Children's bone health

The thesis can be divided in two main parts. In the first part (Chapter 2 to 5) bone mineral density, bone metabolism and body composition in healthy children and young adults have been evaluated, while in the second part (Chapter 6 to 10) these issues were studied in children with various diseases. Healthy children were studied to gain references for parameters of bone turnover, and to extend our reference data for bone density and body composition. Furthermore, the effect of polymorphisms in two candidate genes, e.g. polymorphisms in the vitamin D receptor gene and the coll

Ontwerp van een interventie om de groenteconsumptie van jongeren te verhogen

In dit rapport zullen verschillende mogelijke strategieën besproken worden die ingezet kunnen worden om de consumptie van groenten door jongeren te verhogen. De centrale vragen van dit onderzoek zijn: 1) Hoe kunnen groenten in het eetpatroon van jongeren een vaste plek van voldoende omvang krijgen? 2) Hoe kunnen groenten concurreren met minder gezonde voedingsproducten dan waar nu voor gekozen wordt? Eerst zullen de bevindingen die van belang zijn voor het opzetten van interventies besproken worden. Deze bevindingen komen voort uit literatuur, voorafgaand onderzoek en enkele recent (afgeronde) andere projecten

Asparaginase-Associated toxicity in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Asparaginase is an integral component of multiagent chemotherapy regimens for the treatment of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Positive outcomes are seen in patients who are able to complete their entire prescribed course of asparaginase therapy. Toxicities associated with asparaginase use include hypersensitivity (clinical and subclinical), pancreatitis, thrombosis, encephalopathy, and liver dysfunction. Depending on the nature and severity of the toxicity, aspara

Allergic-like reactions to asparaginase: Atypical allergies without asparaginase inactivation

Background: Asparaginase is an important component of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) therapy. Unfortunately, this treatment is hampered by hypersensitivity reactions. In general, allergies – regardless of severity – cause complete inactivation of the drug. However, we report atypical allergic reactions without inactivation of asparaginase, here called allergic-like reactions. Procedure: Patients with an allergic-like reaction, who were treated according to the Dutch Childhood Oncology Group ALL-11 or the CoALL 08–09 protocol, were described. The reactions were identified by continual measurement of asparaginase activity levels. Characteristics, including timing of occurrence, symptoms, grade, and the presence of antiasparaginase antibodies, were compared to those of real allergies. Results: Fourteen allergic-like reactions occurred in nine patients. Five reactions were to PEGasparaginase and nine to Erwinia asparaginase. Allergic-like reactions occurred relatively late after the start of infusion compared to real allergies. Antibodies were absent in all but one patient with an allergic-like reaction, while they were detected in all patients with a real allergy. Symptoms and grade did not differ between the groups. Asparaginase was continued with the same formulation in six patients of whom four finished treatment with adequate activity levels. Conclusions: In conclusion, allergic-like reactions occur relatively late after the start of infusion and without antibodies. Despite these clinical differences, allergic-like reactions can only be distinguished from real allergies by continually measuring asparaginase activity levels. If clinically tolerated, formulations should not be switched in case of allergic-like reactions. Moreover, failure to recognize these reactions may lead to a less favorable prognosis if asparaginase therapy is terminated unnecessarily

Wat gaan we eten? Groente! Kwantitatief onderzoek onder jongeren tussen de 12 en 18 jaar.

In 2009 a survey was conducted among a representative sample of around 500 young people between the ages of 12 and 18 in the Netherlands. The first section examined the eating patterns of the young people and their attitude towards nutrition. The second section examined their vegetable consumption and how they experience vegetables, as well as the factors which influence this. The final section consisted of a choosing experiment, in which the participants were asked to choose from among two or three vegetable products and evaluate them on the basis of a number of product characteristics

Wat gaan we eten? Groente! Design workshops

In two independent workshops with Food and Product designers, the social environment and the behaviour and attitude of 12-18 year olds with respect to vegetable consumption has been investigated and a start is made to develop products specifically targeted to this group