Health

Protein in urine strong indicator of prostate cancer risk

2010-10-19T02:44:00.000-07:00

A protein in urine could be a strong indicator of prostate cancer risk, according to British scientists who say their findings could one day be developed into a quick and simple test for the disease.

Scientists from the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Research Institute and the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) said the protein, called microseminoprotein-beta or MSMB, is found at reduced levels in men diagnosed with the disease and are also lower in men with more aggressive forms of the cancer.

"The protein is easy to detect because it is found in urine and would potentially be a very simple test to carry out on men to identify those most at risk of developing the disease," said Hayley Whitaker of the Cambridge institute, who led the study.

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Estrogen therapy increased risk of developing kidney stones

2010-10-19T02:36:00.000-07:00

A new report has suggested that the use of estrogen therapy is associated with an increased risk of developing kidney stones in postmenopausal women. Using data from the national Women's Health Initiative study, Naim M. Maalouf, of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, examined data from two trials.

10,739 postmenopausal women with hysterectomy who received either an estrogen-only treatment or matching placebo and 16,608 postmenopausal women without hysterectomy who received either an estrogen plus progesterone treatment or matching placebo. Data were collected for an average of 7.1 years in the estrogen-only trial and 5.6 years for the estrogen plus progestin trial.

A total of 335 cases of kidney stones were reported in the active treatment groups, while 284 cases occurred in the placebo groups. The beginning demographic characteristics and risk factors for kidney stones were similar in the two groups.

Estrogen therapy was associated with a significant increase in risk of kidney stones. The corresponding annualized incidence rate per 10,000 women per year was 39 in the treatment group and 34 in the placebo group.

red onion diet - remove bad cholesterol

2010-10-19T02:29:00.000-07:00

Scientists have claimed that the humble red onion could help prevent heart disease. They have discovered that the vegetable - commonly used in Mediterranean and Indian cuisine - helps remove bad cholesterol from the body, which can cause heart attacks and strokes.

At the same time red onions retain the body's good cholesterol, which help protect against heart disease. Scientists in Hong Kong fed crushed-up red onions to hamsters who had all been put on a high-cholesterol diet.

They found that after eight weeks levels of bad cholesterol, or low density lipoprotein (LDL), had dropped by an average of 20 per cent.

"This results support the claim that the regular consumption of onion reduces the risk of coronary heart disease," the Daily Mail quoted Zhen Yu Chen, who was in charge of the research carried out at the Chinese University of Hong Kong as saying.

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New test for oral cancer detection

2010-10-19T02:19:00.000-07:00

Researchers are on the verge of developing a new test for oral cancer that could be done by using a brush to collect cells from a patient's mouth. Scientists from the University of Sheffield would develop the new method that could provide an accurate diagnosis in less than 20 minutes for lesions where there is a suspicion of oral cancer.

The new test would involve removing cells with a brush, placing them on a chip, and inserting the chip into the analyzer, leading to a result in 8-10 minutes. This will have a number of benefits including cutting waiting times and the number of visits, and also cost savings for the NHS.

The team led by Professor Martin Thornhill has begun carrying out clinical trials on patients at Charles Clifford Dental Hospital for two years to perfect the technology and make it as sensitive as possible.

If oral cancer is detected early, the prognosis for patients is excellent, with a five-year survival rate of more than 90 percent.

The nano-bio-chips are disposable and slotted like a credit card into a battery-powered analyzer. A brush-biopsy sample is placed on the card and micro fluidic circuits wash cells from the sample into the reaction chamber.

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Children born using IVF are likely taller

2010-10-19T02:07:00.000-07:00

Children born using in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) are likely to be taller than their naturally conceived counterparts, New Zealand researchers have found.

The study by Auckland University's Liggins Institute found IVF children conceived from fresh, rather than frozen, embryos were about 2.6 centimetres (1.02 inches) taller than non-IVF children by the age of six.

The research, which examined about 200 children, found the height difference was statistically significant, even after adjusting for variables such as the parents' height.Liggins Institiute director Wayne Cutfield said the phenomenon was most striking in girls.

Cutfield said appeared IVF children from fresh embryos had a different hormone profile to regular children, which could promote growth.

This could be caused by the drugs mothers took to induce ovulation during the conception process or by the culture medium the embryos were developed in for 36 hours before being transferred to the womb, he said.

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High cholesterol-it can be dangerous

2010-10-19T01:56:00.000-07:00

Cholesterol is an important sub-type of fat. It is required for the functioning of all the vital organ systems and various body metabolisms related to macro and micro-elements. Cholesterol and other lipid sub-fractions are important for human beings and they cannot be cut down to the lowest limit of zero in the diet as well as in the blood levels of an individual.

We don't usually worry too much about the risk of heart disease until a person is in middle age. Adults as young as 20 need to pay attention to their cholesterol, because unhealthy levels may already be damaging their arteries. High cholesterol at a young age leads to heart attacks, strokes or paralysis and pancreatic.

Causes

- Strong genetic/family history of heart disease

- Associated diabetes mellitus, hypertension

- Bad eating habits

- Excess alcohol consumption

- Overweight (lowers HDL-high-density lipoprotein and may raise LDL - low-density lipoprotein)

- Lack of regular exercise (raises LDL and lowers HDL)

- Smoking (may lower HDL by as much as 15 per cent)

- Stress levels (stress can elevate cholesterol levels).

Prevention

- Preference to protein-centric diet (derive only 30 per cent calories from fat)

- Eat more fiber-containing food.

- Consume fresh fruits.

- Intake of more fluids or water.

- Avoid consumption of bakery products, deep fried items, high-carbohydrate content foods (sweets), red meat, egg yolk, excess alcohol, excess consumption of oil and ghee products, milk products such as butter, paneer, etc, junk food items such as pasta, pizza and burgers in regular meals.

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Weight gain during pregnancy

2010-10-06T21:16:00.000-07:00

Putting on more weight during pregnancy does not necessarily mean that the baby will be bigger, according to the preliminary findings of an ongoing study, which is the first of its kind in Singapore and the region.

Instead, there are ethnic differences: While Malay mothers-to-be seemed to put on the most weight, Chinese mothers had the biggest babies, said Associate Professor Chong Yap Seng of National University Hospital and the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore, who leads the study.

But the reasons are not yet clear, he said, as research is still in a very early stage. The Growing Up In Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (Gusto) study seeks to understand how pregnancy and early childhood environments can affect children's risk of developing obesity and diseases like Type 2 diabetes.

For example, other studies have found that poor nutrition during pregnancy often leads to babies being born small, but those same children are more likely to get fat and suffer from metabolic illnesses later in life.

The Gusto study tracks about 1,200 mothers. But only about 500 babies have been born to them to date, with the last batch of infants due to be delivered next April.

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Chronic lung disease of prematurity (CLDP)

2010-10-06T04:47:00.000-07:00

A new study has revealed that exposure to common viruses in daycare puts children with a chronic lung condition caused by premature birth at risk for serious respiratory infections.

Johns Hopkins Children Center researchers say their findings should prompt pediatricians to monitor their prematurely born patients, regardless of age, for signs of lung disease and to discuss the risks of daycare-acquired infections with the children parents.

These risks, the researchers found, include increased emergency room visits and medication use and more days with breathing problems.

"Daycare can be a breeding ground for viruses and puts these already vulnerable children at risk for prolonged illness and serious complications from infections that are typically mild and short-lived in children with healthy lungs," said lead investigator Sharon McGrath-Morrow, M.D., M.B.A., a lung specialist at Hopkins Children's.

Investigators interviewed the parents of 111 children ages 3 and under with chronic lung disease of prematurity (CLDP) about their child's daycare attendance, infections, symptoms, emergency room visits, hospitalizations and use of medications.

Among the 22 children with CLDP who attended daycare, 37 per cent went to the ER for worsening symptoms since their last day in daycare, compared to 12 per cent of children who did not attend daycare. More than 15 per cent of those who attended daycare were hospitalized for viral illness, compared to 6 percent among those who didn't attend daycare.

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Obesity and drink cause liver disease

2010-10-06T04:39:00.000-07:00

Binge drinking and obesity are contributing to a steep rise in deaths from liver disease. The number of deaths from damaged, diseased and worn-out livers has gone up by 60 per cent in just a decade in Britain.

Liver disease, including cancer, claimed 9,719 lives in Britain in 2008 alone, up from 6,058 10 years earlier, a report by the All-Party Parliamentary Hepatology Group said, according to the Daily Mail.

Alcohol is 75 per cent cheaper now than in 1980. Heavy drinking can inflame the liver, causing jaundice and leading to comas and even death. Long-term, excessive drinking can also cause cirrhosis, which destroys normal liver tissue and is replaced by scar tissue. The number of cases has increased 10-fold in recent decades.

Doctors have warned that the alcohol-induced problem, usually found in older adults, is now being diagnosed in teenagers. Liver cancer is also on the rise. Although it is relatively common for cancers to spread to the liver, few cancers started there until recently.

Don Shenker of the charity Alcohol Concern, which is calling for high-strength beers and ciders to be taxed more heavily, said the combination of cheap alcohol and round-the-clock drinking, had fueled a surge in drink-related deaths.

Many young people take advantage of cheap supermarket alcohol, then go out later and stay out later. So their overall alcohol consumption has gone up, he said.

Hepatitis C is also contributing to the surge in liver deaths. Many of today's deaths are from infections caught in the 1970s and 80s, before blood transfusions were screened for the virus.

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Tomatoes could protect against prostate cancer

2010-10-06T04:32:00.000-07:00

Scientists at the University of Naples suggest that a daily serving of tomatoes could protect against prostate cancer and slow the growth of a tumor in an existing sufferer, reports the Daily Mail.

The study involving mice bred to be genetically susceptible to cancer showed those fed a daily diet rich in tomato extracts were less likely to fall ill - and survived longer if they did.

The findings are the latest in a long line of studies looking at whether tomatoes can combat the disease.There have been conflicting results with some suggesting benefits and some none at all.
In the latest, scientists studied mice that had been bred to be at risk of prostate cancer.

