging and why, and perhaps slow or stop the process. That’s a long way off though. This study is still in the mouse model phase.
Read more: Cell Press release
Teen sunbathers beware: 5 bad sunburns increase risk for deadly cancer
Journal: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention
People who say they had more than five or more blistering sunburns before they turned 20 have an 80% increased risk of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer.
A study examined the health of 108,916 registered nurses for 20 years. Of those nurses, the ones who had five or more bad sunburns, the kind with blisters, when they were ages 15 to 20, had a 68% increased risk for basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma and an 80% increased risk for melanoma.
People who had a similar number of bad sunburns when they were older faced no similar increased risk for melanoma, but they did have a greater chance of developing basal cell or squamous cell carcinoma.
Scientists caution people who have a propensity to develop moles or who sunburn easily should take particular care in the sun, especially early in life.
Read more: American Association of Cancer Research
Laser treatment helps tooth regeneration in mice
​Journal: Science Translational Medicine
Lasers sound a lot more fun than root canals. Scientists demonstrated in a new study that it's possible to regenerate dentin, the hard bone-like tissue in teeth, using light.
The technique makes use of stem cells already found in teeth. Researchers did not have to transplant these cells that have tremendous potential in regenerative medicine.
By shining infrared light on damaged teeth in mice, scientists activated molecules called reactive oxygen species. These molecules bind to stem cells, making the stem cells turn into dentin-forming cells that help regenerate the tooth structure, said David Mooney, senior author of the study and researcher at Harvard University.
Scientists demonstrated this in rodents, but not humans, however. Also it's a somewhat lengthy process, which would take weeks to months to work.
If it were successful in humans, though, the technique "potentially could replace the root canal," Mooney said.
Read more from Harvard

FOR MOEBIUS MOMS AND DADS: DOES YOUR CHILD HAVE NIGHT TERRORS? SOME ADVICE

This actually comes from an advice column in the Washington Post.  Now the family involved in this exchange does NOT have a child with Moebius Syndrome.  However, as many of you know, having night terrors is sometimes, though not always, associated with Moebius, and so I think all the information we can get on it is beneficial.  So read on, and see what kind of a situation developed here, and what advice is given:

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WHAT TO DO FOR A CHILD WITH NIGHT TERRORS

by Marguerite Kelly

By Marguerite Kelly,

Question: My daughter and I are exhausted. She and her 5-year-old son live with me, and his night terrors have worn us out.

My grandson went to sleep easily and in his own bed until he was 2 years old, then he started getting up two to three hours later and climbing into bed with his mother or me. Although he is clearly asleep when he does that, his eyes are wide open, and he doesn’t know where he is or who we are. He also mutters unintelligible things to himself, and sometimes he has night terrors, just as my older daughter did as a child.

We bring him back to his own bed afterward, which is difficult to do without waking him up, but he often has another episode later in the night and we have to go through the same routine.
His bedroom, which is quiet and dark, has a soft-white-noise machine and a blue light on his humidifier and no TV, so I thought it would be a perfect place for him to sleep. Any advice?

Answer: Almost all children have dreams, and some of them have nightmares. Only about 1 to 6 percent of children have night terrors. But about 80 percent of children who have night terrors have relatives who had a similar problem. The issue usually starts when the child is 3¹ / ₂ and tapers off around 5. It will usually stop completely, without any help from anybody, when they’re about 12.
No one really knows why children develop the problem, but some say it’s due to an immature central nervous system, stress or exhaustion, low blood sugar or even a late dinner.
Although night terrors are often confused with nightmares, these two things have different symptoms and causes, and they happen at different times in the night.
The start time of night terrors varies from one report to the next but is usually in the early part of the evening.
Whether your dear grandson takes one minute or 30 minutes to get through his night terrors, it must be so painful to hear him scream in fear, act confused and disoriented and look at the people he loves without knowing who they are. Night terrors make even a quiet child become intense, dramatic and almost demonic, and they make his heart race, his breathing go into overdrive and his body get drenched with sweat.
As tempting as it is, this is no time to wake up your grandson. It’s much better to turn the lights low and tell him, softly and gently that everything is really all right. Keep saying that until he calms down and you can take him back to his own bed.
Although he’ll fall asleep after this episode, it may leave you and your daughter quaking with worry. This is truly unnecessary, because night terrors are seldom a medical or psychological problem. You can always take him to the pediatrician for a quick checkup, and you can do everyone a favor by taking turns with your daughter in the care of your grandson. If your daughter takes care of him one night, you will have more to give him the next night when it’s your turn.
To learn more about sleep, dreams, nightmares and night terrors, read “Sleep,” edited by Rachel Y. Moon, M.D. ($17), a fine book published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, and go to the National Institutes of Health site www.medlineplus.com to read about the latest sleep studies.

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FIVE MEDICAL DISCOVERIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

They range from mental illness, to placentas, to what the masking of pain might mean--read on:

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Here's a roundup of five medical studies published this week that might give you new insights into your health, mind and body. Remember, correlation is not causation – so if a study finds a connection between two things, it doesn't mean that one causes the other.

