If you are diabetic, you are at greater risk than others for developing gastroparesis. A study from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, published in the March 2007 issue of “Southern Medical Journal,” found that individual factors and diabetes accounted for 60 percent of cases. Other causes include viral infections and thyroid disorders. In some cases, the cause is unknown or idiopathic. Gastroparesis is a condition in which digestion is impaired, causing a wide variety of unpleasant and potentially harmful symptoms, including nausea and heartburn. Gastroparesis calls for additional emphasis on diet management, including your consumption of trigger foods like dairy products.

What Is Gastroparesis?

Gastroparesis occurs when damage to the vagus nerve, which regulates activity in the digestive system, causes a delay in the emptying of the stomach contents. High blood glucose levels over time can damage the vagus nerve. Surgery that affects the vagus nerve can also cause gastroparesis. Symptoms vary with the individual. However, the delay in proper digestion can put you at risk for developing bacterial infections and blockages to your small intestine. It can also hamper the ability to control blood sugar, causing unpredictable changes in blood glucose levels.

Trigger Foods

You can manage gastroparesis through diet. Foods that take longer to digest like those containing high amounts of fat or fiber can complicate the condition. This means you should avoid high-fat dairy products like full-fat cheese or whole milk. Because these foods are chemically more complex, they stay longer in your stomach. This effect can make symptoms such as abdominal bloating and heartburn worse and aggravate the condition. In addition, your doctor may suggest you change your diet to six small meals a day rather than three larger meals, which can have the same ill effects as high-fat dairy products.

Diet Goals

Your diet should address two factors that affect gastroparesis symptoms. You will need to modify your eating schedule to cut back on the volume you eat at each meal. You may also find consuming more liquids improves your symptoms. The effects of gastroparesis vary with the individual. You may find that consuming whole milk causes no symptoms whereas full-fat cheese increases discomfort. You can also try switching to low-fat or fat-free dairy products to see if your body can tolerate them. Treatment varies with the individual. Your doctor will likely refer you to a dietician to determine what is best for you.

Complications

If you experience vomiting or gastrointestinal distress, eating full-fat dairy products can lead to additional complications such as dehydration and malnutrition. These conditions can impair your body’s ability to fight off infection, adding to your health risks. To ensure proper nutrition, your doctor may recommend you follow a liquid diet to make digestion easier. Liquids can provide some of the same nutrients in dairy foods, like calcium and vitamin D. If you cannot tolerate dairy products at all, your doctor may order blood tests to determine if you have deficiencies that need to be addressed.

A child’s development includes many milestones in mental growth. By one year, a child should communicate by coos or gestures. By 16 months, he should be saying his first words. Autism affects about 1 in 110 children in the United States, explains the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It has a wide range of symptoms, with salt cravings being a common sign in some children.

What Is Autism?

Autism is a collection of incurable developmental disorders typically diagnosed in toddlers under the age of 3. Its precise cause is not known,, though genetic issues or environmental factors may play roles. Symptoms vary widely among individuals. Some autistic children have difficulties interacting or communicating verbally. Other children may experience behavioral problems. Treatment involves a combination of different therapies to address symptoms and other issues, such as epilepsy or gastrointestinal conditions.

Brain Chemistry

Anecdotal evidence links salt cravings with autism, and scientific research has shown this may indeed be the case. The answer lies in the complex chemistry of the brain that involves two chemicals called taurine and glutamine. Low sodium levels in the blood can cause a depletion of these chemicals in the urine of autistic children, explains a study by Autism Studies, published in the September 2011 issue of “Medical Hypotheses.” The study recommended rehydration salts to relieve salt cravings and restore normal sodium levels. It also concluded that supplementation of taurine or glutamine can improve brain blood flow.