The researchers compared those fed a normal diet with mice given at least 10 per cent of their food in the form of a powder made from cherry tomatoes.The tomato-fed mice had lower rates of cancer and survived longer than the others, they said.The study has been published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research.

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Breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories a day

2010-09-30T07:42:00.000-07:00

Breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories a day, according to a recent New York State Department of Health campaign.

As per the campaign and a recent study published in the American Journal of Medicine, this weight-loss boost can translate into other health benefits including a reduced risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

The New York DOH launched the 1.6 million dollars public health education campaign last week to educate new mothers on the health benefits of breast-feeding, reports the New York Daily News. At least 75 pc of babies today are breast-fed for some period of time compared with 60 pc 15 years ago, according to the U.S. News and World Report.

While the physicians behind the campaign say new mothers should continue to breast-feed for a year or longer, many choose not to nurse beyond six months, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Smoking and ectopic pregnancy

2010-09-30T07:35:00.000-07:00

Women who smoke regularly are four times more likely to have ectopic pregnancy than those who don't smoke, say scientists. Researchers of the Edinburgh University have found a chemical in cigarette smoke that causes a reaction, which may lead to ectopic pregnancies.

The researchers said Cotinine triggered a reaction, which increased a protein in the Fallopian tubes. The protein, called PROKR1, raised the risk of an egg implanting outside the womb.

PROKR1 allows pregnancies to implant correctly inside the womb, but its presence in the Fallopian tubes is believed to increase the risks of this happening outside the womb.

The study found that women who smoked and developed an ectopic pregnancy had twice as much PROKR1 in their Fallopian tubes as women who did not smoke and had previously had a healthy pregnancy.

Researchers believe that too much of the protein prevents the muscles in the walls of the Fallopian tubes from contracting, which in turn hinders the transfer of the egg to the womb.

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Acupuncture not good in stroke recovery

2010-09-30T07:26:00.001-07:00

Acupuncture is often used to supplement traditional stroke rehabilitation, although its effectiveness is uncertain.

This study, perhaps the most comprehensive to date as it includes trials published in English language and Asian journals, was a systematic review conducted by researchers in South Korea and the United Kingdom.They included 10 studies (out of a potential 664) with a total of 711 patients who had had strokes.

"Few randomized, sham-controlled trials have tested the effectiveness of acupuncture during stroke rehabilitation," wrote Dr. Edzard Ernst, Peninsula Medical School, Exeter, England with coauthors."The majority of the existing studies do not suggest that acupuncture is effective," he said.

They note that the only two studies showing positive effect were highly biased and had poor reporting which made them less reliable that the others included. The evidence from rigorous studies testing the effectiveness of acupuncture during stroke rehabilitation is negative."

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Joint and muscle pain - take ginger

2010-09-30T07:09:00.000-07:00

A new study has suggested that daily doses of raw or heat-treated ginger are effective for relieving muscle pain following strenuous exercise.Though a favorite remedy of Chinese medicine practitioners for centuries, ginger has not been studied widely as a pain reliever.

Some research, however, has shown that ginger may have anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties similar to non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.In one study, four to 36 weeks of daily ginger doses (30 to 500 mg.) achieved reductions in knee pain from osteoarthritis.

Researchers from the University of Georgia and Georgia College and State University examined the efficacy of multiple days of ginger doses for relieving experimentally induced muscle pain from 18 eccentric muscle exercises.

For the study, student volunteers were tested on 11 consecutive days while taking ginger supplements. Seventy-four students were divided in three groups given either raw ginger, heated ginger or placebo.

The authors hypothesized that pain ratings after exercise would be lower in the ginger group compared to placebo subjects.Results from the subjects' responses data showed that both raw and heat-treated ginger lowered muscle pain intensity after eccentric exercise by 25 and 23 per cent, respectively.

Heat treating ginger, therefore, did not increase the analgesic benefit.

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Early signs of dementia

2010-09-09T04:31:00.000-07:00

The early stages of Alzheimer's and other causes of dementia can be difficult to spot, but there are some signs that be useful in spotting the disease.

Early signs of Alzheimer's include:

Regularly misplacing everyday items, or putting things in odd places, and then forgetting or even denying having done.

Problems with everyday tasks like preparing a meal, putting it on the table, but forgetting to eat it and then preparing it all over again.

General disorientation, such as failing to recognize familiar streets and frequently becoming confused about the time of the day.

Diminished judgment, like dressing inappropriately for the weather or being unaware of dangerous situations.

Mood or behavioral problems which may resemble depression - usually a mixture of agitation, irritability, apathy and lack of care with personal hygiene.

Early signs of vascular dementia are similar, but the decline can happen in distinct steps rather than gradually.

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Meat food and cancer of the bladder and bowels

2010-09-09T04:26:00.000-07:00

Additives in processed meat such as sausages and bacon could increase risk of bladder cancer by 30 per cent, says a new study.Salts like sodium nitrite and nitrate in these foods can react with stomach acid to form cancerous products during digestion.

Scientists at the National Cancer Institute in Rockville, United States assessed the relationship between the intake of the meat additives and the risk of developing bladder cancer.

According to the Telegraph , Dr Amanda Cross, who led the study, said that not enough data was available to draw conclusive findings, and called for further studies.A few other studies have already proven a link between meat and cancer of the bladder and bowels.

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Chili peppers could reduce blood pressure

2010-09-09T04:17:00.001-07:00

Chili peppers might just be the solution for those with high blood pressure, according to a study.
The research in hypertensive rats has shown that while the active ingredient that gives the peppers their heat—a compound known as capsaicin—might set your mouth on fire, it also leads blood vessels to relax.

"We found that long-term dietary consumption of capsaicin, one of the most abundant components in chili peppers, could reduce blood pressure in genetically hypertensive rats," said Zhiming Zhu of Third Military Medical University in Chongqing, China.

Those effects depend on the chronic activation of something called the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) channel found in the lining of blood vessels. Activation of the channel leads to an increase in production of nitric oxide, a gaseous molecule known to protect blood vessels against inflammation and dysfunction, Zhu explained.

The findings in rats should be confirmed in humans through epidemiological analysis, the researchers said.It isn't yet clear just how many capsaicin-containing chili peppers a day you'd have to eat to "keep the doctor away,".

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Fish oil good against diabetes

2010-09-09T04:08:00.000-07:00

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered why eating fish may be a great idea to ward off chronic inflammation and insulin resistance.

Jerrold Olefsky and colleagues identified a key receptor on macrophages abundantly found in obese body fat. Obesity and diabetes are closely correlated. The scientists say omega-3 fatty acids activate this macrophage receptor, resulting in broad anti-inflammatory effects and improved systemic insulin sensitivity.

Obese fat tissue contains lots of these macrophages producing lots of cytokines, which cause inflammation and rising insulin resistance.Olefsky and colleagues eventually narrowed their focus to a G-protein receptor called GPR120, which is found only on pro-inflammatory macrophages in mature fat cells. When the receptor is exposed to omega-3 fatty acids, it is activated and generates a strong anti-inflammatory effect.

"The omega-3 fatty acids switch on the receptor, killing the inflammatory response," said Olefsky

"Our work shows how fish oils safely do this, and suggests a possible way to treating the serious problems of inflammation in obesity and in conditions like diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease through simple dietary supplementation.

However, it's not clear how much fish oil constitutes a safe, effective dose. If too high, it could up the risk of to increased risk of bleeding and stroke in some people.

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Albuminuria and kidney injury

2010-08-28T10:47:00.000-07:00

Doctors may be able to watch for kidney injury and protect patients by looking for protein in urine, researchers reported.Patients with the highest levels of protein, or albuminuria, had an almost five-fold increase in the risk of developing acute kidney injury, the researchers reported in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

The cheap and easy test may provide a way to watch for kidney damage and improve upon the current method, called estimated glomerular filtration rate, the team at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore said.

Acute kidney injury, common when people are in hospital, is seen in 1.6 per cent of all hospital patients and occurs when kidneys suddenly lose the ability to filter waste products from blood.

Acute kidney injury can be reversible if a patient is otherwise healthy, but often results in chronic kidney disease and kidney failure requiring dialysis or a kidney transplant.

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Link between asthma and prostate cancer

2010-08-28T10:28:00.000-07:00

Men who take steroid tablets or injections for treating severe asthma could face 70 per cent higher risk of prostate cancer. Those who regularly use an inhaler or a bronchodilator to relieve wheezing are 36 per cent more at risk, says a new study.

Even having asthma appears to increase prostate cancer risk by around 25 per cent. But the chances of a tumour are significantly higher if people start medication, says a Daily Mail report.The study was undertaken by a team of scientists in Melbourne, Australia.

They decided to look at the link between asthma and prostate cancer because both arise from inflammation in the body, according to the journal Cancer Epidemiology , Biomarkers and Prevention.

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Uterine Artery Embolization-non surgical Fibroids treatment

2010-08-17T00:50:00.000-07:00

A simple scar-less procedure that requires just an overnight stay at the hospital brings hope to women. According to experts like Dr Muley, Uterine Artery Embolization (UAE), a non-surgical treatment for fibroid is fast becoming popular the world over. Until now, the most common treatment for fibroid removal was hysterectomy.

But the surgery has an irreversible side effect. After the surgery, women had to forget about conception for the rest of their lives.During an UAE, however, the blood supply to the fibroid is reduced gradually until it is completely cut off from nourishment. Even after it has shrunk, the surrounding normal uterine muscles continue to get their requisite blood supply and can survive.

Deprived of blood, nutrition and oxygen, the fibroids shrink during the next three to six months after the embolization treatment."Around 66 per cent of women who have undergone the UAE have conceived," says Dr Muley. What makes it even more popular is that single or multiple fibroid (up to 12-14 cm in size) can be effectively treated. And the chances of recurrence are almost negligible.

