Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Jon's Health News Report - Latest Research

For reasons I won't go into I am currently eating an extremely unhealthy diet, so I will offer info today without my usual commentary.


PLEASE CLICK ON LINKS BELOW FOR MORE SPECIFIC INFO.


See all reports and many more here.

Ω Vitamin E in Diet Protects Against Many Cancers
While the question of whether vitamin E prevents or promotes cancer has been widely debated in scientific journals and in the news media, scientists at the Center for Cancer Prevention Research, at Rutgers Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, and the Cancer Institute of New Jersey, believe that two forms of vitamin E -- gamma and delta-tocopherols -- found in soybean, canola and corn oils as well as nuts do prevent colon, lung, breast and prostate cancers. "There are studies suggesting that vitamin E actually increases the risk of cancer and decreases bone density," says Chung S. Yang, director of the center. "Our message is that the vitamin E form of gamma-tocopherols, the most abundant form of vitamin E in the American diet, and delta-tocopherols, also found in vegetable oils, are beneficial in preventing cancers while the form of vitamin E, alpha- tocopherol, the most commonly used in vitamin E supplements, has no such benefit." Yang says Rutgers scientists conducting animal studies for colon, lung, breast and prostate cancer found that the forms of vitamin E in vegetable oils, gamma and delta-tocopherols, prevent cancer formation and growth in animal models. This is good news for cancer research. Recently, in one of the largest prostate cancer clinical trials in the United States and Canada, scientists found that the most commonly used form of vitamin E supplements, alpha-tocopherol, not only did not prevent prostate cancer, but its use significantly increased the risk of this disease among healthy men.

Ω Omega-3 Fatty Acids May Help to Reduce the Physical Harm Caused by Smoking

Ω Soda Consumption Increases Overall Stroke Risk, Coffee Lowers Risk

Ω Consuming Low-Fat Rather Than High Fat Dairy Food May Reduce Your Risk Of Stroke

Ω Meditation Makes You More Creative

Ω Modest Alcohol Consumption Lowers Risk of Liver Disease
Ω Alcohol In Moderation Lowers Risk Of Second Heart Attack

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The any-cause mortality risk for men who survived a first heart attack and who consumed about two alcoholic drinks daily over an extended period of time was 14% lower, and the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease was 42% lower than in men who did not consume alcohol. Scientists know that amongst the healthy population, moderate alcohol consumption is linked to a lower risk of heart disease and death.
Exercise reduces risk of death from cardiovascular disease in people with high blood pressure

Exercise Lowers Alzheimer's Risk, Even If You Start Late
Doing exercise every day can considerably reduce your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, even if you start becoming physically active after 80 years of age. The results of a study indicate that all physical activities including exercise as well as other activities such as cooking, washing the dishes, and cleaning are associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease. These results provide support for efforts to encourage all types of physical activity even in very old adults who might not be able to participate in formal exercise, but can still benefit from a more active lifestyle.

Positive Feelings May Help Protect Cardiovascular Health

Fiber protects against cardiovascular disease -- especially in women

Women who ate a diet high in fibre had an almost 25 per cent lower risk of suffering from cardiovascular disease compared with women who ate a low-fibre diet. In men the effect was less pronounced. However, the results confirmed that a high-fibre diet does at least protect men from stroke. The exact reason for the difference between the sexes is unclear. However, a probable explanation is that women consume fibre from healthier food sources than men do. Women ate a lot of fibre in the form of fruit and vegetables, whereas the most important source of fibre for men was bread.

Tree Nut Consumption = Lower Body Weight & Fewer Health Risks

Aspirin = cancer prevention

A new report by American Cancer Society scientists says new data showing aspirin's potential role in reducing the risk of cancer death bring us considerably closer to the time when cancer prevention can be included in clinical guidelines for the use of aspirin in preventive care. The report, published early online in Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology, says even a 10% reduction in overall cancer incidence beginning during the first 10 years of treatment could tip the balance of benefits and risks favorably in average-risk populations. Current guidelines for the use of aspirin in disease prevention consider only its cardiovascular benefits, weighed against the potential harm from aspirin-induced bleeding. While daily aspirin use has also been convincingly shown to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer and recurrence of adenomatous polyps, these benefits alone do not outweigh harms from aspirin-induced bleeding in average-risk populations. But recently published secondary analyses of cardiovascular trials have provided the first randomized evidence that daily aspirin use may also reduce the incidence of all cancers combined, even at low doses (75-100 mg daily). The report says recently published meta-analyses of results from randomized trials of daily aspirin treatment to prevent vascular events have provided provocative evidence that daily aspirin at doses of 75 mg and above might lower both overall cancer incidence and overall cancer mortality.


Eating flavonoids protects men against Parkinson's disease

Ω Men who eat flavonoid-rich foods such as berries, tea, apples and red wine significantly reduce their risk of developing Parkinson's disease.

Ω Keeping mentally fit through board games or reading may be the best way to preserve memory during late life.

Ω Why Don't More Women Take a Daily Aspirin to Prevent Heart Disease?

Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women, and evidence-based national guidelines promote the use of daily aspirin for women at increased risk for cardiovascular disease. However, less than half of the women who could benefit from aspirin are taking it.
Ω Warning: Farm-Raised Salmon Is a Serious Health Hazard
The primary health concern stems from nasty chemicals called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). These pesticide chemicals were banned in the U.S. in 1976 due to their cancer-causing potential and other negative health effects. Unfortunately, PCBs are persistent organic pollutants, which means that they take a very long time to leave our environment. They still exist in our oceans and waterways and are detectable in the flesh and fat of wild fish. The high levels of PCBs found in farm-raised salmon come from their food supply. The salmon are fed a high-protein diet derived from smaller feeder fish. This process concentrates the PCBs to dangerously high amounts.

Caffeine and Exercise May Be Protective Against Skin Cancer
The combined effects of exercise plus caffeine consumption may be able to ward off skin cancer and also prevent inflammation related to other obesity-linked cancers.

Eating Cruciferous Vegetables May Improve Breast Cancer Survival
After adjusting for demographics, clinical characteristics and lifestyle factors, the researchers found cruciferous vegetable intake during the first 36 months after breast cancer diagnosis was associated with a reduced risk for total mortality, breast cancer-specific mortality and disease recurrence. Survival rates were influenced by vegetable consumption in a dose-response pattern. As women ate more of these vegetables, their risk of death or cancer recurrence decreased. Women who were in the highest quartiles of intake of vegetables per day had a 62 percent reduced risk of total mortality, 62 percent reduced risk of breast cancer mortality, and 35 percent reduced risk of breast cancer recurrence, compared to women with the lowest quartile of intake.

Low Glycemic Index Foods at Breakfast Can Control Blood Sugar Throughout the Day
Benefits of Phytonutrients
Phytonutrients are plant-based components that are thought to promote health, such as beta carotene and lycopene. They are typically found in fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and teas. Dark chocolate contains phytonutrients that can be very beneficial for health. However, the message to consumers must stress that these benefits are limited to dark chocolate – not milk chocolate – and that eating too much of any kind of chocolate can lead to serious health conditions such as obesity. Best are “strongly flavored, darkly colored” foods.

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