Jul
01
2004

Insomnia Sufferers Will Get Help

By | Health, Men's Health, Women’s Diseases

People with chronic insomnia not only have difficulties to get a good rest at night. If they reach for the currently available sleeping medications, their days start with a drug-induced mild “hangover”: they feel drowsy for a few hours, and once they discontinue the medication, withdrawal can be a problem.

A new medication by the name of indiplon to treat chronic insomnia will be a safer, more effective form of medicine for patients with sleep disorders, reports Dr. James Walsh (PhD). He is an executive director and senior scientist at St. Luke’s Hospital and the Unity Sleep Medicine Center in St. Louis. Dr. Walsh reports that the new medication has a very short half-life, meaning, that it is out of the body, by the time the patient wakes up in the morning. A 35-day trial showed that it is not only safe and effective, but also suitable to treat patients who have trouble falling asleep and those who have trouble sleeping through the night.
More studies are needed, before the medication will be available in the U.S. (conditional approved in 2007 in the US, see link above) and in Canada. Here is a more extensive review regarding this complex new sleeping pill.

Reference: The Medical Post, May 25, 2004, pg. 16

Insomnia Sufferers Will Get Help

Insomnia Sufferers Will Get Help

Comment on Nov. 5, 2012: It appears that there are problems with long-term safety studies that were never completed. I would suggest to stick to over-the-counter melatonine proparations in the 1 mg to 3 mg range. Melatonine is safe as it is a body hormone. Prescription hypnotics (as sleeping pills are called) are problematic as they do not fit into the body chemistry receptor-wise. No problems there with melatonine.

Last edited December 8, 2012

Jun
01
2004

Cellulite – Quacks And Facts

By | Health, Skin Disorders

California dermatologist Dr. Mitchell Goldman presented an overview at the American Academy of Dermotology, and stated that there are many types of treatment options available to combat cellulite including creams, massage, diet, and exercise. He cautioned however, that nobody at this time has done a study which evaluates the 20 creams that are currently on the market. It is true that a large variety of ingredients in the creams directly help stimulating the fat metabolism, increasing circulation and lymphatic flow.

He suggests to his patients to try a product for a month, and if there is no improvement, a switch to a different one should be made. The effectiveness of the creams can be enhanced by wearing bioceramic neoprene shorts. They look like normal work-out shorts, and wearing them a couple of hours per day can keep the cellulite from coming back.

Endermology is another treatment which can be useful with cellulite reduction: a mechanical action gently folds and unfolds the affected skin areas under the continous action of rollers. These rollers help improve the microcirculation, stimulate fluid exchange and improve overall cell function.
A variety of scams for treatment lurks on the Internet. Patients seeking treatment should be cautious about the most commonly advertised rip-off treatment called “mesotherapy”.
It involves injecting toxic substances into the body, including carbon dioxide gas. There has never been a scientific study which proves that it works, yet there is a great deal of publicity enticing patients to try it.

Cellulite - Quacks And Facts

Cellulite – Quacks And Facts

It is also important that patients are informed that cellulite is a condition that can be successfully treated, but it cannot be cured. Once you stop using the cream or the controlling treatment, the cellulite will return.

Based on The Medical Post, March 2, 2004, p. 21

Last edited December 8, 2012

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May
01
2004

Physicians Use New Technology (GCFP) To Study Blood Flow

By | Health, Heart Disease

Researchers at the Duke University Medical Center have developed a new non-invasive method of visualizing blood flow through blood vessels of patients. It is a modification of the well-known MRI scan technology where a magnetic field realigns the center of hydrogen atoms (protons) during the time of the examination and the differences of the tissue and fluid qualities are reflected in the images created by this technology. This new application depicting moving blood in blood vessels is called “global coherent free procession” (GCFP).