Low Sodium Symptoms

Low sodium, or hyponatremia, can worsen autism symptoms by contributing to mental difficulties such as confusion. It can cause headaches, irritability and salt cravings. High blood levels of a chemical called vasopressin is one of the most common causes. Vasopressin is a hormone released by the pituitary gland. It increases blood pressure and decreases urine flow. Elevated vasopressin can cause specialized cells of the nervous system to swell, producing the release of taurine and glutamine. A person with hyponatremia may have dark-colored urine due to changes in its concentration. Taurine suppresses vasopressin. Glutamine is a component of proteins and body tissues.

Prognosis

Early diagnosis provides the best means to manage autism and help parents cope with its enormous emotional challenges. Every child’s case is different. Your doctor can provide guidance for a management plan for your child. Alternative forms of treatment include customized diets that can address gastrointestinal issues your child may be experiencing. A dietitian can help you plan a diet that will meet your child’s special needs.

A startling number of foods and food additives can cause allergic reactions or intolerance in sensitive individuals. While most allergic reactions are caused by a relatively small number of triggers, or allergens, there are many other foods that cause adverse reactions. Milk, for example, is a common allergen, while reactions to sauerkraut are comparatively rare.

Allergy vs. Intolerance

Foods can cause a number of adverse reactions, ranging from itchiness or sniffles to a potentially fatal case of anaphylactic shock. A true food allergy is caused by your body’s immune system overreacting to a perceived threat from a harmless food, flooding your body with antibodies and histamines. Other unpleasant symptoms, from diarrhea and bloating to headaches and nausea, can be caused by triggers that don’t affect your immune system. These are referred to by doctors as intolerances or sensitivities, rather than allergies.

Sauerkraut

Sauerkraut is made by layering shredded cabbage with salt, and allowing a natural fermentation process to create lactic and acetic acid, which preserves the cabbage. Although most people can eat sauerkraut without harm, it has a number of potential triggers. The yeasts and yeast residues left over from fermentation are one potential trigger, and the fermented cabbage juice also contains naturally occurring histamines. A limited number of people are allergic to cabbage and other members of the mustard family, including kale, broccoli and ground mustard.

Milk

Milk is one of the eight allergens that account for 90 percent of all diagnosed food allergies in the United States, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Milk allergies are most common in infants, and are usually outgrown by late childhood. Milk allergy should not be confused with lactose intolerance. Allergy sufferers will react to either the whey proteins or the casein in milk, or sometimes both. Lactose intolerance is the inability to digest a natural sugar that occurs in milk. Although neither is pleasant, a milk allergy can be much more serious than lactose intolerance.

Raw vs. Boiled Milk

If you are diagnosed with a milk allergy, it’s worth finding out which of the milk proteins you’re allergic to. If it is casein, then any milk product will remain problematic for you. However, if it is the whey proteins you’re allergic to, you may still be able to drink milk. Heating milk to boiling will change the whey proteins to the point that they are no longer an allergy trigger. You’ll then be able to chill the boiled milk and use it normally for drinking, cooking or baking.

Language development starts well before a child can speak. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, or ASHA, lists developmental milestones from birth onward, and encourages you to seek advice from a certified speech-language pathologist if your child has not reached most of these milestones within the usual age range. Advice is freely available under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Act, or IDEA, which provides for free diagnosis and treatment of speech and language impairments in children aged 0 to 3 under the early intervention policy. Speech difficulties affect fluency and articulation, and language problems affect the ability to understand or be understood. ASHA advises that by identifying and treating potential problems at an early stage, you may help your child make a success of school and social relationships.

Delayed Language Development

According to the University of Michigan Health System, delayed speech or language development affects 5 to 10 percent of preschool children. Many may simply be “late bloomers,” who will catch up when they are ready, but some may have an underlying physical or mental disorder affecting speech, language or both. Delay in reaching developmental milestones may alert you to possible problems. For example, you may like to seek advice if your baby doesn’t respond to your voice, or your toddler doesn’t talk, or your three-year-old doesn’t understand concepts like up/down or big/little, listen to simple stories or name familiar objects.

