January 29, 2010

Study: Older may indeed be wiser
United Press International 01-27-10
Canadian researchers suggest older brains may be better at decision-making and that older may indeed mean wiser. Researchers at the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Rotman Research Institute in Toronto found older adults were less likely than younger people to filter out irrelevant information and were 30 percent better at memory tasks involving irrelevant information. "We found that older brains are not only less likely to suppress irrelevant information than younger brains, but they can link the relevant and irrelevant pieces of information together and implicitly transfer this knowledge to subsequent memory tasks," Karen Campbell, a doctoral candidate at the University of Toronto under the supervision Dr. Lynn Hasher of Rotman Research Institute, said in a statement. The study, published in Psychological Science, tested 24 older adults ages 60-73 and 24 younger adults ages 17-29 on two computer-based memory tasks involving irrelevant information. "This could be a silver lining to aging and distraction," Hasher said in a statement. "Older adults with reduced attentional regulation seem to display greater knowledge of seemingly extraneous co-occurrences in the environment than younger adults." As this type of knowledge is thought to play a critical role in real world decision-making, older adults may be the wiser decision-makers compared with younger adults because they have picked up so much more information, the study says.
http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNews.htm?NewsID=9245&Section=Aging

Health in the balance

Chattanooga Times/Free Press, Tenn. 01-28-10
Jan. 28--We're almost a full month into the new year. How are those New Year's resolutions to eat better holding up?
One reason so many of us backslide on our new nutritional paths is that we deprive ourselves of certain foods, said Allison Knott, registered dietitian for Sodexo at Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton, Ga.
"When groups of foods are eliminated from the diet, many important nutrients, antioxidants and vitamins are also eliminated," she said. "These extreme restrictions cannot be maintained for a long period of time and can be harmful to an individual's overall health."
The focus, Ms. Knott said, should be placed on balanced meals, colorful fresh produce and variety.
"To adopt healthier eating patterns, it is important to move past the thought of dieting and develop a lifestyle change," she said. "Remember that healthy eating is about choices and balance on a daily basis that last for a lifetime, not just during a diet."
Such lifestyle changes also help the body build up a strong defense against chronic illnesses.
Tammy Grafe, manager of Greenlife Grocery, said many of the store's shoppers are looking for foods that target certain health problems.
"We are still seeing a lot of people coming in to buy things to help high blood pressure, relieve stress, those kinds of things," she said.
Today we'll look at five common illnesses and some of the foods research indicates can help prevent them.
Colon cancer: Whole grains
Whole grains are full of fiber, antioxidants and important vitamins and minerals. All three parts of the grain (bran, endosperm and germ) are excellent sources of soluble fiber that will help to reduce total cholesterol and LDL or "bad" cholesterol. Soluble fiber also has been shown to help control blood sugar levels to aid in diabetes management. Insoluble fiber is another component of whole grains that is beneficial for colon health and helps maintain regular gastrointestinal motility.
Prostate cancer: Soy
Soy, a bean, is an excellent source of protein and a good alternative to meat products. It contains compounds called isoflavones that have been linked to the prevention of some cancers, including breast and prostate cancer, as well as lowering the risk for heart disease. Soy also has shown to lower total cholesterol levels. Fermented soy, such as miso, is preferred, as it is more easily digested and is better for those with compromised immune systems.
Stroke: Salmon and oil fish
Oily fish such as salmon and albacore tuna are high in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to lower triglyceride levels and help reduce the risk of heart disease and strokes. Omega-3 fatty acids also help to lower blood pressure.
Heart disease and some cancers: Red wine
Red wine contains antioxidants that have shown to help lower LDL cholesterol and prevent heart disease. Resveratrol is a compound found in red wine that has been isolated in studies as a beneficial component in promoting heart health and possibly preventing some cancers.
Obesity/cancer/heart disease: Green tea
Green tea is rich in antioxidants, such as catechins, which have been linked to prevention of heart disease and cancer. Some studies also have shown that green tea is beneficial in weight loss and weight management by promoting fat breakdown.
http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNews.htm?NewsID=9246&Section=Nutrition

Plant flavonoid may help prevent leukaemia - study
Last Updated: 2010-01-28 9:00:08 -0400 (Reuters Health)
* Apigenin flavonoid found in celery, parsley and red wine
* Study shows apigenin may help prevent leukaemia
* But it may also interfere with chemotherapy treatment
LONDON (Reuters) - Eating foods like celery and parsley which contain the naturally occurring flavonoid apigenin may help prevent leukaemia, Dutch scientists said on Thursday.
Maikel Peppelenbosch of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands said tests showed that apigenin -- a common component of fruit and vegetables -- was able to halt the development of two kinds of cells in leukaemia and cut their survival chances.
The findings suggest apigenin could hold promise for preventing leukaemia, Peppelenbosch said.
But he warned that his study had also found the compound has chemotherapy resistance properties, suggesting it might interfere with standard treatments for people already diagnosed with leukaemia.
"Apigenin might be a useful preventative agent for leukaemia, but it should not be taken at the same time as chemotherapy for established disease as it could interfere with the positive effects of treatment," Peppelenbosch wrote in the scientific journal Cell Death and Disease.
Flavonoids are compounds with antioxidant properties that protect cells against damage by oxygen molecules.
Previous studies have shown that apigenin, which is found in celery, parsley, red wine, tomato sauce and other plant-based foods, may also be beneficial in protecting against ovarian cancer.
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2010/01/28/eline/links/20100128elin007.html

Rwandans reach out to yoga as trauma therapy
Last Updated: 2010-01-28 9:00:58 -0400 (Reuters Health)
KIGALI (Reuters Life!) - Fluorescent sandals litter the entrance to a church on the outskirts of Rwanda's undulating capital Kigali. A coffee-coloured river slithers by in the valley below.
On the floor, a dozen middle-aged women sit contorted in knots, wearing puckered expressions which explode into wide smiles, accompanied by a chorus of giggles - a rare spectacle in a culture known for its quiet reservation.
In the dappled gloom Seraphine recounts how, while seeking refuge in a similar church 16 years ago, soldiers beat her with a boy's severed arm - just one of many events which has caused over a decade of paralysing trauma and depression.
She says yoga helped her deal with the shock of witnessing and surviving genocide.
"When you do yoga, you start believing that it's going to relieve your soul," she says.
The horrifying chronicle of Seraphine's survival and subsequent emotional funk is far from unique.
Almost one in three Rwandans suffer post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) resulting from the 1994 genocide in which 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and politically moderate Hutus were slaughtered, according to a 2009 study by the Ministry of Health.
People with PTSD often relive the traumatic event through nightmares and flashbacks and have problems concentrating, sleeping, and feel isolated and detached, according to the British National Health Service website.
Yoga's effectiveness in treating PTSD remains anecdotal but Deidre Summerbell, founder of the yoga organisation Project Air, says it appears to help sufferers calm themselves down, process the trauma and regain confidence.
"In the cases of clinical trauma the brain is overwhelmed by experience and is unable process it and turn it into memory," Summerbell said.
The autonomic system continues to handle the information without it being processed. Physical or emotional stimuli can return people physiologically to the trauma, she added.
"Breath is the most readily available portal we have to the autonomic system and yoga, by virtue of the fact that it marries breathing and movement, teaches somebody how to calm themselves down," she said.
The women lie sprawled on a spectrum of pastel mats. Wood-smoke and birdsong drift in through the church windows as Seraphine explains that mainstream treatment didn't work for her.
"I took medicine, but it did not work out for me. It didn't stop the flashbacks and I could not sleep. But since I started practicing yoga, I sleep effortlessly," Seraphine said.
Like so many across Rwanda, Seraphine had to cope with a catalogue of catastrophes during 1994. Hate radio stations made her boyfriend turn against her because she was a Tutsi. Her brothers were beheaded in prison and several close family members were buried alive in a drop-toilet, she says.
Following the events of 1994, Seraphine says she found it impossible to connect with her children, experienced difficulty concentrating and finally lost her job as a secretary in the local 'Gacaca' genocide courts. People believed she was mad, she says.
Yvonne Kayiteshonga from the government's psycho-social centre says the scale of trauma and depression across society may even be retarding the country's development.
"We have a dramatic problem in Rwanda," Kayiteshonga told Reuters.
"Imagine a country where 30 percent of people suffer psycho-social trauma and that this is linked with depression. This impacts their capacity to work and our economy is affected. If the government doesn't take care of that, there will be severe consequences."
Project Air, which is endorsed by U.S. pop star Madonna, has helped over a thousand people in its first year, according to Summerbell. However, it has encountered hostility from local evangelical Christian groups who brand yoga as Satanism and devil worship, Summerbell said.
"We've encountered resistance so project Air has a policy that we are strictly a physical philosophy," she said. "We're not promoting any form of spirituality at all."
Research into yoga as a trauma therapy is still in its infancy, but in the meantime Seraphine and her fellow practitioners will remain its secular disciples.
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2010/01/28/eline/links/20100128elin020.html

Mediterranean diet good for the heart
Last Updated: 2010-01-27 15:00:42 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - New research from Spain confirms the benefit of a Mediterranean diet to a healthy heart.
In an analysis of more than 40,000 Spanish adults followed for an average of 10 years, researchers found that sticking to a Mediterranean diet significantly reduced the risk of a first heart attack or other heart disease-related event.
Specific components of a Mediterranean diet differ from region to region but, generally, the key features include high consumption of olive oil, plant-based foods such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole-grain cereals, nuts and seeds. Fish is favored over other meat sources with relatively low consumption of red meat. Alcohol, especially red wine, and dairy products are used in moderation.
For years, evidence has been accumulating regarding the protective effects of a Mediterranean diet against heart disease, Genevieve Buckland and associates at the Catalan Institute of Oncology in Barcelona note in the American Journal of Epidemiology.
Studies of varying sizes and designs have shown that a Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of death in people who've had a heart attack, curb the risk of stroke, and boost survival in people living with heart disease, they note.
However, Buckland and associates were concerned that weaknesses in previous research limited the strength of conclusions. To investigate further, they used data collected between 1992 and 2004 from 41,078 healthy men and women from five Spanish centers involved in the 10-country European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition, or EPIC, study.
The participants, whose average age was 49 at enrollment, provided information on what and how much they ate. The researchers also took body measurements, asked about behaviors such as smoking and physical activity, and medical history.
Each participant was given a score on an 18-point scale based on how closely their diet adhered to the Mediterranean ideal; the higher the score, the higher the adherence.
During an average follow-up of 10.4 years, 609 of the study participants suffered a heart attack or severe chest pain called unstable angina requiring intervention. Nine of them died.
When the researchers compared these heart events with Mediterranean diet scores and adjusted for confounding factors, they found that the higher the score (and adherence to the Mediterranean diet) the lower the risk of heart disease.
Specifically, high adherence, compared with low adherence, to the Mediterranean diet was associated with a 40 percent reduced risk of a first heart disease-related event, they report.
Heart disease is a top killer worldwide, accounting for roughly 30 percent of all deaths, equal to approximately 17 million deaths annually, the investigators note. Nearly half of these deaths are due to heart disease.
It's thought that 80 percent of heart attacks and related events could be prevented by modifying behaviors -- like adopting a healthy diet. And the current study suggests that drastic diet changes may not be necessary.
Each 1-unit increase in the Mediterranean diet score was associated with a 6 percent reduced risk of heart disease, Buckland and colleagues report. Even a 2-unit increase in Mediterranean score, "which required less drastic and more feasible dietary changes, has a protective effect," they report.
The researchers say more study is needed to pinpoint key protective components of the Mediterranean diet and how these components confer their protective effects.
In the meantime, however, their results add to a growing body of evidence pointing to the heart health benefits of a diet rich in olive oil, plant-based foods, and fresh fish and low in red meats.
SOURCE: American Journal of Epidemiology, December 15, 2009.
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2010/01/27/eline/links/20100127elin006.html

Avoid extremes in diabetes treatment, study finds
Last Updated: 2010-01-27 10:30:40 -0400 (Reuters Health)
* Cutting blood sugar levels too far can increase death risk
* Study suggests doctors should set lower and upper limits
* Insulin appears to increase risk for some type 2 diabetics
By Kate Kelland
LONDON (Reuters) - Moderation appears to be the best approach to controlling blood sugar in a form of diabetes that affects many adults, researchers said on Wednesday, since lowering it too far can be as risky as letting it stay too high.
The scientists also found that people suffering from type 2 diabetes who used insulin to get blood sugar levels down to near normal were 50 percent more likely to die during the study period as those who used a combination of oral drugs, such as metformin and sulphonylurea.
But in a large study published in The Lancet medical journal, the researchers from Cardiff University said this may have been because type 2 diabetics who need insulin tend to be older and sicker to start with.
The findings suggest keeping diabetics on oral drugs that increase the body's sensitivity to insulin, combined with diet and exercise, may be the safest way of controlling blood sugar in type 2 diabetics, and doctors should strive to keep their patients on this treatment for as long as possible, they said.
"This study will raise a few eyebrows," said Craig Currie, who led the study by a team from Cardiff's medical school.
"Conventionally, doctors have always been told to drive down (blood sugar levels) as low as possible. It will come as a major surprise to many doctors that taking people down too far appears to be quite risky," he said in a telephone interview.
Currie said the findings on insulin should not prompt urgent action, but patients should "arrange to see their doctor sometime over the next few weeks to discuss it with them".
The study is the latest of several investigating whether using aggressive drug treatments to achieve near normal blood sugar levels can help prevent some of the most serious risks of diabetes, such as heart attacks and strokes.
A U.S. government-sponsored trial called ACCORD was stopped in February 2008 because there were 20 percent more deaths among diabetics with heart problems who got intensive treatment compared to those who were treated more conservatively.
Type 2 diabetes, often called adult-onset diabetes, is a common disease that interferes with the body's ability to properly use sugar and insulin, a substance produced by the pancreas which normally lowers blood sugar after eating.
Diabetes is reaching epidemic levels, with an estimated 180 million people suffering from it around the world.
Overweight people have an increased risk of developing it, and cases are predicted to rise swiftly in coming decades as obesity rates also increase.
In this study, scientists analysed links between death rates and blood sugar levels in almost 48,000 patients who were over 50 and being treated for type 2 diabetes. The data were taken from the UK General Practice Research Database from Nov. 1986 to Nov. 2008.
They found that both patients with the highest blood sugar levels and those with the lowest levels had increased risk of death -- 79 percent and 52 percent respectively. The lowest risk of death was in those with blood sugar levels of 7.5 percent.
Death risk in people given insulin-based treatment was 49 percent higher than those give oral medicines, they said. They also pointed out a possible link between use of insulin and cancer progression that had been reported in a previous study.
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2010/01/27/eline/links/20100127elin017.html

High vitamin D levels, lower colon cancer risk?
Last Updated: 2010-01-27 10:30:30 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Higher levels of vitamin D in the blood may help protect both men and women from cancers of the colon and rectum, confirm results of the largest study ever conducted on the topic.
Among more than 1200 people who developed colorectal cancer and an equal number who did not, researchers found that those with the highest levels of vitamin D in their blood had a nearly 40 percent reduced risk of developing colorectal cancer compared to those with the lowest levels.
The findings from the EPIC study - short for European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition -- confirm previous findings from smaller studies conducted largely among North American populations.
The EPIC findings "support a role for vitamin D" in the causes of colorectal cancer, EPIC investigator Dr. Mazda Jenab of the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France, told Reuters Health.
"But this has to be balanced with caution regarding the potential toxic effects of too much vitamin D and the fact that very little is known about the association of vitamin D with either increased or reduced risk of other cancers," Jenab said.
EPIC coordinator Dr. Elio Riboli of Imperial College, London, added: "There is consistent scientific evidence that low circulating vitamin D concentration is a marker of increased risk for developing colon cancer."
Still, Riboli said, public health advocates should wait for more studies before recommending vitamin D supplements, as people can achieve average levels "with a balanced diet combined with regular and moderate exposure to outdoor sunlight."
Ideally, these trials would shed light on whether vitamin D supplementation would cut the risk of colorectal cancer risk without inducing serious side events, Riboli explained.
The EPIC study enrolled more than half a million adults from 23 centers in 10 western European countries who were initially free of cancer. After several years of follow up, 1248 subjects developed colorectal cancer and these individuals were matched to 1248 study participants who did not develop colorectal cancer.
Prior to cancer diagnosis, the researchers collected detailed diet and lifestyle information and determined blood levels of 25-hydroxy vitamin D, which is a marker of the amount of the vitamin people get from diet, supplements and sun exposure.
Based on the design of the study, the authors did not calculate the risk of cancer for people with various levels of vitamin D. However, the overall rate of cancer in the group was .06 percent, or about one in 1,700 people, per year.
The researchers report in the British Medical Journal that people with the highest pre-cancer circulating vitamin D levels (100 nanomoles per liter of blood or higher) were about 40 percent less likely to develop colorectal cancer than those with the lowest levels (less than 25 nanomoles per liter).
There is currently no absolute consensus on optimal vitamin D levels. Some recent studies have suggested that, for colon cancer prevention, blood vitamin D levels should be maintained at a mid-level range -- 50 nanomoles per liter or higher.
With this in mind, the EPIC researchers compared low and high blood vitamin D levels to a mid-level (50 to 75 nanomoles per liter). They found that while levels below the mid-level were associated with a higher risk, those above 75 nanomoles per liter were not associated with any additional reduction in colon cancer risk compared to the mid-level.
Jenab said this suggests that blood levels of vitamin D greater than 75 nanomoles per liter "may not be any more protective than the mid-level. This is important because the health effects of long term (greater than 1 year) exposure to high blood levels of vitamin D are currently largely unknown."
A bigger issue, at the moment, may be inadequate vitamin D levels. "As more information emerges, it is becoming apparent that blood vitamin D levels in Europe and North America tend to be rather low with large proportions of the population likely falling into categories defined as deficient or insufficient," Jenab said.
Until further study on the risks and benefits of vitamin D supplementation are available, Jenab said, "the key take home message for colorectal cancer prevention is: stop smoking, increase physical activity, reduce obesity and abdominal fatness, and limit intakes of alcohol and red and processed meats."
SOURCE: British Medical Journal Online First, Jan 22, 2010.
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2010/01/27/eline/links/20100127elin021.html

Omega-3 may reduce risk of dental disease: Study

Nutraingredients.com, 28-Jan-2010

Increased levels of omega-3 fatty acid DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) may decrease the risk of dental diseases, suggests a new study from Japan.
The average number of dental disease events was 1.5 times higher in people with low DHA levels, compared to those with the highest average levels of DHA, according to findings published in Nutrition.
In addition to being a major risk factor for tooth loss, periodontal disease has also been implicated as a risk factor for chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease (CVD). Since the condition may contribute to the overall inflammatory burden of an individual there are reports that this may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.
The heart health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids are well-documented, being first reported in the early 1970s by Jorn Dyerberg and his co-workers in The Lancet and The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. To date, the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have been linked to improvements in blood lipid levels, a reduced tendency of thrombosis, blood pressure and heart rate improvements, and improved vascular function.
However, links to dental health are not well documented.
“To our knowledge, this is the first longitudinal study of the relation between periodontal conditions and dietary omega-3 fatty acids intake in older people,”wrote the researchers, led by Masanori Iwasaki from Niigata University.
Study details
The Japanese researchers recruited 55 people with an average age of 74 and calculated dietary intakes of omega-3. The average dietary intakes of EPA and DHA were 947.1 and 635.2 milligrams, respectively, said the researchers.
Over the course of five years, the participants experienced an average of 7.8 periodontal disease events. “People with low DHA intake had an approximately 1.5 times higher incidence rate ratio of periodontal disease progression,” wrote the researchers.
“The findings suggest there may be an inverse, independent relation of dietary DHA intake to the progression of periodontal disease in older people,” they said.
Biologically plausible?
Commenting on the potential mechanism, the researchers note that it is probably related the anti-inflammatory effects of omega-3 fatty acids.
“In periodontal diseases, bacteria trigger inflammatory host responses that cause destruction of the alveolar bone and periodontal connective tissue,”explained the researchers.
“According to previous reports, DHA and EPA inhibit arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism to inflammatory eicosanoids. They also give rise to mediators that are less inflammatory than those produced from AA or that are anti-inflammatory,” they added.
Source: Nutrition “Longitudinal relationship between dietary ω-3 fatty acids and periodontal disease” M. Iwasaki, A. Yoshihara, P. Moynihan, R. Watanabe, G.W. Taylor, H. Miyazaki
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Omega-3-may-reduce-risk-of-dental-disease-Study