The principle is that the investigator can focus on an area of a blood vessel upstream of the area to be examined and tag a portion of the blood flowing through with an energy pulse. As the blood continues to flow through the area of interest, the protons give off the energy again without any changes to the body fluids or the blood cells and the MRI scanner picks up the images of the blood flow through the blood vessel.
The advantage of this technique is that it is done without any catheters (it is non-invasive), there is no need for any contrast material to be injected and there are no X-rays needed. At the present time this is the only diagnostic technology available for examining a patient’s blood flow through the heart and its vessels in real time, which is very valuable for physicians (cardiologists).
Here is a link to the Duke University publication

Physicians Use New Technology (GCFP) To Study Blood Flow

Physicians Use New Technology (GCFP) To Study Blood Flow

Based on an article in the April 13, 2004 issue of The Medical Post , Vol.40, No. 15, p.5.

PS. When checked on Nov. 5, 2012 this procedure has not been widely accepted in medical circles. It seems to be still more of a research tool.

Last edited December 8, 2012

Apr
01
2004

Sucking Bite Does Not Remove Venom

By | Health, Infectious Disease, Pain

How often have you heard the story that you should suck out the venom from a snakebite or insect bite. Researchers at the University of California at San Francisco have put this to the test. They injected a “mock venom”, which mimicked the composition of a venom without the poisonous effect, into eight male volunteers. This mock venom was radioactively labelled, so it could be traced. A vacuum pump, which simulated the sucking out of the wound, was applied after a few minutes and the amount of venom extraction was calculated by measuring the radioactivity of the extracted mock venom. To the surprise of the researchers only 2% of the mock venom had been sucked out on average.

Venom alert: Attempting to suck out a bite wound will not remove enough venom to make any difference for the total body venom load. It is much more important to not waste any time by applying a tight tourniquet above the bite wound (between the bite and the heart) and to call for an ambulance to rush the patient to the nearest Emergency Department where antitoxin for the venom treatment is available. To suck out a wound would only add mouth bacteria to the wound and could result in serious infections in addition to the poison.

Sucking Bite Does Not Remove Venom

Sucking Bite Does Not Remove Venom

Medical Post, Vol.40, No.12, March 23, 2004 (page 66).

Last edited December 8, 2012

Apr
01
2004

Less Death Rates From Breast Cancer With Exercise

By | Cancer, Fitness, Health

At the 95th annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in Orlando / Fla. the results of a study regarding the effect of exercise on breast cancer survival rates was presented. Dr. Michelle D. Holmes and co-workers (Harvard University in Boston) reported about data from the Nurses’ Health Study. About 2000 patients with breast cancer were identified in the period of 1984 to 1996 who were followed until the end of 2002. At that time 209 had died from their breast cancer. The investigators were able to control the data for all the other factors such as smoking, obesity, and many other factors except for the amount of exercise per week that these women were doing. The highest risk group was the one that did not exercise and the death rate of this group was set as 100% as can be seen in this table, which I constructed based on the published data.

The various groups as indicated on the bottom of the table were the hours exercised per week from 0 hours to more than 15 hours per week (this was expressed as metabolic equivalent of a brisk walk). It can be seen that survival from breast cancer can be influenced by as little as 3 to 9 hours of a brisk walk per week (about 20% reduction in death rate) and reaches a plateau at 9 to 15 hours of exercise per week (around 50% reduction in death rate).

Less Death Rates From Breast Cancer With Exercise

Less Death Rates From Breast Cancer With Exercise

The authors of the study said that when the data was expressed as recurrence of breast cancer, the same results were obtained. This study would indicate that even 30 minutes of exercise per day will reduce mortality in a patient with breast cancer. Also, it is known from other studies that exercise will be more effective in terms of cancer prevention in general including prevention of breast cancer.

Percentage of breast cancer death rates decreases with exercise (hours of exercise per week depicted)

Less Death Rates From Breast Cancer With Exercise1

Breast Cancer Death Rate Decreases With Exercise

 

Link to breast cancer chapter of the Net Health Book.