The advantages of UAE are several - it is done under local anesthesia, requires only a tiny incision in the skin and the recovery period is shorter than for, say, an open surgery. Besides, all the fibroid can be treated in one sitting with the patient suffering no blood loss. Recovery is quick, but in case there is excessive vaginal bleeding, all it takes is a couple of days of rest to be up on your feet again.

Miscarriage pregnancy-best is conceive soon

2010-08-17T00:33:00.000-07:00

Women who conceive within six months after a miscarriage have a better chance of a healthy pregnancy without complications compared to women who wait longer, according to a study .They are less likely to have another miscarriage, and are also less likely to experience a cesarean section, deliver prematurely or have low-birth weight babies, the study showed.

The findings, published in the British Medical Journal , are likely to be controversial.The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that women who experience a miscarriage should wait at least six months before getting pregnant again, and other medical authorities suggest holding off even longer.

To get a clearer picture, researchers led by Sohinee Bhattacharya at the Aberdeen Maternity Hospital in Scotland reviewed the medical histories of more than 30,000 women in Scotland who had a miscarriage in their first pregnancy and then became pregnant again between 1981 and 2000.

"Our research shows that women who conceive within six months of an initial miscarriage have the best reproductive outcomes and the lowest complication rates in a subsequent pregnancy," they concluded.

Complications,difficult labour in pregnancy-chance post-natal depression

2010-08-17T00:13:00.000-07:00

A new study by Dutch researchers has found that women who have complications in pregnancy or a difficult labor stand a much greater chance of having post-natal depression than those who do not.

Post-natal depression occurs most often in the first three months after delivery and can range from mild symptoms - sometimes called the ‘baby blues’ - to clinically diagnosed post-natal depression.Women who are not diagnosed early enough can end up suffering for many months or even years.

The analysis of data from almost 5,000 women also revealed that one complication raises the chance of depression but this increases even further if more than one thing goes wrong.The researchers found that women admitted to hospital during their pregnancy had more than twice the risk of post-natal depression as those who stayed out of hospital until delivery time.

Meanwhile, women with pre-eclampsia (linked to high blood pressure) were also more than twice as likely to suffer, the researchers found.

Urinary infection take Cranberry juice regularly

2010-08-16T23:59:00.000-07:00

If you love cranberry juice, you are in luck – scientists have discovered that it can fight off urinary tract infections in people.The research illuminates the basic mechanics of E. coli infections, possibly leading to new antibiotic drugs and infection-resistant materials for invasive medical devices.

Urinary infections are caused when virulent E. coli adhere to cells.The previous study by Terri Camesano, professor of chemical engineering at WPI, had shown that cranberry juice reduces its ability to attach to urinary tract cells.

The new study explains exactly how this happens."This is not a clinical study—it's a mechanical study that shows us the direct forces that can lead to infection," said Camesano.

The study revealed that more the amount of juice one drinks, the more the attachment force of the virulent E. coli weakened.The urine flow cannot generate enough force without the juice to break this attachment to the human cells.

High fat diet, tobacco cause cancer

2010-08-16T21:29:00.001-07:00

About 10 million people are diagnosed with cancer every year worldwide, with one-third the cases related to tobacco use, one-third to diet, another large percentage to infection and the remaining to pollution, stress and other factors.

According to Lalit Kumar, professor of medical oncology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), three million cases of cancer globally are due to tobacco use alone, with lung cancer claiming half the victims.

A high fat content diet can lead to breast cancer. Women who do yoga or moderate exercise everyday have lower incidence of cancer as compared to women with sedentary lifestyles and high fat intake, Kumar said at a talk at the India International Centre Wednesday evening.

"A high fat diet also acts as a trigger for prostate cancer. Fried food and spicy food is linked to cancer of the esophagus. Preservatives in food and smoked food, which is eaten in some parts of northeast India, also act as triggers for cancer," he said, adding that high fat intake and low fibre intake can cause colon cancer.

Some fungal infections can lead to liver cancer, while the human papillomavirus has been proven to be the cause of cancer of the cervix. "But the good news is, a vaccine is available and in the next 20 years the incidence of cervical cancer will come down," he said.

Sex boosting food items could be harmful

2010-08-10T07:53:00.000-07:00

If you are thinking of buying food or beverages that claim to boost sexual appetite or slim you down, here’s a reality check—such items could take a toll on your health.

They could cause heart attacks, strokes, brain hemorrhage, increase blood pressure, cause loss of hearing or vision and worse, they could cause permanent erectile dysfunction instead.

“We have found that some products contain active ingredients, such as sildenafil, tadalafil and verdanafil,” the Star Online quoted Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai as saying.“These are used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction and can only be supplied to patients by a doctor or a licensed pharmacist upon a prescription issued by a doctor.

“These medicines, if taken without proper management by a doctor, have severe documented adverse effects like heart attack and stroke,” he told reporters after visiting the ministry’s pharmaceutical services division.

Breast cancer and oral contraceptive pills

2010-08-10T07:11:00.000-07:00

Researchers from the Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) followed 53,848 participants in the BWHS for 12 years, during which time 789 cases of breast cancer developed on which information on receptor status was obtained.

The incidence of estrogen receptor negative cancer was 65 per cent greater among women who had ever used oral contraceptives than among nonusers.

According to the BUSM researchers, the increase in risk was greatest for women who had used oral contraceptives within the previous five years and whose use had lasted 10 or more years, and the increase was greater for estrogen receptor negative than for estrogen receptor positive breast cancer.

Estrogen receptor positive tumors have a better prognosis than estrogen receptor negative breast cancers.

Lead author Lynn Rosenberg, an associate director of the Slone Epidemiology Center and professor of epidemiology at BUSM, pointed out- that oral contraceptive formulations have changed over time, making it relevant to assess the effects of more recent formulations on breast cancer risk.

High heels cause knee osteoarthritis

2010-08-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

A new study has found that prolonged wearing of and walking in high heels can contribute to joint degeneration and knee osteoarthritis. An Iowa State University kinesiology master's student Danielle Barkema, recently completed her thesis research studying the effects of high-heeled walking on forces acting on joints of the lower extremities. Kinesiology professor and department chair Phil Martin assisted her in the study.

Barkema selected three different heel heights - flat, two inches, and 3.5 inches - and had each of the 15 women in her study complete walking trials. She measured the forces acting about the knee joint and the heel strike-induced shock wave that travels up the body when walking in heels. Using sensors, accelerometers and lab equipment such as a force platform and markers/cameras, she was able to capture motion and force data and translate them into results that could change the way millions of women select their footwear.

The ISU researchers found that heel height changes walking characteristics such as slower speeds and shorter stride lengths. And as the heels got higher, they also saw an increase in the compression on the inside - or medial side - of the knee. "This means that prolonged wearing and walking in heels could, over time, contribute to joint degeneration and knee osteoarthritis," Barkema said.

"Wearing high heels regularly puts a person at risk and the higher the heel, the greater the risk," Martin added. "The loading that's being produced in the joint with every step that they take is higher - or at least, these data suggest that. These are not direct measures of loading within the joint, but they're an alternative way of looking at that kind of loading.

Smoking can increase diabetes risk

2010-06-16T06:01:00.000-07:00

Results of a new German study indicate that passive smoking can increase the risk of contracting type 2 diabetes.The survey was carried out by the German Diabetes Centre and the Helmholtz Centre and looked at 1,351 people. Until now scientific studies had only shown a link between active smoking and diabetes.

Between 1999 and 2001, researchers carried out sugar tests on the participants. This OGTT test is regarded as the gold standard of diabetes diagnosis.None of the participants, who were aged between 55 and 74, had fallen ill with diabetes at the time of the test. Seven years later the researchers carried out the same sugar test.
The smokers among the 887 re-tested participants backed up the already recognized link between using cigarettes and diabetes. But non-smokers were also at risk.

Passive smokers who at the time of the first test were exposed to cigarette smoke at home or in the office were twice as likely to develop type 2 diabetes as those who had no exposure to smoke.

Burger habit and asthma

2010-06-16T05:57:00.000-07:00

Children who love junk food and eat at least three burgers in a week are inviting asthma, says a latest research.The study which was conducted on 50,000 children across 20 countries revealed that the risk of asthma, because of improper diet, is highest of all in better-off countries, express.co.uk reports.The findings showed that youngsters who enjoy a healthy diet rich in fruit, fish and vegetables have the lowest risk to get affected by the disease.

When compared between rich and poor countries, it was found that a diet high in fish protected children against wheeze in well-off countries, while a diet rich in cooked vegetables guarded youngsters in poor countries.

Elaine Vickers, of Asthma UK has advised children to "eat a healthy, balanced diet and get plenty of exercise".

Smoking during breast feeding harms baby

2010-06-16T05:54:00.000-07:00

Mothers who smoke not only damage their children during pregnancy but can also negatively affect their development in the breast-feeding phase.Nicotine and other dangerous substances contained in tobacco enter breast milk and then the child's system, according to a new report from the German Cancer Research Centre.

The report says that the babies of mothers who smoke absorb about seven micrograms of nicotine per kilogram of body weight a day. That is the equivalent absorption rate of an adult who smokes one cigarette a day with a nicotine content level of 0.7 milligrams.

Nicotine can also get into the breast milk of non-smoking mothers if they live with a smoker.
It has been observed that if a mother smokes heavily during breast-feeding, her baby may appear restless, may vomit, can suffer from colic and weigh too little, according to the report.

It may also affect the child's sleep pattern.Smoking can also negatively affect the level of breast milk produced by the mother and lead to poor breast-feeding habits.

Calcium more than 1.5 grams per day is harmfull

2010-06-02T22:56:00.000-07:00

Postmenopausal and pregnant women, transplant recipients, patients with bulimia (an eating disorder) and individuals on dialysis face the highest risk of developing the calcium-alkali syndrome.

The incidence of the calcium-alkali or the milk-alkali syndrome is growing in large parts, because of widespread use of over-the-counter calcium and vitamin D supplements.

Study authors Stanley Goldfarb and Ami Patel from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (UPSM) recommend changing milk-alkali syndrome's name to calcium-alkali syndrome because it is now associated with a large calcium intake, not just milk.