Lycopene supplement boosts skin carotenoid levels

Nutraingredients.com, 28-Jan-2010

Related topics: Research, Antioxidants, carotenoids, Cosmeceuticals, Skin health
Oral supplements of lactolycopene may boost skin levels of lycopene and beta-carotene, says a study from Nestlé and L’Oreal.
The increase in beta-carotene levels in the skin was described as “interesting”by the researchers, and was proposed to be due to the carotenoids acting as“protection chains” in the skin, state the researchers in the European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics.
Commenting on the study’s findings Zohar Nir, VP new product development and scientific affairs at lycopene supplier LycoRed told NutraIngredients that work “is indeed important foundation in increasing the confidence of carotenoids' nourishment for skin protection purposes”.
“Accumulation of lycopene and beta-carotene in the skin provides protection against UVA &UVB radiation and is effective for a full day’s protection,” he added. Dr Nir was not involved in the study.
As an antioxidant, lycopene has been shown to have heart, blood pressure, prostate, osteoporosis, skin and other benefits in both natural and synthetic form and it has been commonly used in food supplements and cosmeceutical applications.
The study used lactolycopene, which is lycopene oleoresin embedded in a whey protein matrix.
Beauty of cosmeceuticals not skin deep
Led by Ulrike Blume-Peytavi from Berlin-based CRO the Clinical Research Center for Hair and Skin Science, the researchers performed a double-blind placebo-controlled randomised study with 25 volunteers with an average age of 25.7. The subjects followed a lycopene-deprived diet for four weeks prior to the study and then until the end of the study, and were given either lactolycopene (25 mg lycopene) or placebo for a further 12 weeks.
Using Raman spectroscopy, the researchers noted people in the lactolycopene group experienced significant increases in lycopene and, interestingly, beta-carotene levels in the skin.
“Thus, oral supplementation with lycopene led to an enrichment of beta-carotene in human skin, possibly due to the fact that carotenoids act in the skin as protection chains, with a natural protection against free radicals,” they wrote.
When comparing blood with skin levels, Blume-Peytavi and her co-workers noted that skin levels of lycopene were less sensitive to oral supplementation.
The researchers noted that this was “the first study proving the ability to monitor skin carotenoid levels using resonance Raman spectroscopy as a fast noninvasive diagnostic tool”.
The science builds
The study adds to previous research published in the same journal, which reported that skin lycopene levels were correlated with skin roughness, a measure of skin ageing. (Eur. J. Pharm. BioPharm., Vol. 69, pp. 943-947)
“Increasing dietary levels of lycopene through daily supplementation with tomato lycopene is an easy way to insure the continued presence of high skin levels of these protectant antioxidants and to help protect the skin from photo-damage and environmental pollutants, and to preserve the skin’s smoothness,” said Dr Nir.
Exceptional growth
According to data from market analyst Mintel, global food and drink products claiming to enhance beauty increased threefold over the past three years indicating a market ready to take off.
The growth in ‘beauty foods’ by far exceeds that of regular food and drink products, said the market analyst. Between 2005 and 2008, introductions of beauty-enhancing products increased 306 percent, compared to the 35 percent increase registered for the overall food and drink industry.
According to market research company Kline Group, the category was worth around $1.5bn in 2007, and expected to grow to $2.5bn by 2012. Overall, the global market for nutricosmetics grew over 10 percent in 2007.
The subject of antioxidants and skin health will be discussed in more detail at the upcoming conference, NutraIngredients Antioxidants 2010: Science, Testing and Regulation. For more information about the conference, please click here .
European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics Volume 73, Pages 187-194 “Cutaneous lycopene and beta-carotene levels measured by resonance Raman spectroscopy: High reliability and sensitivity to oral lactolycopene deprivation and supplementation” U. Blume-Peytavi, A. Rolland, M.E. Darvin, A. Constable, I. Pineau, C. Voit, K. Zappel, G. Schafer-Hesterberg, M. Meinke, R.L. Clavez, W. Sterry, J. Lademann
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Lycopene-supplement-boosts-skin-carotenoid-levels

Turmeric Treats Candida Infection and Colorectal Cancers
Melanie Grimes, NaturalNews.com  January 28, 2010

(NaturalNews) Candida infection is caused by a yeast overgrowth in the intestines. It can cause gas, bloating, indigestion and even chronic disease. Known by its Latin name, curcumin, turmeric shows promise as an antifungal for Candida as well as many other fungal infections. According to the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, the herb turmeric may be useful in inhibiting the Candida infection. Research at the Linus Pauling Institute also points to turmeric's curative value in treating colorectal cancers.

Candida Diagnosis and Treatment
Diagnosis of a Candida infection is via stool samples and blood tests. Conventional medicine treats Candida with antifungal drugs, usually Nystatin. This drug is made from a mold, which acts by competing with other molds and fungus, such as Candida, for food in the gut.

Medicinal Uses of Turmeric
Turmeric has many uses in folk medicine, which warrants its investigation as an antifungal. It's been shown to act as an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. It is used in cosmetics and drugs, as well as in cooking. It can by used as a sunscreen or a pesticide. Used commonly in Ayurvedic Medicine for digestive disorders, it is also used externally for ulcers, wounds, and skin conditions such as scabies and eczema.

Research on Curcumin and Candida
Research was conducted at the Department of Microbiologia at the Centro de Engenharias in Brazil. The test was done on cells in a lab, not on human subjects. The study showed that curcumin was a more potent antifungal than the drug fluconazole. The curcumin acted by inhibiting the Candida's adhesion. A phase 1 trail using turmeric to treat colorectal cancer showed that oral ingesting of curcumin was beneficial in treatment, but further tests are needed.

Causes of Candida Infection
Candida occurs commonly in over 50 percent of the population, but an overgrowth can be triggered by the use of antibiotics, or by sugarconsumption. Alcoholic beverages also trigger a Candida "bloom" as can swimming in chlorinated swimming pools. Stress causes Candida to spread because the release of cortisol during stress raises blood sugar, that then feeds the yeast. Birth control pills are also attributed with causing yeast, as is the copper IUD. The copper reduces the body's immunity, thereby causing an inability to resist yeast growth.

Other Anti-viral and Anti-fungal Uses of Turmeric
Curcumin has also been used to treat boils, staph infections, and the hard-to-treat MRSA virus.

Other Herbs to Treat Candida
Other herbs that are used to treat Candida include garlic, licorice, astragalus, and even cinnamon. Goldenseal can also be used, but in small amounts as it can be toxic in large doses. Oil of Oregano and Olive Leaf also kill fungus and yeast.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028043_turmeric_candida.html

Neurotoxic Chemical Common in Foods
David Gutierrez, NaturalNews.com  January 28, 2010

(NaturalNews) A neurotoxic flame retardant resists environmental breakdown and builds up in the food chain, a new study conducted by researchers from the Boston University School of Public Health and published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives has found.

"They are persistent in the environment. They don't get broken down," lead researcher Alicia Fraser said. "Therefore, it takes a really long time for the contamination to leave our environment and our bodies. Even though we don't know the health effects at this point, most people would want policies that would stop us from being exposed to them."

The chemicals, known as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), are closely related to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which were banned in the 1970s after evidence emerged that they produced birth defects and neurological damage. Flame-retardant PBDEs were introduced at roughly the same time and soon became popular in a wide variety of household and consumer products.

Since the 1990s, evidence has increasingly emerged linking PBDEs to neurological damage in animals. Furthermore, study after study has shown that the chemicals can build up in the human body, particularly in breast milk. Every human population on Earth currently carries PBDEs in their bodies.

In the new study, researchers tested 2,000 people for PBDEs, finding that meat eaters had body burdens 25 percent higher than vegetarians. This provided still more evidence that the chemicals build up in animal fat, resisting degradation.

"The more meat you eat, the more PBDEs you have in your serum," Fraser said.

Many PBDEs have already been banned by the European Union, as well as the states of California, Maine and Washington. The new findings suggest that even if the chemicals are banned worldwide, they will continue to plague us for decades to come -- just like PCBs.

"The industry is finding new products to use as flame retardants, and we don't know the health and safety implications of those products either," Fraser said. "We need to test the health and safety implications of products before they go into use, not after."
http://www.naturalnews.com/028041_flame_retardant_food_supply.html

90 Percent of Cord Blood from U.S. Babies Tests Positive for BPA
E. Huff, NaturalNews.com  January 28, 2010

(NaturalNews) For the first time in the history of its testing, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) has found bisphenol A (BPA) in the umbilical cord blood of American babies. Nine out of ten samples tested positive for the chemical, a shocking number when considering the laundry list of chronic illnesses that are associated with BPA exposure.

Used in the production of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins, BPA has come under increasing scrutiny over the past several years for its role in contributing to the development of cancer, endocrine damage, reproductive problems, and neurological dysfunction. Many plastics manufacturers have begun removing the additive from their products, despite continued reassurances by the FDA that the chemical is safe.

Studies continue to show that BPA is dangerous, even at minimal levels, and that it should not be used in consumer products. Several groups, including the Endocrine Society and the American Medical Association (AMA), have expressed opposition to the use of BPA. Scientists are finding that low-dose exposure, especially during early developmental years, can actually cause more endocrine and reproductive problems than larger-dose exposure due to the way the body recognizes the chemical.

Not only was BPA found in babies, but 231 other chemicals were detected as well, indicating that human beings are exposed to more toxic chemicals than ever. Experts fear that such an onslaught of toxicity may cause permanent damage to the next generation of Americans.

Public outcry over the FDA's continued approval of BPA despite numerous studies revealing its dangers has led the agency to express that it will reevaluate its position. The agency was supposed to issue an updated review about BPA safety on November 30 but it never actually followed through. The FDA most recently claimed that the report will be made available before the end of the year.

Experts and analysts believe the food industry is behind the push to keep BPA legal, exerting influence on the FDA to conceal the truth about its dangers. Many manufacturers have voluntarily been able to eliminate BPA from their products, illustrating that there is no reason why it should continue to be used by anyone.

The AMA, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists have all endorsed a resolution that calls on Congress to minimize or eliminate the use of BPA in consumer products. The EWG hopes that top priority will be given to the issue in light of the group's recent discovery.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028042_babies_BPA.html

Vitamin D Supplements Could Fight Crohn's Disease

ScienceDaily (Jan. 27, 2010) — A new study has found that Vitamin D, readily available in supplements or cod liver oil, can counter the effects of Crohn's disease. John White, an endocrinologist at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, led a team of scientists from McGill University and the Université de Montréal who present their findings about the inflammatory bowel disease in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
"Our data suggests, for the first time, that Vitamin D deficiency can contribute to Crohn's disease," says Dr. White, a professor in McGill's Department of Physiology, noting that people from northern countries, which receive less sunlight that is necessary for the fabrication of Vitamin D by the human body, are particularly vulnerable to Crohn's disease.
Vitamin D, in its active form (1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D), is a hormone that binds to receptors in the body's cells. Dr. White's interest in Vitamin D was originally in its effects in mitigating cancer. Because his results kept pointing to Vitamin D's effects on the immune system, specifically the innate immune system that acts as the body's first defense against microbial invaders, he investigated Crohn's disease. "It's a defect in innate immune handling of intestinal bacteria that leads to an inflammatory response that may lead to an autoimmune condition," stresses Dr. White.
What Vitamin D does
Dr. White and his team found that Vitamin D acts directly on the beta defensin 2 gene, which encodes an antimicrobial peptide, and the NOD2 gene that alerts cells to the presence of invading microbes. Both Beta-defensin and NOD2 have been linked to Crohn's disease. If NOD2 is deficient or defective, it cannot combat invaders in the intestinal tract.
What's most promising about this genetic discovery, says Dr. White, is how it can be quickly put to the test. "Siblings of patients with Crohn's disease that haven't yet developed the disease might be well advised to make sure they're vitamin D sufficient. It's something that's easy to do, because they can simply go to a pharmacy and buy Vitamin D supplements. The vast majority of people would be candidates for Vitamin D treatment."
"This discovery is exciting, since it shows how an over-the-counter supplement such as Vitamin D could help people defend themselves against Crohn's disease," says Marc J. Servant, a professor at the Université de Montréal's Faculty of Pharmacy and study collaborator. "We have identified a new treatment avenue for people with Crohn's disease or other inflammatory bowel diseases."
This study was funded by a grant from McGill University.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100127104904.htm

Early menopause can result in dementia
Times of India, 28 January 2010

A new study has revealed that women experiencing an early onset of menopause could develop dementia at a younger age. 

Tonnie Coppus of Erasmus MC studied women with down syndrome, who are known to have an earlier onset of menopause compared to women in the general population, 44 years of age and 52 years of age, respectively. Coppus' findings show a strong relationship between the age of menopause onset and the age at which dementia is diagnosed. The research results can, however, be translated to similar results for the general population. "Women with down syndrome with an early onset of menopause also appear to suffer from dementia at an early age. In addition, my study shows that these women also die younger," Coppus said. 

A first step in the development of Alzheimer is the build up of so called amyloid in the brain. The deposition of this amyloid occurs under influence of a certain gene, higher levels of which are found in people with down syndrome. Down syndrome is a chromosomal disorder in which there are three copies of chromosome 21. This chromosome has various genes that play a role in neurological diseases. The most important of these is the gene that is responsible for the production of the protein amyloid. "Studying the various factors that influence the development of Alzheimer's disease among people with Down Syndrome also improves our understanding of the role of amyloid in the development of Alzheimer's disease within the general population," Coppus said. 

As it appears, not only can a relationship with the age of onset of dementia be determined but also a relationship between early onset of menopause and dying young. "As dementia itself also leads to a reduced life expectancy, I made calculations in which I corrected the results of the effect of dementia on death. Despite this, the relationship between early menopause onset and dying young remains. The research results provide substantial information on the relationship between menopause and dementia and the relationship between menopause and death," Coppus said. 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Early-menopause-can-result-in-dementia/articleshow/5508759.cms

Magnesium ‘can help boost brainpower’
Times of India, 28 January 2010

An increase in brain magnesium improves learning and memory in young and old rats, a new study has found. 

Published by Cell Press in the January 28th issue of the journal Neuron, the study suggests that increasing magnesium intake may be a valid strategy to enhance cognitive abilities and supports speculation that inadequate levels of magnesium impair cognitive function. 

Led by Professor Guosong Liu, Director of the Center for Learning and Memory at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, the study examined whether increased levels of one such dietary supplement, magnesium, boosts brain power. 

"Magnesium is essential for the proper functioning of many tissues in the body, including the brain and, in an earlier study, we demonstrated that magnesium promoted synaptic plasticity in cultured brain cells," explains Dr. Liu. "Therefore it was tempting to take our studies a step further and investigate whether an increase in brain magnesium levels enhanced cognitive function in animals." 

Because it is difficult to boost brain magnesium levels with traditional oral supplements, Dr. Liu and colleagues developed a new magnesium compound, magnesium-L-threonate (MgT) that could significantly increase magnesium in the brain via dietary supplementation. They used MgT to increase magnesium in rats of different ages and then looked for behavioral and cellular changes associated with memory. 

"We found that increased brain magnesium enhanced many different forms of learning and memory in both young and aged rats," says Dr. Liu. A close examination of cellular changes associated with memory revealed an increase in the number of functional synapses, activation of key signaling molecules and an enhancement of short- and long-term synaptic processes that are crucial for learning and memory. 

The authors note that the control rats in this study had a normal diet which is widely accepted to contain a sufficient amount of magnesium, and that the observed effects were due to elevation of magnesium to levels higher than provided by a normal diet. 

"Our findings suggest that elevating brain magnesium content via increasing magnesium intake might be a useful new strategy to enhance cognitive abilities," explains Dr. Liu. "Moreover, half the population of industrialized countries has a magnesium deficit, which increases with aging. This may very well contribute to age-dependent memory decline; increasing magnesium intake might prevent or reduce such decline." 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Magnesium-can-help-boost-brainpower-/articleshow/5508550.cms

Pomegranate juice helps during labour
Times of India, 28 January 2010

Beta-sitosterol, the main constituent of pomegranate seed extract, could be used as a natural stimulant to encourage the uterus to contract during labour, according to a new study. 

Pomegranate juice is thought to have a number of health benefits, from lowering cholesterol and blood pressure to protecting against some cancers, but until now there has been no evidence to demonstrate its effects on the uterus. Researchers investigated pomegranate seed extract, a steroid that can inhibit the absorption of cholesterol in the intestine and its effect on uterine smooth muscle samples. 

"Previous study has suggested that the pomegranate's antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties have a positive impact on health. We wanted to understand its effect on uterine contractions to help us explore new ways of treating women who may experience difficult labours,” Professor Sue Wray, from the University's Department of Physiology, said. “Currently the only available drug to treat women with a poorly contracting uterus is oxytocin, a hormone which only works approximately 50 percent of the time. 

"It is important for us to investigate how the uterus works and what happens when it does not contract normally so that women experiencing problems during labour do not have to undergo major surgery to deliver a healthy baby," Wray added. Dr Sajeera Kupittayanant, from Suranaree's Institute of Science, said, "We found that beta-sitosterol was the main constituent of pomegranate extract, a steroid present in many plant species, but particularly rich in pomegranate seed. 

“We added the extract to uterus tissue samples from animals and found that the muscle cells increased their activity. Our work suggests that the increase is due to a rise in calcium, which is necessary in order for any muscle to contract, but is usually affected by hormones, nerve impulses and some drug treatments. "The next step is to investigate how beta-sitosterol in pomegranate extract could increase calcium, but it could prove to be a significant step forward in identifying new ways of treating dysfunctional labour," Kupittayanant added. 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Pomegranate-juice-helps-during-labour/articleshow/5508536.cms

More folate may mean less depression: Study
Nutraingredients.com, 27-Jan-2010
Higher blood levels of folate may reduce the risk of depressive symptoms in men, but not women, says a new study from Japan.
Men with the highest blood levels of folate were50 per cent less likely to have symptoms of depression, compared to men with the lowest levels, according to findings published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Led by researchers from the International Medical Center of Japan in Tokyo, the study also reports that increased levels of the amino acid homocysteine were associated with increased risk of depressive symptoms in men.
The research adds to a growing body of research linking folate and folic acid intake to improved mood, and follows a review by scientists at the University of York and Hull York Medical School of 11 studies and involving 15,315 participants that reported low folate levels were linked to increased depression (Journal of Epidemology and Community Health, Vol. 61, No. 7).
A previous study by the same Japanese researchers also reported, for the first time they claimed, of a link between nutrient intake and depressive symptoms in a non-Western population (Nutrition, 2008, Vol. 24, pp. 140-147).
Depressing predictions
The World Health Organization (WHO) forecasts that within 20 years more people will be affected by depression than any other health problem; it ranks depression as the leading cause of disability worldwide, with around 120 million people affected.
The new research looked to further examine the role of folate and homocysteine could help in people with depression.
Folate is found in foods such as green leafy vegetables, chick peas and lentils, while folic acid is the synthetic, bioavailable form of the vitamin used in fortification programmes worldwide, as well as in supplements and other fortified foods.
Folate and homocysteine blood levels in 530 Japanese people, 217 of whom were women, were compared with depressive symptoms measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale. Just over 36 per cent of male and female participants had depressive symptoms, said the researchers.
Results showed that depressive symptoms were less common in men with higher folate levels. Indeed, the highest levels were associated with a 50 per cent reduction in the prevalence of depressive symptoms, compared to the lowest folate levels.
On the other hand, a link between higher homocysteine levels and a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms in men was observed.
“In women, neither folate nor homocysteine was associated with depressive symptoms,” added the researchers.
Potential of supplements
Tufts and Harvard University-based researchers reported in 2003 that folic acid supplements may help reduce the prevalence of depressive symptoms.
Writing in the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics (2003, Vol. 72, pp. 80-87) they noted that depressed people among the general US population often had low blood folate levels. They say that folate supplementation during the year following a depressive episode may help recovery.
Source: European Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2009.143
“Serum folate and homocysteine and depressive symptoms among Japanese men and women”
Authors: A. Nanri, T. Mizoue, Y. Matsushita, S. Sasaki, M. Ohta, M. Sato, N. Mishim
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/More-folate-may-mean-less-depression-Study

