Extreme morning sickness could lead to lifelong behavioral and emotional problems in children, according to a new study.

The condition, known as hyperemesis gravidarum (HG), is characterized by excessive nausea and vomiting persisting beyond the first trimester of pregnancy. It affects hundreds of thousands of women each year and can lead to hospitalization and pregnancy termination.

California researchers have found that children whose mothers suffered from HG while carrying them were more than 3 times as likely to suffer from anxiety, bipolar disorder and depression in adulthood than children born to mothers who did not have the condition.

“HG is an understudied and undertreated condition of pregnancy that can result in not only short-term maternal physical and mental health problems but also potentially lifelong consequences to the exposed fetus,” the researchers said.

Prior studies have found that children whose mothers suffered from nausea past the first trimester have more attention and learning studies by age 12.

The researchers blame poor fetal nutrition, a frequent result of HG, as a cause for adverse outcomes and poor health in adulthood. HG can essentially starve the developing fetus of essential nutrients, and cause dehydration, which can impact brain development.

Also, HG often causes stress and anxiety in the mother, which can also negatively affect the fetus.
The condition often runs in families. According to the researchers, women with a family history of the condition were up to 17 times more likely to suffer from it themselves.

The study was published in the Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease and funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

As a doctor, I get a lot of questions in my practice and my email inbox. Here’s one that was sent to me recently by a viewer:

Dr. Manny, are there any health benefits to drinking beer? Which beers are the ‘healthiest’? – Brian

Well, Brian, this is what I have to say: don’t be afraid to knock back a cold one. Beer actually has a number of surprising health benefits.

Despite beer’s bad reputation, it contains numerous natural antioxidants and vitamins that can help prevent heart disease and rebuild muscle. It also has one of the highest energy contents of any food or drink. Of course, this means you need to set limits: one beer gets you going, four makes you fat.

For those concerned about dehydration, keep in mind that beer is 93 percent water. According to a Spanish study, beer may actually provide better hydration than H2O alone when you’re sweating under the sun.

As for the second part of the question, which kind of beer should you reach for? If you’re counting calories, you may be tempted to grab a light lager, but for health benefits, dark beer is the better choice.

Dark beers tend to have the most antioxidants, which help reverse cellular damage that occurs naturally in the body. A recent study has also found that dark beer has higher iron content, which is essential for producing red blood cells as well as for muscle and brain function.

Another thing to keep in mind is that microbrews are typically healthier than mass-produced cans, because they have more hops. Hops contain polyphenols, which help lower cholesterol, fight cancer and kill viruses.

Just remember: Everything in moderation. You don’t want to embarrass yourself in front of your friends by drinking too much, and you certainly don’t want to put yourself at risk for any long-term health effects like liver problems, kidney diseases and heart disease.

Email me your health-related questions at askdrmanny@gmail.com.

One recent survey of Americans on body image found that more than half of all men and women would rather lose their job than gain an extra seventy-five pounds. And nearly 20 percent of the population would give up, or consider giving up, 20 IQ points to have the perfect body.

Obviously, weight and the way we are perceived is an important factor in our daily lives. It’s not surprising then that dieting is on the minds of so many people these days, particularly as people get on in their forties, when the metabolism begins to slow and the pounds begin to add up. So which diet is best? I’ll tell you.

First, let’s look at some of the big blockbuster diets that have appeared over the past decade or so—the South Beach Diet, the Atkins Diet, the Mediterranean Diet, and so on. Each one of these diets has simply incorporated a different method of teaching you about nutrition in order to get you to lose weight. Each one gives you something to focus on, a behavior to motivate you, which is great because, after all, to lose weight you have to change your thinking.

But if you look at the fundamentals, the underlying theme of each diet is calories. Whether you do Atkins, South Beach, or Dr. Phil, it’s really all about calories.

When reviewed carefully, most diets are really nothing more than low-calorie nutrition plans disguised by clever marketing gimmicks. Scientific-sounding “facts” and hocus-pocus “research” are just ornaments on the diet tree. Diet-plan marketers go to great lengths to explain how their diet can work for everyone, or claim that it is carbohydrate intake or fat intake—or whatever the bad intake of the day is—that’s the culprit.

However, the bottom line is that the only way to lose weight is to have a caloric deficit, which occurs only when you burn more calories than you consume.

The average American today consumes 300 more calories per day today than did the average American of 30 years ago. Today’s average American also burns 260 fewer calories each day due to increased automation, technology, and sedentary occupations. Put those numbers together, and it becomes rather obvious why America’s waistline is growing at an alarming rate.

Check Your BMI

The BMI can tell you if you are underweight, normal, overweight, or obese. Adults 20 years old and older can calculate their BMI with this formula:

BMI = your weight/pds divided by height/in x height/in x 703

You are UNDERWEIGHT, if your BMI is below 18.5.

You are of NORMAL WEIGHT, if your BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9.

You are OVERWEIGHT, if your BMI is between 25.0 and 29.9.

You are OBESE, if your BMI is 30.0 or more.

So here is Dr. Manny’s Freedom Diet. If you really want to lose weight, you have to do two things: eat fewer calories and burn more calories. This is not an optional “either/or” plan but an “and” plan. Of course, the calories you eat should be healthy calories. That’s all. Eat less. Exercise more. It really is that simple.

Fight obesity. Spread the word.

