Docs report uptick in kidney stones among kids

Just the phrase "kidney stones" is enough to send a shudder through most people - especially those who've suffered the anguish of this painful health issue. And when you imagine this gut-wrenching pain being visited upon a little kid, well … it sounds cruel beyond belief.

But anecdotal evidence seems to indicate that more and more kids are becoming afflicted with the intense pain of kidney stones. And some doctors are blaming salty junk foods.

Kidney stones are formed when salts and other minerals found in urine become crystallized into solids. Stones block the urine flow until the body "passes" them through urination. The process of passing these stones - which can be as small as a grain of sand or as large as a golf ball (stones that large require surgery) - is excruciating. Some people say it's even more painful than childbirth.

Usually, kidney stones have been the exclusive domain of adults. But many hospitals have noted a small but significant rise in the incidence among kids. Baltimore's Johns Hopkins Children Center gets calls about new cases each week. Years ago, there would be less than five cases each year.

Dr. Uri Alon, the director of Children's Mercy Hospital's bone and mineral disorders clinic in Kansas City, says most of kidney stones in kids are calcium based, and come from a combination of eating habits and drinking too little water.

Dr. David Hatch of the Loyola University Medical Center, claims to have seen a spike in pediatric kidney stone cases, including infant whose mother discovered a kidney stone the size of a pea in the baby's diaper. One can only imagine the pain.

And here's the worst part for kids: generally, doctors prefer to let the body expel stones the old fashioned and painful way. If the body doesn't succeed in passing the stones one its own, doctors insert urinary tract scopes to break up the and clear away the stone (makes me squirm just thinking about it..

There is some question as to whether all these scattered reports represent an actual spike in pediatric kidney stones, or the illusion of more cases due to the fact that medical technology makes the stones easier to detect.

Either way, it's still a good idea for everyone - adults and kids alike - to cut the sodium- laden processed foods out of their diets.

Red-faced drinkers could be at risk for throat cancer

Know anyone whose face flushes red when they have a few drinks? Well, it doesn't mean they've got a fresh, rosy glow from too much merriment. Turns out, it means that they're at a much greater risk for lethal squamous cell esophageal cancer.

That should put a damper on happy hour.

A new study shows that face flushing is caused by lack of the enzyme known as ALDH2, which is particularly common among those of East Asian decent. One third of the population of China, Japan, and Korea has this genetic deficiency.

Study author Philip J. Brooks of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, said the risks among those with this deficiency are "serious," because low levels of ALDH2 keep the body from metabolizing alcohol, and that leads to a build-up of toxic acetaldehyde in the body.

According to the study, even two beers a day can make a person with ALDH2 deficiency as much as ten times more likely to develop the deadly throat cancer. The solution is simple: the elimination of alcohol significantly drops the rate of the cancer in Japanese men.