Scientists explore importance of antioxidant balance

Nutraingredients.com  27-Jan-2010

Too many antioxidants may interfere with cell signalling, and that a balance between anti- and pro-oxidants is best for optimal health, US-based researchers report.
Scientists from Kansas State University report data from animal studies that suggests some antioxidants may deplete the body of compounds such as hydrogen peroxide, which plays a role in relaxation of blood vessels.
“Antioxidant is one of those buzz words right now,” said Steven Copp, a doctoral student. “I think what a lot of people don't realize is that the antioxidant and pro-oxidant balance is really delicate. One of the things we've seen in our research is that you can't just give a larger dose of antioxidants and presume that there will be some sort of beneficial effect. In fact, you can actually make a problem worse.”
The student said that, while there is a potential for antioxidants to reverse or partially reverse some of those changes that result from ageing or disease, studies from Kansas State labs indicated that oxidants such as hydrogen peroxide are helpful to increase blood flow.
“We're now learning that if antioxidant therapy takes away hydrogen peroxide – or other naturally occurring vasodilators, which are compounds that help open blood vessels – you impair the body's ability to deliver oxygen to the muscle so that it doesn't work properly,” added Professor David Poole.
“It's really a cautionary note that before we start recommending people get more antioxidants, we need to understand more about how they function in physiological systems and circumstances like exercise,” added Poole.
The researchers have published their findings in the Journal of Applied Physiology, Respiratory Physiology and Neurobiology, Microvascular Research, The American Journal of Physiology and Experimental Physiology.
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Scientists-explore-importance-of-antioxidant-balance

Science: Salt reduction benefits beyond the heart

Foodnavigator-usa.com, 26-Jan-2010

In the first part of our series on salt reduction, FoodNavigator looks at the potential health benefits of salt reduction beyond heart health.
Salt is of course a vital nutrient and is necessary for the body to function, but the average daily salt consumption in the western world, between 10 and 12g, vastly exceeds recommendations from WHO/FAO of 5 grams per day to control blood pressure levels and reduce hypertension prevalence and related health risks in populations.
And with 80 per cent of salt intake coming from processed foods, many countries have initiated salt reduction programmes, with many holding up the UK’s Food Standards Agency as the torch bearer for national initiatives.
The benefits of a salt global salt reduction strategy were given blinding clarity by a meta-analysis published in The Lancet Chronic Diseases Series in 2007, which concluded that reducing salt intake around the world by 15 per cent could prevent almost nine million deaths between 2006 and 2015.
While the majority of the science has looked at the potential of reduced salt to reduce the risk of developing hypertension, with the ultimate aim of reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, the benefits of salt reduction may extend beyond heart disease.
Stroke
With high blood pressure being the biggest contributing factor for stroke, it will come as no surprise that studies have examined a link between salt intake and stroke.
A meta-analysis by Dr Feng He and Professor Graham MacGregor from the Blood Pressure Unit at St. George's, University of London reported in 2002 that cutting daily salt intake by six grams may cut stroke by 24 per cent and coronary heart disease (CHD) by 18 per cent (Journal of Human Hypertension, Vol. 16, pp. 761-770).
Such a reduction would translate into a global reduction of about 2.5 million deaths, added He and MacGregor a year later (Hypertension, 2003, Vol. 42, pp. 1093-1099).
Kidneys
Increased salt intakes have also been linked to kidney health, with studies focusing on albumin levels. Microalbuminuria occurs when small amounts of albumin – the most abundant protein in human serum - leaks from the kidney into the urine. It is a marker of early kidney disease development.
Montpellier, France-based scientists reported that increased blood pressure, associated with salt intake, increased kidney damage, as measured by increased amounts of urinary protein or albumin (American Journal of Hypertension, 2002, Vol. 15, pp 222-229).
Stomach damage
The link between salt intake and stomach cancer has been reported in several studies, and centres on the role of Helicobacter pylori - the only bacteria that can survive in the acidic environment of the stomach and known to cause peptic ulcers and gastritis.
Infection with H. pylori also causes gastritis, and infected persons are said to have a two to six-fold increased risk of developing mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma, and gastric cancer compared with uninfected counterparts.
According to the World Action on Salt and Health (WASH), studies from 2004 (Journal of Hypertension, Vol. 22, pp. 1475-1477) and 2008 (Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 17, pp. 644-650) reported that salt may increase the growth and action of H. pylori, thereby raising the risk of stomach cancer.
Furthermore, a Japanese study from 2006 reported that salt may play a role in the irritation and inflammation of the stomach lining (International Journal of Cancer, Vol. 119, pp. 196-201).
Bones
A recent study from Australia reported that salt reduction may also have benefits for bone health in women at risk of osteoporosis – a condition described by the World Health Organisation as its biggest global healthcare problem.
Writing in the British Journal of Nutrition (2009, Vol. 102, pp. 1161-1170), researchers from Deakin University reported that middle-aged women with pre- or stage 1 hypertension assigned to consumed a low-sodium diet experienced reductions in calcium excretion compared to people consuming a high-carbohydrate low-fat diet.
A study from scientists at the Purdue University looked at the effects of salt in adolescent girls. Their results, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2005, Vol. 81, pp. 845-850), suggested that Caucasian girls lose more calcium in their urine than African-American girls.
But both races lose calcium at an accelerated rate when they consume a high-salt diet.
“Salt is processed differently in the races, but too much salt in the diet reduces bone density in both races,” wrote the researchers.
The benefits work in practice
While more research is needed to support the benefits of lower salt intakes for bone health and the other health areas, a recent clinical trial showed that moderate reductions do indeed result in clinically relevant and beneficial reductions in blood pressure.
The largest double-blind trial of modest salt reduction in a free-living population, published in the American Heart Association’s Hypertension, journal found that reducing salt intake from 9.7 to 6.5 grams per day reduced average blood pressure from 146/91 to 141/88 mmHg within six weeks.
http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Science-Nutrition/Science-Salt-reduction-benefits-beyond-the-heart

Diabetes sugar 'can go too low'
BBC Health News, January 27. 2010
Intense treatment to lower blood sugar in patients with diabetes could prove nearly as harmful as allowing glucose levels to remain high, a study says.
Cardiff researchers looked at nearly 50,000 patients with type 2 diabetes and found the lowest glucose levels linked to a heightened risk of death.
Significant differences in death rates between patients on insulin and those taking tablets are also flagged up.
But there could be various explanations for this, experts noted.
Patients taking insulin-based treatments have been urged not to stop taking their medication as a result of the Cardiff University study, which is published in The Lancet.
Changing treatments
Using data from GPs, the team identified 27,965 patients aged 50 and above with type 2 diabetes whose treatment had been intensified to include two oral blood glucose lowering agents - metformin and sulphonylurea.
“ It is crucial to remember that blood glucose targets should always be agreed by the person with diabetes and their healthcare team according to individual needs and not according to a blanket set of rules ” 
Dr Iain Frame Diabetes UK
A further 20,005 patients who had been moved on to treatment which included insulin were added to the study.
Patients whose HbA1c levels - the proportion of red blood cells with glucose attached to them - were around 7.5%, ran the lowest risk of dying from any cause.
For both groups this risk went up by more than half if levels dropped to 6.4%, the lowest levels recorded. For those with the highest levels the risk of death increased by nearly 80%.
But the risks appeared to be particularly pronounced among those on the insulin-based regimen than those on the combined treatment.
Irrespective of whether their HbA1c levels were low or high, there were 2,834 deaths in the insulin-taking group between 1986 and 2008, nearly 50% more than in the combined group.
'Don't stop'
The authors acknowledged there could be various factors associated with this, such as these being older patients with more health problems, who perhaps had had diabetes for a longer period of time. They also make reference to a possible link between use of insulin and cancer progression that had been reported in a different study.
"Whether intensification of glucose control with insulin therapy alone further heightens risk of death in patients with diabetes needs further investigation and assessment of the overall risk balance," wrote lead author Dr Craig Currie.
"Low and high mean HbA1c values were associated with increased all-cause mortality and cardiac events. If confirmed, diabetes guidelines might need revision to include a minimum HbA1c value."
These findings were in line with those of a major ongoing trial in the US, which pulled patients off a regimen of intensive blood sugar management after noting an unexpected increase in total deaths among this arm of its study.
Dr Iain Frame, head of research at Diabetes UK, described this latest study as "potentially important" but stressed it had limitations.
"It is not clear what the causes of death were from the results reported. Furthermore, when it comes to the suggestion made in this research that insulin could increase the risk of death, we must consider important factors such as age, the duration of their diabetes and how the participants managed their condition."
While people would be able to manage their condition for a period with diet, exercise and even tablets, many would eventually have to move on to insulin, he noted.
"We would advise people with type 2 diabetes who use insulin not to stop taking their medication. However, if they are worried about blood glucose targets, they should discuss this with their healthcare team."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8481770.stm

http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/news/News_Releases/2010/01/good-bacteria-prime-immune-system/

American opinion cools on global warming
Yale University, January 27, 2010
New Haven, Conn.--Public concern about global warming has dropped sharply since the fall of 2008, according to a national survey released today by researchers at Yale and George Mason universities.
The survey found: Only 50 percent of Americans now say they are "somewhat" or "very worried" about global warming, a 13-point decrease.
The percentage of Americans who think global warming is happening has declined 14 points, to 57 percent.
The percentage of Americans who think global warming is caused mostly by human activities dropped 10 points, to 47 percent.
In line with these shifting beliefs, there has been an increase in the number of Americans who think global warming will never harm people or other species in the United States or elsewhere.
"Despite growing scientific evidence that global warming will have serious impacts worldwide, public opinion is moving in the opposite direction," said Anthony Leiserowitz, director of the Yale Project on Climate Change. "Over the past year the United States has experienced rising unemployment, public frustration with Washington and a divisive health care debate, largely pushing climate change out of the news. Meanwhile, a set of emails stolen from climate scientists and used by critics to allege scientific misconduct may have contributed to an erosion of public trust in climate science."
The survey also found lower public trust in a variety of institutions and leaders, including scientists. For example, Americans' trust in the mainstream news media as a reliable source of information about global warming declined by 11 percentage points, television weather reporters by 10 points and scientists by 8 points. They also distrust leaders on both sides of the political fence. Sixty-five percent distrust Republicans Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sarah Palin as sources of information, while 53 percent distrust former Democratic Vice President Al Gore and 49 percent distrust President Barack Obama.
Finally, Americans who believe that most scientists think global warming is happening decreased 13 points, to 34 percent, while 40 percent of the public now believes there is a lot of disagreement among scientists over whether global warming is happening or not.
"The scientific evidence is clear that climate change is real, human-caused and a serious threat to communities across America," said Edward Maibach, director of the Center for Climate Change Communication at George Mason University. "The erosion in both public concern and public trust about global warming should be a clarion call for people and organizations trying to educate the public about this important issue."
The results come from a nationally representative survey of 1,001 American adults, age 18 and older. The sample was weighted to correspond with U.S. Census Bureau parameters. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3 percent, with 95 percent confidence. The survey was designed by researchers at Yale and George Mason universities and conducted from December 23, 2009, to January 3, 2010, by Knowledge Networks, using an online research panel of American adults.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/yu-aoc012710.php

Pomegranate extract stimulates uterine contractions
University of Liverpool, January 27, 2010
The team identified beta-sitosterol – a steroid that can inhibit the absorption of cholesterol in the intestine – as the main constituent of pomegranate seed extract. The research suggests that pomegranate extract could be used as a natural stimulant to encourage the uterus to contract during labour.
Pomegranate juice is thought to have a number of health benefits, from lowering cholesterol and blood pressure to protecting against some cancers, but until now there has been no evidence to demonstrate its effects on the uterus. Researchers investigated pomegranate seed extract – more highly concentrated than pomegranate juice – and its effect on uterine smooth muscle samples.
Professor Sue Wray, from the University's Department of Physiology, said: "Previous study has suggested that the pomegranate's antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties have a positive impact on health. We wanted to understand its effect on uterine contractions to help us explore new ways of treating women who may experience difficult labours. Currently the only available drug to treat women with a poorly contracting uterus is oxytocin, a hormone which only works approximately 50% of the time.
"It is important for us to investigate how the uterus works and what happens when it does not contract normally so that women experiencing problems during labour do not have to undergo major surgery to deliver a healthy baby."
Dr Sajeera Kupittayanant, from Suranaree's Institute of Science, explains: "We found that beta-sitosterol was the main constituent of pomegranate extract, a steroid present in many plant species, but particularly rich in pomegranate seed. We added the extract to uterus tissue samples from animals and found that the muscle cells increased their activity. Our work suggests that the increase is due to a rise in calcium, which is necessary in order for any muscle to contract, but is usually affected by hormones, nerve impulses and some drug treatments.
"The next step is to investigate how beta-sitosterol in pomegranate extract could increase calcium, but it could prove to be a significant step forward in identifying new ways of treating dysfunctional labour."
The research, published in Reproductive Sciences, will support work being conducted at a new centre dedicated to improving experiences in pregnancy and childbirth for women across the world. The Centre for Better Births will bring together researchers and clinicians to improve understanding in areas such as premature labour, recurrent miscarriage and prolonged labour.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/uol-pes012710.php

Losing sleep, losing brain?
Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam
January 27, 2010
Chronic and severely stressful situations, like those connected to depression and posttraumatic stress disorder, have been associated with smaller volumes in "stress sensitive" brain regions, such as the cingulate region of the cerebral cortex and the hippocampus, a brain region involved in memory formation. A new study, published by Elsevier in Biological Psychiatry, suggests that chronic insomnia may be another condition associated with reduced cortical volume.
Using a specialized technique called voxel-based morphometry, Ellemarije Altena and Ysbrand van der Werf from the research group of Eus van Someren evaluated the brain volumes of persons with chronic insomnia who were otherwise psychiatrically healthy, and compared them to healthy persons without sleep problems. They found that insomnia patients had a smaller volume of gray matter in the left orbitofrontal cortex, which was strongly correlated with their subjective severity of insomnia.
"We show, for the first time, that insomnia patients have lower grey matter density in brain regions involved in the evaluation of the pleasantness of stimuli, as well as in regions related to the brain's 'resting state'. The more severe the sleeping problems of insomniacs, the less grey matter density they have in the region involved in pleasantness evaluation, which may also be important for the recognition of optimal comfort to fall asleep," explained Altena. She added, "Our group previously showed that insomniacs have difficulties with recognizing optimal comfort. These findings urge further investigation into the definition of subtypes of insomnia and their causal factors, for which we have now initiated the Netherlands Sleep Registry."
Dr. John Krystal, Editor of Biological Psychiatry, commented, that "insomnia is a common feature of nearly every psychiatric condition associated with reduced cortical volume; in fact, it is a common symptom of psychiatric disorders or high levels of life stress, generally. The study by Altena and colleagues suggests that there are additional risks of not treating insomnia, such as detrimental effects on the microstructure of the brain."
The article is "Reduced Orbitofrontal and Parietal Gray Matter in Chronic Insomnia: A Voxel-Based Morphometric Study" by Ellemarije Altena, Hugo Vrenken, Ysbrand D. Van Der Werf, Odile A. van den Heuvel, and Eus J.W. Van Someren. The principal investigators Altena, Van Der Werf, and Van Someren are affiliated with the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. All authors are also affiliated with VU University Medical Center (VUMC), Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The article appears inBiological Psychiatry, Volume 67, Issue 2 (January 15, 2010), published by Elsevier.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/e-lsl012710.php

Childhood obesity alone may increase risk of later cardiovascular disease
The Endocrine Society, January 26, 2010
By as early as 7 years of age, being obese may raise a child's risk of future heart disease and stroke, even in the absence of other cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).
"This new study demonstrates that the unhealthy consequences of excess body fat start very early," said Nelly Mauras, MD, of Nemours Children's Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida and senior author of the study. "Our study shows that obesity alone is linked to certain abnormalities in the blood that can predispose individuals to developing cardiovascular disease early in adulthood.
These findings suggest that we need more aggressive interventions for weight control in obese children, even those who do not have the co-morbidities of the metabolic syndrome."
The metabolic syndrome is a cluster of risk factors that raise the risk of developing heart disease, stroke and diabetes. It is being increasingly diagnosed in children as being overweight becomes a greater problem. Although debate exists as to its exact definition, to receive a diagnosis of metabolic syndrome, one must have at least three of the following characteristics: increased waist circumference (abdominal fat), low HDL ("good") cholesterol, high triglycerides (fats in the blood), high blood pressure and high blood glucose (blood sugar).
Mauras and her colleagues wanted to know if obesity could raise cardiovascular disease risk prior to the onset of the metabolic syndrome. Researchers therefore screened more than 300 individuals ages 7 to 18 years and included only those without features of the metabolic syndrome. They included 202 participants in the study: 115 obese children and 87 lean children as controls. Half of the children were prepubertal and the other half were in late puberty. Obese children had a body mass index (a measure of body fat) above the 95th percentile for their sex, age and height.
To be eligible to participate in the study, the children and adolescents had to have normal fasting blood sugar levels, normal blood pressure and normal cholesterol and triglycerides. Lean controls also could not have a close relative with type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure or obesity. The latter group proved very difficult to find.
All study participants underwent blood testing for known markers for predicting the development of cardiovascular disease. These included elevated levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of inflammation, and abnormally high fibrinogen, a clotting factor, among others. Obese children had a 10 fold higher CRP and significantly higher fibrinogen concentrations, compared with age- and sex-matched lean children, the authors reported. These abnormalities occurred in obese children as young as age 7, long before the onset of puberty.
The results were striking Mauras stated, as the children were entirely healthy otherwise. Although it is not yet known whether early therapeutic interventions can reverse high CRP and fibrinogen, she said it would be prudent for health care providers to advise more aggressive interventions to limit calories and increase activity in "healthy" overweight children, even before the onset of puberty.
"Doctors often do not treat obesity in children now unless they have other features of the metabolic syndrome," Mauras said. "This practice should be reconsidered. Further studies are needed to offer more insight into the effects of therapeutic interventions in these children.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/tes-coa012510.php

Study links reduced fertility to flame retardant exposure
University of California, Berkeley  January 26, 2010
Berkeley – Women with higher blood levels of PBDEs, a type of flame retardant commonly found in household consumer products, took longer to become pregnant compared with women who have lower PBDE levels, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.
The study, to be published Jan. 26 in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, found that each 10-fold increase in the blood concentration of four PBDE chemicals was linked to a 30 percent decrease in the odds of becoming pregnant each month.
"There have been numerous animal studies that have found a range of health effects from exposure to PBDEs, but very little research has been done in humans. This latest paper is the first to address the impact on human fertility, and the results are surprisingly strong," said the study's lead author, Kim Harley, adjunct assistant professor of maternal and child health and associate director of the Center for Children's Environmental Health Research at UC Berkeley's School of Public Health. "These findings need to be replicated, but they have important implications for regulators."
PBDEs, or polybrominated diphenyl ethers, are a class of organobromine compounds that became commonplace after the 1970s when new fire safety standards were implemented in the United States. The flame retardants are used in foam furniture, electronics, fabrics, carpets, plastics and other common items in the home.
Studies have found widespread contamination of house dust by PBDEs, which are known to leach out into the environment and accumulate in human fat cells. Studies also suggest that 97 percent of U.S. residents have detectable levels of PBDEs in their blood, and that the levels in Americans are 20 times higher than in their European counterparts. According to the researchers, residents in California are among those experiencing the highest exposures, most likely due to the state's relatively stringent flammability laws.
The researchers measured PBDE levels in blood samples from 223 pregnant women enrolled in a longitudinal study at the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas (CHAMACOS) that examines environmental exposures and reproductive health.
The median concentrations of the four PBDE chemicals in the analysis were slightly lower in this study population than in the general U.S. population, possibly because many of the participants had grown up in Mexico where PBDE exposures are limited, said the authors of the study. The median number of months it took to get pregnant was three, with 15 percent of the participants taking longer than 12 months to conceive.
When the analysis was limited to women who were actively trying to become pregnant, the researchers found that they were half as likely to conceive in any given month if they had high levels of PBDE in their blood. "We aren't looking at infertility, just subfertility, because all the women in our study eventually became pregnant," said Harley. "Had we included infertile couples in our study, it is possible that we would have seen an even stronger effect from PBDE exposure."
It is not entirely clear how PBDEs might impact fertility. A number of animal studies have found that PBDEs can impair neurodevelopment, reduce thyroid hormones, and alter levels of sex hormones. Both high and low thyroid hormone levels can disrupt normal menstrual patterns in humans, but this study did not find a link between PBDE exposure and irregular menstrual cycles.
Because the participants were mostly young, Mexican immigrant women who lived in an agricultural community, the researchers controlled for exposure to pesticides in their analysis. The researchers also controlled for other variables known to impact fertility, such as irregularity of menstrual cycles, frequency of intercourse, pre-pregnancy body mass index, use of birth control pills in the year before conception, smoking, and alcohol and caffeine consumption.
There are some 209 different possible formulations of PBDEs, but only three mixtures – pentaBDE, octaBDE and decaBDE – have been developed for commercial use as flame retardants. The mixtures are distinguished by the average number of bromine atoms attached to each molecule. Like many other studies, the most prevalent PBDEs in the blood of women participating in the UC Berkeley study were four components of the pentaBDE mixture.
Penta- and octaBDE have both been banned for use in several U.S. states, including California, but they are still present in products made before 2004. Last month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced an agreement with three major manufacturers of decaBDE to phase out its production by 2013.
"Although several types of PBDEs are being phased out in the United States, our exposure to the flame retardants is likely to continue for many years," said the study's principal investigator, Brenda Eskenazi, UC Berkeley professor of epidemiology and of maternal and child health at the School of Public Health. "PBDEs are present in many consumer products, and we know they leach out into our homes. In our research, we have found that low-income children in California are exposed to very high levels of PBDEs, and this has us concerned about the next generation of Californians."
Keeping up with the ever-expanding range of chemicals in our environment is challenging, the researchers noted. As PBDEs are being phased out, they are being replaced with other brominated compounds. "We know even less about the newer flame retardant chemicals that are coming out," said Harley. "We just don't have the human studies yet to show that they are safe."
A 2007 state assembly bill that would have banned all brominated and chlorinated chemical flame retardants from household furniture and bedding sold in California failed to pass.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/uoc--slr012110.php

Calcium and vitamin D supplements reduce the risk of bone fractures in everyone, young and old
S. L. Baker, NaturalNews.com  January 27, 2010 

(NaturalNews) In recent years, Big Pharma has produced a variety of widely hyped bisphosphonate drugs including alendronate (Fosamax), ibandronate (Boniva), risedronate (Actonel) and zoledronic acid (Reclast) that are aimed at preserving bone mass and reducing the risk of fractures. Unfortunately, as NaturalNews has reported, the more these medications are pushed on patients, the more serious side effects are being reported, from dangerous heart arrhythmias (http://www.naturalnews.com/026027_d...) to dental problems, esophageal ulcers, abdominal pain and severe damage to the jaw bone. But a new study involving almost 70,000 people from throughout the U.S. and Europe shows that nutrients -- calcium and vitamin D taken together -- offer a natural, side effect-free way to prevent fractures.

