In Good Health Medical Notes: Week of May 21, 2017
Going gluten-free is very popular, but a new study finds that if you don’t have celiac disease, there’s no point in it. In fact, it may even hurt you. The 25-year study in the journal BMJ shows that people who eat the lowest levels of gluten have a 15% higher risk of heart disease. Researchers say the results aren’t necessarily cause-and-effect, but when people restrict heart-healthy whole grains to reduce gluten exposure, they often end up eating more refined grains.
Kidney transplants in children are helping them survive longer. A study in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons shows that 96% of children who got a new kidney about 10 years ago are still alive today. The transplanted kidneys themselves are also surviving longer—78 percent of living donor kidneys are still functioning 10 years later, compared to less than half a few decades ago. Better immunosuppression drugs get much of the credit.
And finally... if you’ve heard fewer kids complaining about being bullied lately, there’s a reason. Researchers have documented a significant decline in school bullying over the last 10 years. An ongoing study in the journal Pediatrics asks students about their experience with bullying over the last month. Since 2005, the proportion of children saying they’d been bullied has dropped about two percent per year to below 10 percent. Fewer than half of students also say they’ve witnessed bullying in the most recent survey. In 2005, about two-thirds of kids said they’d witnessed it.
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