THE LENS AND PREGNANCY

What are the ocular changes during pregnancy?

Pregnancy causes changes throughout the body, including eyes. Wearing contact lenses is not against in pregnancy, but the changes may alter ocular comfort.

Corneal changes (or transparent part of the eye) which is placed on the lens
1. The corneal curvature increases, ie the eye is flatter. The lenses can become too tight during pregnancy. This phenomenon is even more significant for carriers that rigid lenses for patients fitted with soft lenses. A flattening of the curvature of the lenses makes it possible to find a good comfort.

2. The sensitivity of the cornea decreases during pregnancy. The pain, in case of complications, may be less intense. More attention must be paid to other signs of intolerance (redness, blurred vision, unusual secretions). You must be especially careful that the decrease in immune defenses during pregnancy may promote the emergence of infections in the lenses.

Changes in tears
Changes in the composition of tears, during pregnancy, partly explain the discomfort that may be encountered carriers lenses.

Changes of refraction
Pregnancy may be accompanied by a slight myopisation (difficulties in seeing far net).

What if we no longer supports the lenses during pregnancy?
First wear less time in the day and alternate with a correction glasses adjusted. If discomfort remains important, it must consult with his ophthalmologist. By changing the lens parameters (material, curvature, correction), to adapt them to new settings of your eyes, it will attempt to restore a comfortable daily wear.

Obviously, do not forget to remove your lenses before delivery. Since, they can undergo anesthesia and the unexpected lens wear is against inappropriate in this case.

BREASTFEEDING MAY PROTECT WOMEN FROM BREAST CANCER!

A new medical study for breastfeeding!
During the Global Week of breastfeeding, the WHO pointed out that it should be exclusive up to the age of 6 months and ideally persist until the age of 2 years Parallel diversification of food.

This time, researchers looked at mothers.

The authors of this new study analyzed data from more than 60,000 women participating in the study Nurses' Health Study II between 1997 and 2005. About 608 cases of cancer pre-menopause were detected.

Women with a family history of breast cancer have generally also a higher risk of developing one themselves. The data from this study are interesting because they show that among these women at risk, the likelihood of developing breast cancer fall by almost 60% if they have already breastfed in their lives, regardless of duration.

The study were quite numerous, breastfeeding of the mother would allow a reduction in the rate of cancer of the ovaries, vagina and breast. Breastfeeding helps the mother lose weight after pregnancy and prevent obesityas we know from other studies that obesity promotes the development of breast cancer.

According to researchers, this phenomenon come from the process by which the tissues return to their natural state before pregnancy. Some congestion may cause inflammation at the origin of cancers. But study reveals that breastfeeding limit such inflammation.

The study also suggest medications to help stop lactation.

BREASTFEEDING : FACTS & FIGURES

The benefits of breastfeeding:
The literature study demonstrate the benefits of breastfeeding on the health of mothers and also the health, growth and development of children, including premature. Breastfeeding reduces the incidence of several diseases or diminish their severity. Breastfeeding provides nutrients that strengthen the immune system of children which protects infants of different infectious and respiratory diseases. It would also have a protective effect against the syndrome of sudden infant death syndrome, diabetes, insulin, Chrohn's disease and Hodgkin's disease.

A recent study suggests that breastfeeding provides children with inadequate weight to have a faster growth and catch up more quickly than their normal weight when compare to children fed with commercial preparations, as well as, faster brain growth at a critical time of development (Lucas et al, 1997)

WHO recommendations
The breast is irreplaceable. Breast milk is the best milk. Until August 7, the World Alliance for Breastfeeding organizes the Global Week of breastfeeding. 120 countries participated under the auspices of World Health Organization (WHO).

Colostrum, says WHO, secretion and thick yellowish milk produced in late pregnancy, is the perfect food for the newborn who needs to start feeding from the first hour after birth.

The WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding until the age of six months. According to the World Alliance for Breastfeeding, all women can breastfeed. This is the most effective way to preserve health and ensure the survival of the child.

Globally, less than 40% of infants under six months are exclusively breastfed.

