An Aspirin a Day? Don’t Dose Yourself, FDA Says

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Taking an aspirin a day may help prevent heart attack or stroke in some people, but it’s not for everyone — and the common drug can have serious side effects that offset the benefits.

That’s the reminder Monday from health officials at the federal Food and Drug Administration, who have finally told giant drugmaker Bayer Corp. not to expect the agency to give the go-ahead for labels listing aspirin as a drug for primary prevention of heart attacks and other problems.

Instead, the recommendation for daily doses of therapeutic aspirin remains the same: It should be used only in people at high risk for heart attack and stroke, and then only under a doctor’s care.

“You should use daily aspirin therapy only after first talking to your health care professional, who can weigh the risks and benefits,” said Dr. Robert Temple, the FDA’s deputy director for clinical science.

Some studies have shown that taking doses ranging from an 81-milligram baby aspirin to a 325-milligram full-strength tablet can be helpful and aspirin therapy is recommended for those who’ve had a heart attack or who are at high risk for one.

But no one should be taking daily aspirin just because they think it’s a good idea, said Dr. Richard Chazal, vice president of the American College of Cardiology.

“There’s been sort of a conception that since aspirin is so good that maybe it would be a good idea if everyone took it,” he said. “But the data don’t really support that.”

Aspirin is a blood thinner, which helps with heart attack and stroke, but also carries risk of dangerous bleeding in the stomach or brain. People need individual assessment of their health condition to determine whether aspirin is right for them.

Bayer asked the FDA in 2003 to allow label changes, citing studies that showed daily low-dose aspirin appeared to cut the risk of cardiac problems and stroke. The agency finally sent the firm an answer on Friday, saying that subsequent studies don’t show a significant benefit of aspirin for primary prevention uses.

But both FDA and Bayer officials acknowledged that there are a number of ongoing, large scale clinical studies under way to test the use of aspirin for primary prevention of heart attack and stroke. Bayer officials said the results of aspirin use in more than 50,000 patients are expected in the next few years.

One caveat: If you’re already taking aspirin under a doctor’s orders, don’t stop without checking. It can be life-threatening to abruptly halt your dose, said Dr. Steven M. Goldberg, a cardiologist at North Shore Cardiology and Internal Medicine in Great Neck, N.Y.

Source: nbc news

Depression treatment technique uses new helmet therapy

depression treatment

A helmet that delivers electro-magnetic impulses to the brain has shown promise in treating people with depression, Danish researchers have said.

About 30% of those with the condition fail to respond to medication or psychological counselling. The new device targets malfunctioning blood cells in the brain.

In clinical trials two-thirds who used it reported that their symptoms had disappeared, and improvements in mood were noticeable within a week. The helmet was tested on 65 patients with treatment-resistant depression.

The trials were conducted by the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at Copenhagen University and the Psychiatric Centre at Hillerod in North Zealand.

Patients also continued taking their regular anti-depressant medication for the eight weeks of the trial.

‘It’s amazing’
“They were feeling well, they were functioning well, they could start work,” said Birgit Straaso, chief doctor at Hillerod.

“The helmet is amazing,” said Annemette Ovlisen, a graphic artist who suffered recurrent depression for 16 years and a participant in the Hillerod trials.

“It’s like the fog lifts. It was like somebody hit the reset button.”

The device contains seven coils that deliver a dose of Transcranial Pulsating Electro Magnetic Fields (T-PEMF) to brain tissues.

The pulses are so minute that the patient cannot detect any sensation, and the only side effect so far is occasional “tiny” nausea that immediately disappears after treatment.

Prof Steen Dissing, of Copenhagen’s Faculty of Health Sciences is the helmet’s principal architect. He said: “The device mimics electrical fields in the brain, and triggers the body’s own healing mechanism.”

The pulses activate capillaries in the brain, which form new blood vessels and secrete growth hormones. “We think it works so well because we have imitated the electrical signalling that goes on in the brain and we figured out that this signalling communicates with the blood vessels,” said Prof Dissing.

“And blood vessels do communicate with blood tissue. And we found that communication pathway.” In the trial, whose results were published this month in the journal Acta Neuropsychiatrica, 34 patients received half an hour of T-PEMF once a day, and 31 had two 30-minute doses.

