Bawang merah dan bawang putih dapat mencegah kanker

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 84, No. 5, 1027-1032, November
2006. © 2006 American Society for Nutrition. Onion and garlic use and human
cancer. Carlotta Galeone, Claudio Pelucchi, Fabio Levi, Eva Negri, Silvia
Franceschi, Renato Talamini, Attilio Giacosa and Carlo La Vecchia

Masyarakat Asia banyak menggunakan bawang merah (Allium cepa) dan bawang
putih (Allium sativum) dalam makanan sehari2. Tentang khasiat bawang merah
dan bawang putih juga telah banyak diteliti di China. Para ahli di Italia
mengadakan penelitian untuk membuktikan khasiat bawang merah dan bawang
putih.

Mereka mendapatkan bahwa kelompok orang yang banyak mengkonsumsi bawang
merah dan bawang putih dapat menurunkan risiko terjadinya kanker rongga
mulut, kanker tenggorokan, kanker esofagus, kanker kolorektal (usus besar),
kanker larynx, kanker payudara, kanker prostat, dan kanker ginjal.

Kesimpulan konsumsi bawang merah dan bawang putih terbukti dapat menurunkan
risiko kanker.

Abstract

Background: Interest in the potential benefits of allium vegetables, in
particular, onion (Allium cepa) and garlic (Allium sativum), has its origin
in antiquity, but the details of these benefits are still open to
discussion.

Objective: We investigated the role of allium vegetables in the etiology of
various neoplasms. Previous data are scanty and are based mainly on Chinese
studies.

Design: Using data from an integrated network of Italian and Swiss
case-control studies, we analyzed the relation between frequency of onion
and garlic use and cancer at several sites. We calculated odds ratios (ORs)
by using multivariate logistic regression models that were adjusted for
energy intake and other major covariates.

Results: Consumption of onions varied between 0-14 and 0-22 portions/wk
among cases and controls, respectively. The multivariate ORs for the highest
category of onion and garlic intake were, respectively, 0.16 and 0.61 for
cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx, 0.12 and 0.43 for esophageal cancer,
0.44 and 0.74 for colorectal cancer, 0.17 and 0.56 for laryngeal cancer,
0.75 and 0.90 for breast cancer, 0.27 and 0.78 for ovarian cancer, 0.29 and
0.81 for prostate cancer, and 0.62 and 0.69 for renal cell cancer.

Conclusions: This uniquely large data set from southern European populations
shows an inverse association between the frequency of use of allium
vegetables and the risk of several common cancers. Allium vegetables are a
favorable correlate of cancer risk in Europe.

Biaya kesehatan untuk anak obes lebih mahal

Bagi para orang tua yang masih menginginkan anaknya bertubuh gemuk, temuan
terbaru ini layak disimak.

Para peneliti di USA menemukan bahwa biaya kesehatan untuk anak dengan
obesitas lebih mahal dibanding anak normal, karena lebih sering mengunjungi
dokter dan melakukan pemeriksaan laboratorium.

Hal yang sama berlaku juga pada orang dewasa dengan obesitas. Disebutkan
pula bahwa 80% anak usia 12 tahun dengan obesitas akan berlanjut menjadi
obesitas dewasa.

Health Care Expenditures Significantly Higher For Children With Obesity
Sarah E. Hampl, M.D., et al.
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2007;161:11-14

Children and adolescents who are obese or overweight have higher health care
utilization and a significantly higher average of health care charges than
their healthy-weight peers, according to a report in the January issue of
Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives
journals.

According to background information in the article, 30 percent of children
in the United States are obese or overweight with six in ten having at least
one risk factor for cardiovascular disease and 25 percent having more than
two risk factors for the disease. The authors note that more than 80 percent
of obese 12-year-olds will carry their overweight status into adulthood.

Sarah E. Hampl, M.D., and colleagues at Children's Mercy Hospitals and
Clinics and the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine
analyzed data from 8,404 patients age 5 to 18 who attended a primary care
clinic in the Midwest for well-child care visits during 2002 and 2003. Body
mass index (BMI) was calculated with patients' height and weight
information. Four weight categories were used in the study: patients with a
BMI in the 95th percentile or higher for their age and sex with a discharge
diagnosis of obesity, patients with a BMI in the 95th percentile or higher
for their age and sex without a diagnosis of obesity, patients with BMI
between the 85th and 94th percentiles classified as overweight and patients
with BMIs lower than the 85th percentile classified as healthy weight.