Mental illness reduces lifespan even more than smoking
Journal: World Psychiatry
Oxford University psychiatrists say the life expectancy of people with serious mental illness is reduced by 10 to 20 years. That's a toll on life roughly equal or even more dramatic than for people who smoke at least 20 cigarettes a day.
Mental illness is also roughly as common in the United Kingdom than smoking cigarettes, the researchers report: 25% of people will suffer from a mental health problem annually, while 19% of British men and 19% of women are smokers. In the United States, mental illness affects 20% of Americans over 18 in a year.
The study examined information about 1.7 million patients, analyzing 20 scientific reviews and studies that had mostly drawn upon data from wealthy countries.
Lead study author Dr. Seena Fazel told NPR that stigma may play a role in the pattern observed in this study. 
"So much emphasis has been placed on reducing smoking and smoking deaths. Mental illness doesn't receive the same attention in public health and public policy," Fazel told NPR. 
Read more from NPR
Placenta has a good chunk of bacteria, and importance
Journal: Science Translational Medicine
Your body has 10 times more bacterial cells than human cells on average, but doctors used to think the placenta, which develops in the uterus while a woman is pregnant, is sterile. These days, we know better. A new study reveals the bacterial diversity in the placenta, and how it might affect the baby.
Premature births, for instance, may occur in part because of a particular combination of bacteria in the placenta. And bacteria that's beneficial to the infant may be passed to the baby via the placenta.
The placenta isn't overflowing with bacteria; it's only about 10% bacteria by mass, researchers said. Still, scientists found about 300 kinds of bacteria, the majority being innocuous.
Intriguingly, the researchers also found that bacteria in the placenta closely matched what was in the mother's mouth, which was also similar to what they found in infant intestines, The New York Times reported.
This was a small, preliminary study, but could inspire deeper looks at the wonders of the placenta.
Read more from The New York Times
Diabetic women have a higher likelihood of heart problems than men
Journal: Diabetologia
A new study has discovered a striking gender gap in diabetes.
Women with diabetes are 44% more likely to develop coronary heart disease than diabetic men, the study found. They are also 44% more likely to die of heart disease than men with diabetes.
Researchers examined data on 850,000 people.  This information was pooled from 64 studies spanning 1966 to 2013.
"The days of lumping men and women together are coming to an end," Dr. Tara Narula, associate director of the Cardiac Care Unit at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, told HealthDay News. "We need to see women as unique entities regarding their risk factors and, if we recognize there's this gender differential, we need to be more aggressive in screening and treating women for diabetes or heart disease."
Read more from HealthDay News via WebMD
Malaria vaccine in the works
Journal: Science
Thanks to a rare antibody, researchers say they have a promising direction for a malaria vaccine.
Study authors took blood samples from hundreds of Tanzanian children and found antibodies in 6% of them that appeared to be important in fighting malaria. These antibodies seemed to confront the malaria parasites while they were asexually reproducing, and counter a protein important to the life cycle of the parasite, Forbes reported.
The children who had these antibodies did not have severe malaria, researchers found. Another study on Kenyans also found a connection between the antibodies and fewer malaria parasites.
Researchers are using these antibodies as the basis for a vaccine.
“Most vaccine candidates for malaria have worked by trying to prevent parasites from entering red blood cells," Dr. Jonathan Kurtis of Rhode Island Hospital, the research team’s spokesman, told Forbes. “We’ve taken a different approach. We’ve found a way to block it from leaving the cell once it has entered. It can’t go anywhere. It can’t do any further damage."
The vaccine has not been tested in humans. Researchers hope to start trials in monkeys in six weeks.
Read more from Forbes
Mice that can't feel pain live longer
Journal: Cell
We don't know how this would pan out in humans, but in mice it sounds nice: Researchers found that mice lacking a certain pain receptor live longer.
Study authors genetically engineered mice so they wouldn't have TRPV1 pain receptors. Normally, such receptors get activated as a result of high temperatures or hot chili peppers, New Scientist reported.
Male mice without these receptors lived 12% longer than those that had them. The outcome for female mice was even more promising: Those that lacked the receptors lived 16% longer.
It appears that those without the receptor also produced more insulin. On the flip side, mammals have these pain receptors so they will be biologically warned about dangerous objects and situations.
"Pain is very important for animals living in the wild and probably outweighs the benefits of a youthful metabolism," Andrew Dillin at the University of California, Berkeley, told New Scientist.
Still, there could be therapeutic applications that stem from these insights.
Read more from New Scientist

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I-JUST-THOUGHT-THIS-WAS-INTERESTING DEPT: 18 THINGS WE MISS BY CONSTANTLY STARING AT OUR SMARTPHONES

Here they are:

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If any doubt remains in your mind that we are, in fact, a society addicted our smartphones, stop what you’re doing and simply take a look around. There's a pretty good chance that the majority of the people around you staring down at their palms, scrolling Twitter feeds or engrossed in texting conversations -- headphones optional. And when you think of the last time you were in the same position, it may be just a few seconds ago.
From strolling down city streets to catching up with friends over the dinner table, we miss out on some of life’s simple joys when our gaze (and our attention) is perpetually turned south to the glowing screen in our hands. We pretend to be still paying attention, still engaging in the conversation, still staying in touch with our surroundings -- but the truth is we don’t multitask the way we think we do. Rather, we just switch our attention from one thing to another very quickly. This constant starting and stopping can actually decrease our productivity by up to 40 percent and increase our stress levels.
What would happen if one day, instead of succumbing to this sensory overload by default, we chose to unplug for several brief moments during the day? If we cut the cord tethering our hands to our smartphones and looked up, what would we see?

Here are 18 things you miss by constantly starting down at your smartphone.

1.  What silence sounds like.

Relish in the lack of notifications at your fingertips by stopping and listening to the sounds of your natural environment. The only chirping and buzzing you'll hear will come from the birds, the bees and the sounds of the city -- and it could be pretty blissful.

2.  Just how good the coffee really tastes.

You might be surprised how much more your taste buds react to that first sip of Joe as you head off to the office when you're fully focused on the taste rather than checking your emails simultaneously. A deep inhale of the aroma alone could be enough to help you really wake up and smell the coffee.

3.  The smile of the happiest dog out for a walk.

4.  Your own thoughts, right now, in the present moment.

When you stop answering emails, texting your best friend and seeing how many likes your latest status received on Facebook, you'll find yourself alone with your own thoughts. Take this time to let your thoughts wander and pay attention to the activity of your own mind, without judging or controlling. Practicing a little mindfulness (phone-free!) each day can help keep you calm, centered and connected to yourself and others.  

5.  The "don't walk" predestrian sign.


Walking while texting could have consequences far more severe than tripping on the sidewalk. A recent Ohio State University study revealed that pedestrian cell phone-related injuries have more than doubled since 2005. And it comes as no surprise that adults under 30 are at the highest risk of walking into traffic due to the ever-present distraction. Accidents caused by texting and walking now outnumber those from texting and driving.

6.  A glance and smile from a cute stranger.

From the supermarket produce aisle to the line at the café, there are countless opportunities to meet new people -- but we have to be looking up in order to notice and take advantage of them.

7.  The joy of a nice meal.

Instead of consuming your food through an Instagram filter, keep your smartphone away from the table. Without that distraction, you'll be able to appreciate the venue's aesthetic, your meal's mouthwatering aroma, and how your food actually tastes. Savoring the moment will likely prove a whole lot more satisfying than reliving the experience through social media.

8.  The hopelessly-in-love couple in the park.

Whether you find it adorable or mildly nauseating, people-watching is far more entertaining than staring at your news feed before new updates roll in. Spend your lunch break sitting on a park bench, and observe life unfolding in real time. 

9.  The punch line of a hilarious joke.

10.  The ever-changing beauty of the seasons.

If there was ever a time to appreciate Mother Nature, it's when the chill of Winter is fading into the beautiful blooms and glowing greenery of Spring. Stop and smell the roses.

11.  The company of loved ones.

Whether you're on vacation, spending a sunny Saturday afternoon outside or simply watching television at home together, leave your phone out of the mix. Even if you're not engaged in a deep conversation, signaling that you're available and approachable is likely to inspire more memorable moments than when you're zoning out with a game of Candy Crush.

12.  An unexpectedly-talented street performer.

The next time you hear music blasting in the train terminal, on the beach boardwalk or beneath the park bridge, look to see where it’s coming from and enjoy the spontaneity of the show -- and maybe even have a good laugh!

13.  The pure joy of small children.

Take a pause to watch children playing, listen to their laughter and appreciate how their creative, uninhibited minds work. Who knows, maybe you'll be tempted to make time for a little more play in your own life. 

14.  The newest installation of graffiti art on your block.

Street art can be a rich source of everyday inspiration, so make sure you take the time to stop and appreciate it. It could inspire a creative idea, spark an emotional reaction or simply make your walk that much more interesting. Plus, the daily transformations will never cease to amaze you.

