Abandoning PSA Screening Could Cost Lives: Study

HealthDay – 1 hr 7 mins ago MONDAY, July 30 (HealthDay News) -- In the wake of a widely publicized report advising against prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing for prostate cancer, a new study finds not screening would triple the number of U.S. men developing advanced cancer.

Testing, on the other hand, might keep some 17,000 men each year from receiving a diagnosis of late-stage prostate cancer -- cancer that has spread and is far less curable -- the study finds.

"PSA testing, for all its pluses and minuses and all that . . . permits you to catch the disease earlier," said lead researcher Dr. Edward Messing, chair of urology at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y.

"These people are all going to die, they are going to die incredibly expensively and die miserably," he said, referring to the many men whose diagnoses would be delayed by not testing. "I don't know that all these people could be saved with PSA testing," but many could, he added.

The report was published online July 30 in the journal Cancer.

Messing said the annual number of prostate cancer deaths dropped from about 42,000 in the 1990s to 28,000 now. "The only thing that can explain that is PSA early detection and treatment," he said.

Many cases of prostate cancer are not life-threatening, which is why testing is controversial. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in May recommended against routine PSA screening, saying too many non-lethal cancers were being treated aggressively, exposing men who didn't need treatment to serious side effects such as impotence and urinary incontinence.

But Messing disagreed with that advice. Condemning PSA testing "wasn't a brilliant conclusion," he said.

For the new study, Messing's team compared information from the U.S. Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database for the years 1983 to 1985 -- immediately before widespread PSA testing started --- to data from 2006 through 2008.

In the 2008 data, 8,000 cases of prostate cancer were diagnosed after the malignancy had spread to other parts of the body.

Using these cases as a base, the researchers constructed a model that used data of advanced cancer diagnosed in the 1980s and predicted how many cases of advanced cancer would have been diagnosed in 2008 if PSA testing was not done.

Their model showed instead of 8,000 actual cases in 2008, about 25,000 cases would have been diagnosed.

But the USPSTF maintains the benefits of testing are overrated. "The task force recommends against prostate cancer screening using the PSA test, as the potential benefit does not outweigh the harms," said Dr. Michael LeFevre, co-vice chair of the task force and professor in the department of family and community medicine at the University of Missouri School of Medicine.

As a result of treatments for PSA-detected prostate cancer, one out of 1,000 men screened in the United States develops a blood clot in his legs or lungs, two will have a heart attack or stroke, and up to 40 are left impotent or with urinary incontinence, LeFevre said.

"At best, only one of these 1,000 men who were screened avoids dying from prostate cancer for at least 10 years," LeFevre said. "In addition, about one in every 3,000 men screened dies as a result of surgery to treat cancer detected by the PSA test."

Still, the task force recognizes that "some men may continue requesting the PSA test and some physicians may continue offering it," LeFevre said.

Before getting this blood test -- which measures a protein in cells of the prostate gland -- men should learn about the pros and cons, he said. "The decision to start or continue screening should reflect an understanding of the possible benefits and known harms, and should respect each individual's preferences."

Messing advises men with a family history of prostate cancer or urinary symptoms to have a PSA test. Men with no family history or symptoms should discuss PSA testing with their doctor, he added.

Messing pointed out that screening-detected cancer doesn't mean surgery, chemotherapy or radiation treatment must follow. Most cases can be watched for some time, he said.

Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, said over the past few years a number of studies have been published on the benefits and harms of PSA testing.

"None of these studies can be considered decisive other than in proving that there are some harms associated with treatment," he said. The American Cancer Society still supports screening for certain men in consultation with a physician.

Prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death among men in the United States. In 2012, more than 240,000 new cases are expected to be diagnosed, and 28,000 men will die from the disease, researchers say.

More information

For more information on prostate cancer, visit the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

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Health Highlights: July 30, 2012

HealthDay – 1 hr 7 mins ago Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Ugandans Urged to Avoid Physical Contact as Ebola Kills 14

As a lethal outbreak of Ebola spreads in Uganda, President Yoweri Museveni urged citizens to avoid physical contact to limit the spread of the disease.

