A rare painful cancer that can develop in individuals with long term asbestos exposure is called malignant mesothelioma. Its name originates from where the cancer develops – in the linings of the body’s organs known as the mesothelium. The most common form of the disease occurs in the lung and is known as pleural mesothelioma. Read the rest of this entry
A rare painful cancer that can develop in individuals with long term asbestos exposure is called malignant mesothelioma. Its name originates from where the cancer develops – in the linings of the body’s organs known as the mesothelium. The most common form of the disease occurs in the lung and is known as pleural mesothelioma. Read the rest of this entry
In a randomized, single-blind, sham-controlled trial involving 49 patients with chronic neck pain, electrical stimulation of acupuncture points on the wrist was found to help reduce neck pain above standard care. Subjects received treatments 2 times/week for 4 weeks and significant improvements were found in those that received acupuncture. The conclusion is that “…Electrical acustimulation of the wrist administered as two, 30 minutes sessions /wk added value to standardized neck exercise for chronic neck pain. A 4-week course of treatment produced effects lasting 1-month posttreatment….”.
Read the complete article here (subscription required to view full article)
A great website for determining the pesticide load on foods and what foods to by organic is called “What’s On My Food”.
From the website:
What’s On My Food? is designed to allow you a deep look into the USDA PDP results, linked up with all the information on pesticides that we have compiled over many years of studying them. The data and search functionality here allow you to see what levels of pesticide residues are on your food, in what combinations, and with what associated health risks.
We begin with the tests on tens of thousands of samples that USDA has performed as part of the Pesticide Data Program. Between 1992 and 2007, 89 different foods have been tested for pesticide residues. USDA often tests the same foods in different years. Since older tests aren’t as relevant for the food you eat today, this website contains data only for the test years 1999 to 2007.
The USDA test results in the database can be searched for three kinds of information:
Ideally, there would be hundreds of tests for every combination of food and residue, but in practice there are not always that many. When there are very few measurements, the queries become unreliable. To only show reliable results, when there are fewer than five measurements, the What’s On My Food? website puts “N/A” instead of a number.
What’s On My Food? also allows you to compare organic, conventional, domestic and imported test results. USDA has some other categories in addition to organic and conventional, but there are so few tests in those categories that we have not included them.
Integrative Oncology is the combination of “mainstream” care and evidenced-based complimentary therapies to control cancer-related pain and symptoms [source: Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Integrative Medicine]. Complementary therapies, while not given the attention that more traditional cancer therapies may receive, are perhaps equally important while undergoing treatment for certain types of cancer. Patients diagnosed with difficult to treat malignancies will often use these types of therapies in conjunction with traditional treatment options, which include surgery, chemotherapy, or radiology, to form a more comprehensive and effective treatment regimen. Among the most effective alternative therapies utilized by those diagnosed with cancer is acupuncture. Read the rest of this entry
Background: Recent information suggests that the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) supplement, enhanced intake of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and reducing dietary glycemic index (dGI) are protective against advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Methods: Dietary information was collected at baseline and fundus photograph grades were obtained during the 8-y trial period from 2,924 eligible AREDS AMD trial participants. Using eye as the unit of analysis and multi-failure Cox proportional-hazards regression, we related the risk of AMD progression to dietary intake in the four arms of the trial.
Results: Independent of AREDS supplementation, higher intakes of DHA (? 64.0 vs. < 26.0 mg/d) (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.73, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.57, 0.94), EPA (? 42.3 vs. < 12.7 mg/d) (HR = 0.74, 95% CI, 0.59, 0.94), and lower dGI (dGI, < 75.2 vs. ? 81.5) (HR = 0.76, 95% CI, 0.60, 0.96) were associated with lower risk for progression to advanced AMD. Participants consuming lower dGI and higher DHA or EPA had the lowest risk (P for synergistic interaction < 0.001). Only participants in the ?placebo? (P for antagonistic interaction = 0.006) benefited from higher DHA intake against early AMD progression (HR = 0.58, 95% CI, 0.37, 0.92; Ptrend = 0.01).
Conclusions: Our findings show an association of consuming a diet rich in DHA with lower progression of early AMD. In addition to the AREDS supplement, lower dGI with higher intakes of DHA and EPA was associated with reduced progression to advanced AMD.
Read entire article here. (subscription required for full text)
Maternal intake of omega-3 (omega-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) during pregnancy has decreased, possibly contributing to a current increased risk of childhood allergy. Aim: To describe the effects of maternal omega-3 long-chain PUFA supplementation during pregnancy and lactation on the incidence of allergic disease in infancy. Methods: One hundred and forty-five pregnant women, affected by allergy themselves or having a husband or previous child with allergies, were included in a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Daily maternal supplementation with either 1.6 g eicosapentaenoic acid and 1.1 g docosahexaenoic acid or placebo was given from the 25(th) gestational week to average 3-4 months of breastfeeding. Skin prick tests, detection of circulating specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies and clinical examinations of the infants were performed. Results: The period prevalence of food allergy was lower in the omega-3 group (1/52, 2%) compared to the placebo group (10/65, 15%, p < 0.05) as well as the incidence of IgE-associated eczema (omega-3 group: 4/52, 8%; placebo group: 15/63, 24%, p < 0.05). Conclusion: Maternal omega-3 fatty acid supplementation may decrease the risk of food allergy and IgE-associated eczema during the first year of life in infants with a family history of allergic disease.
We put a tremendous amount of trust in certain brands of foods. Advertising sells. Most of us believe that the OJ we drink in the morning is giving us a good start to our day packed with Vitamin C. A few years ago a study from the American Dietetic Association showed that packaged OJ contains very little vitamin C after about 7 days. Recently a new book was published called Squeezed: What You Don’t Know About Orange Juice by Alissa Hamilton. Read the rest of this entry
