_ Healthy Diet & Nutrition Heart Health Herbs, Spices and Heart Disease By Jane Farrell article Spices and herbs may do more than add a flavorful touch to food ΓÇô researchers say itΓÇÖs possible that they … Read More→
Pets Dogs and Our Health: The Benefits of our Furry Friends By Jane Farrell article For thousands of years, dogs have been domesticated and bred to have qualities humans deemed suitableΓÇôa literal transformation from wild … Read More→
Dementia Patients Getting Iffy Meds By article More than half of nursing home residents with advanced dementia, a terminal illness marked by severe cognitive impairment and functional … Read More→
_ Heart Health New Statin Guidelines an Improvement By Sondra Forsyth article New national guidelines can improve the way statin drugs are prescribed to patients at risk for cardiovascular disease, a Yale University study has found. The research, published August 25th 2014 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, also showed the new guidelines produce only a modest increase in the number of patients being given the drugs.
_ Doctors Often Don't Talk to Patients about Aspirin By Jane Farrell article Although the health benefits of aspirin have been proven, there arenΓÇÖt many doctors recommending it to patients at risk of heart attack or stroke. Researchers from the University of Rochester based that conclusion after studying a national sample of more than 3,000 middle-aged patients, both men and women. Most of the participants said they couldnΓÇÖt recall their doctor telling them to take aspirin.
_ Heart Health Niacin Linked to Death Risk By Sondra Forsyth article Niacin has been a mainstay of cholesterol therapy for 50 years, but Northwestern Medicine preventive cardiologist Donald Lloyd-Jones, M.D. maintains that the drug should no longer be prescribed for most patients due to potential increased risk of death, dangerous side effects, and no benefit in reducing heart attacks and strokes. His editorial was published in the July 17th 2014 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
_ Kidney Health Supplements & OTCs May Hurt Your Kidneys By Sondra Forsyth article How well are your kidneys working? Unless youΓÇÖve had problems in the past, you probably take for granted that your kidneys are working as they should. But more than one in 10 adults in the United States has kidney disease, and most people who have it donΓÇÖt know it.
_ Menopause Are You Setting Off Your Hot Flashes? By Sondra Forsyth article By Gary Elkins If you start taking note of your hot flashes, you may recognize some events, emotions, or activities that actually seem to contribute to, or ΓÇ£trigger,ΓÇ¥ the onset of a hot flash. Scientifically speaking, while the physiology of hot flashes is associated with a decrease in estrogen level or an increase in gonadotropin concentrations, the actual physiological mechanism of hot flashes is not known.
What Nobody Tells You About Losing Weight By blog What is weight loss, really? ItΓÇÖs not what it seems. Seriously. And thatΓÇÖs where folks get into trouble. They think weight loss is a magic cure all. That once they hit their goal, the work is done. In their minds, they might know better. But then thereΓÇÖs that part that wants, well, the magic. I know, because I used to think this way.
_ New Cancer Tx Raises Blood Pressure By article The upside of new cancer therapies that block vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling is that these agents have improved the outlook for patients with some cancers and are now used as a first line therapy for some tumors. However the downside is that almost 100% of patients who take VEGF inhibitors (VEGFIs) develop high blood pressure, and a subset develops severe hypertension. That is the finding of a study done at the Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, University of Glasgow.
_ Resveratrol's Secrets Revealed! By article Unless you’ve been living in another solar system, you’ve repeatedly heard the news that resveratrol, a component of red wine and grapes, is associated with reducing LDL (bad) cholesterol, heart disease, and some types of cancer. Also found in blueberries, cranberries, mulberries, peanuts, and pistachios, resveratrol is associated with beneficial health effects in aging, inflammation and metabolism. Yet researchers have not been able to explain how and why resveratrol works its magic.
_ Heart Health Statin Users Eating More Fat By Jane Farrell article Many Americans who take statins don’t have a healthy diet because the drugs give them a false sense of security, according to a new study. And the number of statin users with unhealthy diets appears to have increased. The research by investigators from UCLA indicates that patients who took statins in 2009-2010 were eating more calories and fat than those who used statins earlier. Among people who didn’t use statins, there was no similar increased.
_ Support Group Weight Loss Helps Diabetics By article Weight loss and control of blood sugar can reduce the risk of complications in patients with diabetes but paring off the pounds is difficult for many people. Now a randomized controlled trial of obese adults with type 2 diabetes done at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis suggests that participants enrolled in a community-based structured weight loss program are able to shed more of their excess avoir dupois, improve blood sugar control, and reduce or even eliminate insulin use.
_ Heart Health Developing A Safer NSAID By Jane Farrell article Researchers are drawing closer to a safer alternative to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that relieve pain but can cause heart attacks, strokes and even sudden cardiac death. Investigators from the University of Pennsylvania built on previous work to further explore the role of an enzyme, mPGES-1, in delaying the development of atherosclerosis. Their findings were reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Men's Health Statins Help With Erectile Function By Jane Farrell article In addition to lowering blood cholesterol, statin drugs also appear to help with erectile dysfunction. Researchers said they hope that conclusion will encourage men who need statins to take them. The finding is to be presented at the American College of Cardiology's 63rd Annual Scientific Session.
_ Heart Health Learn the True Age of Your Heart By article A new method of heart disease risk assessment developed by the Joint British Societies lets you learn the true age of your heart so that you can take preventive steps to lower your risk of cardiovascular disease. The calculator is available online here: JBS3 risk calculator.
_ Heart Health Millions More Adults Could Start Using Statins By Jane Farrell article Up to 12.8 million Americans may begin taking statins thanks to new guidelines for using the drugs, according to a research team led by scientists from Duke University. The finding is the first to make specific predictions based on the American Heart Association’s new guidelines, which were issued in November. The investigators, whose findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that most of the additional users would be people over 60.