Henna hazard: Chemical causes ornate allergies

Harsh dye can swell popular tattoos into itchy, blistery swirls and shapesA women has never been one for tattoos. But when her daughter Kim begged to get a henna tattoo on a family vacation to Cancun a few years ago, she thought it couldn’t hurt because its tempprary, and Kim want to show off to her friends back home. But just two days later, the tattoo of a cute little bug had swelled into an itchy, bubbling blister on Kim’s upper right arm. “I was scared to death,”says her mother, who’s 43 and lives with her family in Cary, N.C. “I thought, she’s 9 years old and she’s going to be scarred for life.” The American Academy of Dermatology recently issued a warning that a chemical found in black henna tattoos can cause a severe allergic reaction, causing the skin to redden, swell and blister — but only where the henna is applied,people with bubbly blisters in shapes like suns, stars and flowers.As henna tattoo become very populer in the last few years, sometimes peddled at summer carnivals and concerts, dermatologists report increasingly treating patients,especially teen girls and young women, with these often elaborate looking allergic reactions.“Just because they’re temporary, people think they’re safe,” says Dr. Sharon E. Jacob, a dermatologist at the University of California, San Diego. Natural henna vs. black hennaWhile true henna is made from harmless plants, black henna uses a chemical called para-phenylenediamine, or PPD, which makes the tattoo dry quickly and last longer — and in some cases, that’s much, much longer. “These skin allergies themselves are not dangerous,” says Dr. Colby Evans, a dermatologist in private practice in Austin, Texas. “But they can cause scarring or darkness to the skin that can be permanent." There are also lifelong allergies to some medicationsBut Evans and other dermatologists warn that just one bad reaction to black henna can be enough to cause permanent sensitivity to PPD, and that allergy can cross-react with chemical relatives in certain anesthetics and medications for heart disease, hypertension and diabetes. “The allergy you can develop is lifelong,” says Jacob. But she’s found that people, especially teens, are generally unimpressed by her warnings of reactions to medication, so she reserves this for the kicker: “It may mean you can never dye your hair again.” Experts say there are a few easy ways to tell the difference between reall henna and black henna.For one,henna is never black — it’s red, which darkens to a brownish color on the skin as it dries. Real henna starts to fade away within a few days, so be wary of a henna tattoo artist who boasts of tattoos that will last any longer than that.

Fast-food kids' meals heavy on calories: U.S. group

WASHINGTON - Kids' meals at popular fast-food restaurants deliver more than a quick lunch or dinner -- 90 percent of them have far more than a meal's worth of calories and many are loaded with fat and salt too, according to a report released on Monday.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest -- the group that took the fun out of movie popcorn and Chinese takeout by revealing the fat and calorie content of such treats -- said it is difficult to find anything remotely healthful for a child to eat at several restaurant chains.
"Nearly every single possible combination of the children's meals at KFC, Taco Bell, Sonic, Jack in the Box and Chick-fil-A is too high in calories," the group said in a statement.CSPI examined the menus at 13 popular restaurants that promote children's meals."Ninety-three percent of 1,474 possible choices at the 13 chains exceed 430 calories -- an amount that is one-third of what the Institute of Medicine recommends that children aged four through eight should consume in a day," the group said.Children often get more than two meals' worth of energy in a single visit to Brinker International's Chili's restaurants."Chili's has 700 possible kids' meal combinations, but 658, or 94 percent, of those are too high in calories, including one comprised of country-fried chicken crispers, cinnamon apples and chocolate milk (1,020 calories) and another comprised of cheese pizza, home-style fries and lemonade (1,000 calories)," the group said. More than 90 percent of meals offered at hamburger chains would fill virtually all of a child's calorie needs for the day which is very harmful.

World's Skin Cancer Hot Spots

You probably know by now that making bad decisions when it comes to sun protection can be life threatening. While some people smartly skip the mid-day sun altogether, others work outdoors in tank tops every day or hit the beach with a bottle of baby oil, increasing their chances of developing skin cancer. But it isn't all about daily habits--a portion of the risk has to do with culture and family history. Where we live (a result of latitude and long-term migration patterns), prevailing cultural beliefs (and the associated garb), and common vacationing habits all play a role in our chances of developing ailments related to sun-exposure.

The Six Worst Foods For A Bikini Body

To avoid bloat and water retention at the beach, avoid these foods.

Eat This, Not That!Wouldn’t it be great if you could eat something before hitting the beach that would make you look and feel slimmer - instantly? Well, there’s no miracle food yet, but there are foods that can make you look and feel fatter in almost no time. And those are the foods you want to avoid right before you don your swimsuit. In fact, in a UCLA survey of 50,000 people, 64 percent of women and 50 percent of men said they were self-conscious about their weight. (There’s nothing more embarrassing than doing a cnnonball off the diving board and then having to refill the pool because you emptied it.

Breakthrough 'In Malaria Fight

Australian scientists have identified a potential treatment to combat malaria by pinpointing the process that helps the disease hijack red blood cells.

They have found the key to an adhesive that stops the parasite being flushed out of the body by the immune system. The removal of just one of these compounds is enough to bring the process to a halt. Researchers in Melbourne believe their discovery could be a major breakthrough in the fight against the disease. They have identified eight proteins that allow this glue-like substance onto the surface of a hijacked cell.