According to BBC News, 14 people, including one in the capital city of Kampala, have died from Ebola since the outbreak began three weeks ago in the western part of the country. Ebola is one of the most virulent and lethal infectious diseases in the world and is spread person to person.

Museveni said health officials are trying to identify and quarantine those people who've had contact with victims. He said people should avoid everyday contacts such as shaking hands, kissing or having sex to avoid passing the disease on.

Burials of people known to have died from Ebola should also be handled by health workers, Museveni said.

According to the BBC, Uganda has faced three Ebola outbreaks over the past 12 years, with the deadliest occurring in 2000 when 425 people were infected and more than half died.

-----

Recall Issued for Kitty Treats

A voluntary recall has been issued for a brand of chicken treats for cats because of possible contamination with high levels of propylene glycol, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The recall was issued by Los Angeles-based treat maker Arthur Dogswell LLC late Friday, NBC News reported. It applies to the Catswell Brand VitaKitty Chicken Breast with Flaxseed and Vitamins treats, and comes on the heels of recent reports of more than 1,800 dogs getting sick after eating chicken jerky treats that were made in China.

Slightly more than 1,000 cartons of the treats will be pulled off the market, NBC News reported. The high levels of propylene glycol could cause anemia and oxidative damage in cats, although no illnesses have been reported, the company said.

Dogswell spokesman Brad Armistead told NBC News late Friday that the company hopes to return the products to the marketplace in the near future.

"We have voluntarily withdrawn a small number of chicken products for cats. This is an isolated situation and does not affect any other products for cats or dogs," Armistead said in a statement. "We are committed to providing safe and healthy products to our customers and their pet companions."

The FDA has repeatedly said it has tested pet treats in the United States for the presence of many toxins, including propylene glycol, but agency officials said they found no levels high enough to urge a product recall, NBC News reported.

Cat owners who bought the VitaKitty products should return them to the place of purchase for a full refund, the company said. If the product was purchased online, consumers should contact the Internet retailer to pursue a specific return and refund.

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Scientists ID New Gene Linked to Vision Loss in Infants

HealthDay – 1 hr 7 mins ago MONDAY, July 30 (HealthDay News) -- A new gene associated with a rare form of blindness from birth has been identified by researchers.

According to the report published online July 29 in the journal Nature Genetics, mutations in the NMNAT1 gene are linked to Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), an inherited retinal degenerative disease that causes reduced vision in infants. Signs of vision loss are apparent in the first few months of life.

LCA is a common reason for enrolling children in schools for the blind.

This finding is a step forward in developing sight-saving gene therapy for patients with LCA, according to the researchers at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Loyola University Chicago Health Sciences Division, and their colleagues.

"The immediate benefit of this discovery is that affected patients with mutations in this new LCA gene now know the cause of their condition," study co-senior author Dr. Eric Pierce, director of the Ocular Genomics Institute at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, said in an infirmary news release.

"Scientists now have another piece to the puzzle as to why some children are born with LCA and decreased vision. The long-term goal of our research is to develop therapies to limit or prevent vision loss from these disorders," Pierce said.

NMNAT1 is the 18th identified LCA gene and is located in a region known to harbor another LCA gene.

Leber congenital amaurosis occurs in about three of 100,000 newborns, and is one of the most common causes of blindness in children, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

More information

The U.S. National Institutes of Health has more about Leber congenital amaurosis.

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Health Tip: Help Baby Develop Healthy Sleep Habits

HealthDay – 1 hr 4 mins ago (HealthDay News) -- It's never too early to teach infants sleep habits that will help prepare them for a lifetime of healthy sleep.

The National Sleep Foundation offers these guidelines:

Look for baby's natural sleep patterns and when he or she starts to get sleepy.Place baby in the crib sleepy, but not asleep.Create a consistent daytime and nighttime sleep schedule, and a soothing bedtime routine.Make sure the environment is dark, cool, and otherwise conducive to sleep.Teach baby to fall asleep on his or her own and to self-soothe to sleep.