Other Signs of Potential Problems

Hearing ability is basic to language acquisition. If your baby does not respond to voices, music or sudden noises, it’s important to his future cognitive development to test the hearing and start any necessary treatment as soon as possible. Difficulty in feeding or swallowing may be due to structural problems in the mouth or throat and may affect voice production if left uncorrected. Stuttering, according to the National Stuttering Association, can take many forms, have many causes and respond to many types of treatment. It often represents a natural stage of development and may right itself, but early intervention to correct it or help the child cope may avoid the complications of embarrassment or teasing at school.

Underlying Problems

Speech or language difficulties may result from a range of physical conditions that hold back development — for example, poor hearing, brain injury or neurological disorders such as cerebral palsy. They may also signify cognitive or psychological problems such as autism, learning disabilities or apraxia of speech. Delay in learning to talk in sentences and later difficulty in reading, may be associated with under-development in the neural circuitry of part of the brain, according to research by Professor Jonathan L. Preston of Yale University. Early intervention enables a certified speech and language pathologist to diagnose the problems, start treatment and involve other medical specialists where necessary.

Emotional and Behavioral Consequences of Non-Intervention

Amy Nelson MA, CCC-SLP, of KidsHealth advises that it becomes more difficult to treat communication disorders after age 5, especially as school life tends to compound the problems. Language problems lead to slower progress in nearly all subjects. Failing to keep up with the class can lead to frustration, embarrassment or isolation, with the risk of teasing and bullying. According to Jennifer Armstrong PhD, CCC-SLP, poor language development is often associated with low academic achievement, emotional and behavioral problems and consequently social problems, but the speech-language pathologist can play a key role in improving matters.

Interventions by the Speech-Language Pathologist

Speech-language pathologists, or speech therapists, check infants’ receptive and expressive abilities – how well they can hear, understand, make sounds, use their mouth and throat to vocalize or swallow, and communicate in appropriate ways. If the children can already talk, they assess articulation and fluency. Assessment is through observing how the children respond while playing or talking. The therapists explore possible causes for language delays or difficulties and agree a remediation program with parents, teachers and healthcare professionals. Treatment could include stimulating the child to talk while playing, modelling correct pronunciation, and practicing facial exercises to strengthen oral muscles. The aim is better communication and a sounder foundation for education, with targets dependent on individual needs.

Turnips are the purple vegetable with a white root that grows in the ground. They can be an ingredient in soups, or you can mash or grill them for other purposes. While only an estimated 1 to 4 percent of adults have any type of food allergy, according to the British National Health Service, turnips can cause a severe allergic reaction in some people. Knowing the symptoms of a turnip allergy can help pinpoint that problem.

Causes

Food allergies occur when your body believes compounds in a food are foreign invaders. As a result, the body reacts much like it would if a bacteria or virus were in your body, and it produces histamine, a substance that triggers your body’s reaction to allergens, and immunoglobulin E, which is a substance your immune system produces to fight off foreign invaders like bacteria. These immune system components can cause symptoms associated with an allergic reaction ranging from a rash to trouble breathing.

Recognizing the Allergy

Allergies can range in severity from fairly minor to life-threatening. Many people identify a potential allergy after they experience a reaction after they eat a food for the first time. Minor signs of a turnip allergy include swelling, redness, a rash on your skin or upset stomach. Severe allergic reactions from turnips can result in anaphylactic shock, a condition that affects your ability to breathe by causing swelling in your airways.

Fructose Allergy and Intolerance

Turnips contain fructose, a natural sugar found in many fruits and vegetables. While fructose is typically harmless, some people are allergic or intolerant to fructose and unable to digest it, which can result in severe symptoms, such as anaphylactic shock. If you have been diagnosed with a condition related to fructose consumption, avoid eating turnips to prevent a potential allergic reaction. In the instance of fructose intolerance, the condition tends to be hereditary and is diagnosed in one out of every 20,000 to 30,000 people worldwide each year, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Precautions

If you have a turnip allergy, avoiding eating turnips and dishes prepared with turnips. This may require extra vigilance when going to a restaurant. Turnips commonly are added to soups, salads and meat dishes. If you have a severe turnip allergy, removing turnips from your food may not be enough to prevent an allergic reaction. If you are especially allergic to turnips, carry an epinephrine pen with you. Injecting this medication into your body can reduce the likelihood of anaphylactic shock.

