10.26.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 4:45 pm by chicken
Flaxseed halted prostate-tumor growth in a recent Duke University Medical Center study. Flaxseed is edible and rich in omega-3 fatty acids and fiber-related compounds known as lignans. Researchers believe the seed possibly interrupts that chain of events that allows cells to divide irregularly and become cancerous.
In the study, researchers looked at men who were about to undergo surgical treatment for prostate cancer. For 30 days prior to surgery the men took 30 grams of flaxseed daily. The tumors revealed how the cells had multiplied. Some men took flaxseed alone, some men took flaxseed in conjunction with a low-fat diet, some men followed a low-fat diet only and took no flaxseed, and some men did nothing and served as a control group.
Researchers found that men in the two groups who took flaxseed had the slowest tumor growth, proving that the flaxseed affected tumor growth rather than the low-fat diet. Each group included 40 participants who ate ground flaxseed (the coating on whole flaxseed is not digestible) sprinkled in drinks and on food.
One out of six American men will develop prostate cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.
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Posted in Uncategorized at 4:09 am by chicken
Postmenopausal women are at an age when the incidence and exacerbation of the chronic health conditions linked to obesity become more prevalent. A new article published in Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, & Neonatal Nursing reviews the physiological, psychological and social issues correlation to obesity that are relevant to postmenopausal women. The article underlies the importance of nurses and other healthcare professionals for intervention.
Obesity can lead to an increased risk of heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, sleep apnea, cancer, osteoarthritis and mental health problems, all of which can be significantly reduced by weight loss. Heart disease in particular, eventhough often considered a "man's disease," is the number one killer of women, taking more than forty times the number of lives than breast cancer every year, despite being preventable.
Nearly two-thirds of American women are either clinically "overweight" or "obese." As women are more at risk for being overweight or obese than men, and women are at risk for gaining weight as they age, postmenopausal women are a especially vulnerable population. It is important for health care providers to understand the health consequences of obesity and incorporate these into health promotion strategies for postmenopausal women.
"Postmenopausal women stand at a crossroad, facing the possibility of living the remainder of their lives in essentially good health or facing the probable onset of chronic diseases that might have been prevented," says author Karen E. Dennis. "By first understanding the health consequences of being overweight, nurses have a unique opportunity to work with women of all ages in fighting obesity".
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Posted by: Evelyn
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Posted in Uncategorized at 4:09 am by chicken
For nearly 70 years researchers have known that caloric restriction prolongs life. In everything from yeast to primates, a significant decrease in calories can extend lifespan by as much as one-third. But getting under the hood of the molecular machinery that drives this longevity has remained elusive.
Now, reporting in the September 21 issue of the journal Cell, scientists from Harvard Medical School, in collaboration with researchers from Cornell Medical School and the National Institutes of Health, have discovered two genes in mammalian cells that act as gatekeepers for cellular longevity. When cells experience certain kinds of stress, such as caloric restriction, these genes rev up and help protect cells from diseases of aging.
"We've reason to believe now that these two genes may be potential drug targets for diseases linked to aging," says David Sinclair, associate professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School and senior author on the paper.
The new genes that Sinclair's group have discovered, in collaboration with Anthony Sauve of Cornell Medical School and Rafael de Cabo of NIH, are called SIRT3 and SIRT4. They are members of a larger class of genes called sirtuins. (Another gene belonging to this family, SIRT1, was shown last year to also have a powerful impact on longevity when stimulated by the red-wine molecule resveratrol.).
In this paper, the newly discovered role of SIRT3 and SIRT4 drives home something researchers have suspected for a long time: mitochondria are vital for sustaining the health and longevity of a cell.
Mitochondria, a kind of cellular organ that lives in the cytoplasm, are often considered to be the cell's battery packs. When mitochondria stability starts to wane, energy is drained out of the cell, and its days are numbered. In this paper, Sinclair and his collaborators discovered that SIRT3 and SIRT4 play a vital role in a longevity network that maintains the vitality of mitochondria and keeps cells healthy when they would otherwise die.
When cells undergo caloric restriction, signals sent in through the membrane activate a gene called NAMPT. As levels of NAMPT ramp up, a small molecule called NAD begins to amass in the mitochondria. This, in turn, causes the activity of enzymes created by the SIRT3 and SIRT4 genes--enzymes that live in the mitochondria--to increase as well. As a result, the mitochondria grow stronger, energy-output increases, and the cell's aging process slows down significantly. (Interestingly, this same process is also activated by exercise.)
"We're not sure yet what particular mechanism is activated by these increased levels of NAD, and as a result SIRT3 and SIRT4," says Sinclair, "but we do see that normal cell-suicide programs are noticeably attenuated. This is the first time ever that SIRT3 and SIRT4 have been associated with cell survival.".
In fact, the mitochondria appear to be so essential to the cell's life that when all other energy sources inside the cell--including the nucleus--are wiped out, yet the mitochondria are kept intact and functional, the cell remains alive.
"Mitochondria are the guardians of cell survival," says Sinclair. "If we can keep boosting levels of NAD in the mitochondria, which in turn stimulates buckets more of SIRT3 and SIRT4, then for a period of time the cell really needs nothing else.".
Sinclair and colleagues have coined a phrase for this observation: the Mitochondrial Oasis Hypothesis.
SIRT3 and SIRT4 may now also be potential drug targets for diseases linked to aging. For example, in recent years researchers have become increasingly aware of the importance of mitochondrial function in treating diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and neurodegeneration.
"Theoretically, we can envision a small molecule that can increase levels of NAD, or SIRT3 and SIRT4 directly, in the mitochondria," says Sinclair. "Such a molecule could be used for a number of age-related diseases.".
As per Suave of Cornell, "This study also highlights how advanced technological methods can help resolve fundamental biological questions in ways that were hard to achieve as recently as a few years ago".
Posted by: Evelyn
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10.23.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 3:54 am by chicken
Sugar-sweetened drinks can have a negative effect on preschool children, researchers at the University Of Ottawa Institute of Population Health say. The study looked at 1,900 childrens consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks.
Researchers found that only 7 percent of children who did not consume these drinks between meals were overweight when they reached the age of 4compared with 15.4 percent of those who did consume the sugar-sweetened drinks four to six times between meals per week.
Researchers are urging parents to limit the consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks because of the risk of weight gain in children.
The results were published in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
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Posted in Uncategorized at 3:54 am by chicken
The Patrick Administration has announced a $200,000 grant has been awarded to the Greater New Bedford Community Health Center as part of the $37.5 million in grants awarded to 69 hospitals and community health centers throughout the state. The funds are provided through the Essential Community Provider Trust Fund to help hospitals and community health centers meet the needs of the populations they serve more effectively and efficiently.
Evaluation of the grant applications was based on the financial needs and the role that each institution plays in the Commonwealthâs health delivery system in ensuring access to both preventive and acute care. The Greater New Bedford Community Health Center will use its grant to start up a storefront service for weight loss and childhood obesity, diabetic teaching, and smoking cessation. The storefront services will be available not only to Health Center patients but to the community at large.
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