15.  The closed door in front of you.

16.  Someone telling you that they care.

It's likely that you've been caught staring at your phone while someone is speaking to you at some point or another. Guilty as charged. But next time, consider the importance of what they might be telling you, how much you actually want to hear it, and how badly they want to be heard. That unread text message can wait.

17.  The story that your child has been dying to share with you all day long.

Be just as diligent about scheduling in downtime as you are with prioritizing work time. It may be challenging to unplug, even if just for a few hours at the end of the day, but your loved ones (especially your kids) will appreciate your undivided attention when they're telling you about their day.

18.The beauty of natural light--not what is emitted from your smartphone.

A whole new world exists beyond that little screen. It's about time you look up and experience all that it has to offer.

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AWARENESS UPDATE: SMILE--DON'T STARE

"The Lollipop Kids Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports people with disabilities and their families in Montgomery County, launched a campaign this week to educate the public on how to treat children (and adults) with disabilities. Called “Smile, Don’t Stare,” the campaign features educational materials for schools and businesses."  Read more:

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Debbie Sahlin, the founder and executive director of Lollipop Kids Foundation, kicked off the campaign with a panel discussion at Imagination Stage on May 6. County Executive Isiah Leggett was there and declared May 6 Smile, Don’t Stare Day in Montgomery County.

“The underlying message is that it’s okay to look, but it’s even better to ask a question,” Sahlin said.
About 60 people attended the discussion with a panel that included two adults with disabilities. Other panelists were Andraéa LaVant, inclusion specialist, Girl Scouts Council of the Nation’s Capital; Dr. Gwendolyn Mason, director of special education services, Montgomery County Public Schools; Diane Nutting, director of access and inclusion, Imagination Stage; Chase Phillips, a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch; and Steve Riley, executive director, Potomac Community Resources.

For the video, they asked children what they wish people would do when approaching them. Responses ranged from “I wish people would play with me instead of my equipment” to “I wish people would be nice to me,” Sahlin said. It’s a reminder to adults and children alike that while some people may look or behave differently, in many ways they are just like everyone else. Sahlin’s son, who is 19, suffered a traumatic brain injury when he was one. He is featured in the video.

The booklet that goes with the campaign will be distributed at schools in Montgomery County, Sahlin said. The book describes some common disabilities, including traumatic brain injury and autism, to help people understand what those terms mean, and goes over appropriate behavior around service dogs. It also includes a special section for parents on how to help their children grow up with an attitude of inclusion. The group will also hold disability etiquette workshops for local businesses.
“Small children are always going to ask what the difference is, and they’re not going to ask in a politically correct way. That’s okay,” Sahlin said. “But to not answer those questions is when the isolation occurs for people with disabilities. My hope is that we can train people, because it is an uncomfortable situation, and make it comfortable.”

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AUTISM IS GROWING UP

Autism is sometimes associated with Moebius Syndrome.  Now we tend to further associate autism with children.  But remember--just as children with Moebius grow up to be adults, so can those who have autism.  Read more about it:

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As the world's leading autism researchers and advocates gathered at the International Meeting for Autism Research last weekend to share the latest discoveries about autism spectrum disorder, a strong theme emerged: Autism is growing up.

When you think of autism, you probably think of young children. But children with autism grow up to be adults with autism, and eventually (God willing) elderly people with autism.

In fact, most people with autism are adults, and most adults with autism lack services -- or even a diagnosis.

In her conference keynote address, Marsha Mailick, director of the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, shared data gleaned from 10 years of following the lives of more than 400 people with autism, starting in 1998. This study was prescient; adults are vastly underrepresented in autism research, and longitudinal studies into old age are badly needed.

Some good news emerged from Mailick's study: Autistic symptoms, such as impaired verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, and rigid/repetitive behaviors, decreased over time among one-third to half of the study participants, and stayed stable in many others. Independent living skills remained stable in this group, as well.

However, leaving high school was a time of vulnerability for participants when, especially in low-income families, previous gains in skills and behavior slowed or plateaued. Work or study was minimal for a quarter of the individuals with autism, and over time women with autism in particular showed a decline in vocationally occupied hours.

The impact on self-esteem and mental health can only be imagined; people with autism are very prone to anxiety and depression.

The impact of autism on physical health was also highlighted at the conference by new data from Dr. Lisa Croen of Kaiser Permanente, who reported highly elevated rates of hypertension, diabetes and obesity from the medical records of more than 2,000 adults with autism (compared with 20,000 comparison adults without autism).

What can we take away from this? Physicians need to be aware that patients with autism may have communication difficulties that limit their reports of early health problems, and sensory sensitivities that may reduce their tolerance for investigations and treatment.

The children first described as "autistic" by Leo Kanner in 1943 are now in their seventies, yet there are no more than a handful of research papers on the elderly with ASD.

Dr. Joe Piven of the University of North Carolina spent three years trying to trace elderly people with autism, and reported at this meeting on just 20 individuals he and his colleagues had found, all with intellectual disabilities.

Intriguingly, this group of severely affected older adults with autism showed high rates of Parkinson-like movement problems. Do these reflect a history of medication or premature aging, or are they a clue to a previously unknown neuropathology associated with "grownup" autism?

More clues will come from work being carried out in the Netherlands by Hilde Geurts and her colleagues, who presented at the conference this year.

Their preliminary findings from approximately 200 older adults with autism and comparison adults without the disorder show quality of life is lower in adults with autism, and cognitive problems were higher, but in their group of 19- to 78-year-olds, age did not predict these difficulties.

An enormous amount of exciting research emerged from the conference, much of it focused on improving detection and diagnosis, expanding treatment options, and, in certain instances, even reversing core symptoms for some young children with ASD.

But as we expand our research, we must also devote more resources to improving adult services and better addressing lifespan issues of those living with ASD today.

It's not just about the kids anymore.

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LANDED YOUR FIRST JOB? A NEW JOB? HERE'S WHAT TO DO NEXT

The piece below is specifically aimed at college graduates who have just landed their first job.  But I think it applies to anyone, really, who has been hired into a new position.  New jobs can, of course, be interesting, but also stressful, situations for those of us with Moebius Syndrome.  We look different; we sometimes sound different.  We worry--can we even get hired?  Then, if we do, there are more worries--what will our co-workers think of us?  Will our new company, will our bosses, really trust us and believe in us? 