The syndrome arose in the early 1900s when patients ingested abundant amounts of milk and (alkaline) antacids to control their ulcers.This practice increased individual risk of developing dangerously high levels of calcium in the blood, which could cause high blood pressure and even kidney failure.

The obvious preventive strategy against the calcium-alkali syndrome is to limit the intake of calcium to no more than 1.2 to 1.5 grams per day, the study co-authors said.

Food can protect from infertility

2010-04-06T10:37:00.000-07:00

Women who take diets rich in Omega-3 oils may be less likely to develop endometriosis while those whose diets are heavily laden with trans fats may be more likely to develop the debilitating condition that causes infertility, according to new study.

The study is the largest to have investigated the link between diet and endometriosis risk and the first prospective study to identify a modifiable risk factor for the condition.

It found that while the total amount of fat in the diet did not matter, the type of fat did. Women who ate the highest amount of long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids were 22 per cent less likely to be diagnosed with endometriosis than those who ate the least and that those who ate the most trans fats had a 48 per cent increased risk, compared with those who ate the least.

Long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids are found mostly in oily fish. They have been linked to reduced heart disease risk. In the study, the highest contributor towards endometriosis was mayonnaise and full-fat salad dressing, followed by fatty fish such as tuna, salmon and mackerel.

Breast cancer detection by blood test

2010-04-06T10:35:00.000-07:00

Scientists have developed a simple blood test that is capable of detecting breast cancer in women before it can be detected by standard screening methods.

Normal breast screening checks using x-rays - only detect a tumour once it is three of four times bigger, by which time it may have started to spread beyond the breast.

The new test, developed by a Norwegian company called Diagenic ASA, detects raised level of chemical markers for cancer picked up as blood flows through a tumour. It is expected to pick up a cancer the size of a small seed before a woman has developed any symptoms, reports telegraph.co.uk.

"This test will be particularly useful for younger women who are at risk of developing breast cancer," said Dr James Mackay an oncologist and researcher at University College London.

Drinking during pregnancy effect baby

2010-04-06T10:23:00.000-07:00

Moms to be, please note -- make sure that you abstain from alcohol, for a new study says that drinking during pregnancy puts your baby at risk of epilepsy.

Researchers, led by Queens University in Ontario, have carried out the study and found that children born with a condition, caused by exposure to alcohol in the womb, are more likely to suffer from debilitating seizures.

In fact, according to the researchers, being exposed to alcohol while in the womb damages parts of the developing brain associated with seizures, the Daily Mail reported.

The study looked at 425 people aged between two and 49 who had foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Fewer than one per cent of people developed epilepsy, but six per cent of those with FASD had it and 12 per cent had experienced at least one seizure, the findings revealed.

Vitamin B6 prevents colon cancer

2010-03-30T08:42:00.000-07:00

Vitamin B6 appears to play a beneficial role in preventing colon cancer, concluded a study.
Researchers led by Susanna Larsson of Sweden's National Institute of Environmental medicine traced the beneficial effects to pyridoxal-phosphate (PLP), the main active coenzyme form of vitamin B6.

"Vitamin B6 intake and blood PLP levels were inversely related with the risk of colorectal cancer," the study said.
Vitamin B6 is found in cereals, vegetables, poultry and fish as well as in some fruits like bananas and avocados.Published in a special edition of the Journal of American Medical Association , the study analysed 13 other US, European and Asian studies conducted between 2002 and 2009.

take seaweed to loss weight

2010-03-30T08:38:00.000-07:00

Seaweed could hold the key to conquering obesity, scientists believe. Their research shows that it can reduce fat uptake by more than 75 per cent.

Now, scientists at Newcastle University are adding the seaweed fibre to bread and launching trials to see if foods can be developed which can even help people lose weight.
The research team, led by Dr Iain Brownlee and Prof Jeff Pearson, has found that dietary fibre in one of the world’s largest commercially used seaweed could reduce the amount of fat absorbed by the body by around 75 per cent.

The team found that Alginate – a natural fibre found in sea kelp – stops the body from absorbing fat better than most anti-obesity treatments currently available over the counter.

Ice ball therapy hope for breast cancer

2010-03-30T08:31:00.000-07:00

A technique for destroying breast tumours by freezing them with ice could offer hope of a safe non-surgical cure for the disease, a study suggests.

The technique called cryotherapy is already used to treat prostate cancer and involves inserting several needle-like 'cryoprobes' into the tumour and passing super-cold gas through them," reports dailymail.co.uk.
The ice ball rapidly created around each site kills off the cancerous cells. Freezing therapy has been tried before for breast cancer but this is the first time a minimally invasive version, which requires no surgery, has been developed.

Cancer experts, however, warned it may take many years for the technique to become common.

Married couples and obeisty

2010-03-22T01:13:00.000-07:00

The research was based on the study of more than 17,000 couples aged between 20 and 70, reports The Telegraph.From analyses, it was found that married couples exercised less frequently, had less sex, had poor nutrition and were 'comfortable' in their lives.

Married couples spend more time eating together, sit in front of the TV more and often order takeaway ready meals while exercising less.

Scientists from Salonica and Ioannina Universities concluded that 'abdominal obesity, or belly fat' was the worst problem among married people.

Prof Dimitris Kiortsis, from Ioannina University for Obesity, said most married couples also have less sex, which is considered intense exercise that burns calories.

Tag : Obesity, weight loss, burn fat, women obesity, men obesity

Higher prostate cancer risk in infertile men

2010-03-22T01:08:00.000-07:00

The study showed that infertile men have an increased risk of developing high-grade prostate cancer, which is more likely to grow and spread quickly.The study's results suggest that because infertility may be an identifiable risk factor for prostate cancer, early screening may be warranted in infertile men.

Research focusing on the number of children a man has have pointed to male fertility's potential associated with risk for prostate cancer.

However, studies on the topic have generated conflicting results: some have found that men with children had a higher risk than childless men; some have found that men with fewer children had a higher risk than men with more children; still others failed to identify any association between the number of children fathered and a man's risk for prostate cancer.

However, men who were evaluated and found to be infertile were 2.6 times more likely to be diagnosed with high-grade prostate cancer than men who were evaluated but were found not to be infertile. The study has been published early online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

Apricot kernels may help fight cancer

2010-03-08T02:52:00.000-08:00

A man diagnosed with a rare, incurable lymphoma claims that he has been able to cheat death for 13 years by eating apricot kernels.

Paul Reid insists that the 'cancer-killing' properties in the kernels, rich in vitamin B17, and a strict vegetarian diet have cured him, despite the doctors telling him he would live for just five more years.

"I don't think my journey has been unscientific, it's just that there's been no science in a big way applied to it,” the Age quoted him as saying.He added: "We're not immortal, but I believe I'll be healthy from taking this direction.”

However, health experts are worried that Reid is among the growing number of cancer patients who are putting their faith in 'anti-cancer' diets promoted by alternative health practitioners, which may not always work.

Diabetes attack on memory power

2010-03-08T02:50:00.000-08:00

Diabetic retinopathy could be associated with poorer memory and diminished brain power in people with Type 2 diabetes, according to a new research.

For the study, researchers at Edinburgh University looked at 1,066 people with type 2 diabetes aged between 60 and 75.

Participants in the study completed seven tests focusing on memory, logic and concentration to establish their level of brain function.

The researchers found that those with retinopathy had worse scores on most of the individual tests, as well as on general cognitive ability, compared with those without the condition.

Depression and diabetes risk dementia in adults

2010-03-08T02:31:00.000-08:00

A new study has shown that major depression more than doubles the risk of dementia among adults with diabetes.

Dementia is the progressive decline of thinking and reasoning abilities. These can include memory loss, difficulty with basic math, wandering, living in the past, personality changes, and not recognizing familiar people.

"Diabetes alone has shown to be a risk factor for dementia, as has major depression by itself," said the lead author of the study, Dr Wayne Katon, University of Washington (UW) professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences.

The study team also included researchers from the Group Health Research Institute in Seattle and the Veterans Affairs (VA) Puget Sound Health Care System, as well as UW researchers in medicine and in epidemiology.

Electromagnetism helps osteoarthritis patients

2010-03-08T02:26:00.000-08:00

Henry Ford Hospital researchers have claimed that electromagnetic pulses significantly decrease pain and inflammation associated with osteoarthritis of the knee.

In the double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled study, 34 patients used a portable battery-operated device that emits a low-intensity pulsating electromagnetic frequency and experienced more than 40 per cent pain relief on their first day.

"Our results show pulsed electromagnetic fields caused a significant decrease in pain" says Fred Nelson, MD, associate program director for research and director of the Osteoarthritis Center, Department of Orthopaedics, Henry Ford Hospital.

Dr Nelson will present the results this week at the Orthopaedic Research Society's annual meeting in New Orleans.

Female wine drinkers at lower obesity risk

2010-03-08T01:29:00.000-08:00

The study, which included more than 19,000 women, also found that ladies who enjoy a glass of wine after work are likely to gain less weight than those who stick to mineral water, reports The Times.

To reach the conclusion, Lu Wang, a medical instructor at Brigham and Women's hospital, Boston, and colleagues asked 19,220 American women aged 39 or older with a healthy body weight to describe their drinking habits in a questionnaire. About 38 per cent drank no alcohol.

After following the participants for the next 13 years, the researchers found that all the women tended to gain weight but the non-drinkers gained the most. The women's overall weight gain decreased as alcohol intake increased.

Tag : health, deit, obesity,weight loss

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2009-12-21T03:01:00.000-08:00

Some tips to lower your cholesterol

2009-10-27T09:56:00.000-07:00

Limit saturated fat - Saturated fat (often referred to as animal fat) — from foods such as poultry skin, full-fat dairy products, and fatty cuts of beef, lamb, and pork — can stimulate cholesterol production in the body and cause your total cholesterol and bad cholesterol to rise.