Link to Fitness: http://nethealthbook.com/health-nutrition-and-fitness/fitness/

Last edited October 26, 2014

Feb
01
2004

Cinnamon A Natural Insulin Booster For Diabetics

By | Diabetes, Health, Heart Disease, Nutrition

In a recent edition of the medical journal Diabetes Care an interesting article appeared regarding the healing effects of the spice cinnamon. A medical research team in Pakistan (Dr. Khan et al.) in collaberation with a U.S. research team divided a group of 60 comparable diabetics (males and females) in the age range of 45 to 55 and fed one half different concentrations of cinnamon while the other half served as a placebo control. There were three different concentrations of capsules of cinnamon given: 1g, 3 g and 6 g. The placebo control group got capsules with inert material. Here are the results:

The placebo control group showed no change in blood values. The effect documented in this table was achieved after 40 days of cinnamon exposure and was “washed out” after 20 days. Other experiments had found that the substance MHCP (methylhydroxychalcone polymer) is the active ingredient in cinnamon that stimulates insulin and also acts on insulin receptors similar to insulin.

Cinnamon A Natural Insulin Booster For Diabetics

Cinnamon A Natural Insulin Booster For Diabetics

Dr. Richard A. Anderson and his colleagues at the Human Nutrition Research Center of the U.S. Department of Agriculture had already published a number of medical papers on the effects of cinnamon. He was the co-author of this study from the Department of Human Nutrition, NWFP Agricultural University of Peshawar, Pakistan.

Effect of cinnamon on blood values of diabetics
Blood component
investigated:		 % Reduction
of blood test:
Blood sugar
level
18-29%
Triglycerides (blood
fat value) 		23-30%
LDL cholesterol
(damaging cholesterol)		 7-27%
Total cholesterol 12-26%
HDL cholesterol
(protective cholesterol)		 unchanged

The interesting observation here is that several cardiovascular risk factors (blood sugar, triglycerides and LDL cholesterol) are simultaneously being reduced with something as simple as cinnamon powder. The authors stated that the cinnamon oil is not effective, only the cinnamon powder or a cinnamon stick dipped into tea (the water soluble component of cinnamon or MHCP). Dr. Anderson also warned not to make the mistake to eat more cinnamon buns or apple pie as there would be unhealthy amounts of sugar, starch and fat added. He suggested that the best to do instead would be to simply sprinkle cinnamon powder over whatever you are presently eating, as this will reduce the risk of getting diabetes or will reduce the risk of a heart attack in diabetics.

This article based on: “Cinnamon improves glucose and lipids of people with type 2 diabetes.” Diabetes Care – 01-DEC-2003; 26(12): 3215-8.

Here is a link to diabetes mellitus (type 2 diabetes).

Last edited December 8, 2012

 

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Jan
03
2004

Poverty Still A Threat To Mothers’ Lives

By | Health, Prevention, Women’s Diseases

Adrienne Germain from the International Women’s Health Coalition, New York, wrote a review in the Lancet (Lancet 363: 65-66, 2004) about the state of health and mortality of pregnant women (maternal death rate) around the world. 500,000 pregnant girls and women die around the globe every year from conditions that are preventable or treatable. 99% of these live in developing countries. At the same time 3.9 million newborns die every year in their first 4 weeks of life!

2004 is the 10-year anniversary of the recommendation for reproductive health from the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The maternal death rate in Europe is about 1 in 4000 pregnancies; in many African countries (sub-Saharan Africa) it is 1 in 16! Despite some progress that has occurred, still 70% of all deaths associated with pregnancy occur in only 13 countries. In another article in the Lancet (Lancet 2004; 363: 23-27) Prof. Wendy Graham and co-workers used a new familial technique to determine whether there is a statistical association between poverty and the maternal death rate. The answer is not only a clear “yes” for the maternal death rate within one country, but there is a clear association between poverty and maternal death rate in countries all around the world!
A high mortality rate in babies and children in addition to the maternal death rate has traditionally been a grave concern in poor countries. Research in development countries has shown that 70% of the poorest 1.3 billion people in the world are women. The study also shows that these mothers have a high mortality rate. Maternal death can occur during pregnancy or birth, and the poorer the population group, the higher the maternal death rates will be. The reasons are varied: for the poorest of the poor, medical treatment is often unaffordable.

