Archive for December, 2008

Vitamins offer no help to avoid cancer, a new study suggests

The results of another study have shown that the so-called fighting powers of different vitamins (like E, C and beta-carotene) prove ineffective to avoid cancer in women when used in supplement forms.

The surprising thing about the study is that is declares ineffective even to beta carotene which is a much hyped vitamin supplement to avoid cancer.

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Jennifer Lin, who led the study, says in this connection: “Just taking vitamins supplements is not enough to hamper the growth of cancer.”

But consuming a good amount of different vegetables and fruit is not a bad idea in this regard, says Lin.

…Click here to read more

Obesity surgery may prove effective to reverse diabetes in obese teens

A new study suggests that just like in adults, obesity surgery may prove effective to reverse diabetes in youngsters.

The researchers told that after one year of weight-loss surgery, ten out of 11 very obese teens found that their diabetes had reversed during that time. However, one patient was found with diabetes, but that patient not required diabetes pills and he was taking quite less insulin.

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Many other studies have already shown that obesity surgery is beneficial for adults’ diabetes, says, Thomas Inge, the lead author of the study.

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Vitamin B1 may reverse kidney damage in diabetics

The results of a study suggest that vitamin B1 doses can prove helpful to reverse kidney disease in diabetics.

The Warwick University researchers noticed vitamin B1 (thiamine) effects on 40 patients from Pakistan.  Vitamin B1 is sufficiently found in the grain, yeast and meat.

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According to the reports from the journal Diabetologia, the vitamin seems to help in stopping key protein loss in the urine.

…Click here to read more

Exercise in youth helps women to sustain bone strength in old age

According to a new study, women, who do weight bearing exercises in youth, may sustain their bone strength in old age.

The Japanese study, which has been published online in the British Sports Medicine Journal Dec.22 issue, concludes this after inquiring about the adolescence exercise habits of forty-six postmenopausal women who were aged 52 or over currently.

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The researchers found that the women, who had been taking part in different weight bearing and low impact exercises like swimming they had higher mineral content in spine as well as in the thigh bone. The other participants of the study had been plying some more high-impact games like volleyball, jumping, running and tennis in their youth. Similarly some didn’t have participated in any sports activity at all. …Click here to read more

Extended Sleep May Deter Coronary Artery Calcification

Sleeping an hour longer daily may lead to a lower chance of the accumulation of calcium plaques in coronary artery tracts, predicting possible heart disease, said a study published in the December 24 issue of Journal of American Medical Association. The researchers report that one additional hour of sleep per night lowered the estimated odds of calcification by 33%.

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Christopher Ryan King, B.S. (University of Chicago) and his team started this study in 2001 with 495 individuals( black and white people between the ages 35 and 47) to test if a scientifically measured sleep duration was linked to the development of calcification over a 5 year period.

…Click here to read more

Cough, Cold Medicine Not For Children: Health Canada

Health Canada has warned people against the use of cough and cold medicine having orally administered active ingredients like antihistamines, antitussives, expectorants,and decongestants for children under six. The authority has bound manufacturers in Canada to relabel such OTC (over-the-counter) medicines that have pediatric dosing information.

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The relabeling is supposed to complete before the next cough and cold season in autumn 2009. For the moment, the retail outlets are allowed to keep and sell the medicine with existing labels. Warning parents or caregivers, the health body told them to consult a phisician or pharmacist for guidance.

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‘Small size may complicate breast tumour treatment’

The HER2 positive type of tiny breast tumours that apparently look cured after surgical operations are more likely to recur as compared to the bigger ones,  American researchers said in a report  on Friday.

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After five years, 23 percent of patients with small tumours one cm (half an inch) or smaller whose cancer was HER2 positive had tumours come back after surgery, Gonzalez-Angula of the MD Anderson Cancer Centre in Houston told the San Antonio Breast Cancer Conference.

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Brisk walking helps black women to avoid Type2 Diabetes

Black women are considered more prone to type2 diabetes, but according to a new study, black women can decrease their risk of having type2 diabetes if the spend less time in front of time and take more exercise.