Because broken bones are a major cause of disability and loss of independence for elders, these findings are of particular interest to older people. In fact, according to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), fall-related injuries are the leading cause of accidental death among Americans age 65 and older. However, fractures can be serious at any age, causing pain, sometimes necessitating surgery and almost always restricting activities. 

Good news: the researchers found it isn't only the aged whose bones benefit from taking calcium and vitamin D. Remarkably, they found the supplements reduced fractures in everyone -- the young and old, women and men, and even people who had already sustained fractured bones in the past.

The study, published in the January issue of the British Medical Journal, involved an international team of scientists headed by researchers from Copenhagen University in Denmark. They assessed the results of seven large clinical trials from around the world to document whether vitamin D alone or with calcium was effective in reducing fractures. 

One of the most important trials included in the new investigation was a long term study conducted at the University of California at Davis (UC Davis) in Sacramento as part of the Women's Health Initiative (WHI). This 15 year long national program was designed to study the effect of calcium and vitamin D supplements in preventing hip, spine and other types of fractures.

"What is important about this very large study is that it goes a long way toward resolving conflicting evidence about the role of vitamin D, either alone or in combination with calcium, in reducing fractures," John Robbins, professor of internal medicine at UC Davis and a co-author of the journal article, said in a statement to the media. "Our WHI research in Sacramento included more than 1,000 healthy, postmenopausal women and concluded that taking calcium and vitamin D together helped them preserve bone health and prevent fractures. This latest analysis, because it incorporates so many more people, really confirms our earlier conclusions."

Bottom line: the researchers concluded that it is the combination of calcium and vitamin D, rather than vitamin D alone, that is most effective in reducing a variety of fractures. "Interestingly, this combination of supplements benefits both women and men of all ages, which is not something we fully expected to find," Dr. Robbins stated. "We now need to investigate the best dosage, duration and optimal way for people to take it."
http://www.naturalnews.com/028037_vitamin_D_bone_fractures.html

A Cupful of Health Benefits
Dr. Julian Whitaker, NaturalNews.com  January 27, 2010 

(NaturalNews) Patients coming to the Whitaker Wellness Institute sometimes express surprise that we serve coffee. Doesn't it increase the body's acidity? Aren't health-conscious people supposed to drink tea instead? Isn't caffeine bad for you?

If coffee were harmful, then every morning emergency rooms around the world would be choked with people suffering the ill effects of our favorite breakfast beverage. Of course, this isn't the case. Coffee is not harmful. On the contrary, I consider it to be a health food, and hundreds of studies bear this out.
From Protection Against Parkinson's...
Research shows that drinking coffee reduces the risk of Parkinson's disease by as much as 80 percent and protects against other neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's. It increases insulin sensitivity, and a high intake- at least six cups a day- lowers the risk of type 2 diabetes by 54 percent in men and 30 percent in women.

Coffee improves concentration and alertness, boosts mood, and decreases suicide risk. In fact, just the smell of coffee relieves stress in animals. This popular drink also controls asthma and can even halt a full-blown attack in its tracks. Additionally, coffee can stop migraine headaches, curb appetite, prevent tooth decay, and increase the effectiveness of aspirin and other analgesics (Anacin and Excedrin both contain caffeine). And if you drink it before working out, your endurance will improve and you'll have less exercise-induced muscle pain.
...to Increased Longevity
Compared to people who avoid coffee, those who drink at least two cups a day are 80 percent less likely to develop cirrhosis of the liver (even if they drink a lot of alcohol), half as likely to have gallstones, and 25 percent less apt to get colon cancer. Coffee is also protective against cancer of the liver and kidneys, and although it's long been suspected of increasing risk of breast cancer, a recent study spanning 22 years and involving nearly 86,000 women found a weak inverse association between the two in postmenopausal females.

Finally, coffee may even increase longevity. A large 2008 study found that drinking up to six cups of regular or decaffeinated coffee daily is associated with a slightly lower risk of death from heart disease, cancer, and other causes.
What Makes Coffee So Healthful?
So what is it in coffee that provides such remarkable benefits? First, that cup of java is a terrific source of protective antioxidants. Researchers evaluating both the antioxidant levels of various foods and drinks and the frequency with which those items are consumed have found that the average amount of coffee consumed by American adults per day- 1.64 cups- provides 1,299 mg of antioxidants. Tea, the second richest source, supplied only 294 mg, followed by antioxidant-rich (but sparingly eaten) fruits and vegetables, which provide fewer than 75 mg each of antioxidants per day. Believe it or not, coffee even contains fiber- nearly 2 g per cup.

But these aren't the only components that make coffee a health food. Although some studies reveal that regular and decaffeinated coffee both have benefits, oft-maligned caffeine gives the drink much of its oomph. In addition to perking up the nervous system, caffeine increases the activity of the neurotransmitter dopamine and enhances delivery of nutrients and oxygen to the muscles and brain.

So, the next time you feel like a cup of Joe, indulge yourself. It's a good way to boost your mood, your energy, and your overall health.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028036_coffee_antioxidants.html

Coffee Lowers Risk of Diabetes and Liver Fibrosis, Hepatitis and Prostate Cancer
Melanie Grimes, NaturalNews.com  January 27, 2010 

(NaturalNews) Drinking coffee can lower the risk of liver fibrosis, hepatitis, and type 2 diabetes; new research has shown. Coffee has also been shown to lower the risk of prostate cancer, and even Alzheimer's disease and stroke. It is the caffeine in the coffee that is the active ingredient, but other sources of caffeine, such as green tea, black tea and chocolate may be helpful in reducing health risks, though the study showed that coffee reduced the risk for fibrosis.

The most recent coffee study was published in January 2010 in the journal, Hepatology, and titled, "Increased caffeine consumption is associated with reduced hepatic fibrosis". One hundred and seventy seven patients were studied over a six-month period. The group was comprised of close to half male and female, with 112 chronic hepatitis sufferers. The participants consumed 308 mg of caffeine a day, the same as 2.25 cups of coffee.

Another study, published in the journal Arthritis Rheumatism in 2007, concluded that coffee consumption lowered uric acid levels, which is the cause of gout and osteoarthritis.

The research on coffee and diabetes was published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. The findings also indicated that tea and decaffeinated coffee also helped reduce the risk of diabetes. Every cup of coffee consumed equaled a seven percent reduction in diabetes risk. This study was collected from over 18 various studies on coffee, totaling nearly a half million participants.

In December 2009, research presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Conference showed that coffee reduced the risk of prostate cancer because of its effect on blood sugar, insulin and glucose metabolism. The research was collected from over 50,000 men, from 1986 to 2006. Men who drank the most coffee had a 60 percent lower risk of aggressive prostate cancer, compared to the men who drank no coffee.

The more coffee you drink, the lower is the risk of diabetes and other chronic health conditions, the research suggests. Further research is needed to confirm these findings, but the indications are that the morning cup of Joe may be good for your long-term health.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028033_coffee_diabetes.html

Radiation Treatment for Cancer Causes Diabetes in Children
David Gutierrez, NaturalNews.com  January 27, 2010 

(NaturalNews) People who are undergo radiation therapy for childhood cancers are significantly more likely to develop diabetes as adults, according to a new study conducted by researchers from Emory University and published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

A number of studies have found that radiation, chemotherapy, and other such treatments significantly shorten the lives of childhood cancer survivors.

"As a result of their curative therapies, childhood cancer survivors face an increased risk of morbidity and mortality," the researchers wrote. Nearly 75 percent of such children develop a chronic health condition within 30 years of diagnosis, while 42.4 percent develop severe, disabling or life-threatening health conditions. Because cardiovascular disease is a major killer of childhood cancer survivors, the researchers examined the effect ofradiation treatment on the risk of diabetes, a major correlate of cardiovascular mortality.

The researchers examined diabetes rates in 8,599 people who had been diagnosed with cancer before the age of 21, between 1970 and 1986. These rates were compared with 2,936 of their cancer-free siblings, who were randomly selected. All participants were screened for diabetes in 2003.

After adjusting for other diabetes risk factors including age, body mass index, ethnicity, exercise, income, insurance and race, the researchers found that those who had undergone cancer treatment as children were 1.8 times more likely to have diabetes as adults than their siblings were. Those who had been treated with abdominal radiation were 2.7 times more likely to have diabetes, while those who had been treated with whole-body radiation were a shocking 7.2 times more likely to be diabetic. 

Risk increased with radiation dose used, and decreased with age at diagnosis. People diagnosed with cancer before the age of five had 2.4 times the diabetes risk as those diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 20. 

A previous study found that childhood cancer survivors were five to 10 times more likely to suffer from heart disease than their cancer-free siblings, and significantly more likely to suffer from kidney disease.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028032_radiation_therapy_diabetes.html

Obama USDA Poised to Take Away Our Right to GMO-Free Food

Ronnie Cummins, Director, Organic Consumers Association
Huffington Post, January 21, 2010

Don't believe Monsanto's green-washing. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), aren't meant to feed the world or survive the evermore frequentdroughts and floods brought on by global warming - they're designed to sell Monsanto's herbicide Roundup and the patented "Roundup Ready" genes now spliced into millions of acres of corn, cotton, soy, canola, sugar beets and alfalfa. A 2009 study showed that, in 13 years, Roundup Ready crops increased herbicide use by 383 million pounds.

During the Bush administration, the movement to stop GMOs was making progress. Reflecting public concern over GMOs, in 2007, a Federal courtruled that the Bush USDA's approval of Roundup Ready alfalfa violated the law because it failed to analyze risks such as the contamination of conventional and organic alfalfa and the development of "super-weeds." The court banned the planting of GM alfalfa until USDA completed a rigorous analysis of these impacts. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals twice affirmed the national ban on Roundup Ready alfalfa planting, but Monsanto is appealing. They're taking organic alfalfa farmers all the way to the Supreme Court!

Barack Obama, despite promising us "change we can believe in," is unfortunately turning out to be just as pro-GMO as the preceding Bush and Clinton administrations, packing the USDA and other government bureaucracies with Monsanto men and biotech cheerleaders such as former Iowa Governor, Tom Vilsack, named "Biotech Governor of the Year" in 2001, now serving as USDA Secretary. Vilsack, notorious for flying around in a Monsanto company jet during one of his previous election campaigns, is now busy trying to get the court-ordered ban on Roundup Ready alfalfa lifted by issuing a new draftenvironmental impact statement (EIS) that denies or downplays the obvious environmental and human health hazards of GM alfalfa.

Alfalfa is the fourth most widely grown crop in the U.S. and a key source of dairy forage and hay. The first perennial crop to be genetically engineered, GM alfalfa can regenerate itself from its root-stock. It is open-pollinated by bees, which can cross-pollinate at distances of several miles, spreading Monsanto's patented, foreign DNA to non-GMO and organic crops. Widespread GMO-contamination of organic alfalfa is inevitable if the Obama Administration successfully distorts science and ignores public opinion and allows Monsanto's GM Roundup Ready alfalfa to be planted across the U.S.
Mounting evidence shows damage to animals and humans from unlabeled and untested Frankenfoods. Consumers who ingest GM alfalfa are likely risking their health; since even the USDA's EIS admits that, "acute toxicity in mice was observed."
According to the EIS, consumers who ingest foods with residues of Monsanto's Roundup herbicide may experience "general and non-specific signs of toxicity from subchronic and chronic exposure to glyphosate includ[ing] changes in liver weight, blood chemistry (may suggest mild liver toxicity), liver pathology, and weight of the pituitary gland."
The EIS warns that, "Based on upper estimates of exposure ... infants consuming fruit and all age groups consuming vegetables may be at risk of adverse effects associated with acute exposure to glyphosate [the active ingredient in Roundup] residues."
Consuming milk and meat from animals fed crops that are genetically engineered is also risky. In Europe, where farmer and consumer rejection has kept GMO crop acreage to a bare minimum, massive quantities of GMO-tainted animal feed is imported from the U.S. and a survey of 60 samples of 12 different milk brands sold in stores in Italy demonstrated the presence of GM maize sequences in 15 (25%) and of GM soybean sequences in 7 samples (11.7%).
Most consumers, especially organic consumers, are determined to avoid Roundup Ready alfalfa, and meat and dairy products derived from animals ingesting Roundup Ready alfalfa, but according to the EIS, we don't have that right because, "At the present time, there is no policy regarding the unintended presence of GE (genetically engineered) material in organic products or food, consistent with the fact that the NOP (National Organic Program) is a process-based program for certifying a farm or production system as organic, and not a product-based program that tests or certifies individual products as organic."
We must stop the Obama administration from taking away our right to grow and consume organic and GMO-free food. The "change we believe in" is a healthy and sustainable future based upon organic food and farming and a green economy.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ronnie-cummins/obama-usda-poised-to-take_b_432185.html

Fears grow as study shows genetically modified crops 'can cause liver and kidney damage'
The Daily Mail (UK),  21st January 2010
Fresh fears were raised over GM crops yesterday after a study showed they can cause liver and kidney damage.
According to the research, animals fed on three strains of genetically modified maize created by the U.S. biotech firm Monsanto suffered signs of organ damage after just three months.
The findings only came to light after Monsanto was forced to publish its raw data on safety tests by anti-GM campaigners. 
They add to the evidence that GM crops may damage health as well as be harmful to the environment.
The figures released by Monsanto were examined by French researcher Dr Gilles-Eric Seralini, from the University of Caen.
Yesterday he called for more studies to check for long-term organ damage.
'What we've shown is clearly not proof of toxicity, but signs of toxicity,' he told New Scientist magazine. 'I'm sure there's no acute toxicity but who's to say there are no chronic effects?'
The experiments were carried out by Monsanto researchers on three strains of GM maize. Two of the varieties contained genes for the Bt protein which protects the plant against the corn borer pest, while a third was genetically modified to be resistant to the weedkiller glyphosate. All three strains are widely grown in America, while one is the only GM crop grown in Europe, mostly in Spain.
Monsanto only released the raw data after a legal challenge from Greenpeace, the Swedish Board of Agriculture and French anti- GM campaigners.
Dr Seralini concluded that rats which ate the GM maize had ' statistically significant' signs of liver and kidney damage. Each strain was linked to unusual concentrations of hormones in the blood and urine of rats fed the maize for three months, compared to rats given a non-GM diet.
The higher hormone levels suggest that animals' livers and kidneys are not working properly.
Female rats fed one of the strains also had higher blood sugar levels and raised levels of fatty substances caused triglycerides, Dr Seralini reported in the International Journal of Microbiology.
The analysis concluded: 'These substances have never before been an integral part of the human or animal diet and therefore their health consequences for those who consume them, especially over long time periods are currently unknown.'
Monsanto claimed the analysis of its data was 'based on faulty analytical methods and reasoning, and does not call into question the safety findings for these products'.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1244824/Fears-grow-study-shows-genetically-modified-crops-cause-liver-kidney-damage.html#

Arthritis: Environmental Exposure to Hairspray, Lipstick, Pollution, Can Trigger Autoimmune Diseases

ScienceDaily (Jan. 27, 2010) — The links between autoimmune diseases, infections, genetics and the environment are complex and mysterious. Why are people who live near airports more susceptible to autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus? How do hormones in meat trigger the onset of a disease?
Our immediate environment interacts with our genetic programming and can determine if we will succumb to an autoimmune disease, says rheumatologist Prof. Michael Ehrenfeld of Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine, who is seeking to unravel those mysteries. Prof. Ehrenfeld recently published a report inAutoimmune Reviews on how "Spondylo-arthropathies," a group of common inflammatory rheumatic disorders, appear to be triggered by environmental factors. He has also done research on how the dry-eye and mouth disease "Sjögren's syndrome" can be triggered by environmental influences.
Minimizing the risks
"The onset of autoimmune diseases is a mixture of genetics, which you can't change, and environmental factors, which in some cases you can," says Prof. Ehrenfeld. While he cites pollution as a trigger in many autoimmune disorders, "there are some environmental factors harder to avoid. For example, reactive arthritis is caused by a severe gastro-intestinal, urinary or sexual infection in some people," he says.
Afflicting more than 2 million Americans, rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease, three times more prevalent in women than men. The disorder causes the body's own immune system to attack its joints, leading to pain, deformities and a substantial loss of mobility.
It is still impossible to tell which genes encode this disease and make some people more susceptible to autoimmune diseases, but there are some basic behaviors that may keep these disorders at bay. One root cause of arthritis is extreme stress, says Prof. Ehrenfeld, for which there are already therapeutic strategies. And some medications, such as the birth control pills, might be linked in some cases to the onset of lupus.
"You won't know if taking the pill or getting a certain virus will trigger arthritis, because we don't yet know the genes that encode the various autoimmune diseases," he says. "Obviously those people whose family members share a history of rheumatoid arthritis, or other autoimmune diseases including thyroid problems, should be more vigilant, because their chances are higher."
Triggers include hairspray and lipstick
Environmental pollution is also a cause for concern to those genetically predisposed to an autoimmune disease. Second-hand smoke, food chemicals or chemicals in the air, jet fuel fumes, UV exposure and other forms of environmental pollution are amongst the triggers considered to provoke the onset of autoimmune diseases.
Industrial regions, particularly in Northern Europe and North America, still exhibit the highest rates of most autoimmune diseases. But on a much more local scale, Prof. Ehrenfeld also singles out hairspray as well as lipstick as known occasional triggers.
"Most people think arthritis has to do with old age," says Prof. Ehrenfeld. "This is false. There is only one major type of arthritis in older people: osteoarthritis, which is brought on by degenerative changes in the body. What you see in older adults is usually a non-inflammatory and non-autoimmune type of arthritis.
"Most of the other kinds of arthritis we see in the clinic, the debilitating and inflammatory types, usually occur in young women between the ages of 20 and 40," Prof. Ehrenfeld says. "We hope that our research will lessen the occurrence and onset of these painful disorders."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100125123231.htm

