I seem to remember that, quite a long time ago, there was a question on TIPS about the need for people with phenylketonuria to remain on a low-phenyalanine diet for their entire lives.
There is an article in the current JAMA about the need for pregnant women born with PKU to continue the diet during the pregnancy in order to prevent mental retardation and microcephaly in the developing fetus (who is often heterozygous with respect to the PKU gene). The article also discusses "barriers" to continuing on the diet. Jeff ------------------------ http://jama.ama-assn.org/issues/v287n10/ffull/jwr0313-2.html Barriers to Dietary Control Among Pregnant Women With Phenylketonuria United States, 1998-2000 MMWR. 2002;51:117-120 2 tables omitted Newborns in the United States are screened for phenylketonuria (PKU), a metabolic disorder that when left untreated is characterized by elevated blood phenylalanine (phe) levels and severe mental retardation (MR). An estimated 3,000-4,000 U.S.-born women of reproductive age with PKU have not gotten severe MR because as newborns their diets were severely restricted in the intake of protein-containing foods and were supplemented with medical foods (e.g., amino acid-modified formula and modified low-protein foods).1-4 When women with PKU do not adhere to their diet before and during pregnancy, infants born to them have a 93% risk for MR and a 72% risk for microcephaly.5,6 These risks result from the toxic effects of high maternal blood phe levels during pregnancy, not because the infant has PKU.5, 6 The restricted diet, which should be maintained for life, often is discontinued during adolescence.5-10 This report describes the pregnancies of three women with PKU and underscores the importance of overcoming the barriers to maintaining the recommended dietary control of blood phe levels before and during pregnancy. For maternal PKU-associated MR to be prevented, studies are needed to determine effective approaches to overcoming barriers to dietary control..... [for rest of article, go to: http://jama.ama-assn.org/issues/v287n10/fful= l/jwr0313-2.html] -- Jeffry P. Ricker, Ph.D. Office Phone: (480) 423-6213 9000 E. Chaparral Rd. FAX Number: (480) 423-6298 Psychology Department [EMAIL PROTECTED] Scottsdale Community College Scottsdale, AZ 85256-2626 Psychologists Educating Students to Think Skeptically (PESTS) http://www.sc.maricopa.edu/sbscience/pests/index.html The Psychology Student: Learning About The Science Of Psychology http://www.sc.maricopa.edu/sbscience/psychscience/index.html --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
