_ Debunking the ΓÇ£LinkΓÇ¥ Between MS and CCVI By Sondra Forsyth article In 2009, an Italian doctor named Paolo Zamboni postulated that a condition he dubbed ΓÇ£chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiencyΓÇ¥ (CCVI) is a cause of multiple sclerosis (MS). CCVI refers to compromised blood flow in the veins that drain the central nervous system. However, no one has been able replicate ZamboniΓÇÖs findings.
_ Infection Risks in Home Health Care By article Each year, an estimated 12 million Americans receive care from more than 33,000 home health providers in the U.S., where the annual tab for home health services exceeds $72 billion. Patients depend on home health care services to recover from surgeries and hospital stays, as well as to manage daily life with chronic conditions. All too often, however, proven practices for preventing infections aren't followed when care is provided at home.
_ Combo Tx for Melanoma: Encouraging Results By article The first long-term follow-up results from a an immunotherapy trial combining drugs for advanced melanoma patients has shown long-lasting rsultswith high survival rates, according to researchers at Yale Cancer Center led by Dr. Mario Sznol, professor of medical oncology. Dr. Sznol presented the updated data in June at the 2014 annual conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago.
_ Metformin Lengthens Lifespan By article Metformin, the world's most widely used anti-diabetic drug, slows aging and increases lifespan. That is the finding of Wouter De Haes and colleagues at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium and reported in June 2014 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. According to a release from the university, the researchers teased out the mechanism behind metformin's age-slowing effects: the drug causes an increase in the number of toxic oxygen molecules released in the cell and this, surprisingly, increases cell robustness and longevity in the long term.
_ Prostate-Cancer Radiation Has Some Dangers By Jane Farrell article Prostate-cancer patients who have received radiation treatment appear more likely to develop bladder or rectal cancer, new research shows. And while the number of cases is relatively low, investigators said that patients should still be monitored for those illnesses. ΓÇ£Overall the incidence of these cancers is low. But when men have received radiation treatments, itΓÇÖs important to evaluate carefully any symptoms that could be a sign of bladder or rectal cancer,ΓÇ¥ says senior study author Kathleen A.
_ Brain Health Learning a 2nd Language Aids Your Aging Brain By Sondra Forsyth article If you grew up bilingual or learned a second language in high school, youΓÇÖve done your aging brain a favor. However, even if you start mastering a second language as an older adult, you can benefit from the positive effect your new non-native tongue will have on cognition as you age. ThatΓÇÖs the finding of research done at the Centre for Cognitive Aging and Cognitive Epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh and published in June 2014 in Annals of Neurology.
_ Healthy Diet & Nutrition Update on Leptin & Appetite Control By Jane Farrell article Twenty years ago, scientists found that the hormone leptin regulates metabolism, appetite, and weight through brain cells called neurons. Now Yale School of Medicine researchers have discovered that the hormone also acts on glial cells in the brain cells to control appetite. The study, published in the June st 2014 issue of Nature Neuroscience, could lead to development of treatments for metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes.
_ Money Matters Change to Medicare Part D Would Save $5 Billion By Jane Farrell article The federal government could save over $5 billion in the first year by changing the way the government assigns Part D plans for Medicare beneficiaries eligible for low-income subsidies, according to new research from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.
_ 3 Simple Things You Can Do Today to Feel Better TomorrowΓÇ¿ By Jane Farrell article By Dr. Frank King Imagine youΓÇÖre a spider with just one leg. You put forth immense effort to try to haul yourself around and not only does it wear you out, itΓÇÖs frustrating and you donΓÇÖt get far. It gets a bit easier with two legs and easier still with four legs. But itΓÇÖs not till you have all eight legs that you can really dance. The eight legs represent Eight Essentials we need for optimum mental, physical, and spiritual health:
_ Healthy Diet & Nutrition Weight Loss Eating Prunes Helps Pare Off Pounds By Jane Farrell article Your mother may have made you eat prunes keep you ΓÇ£regularΓÇ¥ but now thereΓÇÖs another reason to add those dried plums to your diet. Researchers at the University of Liverpool in the UK have found that eating prunes as part of a weight control diet can improve weight loss.
Medical Care Better Screening for Brain Aneurysms By Jane Farrell article New research by an international consortium, including a researcher from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, may help physicians better understand the chronological development of a brain aneurysm. The study was published in the June 2014 print issue of the journal Stroke.
Mental & Emotional Health Depression & Diabetes Linked to Early Death in Seniors By Jane Farrell article A study led by the University of Californina, Los Angeles and published in June 2014 in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that among adults 65 and older with diabetes, depression is linked with a far greater chance for early death than it is for diabetics of the same age who do not have depression.
_ Doctors Don't Want Aggressive End-of-Life Treatment for Themselves By Jane Farrell article Although most physicians would choose a do-not-resuscitate code for themselves when terminally ill, they tend to pursue life-prolonging treatment for patients in a similar condition, new research shows. The study, conducted by researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine, demonstrates a ΓÇ£disconnectΓÇ¥ that needs to be further explored. ΓÇ£Why do we physicians choose to pursue such aggressive treatment for our patients when we wouldnΓÇÖt choose it for ourselves?ΓÇ¥ said lead author VJ Periyakoil, director of the Stanford Palliative Care Education and Training Program.
_ Toxic Substances Make You Older By Jane Farrell article Environmental toxins play a significant part in your molecular aging, according to new research. Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill say toxins that affect the rate of such aging include benzene, cigarette smoke and even stress. Molecular age refers to the age of the bodyΓÇÖs cells, and is different from chronological age.
_ Vision Health Toward a Cure for Dry Eye By Jane Farrell article Dry eye syndrome, a condition that is especially prevalent in women as they age, happens when the quantity of tears is no longer sufficient to lubricate the eyes. A burning sensation is typical and impaired vision including damage to the cornea may result. In search of a cure, researchers led by Kara Maki Ph.D. at the Rochester Institute of TechnologyΓÇÖs School of Mathematical Sciences in New York are testing computer simulations that map the way tears move across the surface of the eye. The study was published on May 6th 2014 in the journal Physics of Fluids.
_ Mental & Emotional Health When Thoughts Pop Into Your Head By Jane Farrell article When a random thought pops unbidden in your head, do you ever have the feeling that this occurrence reveals some meaningful insight about you? Then youΓÇÖre far from alone. Yet according to researchers at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and Harvard Business School, that notion is not based in fact and can sway your judgment.
_ Skin Skin Health Indoor Tanning Ups Melanoma Risk By Jane Farrell article If you or your teenage children or grandchildren believe that getting an indoor tan will prevent burns from outdoor sun exposure, youΓÇÖre courting the deadliest form of skin cancer. ThatΓÇÖs the finding of researchers at the University of Minnesota who published their study May 29th 2014 in the JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The team reports that indoor tanning raises the risk of developing melanoma even if a person has never had burns from either indoor or outdoor tanning.
_ Delivering a Drug ΓÇ£CocktailΓÇ¥ to Cancer Cells By Jane Farrell article Biomedical engineering researchers at North Carolina State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have developed daisy-shaped, nanoscale structures that are made predominantly of anti-cancer drugs and are capable of introducing a "cocktail" of multiple drugs into cancer cells.