Fear: is it all in the mind?/Obesity reaches alarming levels in Ireland

September 24, 2006

Fear: is it all in the mind?

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1 & click_id=117 & art_id=qw1158786903870B252 September 21 2006 at 03:27AM

Washington - American researchers said on Wednesday that they had identified an "on-off" switch in the brain that controls the emotional response to fear, and said it might some day be manipulated to help patients with anxiety disorders.The team at Columbia University Medical Centre used a simple attention test and a type of real-time brain scan called functional magnetic resonance imaging, which can catch the brain in action.It showed an area in the rostral cingulate or rACC region of the brain was involved in turning on or off the fear response in the amygdala - the almond-shaped brain centre where emotional responses to fear are processed."People are exposed to an ever-increasing amount of stimuli in our everyday lives, and so we realised that the brain must employ a processing mechanism to prioritise and refine responses - we don't run away from every loud sound or unexpected sight," said Dr Joy Hirsch, who led the study, published in the journal Neuron.They used a test called the Stroop test to try to activate whatever region must be involved.The Stroop test measures mental flexibility by forcing people to choose between a word's meaning and its colour. For instance, someone may be asked to read a list of words such as "red", "yellow", or "green" in which the word "red" might be written in blue ink, "yellow" in pink ink and so on.People usually respond more quickly if the colour and word match.Hirsch's team adapted this test, using photographs of fearful and happy faces, with "FEAR" or "HAPPY" written across the images. They gave the test to 19 healthy volunteers and ran the brain scan at the same time.The rostral cingulate seemed to light up just before the amygdala was activated, they reported.For instance, the amygdala activated at first if FEAR was written across a happy face, and then the rostral cingulate would activate, apparently as the image of the smiling face registered, after which the amygdala would calm down, they said.But the amygdala stayed activated for longer, and the rostral cingulate stayed unlit longer, if a fearful face also carried the "FEAR" label.Hirsch said it is important to have a circuit to control the fear response.Some patients with anxiety disorders and depression may eventually be helped by the findings, said Dr Eric Kandel, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute senior investigator and professor in brain sciences who worked on the paper."For example, if someone with anxiety has a disturbed functioning of part of the amygdala or a disturbed functioning of rostral cingulate control mechanism, and treatment could be based on the individual's specific problem," Kandel said.

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1 & click_id=117 & art_id=qw1158903361472B243

Obesity reaches alarming levels in Ireland

July 08 2005 at 11:45AM

By Pauline BuglerCork, Ireland - Efforts are growing to increase awareness of what constitutes a healthy diet after a recent report painted an alarming picture of the state of Ireland's health.According to the government-appointed National Taskforce on Obesity, 300 000 children are overweight or obese and projected increases of 10 000 annually loom unless radical measures are taken.Treating obesity-related illnesses costs nearly €500-million per year, Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern said and promised to assess whether taxation could be amended to encourage healthier diets.Obesity is reached when the body's excess fat is 20 percent above the recommended weight for height and age, whereas being overweight implies a larger, increased bodily size with increased lean body mass, but without excess body fat.Obese people are more likely to suffer from diseases such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, angina, heart attacks and osteoarthritis, the report noted and pointed to links between obesity and premature death, excessive morbidity and serious psychosocial problems.With the guidance of Health Services Executive (HSE) dietician, Christine Gurnett, the panel implemented a scheme promoting healthier food by providing school meals across 14 low-income primary schools in Limerick, southern Ireland.Prior to the introduction of the scheme, some children were arriving at school without having eaten breakfast. Lunch consisted of an odd sandwich followed by an array of junk food including fizzy drinks, sweets, crisps, lollipops and chewing gum.The scheme benefits 2 500 school-children and is funded by the Paul Partnership (People Against Unemployment in Limerick) and the Department of Social and Family Affairs at a cost of €1,40 (about R10) per child, per meal, according to Gurnett. Funds were not available to set up a school canteen offering meals.While the funds are low, this has not stopped several non-profit suppliers from providing ham and cheese sandwiches, a piece of fruit, bottled water or pure fruit juice to the pupils on a daily basis.Parents must comply with the healthy eating policy operated by Corpus Christi National School in the suburb of Moyross, which pioneered the scheme together with the HSE.Teachers interviewed all said that the children were calmer and more focused. Second-grade teacher, Miriam Collins noted a "massive change" in the behaviour of her five-year-old pupil Mike, who had developed a liking for cucumbers and yoghurts in particular.A healthy food pyramid showing nutritional recommendations is moved between classrooms and a chef recently showed parents and children how to cook a healthy meal as part of a school festival.Compliance is high and the children voluntarily postpone treats such as ice-cream or Coca-Cola until after school.School principal Aine Ui Chroimin expressed concern for the welfare of teenagers in secondary schools where such schemes are not operational."Such a scheme is more challenging in secondary schools in the absence of a healthy eating ethos," she said and pointed out that the likelihood of four to 12 year-olds complying was greater given their impressionability.In view of the fact that overweight and obesity levels among Irish girls aged between 13 and 15 are higher than the international average, Ui Chroimin's fears appear to be well-founded.Calls for a ban on school vending machines containing fizzy drinks and sweet foods, and for a minimum of 45 to 60 minutes physical exercise daily are also mounting.A lack of exercise has impacted negatively and some children have even been banned from running in school playgrounds for fear of lawsuits, if a child fell - a development which prompted a cry of outrage from Ahern.While acknowledging a person's right to eat as they wish, the taskforce made more than 80 recommendations for a comprehensive government policy to tackle obesity.Their suggestions included recommendations that the Irish department of finance research the benefits of taxation policy to support healthy eating and should consider subsidies for fruit and vegetables.Further recommendations were measures against the marketing and advertising of products that contribute to weight gain, a review of food labelling contents and to setting a percentage of road budgets aside for walkways and cycle paths.It also recommended that the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority examine the costs of public liability and their impact on physical activity. - Sapa-dpa