Avoid trans fats - Trans fats, or partially hydrogenated oils (check the list of ingredients on nutrition labels), maybe even more damaging to cholesterol levels than saturated fats because they can raise your LDL cholesterol while lowering HDL ("good") cholesterol. Studies have shown that trans fats may also increase the risk of cancer. Foods like stick margarine, baked goods, and crackers, chips, and other processed snacks, which often contain trans fats; instead these unhealthy choices are replaced by products made with good monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in olive, peanut, and canola oils.

Maintain a healthy weight - Being overweight can also cause an increase in LDL cholesterol. For most people, losing weight decreases your LDL; in addition, for every two pounds you lose, your HDL (“good” cholesterol) level may increase by 0.35mg/dL.

Exercise smart and often - A mere 20 minutes of aerobic exercise that incorporates interval training every other day can also help lower LDL levels and raise HDL levels. Combing a healthy eating plan and exercise can help further your weight loss, which will likely lower cholesterol levels even more. The important thing is to be consistent: Find aerobic activities you enjoy. Walking, swimming, and biking are all good choices.

Quit smoking - In addition to being a major risk factor for heart disease and cancer, cigarette smoking can also contribute to low HDL levels. If you smoke, quitting can raise HDL levels by 10 per cent.

Seek medical help - If none of the above tactics helps lower your cholesterol, or if you have a family history of high cholesterol or heart disease, it may be necessary to seek medical help in the form of a cholesterol-lowering drug. Consult your physician to find the best course of action.

Green tea good for bone health

2009-09-22T04:30:00.000-07:00

The boffins found that the tea contains a group of chemicals that can stimulate bone formation and help slow its breakdown. The study has been published in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry , a bi-weekly publication.

In the study, Ping Chung Leung and colleagues noted that many scientific studies have linked tea to beneficial effects in preventing cancer, heart disease, and other conditions.To reach the conclusion, scientists exposed a group of cultured bone-forming cells (osteoblasts) to three major green tea components - epigallocatechin (EGC), gallocatechin (GC), and gallocatechin gallate (GCG) - for several days.

They found that one in particular, EGC, boosted the activity of a key enzyme that promotes bone growth by up to 79 percent. EGC also significantly boosted levels of bone mineralization in the cells, which strengthens bones.

Carrots help boost vision

2009-07-18T01:04:00.000-07:00

In a five-year study, scientists in Belfast and Waterford showed that the intake of high levels of both carotenoids - rich antioxidants found in fruit and vegetables - preserved macular pigments, slowing down the progression from early to late age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

AMD is an incurable eye disease which causes blurring of central vision because of its effects on the macula, the central part of the retina.

To reach the conclusion, Professor Usha Chakravarthy, from the Queen's University Centre of Vision and Vascular Science, looked at nutritional supplements for patients with AMD and found they helped sharpen vision.

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Skin cancer cream for wrinkles' cure

2009-07-18T00:51:00.000-07:00

US scientists led by Dr Dana Sachs, of the University of Michigan Medical School, have found that besides reducing potentially cancerous skin patches, Fluorouracil ointment, also known as Efudex, can mend the damage seen on sun- exposed faces.

Sachs said: “Undoubtedly, there will be patients who desire a therapy such as topical fluorouracil for cosmetic purposes given the relatively low cost.”

The cream, which is used to treat actinic keratoses, a precancerous condition, appears to cause a wound-healing response that leads to an increase in collagen production, which then improves the appearance of wrinkles, reports The Daily Express.

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Curd can help lose excess weight

2009-07-18T00:41:00.000-07:00

Probiotics are the so-called ‘good’ bacteria found in yogurt as well as in over-the-counter dietary supplements that help in the digestion of food.

New research from the Stanford University School of Medicine and Stanford Hospital & Clinics suggests that patients who take probiotics after the gastric-bypass procedure tend to shed more pounds than those who don't take the supplements.

"Surprisingly, the probiotic group attained a significantly greater percent of excess weight loss than that of control group," said John Morton, MD, associate professor of surgery at the medical school who wrote the paper with lead author Gavitt Woodard, a third-year medical student, and five other medical students at the Surgery Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation in Stanford''s Department of Surgery.

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Pregnancy stress can damage baby's brain

2009-07-18T00:24:00.000-07:00

The researchers behind the exhibit, from Imperial College London, hope that it will raise awareness among families of the importance of reducing levels of stress and anxiety in expectant mothers.

Reducing stress during pregnancy can help prevent thousands of children from developing emotional and behavioural problems, they said.Visitors to the exhibition will have the chance to play a game that shows how a mother's stress can increase the heart rate of her unborn baby.

They will also be able to touch a real placenta, encased safely in plastic. The placenta is crucial for foetal development as it usually protects the unborn baby from the stress hormone cortisol.
However, when the mother is stressed, the placenta becomes less protective and the mother's cortisol may have an effect on the foetus, said an Imperial release.

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Lifestyle stress raise infertility problems

2009-07-18T00:13:00.000-07:00

A University of Adelaide (U-A) study has advised infertile couples to seek advice about their lifestyle before embarking on IVF treatment or other assisted reproductive technology.

Gillian Homan, fertility nurse specialist from the University's Robinson Institute, says that couples experiencing infertility should understand the role their own lifestyle can play in helping them achieve their goal of a healthy baby.

The reproductive health researcher surveyed 20 new patients from the Adelaide fertility clinic Repromed to gauge their perception of how lifestyle affects fertility.While the evidence of the impact of weight on fertility is very strong, only half of theoverweight women in this study considered their own weight to be a risk factor for infertility.

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Turmeric root cuts breast cancer risk

2009-07-18T00:02:00.000-07:00

Studies conducted in the past have suggested that a combined oestrogen and progestin hormone replacement therapy increases postmenopausal women’s risk of developing progestin-accelerated breast tumours.

“The results of our study show that women could potentially take curcumin to protect themselves from developing progestin-accelerated tumours," said Salman Hyder, the Zalk Endowed Professorship in Tumor Angiogenesis and professor of biomedical sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and the Dalton Cardiovascular Research Centre.

The study conducted using animal model showed that curcumin delayed the first appearance, decreased incidence and reduced multiplicity of progestin-accelerated tumours.
Curcumin also prevented the appearance of gross morphological abnormalities in the mammary glands.

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Earlier obesity ups frailty later

2009-05-27T01:31:00.000-07:00

A new study, conducted by Finnish researchers, has found that people who are overweight or obese in middle age are more likely to be frail in later life.

During the study of more than 1,000 men, lead author Dr Timo Strandberg and colleagues found that those who put on weight in their 40s had the highest risk of death and illness
but lost it when they got older.

It is believed that the heart risk associated with middle-aged spread puts men at risk of 'frailty' even if they have no obvious illness.For the study, the researchers followed the men from age 25 through to their 70s.

They found that those who put on weight in their 40s had a worse prognosis in middle age than those who stayed a normal weight.

Tag :childhood obesity,obesity in america,obesity in children,obesity statistics,obesityhelp,morbid obesity,causes of obesity,obesity surgery,obesity facts,obesity epidemic

Diabetes drug lowers amputation risk

2009-05-26T23:56:00.000-07:00

Doctors who gave diabetics, a drug originally intended to lower patients' cholesterol found it reduced their risk of so-called minor amputation by 36 per cent, a new analysis of research says.

Researchers in Australia, Finland and New Zealand studied almost 10,000 patients aged 50 to 75 with type 2 diabetes, the kind linked to obesity. About half of the patients were given fenofibrate, a drug available generically and sold as Antara, Fenoglide, Lipofen and others. The other half got fake pills. After five years, 115 patients had at least one lower limb amputation because of diabetes.

Diabetes can damage nerves and blood vessels. In severe cases, this leads to amputation. About one diabetes patient in 10 loses part of a leg.

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Eating less helps keep brain sharp

2009-02-19T05:43:00.000-08:00

Eating less can help older adults improve their memory and prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer’s, suggests a new study.Cutting on calorie intake increases lifespan in mice, reduces the risk of heart disease in people and boosts cognitive ability in elderly animals, it has been shown.

To see if the cognitive benefit held for people, Agnes Floel and team, at the University of Munster in Germany tested the short term memory of 50 people with an average age of 60, who were overweight, but not obese, and then got one-third to eat 30% fewer calories than normal each day.

Post three months, the dieters scored 20% higher on the test than they had before the diet, recalling on average 12.5 words compared to 10.5.
“Two words may not seem like much, but it’s more than the difference between people under 30 and above 50,” says Agnes Floel.

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moderate weight loss cuts heart disease risk

2009-02-19T05:33:00.000-08:00

Even a moderate weight reduction in fat individuals could save them a lifetime of health troubles, especially heart disease, says a new study.

Doctors at the Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center in Houston have demonstrated a significant motivation to drop even a modest amount of weight."Obesity appears to be the central component of the metabolic syndrome.

Our study have shown that weight loss of as little as 6.5 percent in individuals with the disease results in substantial reductions in blood pressure, glucose, triglycerides and total cholesterol, all factors that lead to heart disease," said Christie Ballantyne, MD, director of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at the Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center and Baylor College of Medicine.

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High BP in pregnancy ups risk in later life

2009-02-17T22:21:00.000-08:00

Women who suffer from high blood pressure during pregnancy are at a higher risk of chronic hypertension and type 2 diabetes for the rest of their lives, according to a new study.

Yale School of Medicine researchers along with the University of Copenhagen, Denmark have found that women who have had two pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia are at an even higher risk of hypertension after pregnancy.

For the study, the researchers analyzed the data of over 11 million women who gave birth in Denmark from 1978 to 2007 Of those women with preeclampsia, a complication of pregnancy linked to life-threatening cardiovascular disease, the risks of subsequent hypertension risks were compounded with each affected pregnancy.

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Smoking linked to premature aging

2009-02-15T06:52:00.000-08:00

WASHINGTON: Researchers from University of Iowa have found a link between smoking and premature aging.They identified a key protein that is lost in Werner's syndrome (premature aging) is decrease din smokers with emphysema i.e. chronic lung disease. This decrease harms lung cells that normally heal wounds.

