Reader\'s Digest Canada - 05.2020

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How to Interest

Kids in Fruits

and Veggies

Media exposure can

help familiarize kids

with nutritious foods,

which is part of setting

them up for healthy

teeth, body weight,

growth, development

and beneficial lifelong

habits. In a British

study from 2018, read-

ing picture books about

particular fruits and

vegetables to toddlers

helped them to eat and

enjoy those foods. And

recently, school-aged

children in the Nether-

lands were more likely

to choose an apple or

cucumbers over chips

or pretzels if they had

watched a kids’ cooking

show featuring healthy

dishes rather than an

episode that featured

junk food. Children’s

preferences around

food are also influenced

by their parents’ exam-

ple, of course, and by

helping prepare meals.

Domestic Abuse

Is a Risk Factor

for Chronic

Health Issues

The causes of fibro-

myalgia and chronic

fatigue syndrome—

conditions that can

involve pain and

extreme exhaustion—

are poorly understood.

But both conditions

have been linked to

excessive stress, which

might explain why a

study from the Univer-

sity of Birmingham

found that women who

have experienced

intimate-partner vio-

lence are nearly twice

as likely to develop one

of these syndromes as

women who have not.

Discovering this risk

factor could aid with a

diagnosis. “It’s hard to

talk about,” says lead

author Joht Singh Chan-

dan, “but we recom-

mend that where appro-

priate, doctors should

not be afraid to ask.”

ASA for Migraines:

Affordable and

Effective

Several prescription

drugs are available for

migraine relief, but sim-

ply using acetylsalicylic

acid (ASA) is a good

option, according to a

review in The American

Journal of Medicine. The

evidence so far suggests

that taking a high dose

(900 to 1,300 milligrams)

when symptoms begin

can relieve migraines,

while a low daily dose

(81 to 325 milligrams)

can help prevent them

from recurring. ASA is

cheaper and more easily

accessible than the pre-

scription medications,

and some patients

experience fewer side

effects. However, a doc-

tor should supervise

any drug you’re taking

for the long term—even

over-the-counter ones.

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