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There is Hope for People with Egg Allergy

A broken egg. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)
A broken egg. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)

Millions of people around the world suffer from egg allergy. It is a hypersensitivity to dietary substances from the yolk or whites of eggs, causing an overreaction of the immune system which may lead to severe physical symptoms.

Egg allergy appears mainly in children although some adults are affected by it as well. It is the second most common food allergy in children, the most common is cow’s milk allergy.

The most severe food allergy reaction is called anaphylaxis and is an emergency situation requiring immediate attention and treatment with epinephrine. The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America estimates that most children outgrow egg allergy by the age of five, but some people remain allergic for a lifetime.

It is estimated that one in every 13 Canadian suffers from a significant food allergy. Besides egg and milk, other common food allergies are to peanut, fish and sesame. Research indicates that peanut and nut allergies were much more common in children than adults and the opposite was true with fish and shellfish allergy.

Here is the good news now. A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine (July 19, 2012) provides hope for children with egg allergy. It says egg allergy can be substantially reduced and in some cases can be cured.

The research was conducted by feeding children with severe egg allergies with tiny amounts of egg protein (oral immunotherapy). Over time, the dose was steadily increased. The idea was to allow the body to gradually learn to tolerate exposure to the substance.

Results:

-After 10 months of therapy, 55 per cent of those who received oral immunotherapy passed the oral food challenge and were considered to be desensitized.

-After 22 months, 75 per cent of children in the oral immunotherapy group were desensitized.

-At 30 months and 36 months, all children who had passed the oral food challenge at 24 months were consuming egg.

About 25 per cent of the children who did not respond to oral immunotherapy suggests that some patients will need treatment on a regular basis for a longer time. The researchers believe even if it doesn’t provide a complete cure for everyone, the treatment may be able to reduce the severity of allergic reactions in many patients.

Parents are cautioned not to try this kind of treatment (oral immunotherapy) at home without medical supervision. A lot more research needs to be done before the therapy is ready for the general public. Oral immunotherapy is still considered experimental and should not be attempted outside a research trial. For now, this research paper provides hope for millions of people who have food allergies.

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We Ultimately Define What is Possible in Our Own Lives

Mount Kilimanjaro Summit, Uhuru Peak (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)
Mount Kilimanjaro Summit, Uhuru Peak (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)

Here is a story of courage from the Globe and Mail (June 23, 2012). It is the story of 31-year-old Spencer West, who lost both his legs when he was just five-years-old. He was told he will never walk again. But he did more than that. He climbed Africa’s highest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, partly by wheelchair but for the most part by walking on only his hands to reach the summit. He did this for charity and make a point that you don’t need legs to overcome adversity in life.

He told the Globe reporter, “We ultimately define what is possible in our own lives.”

The summit of Mount Kilimanjaro (the world’s fourth-highest peak) is about 20,000 ft. The summit of Mount Everest is about 30,000 ft. About 25,000 people from all over the world try to climb Mount Kilimanjaro each year but one-third never make it up to the summit due to various reasons.

One of them was Martina Navratilova, the tennis superstar. In December, 2010, just months after completing six weeks of radiation treatment for noninvasive breast cancer, attempted to climb Mount Kilimanjaro for a charity. On the fifth day of a planned six-day journey, she became ill and was taken off the mountain. Navratilova, 54, was flown to a hospital, where it was determined she had high altitude pulmonary edema.

Altitude sickness kills 10 to 20 people each year attempting Kilimanjaro. More people die trying to climb Mount Everest each year. One of them was a Toronto resident. “They say the mountain took her, but not before she conquered it,” says Toronto Sun. Shriya Shah-Klorfine, 33, who made her dream come true when she reached the summit of Mount Everest. This was in May, 2012. She died while descending from the peak.

What is the secret of survival for mountaineers?

For Himalayan mountain climbers, neither personal experience nor participating in a traditional versus commercial expedition affects the chances of survival, reports a study in the June 30, 2012, British Medical Journal.

Mountaineering is a dangerous sport with a significant risk of death. The researchers conclude, “… that cumulative, collective knowledge and general innovation are more important than individual experience in improving the odds of survival.”

Factors like good health, courage, determination and training are important. Good preparation in any endeavour does bring success. Many young and old have set records climbing Kilimanjaro.

Seven-year-old Keats Boyd of Sherman Oaks, California is thought to be the youngest to have summited Kilimanjaro, he did so on January 21, 2008.

In the summer of 2010, granddad George Solt, a retired professor from Olney in Buckinghamshire, became the oldest man to reach the summit of Kilimanjaro, at the age of 82. In September, 2010, 83-year-old Bernice Buum managed to climb to the top of Kilimanjaro and became probably the oldest woman to get to the summit.

So, age or sex is not a determining factor. I know quite a few people from Medicine Hat have climbed Kilimanjaro. But my dream, since I was in high school in Tanzania, to climb Kilimanjaro has taken a back seat over the years. I don’t know why. Like anything else in life, the more you delay your venture, more difficult it gets to accomplish. Although it is never impossible.

So, there is hope for me and many others who have dreams and bucket lists. Just keep working hard and keep trying. Success will follow.

Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!

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Extreme Heat Takes a Toll on Our Health and Life

A woman drinking water on a warm day. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)
A woman drinking water on a warm day. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)

There are two kinds of people. People who like heat in moderation and those who like heat in extreme. Then there is a third group of people who like extreme cold weather. Nature took care of this group by turning them into polar bears.

I am a person who likes heat in moderation. My friends say I should be the last person on earth (that is little far fetched, isn’t it?) to complain about heat.

I was born and raised in Musoma and Mwanza on Lake Victoria. I would call the weather in those two places is not bad. Nice and warm all year round. Then I went to a boarding school in Dar-es-salaam, on the shores of Indian Ocean. Wow, the weather is hot and humid. White shorts and shirts were the norm on weekends. On school days, khaki shorts and white shirt.