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Scientists Uncover Gene Variation Linked to Melanoma

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Mental Abuse of Kids Leaves Lifelong Scars

HealthDay – 1 hr 4 mins ago MONDAY, July 30 (HealthDay News) -- Constantly belittling, threatening or ignoring children can be as damaging to their mental health as physical or sexual abuse, according to a new report from a pediatricians' group.

But, with no bruises to spot, pediatricians, teachers and family members may have trouble recognizing these and other forms of psychological abuse. Not only are there no obvious physical scars, there is no universally agreed-upon definition of what constitutes psychological maltreatment of children, and a fine line can exist between not-so-great parenting and outright abuse, experts say.

"The main message for child health clinicians and people working with children is that psychological maltreatment is just as harmful as other types of maltreatment," said report co-author Dr. Harriet MacMillan, a professor in the departments of psychiatry, behavioral neurosciences and pediatrics at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada.

"We know that exposure to other types of maltreatment like physical and sexual abuse can be associated with a broad range of types of impairment in physical and mental health, and cognitive and social development," she said. "Similarly, we see these types of impairments associated with psychological maltreatment."

The American Academy of Pediatrics' report is published online July 30 and in the August print issue of Pediatrics.

Estimating the prevalence of the problem is difficult, in part because of the lack of a universally accepted definition of psychological abuse, MacMillan said. Studies in Britain and the United States estimate that 8 percent to 9 percent of women and 4 percent of men report severe psychological abuse during childhood.

Psychological maltreatment of children can take many forms. It can include chronically belittling, humiliating or ridiculing a child for showing normal emotions. There is also neglect, such as leaving an infant alone in a crib all day, except for feeding or changing.

Other forms of psychological maltreatment can include withholding love and warmth from a child, putting children in dangerous or chaotic situations, having rigid or unrealistic expectations accompanied by threats if not met, or confining a child and restricting social interactions. Limiting a child's access to necessary health care for reasons other than affordability is another example, according to the report.

Sometimes, but not always, psychological abuse goes hand in hand with physical abuse.

"I once had a child who talked about being hit by his dad," MacMillan said. "The child said that the dad says things about me that make me feel badly, worse than the hitting."

One of the keys to spotting abuse is the pervasiveness of it, experts say.A single bad parenting day probably isn't abuse. But near-constant ridicule, telling a child he or she is unloved and unwanted, is abuse, MacMillan said.

Similarly, there is "suboptimal" parenting -- in other words, no one is going to nominate these moms or dads for parent of the year vs. parenting that is so damaging it rises to the level of abuse.

Telling the two apart can be difficult, experts say.

"Psychological abuse is so insidious, and is not as easily recognized by the victim or other family members," said Alec Miller, chief of child and adolescent psychology at Montefiore Medical Center, in New York City.

"If you see someone getting beaten, we all know it's against the law," Miller said. "It's demarcated as illegal and very unhealthy. Some of these other things are a little more slippery. If there is no bruising physically, it's harder to be convinced there is abuse."

Research shows the effects of psychological abuse and neglect can be profound and long-lasting, ranging from problems with brain development and a failure to grow properly, to problems with behavior and relating to others.

Some parents who are psychologically abusive aren't even aware that their words and actions are harming their child, experts said.

For example, consider parents going through a very difficult divorce. "The child is subjected to major conflict between the parents and told all sorts of things about the other parent and made to choose an allegiance," MacMillan said. "These sorts of things can be psychologically abusive to a child."

Suspected cases of psychological should be reported to child protective services, the authors say. They also urge pediatricians to look for signs of emotional maltreatment in their patients.

More information

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has information on recognizing the signs of child abuse.

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Health Tip: Help Prevent Malnutrition in Seniors

HealthDay – 1 hr 4 mins ago (HealthDay News) -- Seniors are particularly vulnerable to malnutrition, so caretakers must ensure that the elderly get enough carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals.