The treatment had the additional benefit of enabling patients to improve their tolerance of the anti-depression medicine, researchers found.

They are currently seeking permission from the European Union to market the helmet within six months to a year, and said the potential demand was enormous.

Depression rates rising
According to the World Health Organization, more than 350 million people are suffering from depression and the number is rising, especially amongst the elderly, where one in five succumb.

At its worst, depression leads to suicide and one million take their own lives each year.

Raj Persaud, a consultant psychiatrist in the UK, said: “It is an exciting and important development as it shows that this treatment works at an acceptable level of efficacy and has low side effects.”

A similar treatment – Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) – had also been shown to be an effective treatment for depression, but no more so than taking anti-depressants, he said.

“Pregnant women and breast-feeding mothers who may not want to take an anti-depressant may find this treatment more acceptable.

“This uses and administers less electrical power than TMS, another reason why it’s theoretically interesting, and it’s self-administered, which TMS is not.

“However, most health services will be reluctant try this new treatment because they will not want the additional costs and would prefer to stick to anti-depressants.

“This is a mistake in my view, as with depression the more possible effective treatments you can offer, the better. “Only roughly one-third of people get better with anti-depressants, so having other treatments to try like this is a good thing.

“These treatments will be unpopular with health services because as well as initial start-up costs, there is training of technicians and clinicians.”

ECT replacement
Prof Dissing believes the helmet could ultimately replace controversial electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), which has been used to treat the most severe forms of depression since the 1940s.

ECT patients are sedated before being strapped to a stretcher and subjected to a dose of current that generates an epileptic fit lasting 20 to 50 seconds.

Some psychiatrists regard ECT as a life-saver, while detractors deplore side effects such as memory loss, and in some extreme cases, personality changes. The Danish helmet employs completely different technology to ECT and should not be compared, says Prof Dissing.

Colleagues at Odense University are so impressed with his invention that they will conduct an experiment in May to determine whether T-PEMF can have a positive impact on the degenerative Parkinson’s Disease.

It is hoped patients will see an improvement in symptoms such as limb stiffness and tremors.

Source: BBC news

Cinnamon levels up from common spice to ‘super’ health food

Cinnamon

A team of scientists elevated the prized spice, cinnamon, from its culinary applications to a loftier stratum as a promising molecular weapon for combating chronic diseases. Researchers from various fields, including Kiram Panickar, Heping Cao, Bolin Qin and Richard A. Anderson, collaborated in making this significant breakthrough. The results revived ancient interest in the therapeutic benefits of common cinnamon, Cinnamomum verum or Cinnamomum zeylanicum, also known as the “true cinnamon,” to modern genomic medicine. Compounds found in cinnamon revealed multiple utility in terms of enhancing the effects of insulin, its antioxidant function, efficacy against inflammation, and its neuroprotective benefits.

Cinnamon polyphenol extract (CPE) regulates a number of genes and exerts a significant influence on the metabolism of glucose. Various studies conducted on human subjects afflicted with metabolic syndrome, polycystic ovary syndrome and type 2 diabetes mellitus also showed the beneficial effects of whole cinnamon and its aqueous extract on the glucose, insulin, lipid profile and anti-oxidant status of the patients.

Experts also posited possible effects of cinnamon compounds on body composition, lean body mass and inflammatory response.

Cinnamon Extract Helps against Dyslipedemia

Patients with metabolic syndrome develop resistance to insulin action, which in turn causes dyslipedemia or abnormal level of lipids in the blood. In most cases, the problem is hyperlipedemia. Cinnamon presents a good potential in lowering lipid levels in both animal and human subjects.

Cinnamon Extract Lowers Systolic Blood Pressure

Agents that are typically employed as an intervention for insulin resistance and/or lower circulating insulin concentration in the blood also tend to lower blood pressure. Such agents include nutrients, nutritional supplements, and drugs. Research conducted on spontaneously hypertensive rats fed with sucrose-containing diet showed that elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) is lowered when the rats were given dietary cinnamon. This presents a promising development highlighting the efficacy of cinnamon not only for sucrose-induced high SBP but also for hypertension caused by genetic factors.

