Health briefs

Jan 23, 2012, 3:06 GMT

Behavioural therapy the key to agoraphobia

Berlin (dpa) - A racing heart, shortness of breath, and feelings of anxiety when travelling by bus could all be symptoms of agoraphobia, or fear of open spaces.

Sufferers have a horror of being in public places or crowded rooms. The anxiety attacks are frequently caused by the thought of being far away from locations or people seen as safe, according to Christa Roth-Sackenheim of the German association of psychiatrists.

The trigger could be the sense of not being able to move freely. Sufferers tend to avoid situations that cause them stress, sometimes to the extent of refusing to leave their homes. In this serious form, if the condition is not treated, it can result in depression, or abuse of alcohol and medications, Roth-Sackenheim says.

Treatment is based on initially ruling out other psychological or organic illnesses as the cause for the physical symptoms and then employing behavioural therapy. This consists of exposing the patient to the situations that cause fear, learning how to cope with them and finding out that their fears are baseless.

Women aiming to conceive should start taking folic acid early

Berlin (dpa) - Women intending to conceive should ensure they are getting sufficient folic acid, as the need for the vitamin rises by as much as 50 per cent during the initial weeks of pregnancy.

Vegetables and whole-grain foods are rich in folic acid and should form a major part of the diet of women hoping to conceive. Tey should take in an additional daily 400 micrograms in the form of tablets, in the view of Michael Krawinkel, a professor working in a health network supported by the German ministry dealing with nutrition issues.

Expectant mothers should take folic acid at least until the end of the first trimester of their pregnancies. Increasing the folic acid intake at an early stage improves stocks in the body and cuts the risk of deformities of the nervous system, including spina bifida, cleft lip and palate and other congenital ailments.

Don't take pills with milk or fruit juice

Berlin (dpa) - Tablets should be washed down with plain water. It is well known that alcohol can influence the effect of medication, but milk and fruit juice can also have an impact.

The efficacy of certain antibiotics is severely reduced by being taken with milk and some do not work at all, according to a German pharmacists' association. By contrast, grapefruit can enhance the effects and side-effects of certain medications. This applies to medications for high blood pressure, heart disease and digestive problems.

Youthful depression can lead to chronic illness later in life

Durham, North Carolina (dpa) - Youthful depression enhances the risk of chronic illness in later life, according to a US study on heart disease and diabetes. The researchers attributed the link to a rise in susceptibility to stress that then leads on to chronic infections.

The study took in 1,420 subjects aged between 9 and 13 who were examined annually up to the age of 16 and then again at the ages of 19 and 21. The researchers used standardized questionnaires to diagnose depressive symptoms, taking blood samples at each examination to look for signs of infection.

They found a correlation between bouts of depression suffered by the young people and the infection indicators registered from the blood samples. It remains unclear whether the higher infection indicators are the results of the depression or the other way round.