The American Academy of Family Physicians offers this advice:

Provide plenty of healthy foods and snacks.Flavor foods with fresh herbs and spices, avoiding salt.Offer prepackaged supplements, such as nutrition shakes.Promote daily exercise, even a little bit, to help stimulate appetite and promote strong bones and muscles.Plan social activities centering around meals and exercise.

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Uganda says avoid handshakes as Ebola returns

Reuters – 1 hr 3 mins ago  Article: Factbox: Ebola strikes in Uganda

58 mins ago

KAMPALA (Reuters) - Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Monday advised people to avoid shaking hands, casual sex and do-it-yourself burials to reduce the chance of contracting the deadly Ebola virus after an outbreak killed 14 people and put many more at risk.

Museveni's advice came as scared patients and health workers fled a district hospital in rural western Uganda where several cases of Ebola were being treated and as the authorities tried to alter people's behavior to stop the virus spreading.

"We discourage the shaking of hands because that can cause contact through sweat which can cause problems ... and avoid promiscuity because these sicknesses can also be transmitted through sex," Museveni said in a public statement.

There is no treatment for Ebola, which is transmitted by close contact and body fluids such as saliva, vomit, faeces, sweat, semen and blood. The authorities fear a repeat of an outbreak in 2000, the most devastating to date, when 425 people were infected, more than half of whom died.

Health workers suspected that the latest outbreak - which was confirmed on Friday - had occurred about three weeks ago in Nyanswiga village, Museveni said, adding that doctors had initially thought the symptoms were atypical of Ebola.

Nyanswiga, in Kibaale district, is about 170 km (100 miles) west of the capital Kampala, near the Democratic Republic of Congo where the virus first emerged in 1976, taking its name from the Ebola River.

The World Health Organization has said the origin of the latest outbreak has not yet been confirmed, but that 18 of the 21 confirmed cases so far were understood to be linked to one family.

One of the 14 people reported to have died was a local health worker, Clare Muhumuza. She was transferred to Mulago hospital in Kampala where she died, stoking fears the disease could spread in the Ugandan capital.

"EVIL SPIRITS"

Museveni urged people to also be cautious when it came to burying people, saying that people had contracted the virus while burying Ebola victims because they remained contagious even when dead.

"In case somebody dies from what you suspect to be Ebola please do not take on the job of burying him or her, call the medical workers to be the ones to do it because they are the ones that can do it safely," he said.

Christine Ondoa, Uganda's minister for health, told a news conference in Kampala that people had initially put off seeking medical care because they believed the virus was the work of "evil spirits".

According to Tumusiime Jamilo, a reporter with Kagadi Kibaale Community Radio (KKCR), panic had gripped the Kagadi hospital in Kibaale, where suspected Ebola cases were being treated.

Some hospital staff had initially fled the establishment but were now returning as the authorities were providing protective gear for them, he told Reuters.

Kibaale local government authorities have ordered the closure of local primary and secondary schools and banned public gatherings as a precaution, he added.

Dan Kyamanywa, a health officer in Kibaale district, said up to 80,000 people in the district were at risk of infection.

Ebola symptoms include the sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, a headache and a sore throat, followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rashes, impaired kidney and liver functioning and both internal and external bleeding.

Depending on the strain, the virus kills up to 90 percent of those who contract it.

(Additional reporting by Pascal Fletcher in Johannesburg and Humphrey Malalo in Nairobi; Writing by James Macharia; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

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23andMe seeks FDA approval for personal DNA test

Genetic test maker 23andMe is asking the Food and Drug Administration to approve its personalized DNA test in a move that, if successful, could boost acceptance of technology that is viewed skeptically by leading scientists who question its usefulness.

23andMe is part of a fledgling industry that allows consumers to peek into their genetic code for details about their ancestry and future health. The company's saliva-based kits have attracted scrutiny for claiming to help users detect whether they are likely to develop illnesses like breast cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer's.

The biology of how DNA variations actually lead to certain diseases is still poorly understood, and many geneticists say such tests are built on flimsy evidence.