"Smoking can accelerate the aging process and shorten the lifespan by an average of more than 10 years," said Toru Nyunoya, M.D., assistant professor of internal medicine at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine and a pulmonologist with University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

"We focused on what happens within the lungs because of the similar aging effects, including atherosclerotic diseases and cancer, seen in people with Werner's syndrome and people who smoke.

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Access water bad during childbirth

2009-02-15T06:41:00.000-08:00

A high water intake can be harmful during childbirth, causing headaches, nausea, vomiting and brain swelling that result in convulsions,according to a new study.

This condition results when hyponatraemia or too little sodium in the blood occurs because of excess water consumption. It causes swelling of the brain (cerebral oedema), triggering convulsions and even coma.The study is based on 287 pregnant women in Kalmar County Hospital, southeast Sweden, between January and June 2007. They were allowed to drink freely during their labour.

Blood samples were collected on admission and after delivery. Cord blood samples were also taken and analyzed to see if the effects could be detected in the baby.

The study found that 61 women had taken more than 2.5 liters of fluid during labor and 16 of them were found to have hyponatraemia. Researchers found that a reduction in plasma sodium levels correlated with a longer second stage of labor.

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Obese pregnancy ups birth defects

2009-02-15T03:20:00.000-08:00

Obese pregnant women are slightly more at risk of having babies with birth defects, according to an analysis of several studies published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

While the absolute risk increase is likely to be small, congenital anomalies linked to maternal obesity include, "a neural tube defect (nearly twice the odds), including spina bifida (more than twice the odds)," the authors of the analysis said.

Other defects include "cleft palate and cleft lip and palate; anorectal atresia (abnormality of the anus/rectum); hydrocephaly (abnormal enlargement of the ventricles of the brain
due to accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid); and a limb reduction anomaly.

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Hepatitis C virus itself kills liver cells

2009-02-15T03:08:00.000-08:00

While liver disease in hepatitis C patients is thought to be caused by the immune system's attack on the cells in the infected organ,University of Alberta researchers report finding that the virus behind the disease itself kills liver cells.

Michael Joyce, who led the study, has revealed that his team transplanted human liver cells into mice, which lack an adaptive immune system.He said that the team later infected the transplanted cells with the hepatitis C virus.

He and his colleagues found the virus damaging liver cells itself, and thereby causing them to die.
The researchers also found that hepatitis C causes inflammation, which is the second step in liver disease.

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Chickpeas can cure skin disease leucoderma

2009-02-13T07:28:00.000-08:00

Chickpeas hold the cure for leucoderma, a chronic skin disease that causes loss of pigment, resulting in white spots or patches on the skin, claim scientists of the Banaras Hindu University (BHU).

In a research project undertaken jointly by the varsity's medicinal chemistry and skin departments, scientists have found that application of a poly-herbal ointment with chickpeas as its base can efficiently treat leucoderma or vitiligo, controlling the spread of the skin disease that is widely feared for the unsightly white patches it produces.

"The results were encouraging," said an elated Yamini Tripathi, a professor with BHU's medicinal chemistry department and a member of the research team, said.

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Botox in pregnancy behind birth defects

2009-02-13T07:14:00.000-08:00

Getting botox jabs during pregnancy may cause birth defects in unborn children, according to Australian doctors.

The warning by Cosmetic Physicians Society of Australasia follows reports of a case in which a link was made between a child born deaf and blind and its mother’s use of an anti-wrinkle treatment during pregnancy. “Botulinum toxin should not be prescribed to pregnant women and we advise our members to strictly follow these guidelines,” said the CPSA’s Dr Gabrielle Caswell.

The 2005 case involved a botulinum type A toxin drug called Dysport. The mother was reportedly injected with the muscle-relaxant cosmetic treatment in the first month of pregnancy.

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Nuts, vegetable may keep your heart healthy

2009-02-13T07:03:00.000-08:00

The American Heart Association says that it may be beneficial to include omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs)-found in vegetable oils, nuts and seeds--in diet plans charted for keeping the heart healthy.

The new Science Advisory report suggests that consumers aim for at least five to ten per cent of energy (calories) from omega-6 PUFAs.It further states that one can derive most benefit when omega-6 PUFAs replace saturated or trans fats in the diet.

The report adds that precise recommended daily servings will depend on physical activity level, age and gender, but range between 12 and 22 grams per day.

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Stress can make you older

2009-02-13T06:30:00.000-08:00

Wrinkles are not due to genetics alone but also to stressful environmental factors, such as a divorce, abnormal weight loss and use of antidepressants, according to a new study.

“A person’s heritage may initially dictate how they age - but if you introduce certain factors into your life, you will certainly age faster. Likewise, if you avoid those factors, you can slow down the hands of time,” said the lead author of the study, Bahaman Guyuron, an American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) member.

Researchers examined 186 pairs of identical twins because “they are genetically programmed to age exactly the same”, explained Guyuron, chairman of the department of plastic surgery
at the University Hospitals Case Medical Center, in Cleveland, Ohio.

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Smoking Marijuana may double testicular cancer risk

2009-02-13T06:26:00.000-08:00

Marijuana use may increase the risk of developing testicular cancer, in particular a more aggressive form of the disease, according to a US study published on Monday.

The study of 369 Seattle-area men ages 18 to 44 with testicular cancer and 979 men in the same age bracket without the disease found that being an existing cannabis user raised the risk of cancer by 70%, while men who had used the drug regularly from puberty were twice as likely to develop the disease than those who had not used the drug.

Stephen Schwartz of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, one of the researchers, said that the study was the first to explore marijuana's possible association with testicular cancer.

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Marijuana is good for memory loss and alzheimer

2009-01-09T22:11:00.000-08:00

A daily puff of marijuana can help reduce memory loss in old age and fight Alzheimer’s, a shocking new study has revealed. According to Ohio State University scientists, specific elements of marijuana can be good for the aging brain by reducing inflammation there and possibly even stimulating the formation of new brain cells.

The research suggests that the development of a legal drug that contains certain properties similar to those in marijuana might help prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer’s.

Though the exact cause of the disease remains unknown, chronic inflammation in the brain is believed to contribute to memory impairment.

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Insulin spray for diabetes patients

2009-01-09T21:57:00.000-08:00

Diabetes patients on insulin, suffering from acute injection phobia, have an alternative with the launch of Oral-Recosulin , arecombinant DNA human insulin buccal spray.
The spray, which is on phase-3 trial and yet to be launched in the US, has been approved for marketing in India.

Announcing the launch, Shreya Life Science Pvt Ltd, domestic business director Ram Shelat said: "It has been approved for marketing in India. We are waiting for price approval, and by the first week of December, it will be available in the Indian market."

For the treatment of both Type-1 and Type-2 diabetes, Oral-Recosulin can be used. This buccal insulin spray is developed by Shreya Life Science Pvt Ltd's US collaborator Generex Biotechnology.

Buccal spray delivers insulin through buccal mucosa, directly to the vascular system without entering the lungs."Approximately, it costs Rs 2,000 per pack and each pack offers 80 units.

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Drink green tea keep you trim

2009-01-09T21:47:00.000-08:00

No doubt, exercise is the best way to melt the flab. But, a new study says that even sipping three cups of green tea a day could help one stay trim.An international team has carried out the study and found that drinking three cups of green tea daily could help one shed that extra pound even while eating junk food, the 'Daily Mail' reported.

According to the researchers, green tea stops fat cells from releasing inflammatory chemicals which attract more fat causing them to grow in size.Moreover, it also cuts high blood pressure levels and makes it easier for the body.

"If someone had told me you could do all these things with something as simple as green tea with olive extract, I would said they'd been out in the sun too long. It is simply amazing," lead researcher Dr Lindsay Brown said.

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Fusarium fungus can slash heart attack, obesity

2009-01-09T21:33:00.000-08:00

A vegetarian super food, which is made from fungus, can cut the risk of having a heart attack and help people stay slim.What's more, the miracle item can also slash the risk of suffering from diabetes, says the study published in the British Nutrition Foundation's journal.

According to experts, a diet rich in mycoprotein can lower cholesterol and could help reduce high levels of blood glucose and insulin. It may also prolong a feeling of fullness after a meal, potentially helping people to slim.

Mycoprotein is a meat-free form of high quality protein which is made by adding oxygen, nitrogen, glucose and minerals to a natural fungus called Fusarium venenatum.It is found in meat free products like mince, sausages, escalopes, deli food and ready meals.

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Obesity can damage thyroid hormones

2008-12-21T23:19:00.000-08:00

Obese children may be damaging their thyroids, creating a vicious cycle of metabolism and overweight.Obesity may cause inflammation that damages the thyroid, which secretes hormones to regulate metabolism and other important functions, Giorgio Radetti of the Regional Hospital of Bolzano in Italy and colleagues said.

They evaluated 186 overweight and obese children for about three years, testing thyroid hormone levels and thyroid antibodies and imaging the thyroid gland using ultrasound.“We found an association between body mass index and thyroid hormone levels which suggests that fat excess may have a role in thyroid tissue modification,” Radetti said.

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What is the diabetes amputations

2008-12-21T23:01:00.000-08:00

Diabetes is responsible for over 1 million amputations each year. Cardio-vascular disease is the major cause of death accounting for 70% of all diabetes fatalities, said president, DiabetesIndia, S R Arvind.

Speaking on the 3rd DiabetesIndia International conference organized by the DiabetesIndia to be held from December 5-7, Arvind said India is the expanding diabetes capital. Over 40 million are suffering from diabetes in the country and it is going to increase multifold in the next 15 years. Unfortunately, there are only 22,000 trained physicians.

The theme of the conference will be `Diabetes is just not glucose' and will have scientific sessions covering all aspects of diabetes. It will see orations, plenary sessions, guest lectures, workshops and debates.

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Deep sllep boost creativity and memory

2008-12-21T22:41:00.000-08:00

Just in time for the holidays, some medical advice most people will like Take a nap. Interrupting sleep seriously disrupts memory-making, compelling new research suggests. But on the flip side, taking a nap may boost a sophisticated kind of memory that helps us see the big picture and get creative.

