Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Your Teen Boys

This article first appeared on Philly.com Diarrhea. Abdominal pain. Bloating. Ugh!!! These annoying symptoms can occur in many gastrointestinal problems that teenagers experience. On social media, on the bleachers a school sports events, at doctors’ appointments, it seems like everywhere people are talking about gluten. So what exactly is gluten? Gluten is a group of proteins commonly found in wheat, barley, oats, and rye. It affects the dough quality of breads and is added to processed foods to improve texture, moisture, and flavor. When should a teenager go gluten-free?  When they are diagnosed with a problem caused by gluten. Celiac disease, wheat allergy, and gluten intolerance involve gluten, but are not one and the same. Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease where gluten triggers the body’s immune system, which normally makes antibodies to fight off harmful invaders like viruses or bacteria, to make antibodies against itself. These “autoantibodies” damage villi, […]

This blog was originally published by The Philadelphia Inquirer  A 15-year-old girl was brought to the emergency department because she was not acting like herself at lacrosse practice. The coach called her mother to pick her up early from practice because she was having trouble walking and could not answer such simple questions as “What is your name?” and “Where are you?”  When they arrived at the emergency department, the teen’s skin was red, hot, and dry. She was leaning on her mother for support. She looked so ill that the nurse brought her into the triage room before other waiting patients. She had an extremely high fever of 104.6 degrees and a fast heart rate (tachycardia) of 130 beats per minute, and appeared to be going in and out of consciousness. She was rushed to a treatment room, where doctors and nurses began resuscitation.  Our patient exhibited altered mental […]

Delaware students Maxine and Vivian Ruggerio aren’t immune to the allure of social media.  But they also believe that most teens are struggling to navigate the online world. From perfectly edited images to overtures from strangers, social media presents a minefield of challenging issues.  The sisters are working on an e-book to provide tips to teens who want to protect their mental health and personal safety while online. As they researched their book, they conducted a survey of peers, discovering that 100% of their respondents used social media. More than half said social media made them feel stressed or bad about themselves. And more than half felt that more controls are needed, such as added privacy or safety features.  Maxine and Vivian joined psychologists from Nemours Children’s Health, Delaware in a recent panel discussion on teen mental health and social media. Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings; Delaware State Rep. Krista […]