Gastric Ulcer Bacteria Turn Immune Defense Inwards

ScienceDaily (Jan. 27, 2010) — Despite a strong response from our immune defence, the body is unable to rid itself of the bacterium Helicobacter pylori. One reason for this is that this bacterium encourages elements of the immune response to remain in tissue, activating the wrong immune cells. Research results that pave the way for a future vaccine are now being published by the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.
Approximately half of the world's population are infected with Helicobacter pylori, found primarily in the stomach. The majority never show any symptoms, but just over ten per cent develop gastric ulcers, while around one per cent develop gastric adenocarcinoma. Without antibiotics the body is unable to rid itself of the bacteria.
"Helicobacter pylori inhibits our immune defence, preventing it from attacking the bacteria with sufficient strength, despite an immune response being activated," says biologist Malin Hansson, the author of the thesis.
When an immune response is initiated a specific type of cell migrates to the lymph nodes to activate new immune cells, telling them where they need to go to tackle the infection. Infection with Helicobacter pylori prevents many of these cells from reaching their intended destination.
"Helicobacter pylori causes immune cells to accumulate in tissue. Many of the cells that ought to collect more new immune cells stop at these accumulations and begin activating these instead, leading to chronic inflammation, which we believe benefits Helicobacter pylori," says Malin Hansson.
This thesis also paves the way for a future vaccine against gastric adenocarcinoma. Previous research has shown that many infected patients with gastric adenocarcinoma have low levels of a specific type of antibody in tissue, even though Helicobacter pylori normally causes unusually high levels of antibodies. These antibodies should therefore be able to protect against this form of cancer. For the first time in samples taken from humans Malin Hansson has been able to show that these antibodies are attracted to tissue by a signal substance called MEC.
"If these antibodies really can protect against development of gastric adenocarcinoma, it would be possible to develop a vaccine that increases MEC expression and thus the number of antibodies present in tissue," says Malin.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100125094639.htm

Researchers at Tufts University, Department of Agriculture have published new data on cardiovascular disease
NewsRx.com 01-26-10
"Compared to vegetable oils in their unmodified state, partially-hydrogenated fat is associated with less favorable effects on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. Acceptable alternatives must be adjudicated," investigators in the United States report (see also Cardiovascular Disease).
"Our objective was to assess the effect of a recent commercial fat substitution, corn oil for partially-hydrogenated soybean oil. Using a double-blind cross-over design, 30 postmenopausal women >= 50 years with LDLcholesterol concentrations >= 120 mg/dL were randomly assigned to each of two 35-day phases; all food and beverage was provided to maintain body weight. Corn or partially-hydrogenated soybean oil was incorporated throughout the diet and contributed two-thirds of fat. included fasting and non-fasting lipid, lipoprotein, apolipoprotein, and fasting high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) concentrations; secondary outcomes included fasting small dense LDL (sdLDL)-cholesterol, remnant lipoprotein cholesterol (RemLC), glycated albumin, adiponectin and immunoreactive insulin concentrations, and endogenous cholesteryl ester transfer protein ( CETP) and lecithin: cholesterol acyl transferase (LCAT) activities. Relative to the partially-hydrogenated soybean oil enriched diet, the corn oil enriched diet resulted in lower fasting total cholesterol (7%; P< 0.0001), LDL-cholesterol (10%; P< 0.0001), VLDL-cholesterol ( 7%; P = 0.052), apo B ( 9%; P< 0.0001), lipoprotein ( a) [Lp(a)] (5%; P = 0.024), sdLDL-cholesterol (17%; P = 0.001), and RemLC (20%; P = 0.007) concentrations, and no significant effect on the other outcomes. Changes in postprandial (4-h post-meal) lipid, lipoprotein and apolipoprotein concentrations were similar to the fasting state," wrote S. Vegalopez and colleagues, Tufts University, Department of Agriculture.
The researchers concluded: "The replacement of partially-hydrogenated soybean oil with corn oil favorably affects a range of CVD risk factors and is an appropriate option to decrease cardiovascular disease risk factors in moderately hypercholesterolemic individuals."
Vegalopez and colleagues published their study in Atherosclerosis (Substitution of vegetable oil for a partially-hydrogenated fat favorably alters cardiovascular disease risk factors in moderately hypercholesterolemic postmenopausal women. Atherosclerosis, 2009;207(1):208-212).
For additional information, contact A.H. Lichtenstein, Tufts University, Jean Mayer Dept. of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center, Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory, 711 Washington St., Boston, MA 02111, USA.
The publisher of the journal Atherosclerosis can be contacted at: Elsevier Ireland Ltd., Elsevier House, Brookvale Plaza, East Park Shannon, Co. Clare, Ireland.
http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNews.htm?NewsID=9241&Section=Nutrition

Many unaware they have hepatitis B or C

United Press International 01-26-10
As many as 5.3 million people in the United States have hepatitis B or C but most are unaware until they develop liver cancer or liver disease, researchers say. An Institute of Medicine study found hepatitis is not widely recognized as a serious public health problem, and as a result, viral hepatitis prevention, control and surveillance programs have inadequate resources. The report concludes the current approach to prevention and control of chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis C is not working. The Institute of Medicine recommends increased knowledge and awareness about chronic viral hepatitis among healthcare providers, social service providers and the public; improved surveillance for hepatitis B and hepatitis C; and better integration of viral hepatitis services. The Institute of Medicine is calling for a major public health push to decrease the stigma of the hepatitis viruses, which are to blame for nearly half the liver transplants performed every year in the United States. At present, the only hepatitis treatment approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is a cocktail of interferon and ribavirin, which must be administered in a 48-week course and is effective in less than half of patients.
http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNews.htm?NewsID=9240&Section=Disease

Global supply of rare earth elements could be wiped out by 2012
Mike Adams, NaturalNews January 26, 2010 

(NaturalNews) It's the bubble you've probably never heard of: The rare earth bubble. And it's due to pop in 2012, potentially devastating the industries of western nations that depend on these rare elements.

What industries are those? The automobile industry uses tens of thousands of tons of rare earth elements each year, and advanced military technology depends on these elements, too. Lots of "green" technologies depend on them, including wind turbines, low-energy light bulbs and hybrid car batteries. In fact, much of western civilization depends on rare earth elements such as terbium, lanthanum and neodymium.

So what's the problem with these rare elements? 97 percent of the world's supply comes from mines in China, and China is prepared to simply stop exporting these strategic elements to the rest of the world by 2012.

If that happens, the western world will be crippled by the collapse of available rare earth elements. Manufacturing of everything from computers and electronics to farm machinery will grind to a halt. Electronics will disappear from the shelves and prices for manufactured goods that depend on these rare elements will skyrocket.

These 17 rare earth elements (REE) -- all of which are metals -- are strategic resources upon which entire nations are built. In many ways, they are similar to rubber -- a resource so valuable and important to the world that many experts call it the "fourth most important natural resource in the world," right after water, steel and oil. Without rubber, you couldn't drive your car to work or water your lawn. Many medical technologies would cease to work and virtually all commercial construction would grind to a halt.

Many of the strategic battles fought in World War II were fought, in fact, over control of rubber, most of which now comes through Singapore and its surrounding regions (Malaysia and Indonesia).
Global shortage of Rare Earth Elements coming...
Now, by threatening to cut off the world's supply of rare earth elements, China appears to be attempting to monopolize this extremely important strategic resource. According to information received by The Independent, by 2012 China may cease all exports of rare earth elements, reserving them for its own economic expansion.

An article in that paper quotes REE expert Jack Lifton as saying, "A real crunch is coming. In America, Britain and elsewhere we have not yet woken up to the fact that there is an urgent need to secure the supply of rare earths from sources outside China."

And yet virtually no one has heard of this problem! People are familiar with peak oil, global warming, ocean acidification, the national debt and the depletion of fossil water, but very few are aware of the looming crisis in rare metals... upon which much of western civilization rests.

For those who still aren't convinced this is a big deal, consider this: Without rare earth elements, we would have no iPhones. Yeah, I know. That's a disaster, huh?

We would have no fiber optic cables, either. No X-ray machines, no car stereos and no high-tech missile guidance systems for the military. And here's the real kicker: No electric motors. 
Demand outstrips supply
The problem with the supply of rare earth elements is that demand has skyrocketed over the last decade from 40,000 tons to 120,000 tons. Meanwhile, China has been cutting its exports. Now, it only exports about 30,000 tons a year -- only one-fourth of the demand the world needs.

In order to build more "green" technologies, the world will need 200,000 tons of rare earth elements by 2014, predicts The Independent. Yet China now threatens to drop exports to exactly zero tons by 2012.

It isn't hard to do the math on this: Without China's exports, the western world will quickly run out of rare earth elements.

Kiss your "green" wind turbines good-bye. And your Toyota Prius production lines, too. No more iPhones and iPods either. Without these rare earth elements, entire industries grind to a halt.
Can we mine it elsewhere?
China isn't the only geographic region where these rare earth elements are found, but constructing mines to pull these elements out of the ground takes many years. Some mines are under construction right now in other countries that could help fill the demand for REEs, but making them operational is "five to ten years away," says Lifton.

That means these other mines won't really be operational until 2015 - 2020. Meanwhile, China could cut off its supply in 2012. That leaves a 3-7 year gap in which these rare earth elements will be in disastrously short supply.

This brings up a couple of very important realizations related to investments:

It is almost certain that the prices for rare earth elements will skyrocket over the next 2 - 5 years. This creates a huge investment opportunity for people willing to take a risk and bet their money on rising prices of these metals.

There's another big investment opportunity here, too: Recycling rare earth elements. As prices leap higher, it will become more economically feasible to harvest rare earth elements out of garbage dumps and landfills where people are discarding electronics such as motors, computers, sound systems and other such items.

Some smart entrepreneur will no doubt make a fortune by setting up and operating a rare earth element reclamation operation of some kind. These elements, after all, aren't destroyed when they're thrown away. They sit around in the trash for eons, just waiting to be reclaimed and re-used.

Lead, for example, is a metal that is successfully recycled today. Something like 85% of all the lead used in America today is reclaimed out of lead-acid batteries and other similar devices. If similar programs could be initiated for the rare metals, we could go a long way towards meeting society's demand for these elements without having to keep mining them out of the ground.

Because let's face it: Mining these rare earth elements is a very DIRTY business. That's part of the contradiction in "green" technologies, by the way: To manufacture them, you need rare metals mined out of ecologically disastrous operations in China. It's the (literal) "dirty little secret" of the green industry. All these wind turbines, solar panels, hybrid car batteries and fiber optics may seem green to the consumer, but behind them there's a very dirty mining business that rapes the planet and pollutes the rivers in order to recover these "green" rare metals.

In any case, unless scientists find less-rare alternatives to many of these rare earth metals, we are looking at a serious global supply crunch for the years 2012 - 2020. Add the "rare earth elements bubble" to your list of other bubbles to watch out for in the years ahead.
Some of the 17 rare earth elements
Dysprosium - Makes electric motor magnets 90% lighter

Terbium - Makes electric lights 80% more efficient

Neodymium - Used in motor magnets

Lanthanum - Used for hydrogen storage

Praseodymium - Used in lasers and ceramic materials

Gadolinium - Used to manufacture computer memory

Erbium - Used in the manufacture of vanadium steel

Ytterbium - Used to make infrared lasers
http://www.naturalnews.com/028028_rare_earth_elements_mining.html

EWG Study Finds Hundreds of Pollutants in Nation's Drinking Water
by E. Huff, NaturalNews January 26, 2010 

(NaturalNews) The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has released yet another report indicting the nation's drinking water supplies are being highly contaminated with pollutants. An analysis of 20 million water quality tests performed between 2004 and 2009 revealed that many local and regional water supplies are tainted with up to 316 different toxic chemicals, many of which are unregulated by current federal standards.

Of the over 300 pollutants found, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set safe maximum limits for only 114 of them, leaving the remaining 64 percent unrecognized as pollutants and unregulated by toxin laws. A few of these chemicals include perchlorate, a toxic component of rocket fuel; freon and radon, two chemical refrigerants; acetone; and metolachlor, a weed killer. 

Nearly 10,000 American communities comprised of roughly 132 million people are receiving over 200 unregulated chemicals in their water supplies. Experts question the long-term safety of ingesting such tainted water, citing the fact that even existing federal laws about regulated chemicals suggest that tap water is unsafe for long-term ingestion. Health officials admit that current acceptable water contamination limits render water unsafe to drink.

Jane Houlihan, Senior Vice President for Research at EWG, notes that federal guidelines have failed to keep up with the growing number of toxic contaminants being found in drinking water. Utility companies, she says, are doing their best to purify water and make it safe to drink, but federal laws must be amended to include new chemicals in order to protect water supplies from unnecessary contamination.

Because many of the chemicals being found in water are unregulated and essentially permitted at any level, water utilities concerned about removing them spend more than $4 billion a year on chemicals designed to remove them from water. Only $207 million, or five percent of that amount, is spent protecting water sources from being contaminated in the first place. 

Almost all of the unregulated chemicals being found in water are a result of discharge from agricultural pesticides and fertilizers, industrial pollutant runoff, and other wastewater treatment residue that makes its way into aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater supplies. Since there are virtually no laws in place to protect water supplies from these contaminants, industry is essentially permitted to discharge this waste with no consequence.

Experts believe that a federal restructuring of contaminant guidelines would go far to prevent water supply contamination, saving water utilities billions of dollars in treatment costs and maintaining the integrity of water supplies nationwide.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028026_drinking_water_pollutants.html

Fight Back against the GMO Assault on Our Immune Systems (Opinion)
Paul Fassa, NaturalNews January 26, 2010 

(NaturalNews) With Michael Taylor ensconced in the White House as the Food Safety Czar, we have the proverbial fox guarding the hen house. Monsanto Mike was a lead attorney, VP, and chief lobbyist for Monsanto. In the 1990s, he manipulated the FDA and the legal system to make sure genetically modified bovine growth hormones (rbGH) made it to market while financially destroying small dairy farmers who dared label their milk rbGH free.

Japan, Canada and some European countries have banned a few of Monsanto's products, while the USA remains an open market for GMOs(Genetically Modified Organisms). This is due largely to Monsanto Mike's efforts, which includes successfully lobbying against labeling requirements for GMOs.

An Uphill Battle

So the playing field for ensuring real food safety is to eliminate the scourge of GMOs as crop, animal, and human genetic contaminants are tilted in the biotechnology industry's favor. The threat of GMO crops contaminating non-GMO crops is very real. It's going to take a lot to level the playing field and tilt it the other way.

Jeffrey Smith, author of Seeds of Deception and director of The Institute for Responsible Technology, advocates consumer education and boycotting. He claims there have been positive results from this strategy with bovine growth hormone laced milks disappearing from major market shelves. Too bad most of the harassed small dairy farmers aren't getting some payback from Monsanto.

Then there is the Organic Consumers Association, which has created a "Millions Against Monsanto" page on their site. When it comes to education, there are two excellent free documentaries available on line through the sources section below.

So activists have taken up the fight and become insurgents against the food chain tyranny big business and big government (aka fascism) have foisted over everyone. The food chain is being endangered permanently and decisively. And with that - the future of most living creatures!

Non-GMO Activism Needs You

It's going to take education and mass boycotting to put a halt to this hijacking of the food chain. Writing mostly corrupt congress persons isn't going to do it. Neither will petitions to the White House, which Monsanto Mike Taylor inhabits with the person who selected him, Barack Obama.

Just in case you haven't taken the GMO issue seriously enough to want to do something about it, here's some information from independent scientific studies (sources below) that is merely the tip of GMOs' health harm iceberg. The basic premise of food genetic engineering was proven to be false by the Human Genome Project. But never mind the facts, the funding was there and the "research" continued.

Biotechnology scientists isolated a virus that demonstrated a tremendous capacity for promoting transgenics between species. This was thecauliflower mosaic virus, or CaMV 35S. It was selected as an agent to promote gene swapping for virtually all agricultural genetic engineering. The biotechnology scientists assumed that this virus would be denatured in the digestive system. Wrong!

It turns out this CaMV 35S transgenic promoting agent keeps on promoting in the digestive system. So what gets genetically manipulated in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract? The friendly bacteria that comprises anywhere from 60 to 80 percent of our immune system! This invasion is a direct assault on our immune systems.

From West Ontario Professor Emeritus Dr. Joseph Cummins: "It has been shown in the laboratory that genetic recombination will create highly virulent new viruses from such constructions. Certainly the widely used cauliflower mosaic virus [CaMV 35S] is a potentially dangerous gene."

Get involved before it's too late. Educate yourself, pass the word, buy organic and boycott GMOs.

Bacteria in the Gut are Shown to Reduce Obesity
Melanie Grimes, NaturalNews January 26, 2010 

(NaturalNews) New research has shown that the bacteria in our gut can be a cause of obesity. The human gut is filled with health-giving bacteria, which provide energy, nutrients and digestive aids. Maintaining proper gut flora is important to health. Research has now demonstrated that the amount and type of bacteria in your digestive tract can reduce obesity, and not just improve digestion.

A study conducted at the Washington University School of Medicine in Missouri investigated the digestive tract of fat and thin people. There are over 5,000 bacterial species in the human gut, and many which have not been identified. The three dominant family groups, or phyla, in the human gut are Fimicutes, Bacteriodetes and Actinobacteria. Previous research has shown that a proper ratio between the Fimicutes and the Bacteriodetes is necessary in order to maintain good health. As we age, this ratio changes and might be one of the causes of adult onset obesity.

New research discovered that obese people had higher amounts of Firmicutes. Lean people had higher amounts of Bacteriodetes. When obese people were put on fat reducing diets, the ratio of bacteria in their gut changed, corresponding to the same ratio of bacteria in the guts of the lean people; that is, the amount of Bacteriodetes increased as the obese subjects lost weight.

Aids to restore proper digestive flora can include adding probiotics to the diet. Fermented foods contain nutrients that aid this process as well. This includes foods such as dairy products of yogurt and kefir, as well as pickles, sauerkraut, miso, and chutney. Sourdough bread and other products that use a starter, such as kombuchu, contain healthy organisms that feed the gut flora.

Eating raw food and staying hydrated also help proper digestion. Some people have difficulty digesting raw foods when they are first introduced, and a digestive enzyme can help with this. Raw food contains many enzymes and nutrients that are not available from any other source.

Probiotics are known to also increase immunity and help prevent colds and flu so it is important to take probiotics daily, especially during flu season. If probiotic consumption causes gas or bloating, it is suggested that it be taken on an empty stomach. Sources such as yogurt or kefir can be eaten alone or with other foods.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028023_intestinal_bacteria_obesity.html

Stress hormone key to alcoholism found
Times of India, 26 January 2010

A specific stress hormone, the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), is key to the development and maintenance of alcohol dependence in animal models, say scientists. 

Chemically blocking the stress factor also blocked the signs and symptoms of addiction, the researchers found. The study, which suggests a potentially promising area for future drug development, will be published in the journal Biological Psychiatry. "I'm excited about this study," said Associate Professor Marisa Roberto, who led the research. "It represents an important step in understanding how the brain changes when it moves from a normal to an alcohol-dependent state." 

The new study not only confirms the central role of CRF in alcohol addiction using a variety of different methods, but also shows that in rats the hormone can be blocked on a long-term basis to alleviate the symptoms of alcohol dependence. CRF is a natural substance involved in the body's stress response. Originally found only in the area of the brain known as the hypothalamus, it has now been localized in other brain regions, including the pituitary, where it stimulates the secretion of corticotropin and other biologically active substances, and the amygdala, an area that has been implicated in the elevated anxiety, withdrawal, and excessive drinking associated with alcohol dependence. 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Stress-hormone-key-to-alcoholism-found/articleshow/5501409.cms

Obesity Ups Cancer Risk, and Here's How

ScienceDaily (Jan. 25, 2010) — Obesity comes with plenty of health risks, but there's one that's perhaps not so well known: an increased risk of developing cancer, and especially certain types of cancer like liver cancer. Now, a group of researchers reporting in the January 22nd issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, have confirmed in mice that obesity does indeed act as a "bona fide tumor promoter." They also have good evidence to explain how that happens.
"Doctors always worry about our weight, but the focus is often on cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, both of which can be managed pretty well with existing drugs," said Michael Karin of the University of California, San Diego. "However, we should also worry about elevated cancer risk. If we can reduce cancer deaths by as many as 90,000 per year, that's a lot of people -- a lot of lives."
Karin's team shows that liver cancer is fostered by the chronic inflammatory state that goes with obesity, and two well known inflammatory factors in particular. The findings suggest that anti-inflammatory drugs that have already been taken by millions of people for diseases including rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn's disease may also reduce the risk of cancer in those at high risk due to obesity and perhaps other factors as well, Karin said.
The epidemiological studies reported earlier showed that obese people have about a 1.5-fold increase in their risk of cancer overall. That may not necessarily sound like a lot, Karin said, but it equates to about 90,000 extra cancer deaths per year in the United States alone. When it comes to liver cancer, the study showed obese people have a 4.5-fold greater risk.
Given the apparent connection between obesity and liver cancer in particular, Karin's team decided to investigate in mice prone to develop hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The mice are typically given HCC either by exposure to a chemical carcinogen, known as DEN, when they are two weeks old, or by exposure to that same carcinogen at three months of age followed by the tumor-promoting chemical phenobarbitol.
In the new study, the researchers gave two-week-old mice DEN and then divided them into two groups -- one fed a normal, relatively low-fat food and the other fed on high-fat chow. "It was clear that the mice on the high fat diet developed more liver cancer," Karin said.
To further confirm the link, they gave DEN to two-week-old mice that were fed a normal diet but carried a gene that made them obesity-prone. Those mice, too, developed more liver cancers, evidence that it wasn't the high-fat diet that led to cancer, but rather something about the animals obese state.
But Karin said perhaps the biggest surprise came in studies of mice on a high-fat diet who were given DEN a little later in life, when they were three-months-old. Normally, mice on the standard diet given the chemical at that age really don't develop liver cancer unless DEN exposure is followed up with phenobarbitol, Karin explained. But the obese mice developed the disease without that extra push.
"We expected to see more cancer in our first experiments, but I was stunned to see here that only the mice who were obese developed the cancer," Karin said. "Obesity appears to be as strong as phenobarbitol; we can conclude, at least in mice, that obesity is a real tumor promoter."
His team was able to trace the source of obesity's tumor-promoting effect to a rise in two inflammatory factors known as IL-6 and TNF. Obese mice lacking either the TNF receptor or IL-6 don't show the same rise in liver cancer.
Those treatments also led the mice to accumulate less fat in their livers, he said. "They still get fat, but the distribution of the fat is different," he said. "The fat goes to other places, but not to the liver."
Karin suggests that clinical studies of people who are already taking anti-TNF drugs should be done, to find out if their livers are less fatty and cancer-free.

