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(1) Fewer fizzy drinks can prevent childhood obesity
(2) New figures reveal social gradient of heart failure
(3) NHS trusts putting safety of pregnant doctors at risk
(1) Fewer fizzy drinks can prevent childhood obesity
(Preventing childhood obesity by reducing consumption of carbonated drinks: cluster randomised controlled trial)
http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/reprint/bmj.38077.458438.EE
Discouraging children from drinking fizzy drinks can prevent excessive weight gain, according to new research available on bmj.com.
Obesity in children has reached epidemic proportions and has been partly linked to the consumption of carbonated drinks sweetened with sugar.
Researchers introduced an education programme to six primary schools in Christchurch, Dorset over one school year. The main objective was to discourage the consumption of carbonated drinks among children aged 7-11 years.
Fifteen classes took part in the programme (intervention group) and 14 acted as a control group. The children completed diaries of drinks consumed and body mass index was measured at six and 12 months.
Consumption of carbonated drinks over three days decreased by 0.6 glasses (average glass size 250 ml) a day in the intervention group but increased by 0.2 glasses in the control group. Consumption of water increased in both groups.
At 12 months, the percentage of overweight and obese children increased in the control group by 7.6% compared with a decrease in the intervention group of 0.2%.
±Our intervention was simple, involved no teacher training, and could be easily implemented by a health educator working in several schools,± say the authors.
±Although our targeted approach was modestly beneficial, other external influences on children±s eating habits and leisure activities need to be debated widely in society. For most people, obesity still remains preventable,± they conclude.
Contact:
Janet James, Diabetes Development Nurse, Bournemouth Diabetes and Endocrine Centre, Royal Bournemouth Hospital, Dorset, UK
Email: janet.james@rbch-tr.swest.nhs.uk
(2) New figures reveal social gradient of heart failure
(Influence of socioeconomic deprivation on the primary care burden and treatment of patients with a diagnosis of heart failure
in general practice in Scotland: population based study)
http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/reprint/bmj.38043.414074.EE
Socially deprived individuals are 44% more likely to develop heart failure but 23% less likely to see their general practitioner on a regular basis compared with affluent patients, finds new research available on bmj.com.
Using data from a large health project in Scotland, researchers examined the influence of social and economic deprivation on the diagnosis and treatment of 2,186 adults with heart failure.
They found that the incidence of heart failure significantly increased with increasing social deprivation. Socioeconomically deprived patients were 44% more likely to develop heart failure than affluent patients. In contrast, patients in the most deprived groups had 23% fewer follow up visits each year with their general practitioner.
Contrary to speculation, prescribed treatment did not differ across social or economic gradients.
Once the mechanisms behind these socioeconomic gradients are better understood, programmes can be devised for optimal outcomes of all patients, irrespective of social class, conclude the authors.
Contact:
Professor John McMurray, Department of Cardiology, Western Infirmary, Glasgow, Scotland
Email: j.mcmurray@bio.gla.ac.uk
(3) NHS trusts putting safety of pregnant doctors at risk
(Pregnant doctors: health and safety risks in the real world)
http://careerfocus.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/328/7446/168
Some NHS trusts are exploiting pregnant junior doctors at the expense of health and safety, according to a disturbing article in this week±s BMJ Careers.
It reveals how some pregnant doctors are expected to work excessive hours and are often exposed to violent or aggressive patients. It also uncovers major discrepancies in the way trusts apply guidelines to protect the rights of pregnant women in the workplace.
One doctor in psychiatry describes how she was expected to work extended nights on call, covering forensic and challenging behaviour units, well into her pregnancy. When she challenged the trust on the safety issue of a pregnant woman attending potentially violent patients, she met with resistance, delay, and little support.
Meanwhile, at the same trust, psychiatric nurses are removed from clinical duties and night shifts as soon as they inform the trust of their pregnancy.
This situation has resulted in several alarming incidents concerning pregnant junior doctors. One was attacked while attending a patient on a locked ward, while another was left with no back up when interviewing a disturbed patient.
With more women entering the medical profession, pregnant doctors will become more common, says the author. Guidelines that address the health and safety of pregnant workers are being inconsistently applied across the health professions.
Information needs to be distributed better, and trusts must prepare alternative work arrangements to accommodate the health and safety needs of their staff, she concludes.
Clearly something needs to be done about this now before a working pregnant doctor and her unborn child are seriously harmed.
Contact:
Rhona MacDonald, Editor, BMJ Careers, London, UK
Email: rmacdonald@bmj.com
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