Now I firmly believe that the answer is yes, they will--because in the end, your performance will tell the tale.  Be a good employee, show your stuff, and that is what people will focus on.  But still, there are things you can do to help that process along; there are things you can do, early on in your new position, to establish yourself and to show your boss that you are indeed a good "fit."  And here are some of them--read on:

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Congratulations, you’ve landed your first full-time job after graduation.
Now comes the hard part.
College graduates’ first month on job sets the tone of their career, according to experts, which means they need to be proactive and put their best foot forward.
“It’s about the approach you take to your job — none of these are tasks, but attributes that you take on,” says Lynda Fraser, vice president of Human Resources Contract Division at Solomon Page Group. “It’s your behavior that will determine, ultimately, how successful you are.”
Setting and executing goals is key to career success at any level, but it’s particularly helpful for new workers.
“Don’t wait to shine,” says Nicole Williams, LinkedIn’s career expert. “As soon as you become a new hire, look for every opportunity to become ingrained in the company DNA. You’ll stand out as a star right away, and first impressions are so important.”
Don’t worry too much if mistakes happen at the start, just be sure to rectify the situation quickly. “There’s a bit of latitude and people do expect new hires to stumble in the first month — these can become teaching moments for the manager and the new employee,” says Mike Steinerd, director of sales recruiting at career website Indeed.com.
Experts offer the following tips to follow during the first month of employment to help you shine:
No. 1 Ask Questions and Observe. “You’ve got to learn and listen to people who have been there a while,” says Brent Rasmussen, president of CareerBuilder North America. “Dig in to understand what’s made people successful there — treat it like a college course.”
Asking questions will help you understand how things work in that organization and what to expect, as well as how to navigate the workplace environment.
“Every work environment has processes in place that have hopefully translated into business success,” says Scott Dobroski, community expert at Glassdoor. “Instead of trying to wow your boss with new processes, really become familiar with how business is done day-to-day.”
Learn the general office culture: how and when people email, how calendars are organized, when people arrive, leave and take breaks, and how information is shared. “Pay attention to these workplace nuances and adopt them instead of trying to go against them,” Dobroski adds.
No. 2 Show Up On Time and Be Present. Experts recommend setting your work schedule around when people arrive and leave. “Showing up on time, or even early, shows excitement and enthusiasm for the role,” says Steinerd.
If you’re late, don’t make excuses, suggests Fraser. “If you are not bothered about being on time, what does that say about the rest of your work and what you’ll contribute?”
No.3 Build Your Network. “In real estate, it’s about location, location, location, and in your career, it’s about people, people, people,” says Sumita Banerjee, L’Oreal’s vice president for talent recruitment. Meeting new people will help you learn about the company beyond your direct role and understand how teams collaborate, making you better equipped to contribute and thrive in that culture.
Try to meet one new person or connection at work every day in your first month, even if that’s introducing yourself to someone in the kitchen. Building your network will help you understand who fits in where in the organization.
Also, figure out who’s a great performer and ask him or her to lunch or coffee so you can learn more about his or her success. Learning about other people’s career paths will only help you progress in your career. “It shows people that you care about the company and you want to do well,” says Rasmussen.
Get to know people by participating in office gatherings and happy hours (but always stay professional), recommends Steinerd, but avoid getting involved with office politics or gossip.
No.4 Be Respectful. “There are people who are lower on the food chain who people ignore, and it’s important to be respectful of everyone, regardless of their position,” says Fraser. “Assistants and admins are really important in an organization, and they can be very influential people.”
During work-related conversations, give that person your full attention and don’t check emails or take phone calls without excusing yourself first, she adds.
No.5 Know What’s Expected. “This sounds really simple, but the same way that you were familiar with due dates and how certain professors like to be received, get familiar with the expectations and be a master of this,” advises Dobroksi.
No matter your position, know what your boss expects and do your best to meet expectations in the beginning. “Ask peers on your team and your manager what they expect, and every once in a while, check in if you’re doing the right thing,” says Rasmussen. “It’s an uncomfortable position to be in if you don’t know whether you’re doing the right things.”
Once you understand your role, you’ll be better prepared to go above and beyond in a short amount of time, says Dobroski. “If you can master this, you’ll come out ahead of your colleagues at the same level.”
No.6 Go Above and Beyond. If you’re asked for two options and you provide five, people will learn to be able to rely on you for future projects.
“A company can train an employee to do the skill, but it can’t teach work ethic or passion for a job,” says Rasmussen. “I want someone to show me that they’re excited and positive about the job — they want to know how they can help the company improve.”
If you finish your work early, instead of checking Facebook or sending text messages, Fraser suggests finding other projects you can help with.
No.7 Be Passionate and Enthusiastic. “Be devoted and interested in the work you do,” says Banerjee. Follow your company and industry in the press and draw insights from global trends, competitors and innovation to push the frontiers of knowledge.
During your career, broaden your knowledgebase by learning every day, even if you’re learning what not to do. “As you work through your day, take some time to do some extra research so you are constantly learning more—this will help you be effective in your job,” says Fraser.
No.8 Adopt the Weekly Status Update. Get in the habit of sending a weekly status update to your boss and anyone relevant to whom your work touches, suggests Dobroski.
The update should include details on the week’s highlights and challenges, as well as priorities for the next week. “It helps your supervisor know if you’re on point or why some projects got backed up,”
he adds.

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FIVE STUDIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

Recent medical news includes warnings for pregnant women who drive, how new stem-cell therapies can help treat multiple sclerosis, and that a way to feel better about yourself involves being sure to get forgiveness from others for your wrongdoings.  Read on:

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Here's a roundup of five medical studies published this week that might give you new insights into your health, mind and body. Remember, correlation is not causation – so if a study finds a connection between two things, it doesn't mean that one causes the other.

Pregnant moms: Be careful when you are driving
Journal: Canadian Medical Association
A study out of Canada suggests women in their second trimester of pregnancy are more likely to have a traffic accident than other women.
Researchers looked at every newborn in Ontario, Canada, over a five-year span. They found a 42% increase of life-threatening motor accidents in the second trimester of their pregnancy.