Nutrient cocktail shows promise for Alzheimer’s disease
Life Extensions, January 21, 2010
In the latest issue of the journal Alzheimer's and Dementia, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cecil H. Green Distinguished Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences Richard Wurtman, MD and his colleagues report that a combination of the vitamin choline, the omega-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and uridine, all of which are present in breast milk, improves the memory of men and women with early Alzheimer’s disease. Dr Wurtman believes that the nutrients work by stimulating the growth of connections between neurons that are reduced in Alzheimer’s disease.
Earlier research conducted by Dr Wurtman revealed that choline, DHA and uridine increase the number of dendritic spines that connect neurons to form synapses. "If you can increase the number of synapses by enhancing their production, you might to some extent avoid that loss of cognitive ability," he explained.
In a double-blinded trial, 225 Alzheimer’s disease patients were randomized to receive a daily cocktail of DHA, choline and uridine plus B vitamins, phospholipids and antioxidants, or a placebo beverage for 12 weeks. At the trial’s conclusion, 40 percent of the patients who received the nutrient cocktail experienced significant improvements in a delayed verbal recall test compared to 24 percent of those who received the placebo. Patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease showed the greatest improvement. Other Alzheimer’s disease assessments, such as those involving orientation and movement/spatial memory, remained unchanged; however, Dr Wurtman noted that early Alzheimer’s disease patients mainly show cognitive changes.
The nutrient combination is additionally being tested in three ongoing trials in Europe and the US. The researchers believe that the nutrients may be of value to individuals challenged by other disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease. "There are a lot of diseases associated with synapse deficiency," Dr Wurtman noted.
http://www.lef.org/whatshot/2010_01.htm#Nutrient-cocktail-shows-promise-for-Alzheimers-disease

Exercise, green tea may lessen breast cancer blues
Last Updated: 2010-01-22 11:55:16 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Depression is a major health issue for breast cancer survivors, but new research hints that regular exercise and drinking green tea may help.
Exercising regularly and drinking green tea "may play an important role in the prevention of depression among breast cancer survivors," report Dr. Xiao Ou Shu, at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, in Nashville, Tennessee, and colleagues.
They examined depression-related factors in 1,399 Chinese women who were 54 years old on average and treated for breast cancer in Shanghai, China between April 2002 and December 2006. Six months after their diagnosis, the researchers assessed the women's physical activity levels; food, tea, and alcohol consumption; cigarette smoking; and use of herbal medicines and supplements.
In depression evaluations at 18-months post-diagnosis, the investigators noted distinct benefits among the women who reported some sort of exercise (62 percent of the total). At this time, exercisers were about 20 percent less likely to be either mildly or clinically depressed, the researchers report in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
They noted just 84 cases of mild or clinical depression among 437 vigorous exercisers (19.2 percent), but 161 cases among the 528 non-exercisers (30.5 percent).
Plus, compared with non-exercising women, the likelihood of depression was 28 percent lower among women who exercised more than 2 hours a week and 42 percent lower among those who increased their post-diagnosis exercise time.
Tea drinking also seemed to lessen depression. Compared with the 1,216 women who did not drink tea, among the 183 women who did, depression risk was about 36 percent lower. The vast majority of the tea drinkers -- 90 percent -- drank green tea.
The exercise and tea-drinking benefits remained when Shu's group allowed for multiple other risk factors for depression.
No other factors seemed to alter depression risk.
Although exercise and drinking green tea seemed to lower depression in this group of Chinese women, breast cancer survivors "should not overdose themselves," Shu cautioned in an email to Reuters Health.
He noted that excessive exercise and tea drinking may not have the same benefit on mood. Also, further investigations are necessary to clarify these findings since women in other countries, who may undergo different breast cancer treatment regimens, may react differently.
SOURCE: Journal of Clinical Oncology, online January 4, 2010
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2010/01/22/eline/links/20100122elin002.html

Salt reduction could save 92,000 U.S. lives a year
Last Updated: 2010-01-21 10:33:07 -0400 (Reuters Health)
BOSTON (Reuters Life!) - Shaving 3 grams off the daily salt intake of Americans could prevent up to 66,000 strokes, 99,000 heart attacks and 92,000 deaths in the United States, while saving $24 billion in health costs per year, researchers reported on Wednesday.
The benefit to the U.S. population would be comparable to cutting smoking by 50 percent, significantly lowering obesity rates and giving cholesterol drugs to virtually everyone to prevent heart attacks, said Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo of the University of California, San Francisco and colleagues.
Such a goal, they said, is readily attainable.
Salt, which contributes to high blood pressure and heart disease, is widely overused in the United States, with 75 to 80 percent coming from processed food. Men typically consume 10.4 grams per day. For women, the average is 7.3 grams. Its use is rising.
A reduction of 1 gram would prevent 11,000 to 23,000 strokes, 18,000 to 35,000 heart attacks and 15,000 to 32,000 deaths from any cause, the researchers reported in New England Journal of Medicine.
Women would benefit the most.
"Even if the federal government were to bear the entire cost of a regulatory program designed to reduce salt consumption, the government would still be expected to realize cost savings for Medicare, saving $6 to $12 in health expenditures for each dollar spent on the regulatory program," the researchers wrote.
In a commentary, Dr. Lawrence Appel and Cheryl Anderson of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore said the new study may be underestimating the benefits.
They said it did not take into account how it would help children or the fact that lower salt intake may reduce the risk of stomach cancer, kidney disease, congestive heart failure and osteoporosis.
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2010/01/21/eline/links/20100121elin006.html

Pomegranate oil-seaweed mix may improve liver health and waist size

Nutraingredients.com, 25-Jan-2010

A blend of pomegranate oil and brown seaweed extract may produce weight loss of about five kilos, as well as improvements in liver health, says new study.
The new ingredient, marketed under the brand name Xanthigen, noted improvements in women with healthy livers and those suffering from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), according to findings of a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled study with obese premenopausal women.
NAFLD, almost unknown over two decades ago, is the most common liver disease in the US. Affecting over 40 million adults in the US alone, its prevalence is expected to grow worldwide as nations become increasingly obese.
The ingredient is a patent-pending, synergistic composition of pomegranate oilstandardized for punicic acid and brown seaweed extract standardized for fucoxanthin.
“The results of Xanthigen-600/2.4 mg trial indicate that the formula (300 mg PSO plus 300 mg brown seaweed extract containing 2.4 mg fucoxanthin) and its individual components have clinically relevant anti-obesity properties in reducing the body weight, body fat and liver fat content in non-diabetic obese female volunteers,” wrote the researchers, led by Dr Musa Abidov from the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences.
“Xanthigen-600/2.4 mg was particularly effective in reducing liver fat content in participants diagnosed with NAFLD.”
The findings are published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism.
Market potential
With the World Health Organization estimating that by 2015, there will be more than 1.5 billion overweight consumers, incurring health costs beyond $117 billion per year in the US alone, the opportunities for a scientifically-substantiated weight management food product are impressive.
The market for food, beverage and supplement weight management products is already valued at $3.64bn (2009 figures) in the US, according to Euromonitor. In Western Europe, the market was worth $1.3bn in 2009.
Study details
Russian scientists, in collaboration with the late Dr Zakir Ramazanov, recruited 151 obese, non-diabetic volunteers. Three-quarters of the women had NAFLD, while the others had normal liver function. Participants from both groups were randomly assigned to receive either placebo or a daily dose of 600mg of Xanthigen for 16 weeks. Diets were restricted to 1800 kcal daily, comprised of 50 per cent carbohydrates, 30 per cent protein, and 20 per cent fat.
Results showed that body weight was significantly reduced by an average of 5.5 kg in people in the NAFLD group and 4.9 kg in the normal liver function group. Women in the placebo group lost an average of 1.4 kilos. In addition, women with NAFLD experienced improvements in waist circumference, body and liver fat content, liver enzymes, and serum triglycerides.
A second study with women from the NAFLD group only and difference doses of the ingredient, found that daily doses of 400mg may significantly increased resting energy expenditure, compared to placebo.
“To the best of our knowledge, this trial is the first clinical evidence reporting the anti-obesity effect of Xanthigen, with special relevance to obese patients with NAFLD and elevated indices of chronic inflammation,” wrote the researchers.
“Xanthigen may reduce body weight and body fat in part due to the stimulation of resting energy expenditure, but also due to the broad anti-inflammatory and metabolism normalizing actions. This study suggests that pomegranate oil may aid in promoting the resting energy expenditure -stimulating action of fucoxanthin,” they concluded.
The ingredient is owned by Spain’s Polifenoles Naturales SL (Polinat) and distributed exclusively in the US by PL Thomas.
Source: Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism  Volume 12, Pages 72-81 “The effects of Xanthigen in the weight management of obese premenopausal women with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and normal liver fat” Authors: M. Abidov, Z. Ramazanov, R. Seifulla; S. Grachev
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Pomegranate-oil-seaweed-mix-may-improve-liver-health-and-waist-size

Green tea antioxidants more bioavailable than thought?

Nutraingredients.com, 22-Jan-2010

The bioavailability of antioxidant catechins from green tea may be more than previously thought, says a new study from Italy.
By taking into account metabolites called colonic ring fission metabolites thebioavailability of green tea flavan-3-ol and related compounds is almost 40 per cent, a lot higher than the 4 per cent reported earlier, according to findings published in Nutrition.
“It must be noted that the great majority of the excreted flavan-3-ol catabolites are microbial ring fission valerolactones, raising the bioavailability figure to almost 40 per cent, and that it would be much more feasible for these compounds to be bioactive, based on their high concentration in biological fluids,” wrote the researchers, led by Furio Brighenti from the Department of Public Health at the University of Parma.
“Unfortunately, the literature lacks reports on their biological effects and the fact that they are present in conjugated forms makes even more difficult their investigation as putative protective agents,” they added.
The news may well be welcomed by the burgeoning tea extract market, already valued at a around $44m (€29.7m), according to recent report from Frost & Sullivan. The market is expected to grow by more than 13 per cent over the next seven years.
The F&S analysts state that science is the reason for the ingredient's growing popularity, and that it is generally accepted that green tea has a beneficial role in reducing Alzheimer's, certain cancers, cardiovascular and oral health.
Study details
By combining high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with tandem mass spectrometry (MS), the researchers measured all the known and some unknown metabolites of green tea following ingestion of a ready-to-drink green tea containing about 400 micromoles of flavan-3-ols by 20 healthy humans.
Thirty-nine compounds were identified, with epigallocatechin-3-gallate the only un-metabolized compound found in the blood, and in the highest amounts compared with epigallocatechin and epicatechin conjugates, they said.
The other compounds were metabolized by bacteria in the colon. “It is interesting to notice the great variability in urinary excretion of colonic metabolites among participants, probably related to differences in their own colonic microflora,” they said.
“This study demonstrates that green tea catechins are more bioavailable than previously observed when colonic ring fission metabolites are taken into consideration,” wrote the researchers.
“Regular consumption of ready-to-drink green tea containing flavan-3-ols allows a non-marginal exposure of the human body to these catabolites, somehow justifying the numerous beneficial actions described as linked to green tea intake,” they concluded.
Source: Nutrition “Bioavailability and catabolism of green tea flavan-3-ols in humans”
Authors: D. Del Rio, L. Calani, C. Cordero, S. Salvatore, N. Pellegrini, F. Brighenti
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Green-tea-antioxidants-more-bioavailable-than-thought

Vitamin D may cut colorectal cancer risk by 40 per cent

Nutraingredients.com, 22-Jan-2010

Increased blood levels of vitamin D may reduce the risk of colorectal cancer by as much as 40 per cent, says a study with people from 10 European countries.
The study, published in the British Medical Journal, is said to be the largest of its kind to date and adds to the science supporting the apparent health benefits from increased vitamin D. Indeed, a meta-analysis published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine in 2007 reported that higher blood levels ofvitamin D were associated with a lower risk of colon cancer.
The link between vitamin D intake and protection from cancer dates from the 1940s when Frank Apperly demonstrated a link between latitude and deaths from cancer, and suggested that sunlight gave "a relative cancer immunity".
“However, before any public health recommendations can be made for vitamin D supplementation, new randomised trials are needed to test the hypothesis that increases in circulating 25-(OH)D concentration are effective in reducingcolorectal cancer risk without inducing serious adverse events,” wrote the researchers behind the new study, from six European countries.
Study details
Using data from over half a million participants of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer Study (EPIC), the researchers analysed dietary and lifestyle information obtained from questionnaires, and collected blood samples.
During the course of the study, 1,248 cases of colorectal cancer were diagnosed and matched with 1,248 healthy controls.
Colorectal cancer accounts for nine per cent of new cancer cases every year worldwide. The highest incidence rates are in the developed world, while Asia and Africa have the lowest incidence rates.
It remains one of the most curable cancers if diagnosis is made early.
The EPIC data showed that blood levels of vitamin D below a mid-level of 50 to 75 nanomoles per litre were associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, while blood levels above this were not associated with any additional benefits, said the researchers.
The association was significantly stronger for colon cancer than rectal cancer, added the researchers.
“Additionally, higher consumption of dietary calcium, but not dietary vitamin D, was found to be associated with a reduced risk of colorectal cancer,” they report.
Plausible mechanism(s)?
Commenting on the potential protective action of vitamin D with respect to colorectal carcinogenesis, the EPIC scientists noted that both vitamin and mineral may be involved. “The main proposed colorectal cancer protective mechanisms of calcium action (binding bile acids and fatty acids) could pertain largely to its concentration in the colorectal milieu rather than to a direct vitamin D-mediated effect,” they said.
Controversy
The potential benefits for the vitamin, alone or in combination with calcium, for colorectal health are somewhat controversial, with some studies reporting benefits while others report null results.
Indeed, back in 2006 results from the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) stated that daily supplements of vitamin D and calcium 'had no effect' on the risk of colorectal cancer. The results were questioned however and independent cancer experts said at the time that the claims should be interpreted in the light of the complexities of the study.
Michele Forman and Bernard Levin from the MD Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas, noted that the WHI trial had three overlapping components, with 69 per cent of the women enrolled on the Dietary Modification trial, 54 per cent enrolled on the Hormone Therapy trial, and 14 per cent enrolled on both.
"The enrolment in three overlapping trials maximised the participation and size of the WHI trial but created a complex approach with potential confounders for biological interpretation," said Forman and Levin.
Source: British Medical Journal “Association between pre-diagnostic circulating vitamin D concentration and risk of colorectal cancer in European populations:a nested case-control study”  M. Jenab, H.B. Bueno-de-Mesquita, P. Ferrari, F.J.B. van Duijnhoven, et al.
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Vitamin-D-may-cut-colorectal-cancer-risk-by-40-per-cent

New evidence shows selenium and omega-3s prevent colon cancer
S. L. Baker, NaturalNews.com  January 25, 2010 

(NaturalNews) When scientists gathered in Houston recently for the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Conference, they heard groundbreaking evidence about how colon cancer can be prevented. The new data wasn't about drugs or surgery, either. Instead, two separate research groups concluded natural substances appear to protect from often deadly colon malignancies.

Colon cancer, which the American Cancer Society estimates is diagnosed in over 108,000 Americans each year, is intricately linked to adenomas, also called polyps. These lesions grow in the large bowel and start off as benign. However, they can turn into cancerous tumors and 70 to 80% of all cancers of the colon (the longest part of the large intestine) and rectum result from adenomas-turned-malignant. 

So, in hopes of preventing future cancerous growths, polyps found during colonoscopies are snipped off and biopsied. Unfortunately though, pre-cancerous polyps often return. But scientists at the National Institute for Cancer Research in Genoa, Italy, conducted a long term study that shows the risk of pre-cancerous polyps (dubbed colorectal metachronous adenomas) coming back after they've been removed can be greatly reduced. The key? Taking specific antioxidants, including a selenium-based compound.

"Our study is the first intervention trial specifically designed to evaluate the efficacy of the selenium-based antioxidant compound on the risk of developing metachronous adenomas," said Luigina Bonelli, M.D., head of the unit of secondary prevention and screening at the National Institute for Cancer Research, in a statement to the media.
40% reduced risk
The research team studied volunteers between the ages of 25 and 75 who had already had one or more colorectal adenomas removed. None of the participants were diagnosed with any additional colorectal disease, cancer or other life-threatening illness and none were taking vitamins or mineral supplements when the study began. The scientists randomly divided the 411 participants into two groups: those in one group received an inactive placebo and those in the second group took a daily antioxidant supplement containing a selenium compound (selenomethionnine 200 ug), zinc 30 mg, vitamin A 6,000 IU, vitamin C 180 mg and vitamin E 30 mg. 

"Our results indicated that individuals who consumed antioxidants had a 40% reduction in the incidence of metachronous adenomas of the large bowel," Bonelli said. "It is noteworthy that the benefit observed after the conclusion of the trial persisted through 13 years of follow up." 
Omega-3s help prevent colorectal cancer
Another study just released at the Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Conference -- this one from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina -- found that omega-3 fatty acids, which are primarily found in cold water fish such as salmon, may be able to prevent colorectal cancer.

The scientists recruited 1,509 Caucasian participants (716 cancer cases and 787 controls) and 369 African-American participants (213 cancer cases and 156 controls). A validated food questionnaire was used to collect information on the frequency and amount of foods typically consumed by the research subjects in the past 12 months. Those who ate more long-chain omega-3 fatty acids had a significantly reduced risk of large bowel cancer.In fact, the highest intake was linked to an almost 40% decreased cancer risk. Unfortunately, the greatly reduced risk was only seen in white research subjects and the scientists are trying to figure out what might account for the racial disparity.

"Experimental data have shown benefits of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids in colorectal carcinogenesis, ranging from reduced tumor growth, suppression of angiogenesis and inhibition of metastasis," research leader Sangmi Kim, Ph.D., said in a statement to the press. "Our finding of inverse association between dietary intakes of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and distal large bowel cancer in white participants adds additional support to the hypothesis." 

These new studies linking natural substances to colon cancer prevention are part of a growing body of evidence indicating dietary measures can fight this kind of cancer successfully. For example, as NaturalNews has previously reported, the disease is primarily linked to the typical Western diet (http://www.naturalnews.com/025974_c...), so avoiding processed food and trans fats (http://www.naturalnews.com/025880_t...) can go far to prevent it. What's more, blueberries have been shown to slash the risk of colon cancer by 57% (http://www.naturalnews.com/021951_b...) andapples contain natural phytochemicals that have a protective effect against colon cancer (http://www.naturalnews.com/023136_c...), too.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028021_colorectal_cancer_selenium.html

Chlorella Superfood Fights Body Fat and Diabetes
David Gutierrez, NaturalNews.com  January 25, 2010 

(NaturalNews) A superfood known as chlorella has caught on like wildfire in the United Kingdom, and studies continue to emerge linking the algae to improvement in symptoms of people with everything from diabetes and high blood pressure to digestive or immune problems.