Molecular Targets

Based on the aforementioned link between chronic diseases and genetic influences, research is now pursuing genomic targets for therapy. Quantitative research on polymerase chain reaction was performed to examine the effects of aqueous cinnamon extract on the expression of genes coding for the glucose transporter (GLUT) and anti-inflammatory tristetrapolin (TTP) families, components of the insulin signal transduction pathway, etc. So far, there are tell-tale signs that the medical hypotheses on selected targets are leaning towards positive results.

Age-Old Super Spice

From its basic ancient uses as treatment for toothache, anti-halitosis or bad breath, medication for the nasty common cold and digestion aid, cinnamon has gone quite a long way. Recent studies also showed that even just the smell of cinnamon or chewing cinnamon gum improves brain function from memory to visual-motor speed, recognition, and attention and focus.
Source: natural news

Are nail salon UV lamps a skin cancer risk?

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The ultraviolet lamps used in some nail salons to dry and cure nail polish deliver the same hazardous rays as tanning beds, but it would take many manicures to actually cause damage, suggests a new study.

After testing 17 different lamps in nail salons, researchers calculated that it would take between eight and 208 visits – depending on the machine – to damage skin cells in a way that raises cancer risk.

“I wouldn’t tell a patient to stop going unless they were going multiple times a month,” lead author Dr. Lyndsay Shipp from Georgia Regents University in Augusta told Reuters Health.

Exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation is a risk factor for most skin cancers, according to the American Cancer Society. Natural sunlight and UV lamps used for tanning give off the harmful rays, as do the small lamps used to speed drying in nail salons.

Previous studies have looked at the polish-drying UV lamps and suggested the rays may be powerful enough to cause damage, Shipp’s team notes in JAMA Dermatology, but those studies had flaws.

“They didn’t actually go out and measure the nail lamps themselves and measure the UV radiation they’re exposed to,” Shipp said.

For the new study, the researchers measured the UV-A rays produced by 17 different nail polish drying devices at 16 salons. UV-A is one of three types of UV ray. It ages the skin to cause wrinkles and breaks DNA strands within skin cells, which can lead to cancer.

The lamps tested by the researchers differed in their power levels, but generally UV lamps with higher wattages put out higher levels of UV-A radiation.

Based on a calculation of how much UV-A radiation exposure is needed to damage DNA, the researchers found that it would take – on average – 11 uses for the devices to deliver enough UV-A to raise cancer risk.

They estimated that hands would be in the device for about eight minutes per manicure, and the risky total exposure times ranged from eight minutes to 208 minutes, depending on the machine.

Although the risk is low, Shipp’s team endorsed the idea of wearing sunscreen to protect hands from UV damage. Dr. Alina Markova, who was not involved in the new study, told Reuters Health it’s also important to note that DNA damage doesn’t mean the person will develop cancer.

“Just one risk factor of DNA damage doesn’t mean you’ll have a clinical outcome of skin cancer or photoaging,” she said. Markova, who works within the Boston University Department of Dermatology, has studied the UV rays put off by nail salon lamps.

“While we’re starting to realize these UV nail lamps are relatively safe, we still need to realize that the artificial UV devices that are hazardous are tanning beds,” she said.

The World Health Organization (WHO), the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Dermatology have come out against indoor tanning in recent years. In 2009, WHO labeled tanning devices as high-level carcinogens, which puts tanning on par with tobacco use as a public health threat.

Shipp said doctors can’t say anything is perfectly safe, but nail salon lamps seem relatively safe. “Personally, I won’t stop getting manicures myself,” she said.

Source: Reuters

10 natural, home-made scrubs to get rid of dead skin cells

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Want to keep your skin looking young? Apart from cleansing and moisturising it, you also need to use a scrub. Even if you have the most sensitive skin, you will still have to exfoliate it using a mild scrub. Exfoliation helps clear out the layer of dead skin cells and helps in better blood circulation as well giving you renewed and younger looking skin. It is a good practice to scrub your skin – not just your face but knees, elbows, etc too – at least once a week of once every two weeks. But if you are wary of using chemical laden products, here are 10 scrubs made using natural ingredients. Make them at home and use regularly to have clear skin.

