Çocuklarda beslenme ve kurşun etkileşimi

Lead is a commonly found environmental toxic element that deteriorates health, especially that of children. Sixteen percent of daily intake of lead comes from foods, and 40% of that is due to adherence of dust on surfaces of foods during preparation. Low socioeconomical level and long-term malnutrition are the most important risk factors for lead contact in infant feeding. Decrease in calcium, iron, zinc and protein in the diet increases the gastrointestinal absorption of lead. Lead absorption can be decreased in children by adequate intake of calcium. Lead level in breast-milk is about ten percent of the blood lead level and it shows correlation with the blood lead level of the mother. Lead level in breast-milk of smoking mothers is twice that of non-smoking mothers. In order to decrease lead absorption, children should be fed with a diet rich in vitamin and minerals without skipping meals; milk and milk products enriched with calcium should be present in the diet and adequate iron should be included in the diet. It is necessary to follow-up the children at risk periodically and monitor blood lead levels regularly in order to develop early prevention strategies against lead intoxication

Plasma free carnitine levels in 0-12-month-old infants in relation to feeding styles

PubMed: 17048190This study was planned to determine the blood carnitine levels of children aged 0-1 year in Kirikkale. Blood samples were taken on Guthrie cards and plasma free carnitine levels were analyzed by tandem mass specteometry. The mean free carnitine level was 25.12 ± 10.1 ?mol/L (10.1-49.5 ?mol/L). To assess the plasma free carnitine levels according to feeding style, babies were grouped as exclusively breastfed (n = 67, 49.3%), artificially fed (n = 24, 17.7%), and mixed fed (n = 45, 33%). The exclusively breastfed infants displayed the lowest free carnitine levels (p < 0.05). However, when this was analyzed in accordance with age, no significant change was observed in plasma free carnitine levels according to feeding style. Results of this study are important as they reveal an indication about the normal values of plasma free carnitine in Turkish infants and their relationship to feeding styles. © Hogrefe & Huber Publishers

Kırıkkale'de ilköğretimde okuyan çocuklarda kan kurşun düzeyleri

The aim of this study was to a determine the relation of blood lead levels socio-economical and nutrition status in primary school children in Kirikkale. Socio-economical and demographical information and blood were obtained. For the 533 children (7-16 years old) from four primary schools which were selected according to their distance from the factories which use lead. The mean blood lead levels of the children were found to be 2.54 ±1.44 ?g/dl (min 0 - max 6.5 ?g/dl). The mean blood lead levels in the schools close to the high-risk area were higher than those observed in the distant schools. It was observed that as the extent of malnutrition increased, the blood lead levels decreased. No significant relation was found between blood lead levels and socioeconomical status. The blood lead levels of the children in Kirikkale are within the accepted range considered to be normal. Children residing closer to the industrial areas are exposed to more lead more and therefore they should be followed up more closely and regularly

Pertussis; still a clinical diagnosis

Pertussis is an acute, contagious respiratory infection characterized by paroxysmal coughing episodes. The most important and severe complication in infants is respiratory failure due to pneumonia. We report the case of a 3-month-old infant without any immunization who presented with cough, whooping and cyanosis, and developed pneumonia on the second day and a leukemoid reaction on the sixth day of admission. The relation between pneumonia and mortality, especially in infants, and the prognostic impact of a leukemoid reaction are emphasized

Traditional child care procedures in an Anatolian city

Purpase: Traditional procedures as old as humanity are current issues in today's modern medicine. Social and cultural characteristics influencing child care behavior and some procedures could be detrimental to the baby. The aim of this study was to determine traditional child care procedures in the central Anatolian city of Kirikkale, a city established after extensive migration. Method: Randomly chosen mothers were asked to fill in a questionnaire. The sociodemographic characteristics and traditional practices of the mothers were assessed. The results were compared by using the chi-square test. The relationships between the traditional procedures used by the mothers and the age at marriage and educational status were analyzed with logistic regression models. Results: A total of 974 mothers aged 18-60 years were interviewed. Of these, 201 (43%) were less than 30 years old. The average age at marriage was 17 or younger for 29% of the group and the age at first pregnancy was 17 or younger in 16%. Forty-eight percent of all were using at least one traditional procedure. Swaddling was the most commonly used method (27.2%). These practices were seen at higher rates in women with education of less than eight years' duration, among those who had married at 17 years of age or younger, and among those for whom more than 10 years had passed since their last pregnancy (p<0.05). Conclusion: Traditional procedures for baby care are still in use today. However, procedures that may be harmful to the baby are used less often by younger and better educated mothers. This result indicates that educating mothers is crucial and that the social fabric has changed somewhat over the years

DInSAR-based detection of land subsidence and correlation with groundwater depletion in konya plain, Turkey

In areas where groundwater overexploitation occurs, land subsidence triggered by aquifer compaction is observed, resulting in high socio-economic impacts for the affected communities. In this paper, we focus on the Konya region, one of the leading economic centers in the agricultural and industrial sectors in Turkey. We present a multi-source data approach aimed at investigating the complex and fragile environment of this area which is heavily affected by groundwater drawdown and ground subsidence. In particular, in order to analyze the spatial and temporal pattern of the subsidence process we use the Small BAseline Subset DInSAR technique to process two datasets of ENVISAT SAR images spanning the 2002-2010 period. The produced ground deformation maps and associated time-series allow us to detect a wide land subsidence extending for about 1200 km2 and measure vertical displacements reaching up to 10 cm in the observed time interval. DInSAR results, complemented with climatic, stratigraphic and piezometric data as well as with land-cover changes information, allow us to give more insights on the impact of climate changes and human activities on groundwater resources depletion and land subsidence. © 2017, by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Oxytocin as a protective agent in cisplatin-induced ototoxicity

Cisplatin is a potent chemotherapeutic drug with serious side effects such as ototoxicity which is characterized by irreversible, bilateral, progressive sensorineural hearing loss. Oxytocin, which is a well-known hormone secreting during pregnancy, has antioxidant and antiinflammatory effect. Our study aims to test and compare the effect of intratympanic (IT) and intraperitoneal (IP) oxytocin on cisplatin ototoxicity with DPOAE