Poverty Still A Threat To Mothers' Lives

Poverty Still A Threat To Mothers’ Lives

Also seemingly simple measures such as clean drinking water, toilets and whether floors are present in dwellings do have an impact on health. At the same time the level of education determines whether death rates are higher or lower. These results are not only true for one specific country. Even though most of the alarming numbers come from the African countries such as Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, and Tanzania, other countries like Indonesia and the Philippines show the same troubling picture.
The main causes of maternal deaths were due to the following conditions: bleeding after delivery, early pregnancy bleeding; infections that would lead to sepsis and death; complications surrounding abortions; blood pressure problems such as eclampsia with seizures and kidney damage; and prolonged labor when the baby’s head is too large. This latter condition requires an Cesarean section on an emergency basis, which is not always readily available in rural areas.

As we know from other studies, even closer to home, poverty and rural isolation remain a risk to health and life.
Adrienne Germain in her editorial review pointed out that some poor countries such as Bangladesh have taken the recommendations for reproductive health from the 1994 ICPD-conference seriously and have instituted a nationally sponsored program.

The result has been that between 1988 and 2002 the percentage of women receiving antenatal care has improved from 26% to 47% while the maternal death rates have declined from 410 to 320 per 100,000 women during and after the pregnancy. Childhood mortality also improved significantly as did the mothers life expectancy (from 58 to 60 years). There are success stories in other countries as well.
What is needed is political will around the globe, co-operation between the appropriate agencies such as the WHO, the UNICEF, the International Women’s Health Coalition, and others. Locally in every country it is vital to have an interdisciplinary co-operation to fight poverty and to provide shelter with a certain minimum living standard.

Link to UNICEF. Link to WHO. Link to International Women’s Health Coalition.

Last edited December 8, 2012

Jan
03
2004

Old-Fashioned Fish Oil Boosts Heart Health

By | Health, Heart Disease, Nutrition

You do not need to spoil your appetite with the thought of swallowing cod liver oil, but see yourself enjoy a piece of salmon instead. Dr. Jehangir N Din and collegues published an article entitled “Omega 3 fatty acids and cardiovascular disease—fishing for a natural treatment” in the first January edition of the British Medical Journal (BMJ 2004;328:30-35,January 3, 2004). These cardiology researchers from the University of Edinburgh/England have reviewed all of the recent medical literature regarding the beneficial effects of omega-3-fatty acids on heart disease. The following are some facts they found.

The interesting story regarding the omega-3-fatty acids, which have anti-inflammatory qualities, is that they balance the detrimental effects of the omega-6-fatty acids, which lead to inflammation not only in joints, but also in blood vessels. In the standard North American and European foods the omega-6-fatty acids are overconsumed. To counter the bad effects of the omega-6-fatty acids, more omega-3-fatty acids need to be ingested.

Old-Fashioned Fish Oil Boosts Heart Health

Old-Fashioned Fish Oil Boosts Heart Health

So, what should we consume in terms of omega-3-fatty acids? The American Heart Association made the recommendations in the second table below.

Current consumption of omega-3-fatty acids in North America and Europe is low. Recently an expert US panel of nutritionists determined that the US consumption per day is about 0.1 to 0.2 grams per day and should be 0.65 grams per day as a minimum according to the recommendations by the American Heart Association.

