Over the next few weeks we are going to focus on some of the teen health dangers
that are prevalent now and maybe a few more totally absurd ones you might never think about.
If you search the internet you will find many articles on different webpages that list these dangers, make sure you are reading credible information.
This list of 10 trends comes from the social media doctor at
KevinMD.com a great site for health information that you can use, one of my favorite sites.
Here’s a roundup of 10 troublesome trends, some old and some new, that your teen may be exposed to this summer and school year :
1. Biting and cutting and sucking blood.
Yes, as unbelievable as it sounds, there’s a vampire movement afoot
thanks to the glamorous portrayal of teen vampires on the Twilight
series and The Vampire Diaries and the popularity of HBO’s True Blood.
Besides the serious bacterial dangers of human bites, it can be a mode
of HIV transmission that’s not covered in most sex ed classes.
2. Circle lenses/decorative contact lenses.
A look made popular by Lady Gaga and YouTube, circle lenses create a
big doe-eyed appearance and have become popular among teenage girls.
Illegal to sell without a prescription, but easily bought online,
doctors are concerned about risks of blinding infections and damage to
the cornea.
3. ADHD prescription drug abuse. The
same drugs being used to treat attention deficit disorder are being
freely shared by some teens on college campuses and high schools to give
them an edge at preparing for exams. Not only is the stigma gone, but
kids who have the prescriptions are the go-to favorites during finals.
If your child uses ADHD drugs, warn him or her against sharing. If your
child doesn’t, make it clear that these are serious medications with
side effects, not study aids.
4. Tobacco escalation products.
Many teens are convinced that, unlike cigarettes, smoking a hookah or
using chewing tobacco is not harmful. In fact, hookahs do use tobacco
(referred to as Massel) which comes in a wide variety of
flavors—including apple, strawberry, and coconut—intended to create a
“graduation strategy” so that kids get hooked by starting them with
milder tasting, more flavored substances. This trick is also used with a
product called “Snus”, a non-chew, no-spit oral tobacco that’s also
available in variety of sweet and fruity flavors. Also increasingly
popular with teens, using Snus lets them stay under the radar at school
and still get their nicotine fix, because it’s stuffed between the lip
and the gum. Make sure your teens know that these products have their
own dangers, as well as leading to nicotine addiction.
5. Tanorexia/Tanning salons.
Even though exposure to tanning beds before the age of 30 increases a
person’s risk of developing melanoma by 75 percent, this real danger is
dampened by television shows that depict it as trendy and fashionable.
One study of university students found that more than 90 percent of
tanning-bed users know about the risks of premature aging and skin
cancer but continue to tan because they think it looks good.
6. Tattoos.
Tattoos have become extremely popular among teens. Although most states
have laws prohibiting minors from getting them, they are poorly
enforced. Recent data suggest that more than one-third of adults in the
U.S. under the age of 35 now sport at least one tattoo. Outbreaks of
community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
skin infections among tattoo recipients have been related to sloppy
infection control practices. And tattoos are estimated to account for
more than twice as many hepatitis C infections as injection drug use.
Other infections, including HIV, can also be contracted through
tattooing. If your kids insist on tattoos, make sure that they go to a
licensed practitioner.
7. Piercings. Besides
traditional ear piercings which carry the standards risks of infection,
allergic reactions to nickel, and scar formation, kids are piercing
other parts of their bodies, including their nose, naval region, lips,
eyebrows and tongues, as well as areas hidden from parents, such as the
nipples and genitals. Bacterial infections are not uncommon as are risks
of hepatitis, tuberculosis, HIV and tetanus. Deformity and scarring can
be permanent. Make sure your kids are aware that needles wielded by
anyone but a health professional or certified technician can be lethal
weapons.
8. Tech use at night. Do you know what
your kids are doing in their bedrooms at night? It’s likely they’re
texting their friends, chatting on Facebook, or playing video games. The
high-tech bedrooms of many teenagers, are anything but dark and quiet.
They often go to sleep listening to their iPods, and exchange text
messages late into the night. In fact, this seems to be typical teenage
behavior. No wonder they’re tired in school. Encourage your child to
make it a habit to completely unplug well before bedtime.
9. Texting while driving.
There have been reports of teens getting into serious car accidents
texting while driving because they keep their hands and eyes on their
cell phone keys, rather than the steering wheel. The practice is
widespread and getting worse. According to a 2010 survey by AAA and
Seventeen Magazine, 86 percent of drivers, age 16-19 admit to risky
driving habits, up 25% from a 2008 survey. And those who texted, sent,
on average, 23 text messages while driving in the past month. Sixty
percent of teens say they drive while talking on their cell phones, up
nine percent from a 2008 survey. Make sure your teen drivers have
headsets in the car so they can take needed calls and keep their hands
on the wheel.
10. Noise exposure. According to
published research, about 12.5 percent of American children between the
age of 6 and 19 have measurable noise induced hearing loss in one or
both ears. Exposure to harmful sounds can injure the delicate hair cells
in the inner ear. We have a fixed number of cochlear hair cells and
they don’t regenerate, so it’s important to prevent damage in the first
place to reduce the need for a hearing aid later in life. To protect
their hearing, they should turn down the volume from headsets,
televisions and car radios, and set the top volume level on their MP3
player to a safe level.
Orly Avitzur is medical adviser at Consumer Reports and blogs at the Consumer Reports Health Blog.
Stay tuned for our next post about "blood sucking" "cutting"
JKYP2R994FFY