Lentil or daal body scrub

Lentils are a common kitchen ingredient in every Indian home and you can use them to make scrubs. Red lentil or masoor ki daal makes an excellent scrub. To make this, take about 2 spoonfuls and grind it into a powder and then mix it with either honey or milk. Apply it before taking a bath and keep it for 15 minutes before washing it off. Another option is using moong ki daal. You need to keep it under the sun for a day before you can make the paste. Next, add rice (about one-fourth of the daal) and grind it. Add haldi and milk to it and make a thick paste. Apply it on your face and body for glowing and blemish-free skin.

Sandalwood or chandan face scrub

Make a chandan face scrub to get rid of dead skin cells and other impurities like dirt, oil which are hard to get rid of with face packs. Mix sandalwood with rice powder (chawal ka aata), gram flour (besan), milk and rose water. Remember, not to add too much milk or water as scrubs are thick in consistency. Apply this once in two weeks for the desired results.

Rice-curd-rose oil scrub

This is a creamy, moisturising scrub that gently removes dead cells leaving the skin soft. The scrub also helps remove tan and prevents cell damage by neutralising free radicals. It is suited for dry and sensitive skin. Add rice (you can grind it to make it less coarse), curd or dahi and two drops of rose oil. Apply this on the face and allow it to dry before washing it off with water.

Natural foot scrub

Combine the juice of half a lemon, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Massage the mix on your feet thoroughly and leave for 15 minutes, then rinse off and pat dry. This mixture scrubs and moisturises your feet and helps in eliminating the dryness. Make this a weekly ritual to pamper your feet and keep them looking good.

Pomegranate or anar lip scrub

Do your lips look too dark or chapped? One reason could be that you haven’t exfoliated the dead skin from it. Get back the natural pink of your lips with a scrub made from pomegranate seeds. Crush a few seeds and mix in some milk cream or malai. Apply this on your lips and rub gently. You can also combine crushed pomegranate seeds with sugar and olive oil for added beauty benefits. Wash with plain water and pat dry.

Chocolate scrub

Take some cocoa powder and add rose water or lime juice (if you have oily skin) in it. Now, grind some oatmeal and add to the mixture. Add some raw sugar and honey too. Mix well but make sure the paste is semi-solid. Rub it on your face, knees, and elbows in a circular motion. If you feel it is too harsh for your face, add olive oil to the paste to balance it out.

Baking soda scrub

Yes, this ingredient used in desserts can also come in handy to remove dead skin cells. Mix about quarter of a teaspoon of baking soda with rose water and rub it on your elbows and knees and even feet. Avoid using it on the face if you have very sensitive or dry skin.

Anti-ageing coffee scrub

Coffee is rich in antioxidants which makes it excellent for removing dead skin as well as preventing sagging skin and wrinkles to a certain extent. Take some coarse, ground coffee beans and add olive oil to it. Add raw sugar if required and then gently rub it on your face. Wash with warm water and pat dry.

Oatmeal and sugar scrub

Both the ingredients have a grainy texture. Soak oatmeal in water for 10 minutes and then mix it with a few granules of sugar. Add honey to the mixture and then apply it on your face. Avoid area around the eyes. Remember, it should not be too harsh on the skin.

Sea salt hand scrub

Since sea salt is slightly harsh, you should consider using it on areas such as hands or feet instead of the face. But you need to add oil to the scrub to mellow down the harshness. Opt for an essential oil such as lavender or you could also try extra virgin olive oil or sweet almond. Mix it together and then apply on your hands before washing it off with water.

Source: The health site

4G/LTE mobile network poses greater chronic health risks

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If you’re one of the people who has suspected cell phones/cell towers were bad news, get ready for the latest affront to our health: The 4G/LTE network. This is the latest scheme cooked up by the greedy telecommunications industry. It promises much faster bandwidth than the previous 3G incarnation, thereby providing lightning-fast mobile internet on your mobile phone or device (great for watching YouTube/Hulu). Unfortunately, there is a major downside to 4G technology (and all wireless technology that emits radiation for that matter), and it comes as a cost to our health and well-being.