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The researchers say that black women have a higher risk for developing Type2 diabetes and they can decrease this risk if they limit their time for TV and do different exercises like brisk walk etc.

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Stroke survivors more prone to anxiety and depression

A Dutch study says that people who survive a stroke experience poor quality of life because of stress, tiredness and depression.

The rupturing of brain vessels become the cause of subarachnoid stroke as it fills the space between the brain and the skull with blood. In the study, those 141 men and women were included who were in the community after 2 to 4 years of having stroke.

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The researchers used Stroke Specific Quality of Life scale and they found that more than 32% of these people had to suffer from stress, 23% from depression and 67% from tiredness. The researchers also found that there were overall better scores in physical function of these survivals, but scores in social and emotional areas were quite low.

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Alzheimer’s meds prove effective for Psych and behavioral problems

A U.S. study says that the meds used to boost cognitive functions in the patients with Alzheimer’s also proved effective in treating behavioral and psych problems like paranoia and aggression.

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In their study, the researchers explored those nine studies that were conducted to look at the efficacy of three well-known cholinesterase blockers that were used to manage psych and behavioral symptoms in Alzheimer’s. The researchers found that the same dosage of these drugs proved quite effective not only to boost cognitive impairment but also for other psychological and behavioral problems too.

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Exercise at workplace makes employees more productive, a new study says

As they say “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy,” at least the results of new study seems to suggest so.

This new study says that gym at work helps employees to relive stress and lift moods, thus makes them more efficient, productive and happy.

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To find out the impact of exercise facilities at workplace, the researchers from the Bristol University enlisted 200 hundred volunteers and they found that exercise at workplace helped the people to have better concentration, feel stress free and lift mood.

…Click here to read more

30% decrease in heart and stroke related deaths in the US

heart-patients.gifFigures from American Heart Association (AHA) show that there is a 30% decrease in the heart diseases and stroke related deaths in the US since 1999.

According to the experts, these improvements are somewhat surprising as the majority of the Americans tend to an inactive and obesity-friendly lifestyle.

Dr. Timothy Gardner, who is the President of AHA, says in a news release: “There is not the same decline in the major risk factors for stroke and heart disease and that’s why the work in this connection has not been completed yet.”

During seven year (1999-2006) a 30.7% drop was noted in heart disease related deaths and a 29.2% decrease in stroke related deaths.

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New treatment may help cutting crucial heart scaring

heart-scaring.gifUS researchers say that their tests on mice may help to develop a new drug to cut permanent heart scars that occur due to heart attacks.

In their study, the researchers blocked a particular protein in mice that proved quite sufficient to cut their possible heart damage caused by a heart attack.

The Study, published in the latest issue of the journal Nature Cell Biology, can also prove helpful to employ other treatments like stem cells for a better heart function.

When there isn’t sufficient amount of oxygen in the heart during a cardiac arrest, it becomes the cause of a series of damaging events in the heart.

This injury becomes the cause of inflammation in the heart that may permanently disturb its capability to pump blood in a proper way.

…Click here to read more

Some tips for treating sleeping disorder (insomnia)

Usually women suffer more from insomnia than men. Insomnia is a condition in which the patient is not able to drop off orsleeping-disorder.gif keep on asleep. People may become its victim once in a while and it can also become chronic.

If you are also suffering from insomnia, the following tips may help you to overcome it.

  1. You must consult your doctor and tell him/her if you identify some major medical problem or some other mental and psychological health issues.
  2. You need to give a closer look at different factors that you think affecting your sleeping habits. Check your caffeine or alcohol intake as well as your daily activities and other routines. …Click here to read more

Researchers identify neurons’ death causing enzyme

neurons-death.gifU.S researchers have identified an enzyme that is being considered a key factor in neurons death in Alzheimer’s and some other neurodegenerative diseases’ patients.