Exercise

People spend an enormous amount of time trying to find the perfect exercise, and while they’re doing that, their clock is ticking. Any physical activity is great, though the best kinds of exercise for you are those like walking, swimming, running, hiking, and skiing—all of which have a “global” impact on your body and mind.

Most important, you should stick to the exercise of your choice and do it regularly. If you adhere to those two principles, you’re going to burn calories, feel better, improve your metabolism, and benefit your health.

Any activity you do during the day—from climbing stairs, to housecleaning, to watching TV—will, of course, burn calories. But those activities don’t provide the necessary continuity, and I think the essence of getting into shape and having a good metabolism has to do with a continuity of exercise.

In other words, it’s better to burn 120 calories a day, seven days a week, doing your favorite exercise, for example, than to burn 800 calories doing the housework once a week. It’s the exercise regimen that has an impact on your health, not necessarily the intensity.

Burn, Baby, Burn

Estimated number of calories burned per minute based on an individual weighing about 150 pounds:

Sitting: 1

Talking on phone: 1

Sleeping: 1

Driving: 2

Housework: 3

Cooking: 3

Washing dishes: 3

Stretching: 4

Sex (active): 5

Walking (3 mph): 5

Calisthenics (moderate): 5

Ballroom dancing (fast): 6

Gardening: 6

Swimming (moderate): 7

Aerobics (low impact): 7

Hiking: 7

Jogging: 8

Stair step machine: 8

Bicycling (12 to 14 mph): 10

Basketball (full court): 12

Running (10 mph): 20

To easily calculate how many calories you burn in a day, go to www.healthstatus.com and click on “Calculators” then “Calories Burned.”

It is also very important to drink adequate amounts of fluid when you exercise. You need to drink about a half cup of water for every fifteen minutes of vigorous exercise. People think that muscle cramps during exercise are caused by a shortage of electrolytes, but that’s not true. You get muscle cramps because of water loss and dehydration. Drink that water!

It’s that time of the year again – St. Patrick’s Day.  For some, it’s a religious day that involves attending church services, wearing green, and celebrating Irish culture.  For others, it’s a day of general revelry, comprised of drinking, attending parades, and staying out late.

Unfortunately, St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Thursday this year.  That means, for most of us, after all the partying on the holiday, there’s still one more day of work to suffer through until the weekend.

It also means that it may be difficult to follow through with typical “go-to” hangover cures.  There’s no sleeping in on work days, and there may not even be time to cook up a big greasy breakfast.  Forget about the hair-of-the-dog cure, i.e. drinking more alcohol.  No boss is going to appreciate an employee coming in slurring their words and smelling like gin.

Here’s the truth: The best cure for a hangover on a work day is not getting one at all.  It doesn’t mean you can’t join in on any of the festivities – or the drinking because, let’s face it, who can resist green beer?  It just means you have to be smart while you enjoy yourself.  While not drinking is the only fool-proof way to avoid a hangover, here are a few other tips to lessen the pain of waking up bright and early tomorrow morning:

Before drinking:

1. Eat.  Not greasy pizza or bar food, but a solid, starchy meal with a lot of vitamins and minerals.  The food will help absorb the alcohol and lessen it’s effects on you.  Get into the St. Patrick’s Day spirit with hearty meals like vegetable shepard’s pie or corned beef with cabbage and potatoes.

2. Drink.  Not so fast!  Put down the green beer, and pick up a glass of water.  And then another.  A glass of fruit juice is also a good idea.  Hydrating your body now will be much more effective against pain than waiting until tomorrow morning.

3. Prepare your given hangover-cure now.  Tomorrow, you’re going to want as much sleep as possible.  Save time – and let yourself punch the snooze button a couple of times in the morning – by taking care of your hangover needs now.  If it’s food or a drink, it’ll keep for a night in the fridge.  If it’s a pill, rather than having to waste time rifling through your drawers, put it on your bedside table next to a tall glass of water.

4. Get out early.  Try to take advantage of happy hours and call it an early night.  That way, you can have your fun but still get as much sleep as you need.  Sleep is one of the best defenses against a vicious hangover.

While drinking:

1. Eat.  Because you took care of your vitamin and starch needs earlier, now’s the time when you can munch on less-than-healthy bar food.  The point here is to keep your stomach full enough to keep absorbing alcohol.

2. Stick with light beers on a work day.  If you do need a Guinness to get into the spirit, drink one and drink it early.  Darker beers contain more congeners, which equals more pain in the morning.  Light beers are much easier on your body – and your stomach.  Also, while we’re on the topic of alcohol, try to stay away from liquor, which is going to hit you hard and fast and isn’t going to mix well at all with the green beer you’ve already consumed.  Save it for tomorrow night instead.

3. Alternate between alcoholic and non-alcholic drinks.  This will slow down your alcohol intake with the added bonus of still giving you something to hold in your hands.  If you’re worried about you’re friends giving you a hard time, keep in mind that they can’t tell what’s actually in your hand.  It’s easy to pass off orange juice as a screwdriver or mineral water as a vodka tonic.  Remember: Your liver can only break down an average of one beer an hour.

4. Drink a glass of water and take some vitamin B before crashing for the night.  The goal here is to replace what the alcohol has drained out of your body.  It’s also much better for you than any pain relievers like Tylenol, Ibuprofen or Aspirin, which can cause serious damage to your liver.

Like I mentioned earlier, these tips do not guarantee a hangover-free morning (only not drinking does), but they will give you a fighting chance.  And remember, everything in moderation – even on holidays.  Have a safe and happy St. Patrick’s Day, everyone.