Putting profits over people

The problem with many new, potentially dangerous technologies (such as tech/devices that output radiation of any kind) is that companies can make record profits off of them while the public remains ignorant of long-term chronic health risks. Corporations are obviously reluctant in these situations, as they know that researching side effects and informing the public will hurt their profit margins. That is why we’re not told anything negative about new technologies, only how great they are and how much better they are going to make our lives (How did I possibly live without this before?!?!).

The problem with 4G/LTE: The contrived need to have internet access with us at all times

As the internet age has evolved, cellular phones and devices have evolved along with it. Cell phones used to be for making calls on the go. Eventually, text messaging came onto the scene, and that was the new craze. Now, 4G mobile internet and mobile video streaming is the new novelty. Unfortunately, the bandwidth required for mobile internet and video streaming on a cellular device is greater than what can be provided over older, conventional 2G/3G cell phone tower networks. So for 4G, there have been many new high-powered cell towers erected around the world, with little thought about the adverse effects that the addition of more radiation-emitting technology will cause.

4G/LTE handset “smart” antennas

4G designers needed to increase bandwidth receiving capability in 4G handsets/devices, so they developed “smart antennas” – a series of 4 antennas in a single phone handset. This is like the equivalent of having four cell phones in one device rather than one (tumor, anyone?). The mobile telecom industry is fully aware of the potential carcinogenic effect of their products, but instead of searching for ways to reduce the potential threat to public health, they are multiplying it. This is just plain unethical business practice.

Radiation overload and wireless plankton

Over the last 10 years, physicians have noticed a continuous increase in the number of people with chronic complaints. Doctors have taken blood draws or saliva from patients, and determined in 2012 that one in three patients has radiation overload. In 2002, only one patient in 30 were radiation stressed. In 300 patients with chronic health complaints, 138 of them were caused by radiation (from wireless internet or cell phone tech). These numbers have gotten worse with 3G and ubiquitous Wi-Fi hot spots around the world. How bad are these numbers going to get with the 4G/LTE network?

Plankton were used in experiments to test the adverse properties of wireless signals in lab tests. In these experiments, the wireless-exposed plankton died or were deformed within several days of chronic exposure. With Wi-Fi it took 96 hours, 3G took 72 hours, and with 4G the plankton died within 48 hours. Since all living organisms ultimately escape the effects that unnatural radiation has on them, we must ask ourselves this: If wireless radiation is killing or deforming plankton, what is it doing to us?

Source: natural news

Smoking during pregnancy may raise heart defects risk in babies

Pregnant Woman Smoking

Researchers have shown that risk for congenital anomalies is highest among babies born to older women who smoke.

The authors of this study used birth certificate data and hospital discharge records from Washington state to determine if maternal smoking during the first trimester of pregnancy is linked to heart defects and if so, what types of defects.

Lead author Patrick M. Sullivan, MD, FAAP, clinical fellow in pediatric cardiology at Seattle Children’s Hospital and a master’s student in epidemiology at the University of Washington School of Public Health, said I care for kids with complex congenital heart disease on a daily basis, and I see these kids and their families enduring long hospitalizations and often sustaining serious long-term complications as a result of their disease.

Sullivan said usually, the cause of a heart defect is unknown. I saw this research as an opportunity to study what might be a preventable cause of congenital heart defects.

Using hospital discharge records, researchers identified 14,128 children born with a variety of heart defects from 1989-2011. They matched these cases to 62,274 children without heart defects born in the same year.

Then, they compared the proportion of children with heart defects whose mothers reported smoking during pregnancy to the proportion of children without heart defects whose mothers smoked. Mothers’ smoking status, as well as how much they smoked daily, was available from birth certificates.

Newborns whose mothers smoked were at about a 50 to 70 percent greater risk for anomalies of the valve and vessels that carry blood to the lungs (pulmonary valve and pulmonary arteries) and about a 20 percent greater risk for holes in the wall separating the two collecting chambers of the heart (atrial septal defects). All of these defects often require invasive procedures to correct.

Source: deccan chronicle

Active seniors can lower heart attack risk by doing more, not less

Active elderly people go hill walking in the Trossachs National Park, Scotland. Image shot 04/2010. Exact date unknown.

Maintaining or boosting your physical activity after age 65 can improve your heart’s electrical well-being and lower your risk of heart attack, according to a study in the American Heart Association journal Circulation.