Why? Researchers believe it is because pregnant women tend to suffer more from things such as fatigue, stress and nausea than women who aren’t pregnant.
Statistics show pregnant women are more likely to have a motor vehicle accident than develop a medical condition such as preeclampsia, says Dr. Donald Redelmeier, lead study author and researcher in the University of Toronto’s Department of Medicine.
So should pregnant women stop driving as their due date draws closer?
“What we're not seeing is a reason to delegate driving to husbands,” says Redelmeier. He points out that men in this same age group still have many more traffic accidents than women.
Driving under the influence of marijuana is also a bad idea
Journal: JAMA Pediatrics
Speaking of driving, we hear a lot about the dangers of getting behind the wheel while drunk, but we may need to issue similar warnings about marijuana.
Researchers did a telephone survey of 315 first-year college students and found that 44% of the men said they had driven while stoned in the previous month. By comparison, 12% said they had driven after consuming alcohol.
For women in college, driving while under the influence of marijuana was less common - only 9% reported doing so - and only about 3% said they drove after drinking. But 35% of female respondents said they were passengers in a car driven by someone who had been using marijuana. Riding with a stoned driver was even more prevalent among men, with 51% saying they'd had that experience.
"We definitely need to think about how to help students understand that marijuana is risky to use before you drive," lead study author Jennifer Whitehill, an assistant professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, told HealthDay. "These are young, inexperienced drivers, and marijuana does increase crash risk."
Read more at Philly.com
Antidepressants may slow Alzheimer's progress
Journal: Science Translational Medicine
One of the biological signatures associated with Alzheimer's disease is the buildup of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain. Research suggests that antidepressant medications may help stop that buildup.
The drug citalopram showed this effect in a mouse with Alzheimer's. The growth of pre-existing plaques was stopped, and the introduction of new plaques was reduced by 78% as a result of this drug.
Researchers also saw an effect in humans, although they did not look at anyone who has Alzheimer's disease. There were 23 participants from 18 and 50 who did not have cognitive impairment or depression at the time of the study. In these people, amyloid-beta production dropped by 37% in the 24 hours after taking one dose of citalopram.
This does not mean everyone should take antidepressants to prevent Alzheimer's disease. More research is needed on this subject to see how antidepressants may affect the condition.
Read more from Science Daily
Stem cells help mice with MS walk again
Journal: Stem Cell Reports
Mice that were once paralyzed can walk again thanks to a stem cell therapy tested in a study. This confirms previous findings that suggest stem cells could be beneficial in treating multiple sclerosis, though so far the benefits have only been shown in rodent studies.
Researchers transplanted neural precursor cells that were derived from human embryonic stem cells. These cells communicated with mouse cells, telling them to heal the MS-induced damage.
Close to three quarters of the mice saw a reduction of symptoms as a result of this treatment, 10 to 14 days after receiving it.
But what chemical signals generated by the stem cells are responsible for the mice's recovery? Researchers need to figure that out before developing a treatment to test in humans.
"It would be easier to find a family of proteins exerting these protective effects and make them into an injectable drug or pill," Tom Lane, a pathologist at the University of Utah, told The Salt Lake Tribune.
Read more from The Salt Lake Tribune
Get forgiven, then forgive yourself
Journal: The Journal of Positive Psychology
Feeling guilty? A study suggests that you may need to make things right with others before you can get over it.
"One of the barriers people face in forgiving themselves appears to be that people feel morally obligated to hang on to those feelings," researcher Thomas Carpenter, a doctoral student in psychology in Baylor's College of Arts and Sciences, said in a statement to Science Daily. "They feel they deserve to feel bad. Our study found that making amends gives us permission to let go."
The research group asked questions about transgressions, guilt and forgiveness in two separate studies.
First, participants were asked to recall offenses they had personally committed. Making amends appeared to be related to people's ability to forgive themselves.
In the second study, they asked everyone about the same offense: Imagine you caused a friend to get fired, but you didn't take the blame for it. This time, forgiving oneself wasn't as related to being forgiven by others.
A larger finding of the study was that more serious wrongdoings were harder for people to get over in terms of forgiving themselves - the same goes for the more guilt they were feeling.
More research is needed on this subject, but remember that "I'm sorry" can go a long way.
Read more from TIME.com

AWARENESS UPDATE

Look at what this young man is doing for his physically-challenged brother.  It's an interesting idea.  We in the Moebius community too need to be thinking of new, creative ways to raise awareness of what we're about, just like this boy:

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An eighth grader plans to carry his 7-year-old brother with cerebral palsy piggyback on a unique 40-mile journey, all in an effort to raise awareness.

Hunter Gandee, 14, tells The Blade in Toledo, Ohio he will walk from Temperance, Mich. to the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor carrying his younger brother, Braden, who uses a walker and braces.

Traveling on local roads, Hunter Gandee estimates the trip will take 13 hours. The boys plan to set out on June 7 and will make a one-night stop along the way before arriving on June 8. A group of volunteers and the boys’ parents will travel by car ahead of them.

Hunter Gandee said his brother is his “inspiration.” The 150-pound teen who wrestles and plays football plans to carry 50-pound Braden on his back.

“I’m excited about the walk,” Braden Gandee told the newspaper, adding that he will talk to his brother and sing songs to occupy the time.

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BULLYING UPDATE, PART 2: BEING BULLIED IS BAD FOR YOUR HEALTH

"Victims of bullying may develop long-term physical and mental health problems, and now researchers have found one possible reason: Being bullied raises the blood’s level of C-reactive protein, or CRP, a marker of systemic inflammation and a risk factor for cardiovascular and other diseases."

There's more--read on:

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Victims of bullying may develop long-term physical and mental health problems, and now researchers have found one possible reason: Being bullied raises the blood’s level of C-reactive protein, or CRP, a marker of systemic inflammation and a risk factor for cardiovascular and other diseases.

Scientists followed 1,420 boys and girls ages 9 to 21, interviewing bullies, victims and their parents. They assessed CRP levels with periodic blood tests.

After controlling for initial levels of CRP and for many factors that affect it — sex, age, race and various health and socioeconomic issues — the researchers found that CRP levels in victims increased in direct proportion to the number of bullying incidents they experienced.

Bullies, in contrast, had low increases in CRP, even lower than those in children not involved in bullying at all. The finding suggested that a bully’s increased social status might have biological advantages, the scientists said. Their study was published online on Monday in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“The only other kind of social adversity where we see this kind of long-term effect is in children who are physically abused or neglected,” said the lead author, William E. Copeland, an associate professor of psychiatry at Duke. “We don’t think about bullying the same way, but I’m moving toward the position that we should. This kind of social defeat is more potent and long-lasting than we previously thought.”

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There's also some good information on this here.

BULLYING UPDATE: WHAT PARENTS CAN DO

Recently bullying has been in the news again.  Sometimes it can seem that children are being bullied--but little is done about it.  Parents can feel angry and frustrated--and below, you can read about what one parent did about it.  Note also that there are people and organizations out there to help parents; and there are lots of ideas out there about what parents can do.  Read on:

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Sarah Cymbaluk of Fosston, Minnesota, is a frustrated mom who took matters into her own hands. After claiming that her daughter was repeatedly bullied on the school bus and the school did nothing about it, she posted a video on Facebook.

In the video, Cymbaluk asked her crying daughter, "Tell me how it makes you feel."

Her daughter, who turned 9 on Tuesday, responded, "It makes me feel sad and scared, and I don't like it."

"She's been called into the principal's (office) and made to feel like it's her fault," Cymbaluk told CNN affiliate KXJB, claiming the bullying has gone on since December. "She's been told to ignore it. She's been told to disregard it. Basically she's been told to stuff her emotions and get on with life."

Fosston Schools Superintendent Mark Nohner, who said he thinks the situation could have been resolved without going to Facebook, said he learned about this issue only recently but conceded "somewhere along the line" the case "fell through the cracks."

"And so we need to review our procedures and policies and maybe do a better job of articulating to the parents what we're doing," said Nohner.

While Cymbaluk has come under some fire for posting the video of her tearful daughter, this case demonstrates how angry and helpless parents can feel when they believe their child is being bullied and that nothing is being done to stop it.

'You want to do something to help your child'

Becki Cohn-Vargas, a parent of three grown children, is a former principal, superintendent and teacher with more than two decades of experience in education. She is now director of Not in Our School, a program that works to create networks of schools that are free of bullying and offers a guide to parents on how to deal with bullying behavior.