For years, the Silicon Valley company has resisted government regulation, arguing that it simply provides consumers with information, not a medical service. But now company executives say they are seeking government approval

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Deadly ebola outbreak in Ugandan capital

"A Ugandan health official wears protective gear as he deals with an ebola outbreak at the Bityo hospital in 2007. Uganda's president has warned against shaking hands and other physical contact after the first reported death from the deadly Ebola virus in the capital Kampala. (AFP Photo/)" title

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Los Angeles, CA: Largest Olympic-Inspired Let's Move Meet-Up Fitness event to rock Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade this Saturday

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2012O2 MAX & Mega Celeb Trainer Dion Jackson are teaming up once again from 8:30-1 on July 28th to help get Los Angeles moving in what will be the largest Let's Move/Meet-up Olympic-inspired event across the country. lease enter a unique summary that best describes your press release.

Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA (1888PressRelease) July 27, 2012 - O2 MAX Fitness and Mega-Celeb Trainer Dion Jackson are Teaming Up to bring the largest national Let's Move Meet-up, Olympic-inspired event to Los Angeles

The 2012 Summer Olympic games are just days away and First Lady Michelle Obama has declared Saturday, July 28th as National Let's Move/Meet Up Day to support our very own Team USA and encourage individuals all across the country to be active and stay active.

O2 MAX & Mega Celeb Trainer Dion Jackson are teaming up once again from 8:30-1 on July 28th to help get Los Angeles moving in what will be the largest Let's Move/Meet-up Olympic-inspired event across the country.

O2 MAX's mission is to change the way youth experience fitness through innovative programs and events that integrate social media, technology and of course fitness. This event will help individuals get the jumpstart they need to lead an active lifestyle and O2 MAX's recently launched Summer Fit Pass program will give them the help they need to continue on their health journey. The program is an affordable and personalized 21-day program for students to help create healthy, lifelong habits.

O2 MAX and Dion have teamed up before in youth inspired fitness events such as O2 MAX's Tour de Fitness and most recently CAHPERD's initiative to break the Guinness Book World Record of the most number of people doing jumping jacks at once. Michelle Obama kicked this off at the White House last October and O2 MAX worked with CAHPERD on the social media and Los Angeles grand finale event, which was held at Equinox.

Dion Jackson will kick off the day of events at LA Fitness in Universal City at 8:30am. O2 MAX founder, Karen Jashinsky and Dion Jackson will rally on stage for a dynamic workout finale at Santa Monica's Health and Fitness Festival, which will take place on The Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica from 12-1. In true KJ and Dion style the workout will include moves inspired from all fitness modalities that everyone can do. From Jack LaLanne inspired jumping jacks to BOSU crunches to kickboxing, the workout which is open to all ages and levels will make everyone want to get moving and keep moving!

You can visit MeetUp.com and Facebook.com/o2max to stay up to date with details for Saturday July 28th Let's Move Meet-up event.

O2 MAX is a fitness

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Hippie Butter Introduces Raw-Gourmet Organic Cacao Hemp Seed Butter

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2012Delicious Cacao Hemp Seed Butter Helps Reverse Heart Disease & Lower Blood Pressure.

Dallas, TX (1888PressRelease) July 27, 2012 - Hippie Butter's CHO (Chief Hemp Officer), Brad Ervin, announces the release of his newest gourmet hemp seed product, Hippie Butter Organic Cacao Hemp Seed Butter, available immediately online at http://www.hippiebutter.com/organic-cacao-hemp-seed-butter/

Ervin reports, "We knew we were onto something really great during the preliminary taste-tests of our Organic Cacao Hemp Seed Butter: all of our customer "tasters" wanted their own jars...immediately. We're thrilled and encouraged by the overwhelmingly enthusiastic response to our organic hemp seed products. Now we're ready to offer our delicious gourmet Hippie Butter Organic Cacao Hemp Seed Butter online and to grocery and health food stores."