In heart monitor recordings taken over five years, researchers found that people who walked more and faster and had more physically active leisure time had fewer irregular heart rhythms and greater heart rate variability than those who were less active.

Heart rate variability is differences in the time between one heartbeat and the next during everyday life.

“These small differences are influenced by the health of the heart and the nervous system that regulates the heart,” said Luisa Soares-Miranda, Ph.D., lead author of the study and a researcher at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston and the Faculty of Sport at the University of Porto in Portugal. “Early abnormalities in this system are picked up by changes in heart rate variability, and these changes predict the risk of future heart attacks and death.”

The researchers evaluated 24-hour heart monitor recordings of 985 adults (average age 71 at baseline) participating in the community-based Cardiovascular Health Study, a large study of heart disease risk factors in people 65 and older.

During the study, they found:

The more physical activity people engaged in, the better their heart rate variability.
Participants who increased their walking distance or pace during the five years had better heart rate variability than those who reduced how much or how fast they walked.
“Any physical activity is better than none, but maintaining or increasing your activity has added heart benefits as you age,” Soares-Miranda said. “Our results also suggest that these certain beneficial changes that occur may be reduced when physical activity is reduced.”

The researchers calculated that the difference between the highest and lowest levels of physical activity would translate into an estimated 11 percent lower risk of heart attack or sudden cardiac death.

“So if you feel comfortable with your usual physical activity, do not slow down as you get older — try to walk an extra block or walk at a faster pace,” Soares-Miranda said. “If you’re not physically active, it is never too late to start.”

Co-authors are Jacob Sattelmair, Ph.D.; Paulo Chaves, M.D., Ph.D.; Glen Duncan, Ph.D.; David S. Siscovick, M.D., M.P.H.; Phyllis K. Stein, Ph.D.; and Dariush Mozaffarian, M.D., Dr.P.H. Author disclosures are on the manuscript.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and National Institute on Aging funded the research.

Source: News room

Have a one-year-old baby? Dental care a must

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While many parents remain ignorant about how much dental care their little ones need, a new study has found that babies, who are most susceptible to cavities in their early lives, are least likely taken care of even though they need it the most.

The study reveals that less than one per cent of healthy children receive dental care by the recommended age of 12 months and less than two per cent had seen a dentist by the age of 24 months.

Prolonged bottle use, especially at night, and sweetened drinks are suspected risk factors for cavities because the carbohydrates in the beverages promote the growth of the bacteria that causes cavities, said Jonathon Maguire, a paediatrician at St Michael’s Hospital in Canada.

The findings showed that of the 2,505 children around four years of age who were surveyed from 2011-13 for the study, 39 percent had never been to a dentist.

Maguire said that barriers to dental care for families with young children may include financial cost, access to transportation, school absence policies and a belief that dental health may not be important to overall well-being.

He said previous studies had shown that children who receive preventive dental care in the first year of life have less dental disease and are less likely to require restorative or emergency treatment and have lower dental-related health care costs – particularly among high-risk populations.

According to Dr.Maguire, cavities can cause not just pain in children but also contribute to feeding problems, poor nutritional status and behavioural problems.

The study appeared in the journal Pediatrics.

Source: Zee news

Smiling can help fight memory loss

smile

A new study has revealed that humor and laughter can help lessen the damage that stress hormone cortisol has on memory and learning ability in the elderly.

According to the researchers at Loma Linda University, there was a significant decrease in cortisol concentrations among both groups who watched a funny video and showed greater improvement in all areas of the memory assessment when compared to controls.

Gurinder Singh Bains said that their findings offer potential clinical and rehabilitative benefits that can be applied to wellness programs for the elderlyand the cognitive components, such as learning ability and delayed recall, become more challenging as people age and are essential to older adults for an improved quality of life.

The researchers said that the less stress one has the better their memory, as humor reduces detrimental stress hormones like cortisol that decrease memory hippocampal neurons, lowers the blood pressure, and increases blood flow and mood state.
The study revealed that the act of laughter-or simply enjoying some humor-increases the release of endorphins and dopamine in the brain, which provides a sense of pleasure and reward and the positive and beneficial neurochemical changes, in turn, make the immune system function better.

Source: Yahoo news