"Without knowing all the details of the case, what I can say is that I can understand a parent's frustration because I, as a parent, have moved my child from a school ... so I know that you feel desperate," said Cohn-Vargas, who transferred her own daughter to another high school years ago because of a bullying incident. "You want to do something to help your child."

The key is focusing on the most effective methods to make sure your child feels safe. That begins with talking with your child and determining whether they have, in fact, been bullied, she says.

"It isn't supportive to your child to just jump in and defend when you don't know exactly what happened," said Cohn-Vargas, co-author of the book "Identity Safe Classrooms: Places to Belong and Learn," who says she's had her share of experiences as a principal with parents coming in with "guns blazing."

"I had so many cases where parents ... felt like they had to defend their child because they thought that was support."

Parents might first encourage children to try and handle the situation by standing up for themselves and telling the bully to stop. If that doesn't work, the next stage would be working up through the chain of command, said Cohn-Vargas, beginning with the person closest to where the alleged bullying took place, such as a teacher if it took place in the classroom or a bus driver if the incident happened on a bus and then moving on to the principal and the school district.

"I am not trying to underestimate that it's hard because school districts sometimes put their head in the sand, they don't want to see what's happening, but I think more and more school districts are very pro-active," said Cohn-Vargas.

'Document, document, document'

Nancy Willard, director of the group Embrace Civility in the Digital Age, which works on combating cyberbullying and author of "Positive Relations @ School (& Elsewhere)," doesn't totally agree.

She says she hears from far too many parents who say schools are rationalizing bullying behavior, saying things like "It wasn't that big of a deal" or "You're overreacting" or "Your kid needs to learn how to deal with it."

Willard, who has created her own empowerment guide for parents, says her first advice is to "document, document, document."

Parents should chronicle what happens, what staff were around and what they did, what the impact has been in terms of emotional distress, how the alleged bullying behavior may be interfering with the child's education and after-school activities and what the school response has been, said Willard.

If the school is not responding, a parent can go the person charged with responsibility for ensuring safe schools at the district level, she said. "If you don't get help at the district level, then you go to the State Department of Education."

If a child is being bullied and there is a civil rights violation, a parent can file a civil rights complaint either at the state or federal level, she added.

"Parents need to know that they have more power," said Willard.

A focus on reconciliation, not punishment

She said parents should not be focused on punishment, which could lead to retaliation and more pain for the bullied child. Instead, they should ask the school to see that the person responsible for the hurtful behavior gets help since other problems may be pushing them to bully and work with the school to create an opportunity, at some point, for the child who caused the pain to make amends.

Cohn-Vargas adds that parents should refrain from immediately trying to schedule a meeting with the parents of the child doing the bullying.

"It's because it can turn into conflict between adults," she said. "It just can get ugly really fast."

Willard said part of the reason why she created her parent guide in the first place is because she believes parents can help schools make positive change.

"If we've got 1.2 million kids who are experiencing hurtful acts at school each week, that's a fair number of parents who if they got motivated could encourage and empower change," she said, citing numbers from a 2011 Department of Justice report.

Cohn-Vargas believes schools and school districts are "in the beginning stages of addressing bullying effectively." She believes only a multifaceted approach will succeed -- one that includes empowering students to identify issues and solutions, teaching bystanders to stand up against bullying and looking at bullying as a learning experience where kids can move on and change.

She cited a recent case involving a middle school, which worked with her program, Not in Our School. Three boys photoshopped a picture of an eighth- grade girl, adding a swastika, a naked image and an anti-gay slur, and circulated the photo.

School officials identified three students were responsible, including one Jewish student, and wanted the children to really learn from the incident. They came up with the idea of having the students do research on the topics involved including the history of the swastika, said Cohn-Vargas.

"So what does the school do to handle it right? They take it seriously, they investigate. They look at it as a learning experience," she said.

"All children at some point end up being either a victim, a bystander or someone who does the bullying and so it's a matter of creating a learning opportunity for the kids."

 

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IN HONOR OF MOTHER'S DAY (A BIT LATE)--A MEMO TO IMPERFECT MOMS

I know there are those of you out there with Moebius Syndrome who already are moms.  And I know there are others of you with Moebius who want some day to be moms.  Guess what--you can be!  And you can be a great mom--no matter what physical challenges you face.  The below is from a mom who does not have Moebius,. but she has other physical differences.  And she is a great mom.  Read on:

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It was one of those days when I would have given anything to be someone else.

We were at the park and I watched my 3-year-old son climb the slide's ladder. He crossed the balance beam and conquered the climbing wall, and I just stood there, trying to tell my fears to shut up.

I knew that, if he were to fall, these arms could not catch him. I could only kiss away the tears I failed to save him from. I am a mother with upper limb differences, and this swallowing of fear is a daily effort on my part, since I've always felt a little less capable as a human being, and especially now as a mother.

I was born with a disability called arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC), and it left my arms weak, shorter than average and stiff. This makes the most mundane tasks quite difficult sometimes, but I'm so grateful that AMC also left my hands hooked under -- it's with these "hooks" I am able to carry my children, at least for a few seconds here and there.

As I watch my little boy flit from one obstacle to another, I remember the summer before I started kindergarten. I was playing at the park while my own mother watched from the shade.

I didn't dare tackle the very tall slide, as ladders always scared me. I couldn't properly grip the rungs, and even at that young age, I understood that I had limits.

Instead, I climbed the wide steps of the elephant-shaped slide, which was probably intended for children much younger than me. I reached the top and shoved off. From the first moment of my descent, I began to lose control. My body had turned sideways by the time I reached the bottom, and I fell onto the concrete landing, left arm first.

The thing about arms affected by AMC is that they don't bend. They just break. My mom rushed me to the hospital for this, the first of the seven arm breaks of my childhood.

Naturally, even now as an adult, I find it difficult to watch my son take physical risks without feeling a surge of panic. Without remembering the crunch of snapping bone.

He, however, seems to live for anything that would terrify me. Often I force myself to turn away so he can earn his boyhood scrapes without this nervous mom swooping in.

For disabled parents, challenges are bonding point

For many things, I have to use my feet. I have to admit that toes are poor substitutes for fingers, and for every obstacle I've overcome, there are 10 that I haven't. Despite that, I drive a car. I change diapers. I've published a book and am a freelance journalist -- every word typed by toe. I travel all over the country to speak to schools, women's groups, churches.

But the truth is, as my son laid on my chest moments after birth, I didn't know how I would manage to hold him. I didn't know how I'd work a car seat. I'd changed exactly one diaper, years before, and I'd never held an infant. I was in over my head.

But my son and I adapted to each other quickly, so that within two weeks my husband went back to work and I was able to care for my new baby -- not without difficulty, but without help. Luckily, newborns are extremely patient (read: they can't move), so I was able to work on those things that were difficult, and take my time until it became a little more natural for me.