Chlorella is a single-celled algae that naturally occurs in freshwater rivers and ponds in East Asia, tinting those bodies of water green. It is gathered from these natural sources, dried, crushed into a powder, and then packed into tablet form for sale as a dietary supplement. It has twice the protein density of spinach, 38 times that of soy beans and 55 times that of rice, providing nine essential amino acids along with a number of vitamins and minerals.

The algae has shown effectiveness at improving the symptoms of metabolic syndrome -- a collection of symptoms linked with cardiovascular disease and diabetes, including high fasting blood sugar, high blood pressure and cholesterol, and central obesity. Studies have found chlorella supplements to reduce blood pressure in 50 percent of hypertension patients, as well as significantly reduce body fat, blood cholesterol and blood sugar levels.

"It seems that chlorella turns on the genes that control the way insulin is normally used by the cells in the body," said researcher Randall Merchant of Virginia Commonwealth University. "This research shows that chlorella could in theory help correct the problems of metabolic syndrome. It is not a magic bullet, but taking it is one other preventive thing you can do, like exercise or watching your diet."

Other studies have shown that chlorella encourages the growth of "good bacteria," absorbs toxins from the intestines, improves digestion, and eases the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis and fibromyalgia. Chlorella supporters claim that it also increases energy levels and fights depression.

After studies showed that chlorella boosts the immune system, preventing secondary infections in people with brain tumors, some British doctors have started using it to complement cancer treatments.

Because chlorella is high in vitamin K1, it can interfere with the effects of blood thinning medications.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028017_chlorella_diabetes.html

Coming Soon to a (Toxic) Farm Near You: Monsanto's Genetically Modified Wheat
E. Huff, NaturalNews.com  January 24, 2010 

(NaturalNews) Monsanto, the multinational agriculture giant most known for its propagation of genetically-modified (GM) crops, has decided to resurrect its pursuit of GM wheat. Abandoned in 2004 due to opposition from American growers, merchants, and consumers, Monsanto's GM wheat program is making a comeback. 

Apparently many American wheat growers have since changed their mind about the issue. A survey conducted back in February revealed that more than 75 percent of wheat farmers are now interested in growing GM wheat. Citing concerns about pestilence and disease, farmers are reevaluating GM wheat based on claims by Monsanto that GM wheat will fare better than conventional in resisting bugs, disease, drought and frost.

Many nations around the world, including industrialized nations in Asia and Europe, have wholly rejected GM crops and foods that are made with them. Since 45 percent of the U.S. wheat crop is exported to Europe and Japan alone, the decision to allow GM wheat to be grown in the States will have a huge negative impact on the wheat business. 

Hinged upon the recent food crisis in 2008 that caused the price of wheat to more than triple, Monsanto's endeavors to capitalize on wheat by altering it genetically could not have been timed more precisely. Both China and Australia have been researching and running trials on Monsanto's GM wheat for years and North America looks to be next if the AgriGiant has its way.

Earlier this year, Monsanto purchased Montana-based WestBred, a company that specializes in germplasm wheat breeding. This move indicates that the corporation intends to move forward with its plan to bring GM wheat to North America.

Concerns about the negative effects of GM crops, which include a variety of illnesses and digestive tract problems when consumed, continue to warrant opposition to their use. Conventional crop fields have also been shown to become contaminated with GM seed through pollination and cross-contamination. 

If the public hopes to prevent wheat from taking the same GM course that corn and soy have, it is going to have to express loud and clear opposition to its introduction.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028016_GM_foods_Monsanto.html

War on Cancer is a Dismal Failure
Allison Biggar, NaturalNews.com  January 24, 2010 

(NaturalNews) Almost four decades ago, Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act of 1971 and the "war on cancer" began- or so the mainstream media would like us to think. The so-called war on cancer is not only a dismal failure but has also become an outright lie perpetuated by big business. Not only are more people dying of cancer than ever before but more people are getting cancer at earlier ages than ever before.

According to Newsweek writer Sharon Begley, "Cancer is on track to kill 565,650 people in the United States this year - more than 1,500 a day, equivalent to three jumbo jets crashing and killing everyone aboard 365 days a year."

However, finding the cure for cancer might just put the pharmaceutical industry out of business and would certainly end the careers of countlessdoctors and so called "researchers." Therefore it is in the best interest of these and related institutions to suppress all knowledge of real, provencancer cures that do exist and have existed for thousands of years.

Since no one can patent a natural cure and make money off of it, the cures are suppressed and even attacked by big companies and the media. Not only does the "cure" for cancer exist, but it has existed for thousands of years. The "cure" is not a magical pill or a chemical concocted in a lab, but purely a detoxification program that prevents cancer from surviving and thus cures it.

Your body is designed to heal itself. Think about when you get a cut. In a few days your body has healed your wound and the cut disappears. It is the same with disease. When you prevent your body from being able to heal- by flooding it with toxic substances such as unhealthy food, pharmaceutical drugs, chemotherapy and more- your body is unable to fight off the overload of toxins, and therefore you become sicker and sicker. However, when you feed your body what it needs such as pure, raw, alkalizing foods and juices then it is able to repair itself of any disease.

Billions of dollars are spent on cancer research- the research of concocting chemicals in pharmaceutical labs to sell more drugs to innocent and desperate patients who so badly want to believe that this drug is their magical cure. According to Cancer researcher Ty Bollinger, chemotherapy has a 97 percent fatality rate. "The cancer 'box' is largely the creation of multinational pharmaceutical companies attempting to peddle their poisons in an effort to increase shareholder profits," says Bollinger. "Sadly, these profits are oftentimes generated at the expense of the dying cancer patient."

"Alternative medicine" is not just a term coined by hippies and mystics but is biological and scientific fact. Studies abound on the effectiveness of natural cures; however unfortunately for us, the information is suppressed and manipulated in order to keep us in the dark so that we are life-long customers of Big Pharma's endless pharmacy of lies.

There are countless accounts of cancer patients healing themselves naturally. One needs only to visit the Gerson Institute in San Diego or the American Botanical Pharmacy in Marina Del Rey to find doctors who are curing patients every day of what western doctors call "incurable disease."

Instead of putting our time and energy into these ineffective efforts we should put our money into education of prevention methods and alternative treatments that treat the cause of the cancer, not just the symptom. There are no incurable diseases and the sooner we realize this fact, the sooner we can all be on a path to healing and well-being.
http://www.naturalnews.com/028015_war_on_cancer_myths.html

CALL FOR IMMEDIATE ARREST OF 5 SUPREME COURT JUSTICES FOR TREASON

January 22, 2010 by Gordon Duff · Veterans Today

THE FIVE THAT STAND AGAINST ALL AMERICANS, THE “MAFIA” JUDGES

By Gordon Duff STAFF WRITER/Senior Editor

Five members of the Supreme Court declared that a “corporation” is a person, not a “regular person” but one above all natural laws, subject to no God, no moral code but one with unlimited power over our lives, a power awarded by judges who seem themselves as grand inquisitors in an  meant to hunt down all hertics who fail to serve their god, the god of money.
Their ruling has made it legal for foreign controlled corporations to flush unlimited money into our bloated political system to further corrupt something none of us trust and most of us fear.  The “corporation/person” that the 5 judges, the “neocon” purists, have turned the United States over to isn’t even American.  Our corporations, especially since our economic meltdown are owned by China, Russia and the oil sheiks along with a few foreign banks.  They don’t vote, pay taxes, fight in wars, need dental care, breathe air, drive cars or send children to school.  Anyone who thinks these things are people is insane.  Anyone who would sell our government to them is a criminal and belongs in prison.  There is nothing in the Constitution that makes this “gang of five” bribe sucking clowns above the law.  There is nothing in the Constitution that even mentions corporations much less gives them status equal to or greater than the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches of government. 
The Supreme Court of the United States has no right to breathe human life into investment groups owned by terrorist sympathizers, foreign arms dealers or groups working for the downfall of the United States and everything we believe in, but 5 “justices” have done just that.  We now have a new government above our government, above our people, one above any law.   Five judges have created institutionalized gangsterism as the new form of government for the United States.
No American soldier can ever go to war fighting for a Chinese hedge fund, a German bank or a Saudi Arabian fertilizer company.  Will our new debates in Congress be between members representing the opium warlords against the Columbian cartels?  Their cash, which long ago has infiltrated one major corporation or bank after another is now heading for your local representative.   How important do you think secure borders for America are for these new policial “influencers?”  
For years we complained about AIPAC, the Sierra Club, the NRA, trial lawyers, trade unions, NAM (National Association of Manufacturers) and the churches that got involved in politics.  Behind all of these were people, American citizens, and, on some occasions, Americans who fought for their country, raised kids here and were invested in the survival of America although they didn’t always act that way.  This was an American problem.  Now we aren’t even sure we have an America anymore.
Anyone who believes that a massive flood of corporate money into politics won’t throw control of both houses of Congress into the hands of the wealthy nations that are also our primary strategic enemies, you know the ones, the ones loaded with oil cash, the ones with 10 cent an hour labor and legal systems that  shoot first and ask questions later.  They just were told they can buy the United States, not just our government, but our military, and the lives of our soldiers.  They can now make our laws, raise our taxes, decide on our civil rights, where we can live, if we can own guns, how late we stay up, where and what we drive and, eventually, how we think.  The Supreme Court has given foreign owned corporations the eventual power to silence us all.
When a corporation commits a crime, nobody goes to jail.  When wars come, they don’t fight, they simply rake in cash.  When children are poisoned or workers are killed, they seldom even pay a fine.  However, when they want something, billions in tax money for “bail outs” or fat contracts or special laws, they have always gotten it.  It  has been a battle to control corporations for 140 years.  Sometimes the American people have lost, sometimes they have won.  Our greatest presidents are the ones who reined in corporate power and kept the influence of money over humanity in check.  Think of Theordore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower and John Kennedy. 
Without them we would be living in work camps, stuck at machines all day, our children at our sides.  We would be paid in beans and salt pork, dying at 40 in filth like people around the world who live in countries controlled by corporations.
Based on the justices that we want prosecuted being Reagan/Bush “conservatives” you would think this is a liberal/conservative issue.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Nothing less “conservative” has ever been done by a branch of our government.  There is nothing “conservative” about our Supreme Court going insane and abandoning our Constitution and making medical decisions, not to give life to a fetus, but to a bank account. 
This is nothing but an extremely unAmerican and unpatriotic group of thieves believing that Americans had given up so many of their civil liberties in silence during the Global War on Terror scam that opening the “Pandora’s Box” of class conflict could now be done with nobody saying a word.  Their “corporate person” is now a Baron or Duke, the great landlords of the medieval period.  Americans are now destined for serfdom.  Their political and economic theories, what are they?  Is it conservatism or feudalism? 
We are already burdened with a representative government that has tied itself to the money spigot because of the incredible cost of media exposure in campaigns.  People running for office in ancient Rome would purchase thousands of animals for slaughter in the arena.  Mass executions were staged as media events for political campaigns.  In fact, the arenas in every Roman city were built for that purpose, today replaced by television and the internet.  We thought we had changed since that time.  We were wrong.
The framers of the Constitution created the Supreme Court, the Electoral College and originally had Senators appointed, not elected, to protect the wealthy from having their money and land seized by the masses who would otherwise have controlled the government.  This was the 1780s.  The only “democracy” we knew about was ancient Athens, where the majority of the people living there were slaves.    27 Amendments later, including the Bill of Rights, we have worked to define justice and decency.  Generations have fought and died to keep life in our imperfect system from 1780.  Who would have thought that 5 people could destroy it all?
Political debate in America is sometimes extreme, often bordering on violence.  Feelings are high.  How many times have you heard people threaten to leave the country because “their America” no longer exists.  We know that few really mean it.  When faced with a real threat, no people on earth are to be feared like Americans.  When help is needed, no people on earth are to be trusted and relied on like Americans.  This is the pride we have in our country and ourselves.  We never agree on anything.  We aren’t supposed to, we are Americans.
Everything we built has been based on a balance, race, religion, ethnicity, social standing, political beliefs, regional interests, all striving and compromising to build something we are all secretly very proud of, something all of us are willing to fight for and many are.  Americans all agree on one thing, that our government in Washington is out of control and has been for some time.  We all have different ideas on this but agree on the fact itself.  We wonder where the politicians come from, men too often “less great” than those of the past, in fact, less great than average.  Decisions are continually made that most find puzzling and, in fact, are driven by a rotten underbelly of corruption and self interest.
Now, 5 members of the Supreme Court, people none of us voted for, a group that is answerable to no authority and, seemingly, no law or moral code, a group famous for immoderation, poor judgement and low personal integrity has, either through blindness, avarice or insanity clearly done something so malicious, so unjust and so utterly inconsistent with our Constitution that they, themselves, have become an “enemy of the people.”
What is their power?  What they have done is not within the scope of the authority given through the Constitution.  Their acts are outside the law, their acts are those of a conspiracy, their acts are meant to diminish our freedoms, our sacred institutions and even endanger our lives.  Typically, such acts are called crimes and those who commit them are criminals.
What could drive judges, albeit judges appointed with little thought as part of a cheap political ploy, to abandon any American consitutency?  Corporations have no religion.  They care nothing for the unborn.  They have no allegiance to a flag, a family or any moral ethic.  They serve no person, owe no loyalty other that to stockholders, shadowy groups of Russian oligarchs, Chinese banks, corrupt dictators grown fat on the spoils of their people or the international consortiums of bond and currency speculators who have, for decades, abandoned any economic law to build the etherial “house of cards” we call the “world economy.”
The control of the American electoral process has been given to them.  No serving politican can survive now standing against them.  Years ago “they” bought our newspapers and our television networks.  Fact and truth became whatever they wanted us to believe.  “They” gained control of what many thought and what almost all of us see and hear.  That wasn’t enough.  They wanted it all.  As their control has grown, so has terrorism, continual war, economic poverty for millions Americans and insensitivity to justice and humanity.  Who would expect anything else from a corporation with no blood, no heart and no face?
The Founding Fathers led America on the path to freedom and eventual democracy.  The Federalists limited the ability of an impetuous electorate to seize power and “reform” America into chaos and anarchy.  This system of government was predicated on the belief that love of country would always burn brightly in America and with progress, freedom and bounty was the ineviable reward of our industry.  It is only now too obvious that so much has happened that was unforseen.  It is not a denial of our traditions to correct wrongs when we find them.  This was how America was created.  We are drowning in wrongs, we all finally agree on this.
The time is now.  Party politics have failed.  Political theories are little more than empty rhetoric meant to mislead and misinform.  State has become church and church has become state.  State is less just and church less godly.  All we have left is “we, the People.”  This is how we began and it is now all we have to move forward.  It is time for the states to call for a Constitutional Convention to establish, not just a Republic, but a Democracy, by and for the people, the American people, rich and poor, a nation loyal to itself, not tied to corporations, a vast military industrial complex or endless foreign alliances.
If it is to be a genuinely conservative nation, one with individual freedoms, a small government, fewer taxes and more opportunity, a nation as intended, then we will all have to live with it.  The bloated corpse we are creating in Washington is emitting a stench we can no longer abide.  We will be saying goodbye to our Supreme Court, our seniority system in Congress and our political machines pretending to be “parties”  and hello to paper ballots, a free press, term limits and the ability to yank a scoundrel out of office when we catch one.

Widespread antibiotic use in 1960s sparked MRSA

Early use of antibiotics in the 1960s may have given birth to one of the most common strains of MRSA, a study has found.

The Telegraph UK  22 Jan 2010

A new genetic method of tracking infection suggests that the superbug emerged five decades ago in Europe, just as antibiotics were being widely introduced for the first time.
Scientists used DNA-mapping technology to compare the genetic relatedness of bugs isolated from individual patients.

By identifying letter changes springing up in the bacteria's genetic code, they were able to track MRSA transmission between continents and from patient-to-patient within a single hospital.
The technique, pioneered by scientists at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Hinxton, Cambridgeshire, is expected to help improve infection control strategies aimed at keeping superbugs at bay.
The scientists focused on 63 samples of MRSA - methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus - from a particular lineage of the bacterium called ST239.
The strain accounts for a large proportion of MRSA outbreaks in hospitals around the world.
Two thirds of the samples came from hospitals in North and South America, Europe, Australia and Asia collected over a period of more than 20 years between 1982 and 2003.
The remainder came from patients at a single hospital in Thailand over a period of seven months.
Analysis of the samples yielded a "family tree" showing how the strain had spread around the world and branched into clusters of sub-strains.
The European samples were concentrated around the base of the evolutionary tree. Working backwards, the scientists established that the strain probably emerged in Europe in the 1960s.
The finding lends support to the theory that the introduction of widespread antibiotic use in the 1960s may have spawned MRSA.
Natural selection would have favoured resistant strains that could survive the antibiotic onslaught.
Another discovery was that one MRSA outbreak in a London hospital intensive care unit was probably due to a bacterial strain imported from south-east Asia - possibly brought in by a single infected patient.
The research is published in the journal Science.
Dr Stephen Bentley, one of the Sanger Institute scientists, said: "Telling the difference between isolates within one species is fundamentally important in the development of public health strategies. It allows researchers and public health officials to see how infections are spread - from person-to-person, from hospital-to-hospital, from country-to-country."
The success of the new technique relies on comparing whole genomes - or blueprints of the genetic code - rather than small sections of DNA.
It can equally be applied to other kinds of bacteria that present a public health menace, such as Clostridium difficile.
Dr Sharon Peacock, co-author from Cambridge University, said: "This new method has allowed us to gain insights into fundamental processes of evolution in S. aureus, one of the most important bacterial pathogens in healthcare in the world.
"We are now able to discriminate between one strain and another, even where they are very closely related. Our research should inform global surveillance strategies to track the spread of MRSA.
"The implications for public health are clear: this technology represents the potential to trace transmission pathways of MRSA more definitively so that interventions or treatments can be targeted with precision and according to need."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/7045108/Widespread-antibiotic-use-in-1960s-sparked-MRSA.html

Human Running Speeds of 35 to 40 Mph May Be Biologically Possible
ScienceDaily (Jan. 22, 2010) — Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt's record-setting performances have unleashed a wave of interest in the ultimate limits to human running speed. A new study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology offers intriguing insights into the biology and perhaps even the future of human running speed.
The newly published evidence identifies the critical variable imposing the biological limit to running speed, and offers an enticing view of how the biological limits might be pushed back beyond the nearly 28 miles per hour speeds achieved by Bolt to speeds of perhaps 35 or even 40 miles per hour.
The new paper, "The biological limits to running speed are imposed from the ground up," was authored by Peter Weyand of Southern Methodist University; Rosalind Sandell and Danille Prime, both formerly of Rice University; and Matthew Bundle of the University of Wyoming.
"The prevailing view that speed is limited by the force with which the limbs can strike the running surface is an eminently reasonable one," said Weyand, associate professor of applied physiology and biomechanics at SMU in Dallas.
"If one considers that elite sprinters can apply peak forces of 800 to 1,000 pounds with a single limb during each sprinting step, it's easy to believe that runners are probably operating at or near the force limits of their muscles and limbs," he said. "However, our new data clearly show that this is not the case. Despite how large the running forces can be, we found that the limbs are capable of applying much greater ground forces than those present during top-speed forward running."
In contrast to a force limit, what the researchers found was that the critical biological limit is imposed by time -- specifically, the very brief periods of time available to apply force to the ground while sprinting. In elite sprinters, foot-ground contact times are less than one-tenth of one second, and peak ground forces occur within less than one-twentieth of one second of the first instant of foot-ground contact.
The researchers took advantage of several experimental tools to arrive at the new conclusions. They used a high-speed treadmill capable of attaining speeds greater than 40 miles per hour and of acquiring precise measurements of the forces applied to the surface with each footfall. They also had subjects' perform at high speeds in different gaits. In addition to completing traditional top-speed forward running tests, subjects hopped on one leg and ran backward to their fastest possible speeds on the treadmill.
The unconventional tests were strategically selected to test the prevailing beliefs about mechanical factors that limit human running speeds -- specifically, the idea that the speed limit is imposed by how forcefully a runner's limbs can strike the ground.
However, the researchers found that the ground forces applied while hopping on one leg at top speed exceeded those applied during top-speed forward running by 30 percent or more, and that the forces generated by the active muscles within the limb were roughly 1.5 to 2 times greater in the one-legged hopping gait.
The time limit conclusion was supported by the agreement of the minimum foot-ground contact times observed during top-speed backward and forward running. Although top backward vs. forward speeds were substantially slower, as expected, the minimum periods of foot-ground contact at top backward and forward speeds were essentially identical.
According to Matthew Bundle, an assistant professor of biomechanics at the University of Wyoming, "The very close agreement in the briefest periods of foot-ground contact at top speed in these two very different gaits points to a biological limit on how quickly the active muscle fibers can generate the forces necessary to get the runner back up off the ground during each step."
The researchers said the new work shows that running speed limits are set by the contractile speed limits of the muscle fibers themselves, with fiber contractile speeds setting the limit on how quickly the runner's limb can apply force to the running surface.
"Our simple projections indicate that muscle contractile speeds that would allow for maximal or near-maximal forces would permit running speeds of 35 to 40 miles per hour and conceivably faster," Bundle said.
Peter G. Weyand, Rosalind F. Sandell, Danille Naomi Leoni Prime, and Matthew W. Bundle. The biological limits to running speed are imposed from the ground up. Journal of Applied Physiology, 2010
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100122102843.htm

