_ Sleep Health Does Melatonin Work? By Jane Farrell article could get to sleep. Millions of people suffer from the same condition, and melatonin, a popular dietary supplement, is said to help. The melatonin sold in stores is a concentrated form of a natural hormone that plays a role in sleep. The hormone’s levels in the body rise in the a.m. and fall in the p.m. It’s been studied in connection with sleep disorders such as jet lag and insomnia, as well as dementia symptoms.
Vision Health Abnormal ΓÇ£Binocular VisionΓÇ¥ as We Age By article Abnormal “binocular vision”, which involves the way our eyes work together as a team, increases dramatically as we age, according to research from the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. A release from the university reports that the study also found that general health and antidepressant use are also linked to this disorder, which affects depth perception and therefore may increase the risk of falls.
_ Alzheimer's Subtype Often Misdiagnosed By Jane Farrell article Neuroscientists have defined a subtype of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) that they say is neither well recognized nor treated appropriately. The variant - called hippocampal sparing AD - made up 11 percent of the 1,821 AD-confirmed brains examined by researchers from the Mayo Clinic in Florida.
_ Better Medicine for Serious Ailments By Jane Farrell article Scientists have discovered a crucial element in a cellular process that could help develop a new class of drugs for treating epilepsy, heart disease and cancer. Researchers from the University of Waterloo, Ontario, found that T-type channels can shift the way they generate electrical signals to cells. The rhythmic signals produced by a normal action of this process support the contraction of heart muscles as well as “firing” in parts of the brain
10 Ways Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT or Tapping) Work to Heal Trauma and Other Stresses of Life By blog When we think of people healing from trauma, we often picture people dealing with the effects of natural disasters, soldiers returning from battle, or people recovering from childhood violence or sexual abuse. But stress and trauma impact many more of us than most people recognize and Emotional Freedom Techniques, also known as EFT or Tapping, can be of tremendous help.
_ 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.
_ CoQ10: How Reliable Is It? By Jane Farrell article Editor’s Note: CoQ10 is a popular supplement that’s said to be effective in fighting everything from congestive heart failure to gum disease. But is it safe, and is there reliable evidence to support these claims? Before you reach for a bottle of CoQ10 on your next trip to the drugstore, read this information from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, a division of the federal National Institutes of Health:
_ The Right Treatment for Irritable Bowel Syndrome By Jane Farrell article Irritable Bowel Syndrome affects an estimated 3 to 20 percent of the population, according to the federal National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC). According to the NDDIC, IBS is a collection of symptoms, not a condition. It’s been known by a number of other names in the past, including colitis and spastic colon.
Mental & Emotional Health Counterintuitive Tx for Depression By article Could ratcheting up the activity of neurons in the brain known to be involved with stress-induced depression have the counterintuitive effect of banishing the blues and helping people bounce back?. Yes, say researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City who published their study online April 18th 2014 in the journal Science.
_ 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.
_ Mental & Emotional Health Anxiety Medications as You Age By article Anxiety medications can affect you differently as you age. The National Institutes for Health Senior Health Portal alerts you in to possible problems: The research on treating anxiety disorders in older adults is limited. However, most disorders can be treated with medication or psychotherapy. For some people, a combination of medication and psychotherapy may be the best treatment approach. Antidepressants
Alzheimer's Disease and the Early-Onset Colombian Connection By blog I’m a huge fan of the CBS news show Sunday Morning. It’s 90 minutes of quality programming that I look forward to every week.
_ 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.
_ More Effective Kidney Stone Treatment By article Researchers in France have hit on a novel method to help kidney stone sufferers ensure they receive the correct and most effective treatment possible. Kidney stones represent a major medical problem in the Western and developing world. If left untreated, apart from being particularly painful, they can lead to renal failure and other complications. In many patients treated successfully, stone recurrence is also a major problem. Clearly a more effective pathological approach to diagnosis and treatment needs to be identified to ensure successful eradication of stones.
_ Pain Management Relief from Chemo Pain By article Scientists have identified new pain relief targets that could be used to provide relief from chemotherapy-induced pain. Researchers at King's College London made the discovery when investigating how pain occurs in nerves in the periphery of the body. A release from the Biotechnology and Biological Science Research Council quotes Dr Marzia Malcangio a saying, "We have been investigating and identifying mechanisms underlying pain generation and our findings could help chemotherapy patients who suffer pain related side effects."
_ Mental & Emotional Health Understanding Bipolar Disorder By Jane Farrell article Editor’s Note: Bipolar disorder is often talked about, but sometimes misunderstood. The story of days-long manic episodes followed by prolonged depressed periods is a familiar one. But that isn’t the only form this disorder takes. And if someone you love has a variation on classic bipolar disorder, it’s important to recognize the condition and seek diagnosis and treatment. The experts at the National Institute of Mental Health offer the distinctions between the different types of bipolar disorder:
_ For Older COPD Patients, Common Meds Pose a Risk By article A group of drugs commonly prescribed for insomnia, anxiety, and breathing issues "significantly increase the risk" that older people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), also known as emphysema, need to visit a doctor or Emergency Department for respiratory reasons. That is the finding of research done at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto and published online on april 17th 2014 in the European Respiratory Journal.
_ Pricier Rx If Docs Get Free Drug Samples By article At least for dermatologists, access to free drug samples from Big Pharma representatives means costlier prescription for patients. That’s the finding of Stanford University Medical Center researchers who published the results of their study April 16th in JAMA Dermatology.