New Hampshire Health News Digest

THOMAS E. BROWNa AND WILLIAM J. MCMULLEN, JR.b aClinic for Attention and Related Disorders, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06519, USA bCalifornia Pacific Epilepsy Center, San Francisco, California 94115, USA ABSTRACT: Many children, adolescents, and adults with Attention Deficit Disorders report chronic difficulties with falling asleep, awakening and/or maintaining adequate daytime alertness. These problems may be due to a variety of factors, including environment, lifestyle, and psychiatric comorbidities. Impairments in sleep/arousal may also be related more directly to the underlying pathophysiology of ADD. This chapter describes clinical manifestations of sleep/arousal problems often associated with ADD and reviews behavioral and medication options for treatment. KEYWORDS: ADD; ADHD; Sleep disturbances; Sleep disorders. "Given the above, it is not surprising that a fair degree of overlap exists between these two disorders, though the r...

The interaction between nutrition and the brain and its consequences for body weight gain and metabolism; studies in rodents and men. - PubMed - NCBI :  The interaction between nutrition and the brain and its consequences for body weight gain and metabolism; studies in rodents and men. la Fleur SE1, Serlie MJ2. Author information Abstract Aberrant feeding behavior can lead to obesity and obesity-related medical consequences, such as insulin resistance and diabetes. Although alterations in glucose metabolism (i.e. insulin resistance), in the presence of excessive fat tissue are often explained by the consequences of dysfunctional adipose tissue, evidence is emerging that also altered brain functions might be an important determinant of insulin resistance. In this review, we provide an overview of how feeding behavior and obesity interact with brain circuitry and how these interactions affect glucose metabolism. Because brain circuitries involved in food intake have been shown ...

Do Dopaminergic Impairments Underlie Physical Inactivity in People with Obesity? - PubMed - NCBI : Do Dopaminergic Impairments Underlie Physical Inactivity in People with Obesity? Kravitz AV1, O'Neal TJ2, Friend DM2. Author information Abstract Obesity is associated with physical inactivity, which exacerbates the negative health consequences of obesity. Despite a wide consensus that people with obesity should exercise more, there are few effective methods for increasing physical activity in people with obesity. This lack is reflected in our limited understanding of the cellular and molecular causes of physical inactivity in obesity. We hypothesize that impairments in dopamine signaling contribute to physical inactivity in people with obesity, as in classic movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease. Here, we review two lines of evidence supporting this hypothesis: (1) chronic exposure to obesogenic diets has been linked to impairments in dopamine synthesis, release, and...

Exercise can help adults better cope with ADHD symptoms : Exercise, even a small amount, can help alleviate symptoms of ADHD in adults, according to a new study. About 6 percent of American adults report symptoms consistent with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, which lead to anxiety, depression, low energy and motivation, poor performance at work or school and also increased traffic accidents. The study tested 32 young men with elevated ADHD symptoms who cycled at a moderate intensity for 20 minutes on one day, and on another day sat and rested for 20 minutes as a control condition. The participants were asked to perform a task requiring focus both before and after the different conditions, and researchers noted leg movement, mood, attention and self-reported motivation to perform the task. As a result, researchers found that it was only after the exercise when the participants felt motivated to do the task; they also felt less confused and fatigued and instead felt...