But really, most of what I do throughout the day is struggle. I am in such awe as I watch how easily other moms pick up their toddlers. How easily someone turns the page of a book. How quickly other writers can type. Wow. What would that be like?

Struggle has been the great theme of my 30 years. And for most of those years, I hated it. I would have given anything to be normal -- to be anyone other than me. I wanted to blend in. Who doesn't?

I can't tell you the number of times I thought, whispered, growled under my breath, "WHY does everything have to be so freaking difficult for me?" After attempting to open a window. To button my pants. To strain pasta.

But as I've become an adult, as I worked through so much pain in writing my memoir, I began to see that Struggle is not my enemy. In fact, I can thank Struggle for developing in me many of the traits I like most about myself. And Struggle in my life gives me the ability to teach my kids resilience. Empathy. Determination. Hope. So many intangibles that a perfect mom would not be able to model for her children.

Because I'm flawed, I can perfectly prepare my kids to deal with the imperfect boss, the imperfect spouse, the imperfect child. Because I am weak, my children can see how little weakness can do to hold us back from living a life filled with purpose.

Because I struggle in front of them daily, my children will inherently know not to run from the difficult things in life, because they see Struggle create in me such gratitude and joy over even the smallest blessings. My children have been dealt an awesome hand.

The intrepid: What it's like to be a blind parent

It's Mother's Day, and you might be an imperfect mom. Don't be afraid! Don't wish you were someone else. You're the mom your kids need most. You're the ideal person to prepare your children to thrive in this often less-than-ideal world.

I've heard it said that your greatest strength is also your greatest weakness. But it could be that your greatest weakness is your greatest strength -- as a parent, as a person. Love an imperfect mom today, especially if that mom is you.

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HEALTH UPDATE OF THE DAY

Of course, we always hear:  to lose weight, eat fewer calories.  But:  are all calories equal?  What's the real story when it comes to calories?  Read on:

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Americans have long been told that the cure for obesity is simple: Eat fewer calories and exercise more.

But a new documentary challenges that notion, making the case that Americans have been misled by the idea that we get fat simply because we consume more calories than we expend. The film explores what it sees as some of the more insidious corporate and political forces behind the rise of childhood obesity, and it examines whether increasing levels of sugar consumption have played an outsized role in the epidemic.

The film, called “Fed Up,” has as executive producers Katie Couric, the former anchor of “The CBS Evening News,” and Laurie David, who was also a producer of the global warming documentary “An Inconvenient Truth.” Ms. Couric, who narrates the film, said she came up with the idea after years of covering the obesity epidemic left her with more questions than answers.

“What struck me was that the more I reported on childhood obesity and the longer I was in this business, the worse the problem seemed to be getting,” Ms. Couric said in an interview. “I felt like we were never really giving people a handle on what was causing this and why the rates were skyrocketing the way they were.”

The film draws on commentary from obesity experts and nutrition scientists, and it tells the stories of several obese children around the country who struggle to lose weight despite strict dieting and in some cases hours of daily exercise. But at the heart of the film is a question that is widely debated among scientists: Are all calories equal?

Dr. David Ludwig, the director of the obesity program at Boston Children’s Hospital, argues in the film that they are not. In recent studies, Dr. Ludwig has shown that high-carbohydrate diets appear to slow metabolic rates compared to diets higher in fat and protein, so that people expend less energy even when consuming the same number of calories. Dr. Ludwig has found that unlike calories from so-called low glycemic foods (like beans, nuts and non-starchy vegetables), those from high glycemic foods (such as sugar, bread and potatoes) spike blood sugar and stimulate hunger and cravings, which can drive people to overeat.

While people can certainly lose weight in the short term by focusing on calories, Dr. Ludwig said, studies show that the majority of people on calorie-restricted diets eventually fail. “The common explanation is that people have difficulty resisting temptation,” he said. “But another possibility is that highly processed foods undermine our metabolism and overwhelm our behavior.”

At Harvard Medical School, Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology whose research was cited by experts in the film, said that the long-held idea that we get fat solely because we consume more calories than we expend is based on outdated science.

He has studied the effects that different foods have on weight gain and said that it is true that 100 calories of fat, protein and carbohydrates are the same in a thermodynamic sense, in that they release the same amount of energy when exposed to a Bunsen burner in a lab. But in a complex organism like a human being, he said, these foods influence satiety, metabolic rate, brain activity, blood sugar and the hormones that store fat in very different ways.

Studies also show that calories from different foods are not absorbed the same. When people eat high-fiber foods like nuts and some vegetables, for example, only about three-quarters of the calories they contain are absorbed. The rest are excreted from the body unused. So the calories listed on their labels are not what the body is actually getting.

“The implicit suggestion is that there are no bad calories, just bad people eating too much,” Dr. Mozaffarian said. “But the evidence is very clear that not all calories are created equal as far as weight gain and obesity. If you’re focusing on calories, you can easily be misguided.”

Some of the harshest criticism in the film is aimed at a recent food industry initiative – led by companies like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo – to remove calories from their products in an effort to address obesity.

“If somebody is drowning in a swimming pool, you could remove a few gallons of water from the pool, and that person will still likely drown,” Dr. Ludwig said. “Whether there is on average 1,000 calories in the food supply too many per person or 800 is really unlikely to make a meaningful difference. What would make a difference is improvement in the quality of the foods available.”

But Marianne Smith Edge of the International Food Information Council, an industry-financed group that published a review of “Fed Up,” said the film overstates data on how much sugar Americans are consuming and wrongly portrays sugar as a lone dietary villain, much as dietary fat was vilified in decades past. Just as research in the last few years has vindicated some fats and shown them to be beneficial, she said, the science on sugar is evolving as well.

“I think the focus on particular nutrients doesn’t tell you the true story,” she said. “It really is about overall calorie consumption and reduced physical activity.”

Ms. Smith Edge, who is a registered dietitian, cited a 2012 study by Y. Claire Wang of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, which showed that the average child must eliminate 64 calories a day in order for the childhood obesity rate to fall to 14.6 percent by 2020, a goal set by the federal government.

In an interview, Dr. Wang said that for the most part, “if we’re just talking about body weight and obesity, the evidence seems to point in the direction that calories are calories.”

Dr. Wang said that studies consistently show that sugary beverages, potato chips and other high-glycemic foods are indeed associated with weight gain. But this is because they are rapidly digested and easy to consume in large amounts, “not because they bypass our energy balance.”

Dr. Wang said, however, that reducing calories should not be the sole focus of obesity prevention programs. Studies show, for example, that sugary beverages are linked to an increased risk of diabetes and other chronic diseases, but their impact on body weight explains only half of the increased risk, Dr. Wang said.

“These foods mess up our insulin regulation system and affect other inflammatory pathways,” she said. “And that has nothing to do with how they affect body weight.”

Ms. Couric, who has two children, said that she became involved in making the film “as a mom and a concerned citizen,” and that her goal was to start a national dialogue about the quality of our food supply.