"Not only do we need to remember to sleep, but most certainly we sleep to remember," is how William Fishbein, a cognitive neuroscientist at the City University of New York, put it at a meeting of the Society for Neuroscience last week.

Scientists increasingly are focusing less on sleep duration and more on the quality of sleep, what's called sleep intensity, in studying how sleep helps the brain process memories so they stick. Particularly important is "slow-wave sleep", a period of very deep sleep that comes earlier than better-known REM sleep, or dreaming time.

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What is the type 2 Diabetes

2008-12-20T03:28:00.000-08:00

There are several types of illness that fall under the name “diabetes.” In all types, a person’s body has trouble keeping blood sugar stable. With type 2 diabetes, the cells resist the efforts of insulin to open them up and let glucose inside. This is known as insulin resistance.

As the condition progresses in many cases of type 2, the pancreas also does not produce enough insulin. More than 90 percent of all cases of diabetes are type 2. The disturbing increase in diabetes cases in recent years involves type 2.

Type 2 diabetes is most often diagnosed in older people. This is why it has been called adult-onset diabetes. This label is no longer used, because it is misleading. Young people can also be diagnosed with type 2. In fact, so many young people today are being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes that it is considered an epidemic.

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Skin cancer take Vitamin B3

2008-12-20T03:08:00.000-08:00

Vitamin B3 found in meat, nuts, grains and cereals is more effective in preventing skin cancer
caused by harmful ultraviolet rays thanthe sunscreens, according to a new research.

"Our research has found that Nicotinamide (Vitamin B3), found in meat, nuts, grains and cereals if taken in tablet form or added to sunscreen, can prevent the immuno-suppressive effects of UV by energising cells so they maintain their immunity," said researcher Diona Damian, Associate Professor from Sydney University.

The UV radiation in sunlight suppresses the skin's immune system and makes it more susceptible to skin cancer.Sunscreens were found effective in protecting skin against UVB rays but proved less effective in protection against UVA. Nicotinamide or Vitamin B3 prevents damage from both UVA and UVB radiation by protecting the immune system, an AAP report said quoting Damian.

According to tests done on volunteers, water-soluble vitamin B3 offered equally strong protection against both UVA and UVB — in both lotion and tablet form, she said, adding Nicotinamide is well-tolerated, so could also be taken orally as a supplement, particularly by people who have a higher susceptibility to skin cancer.

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What is the Symptoms of Diabetes

2008-12-20T00:55:00.000-08:00

The symptoms of all forms of diabetes are alike. One symptom is having to urinate a lot. Other symptoms include blurry vision, itchy skin or skin infections, sores that take a long time to heal, unusual thirst, tiredness, dizzy spells, nerve pain, and losing weight while being hungry all the time.

If you have type 2 diabetes, you may have mild symptoms for many years before learning you have the illness. You may have no symptoms but find out you have the disease after a screening test at the doctor’s office.

Diagnosis is important, even when symptoms are mild or absent. Early detection can prevent the health problems that arise sooner or later from untreated type 2 diabetes.

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Maintain cholesterol level for good health

2008-12-20T00:46:00.000-08:00

Is 'good cholesterol' really good for you; not so, suggests a new study.University of Chicago (U-C) researchers challenged popular notion that simply having high levels of good cholesterol (HDL) and low levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) is necessary for good heath.

Instead, they show that the good cholesterol has varying degrees of quality and that poor quality HDL is actually bad for you.Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance used by the body to maintain the proper function of cell membranes and is encapsulated within two types of proteins as it travels in the body - low density lipoproteins (LDL) and high-density lipoproteins (HDL).

High levels of LDL or total cholesterol are an indicator of increased risk for heart disease. High blood cholesterol elicits no physical symptoms, making medical screenings necessary for detection.

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Brewed tea can protect your teeth

2008-12-19T23:15:00.000-08:00

Forget lattes and fresh lime juice, the best thing to drink is brewed tea, for it has no erosive effect on teeth and its antioxidants provide health benefits, according to a new research.
Refined sugars and acids found in soda and citrus juice promote tooth erosion, which wears away the hard part of the teeth, or the enamel. Once tooth enamel is lost, it's gone forever.

However, brewed tea is a beverage that does not produce such irreversible results.Apart from tasting good, brewed tea has many health benefits. Tea is loaded with natural antioxidants, which are thought to decrease incidence of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.

Study, lead author Mohamed A. Bassiouny, compared green and black tea to soda and orange juice in terms of their short- and long-term erosive effect on human teeth.

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Purple tomato that fights neurological diseases

2008-11-01T07:58:00.000-07:00

LONDON: A purple tomato genetically engineered to contain nutrients more commonly seen in dark berries helped prevent cancer in mice, British researchers said on Sunday.The finding, published in the journal Nature Biotechnology, bolsters the idea that plants can be genetically modified to make people healthier.

Cancer-prone mice fed the modified fruit lived significantly longer than animals fed a standard diet with and without regular tomatoes, Cathie Martin and colleagues at the government-funded John Innes Centre in Britain reported."The effect was much bigger than we had expected," said Martin, a plant biologist.

The study focused on anthocyanins, a type of antioxidant found in berries such as blackberries and blackcurrants that have been shown to lower risk of cancer, heart disease and some neurological diseases.

Anti retroviral treatment for HIV

2008-11-01T02:57:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON: Starting anti-retroviral treatment earlier sharply improves survival rates for people infected with HIV, according to a new study.

Researchers say analysis of thousands of HIV-positive patients between 1996 and 2006 found a 71-percent higher risk of death for those who delayed treatment compared with those initiating early highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) reported Sunday.

The study, led by Mari Kitahata of the University of Washington-Seattle, looked at 8,374 patients whose CD4+ T-cells -- key "helper" cells in the body's immune system -- were between 351 and 500 cells per square millimeter in blood.

Thirty percent of subjects in the study began taking HAART right away, while 70 percent waited until their T-cell count dropped below 350, when the immune system is considered seriously compromised.

Stress may activate immune cells in skin

2008-11-01T02:46:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON: Researchers from University of Medicine Berlin and McMaster University in Canada have found that stress may activate immune cells in the skin, leading to inflammatory skin disease.

This cross talk between stress perception, which involves the brain, and the skin is mediated through the "brain-skin connection".The immune cells in skin can over-react, resulting in inflammatory skin diseases like atopic dermatitis and psoriasis.

Study leader Petra Arck hypothesized that stress could exacerbate skin disease by increasing the number of immune cells in the skin.The researcher said that the team exposed mice to sound stress, and found that the stress challenge resulted in higher numbers of mature white blood cells in the skin.

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Defective ACE2 gene causes heart attack

2008-11-01T02:42:00.000-07:00

SYDNEY: A faulty gene variant that can cause heart attack mortalities also potentially opens the way for improved treatment following such attacks.

"It's been known for some time that a defective ACE2 gene is associated with high blood pressure, but our research has also clearly linked one variant of this gene to a greater likelihood of mortality after heart attack," said lead researcher Barry Palmer of Otago University, Christchurch."This is particularly in middle aged males who have acute coronary syndromes, or reduced flow of blood to the heart," he added.

Otago scientists carried out the study over three years on a large cohort of 1,075 people (males and females) recruited from hospitals. They found, after adjusting for variables such as age, that male patients are almost twice as likely to die if they had one particular (defective) variant of the ACE2 gene.

Nicotine can raise breast cancer risk

2008-11-01T02:37:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON: Nicotine could play a role in the development and growth of tumors in breast cancer, according to a new study published on Wednesday.Researchers studied for the first time the effects of nicotine on mammary cells and concluded the chemical found in cigarette smoke could contribute to cancerous growth.

“Although numerous studies indicate the role of nicotine exposure in tumor promotion, little is known about the effect of nicotine on breast tumor development,” said lead author of the study Chang Yan Chen, from the research team at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at Harvard University, Massachusetts.

Through a series of tests, researchers found that both breast epithelial cells — protective cell tissue that lines organs throughout the body — and cancerous cells have nicotine receptors (nAChR), which have the potential to increase cell growth and migration in the presence of nicotine.

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Coffee can shrink breast size

2008-11-01T02:23:00.000-07:00

LONDON: Drinking coffee in moderation may be okay, but downing more than three cups daily can shrink the size of your breasts, a new study has revealed.

Researchers in Sweden have carried out the study and claimed that women who take more than three cups of the caffeine-fuelled drink a day could see their bra size drop, the 'Daily Star' reported.Tests by cancer researchers found half of all women have a gene linking breast size to coffee intake.

Nearly 300 women were quizzed but Helena Jernstroem, of Lund University, said women should not worry too much.She explained: "Coffee-drinking women do not have to worry their breasts will shrink to nothing overnight. They will get smaller, but the breasts aren't just going to disappear.

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Obesity can raise illness risk

2008-11-01T02:18:00.000-07:00

LONDON: Being obese can raise illness risk as it negatively impacts body's internal chemistry, a new research has shown.Researchers from United States found that levels of white blood cells were highest in men who were unfit and overweight. White blood cells are key to fighting infection, but high levels can be a sign of inflammation, which is linked to coronary heart disease.

To reach the conclusion, a team from the Pennington Biomedical Research Center carried out tests on 452 healthy men who were taking part in a long-term study of fitness.Blood tests were taken, and analyzed for their content of various types of white blood cell.

After taking account of age, the researchers found that all groups of white blood cell were lowest in the men who were most physically fit.The greater proportion of body fat a man had, the higher his white blood cell count was. Total white cell count was highest in men who had a combination of higher body fat and lower levels of physical fitness.

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More tea and coffee for long life

2008-11-01T02:08:00.000-07:00

LONDON: Want to live a long and healthy life? Make sure you eat chocolate, and drink tea and coffee in moderation daily, says a leading nutritional scientist.Yes, according to Prof Gary Williamson of University of Leeds, chocolate, tea and coffee are among some key foods and beverages needed to live a long and healthy life, British newspaper 'The Daily Telegraph' reported.

