Tick Bites and Red Meat Allergy.

Tick bites and red meat allergy.

Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol. 2013 Jun 5;
Commins SP, Platts-Mills TA

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: A novel form of anaphylaxis has been described that is due to IgE antibody (Ab) directed against a mammalian oligosaccharide epitope, galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose (alpha-gal). Ongoing work regarding the cause and distribution of this IgE response is reviewed. RECENT FINDINGS: Our recent work has identified a novel IgE Ab response that has been associated with two distinct forms of anaphylaxis: immediate-onset anaphylaxis during first exposure to intravenous cetuximab and delayed-onset anaphylaxis 3-6?h after ingestion of mammalian food products (e.g. beef and pork). Further studies strongly suggested that tick bites were a cause, if not the only significant cause, of IgE Ab responses to alpha-gal in the United States and internationally. SUMMARY: Large numbers of patients with IgE Ab to alpha-gal continue to be identified in the USA and globally. Clinicians should be aware of this IgE response as the reactions often appear to be idiopathic because of the significant delay between eating mammalian meat and the appearance of symptoms. HubMed – eating

Screening for Feeding Disorders: Creating critical values using the Behavioral Pediatrics Feeding Assessment Scale.

Appetite. 2013 Jun 3;
Dovey TM, Jordan C, Aldridge VK, Martin CI

The aim of the current study was to discriminate between clinical and non-clinical samples on the Behavioral Pediatrics Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS). The objective was to present a cut-off value, that was derived statistically, which could be used to screen for feeding disorders. A sample of five hundred and seventy three families with a target child ranging in age from twenty to eight-five months took part in the current study. Sixty-four children had a known diagnosis of a feeding disorder and were embedded into a typically developing sample of families that had not sought professional intervention. All families completed the BPFAS in order to provide a known database to measure discriminative statistics. The Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis indicated that the cut off value for the BPFAS was a Child Frequency score of sixty-one and a Child Problem score of six. This offered an eighty-seven percent accuracy rate at these values. The current study offered definitive evidence that the BPFAS was accurate (both sensitive and specific) to determine differences between clinical and non-clinical samples in the United Kingdom. It is therefore advocated that BPFAS should be adopted in future studies exploring the impact of feeding disorders and problems in both clinical and research settings. HubMed – eating

No Financial Disincentive for Choosing More Healthful Entrées on Children’s Menus in Full-Service Restaurants.

Prev Chronic Dis. 2013; 10: E94
Krukowski RA, West D

Children are eating restaurant foods more than ever before, and price is among the top considerations for food choices. We categorized and enumerated entrées on children’s menus from 75 full-service restaurant chains to compare prices of more healthful and less healthful entrées to test the assumption that more healthful food is more expensive. The mean (standard deviation) price of more healthful entrées ($ 5.38 [$ 2.01]) was not significantly different from the price of less healthful entrées ($ 5.27 [$ 2.04]). In contrast to research demonstrating that more healthful foods tend to be more expensive in grocery stores, more healthful entrées on children’s menus in restaurants were not more expensive than less healthful entrées. HubMed – eating