Depression affects as many as 9 percent of Americans — more women than men, more between the ages of 45 and 64 — at some point in their lives, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While medications can treat depression, they often come with significant side effects that makes them unacceptable to some sufferers. Regular exercise may help alleviate depression, and exercising at the gym may have advantages over exercising at home.

Benefits

Exercise releases chemicals that can help combat depression. Neurotransmitters such as serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine can increase depression, while endorphins, peptide hormones that bind to opioid receptors, can decrease pain and may also alleviate depression. Exercise can also raise your body temperature, which also appears to have antidepressant effects. Exercise may also increase blood flow to the brain.

Benefits of the Gym

An occasional walk in the park probably won’t have a major impact on depression, but regular, moderately strenuous exercise three to five times a week may increase endorphins. Going to the gym to exercise on a regular basis may have several benefits, especially if you’re fighting depression. Going to the gym gets you out of the house and involved with other people. The gym also provides variety so you don’t get bored with exercise and quit after a few weeks. Knowing that you paid good money to be there may also motivate you to stick it out at the gym.

Studies

Several clinical studies have shown benefits of exercise on depression. Researchers from The Cooper Institute, Behavioral Science Research Center published an article in the January 2005 issue of the "American Journal of Preventative Medicine." After 12 weeks, the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression score fell for those participating in a moderate exercise program. A Duke University Medical Center article published in the September-October issue of "Psychosomatic Medicine" found that exercise therapy alone was as helpful in relieving depression over a 10-month period as medication or a combination of exercise and medication.

Caveats

Use exercise as part of your plan to treat depression only with the help of your doctor; you may still need to take medication. Depression can have serious consequences and should not be treated lightly. Work up to a moderately strenuous exercise program slowly if you haven’t already been exercising, or you could injure yourself. Working with a trainer at the gym for a few sessions can help you establish a regimen that works for you. Joining classes may make it easier for you to start participating than exercising alone.

Migraines and allergy headaches both cause throbbing pain and can be debilitating when the pain is severe. If doctors or patients misdiagnose the type of headache, the wrong treatment may be prescribed and the patient won’t get relief. A growing awareness of the differences between the two types is helping doctors diagnose and treat patients more effectively.

History

According to researchers at the Scottsdale Headache Center at Arizona Neurological Institute, many migraines are misdiagnosed as allergy-related sinus headaches. In a study published in the journal "Headache" in 2007, they explained the majority of patients they studied who had diagnosed themselves with sinus headaches actually had migraines or probable migraines. The reasons for these misdiagnoses came from pain location and triggering events such as weather changes, seasonal changes and exposures to allergens.

Theories

Even doctors can mistake migraine headaches for allergy headaches. In addition to the reasons cited in the study published in "Headache," the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery points out migraines may irritate nerves that terminate near the sinus cavity, thus causing patients to feel the pain in or near their sinuses. Another study from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, also published in "Headache," noted migraines were more frequent, though not more disabling, in patients with large numbers of positive allergy tests than in patients with fewer allergies.

Identification

The University of Maryland Medical Center explains that the symptoms of migraines and allergy headaches are similar, making them hard to distinguish. Not only do they both cause throbbing pain, but migraines can be accompanied by nasal congestion and may feel worse as you bend forward. If the headache is made worse by light or noise, or if it is accompanied by nausea, it is more likely to be a migraine than a sinus headache. Migraines also often include visual disturbances such as flashing lights or temporary blind spots.

Treatment

Once you know which type of headache you have, you can choose the proper treatment. Sinus headaches are caused by inflammation of your sinuses and can be treated with humidifiers, saline nasal spray or neck stretches. Medications could include antihistamines, decongestants or corticosteroid sprays. Migraines are caused by changes in the brain’s blood flow. Lifestyle changes, such as avoiding cigarettes and caffeine, exercising regularly and reducing stress, help regulate blood flow and reduce migraine frequency. To stop a migraine in progress, doctors recommend drugs called triptans, which regulate blood flow in the brain.