In fact, Prof Williamson has prepared a list of 20 "lifespan essential" foodstuffs -- all are rich in naturally occurring chemicals, known as polyphenols, which have been linked to a variety of health benefits, including protection against heart disease.

And, these foods and drinks could also help to slow down the aging process by helping to protect cells from the natural damage that occurs over time, he has suggested.

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Symptoms of alzheimers disease

2008-11-01T01:59:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON: Complete or partial removal of an enzyme that regulates fatty acid levels improves brain related deficits in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease, according to new research.Scientists from Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease (GIND) and University of California have identified specific fatty acids that may contribute to the disease as well as a novel therapeutic strategy.

Alzheimer’s disease causes a progressive loss of brain related functions and eventual death. Although existing treatments might ease symptoms, researchers are yet to discover a cure. “Several different proteins have been implicated in Alzheimer’s disease,” said Lennart Mucke, GIND director and co-author of the study, “but we wanted to know more about the potential involvement of lipids and fatty acids”.

Fatty acids are rapidly taken up by the brain and incorporated into phosphide's, a class of fats that form the membrane that shields the content of cells from the environment.

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Sweetener food inceases obesity risk

2008-10-21T05:05:00.000-07:00

Experiments on rats have shown that eating too much fructose, common sweetener found in many foods, increases the risk of lepton resistance, a condition that can lead to obesity when paired with a high-fat, high-calorie diet. Researchers at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville, who led the experiments, described lepton as a hormone that plays a role in helping the body to balance food intake with energy expenditure, and lepton resistance as a condition when the body stops responding to it.

They highlighted that fact that lepton resistance is associated with weight gain and obesity in the face of a high-fat, high-calorie diet.Though fructose is found in fruit, the researchers say that the normal consumption of fruit is not problematic. According to them, it is the consumption of table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, added to many foods these days, which is causing people to eat much more fructose than ever before.

Jam and jelly prevent cancer

2008-10-21T00:16:00.000-07:00

Researchers at the Institute of Food Research have found that an ingredient found in jelly and jam could help prevent the spread of cancer. They found that pectin – a natural fiber found in fruit and vegetables and widely used in food processing – played a role in fighting the progress of the disease. Lab tests showed that pectin binds to and is believed to inhibit galectin 3 (Gal3) – a protein that plays a role in all stages of cancer progression.

"Most claims for the anticancer effects of foods are based on population studies. For this research we tested a molecular mechanism and showed that it is viable, " said Professor Vic Morris from the Institute of Food Research. Previous studies have identified a strong link between eating lots of fiber and a lower risk of cancers of the gastrointestinal tract but exactly how fiber exerts a protective effect is unknown.

Pectin is better known for its jam-setting qualities and as being a component of dietary fiber. The present study supports a more exciting and subtle role. Interaction between dietary carbohydrates and mammalian proteins, of which this research is an example, may provide an explanation.

Chicken soup prevent high blood pressure

2008-10-20T23:58:00.000-07:00

Chicken soup, which has been used for years as an effective home remedy to deal with the common cold, can also help fight high blood pressure. Study leader Ai Saiga, a researcher from Nippon Meat Packers, says that chicken breast contains collagen proteins with effects similar to ACE inhibitors, mainstay medications for treating high blood pressure.

The researcher concedes that chicken breast contains such small amounts of the proteins that it cannot be used to develop food and medical products for high blood pressure.Saiga, however, insists that chicken soup, also known as ‘Grandma’s Penicillin’, appears to be a great source of collagen proteins.

During the study, the researchers extracted collagen from chicken legs and tested its ability to act as an ACE inhibitor in the laboratory studies. They identified four different proteins in the collagen mixture with high ACE-inhibitory activity.

The proteins were then administered to rats used to model human high blood pressure, which produced a significant and prolonged decrease in blood pressure, according to the researchers.

Vision loss common in diabetics

2008-10-20T23:49:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON: Visual impairment is more common in people with diabetes than those without the disease, according to a new study."Diabetic retinopathy [damage to the retina caused by diabetes], one of the most common micro vascular complications of diabetes, is considered to be one of the major causes of blindness and low vision," the researchers said.

It has been brought to light that even though diabetic patients may try to keep a safe distance from diabetic retinopathy by controlling glucose and blood pressure, they may fall prey to other optical impediments suffered by diabetic patients, such as cataract and glaucoma, may increase the risk of visual impairment.Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys only to find that diabetics are more prone to decreased vision caused by an abnormal shape of the cornea.

"People with diabetes were more likely to have uncorrectable vision impairment than those without diabetes, even after controlling for selected other factors," the authors write.

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Vitamin K1prevent bone loss

2008-10-20T23:35:00.000-07:00

HOUSTON: Vitamin K supplement may not be effective in protecting women against decreasing bone mineral density after menopause, says a recent study.However, the findings also suggest that vitamin K1 may protect against fracture and cancer in postmenopausal women with osteopenia.

A study on vitamin K, considered to be an effective supplement for decreasing bone loss in postmenopausal women, was conducted to determine whether daily high-dose vitamin K1 supplementation safely reduces bone loss, bone turnover, and fractures in postmenopausal women with decreased bone mass.Generally, the higher the mineral content in bones, the denser and stronger they are and less likely to break.

Researchers, however, ended with mixed results in a study designed to see if daily supplements of vitamin K1 would protect women at risk for osteoporosis.

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Watermelons shows viagra effect

2008-10-16T09:37:00.000-07:00

According to an Indian American scientist in Texas, water melon has an ingredient that delivers Viagra-like effects to the body's blood vessels and may even increase libido.The citrulline, found in the flesh and rind of the fruit, triggers off a compound that helps blood vessels in human body relax -- an effect similar to that of Viagra, Dr Bhimu Patil, director of Texas A&M's Fruit and Vegetable Improvement Centre has found.

When watermelons are consumed in large quantities, the citrulline in it reacts with enzymes in the body. It changes into an amino acid called Arginine, known to benefit the heart, circulatory system as well as the immune system.

"The more we study watermelons, the more we realize just how amazing a fruit it is in providing natural enhancers to the human body.

Garlic slow down high blood pressure

2008-10-16T09:17:00.000-07:00

Suffering from hypertension? Well, a daily dose of garlic could help save your life, for a study has revealed that it lowers high blood pressure as effectively as modern medicines.A large number of people across the world have high blood pressure, but an even larger number are believed to have been suffering from the condition without knowing it. Without effective treatment, it can trigger heart attacks and strokes.

Doctors usually recommend sufferers to slash their daily intake of salt, losing weight and getting fit, apart from taking medicines if required to reduce blood pressure readings to the safe level of 140/90.Now, a team at Adelaide University has found the role of garlic in reducing high blood pressure. In fact researchers have based their findings on an analysis of patients suffering from hypertension, who consumed garlic supplements every day for up to five months.

They found blood pressure levels of the participants dropping significantly. The higher a person's blood pressure was at the beginning of the study, the more it was reduced by taking garlic.

Regular running makes you younger

2008-10-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

Regular running can slow the aging process, say a group of researchers, who added that the physical activity also reduces disability in later life.The study, which has been published in Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, showed that elderly joggers were half as likely to die prematurely from conditions like cancer than non-runners.

They also enjoyed a healthier life with fewer disabilities, the Stanford University Medical Center team found."Age-adjusted death rates have reached record lows and life expectancy has reached record highs in recent years, likely due to a combination of behavior and societal changes as well as improved medical and surgical therapies," the researchers said.

"With the rise in life expectancy, it becomes necessary to focus on improving the quality of life and functional abilities as people reach older ages. Regular exercise, including running, may contribute to improved health among older adults,” they added.

Mental thinking behind obesity

2008-10-16T08:59:00.000-07:00

Are you overweight and always find some excuse or the other to avoid doing exercise? Well, if you think it's just laziness, think again, for a study claims that it is only a mental block which is hampering your efforts.An international team has carried out the study and found that obese women often have a "phobia of exercise" which stops them being active because they feel self-conscious and are afraid of injury.

According to researchers, these mental barriers are real problems which must be overcome to encourage overweight women to exercise more."This is the first time we've been able to look at what stops obese women from getting the activity they need. These might sound like excuses to some people, but for those who have these aversions, they're real problems.

"There is an underlying attitude about weight loss, that it's easy if you just eat less and exercise more. But if losing weight were easy, we wouldn't have the obesity epidemic we have today," lead researcher Melissa Napolitano of Temple University said.

Red wine cut lung cancer risk

2008-10-15T09:12:00.000-07:00

Drinking a glass of red wine with dinner or adding some of the delicious drink to your food may be a good idea, for a new study has found that an antioxidant component in it can decrease the risk of lung cancer.Although the new finding is only restricted to men, the health benefits of the drink are well known.

The study has been published in the October issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. "An antioxidant component in red wine may be protective of lung cancer, particularly among smokers," said Chun Chao, Ph.D., a research scientist at Kaiser Permanente Department of Research and Evaluation in Pasadena, California.

To reach the conclusion, Chao analyzed data collected through the California Men''s Health Study, which linked clinical data from California''s health system with self-reported data from 84,170 men aged 45 to 69 years. Researchers obtained demographics and lifestyle data from surveys computed between 2000 and 2003, and identified 210 cases of lung cancer.

Amazing drug for angina "ranolazine"

2008-10-15T08:48:00.000-07:00

New drug ranolazine is a safe and effective treatment for chronic stable angina and adds to the treatment options for patients with this condition.Heart disease continues to be the largest cause of death in the US, where 9.1 million people have the condition, some three percent of the population. For every patient admitted to hospital with a heart attack, there are 30 angina patients.

There are a wide variety of angina treatments including Beta blockers, statins, aspirin, and diet and exercise. Ranolozine was patented in 1986, and then approved for use in the US in 2006 for angina patients who remain symptomatic despite being on one or more of the standard treatments.

Ranolazine has been assessed in randomized controlled trials and extended the time patients could exercise before an angina attack developed. It also reduced anginal episodes by a mean of one attack per week, according to Eurekalert. These findings were published in this week's edition of The Lancet.

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