Category: Health Conditions

Tea Drinkers Less Likely to Develop Osteoporosis

Caffeine has been proven to increase one’s risk of developing osteoporosis, but some studies have shown that those who drink tea regularly are less likely to develop the disease. Scientists believe that the flavonoids in tea may have a protective effect. Other foods that tend to increase one’s risk of osteoporosis include soft drinks, salt, alcohol, and sugar. Food that can reduce your chances of developing the disease: soy, leafy green vegetables, sardines, and salmon.

Believe it or not, the answer when it comes to whether you should or should not rely on dairy products to help reduce your risk is “it depends.” Choose low-fat milk rather than American cheese or cottage cheese.

See more on diet and osteoporosis and an overview of the disease.

Acupuncture Can Aid Those Addicted to Opiates

A type of acupuncture that uses skin electrodes to apply electrical stimulation at different points on the body called transcutaneous electric acupoint stimulation (TEAS) may help people suffering from an addiction to opioid drugs.

A type of  acupuncture that uses skin electrodes to apply electrical stimulation at different points on the body called transcutaneous electric acupoint stimulation (TEAS) may help people suffering from an addiction to opioid drugs.  The study, overseen by Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital near Boston, showed that patients who received acupuncture in combination with their prescribed withdrawal medications were only 29% likely to return to drug use while 2/3 those who did not receive acupuncture took up the habit again.

In addition, patients in the active TEAS group reported they were less bothered by pain and that they experienced greater improvements in overall health.

Source: http://nccam.nih.gov/research/results/spotlight/010410.htm?nav=rss

White rice tied to higher risk of diabetes

A US-based study on Monday linked eating white rice to higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and backed long-held claims that brown rice is healthier than the white variety.

A 2010 study connected including white rice (as opposed to brown rice) to a greater likelihood of developing adult-onset diabetes.  It substantiated long-time reports that brown rice is more healthy than white.  The study investigated patients who ate a minimum of 5 white rice servings per week and found that they had a 17% higher risk of developing the conditions – compared to those who eat less than one serving per month.

Researchers: Harvard School of Public Health

Editor’s Note:  All refined foods – white rice rather than brown, white flour rather than whole wheat, highly refined sugars, grits rather than corn – would likely generate similar results because the outer husk contained the bulk of the nutrients has been removed.

Learn  more  about diabetes and diabetic retinopathy and guidelines for supplementing your diet with juicing to combat diabetic retinopathy.

Exercise and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Relieve Fibromyalgia

Recent studies suggest that the most effective combination of therapies to treat fibromyalgia is exercise paired with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

Fibromyalgia is a notoriously difficult disease to treat.  Standard treatments include painkillers, antidepressants, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and exercise therapy.  Recent studies suggest that the most effective combination of therapies is exercise paired with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

Study participants were separated into two groups based on how they dealt with their pain: those who curbed activities due to fear of pain and those who continued their activities in spite of pain.  The goal of CBT is to help people recognize thought patterns and emotional responses that contribute to their symptoms, and give them practical ways to change their behavior. For patients who habitually tried to avoid pain, the CBT sessions were geared toward helping them deal with their fear of pain and set goals for increasing their daily activities; those who typically attempted to push through pain, the CBT was designed to set more realistic goals and pace their daily activities and avoid overexertion.

Six months later, almost two thirds of participants showed “clinically significant” improvements, meaning that they had an increased ability to  perform daily activities like walking, climbing stairs and doing household chores.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65A5LZ20100611

Tiny blood vessels in brain spit to survive

Scientists at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine have discovered capillaries have a unique method of expelling debris, such as blood clots, cholesterol or calcium plaque, that blocks the flow of essential nutrients to brain cells. The capillaries spit out the blockage by growing a membrane that envelopes the obstruction and then shoves it out of the blood vessel.

Scientists at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine have discovered capillaries have a unique method of expelling debris, such as blood clots, cholesterol or calcium plaque, that blocks the flow of essential nutrients to brain cells. The capillaries spit out the blockage by growing a membrane that envelopes the obstruction and then shoves it out of the blood vessel.

Scientists also found this critical process is 30 to 50 percent slower in an aging brain and likely results in the death of more capillaries.

“The slowdown may be a factor in age-related cognitive decline and may also explain why elderly patients who get strokes do not recover as well as younger patients,” said Jaime Grutzendler, senior author and principal investigator of the study and assistant professor of neurology and of physiology at Feinberg. “Their recovery is much slower.”

The study with mice, funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), will be published May 27 in the journal Nature.

Editor’s Note:  See more information on nutrition and dementia/Alzheimer’s Disease,

5 Strategies For Living Well with Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia can be a challenging disease, but the following tips can help you to manage your symptoms

Fibromyalgia can be a challenging disease, but the following tips can help you to manage your symptoms:

1) Keep track of the pain: Keep a pain diary so that you can connect your symptoms to other factors in your life including diet, environment, and activities.