Health care resource utilization was measured for each category and included
the number of health care visits and blood tests that occurred within a year
from each patient's initial visit. Health care expenditures were determined
by charge data obtained through the billing system of health care resources.
Factors associated with the diagnosis of obesity were also examined.

Based on the patients' BMI, 17.8 percent were overweight and 21.9 percent
were obese. Of the obese children, only 42.9 percent had a discharge
diagnosis of obesity, suggesting a significant rate of underdiagnosis. "When
obesity was present, being female, older and insured by Medicaid were
associated with a higher probability of having diagnosed obesity," the
authors write.

A significantly higher rate of utilization of laboratory services by
overweight and obese children was found when compared to their
healthy-weight peers. This increase was most notable for children with
diagnosed obesity. "We speculate that this increase reflects primary care
provider compliance with expert committee recommendations for laboratory
evaluation of obese children and adolescents," the authors write. "Compared
with their healthy-weight peers, children with overweight, diagnosed obesity
and undiagnosed obesity had significantly higher charges, with the highest
for the diagnosed obesity category," with an average adjusted difference of
$172.

"This finding is perhaps reflective of primary care provider intent to
detect and treat comorbid conditions. This trend of increased health care
utilization, observed even in children younger than 10 years, is similar to
the trends seen in adult patients," the authors conclude. "Efforts to
continue to educate primary care providers regarding the diagnosis of
obesity and early interventions to address obesity in children are
warranted."

Nutrition in toddlers

Am Fam Physician <http://www.aafp.org/afp/20061101/1527.html> November 1
2006;74:1527-32, 1533-4. © 2006 American Academy of Family Physicians.
Nutrition in Toddlers, Richard E. Allen, M.D., M.P.H. and Anya L. Myers,
R.D., M.SC.

Pada usia 'toddler' seorang anak mengalami transisi dari bayi menjadi anak,
demikian pula dietnya berubah dari diet susu menjadi diet anak yang omnivor.
Dalam peralihan ini dokter perlu melakukan monitoring pertumbuhan dan indeks
massa tubuh untuk menentukan diet yang sehat bagi sang anak.

Pembatasan makanan berlemak dan kolesterol kiranya belum perlu pada anak <2
tahun. Setelah usia 2 tahun dianjurkan konsumsi lemak 30% dari jumlah total
kebutuhan kalori per hari, terutama lemak tak jenuh jamak (polyunsaturated
fats).
Dianjurkan konsumsi susu atau produk olahan susu (dairy product) setidaknya
dua sampai tiga kali sehari. Konsumsi pemanis/minuman manis dibatasi 120-180
gram per hari.
Penggunaan multivitamin secara rutin tidak perlu.
Dianjurkan konsumsi berbagai golongan makanan.

Karena anak cenderung meniru orang tuanya maka parental modeling perlu dalam
rangka membentuk kebiasaan makan yang baik bagi sang anak.
Tidak ada bukti kuat bahwa obesitas pada usia anak berhubungan dengan
obesitas pada usia dewasa, sehingga lebih baik anak tidak kurang gizi
daripada khawatir terjadinya obesitas pada usia toddler.

Toddlers make a transition from dependent milk-fed infancy to independent
feeding and a typical omnivorous diet. This stage is an important time for
physicians to monitor growth using growth charts and body mass index and to
make recommendations for healthy eating. Fat and cholesterol restriction
should be avoided in children younger than two years. After two years of
age, fat should account for 30 percent of total daily calories, with an
emphasis on polyunsaturated fats. Toddlers should consume milk or other
dairy products two or three times daily, and sweetened beverages should be
limited to 4 to 6 ounces of 100 percent juice daily. Vitamin D, calcium, and
iron should be supplemented in select toddlers, but the routine use of
multivitamins is unnecessary. Food from two of the four food groups should
be offered for snacks, and meals should be made up of three of the four
groups. Parental modeling is important in developing good dietary habits. No
evidence exists that early childhood obesity leads to adult obesity, but
physicians should monitor body mass index and make recommendations for
healthy eating. The fear of obesity must be carefully balanced with the
potential for undernutrition in toddlers. (Am Fam Physician 2006;74:1527-32,
1533-4. Copyright © 2006 American Academy of Family Physicians.)