The finding may help to develop some new drugs in treating these incapacitating diseases.z

In their study, the researchers thoroughly examined an enzyme that is known as HDACI and arranges chromatin, which is chromosomes’ structural component. Testing mice, the researchers found when HDAC1 was blocked in them; some of their neurons began to imitate their DNA very similar to when they were at the time of dividing. It wasn’t a usual cycle for neurons cell that caused their death. However, higher levels of HDACI avoided that process and guarded neurons.

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Wide range of options for Prostate Cancer treatment

prostate-cancer-1.gifProstate cancer diagnosis often raises feelings of fear in the patients, but these patients have a wide range of options to treat and tackle the disease, medical experts believe.

There are various options and life quality of a patient needs to be considered when opting for some procedure. The fact is that, a large number of doctors think that it is better if some prostate cancers are left untreated.

Dr. Durado Brooks, who is director of the American Cancer Society, says, “Many patients die with prostate cancer instead of dying of prostate cancer, and a considerable number of these people may shorten their life period if they suffer from some other health problems.”

A report from the American Cancer Society shows that patients with prostate cancer have a high survival rate and in general 99% of men found with the disease may survive almost five years.

…Click here to read more

US researchers develop Robotic Device for Stroke Patients

robotic-device.gifAmerican researchers have developed a robotic device for hand exercise that may prove effective to help stroke patients recuperate motor skills even after six months of a stroke.

Brain scans show that device enhance activity in those brain parts that control hands’ use. The device is given to patients to squeeze with their diseased hands.

“We are still quite hopeful that if these stroke patients choose right kind of exercises, they will definitely get better,” says Aria Tzika, who led the study that presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.

In the US, stroke has become the third biggest killer following heart disease and cancer. It is also a leading cause of intense long-term disability. According to an estimate, almost 700,000 people become the victim of stroke in the US every year.

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Anemia: Some warning signs

anemia.gif(HealthDay News) — Anemia occurs either when the blood is deficient in red blood cells, or it lacks enough of a protein called hemoglobin.

If your blood doesn’t have sufficient amount of red blood cells (RBS) or a protein known as hemoglobin, you may become anemia victim.

There are some forms of the disease that may prove life-threatening if they are not diagnosed or left untreated.

If you experience the following conditions, you need to consult your doctor as they may serve as some warning signs for anemia.

  1. To feel weak and tired persistently
  2. Often suffer from dizziness, shortness of breath or headache …Click here to read more

Moderate drinking doesn’t increase atrial fibrillation risk

women-drinking-alcohol.gifAtril fibrillation, which is quite well-known as the abnormal heartbeat, is often related to drinking, but a new study says that if healthy middle-aged women consume light amount of alcohol, it doesn’t increase their risk of having atrial fibrillation.

To find out the link between alcohol consumption and abnormal heart beat, researchers from Harvard Medical School examined the data of a large Women’s Health study.

Some previous studies in men have shown that higher amounts of alcohol consumption have links with increased atrial fibrillation.

In the study almost 35,000 women were included and all of them were of 45 and over years of age. None of these women had abnormal heart rhythm or some other heart condition at the beginning of the study. The women were asked about their alcohol consumption at the beginning and after 48 months of the study. With a 12.4 years average follow-up, the researchers found that nearly 1.9% of women who used to consume one or less drink a day had developed the condition, while the rates were found as 1.8% in the women who used to consume one or two drinks. But the women who consumed two or more drinks daily had 2.9% higher risk.

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Vitamin D is essential to prevent heart problems, a new study finds.

heart-attack.gifAccording to a new study, lack of a vitamin D that is received through sunlight can increase the risk of strokes and heart attacks.

Dr. James H. O’Keefe, who led the study, says in this connection: “There are many studies that show link between vitamin D deficiency and higher risk of cardiovascular diseases.”

“Usually risk of high blood pressure, left ventricle stiffening and diabetes are related to vitamin D deficiency. People deficient in vitamin D have higher ratio of inflammation and inflammation is considered quite important for heart disease.”

According to some experts, almost 30% children and teens, and half of adults in the US suffer from vitamin D deficiency.

Data from the Framingham Heart Study shows that people with below 15nanograms/ml blood have two times more risk of having a heart attack or some other cardiovascular disease.

…Click here to read more