2) Do not expect too much from your medication: Though there are drugs that have been approved to treat fibromyalgia, they do not work for everyone.

3) Consider alternative and complementary therapies: Yoga, meditation, massage, acupuncture, Tai Chi, biofeedback, and other forms of bodywork and stress relief techniques have been proven to help manage the pain of fibromyalgia.

4) Be an active participant in your care: If your doctor is not helping you find the best way to deal with your particular symptoms or is not taking your pain seriously, consider finding another provider.

5) Avoiding activity due to pain: Remaining active and pursuing activities that bring you joy and exercise your body are keys to your health.

Source: http://health.msn.com/health-topics/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100259977&page=1

 

 

Promising Therapies for Diabetic Macular Edema

Laser therapy, also called laser photocoagulation, is more effective and produces fewer side effects than corticosteroids injected into the eye for the treatment of diabetic macular edema according to a large, two-year multicenter study reported in the journal Ophthalmology (Volume 115, page 1447).

A new technique called photocoagulation is a form a therapy using a laser light.  It has been effective in treating diabetic macular edema – swelling – a condition that develops from untreated diabetes.  It is more effective and injecting corticosteroids in the eyes and has fewer side effects.

This was reported by researchers after a large two-year study of more than 600 people.

Published: Journal of Ophthalmology, vol. 115, p. 1447

Editor’s Note: Learn  more about nutrition and diabetes and diabetic retinopathy.

Zinc, inflammation & oxidative stress

An article published in the June, 2010 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition describes a clinical trial involving older men and women which found reductions in markers of oxidative stress and inflammation among those who supplemented with zinc.

A 2010  clinical trial looked at indicators of oxidative stress and inflammation in elders which found reductions among the subjects who supplemented with zinc.  These two factors – oxidative stress caused by free radicals and inflammation – are considered risk factors for coronary artery disease.  Zinc deficiencies have been noted for this condition as well as for rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, and various cancers.

Editor’s note: There are a range of essential nutrients that reduce oxidative stress in the body and can help reduce inflammation including glutathione, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and alpha lipoic acid for example. Green leafy vegetables contain a great range of antioxidants that have excellent anti-inflammatory properties. as well.

When supplementing with zinc, copper should also be taken. The proper ratio of zinc:copper is 15:1.

Published: June, 2010,  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

 

Ways to help prevent osteoporosis

Osteoporosis (loss of calcium in bones) affects 44 million men and women in the United States today, resulting in 1.5 million fractures each year. Approximately one-quarter of those people who have hip fractures due to the disorder die within a year after the break due to complications, including not being able to move around very well.

Osteoporosis (loss of calcium in bones) affects 44 million men and women in the United States today, resulting in 1.5 million fractures each year. Approximately one-quarter of those people who have hip fractures due to the disorder die within a year after the break due to complications, including not being able to move around very well.

The causes of osteoporosis for women is often due to estrogen deficiency during and after menopause. Caucasians and Asians also are at higher risk for the disorders than African-Americans. Other risk factors include low body weight, previous fractures and taking high-risk medications such as chemotherapy or steroid treatments which can deteriorate bone.

Things that can be done to help prevent bone loss include:

1) Daily weight bearing exercise

2) Eat a healthy diet (avoid carbonated drinks which can reduce calcium in the body).

3) Avoid bad habits such as smoking or excessive drinking

4) Supplement with a good calcium supplement which includes cofactors such as vitamin D3, Boron, Vitamin K1, Magnesium, and Phosphorus.

4) Supplement with at least 1,000 mg per day of Vitamin D3.

See more information on diet, nutrition and lifestyle related to Osteoporosis.

Indoor Tanning beds = Eye & Skin Cancer

After studying more than 2,200 tanners and their pale peers, scientists report that regular indoor tanning raised a person’s risk of melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer, between 74 percent and 340 percent.

Eye Cancer

Researchers report that using popular tanning beds to get a tan in the winter or without being out in the sun raised the risk of melanoma by 4 times – the range was from 74% to 240% higher risk.  This determination was found after studying the health condition of  more than 2,200 people who regularly use tanning beds.  Unsurprisingly, those people who used the tanning beds the most and for the longest time had the highest risk.  Similarly, those people who used tanning beds employing UVA rather than UVB radiation had the highest risk.

Source:  cebp.aacrjournals.org

Skin Cancer

There has been earlier research indicating that tanning beds, especially those using UVA rather than UVB light are tied to skin cancer.  New research indicates that this UV exposure also is tied to eye cancer, known as ocular melanoma, as well as retinal and corneal burns.

See information on a study about how eating leafy greens can help protect eyes from UV radiation.