Those were the days. I was young and healthy. Heat wasn’t a big deal. I didn’t have hairy legs or varicose veins sticking out of my ugly legs. I didn’t have all the scars from childhood injuries showing off from my multi coloured legs. Wearing shorts was cool.

Now things are different. Once you get to male or female menopause, your tolerance for heat is not the same. Your kidneys start to pack-in if you do not drink enough water. And among the aging population, extreme heat causes a substantial number of deaths.

For example, the European heatwave of 2003 resulted in more than 70,000 deaths, About 30 per cent of which were attributed to heatstroke, hyperthermia or dehydration. Canadians too die of extreme heat. Reports indicate that extreme heat recently contributed to 106 deaths in Montréal, Quebec, and 156 deaths in Vancouver, British Columbia.

People who have chronic physical conditions (cardiovascular, pulmonary, renal and neurologic disease, diabetes and obesity) and those with mental illness are vulnerable to extreme heat. Older people, children and people who are very physically active in the heat are also at higher risk for heat-related illness.

Common drugs such as antipsychotic agents, antidepressant medications (e.g., selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, lithium), diuretic agents, antihistamines, anticholinergic agents and anti-Parkinson agents can increase risk by interfering with thermoregulatory mechanisms, says an article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ July 10, 2012).

What is heat exhaustion?

Heat exhaustion is the most common heat illness, says the CMAJ article. Although the patient may have hot skin and be flushed and sweating, his or her core temperature is below 40°C.

What is heatstroke?

In heatstroke, the core temperature is above 40°C, the patient’s mental status may change, and he or she may become incoherent or unconscious, says the article. In classic heatstroke, the skin is usually hot, red and dry. In exertional heatstroke, there is profuse sweating after high-intensity physical activity.

Heatstroke is a medical emergency. It can progress rapidly to multiorgan dysfunction and death. Treatment must be immediate and consists of rapid cooling (evaporative cooling for classic heatstroke; ice-water baths for young adults and people with exertional heat stroke). Careful attention should be paid to the patient’s hydration and electrolyte balance to restore blood pressure and tissue perfusion.

Death from heat exposure is preventable by increasing fluid intake and reducing activity levels during hot weather. Cool or air-conditioned environments for people most vulnerable to heat also helps. Some communities have heat alert and response systems that include issuing public health messages, opening cooling centres and extending hours for public swimming pools.

Enjoy the summer but be careful.

Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!

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The Science Behind Massage Therapy

Hot stone massage therapy. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)
Hot stone massage therapy. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock)

What do you do when you have tired aching muscles and joints? What do you do when you have stiff neck, low back pain and aching feet?

Your instinct would be to take some painkiller or phone your massage therapist. Painkillers are cheap, quick (you don’t need an appointment for that) and handy. But painkillers can have side-effects which may hurt your health. Massage therapist makes you relax, feel good, provide longer lasting relief of pain and discomfort. But they are not cheap and they are not available instantly when you need them. An aggressive massage therapist can leave you with sore muscles.

Massage involves the application of varying degrees of pressure on muscles and soft tissues to reduce tension and pain, improve circulation, and encourage relaxation. There are many kinds of massage therapies. From therapeutic massage to tantric massage. Massage therapy is performed by trained, licensed massage therapists.

A Swedish massage is the most common type of massage. It can be slow and gentle (relaxation), or vigorous and bracing (therapeutic), depending on what the therapist wants to achieve. It comprises five basic strokes (stroking, kneading, friction, percussion, and vibration). The movement is rhythmic and free-flowing. Like music or waves in the ocean. Surely, it puts me to sleep!

Therapeutic massage can be quite intense to achieve medical benefits for long-term or chronic issues. The most common examples would be a deep tissue massage or sports massage. The therapist uses more pressure and cross-fiber friction in order to get knots (also known as adhesions) to release.

It is estimated that 18 million individuals undergo massage therapy annually in the U.S., making it the fifth most widely used form of complementary and alternative medicine. Many clinical trials have proved that long-term massage therapy reduces chronic pain and improves range, but the biological effects of massage on muscles have remained unclear.

In a recent (February, 2012) study from McMaster University in Hamilton and the Buck Institute for Research on Aging in Novato, Calif., found that massage therapy triggers biochemical sensors that send inflammation-reducing signals to muscle cells. This reduces pain just like the painkillers.

Second important thing massage does is to send signals to boost the ability of muscles’ cells to make new mitochondria – the energy producing centres within cells – which can affect muscle endurance and recovery.

Third important finding debunked one long-held belief about massage. Some exercise specialists have assumed that massage aids the recovery of fatigued muscle by helping to flush away lactic acid, a byproduct of exercise. Researchers noted there was no difference in the lactic acid levels in the massaged and unmassaged leg.

Other studies of interest are: Massage Eases Low Back Pain in Randomized Controlled Trial (July 4, 2011), Adults Demonstrate Modified Immune Response After Receiving Massage (Sep. 8, 2010), Massage Therapy May Have Immediate Positive Effect On Pain And Mood For Advanced Cancer Patients (Sep. 15, 2008), Alexander Technique Offers Long-Term Relief For Back Pain (Aug. 19, 2008).

Finally, the importance of human touch is well established. Experiments of World War II and later experience in Eastern European orphanages, where babies who were fed and maintained in bed, but not held or given the benefit of human touch, showed that babies who were denied human touch withered and died.

So, massage provides therapy on two levels: physical and psychological. Add meditation to this and you can elevate yourself to a spiritual level – whether you are a believer or a non-believer in a higher being. If I can stay awake during massage therapy, then surely, there is hope for me as well.

Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!