“This film doesn’t purport to have all the answers,” Ms. Couric said. “But this is a wake-up call that I hope will spur some solutions. This is not just about carrying a few extra pounds or looking better in your bathing suit. This is a national epidemic with huge societal ramifications.”

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GOOD NEWS DEPT

And it shows that awareness and acceptance are growing, too.  The good news is:  an adult with special needs appears on the "Wheel of Fortune" TV show.  Read more about it:

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There have been many recent tales of “Wheel of Fortune” woe, including the unfortunate “Boozing my shore excursion” lady. And the weirdness of the lucky guess “New baby buggy” guy. But Wednesday, the show had its first inspirational contestant in quite awhile with Trent Girone.
The 21-year-old Peoria, Ariz., resident is a self-described “Wheel of Fortune” fanatic, but more important, he’s the first contestant with special needs ever to compete on the show.
Girone has had nine brain surgeries and has both Asperger’s and Tourette syndromes, but that didn’t stop him from taking early control of the wheel by successfully guessing the first puzzle, “a smashing success.”
Girone ultimately didn’t win the game — he hit the dreaded Bankrupt slot — but he won viewer hearts. He became a Twitter trend with #TeamTrent that made his appearance into a viral sensation.
During his appearance, Girone, who says he’s been a “Wheel” fan since age 2, even avoided being stumped by host Pat Sajak when Sajak asked him to name a category that was no longer featured on the show. (Girone’s correct answer: Megaword.)
In a blog post Girone wrote for the “Wheel of Fortune” website, he wrote, “I love the show and wanted to be part of its history. I thought I would do a great job at solving puzzles.” He certainly studied up, even claiming to watch Saturday morning reruns of last season’s episodes. His episode was actually taped back in February.

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THE LATEST MEDICAL STUDIES--FOR PARENTS

"Current and expectant parents may be interested a few of the many studies that have been released in recent days as researchers gathered for the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, the largest international meeting focused on research in children's health. The meeting, in Vancouver, British Columbia, ends Tuesday."

Read on and see what they've found:

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Here are some of the findings presented:
Not all parents are putting their babies 'back to sleep'
Since the early 1990's, the American Academy of Pediatrics has been recommending parents put their babies on their backs when they sleep to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). While the number of SIDS deaths has gone down, the CDC reports more than 2000 infants under the age of 1 died in 2010 as a result of SIDS.
However, a new study finds that the word hasn't gotten out to everyone that babies should sleep on their backs. Researchers presented their data on Saturday. They found that two-thirds of full-term babies in the United States sleep on their backs and less than half of preemies are put in what's officially called the supine sleep position (on the back).
Where you live also makes a difference. The study authors found in Alabama, only 49.5% of all infants were placed in on their back to sleep, compared to Wisconsin, which had the highest number at 81.4%.
The goal is to keep babies alive, which is why the American Academy of Pediatrics's recommendations to prevent SIDS and other sleep-related deaths call for supine positioning along with "use of a firm sleep surface, breastfeeding, room-sharing without bed-sharing, routine immunizations, consideration of using a pacifier, and avoidance of soft bedding, overheating, and exposure to tobacco smoke, alcohol, and illicit drugs."
Environmental factors may play a bigger role in autism
The latest statistics from the CDC must be alarming to expectant and new parents. Six weeks ago, the CDC announced the latest autism prevalence statistics: 1 in 68 children has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the United States.
While the exact cause and causes of ASDs are not known, most experts agree that autism is a condition that begins before birth, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Many experts also believe that children with autism have a genetic predisposition, and that environmental factors can play a role. The neurodevelopmental disorder can cause significant and chronic social, communication and behavioral challenges.
Twin studies have shown if one identical twin has autism, there's a 90% chance the other twin will be affected too. However, researchers are suggesting that the role of genes may much smaller - 50%. More than 2 million families in Sweden were studied; scientists looked at full siblings, half siblings and even cousins of full siblings.
"Heritability of ASD was estimated to 50%, suggesting that genetic factors explain half of the risk for autism," according to the study, published in JAMA on Saturday. "This is considerably lower than the 90% in earlier twin studies and closer the 38% reported in a recent California study."
The idea that environmental factors play an important role in autism has only started to get traction in recent years. Irva Hertz-Picciotto, who studies environmental factors in autism at the UC Davis MINDS Institute, told CNN in 2011 that there may be a "somewhat smaller role for genetics and somewhat larger role for the environment" in the development of autism, something she hoped would change the emphasis in the research community.
The researchers in Sweden also conclude that this information may be helpful to parents who already have a child with autism, and are considering or concerned about having another child.
Pediatricians can help prevent cavities in baby teeth
Parents may not realize this, but tooth decay is the most common chronic disease in children aged 6 to 12 in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC data shows that about 42% of children as young as 2 and up to age 11 have cavities in their baby teeth. A study from 2007 found that since the mid-90's, dental caries (cavities) has been on the rise again, particularly in young children between ages 2 and 5.
So the The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force is updating its recommendations for preventing caries or tooth decay in children from birth to age 5. After reviewing the latest research, the panel recommends pediatricians, who see children at regular wellness visits anyway, should give:
– babies as young as 6 months of age oral fluoride supplementation, when there's not enough fluoride in their water supply (that means water fluoridation levels are below .0.6 parts per million)
– all infants, who have had their baby teeth pop out of their gums, and children periodic fluoride varnish applications, regardless of fluoride levels in their water.
However, the USPSTF is not recommending that pediatricians do regular oral check-ups because pediatricians cannot reliably detect tooth decay. That's where pediatric dentists come into play. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends a so-called dental home be established with every child before his or her first birthday.
Study questions benefit of taking fish oil supplements during pregnancy
When women find out they are pregnant, their doctors will have a lot of recommendations, including taking a Omega-3 acid, particularly DHA supplement or fish oil, a fatty acid, to optimize fetal brain and eye development. There are 20 different edible fatty acids, but the human body can't produce Omega-3 and 6 fatty acids, and most pregnant women probably don't get enough of these nutrients through their diets.
A 2008 study published in Obstetrics and Gynecology concluded that along with vegetable oils and two servings of seafood per week, women should get these important Omega-3's from supplements. Now, a research letter published Saturday in JAMA throws a wrench in that.
Researchers studied pregnant women who were given an 800 mg DHA supplement or a placebo and their children's' brain development at age 4 (the children had been previously assessed at 18 months). They found prenatal DHA supplementation did not result in improved cognitive, problem-solving or language abilities for children at age 4. They even report, surprisingly, that girls in the DHA group had poorer language scores than girls in the control group.
"Our data do not support prenatal DHA supplementation to enhance early childhood development," the study authors say.
"I have no reason to doubt their results," says Dr. Mark Klebanoff, a professor of pediatrics and of obstetrics and gynecology at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, who specializes in the prevention of pregnancy complications and has studied the benefits of fish consumption to prevent another preterm birth (his study did not follow the children).
"It's not that easy to make up any deficiencies by taking a pill," he says.