Phadia, a manufacturer of allergy medications, notes that there are more than 100 varieties of lettuce throughout the world. Of these, several plants within the lettuce family — including mugwort and ragweed — release pollen that can cause allergic reactions. In addition, lettuce is also a food allergy for some people, and eating it can lead to an array of allergic symptoms.

Food Allergies

A food allergy, notes the Cleveland Clinic, takes place when your body’s immune system responds in a defensive manner to a particular food protein, even though this protein isn’t harmful to your body. When you first ingest an allegen, your immune system will create antibodies specific to that food, which will then cause the release of histamines when you eat the same food again. These histamines try to expel the protein from your body. Symptoms of food allergies can vary widely depending on the severity of the allergy and the type of food to which you’re allergic. And, they may occur immediately or even several hours after ingestion. Symptoms of an allergic reaction include tingling in the mouth, a swollen tongue, vomiting, skin rashes or hives, stomach cramps, diarrhea and, in severe cases, anaphylaxis, which may be fatal if left untreated.

Lettuce Allergies

The AllAllergy website references a number of studies in which eating lettuce led to allergic reactions, with symptoms including oral allergy syndrome, angioedema, rhinitis, anaphylaxis, dermatitis and nasal obstruction. A study published in a 2009 issue of the "Journal of Investigational Allergology and Clinical Immunology" examined two subjects who experienced anaphylaxis after eating lettuce to try to isolate the allergen that was causing the reaction. Researchers were able to isolate the allergen in lettuce, which they determined is a lipid transfer protein called Lac s 1.

Ragweed

Allergies to the variety of lettuce known as ragweed are typically not food allergies. Rather, they occur when you inhale the plant’s pollen when it flowers. In an article in "Allergic Living," writer Dory Cerny notes that symptoms of a ragweed allergy can range from mild eye irritation and a runny nose to complete sinus congestion, sleep problems and itchy eyes, nose and throat. Ragweed, she writes, can also exacerbate asthma, and has been linked to ear infections in children and sinusitis in adults.

Ragweed Allergens

According to a study published in the December 2005 issue of "International Archives of Allergy and Immunology," ragweed pollen represents the largest single source of allergenic protein in the United States. This study examined the spectrum of allergens found in ragweed, and determined that ragweed pollen contains a pan-allergen called profilin. In addition, researchers also concluded that ragweed contains calcium-binding proteins that can cause "extensive cross-reactivity" in people who are sensitive to pollen. If you are allergic to ragweed, your doctor may prescribe pre-season immunotheraphy, which involves receiving injections containing tiny amounts of the allergen, which can desensitize you to ragweed’s allergic effects.

Flaxseed oil capsules are one type of omega-3 fatty acid supplement taken for many conditions. Acid reflux has been reported as a side effect when taking a fish oil omega-3 fatty acid supplement; however, acid reflux is not a common reported side effect with flaxseed oil capsules.

Acid Refux

Acid reflux, also known as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), is a condition in which food or liquids from the stomach or small intestine leak back into the esophagus, the tube from the mouth to the stomach. Acid reflux causes heartburn, a burning pain in the chest and other symptoms that may include nausea, difficulty swallowing and a feeling of food stuck in the chest.

Flaxseed Oil

Flaxseed oil capsules are omega-3 fatty acid supplements that contain the polyunsaturated acid alpha-linoleic acid. This type of fatty acid is thought to decrease inflammation, and flaxseed oil capsules are currently taken for many conditions, which include osteoarthritis, heart disease, anxiety, diabetes, breast cancer, constipation and high cholesterol.

Flaxseed Oil Safety

Flaxseed oil capsules are rated as likely safe for most adults when used appropriately on a short-term basis. The most common reported side effects with taking flaxseed oil capsules or other omega-3 fatty acid supplements is gastrointestinal discomfort, which may include mild cramps, flatulence and diarrhea. Acid reflux has been reported as a side effect after taking an omega-3 fatty acid supplement; however, this side effect is mainly associated with a fish oil supplement. Flaxseed oil capsules may actually be recommended as a substitute for fish oil supplements in an effort to reduce acid reflux.