Mind Reading, Brain Fingerprinting and the Law

ScienceDaily (Jan. 24, 2010) — What if a jury could decide a man's guilt through mind reading? What if reading a defendant's memory could betray their guilt? And what constitutes 'intent' to commit murder? These are just some of the issues debated and reviewed in the inaugural issue of WIREs Cognitive Science, the latest interdisciplinary project from Wiley-Blackwell, which for registered institutions will be free for the first two years.
In the article "Neurolaw," in the inaugural issue of WIREs Cognitive Science, co-authors Walter Sinnott-Armstrong and Annabelle Belcher assess the potential for the latest cognitive science research to revolutionize the legal system.
Neurolaw, also known as legal neuroscience, builds upon the research of cognitive, psychological, and social neuroscience by considering the implications for these disciplines within a legal framework. Each of these disciplinary collaborations has been ground-breaking in increasing our knowledge of the way the human brain operates, and now neurolaw continues this trend.
One of the most controversial ways neuroscience is being used in the courtroom is through 'mind reading' and the detection of mental states. While only courts in New Mexico currently permit traditional lie detector, or polygraph, tests there are a number of companies claiming to have used neuroscience methods to detect lies. Some of these methods involve electroencephalography (EEG), whereby brain activity is measured through small electrodes placed on the scalp. This widely accepted method of measuring brain electrical potentials has already been used in two forensic techniques which have appeared in US courtrooms: brain fingerprinting and brain electrical oscillations signature (BEOS).
Brain fingerprinting purportedly tests for 'guilty knowledge,' or memory of a kind that only a guilty person could have. Other forms of guilt detection, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), are based on the assumption that lying and truth-telling are associated with distinctive activity in different areas of the brain. These and other potential forms of 'mind reading' are still in development but may have far-reaching implications for court cases.
"Some proponents of neurolaw think that neuroscience will soon be used widely throughout the legal system and that it is bound to produce profound changes in both substantive and procedural law," conclude the authors. "Other leaders in neurolaw employ a less sanguine tone, urging caution so as to prevent misuses and abuses of neuroscience within courts, legislatures, prisons, and other parts of the legal system. Either way we need to be ready to prevent misuses and encourage legitimate applications of neuroscience and the only way to achieve these goals is for neuroscientists and lawyers to work together in the field of neurolaw."
As this paper shows, WIREs Cognitive Science takes an original interdisciplinary approach to understanding the key issues surrounding state-of-the-art cognitive research. Disciplines featured in the inaugural issue include topics as diverse as cognitive biology, computer science, linguistics, neuroscience, philosophy and psychology.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100120085459.htm

How to Live Your Life Twice: Psychologist Busts a Myth and Offers Tips to Counter a Mid-Life Crisis

ScienceDaily (Jan. 22, 2010) — Elliot Jacques coined the term "mid-life crisis" 40 years ago, when the average lifespan was 70 and "mid-life" came at age 35. Individuals could expect their quality of life to decline from that point forward, Jacques argued, so some extreme reactions to encroaching mortality were to be expected, such as having extra-marital affairs and buying a Corvette.
Not any more, says Prof. Carlo Strenger of Tel Aviv University's Department of Psychology. In an article co-authored with the Israeli researcher Arie Ruttenberg for the Harvard Business Review last year, and another in the journal Psychoanalytic Psychology, Prof. Strenger posits that the mid-life years are the best time of life to flourish and grow.
Citing research based on empirical evidence and studies from the field, Prof. Strenger says that adult lives really do have second acts.
"Somehow this line has been drawn around the mid and late 40s as the time for a mid-life crisis in our society," says Prof. Strenger. "But as people live longer and fuller lives, we have to cast aside that stereotype and start thinking in terms of 'mid-life transition' rather than 'mid-life crisis.'" He dismisses the prevailing myth that reaching the years between the 40s and the early 60s means adapting to diminished expectations, both internally and from society.
Thirty-five years of learning
"If you make fruitful use of what you've discovered about yourself in the first half of your life," Dr. Strenger argues, "the second half can be the most fulfilling."
Most people make many of their most important life decisions before they really know who they are, he says. By age 30, most Americans have already married, decided where to live, bought their first home, and chosen their career. "But at 30, people still have the better part of their adult years ahead of them," Prof. Strenger says.
The good news is that extended life expectancy, better health practices, education, and a greater emphasis on emotional self-awareness and personal fulfilment have reversed the chances that one will have a mid-life crisis. Neurological research has also disproved the notion that the brain deteriorates after 40. "A rich and fruitful life after 50 is a much more realistic possibility," he says.
Four tips to avoid a mid-life crisis
How can you transition smoothly through the best years of your life?
"First, and most important," Prof. Strenger suggests, "invest some sincere thought in the fact that you have more high-quality adult years ahead of you than behind you. Realize what that means in planning for the future."
Second, he says, think about what you've learned about yourself so far. Consider what you've found to be your strongest abilities and about the things that most please you, not what your parents or society expected of you when you were young.
Third, don't be afraid of daunting obstacles in making new changes. "Once you realize how much time you have left in this world, you will find it is profoundly worth it to invest energy in changing in major ways. A new career choice is not an unreasonable move, for example," Dr. Strenger advises. And you may now have a better chance of succeeding, because your choices will be based on knowledge and experience, rather than youthful blind ambition.
Finally, Prof. Strenger says it is absolutely necessary to make use of a support network. Individuals should discuss major life changes with their colleagues, friends and families. The people who know you best will best be able to support you in the new directions you want to take, he advises, and a professional therapist or counsellor can also be helpful.
Prof. Stenger's 2004 book on the subject is The Designed Self, published by The Analytic Press. His latest book, Critique of Global Unreason: Individuality and Meaning in the Global Age, will be published by Palgrave this year.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100121140335.htm

Consumers Over Age 50 Should Consider Cutting Copper and Iron Intake, Report Suggests
ScienceDaily (Jan. 22, 2010) — With scientific evidence linking high levels of copper and iron to Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, and other age-related disorders, a new report in ACS' Chemical Research in Toxicology suggests specific steps that older consumers can take to avoid build up of unhealthy amounts of these metals in their bodies.
"This story of copper and iron toxicity, which I think is reaching the level of public health significance, is virtually unknown to the general medical community, to say nothing of complete unawareness of the public," George Brewer states in the report.
The article points out that copper and iron are essential nutrients for life, with high levels actually beneficial to the reproductive health of younger people. After age 50, however, high levels of these metals can damage cells in ways that may contribute to a range of age-related diseases.
"It seems clear that large segments of the population are at risk for toxicities from free copper and free iron, and to me, it seems clear that preventive steps should begin now." The article details those steps for people over age 50, including avoiding vitamin and mineral pills that contain cooper and iron; lowering meat intake: avoiding drinking water from copper pipes; donating blood regularly to reduce iron levels; and taking zinc supplements to lower copper levels.
Brewer et al. Risks of Copper and Iron Toxicity during Aging in Humans. Chemical Research in Toxicology, 2009
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100120113553.htm

Exercise briefly daily for a healthy heart
Times of India, 24 January 2010
When it comes to heart health, even a little bit of exercise can prove beneficial, suggests a new study. 

John Quindry, director of Auburn University’s Cardioprotection Research Laboratory, said far too many people associate hour-long elliptical machine sessions as the most effective means of building a healthy heart. 

“Just getting out and walking or jogging for the recommended 30 to 45 minutes most days is going to be enough to help,” Quindry said. 

Through his animal-based laboratory research, Quindry and his collaborators have found that even a few days of exercise can provide a form of protection in the event of a heart attack. 

In his lab experiments, Quindry has taken sedentary rats and exercised them through treadmill activity for three-day periods. 

After that period of moderate to vigorous exercise, the lab rats were subjected to experimentally induced heart attacks, replicating a clinical heart attack in humans. 

Quindry has repeatedly found that the brief exercise regimen diminishes the severity of the heart attacks. 

“The animal-based research has been structured so that it’s very clinically relevant. The animals we use exercise in proportion to the same intensities you and I would exercise for good health and fitness,” Quindry said. 

“Just three days of exercise overwhelmingly protects against heart attack damage. What we’re finding is that even a little bit of physical activity is more powerful than we once thought,” he added. 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Exercise-briefly-daily-for-a-healthy-heart/articleshow/5494813.cms

Dark chocolate helps beat the blues
Times of India, 23 January 2010

Eating about an ounce and a half of dark chocolate a day for two weeks can reduce levels of stress hormones in the bodies of people feeling highly stressed, a new study has found. 

Published online in ACS’ Journal of Proteome Research, the trial also found that the sweet treat partially corrected other stress-related biochemical imbalances. 

In the study, Sunil Kochhar and colleagues identified reductions in stress hormones and other stress-related biochemical changes in volunteers who rated themselves as highly stressed and ate dark chocolate for two weeks. 

“The study provides strong evidence that a daily consumption of 40 grams [1.4 ounces] during a period of 2 weeks is sufficient to modify the metabolism of healthy human volunteers,” the scientists say. 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Dark-chocolate-helps-beat-the-blues/articleshow/5492043.cms

Discovery of epigenetic memory during breast cancer
Boston University Medical Center, January 25, 2010
(Boston) - Researchers from the Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have determined how the TGFβ-Smad signaling pathway, which is over activated in late-stage cancers, is responsible for the "epigenetic memory" that maintains unique patterns of regulatory DNA hypermethylation causing silencing of critical genes that facilitate breast cancer progression. The findings, which appear online in Cancer Research, may lead to the development of new therapeutic strategies for late stage breast and other cancers.
According to the researchers, it is becoming increasingly accepted that changes that do not affect the genetic blueprint or DNA sequence, known as the epigenetic landscape, play a major role in defining the properties of normal as well as the cancer cells. While specific epigenetic alterations have been associated with cancer progression, the molecular mediators that ensure transmission of these reversible alterations to successive tumor cells has been elusive.
The BUSM researchers found that the disruption of TGFβ signaling caused a corresponding decrease in the promoter DNA binding activity of DNA methyl transferase 1 leading to passive demethylation of the newly synthesized DNA resulting in expression of genes that are silenced during breast cancer progression.
"The re-expression of genes that promote cell adhesion in cancer cells upon inhibition of the Smad signaling pathway causes reversal of tumorigenic properties and puts the brakes on cancer progression," said principal investigator, Sam Thiagalingam, PhD, an associate professor of medicine and pathology and a member of the Cancer Research Center at BUSM. "This study may pave the way to discovering other pathways and network of events that are responsible for sustaining epigenetic memory in cancer and cancer stem cells and could lead to the unraveling of effective targets for eradication of tumor cells as well as tumor initiating cells," he added.
"While targeting of TGFβ and TGFβ receptors have been actively pursued for cancer therapy, the current finding may introduce a new spin on the wheel and lead to the development of new therapeutic strategies for late stage breast and other cancers by the direct perturbation of the Smad signaling pathway," explained lead author Panos Papageorgis, PhD, a post-doctoral fellow in the genetics program at BUSM.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/bumc-doe012510.php

Silver is a potent nerve cell toxicant.

Environmental Health News, Jan 21, 2010

A study finds that silver has the potential to cause problems with nerve cell development at concentrations five times less than that of the pesticide chlorpyrifos, a known nerve cell toxicant.

Results of a new cell study provide evidence that silver has the potential to kill developing nerve cells and is even more potent than currently known neurotoxicants. A neurotoxicant is a substance that can harm or kill nerve and/or brain cells.
The findings call into question the widespread and increasing use of silver in consumer products. Silver is a good antiseptic agent and is added to some products to reduce the growth of disease-causing microbes. The silver is found in the items primarily as very tiny silver nanoparticles.
The recent and tremendous increases in the use of silver means there is a higher risk of human exposure to the metal.
It takes a relatively high amount of silver to cause illness or death in adults. However, silver can pass from a mother to her fetus, creating concern that developing cells may be particularly vulnerable to silver's effects and that exposure at such an early stage may lead to neural development disorders in the children.
Researchers exposed rat nerve cells to various concentrations of silver and observed its effects on DNA synthesis, protein synthesis, cell growth and other parameters. Researchers compared the cells’ responses to the silver to cells exposed to chlorpyrifos, a pesticide known to cause neurodevelopmental disorders.
Cells exposed to silver at a concentration five times less than chlorpyrifos had inhibited DNA synthesis, reduced protein synthesis, fewer numbers and poorer health. These effects were significantly greater than those of the known neurotoxicant. 
Effects were also seen at doses less than 10 times those historically found in fetal tissue. This is a concern as silver use climbs and possibly increases prenatal exposures.
In addition, the cells’ responses to silver varied dramatically – from subtle effects to death – across doses and developmental stages of the cells, making conclusions of what dose is “safe” very difficult to ascertain.
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/newscience/silver-is-potent-neurotoxicant/

Don’t let glacier howler cloud bigger picture

Climate change is not a religion: that’s why we can admit error

Times Online (UK), January 25, 2010
Warning: I am about to make a damaging and embarrassing admission on climate change. Here goes. The IPCC Fourth Assessment Report is not the Bible. Its statements are not gospel. They are subject to revision in the light of new evidence or the discovery of inaccuracies.
That is why climate change is science, not religion. Nothing is settled and sacred; all is subject to constant revision.
The IPCC’s mistake on the Himalayan glaciers is embarrassing, not just because it is wrong, but because it is so obviously wrong. The warning that these immense ice-fields could be gone by 2035 always struck me as absurd — the Himalayas contain the highest peaks in the world, and the ice that clads their upper slopes is the greatest mass of frozen water outside of the poles. The glaciers may be in rapid decline, but they aren’t going to disappear in 30, or even a hundred, years.
That doesn’t mean that this is a non-issue, merely that the likely rates of glacial retreat are improperly understood. There is a desperate need for quality research on Himalayan glaciers, given their vital importance to major rivers that sustain millions of people in Asia. The IPCC included the erroneous 2035 figure probably because there was no serious research to rely on.
So what lessons can be learnt? No one has a monopoly on truth, not even earnest environmentalists. But nor does one mistake invalidate an enormous body of knowledge, gathered over many years by hundreds of experts, which paints a picture of a planet endangered by continuing emissions of greenhouse gases. The IPCC process is rare evidence that our species really is intelligent; that it can marshal and assess vast quantities of data — and act on the results.
We learn from mistakes, not successes; in science this is especially true. The politicised debate around climate science, while it can be poisonous, should at least keep researchers on their toes. Nothing is worse for scientific progress than lots of experts sitting around constantly agreeing with one another.
The sceptics would be more useful though if they were truly sceptical, challenging evidence and examining it rigorously. Instead, most believe any new theory, however implausible, that allows them to ignore the reality of climate change. This is denial, not scepticism. Challenge the “facts” presented by the green lobby; but don’t reject the overall conclusions of the IPCC — the most important joint scientific body ever established — just because they are ideologically inconvenient.
Mark Lynas is the author of Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article7000829.ece

India’s rivers face lingering death
The National (UAE),  January 25. 2010

NEW DELHI // For more than 40 years, Ramesh Chand has earned a living immersing the ashes of recently cremated Hindus in the River Yamuna.

Every morning he tethers his creaky boat to a small pontoon below the cremation pyres at the Nigambodh Ghat in north Delhi and waits to be approached by mourners, who pay him 10 rupees to row to the middle of the river and scatter the ashes of their loved ones.

The ritual is supposed to sever the bond between the deceased’s body and soul, leaving the spirit free to be born again.

Today the waters that are supposed to be life-giving are technically dead themselves – so full of effluent, body parts and rubbish, they are no longer considered fit to be used for anything other than industrial cooling.

“When I started, the river used to be very clear, like a mirror,” Mr Chand, 65, said.

“People used to come for picnics, but it’s so dirty now no one comes here unless they have to.”

Seven of India’s rivers – including the Yamuna – are sacred in Hinduism and most of India’s 900 million Hindus will try to make a pilgrimage to one of them at least once in their lives. This month, as many as 2.5 million pilgrims journeyed to the northern town of Haridwar to bathe in the Ganges on the first day of the three-month Kumbh Mela – or Pitcher Festival. Over the coming weeks, some 60 million devotees are expected.

A new study has revealed that the waters of the Ganges and other rivers, where such festivals are performed, carry billions of litres of untreated sewage from India’s rapidly growing urban population.

The study made public on January 11, revealed that in 2008 India’s main towns and cities treated only 31 per cent of their sewage and poured 26.5 billion litres of unprocessed effluent into the country’s rivers and costal waters every day.

The report, the first of its kind in10 years, was carried out by the Indian government’s Central Pollution Control Board and shows the enormous environmental effect of poor sanitation.

“The discharge of untreated sewage into water courses is the biggest source of water pollution in India,” the report said.

“To improve the quality of rivers and lakes, there is an urgent need to increase sewage treatment capacity and its optimum utilisation.”

Worryingly, it said, it was the rivers that provided the most drinking water that were also receiving the most waste.

At the heart of the problem, the report said, was a simple lack of sewage treatment plants. India’s 908 largest towns and cities, which are home to 258 million people, produce 38.25 billion litres of sewage each day, but there are only enough treatment plants to process 11.78 billion litres of that.

While on average India treats 31 per cent of its waste, many cities are able to process only a fraction of that.

Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh state, with a population of about 1.5 million, has the capacity to treat six per cent of its wastewater, while Rajastahn’s Jaipur, with a population of 4.4 million, can process only 11 per cent. 

That capacity is reduced further by frequent power cuts and breakages, with the result that treatment plants often release water that has not been sufficiently cleaned.

“Nearly all treatment plants are not conforming to the general standards prescribed under the Environmental Protection Rules for discharging into streams,” the report said.

It also highlighted the “the widening gap between sewage generation and treatment capacity” as India’s urban population grows faster than municipal authorities are able to bring new plants online.

Only four cities in India manage to process all of their waste, and four more, including Delhi, manage to treat more than 50 per cent.

Even though Delhi treats 61 per cent of its waste, it still remains the single largest polluter because of the sheer size of its population.

The city of 14 million produces 3.8 billion litres of sewage a day, of which 1.5 billion litres flow untreated into the Yamuna.

“In some parts of the river, there is more sewage than water,” said K S Kamyotra, a member of the Central Pollution Control Board.

As a result, the board grades the water in the Yamuna as it passes through Delhi as E-class – unfit even to wash animals in.

The Biochemical Oxygen Demand, a standard measure of water pollution, is as much as 10 times higher than permissible levels and the river’s faecal coliform load – the bacteria that grows in human waste – is some four million times higher than is deemed safe for bathing.

This is despite successive schemes to clean the river up. Over the past 16 years, close to US$300 million (Dh1.1 billion) has been spent on new water purifications plants and pumping stations.

India’s government had promised to have the river clean by the time Delhi hosts the Commonwealth Games in October, but last summer it was forced to admit it would have to confine itself to beautifying the riverbanks where the athletes’ accommodation is being built.

Standing on the banks of Nigambodh, it is easy to see why they need beautification. 

As Mr Chand shifts his weight on the pontoon, it stirs the black mud beneath and releases bubbles of methane.

The banks themselves are green and greasy, and littered with sodden detritus of religious rituals – fake gold coins, sweets and scraps of brightly coloured fabric.

There are no fish in the water and no birds on the surface. The only life, apart from humans, is the dogs that scavenge for unburnt human flesh and bones.

Yet Mr Chand still has faith in this holy river, which he has to dive into regularly to save people from committing suicide.

“The river is a goddess,” he said. “If I am saving a life, she won’t make me sick.”

http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100125/FOREIGN/701249958/1103/NEWS