Facts regarding omega-3-fatty acids:
Omega-3-fatty acids from fish and fish oils protect against heart disease
Following heart attacks fish oil is helpful in preventing more heart attacks
Hardening of arteries stops when fish oil or fish is eaten regularly
Rapid response critics pointed out that exercise is as important as fish oil
Trials with fish oil showed reduction in death rates from strokes and heart attacks from between 15% and 29% over 2 to 3.5 years (several studies)
The beneficial effects are due to a combination of stabilizing irregular heart beats, preventing clots, countering hardening of arteries, countering inflammation, improving function of lining of arteries, lowering of triglycerides (bad fatty acids) and lowering of blood pressure

The authors of this paper from England disagree and state that at least 1 gram per day would be needed to lower the heart attack risk to the low levels in Asia. The British Nutrition Foundation has recommended to use 1.2 grams of omega-3-fatty acids per day.

Fish or fish oil capsules as a protective effect on blood vessels*
Patients without documented coronary heart disease: Eat a variety of (preferably oily) fish at least twice weekly. Include oils and foods rich in inolenic acid
Patients with documented coronary heart disease: Consume 1 g of eicosapentanoic and docosahexanoic acid daily, preferably from oily fish. Supplements could be considered in consultation with a doctor
Patients with hypertriglyceridemia: Take 2-4 g of eicosapentanoic acid and docosahexanoic acid daily, provided as capsules under a doctor’s care
*As recommended by American Heart Association 

How does that translate into how much fish you would have to eat to get about 1 gram of omega-3-fatty acids per day? To make things simpler I have categorized fish and seafood in the table below based on the data from this article into low, medium and high marine derived omega-3-acid foods. You obviously need to eat more of the low category seafood to achieve 1 gram of omega-3-fatty acid than of the high category seafood.

How much fish and seafood you need to eat to get 1 gram of omega-3-fatty acids…
Concentration of omega-3-fatty acids in seafood: Type of fish and seafood consumed:
Low (eat 1 lbs) Catfish, Haddock
Medium (eat 1/3 -1/2 lbs) Tuna, Halibut, Oyster, Cod, Flounder, Sole
High (eat 2 or 3oz.) Atlantic salmon, Sardines, Rainbow trout, Atlantic herring, Mackerel

Before you overindulge in seafood from the low and medium category, check with your doctor first whether you are allowed so much protein. Some people have protein restrictions due to poor kidney function or because of gout. The authors of this study stated that you should eat a seafood meal with 1 gram of omega-3-fatty acid twice per week. Other sources of omega-3-fatty acids (=alpha-linolenic acid) are plant products such as soy beans,flaxseed, walnuts and rapeseed oil. In Asia fish and soy bean products are consumed in much bigger quantities than in the US.

Last edited December 8, 2012

Jan
03
2004

China Blows Alarm Whistle On Smoking

By | Cancer, Health, Heart Disease, Lung Disease, Prevention

The risks of smoking are being addressed in China, where roughly 300 million people or one quarter of the population are puffing away. The number is rising by about 3 million new smokers each year, and according to statistics of the WHO 700,000 die each year from smoking.

In November of 2003 China joined the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), a subsidiary of the World Health Organization. As a member China is now obliged to tighten restrictions on cigarette marketing and consumption.
Due to an economic boom in the country foreign tobacco giants are putting their hope into this rising market, as revenue has decreased elsewhere in the world. So far tobacco taxes, which are collected from the 1.7 trillion cigarettes sold in China amount to 8 billion $US or one tenth of government revenue. In the wake of SARS, however, the realization has come to the forefront, that health care cost have a severe impact on the economy of a country. Despite the seemingly enticing short-term gain from tobacco tax revenue, short cuts in health care can economically damage a country in the long run.

Health officials will have a battle with their counterparts in finance, when it comes to implementing tobacco control. In some areas of the country the sale of tobacco products to children has been banned and an attempt has been made to restrict cigarette commercials.

China Blows Alarm Whistle On Smoking

Quit smoking!