Avoiding Acid Reflux

Additional precautions that can be taken to avoid acid reflux and heartburn include taking the capsule with food; avoiding foods that may trigger the condition, which may include alcohol, caffeine, citrus, tomatoes and chocolate; avoiding lying down with a full stomach; eating smaller meals; and reducing stress.

If you have kicked the smoking habit, you have very good reason to be proud and optimistic. You may look forward to many benefits, including improved health. A decrease in vitamin D levels in your blood is not associated with quitting smoking. Overwhelming evidence supports the contrary: smoking causes a decrease in vitamin D levels. If you have quit smoking and have found you have a decreased level of vitamin D in your blood, it is likely due to another cause. Consult your doctor to determine the cause and the remedy.

Sources of Vitamin D

Human beings receive vitamin D by absorbing ultraviolet B rays from sunlight, by eating foods that contain the nutrient or by taking vitamin supplements. For most people, diet and sunlight is enough to deliver the vitamin in adequate doses. Foods that contain vitamin D include fatty fish like salmon and tuna, milk, eggs, Swiss cheese and vitamin D-fortified products like orange juice and yogurt. Adults should take in about 400 International Units of vitamin D per day, according to the daily values set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The Sunshine Vitamin

Vitamin D also is called the sunshine vitamin because the UVB rays in sunlight penetrate the skin and react with a cutaneous compound called 7-dehydrocholesterol. This reaction converts the compound to pre-vitamin D, which later becomes vitamin D. To spur this process, make sure you expose bare skin on your arms, face, legs or back to sunlight for five to 30 minutes per day, between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. The vitamin D your body creates is stored in the liver and fatty tissues. If you previously stepped outdoors to smoke you may now miss that time out in the sun. And, the sunlight coming in through your office window doesn’t count; the glass blocks UVB rays.

Risk Factors for Vitamin D Deficiency

Since smoking may have caused you to have a vitamin D deficiency, you should see improvement now that you have quit the tobacco habit. However, factors other than smoking may affect your vitamin D level. If you have a darker sink tone you have a greater risk of developing a vitamin D deficiency because the melatonin in your skin blocks the absorption of the UVB rays. Additionally, older adults may produce less vitamin D because their skin cannot synthesize vitamin D as efficiently as younger people. Some medical conditions that are associated with fat malabsorption, like certain liver diseases, Crohn’s disease and cystic firbrosis, also put a person at greater risk of vitamin D insufficiency. Weight appears to be a factor, as obese people may require more vitamin D to maintain an adequate level than people of normal weight. People who have had gastric bypass surgery may become deficient, too, because the part of the upper small intestine that absorbs vitamin D is bypassed in their digestive process.

Health Risks of Vitamin D Deficiency

Each individual may experience different symptoms associated with a vitamin D deficiency, including weak bones, chronic pain, depression and infections. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to osteoporosis, a medical condition that causes bones to become weak and brittle. Whereas inadequate calcium intake may cause osteoporosis, vitamin D aids in calcium absorption. Smoking decreases vitamin D levels in your body, possibly interfering with calcium absorption. Research over the past 20 years strongly indicates a direct link between tobacco use and decreased bone density, which may lead to osteoporosis. You should have lessened your risk since you have quit smoking; however it may take a few years before you are at the lower, former smoker’s risk level. Other studies have found that vitamin D may have a protective effect against certain cancers, like cervical cancer, and diabetes. However, be cautious not to consume too much vitamin D, as excesses may cause other health problems like calcification in the arteries and in tissue, leading to heart and kidney disease. Research also suggests a link to pancreatic cancer and other causes of mortality. The risk of vitamin D toxicity is most predominant with the use of dietary supplements, and normal daily doses through foods and sunlight is not a factor. To learn how to properly manage a vitamin D deficiency, talk to your doctor.