Benefits for Mother's
Breastfeeding also has health benefits for mothers. In the short term, it stimulates the secretion of oxytocin, which in turn promotes uterine contraction and decreases the risk of bleeding after childbirth.

Breastfeeding a contraceptive effect in the first 6 months after birth when it is exclusive, it is performed on demand and that the mother is not menstruating, it inhibits the ovulatory function and reduces the risk of a new pregnancy to less than 2%. (EVEN WHEN IT IS NOT A METHOD CONTRACEPTRICE!)

Breastfeeding also has several advantages, since this reduces the risk of breast cancer and ovarian cancer later in life, which helps women find their faster weight before pregnancy and helps fight against obesity. It also reduces the risk of osteoporosis and hip fracture during post menopause. It could also reduce the woman's hormone levels secreted in response to stress, such as cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH).

Psychological benefits of breastfeeding is to facilitate the strength of attachment between mother and child.

The against-indications to breastfeeding are rare. In fact, breastfeeding is not recommended against in the case of infants with congenital galactosemia and mothers living with HIV in the country industrialized. And for mothers who consume illegal drugs or are alcohol abuse, should conduct an individual assessment to determine whether they can breastfeed.

"If the mothers and families were encouraged to breastfeed, many lives could be saved," says WHO, especially in developing countries where drinking water is scarce. A bottle made with non-potable water may be the transmitter of waterborne diseases and be very harmful even deadly for an infant.

Breastfeeding and work
WHO recommends that any mother who has just given birth at least 16 weeks of maternity leave so that she can rest and nurse her child. Many mothers who return to work abandon exclusive breastfeeding before the elapsed period of six months recommended because they do not have enough time or a place to breastfeed or take and keep the milk on their workplace. Mothers should have access, at their workplace or nearby to a clean and intimate to continue to breastfeed.

Introduction of new foods
When the child reaches the age of six months, in order to meet their needs, introduce new foods.

• WHO recommends: not to reduce the number of feedings,
• Food with spoon or cup and also advice not for bottle-feeding,
• Foods which have every guarantee of hygiene and that can be obtained locally,
• Allow sufficient time for children to learn to eat solid foods.

STATINS MAY REDUCE THE RISK OF DEMENTIA AND LOSS OF MEMORY

Statins may reduce the risk of dementia and loss of memory
Scientists have found that taking statins, drugs anticholesterol, can protect the body against memory loss and dementia (cognitive disorder). The study followed for five years 1674 Mexican Americans aged 60 and older.

A quarter of these patients took a statin and in total there were 130 people who developed dementia. Other risk factors taken into account (including education, smoking and diabetes), the authors calculated that people taking statins had approximately 50% less risk of developing dementia. Another study of different authors also suggests that drugs to reduce blood pressure may also reduce the risk of dementia.

According to the principal author of the research, Professor Mary Haan of the University of Michigan, the result is very important that the prize for five to seven years of statins led to reduced risk of dementia by half.

Statins help to reduce the risk of heart attack by reducing the rate of cholesterol which can clog blood vessels. It is believed that poor blood supply to the brain may be one factor that promotes the development of dementia. Therefore, if statins help keep the vascular health and good blood circulation in the brain may also help prevent dementia.

However the mode of action of statins is not yet entirely clear about the way biochemical involved in dementia. According to Professor Mary Haan One possibility is that statins may help reduce levels of insulin, which was also involved in the development of dementia.

But according to reviewers advice not to use statins in preventing dementia due to the side effects of drug. Other studies broader confirmation must also be undertaken.

THE CHOLESTEROL–LOWERING DRUGS AND THE MITOCHONDRIA

Complications and side effects:
Among the biochemical changes that characterize the lipodystrophy syndrome include an increase in lipid levels in the blood. This includes an increase in triglyceride levels and LDL-cholesterol (“bad") and a decrease in the cholesterol-HDL (“good"). This combination may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Changes food (more fibre, fruits and vegetables and less animal fat), the adoption of an exercise program and stopping smoking are a good start for those with the long term is to lower their lipid levels. However, it is not always easy to adopt good habits and it may take time to arrive, so some doctors find it useful to prescribe treatments designed to reduce lipid levels. There are two main types of lipid - lowering drugs or fibrates (ciprofibrate, fenofibrate) and statins (atorvastatin, rosuvastatin, simvastatin).

