Fruit, Vegetable-Rich Diet Halves Lung Disease Risk

 

Date updated: May 15, 2007
Content provided by Health Day

TUESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) -- People who follow a "Mediterranean" diet rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grains and fish cut their risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by half, researchers report.

COPD, a lethal combination of emphysema and bronchitis, is expected to become the third leading cause of death worldwide by 2020.

Smoking remains the primary cause of COPD, according to the report in the May 14 online edition of the journal Thorax.

Therefore, "The first message is that people have to stop smoking," said lead researcher Dr. Raphaelle Varraso, from INSERM, Villejuif, France. "And then, that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and fish may help to reduce risk of COPD."

And, if healthy food can cut the odds for COPD, unhealthy eating could do the opposite, he said. "In smokers and ex-smokers, a diet rich in refined grains, cured and red meats, desserts and French fries may increase the risk of COPD," Varraso said.

Read More...

Curry Ingredient May Cut Cardiovascular Risks

 

Date updated: February 27, 2008
Content provided by Health Day

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Curcumin, an ingredient in the curry spice tumeric, can reduce heart enlargement and may lower the risk of heart failure, Canadian researchers say.

The scientists at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre of the Toronto General Hospital tested the effects of curcumin in mice with enlarged hearts (hypertrophy) and found it could prevent and reverse the condition, restore heart function, and reduce scar formation. The study was published in the February issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

If human clinical trials support these findings, curcumin-based treatments may provide a safe and inexpensive new option for patients with heart enlargement, according to the researchers.

They said curcumin works directly in the cell nucleus by preventing abnormal unraveling of the chromosome under stress and preventing excessive abnormal protein production.

Read More...

Are Cutting Health Costs Always Safe?

CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO

U.S. study shows why winter is ‘flu season’ Coating protects viruses against cold — so they can infe

 

 

updated 1:38 p.m. ET, Sun., March. 2, 2008

WASHINGTON - Influenza viruses coat themselves in fatty material that hardens and protects them in colder temperatures — a finding that could explain why winter is the flu season, U.S. researchers reported on Sunday.

This butter-like coating melts in the respiratory tract, allowing the virus to infect cells, the team at the National Institutes of Health found.

"Like an M&M in your mouth, the protective covering melts when it enters the respiratory tract," said Joshua Zimmerberg of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), who led the study.Read More.......

Regular aspirin may lower colon cancer risk in men

 

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Men who routinely take aspirin seem to be less likely to develop colorectal cancer, according to new research findings. However, the benefit requires the dose of aspirin to be higher than usually recommended for heart health, and to be taken over at least 6 years.

"Long-term data on the risk of colorectal cancer according to dose, duration, and consistency of aspirin therapy are limited," Dr. Andrew T. Chan, of Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, and colleagues write in the medical journal Gastroenterology.

The research team collected data on aspirin use and cancer risk factors every 2 years among more than 47,000 men between 40 and 87 years old at enrollment in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study in 1986. .

During 18 years of follow-up, 975 cases of colorectal cancer were documented.

After adjustment for risk factors, men who reported taking aspirin regularly (at least twice a week) had a 21 percent lower risk of developing colorectal cancer compared with men who were not regular aspirin users.

Read More...

aoljpictureUpload, aoljpictureUpload_2

Obese patients wait longer for kidney transplants

 

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Extremely obese adults in need of a kidney transplant appear to wait longer for a donor organ than their thinner counterparts do, a study has found.

The findings, according to researchers, suggest there may be a bias in the way donor kidneys are allocated.

Analyzing a decade's worth of national transplant data, researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore found that morbidly obese patients - those who are 100 or more pounds overweight -- on the kidney transplant waiting list were 44 percent less likely to receive a donor organ as normal-weight patients.

There was no similar disparity seen among overweight or mildly obese patients, the researchers report in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

"The results identify a potential bias in organ allocation that is not consistent with the goals of our allocation system," Dr. Dorry L. Segev, the lead researcher on the study, said in a statement.

In the U.S., the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) oversees the allocation of donor organs. Segev and his colleagues based their findings on UNOS data for 132,353 patients on the waiting list for a kidney transplant between 1995 and 2006.

Read More...

aoljpictureUpload, aoljpictureUpload_1

Carb Intake, Obesity Tied to Rise in Esophageal Cancers

 

FRIDAY, Feb. 29 (HealthDay News) -- There may be a link between rising rates of carbohydrate intake and obesity and the increasing number of esophageal cancer cases in the United States, a new study says.

Researchers noted that cases of esophageal cancer increased from 300,000 in 1973 to 2.1 million in 2001, which closely mirrors increases in carbohydrate intake and obesity over the same time.

Obesity is a major risk factor for many types of cancer, and a diet high in calories from refined carbohydrates is a common contributor to obesity, the researchers noted. They also said no other studied nutrients were found to correlate with esophageal cancer rates.

"If we can reverse the trends in refined carbohydrate intake and obesity in the U.S., we may be able to reduce the incidence of esophageal cancer," study senior author Dr. Li Li, an assistant professor in the department of family medicine and the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center at Case Western Reserve University/University Hospitals Health System, said in a prepared statement.

Read More...

aoljpictureUpload, aoljpictureUpload_3

Clinic accused of reusing syringes sued

 

LAS VEGAS - A former patient sued a surgical center believed to have spread hepatitis C by reusing syringes and vials of medication, saying Thursday he fears for his health.

The suit comes a day after the Southern Nevada Health District announced that unsafe practices at the clinic may have led to six reported cases of hepatitis C, a potentially fatal blood-borne virus.

Another 40,000 people who received anesthesia at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada between March 2004 and January 2008 are being urged to be tested for hepatitis, strains C and B, and HIV.

"I feel like a ticking time bomb. I'll get tested ASAP, but since HIV can lay dormant for many years, my wife and I face a future of uncertainty and fear," according to a statement from the plaintiff, Charles Anthony Rader, Jr., who says he received treatment during that period and may have been exposed.

Read More...

aoljpictureUpload, aoljpictureUpload_1

What a nightmare: Americans get too little sleep

 

 

 

 

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With late-night TV watching, Internet surfing and other distractions, Americans are getting less and less sleep, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday.

And all this sleeplessness can be a nightmare for your mental and physical health, CDC experts cautioned, calling sleep loss an under-recognized public health problem.

Sleep experts say chronic sleep loss is associated with obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, cardiovascular disease, depression, cigarette smoking and excessive drinking.

The CDC surveyed 19,589 adults in four states. Ten percent reported they did not get enough sleep or rest every single day of the prior month, and 38 percent said they did not get enough in seven or more days in the prior month.

Read More...

Doctor's Orders Can Kill You

When’s the last time YOUR doctor gave you a prescription for some nutritious food, some time off from work, and a stress-free, loving relationship?

I got a big kick out of this cartoon, not only because of the punch line but also because the above “prescription” truly can redirect you toward health. Life can seem so very complicated at times, but when you get down to it, it is the simple things that make all the difference.

So as much and as often as you can, eat healthy food, be supportive to your loved ones, get some physical activity (in whatever form you choose!), and by all means, laugh, deeply and heartily...Read More....