Powerful tobacco lobby groups actively undermine these efforts.
It is encouraging to see at least a beginning of public education about the risks of smoking. However, in a nation where cigarette manufacturing and consumption are the highest worldwide, it will be a long and arduous journey to clear the air to better health.

Based on The Lancet 363, No. 9402 (Jan. 3, 2004)

Last edited December 8, 2012

Jan
01
2004

Flu Season Not Over Yet

By | Health, Infectious Disease, Lung Disease, Prevention

Influenza type A is the cause of many flu epidemics including the one that recently affected the northern hemisphere. It is known to change its surface characteristics from time to time. This has occurred in the southern hemisphere (Australia and New Zealand) during the summer of 2003 and the same new type has caused the recent epidemic in Canada, the US and Europe.

Prior strains of flu viruses in recent years were variants of the Panama strain, that’s why the infection specialists decided in the beginning of 2003 to suggest a Panama strain type vaccine to be used for protection for this flu winter season. However, 70% of the cases tested in Canada by the end of November turned out to be influenza type A/Fujian,full name A/Fujian/411/2002(H3N2), different from type A/Panama, full name A/Panama/2007/99(H3N2), according to Dr. Theresa Tam. She is a specialist in the division of respiratory diseases at the Health Canada Centre for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control. Similar observations regarding a shift from the type a/Panama to the type A/Fujian strain of the flu virus has also been reported in the US and in Europe. It appears that those who have been vaccinated with the type A/Panama vaccine have had partial protection from this new flu as some of the flu virus characterisitics (e.g. the H3N2 determinants) are the same.

Dr. Tam mentioned that the recent deaths in children from the flu in the US, England and Canada would likely be explained by the fact that in the last 3 years there have not been any H3 type flus and the flus that did circulate were relatively mild. This means that children have not developed enough background resistance to fight a flu when it comes. Most adults have background resistance, but older people are loosing some of the resistance due to aging. Dr. Tam explained that not too many children have had the flu vaccination. One would expect that children are most vulnerable for the flu and this explains why these deaths would have occurred.

Flu Season Not Over Yet

Flu Season Not Over Yet

Production of flu vaccines that protect from flus: One of the problems with getting the best match for an upcoming flu season is the lag period between the decision to produce a certain type of flu vaccine and the mass production of the vaccine to serve a world population. This can take 6 to 8 months. A new technique of vaccine production is being investigated, called “reverse genetics”, where the lag period may only be a few weeks.

Dr. Webster, an infectious disease specialist at the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, has produced a vaccine with this method against an avian flu with the characteristics H5N1(different from the others mentioned above). This is an older flu transmitted by birds that has resurfaced earlier in 2003 again. However, this vaccine that has been produced in cell culture and not in egg cultures, has only been tested in animal models, not in humans yet. Both Dr. Webster and Dr. Tam agree that human trials under FDA guidelines are needed to test these newer vaccines utilizing reverse genetics. Regulatory and patent issues need to be settled for this to happen.

Use of antiviral drugs: Another issue is that type A influenza can be treated with antiviral antibiotics, but every flu season these types of drugs tend to run short. Each country should have a national stockpile of these antiviral drugs (such as Tamiflu) so that enough stock is available in case of a serious epidemic where the vaccine may not fit the flu strain that comes around. This is not happening at the present.

What is needed is that international discussions take place through the Global Health Security Network (right now consisting of the G7 countries and Mexico), Dr.Tam said.

Conclusion: The flu season has started early this season. Many people have died because of a lack of vaccination. Some of those who were vaccinated against the flu may have caught the flu as the fit this year with regard to the vaccine was not the best. However, they likely survived the flu, whereas those who did not have the vaccine were more likely to have experienced the flu more severely and some of these have died. It is not too late to get the flu vaccine before the spring season. Typically there is another peak of the flu between February and April.

Based in part on The Medical Post, Dec.9, 2003 (p.1 and 73).

Last edited December 8, 2012