_ AD Drug to Prevent Brain Blood Clots By Sondra Forsyth article Experiments done in Sidney Strickland's Laboratory of Neurobiology and Genetics at Rockefeller University in New York have identified a compound that might halt the progression of Alzheimer's by interfering with the role amyloid-╬▓, a small protein that forms plaques in Alzheimer's brains, plays in the formation of blood clots. This work is highlighted in the July 2014 issue of Nature Reviews Drug Discovery.
_ Hepatitis C Liver Transplants for Hep C: A Surprising Finding By Sondra Forsyth article An international team of researchers was surprised to find that in some hepatitis C patients who receive liver transplants, genes that target the hepatitis C virus (HCV) as part of the innate immune system actually enable the patients to tolerate a foreign organ without taking immunosuppressant medication. The study was published in July 2014 in Science Translational Medicine.
_ Local Anesthesia Better for Hip-Fracture Surgery By Jane Farrell article General anesthesia may not always be best for patients undergoing hip-fracture surgery, a study has found. The researchers, from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, found in another study that there were high rates of mortality and functional disability among nursing-home residents who were treated for hip fracture. Each year, about 300,000 hip fractures occur in the United States. They often happen as a result of serious falls that can impair functionality.
_ Healthy Diet & Nutrition Food Ingredient Fears By Sondra Forsyth article Daily headlines on Internet pages and blogs claim: "New ingredient X is harmful to your health." Such warnings can scare people into avoiding these ingredients without actually knowing the facts, leading some people to have food fears about ingredients such as sugar, fat, sodium, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), mono sodium glutamate (MSG), and others. While some of these food fears are merited, others can be misleading.
_ Your Television May Be Killing You By Jane Farrell article Watching too much TV can be fatal: Adults who indulge for three or more hours each day may double their risk of premature death, according to new research. Researchers, who published their findings in the Journal of the American Heart Association, said that watching television is one of many bad lifestyle habits on the rise.
_ Food Allergies & Intolerance New Tx for Food Allergies By Sondra Forsyth article For some people, an allergic reaction to common foods such as peanuts, milk, or eggs can cause a life-threatening anaphylactic reaction. At present no effective treatment for food allergy exists, and strict dietary avoidance of known food triggers is the only preventive option available. However, ongoing trials are exploring options for oral immunotherapy (OIT) for desensitization in the treatment of Immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated food allergy, as described in a Review article in Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology,
Aging Well A Drug to Slow Aging By Sondra Forsyth article A drug called rapimycin may mimic the effect of dietary restriction, one of the most-researched methods for slowing the aging process, according to an article published in The Journals of Gerontology, Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences/em> in June 2014.
_ ΓÇ£FacelockΓÇ¥: Passwords You Can Actually Remember! By Sondra Forsyth article If you have trouble remembering all your Internet passwords, Senior Moments arenΓÇÖt necessarily to blame! Researchers in the UK maintain that forgetting passwords is an endemic problem for users and IT managers alike. As a solution, the scientists have developed a newly proposed alternative based on the psychology of face recognition.
_ DonΓÇÖt Ruin Your Healthy Lifestyle With These Bad Habits By Sondra Forsyth article By LeanonLife Health and Fitness Team A Game Plan
_ "Brain Marijuana" Can Help with Dementia By Jane Farrell article The protein beta-amyloid, long suspected to play a key role in AlzheimerΓÇÖs, may begin its destructive process by blocking marijuana-like substances in the brain. A study by researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine focused on the blocking of endocannabinoids in the early stages of AlzheimerΓÇÖs. Endocannabinoids are signaling substances that are the brainΓÇÖs versions of the psychoactive chemicals in marijuana and hashish. As a result of the discovery, the investigators are now focusing on the molecular details of exactly how the blocking occurs.
_ Brain Health Seeing the Inner Workings of the Brain By Sondra Forsyth article A team of scientists at Stanford University has improved a technique called CLARITY that they developed in 2013 to look into brains from deceased donors, according to a paper published June 19th 2014 in Nature Protocols. A release from the university explains that without this tool, the fatty outer covering of the brainΓÇÖs nerve cells blocks microscopes from taking images of the intricate connections between deep brain cells. CLARITY eliminates the fatty covering while keeping the brain intact with all its intricate inner wiring.
_ Aging Well Memory Loss Stress Management Stress-Free Living Stress Linked to Memory Loss as We Age By Sondra Forsyth article Research done at the University of Iowa reports a potential link between stress hormones and short-term memory loss in older adults. The study, published in June 2014 in the Journal of Neuroscience, found that prolonged high levels of cortisol can lead to memory lapses as we age.
_ Exercise Calling All Couch Potatoes: You Might Be at Risk for this Disease By Sondra Forsyth article HereΓÇÖs yet another compelling reason to get up off the couch: Physical inactivity can increase the risk of colon, endometrial, and lung cancers, according to a study published June 16th 2014 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Time spent watching TV was especially predictive of increased cancer risk.
_ 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.
A Microwave Device that Helps Treat Strokes By Jane Farrell article A device that detects different kinds of strokes in patients could be a lifesaving instrument, according to new research. Strokefinder, which is placed on a patientΓÇÖs head, uses microwaves to examine the patientΓÇÖs brain tissue. The device interprets the findings to determine if the stroke is caused by a blood clot or bleeding. The difference between those two kinds of strokes can be crucial in emergency treatment. Researchers from Chalmers University of Technology, Sahlgrenska Academy and Sahlgrenska University Hospital, in Sweden, studied 45 patients.
_ The Drug That Improves Anti-Cancer Viruses By Jane Farrell article Combining a widely used medication with a cancer-killing virus might improve the effectiveness of the virus in battling malignancies, according to a new study.
_ High blood pressure / hypertension Senior Health Diuretics Risky for Older Adults By Sondra Forsyth article Adults over 65 with high blood pressure who have recently begun taking thiazide diuretics are at a greater risk for developing metabolic-related adverse events including acute kidney injury, according to research done at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco. The study was published in June 2014 in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
_ Injury Prevention & Treatment Medical Care ThirdAge Health Close-Up: I Fell and Dislocated My Shoulder By Sondra Forsyth article By Sherry Amatenstein, LCSW