Statins and mitochondria
Some researchers fear that statins can affect the parts of cells responsible for energy production, namely the mitochondria (Mt). In people living with HIV / AIDS, it is possible that the Mt is already strained by antiretrovirals and HIV protein called Viral Protein R (Vpr). To learn more about the effect of statins, the researchers Primagen company (specializing in the development and marketing of molecular tests), in Amsterdam, have experimented with two groups of PLWHA. The first group consisted of seven subjects who were examined before and after treatment with simvastatin at 40 mg / day. The six subjects in the second group received ciprofibrate 100 mg / day. All participants had cholesterol and / or triglycerides above normal and were receiving lipid - lowering treatment for two months.

The researchers found that fibrates had no effect on the DNA of white blood cells Mt. However, the rate of DNA has increased significantly Mt. The researchers attribute this change to the fact that statins inhibit not only the natural production of cholesterol but also the antioxidant co-enzyme Q10 (Co-Q10). This plays an important role in energy production in the Mt and also protects them against damage. To compensate for the lower rate of co-Q10, researchers argue that the Mt tried to produce other proteins, hence increasing the rate of DNA.

In the context of laboratory experiments, researchers have grown cells in the presence of anti-HIV drugs dideoxyinosine (ddI) and dideoxydidehydeothymidine (d4T) and simvastatin and ciprofibrate. They found that the combination of nucleoside analogues and statins has caused more toxicity than either class of drugs alone. Studies of longer duration are needed to evaluate the safety of statins in patients with combination antiretroviral therapy.

CREATING SPERM FROM STEM CELLS!

Advanced technique to a better understanding of infertility.
French scientists have just found a technique to produce human sperm from embryonic stem cells.

A step forward in the understanding of infertility, which raises doubts of some scholars.

A team of British scientists made up of researchers from the University of Newcastle and the North East England Stem Cell Institute (NESC) has announced that it succeeded in creating human sperm from embryonic stem cells. They have indeed succeeded in producing laboratory in mid-July, semen quite artificial. Their findings were published in the medical journal Stem Cells and Development.

A better understanding of infertility
This work should shed light on the mechanisms of infertility. According to Professor Karim Nayernia, who led the research teams, it is an "important development, because it will allow researchers to study in detail how the sperm is formed, which should lead to a better understanding of male infertility, why it happens and what the cause. " This discovery should also help to shed new light on the transmission of diseases from one generation to another.

Assistance to fight against future infertility?
According to these scientists, the technique would create a artificial sperm from embryonic stem cells carrying the male XY chromosomes. In accordance with the law currently in force in Great Britain, the semen cannot be used to fertilize the eggs and give birth.

Researchers, however, rely on the development of this legislation so that this technique can serve as a response to male infertility. Although the technique needs further improvement, Professor Nayernia hopes much of this discovery. "This understanding may allow us to develop new ways to help couples with infertility, so that they can have a child that is genetically their own" he says.

Discussion on results
Technically, scientists have taken the embryonic stem cells from embryos produced by in vitro fertilization. According to them, stem cells male XY chromosome carriers, yielded functional sperm continue their cell division. The latter, also called meiosis did not occur in its entirety with the female cells, XX. They have been at the stage of spermatogonia, first stage of sperm. These results show that the Y chromosome is essential to the genesis of a functional sperm.

The announcement immediately sparked reactions from the scientific community.
Doubts about the nature and authenticity of sperm obtained were issued, based on data provided. "Even if the cells could have produced some of the genetic traits and molecular markers of sperm, human sperm have a fully differentiated cell-specific morphology, behavior and activities that are not described here," said Dr. example Allen Pacey, sperm biologist at the University of Sheffield.