"Our mission is to educate consumers about the incredible health benefits of hemp seeds and raw cacao. Dr. Oz calls these "superfoods." Our vegan-friendly, 100% organic hemp seeds are high in protein and fiber. They contain ten essential amino acids and provide the perfect balance of "Sea-Free" Omegas 3, 6 and 9. Our unprocessed, organic dark cacao is the highest whole-food source of magnesium. This cacao contains antioxidants clinically proven to help reverse heart disease and lower blood pressure," Ervin ends.

Hippie Butter Organic Cacao Hemp Seed Butter can be melted and poured over fruit, ice-cream, toast, and waffles. Add it to smoothies and trail mix or eat it straight from the jar. Organic Cacao Hemp Seed Butter is the newest addition to Hippie Butter's line of delicious gourmet hemp seed food products: Hippie Hemp Seed Butter, Hulled Hemp Seeds, Toasted Hemp Seeds, Hemp Seed Flour, Hemp Seed Protein Powder, Hemp Seed Oil and Hemp Seed Coffee. Hippie Butter also offers a line of hemp seed bath and body products.

About Hippie Butter: Brad Ervin, former chef and 20-year veteran Rock & Roll sound engineer, adds a new title to his resume: Founder and Chief Hemp Officer (CHO) of Hippie Butter. While touring the world, Brad encountered the delicious "superfood," hemp seeds. This encounter, along with a passion for good food, good health, and respect for Mother Earth, led Brad and his wife, Melete, to found Hippie Butter in 2009. These are the missions of Hippie Butter: to procure, test, and provide the best hemp seed products available; to impart relevant hemp information, instructional videos, and recipes in a secure online-environment. Experience the passion of hemp seeds: one of Earth's most nutritious, staple foods for over 10,000 years.

CONTACT:
BRAD ERVIN
TEL. 972/354-4504
EMAIL: BRAD (

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Vicky Hortman Changes Name of Bottleless Water Company to Pure Water Innovations

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2012Pure Water Technology of Central & Eastern NC Inc. is now Pure Water Innovations Inc.

Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC (1888PressRelease) July 28, 2012 - Vicky Hortman, President of Raleigh-based Pure Water Technology of Central & Eastern NC, Inc. announced it the company's name has changed to Pure Water Innovations, Inc.

The name change came as the company added Wellsys USA to their product line of coolers in addition to PHSI Pure Water Technology

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Grape Seed Extract Lowers Blood Pressure

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Hawthorn Berry Helps Relax Your Nerves

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In-utero exposure to magnetic fields associated with increased risk of obesity in childhood

ScienceDaily (July 27, 2012) — In-utero exposure to relatively high magnetic field levels was associated with a 69 percent increased risk of being obese or overweight during childhood compared to lower in-utero magnetic field levels, according to a Kaiser Permanente study that appears in the current online version of Nature's Scientific Reports.

See Also:Health & MedicineObesityPregnancy and ChildbirthDiet and Weight LossChildren's HealthAsthmaVitamin DReferenceOverweightBody mass indexNutrition and pregnancyBirth weight

Researchers conducted the prospective cohort study, in which participating women in Kaiser Permanente's Northern California region carried a meter measuring magnetic field levels during pregnancy and 733 of their children were followed up to 13 years, to collect clinically recorded information on growth patterns. On average, 33 weight measurements per child were collected.

Researchers noted a dose response relationship with increasing in-utero magnetic field levels being associated with further increased risk of obesity or being overweight. The observed association and supporting evidence provide the first epidemiologic findings that link increasing exposure to environmental magnetic fields, especially in-utero exposure, over the last few decades with the rapid rise in childhood obesity during the corresponding decades, according to the authors.

"Pregnancy is a critical developmental stage that is among the most vulnerable periods to environmental exposures," said De-Kun Li, MD, PhD, a perinatal epidemiologist with the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research in Oakland, Calif., and the lead author of the study. "These findings indicate that electromagnetic fields, from microwave ovens to countless wireless devices, may be contributing to childhood obesity risk. This finding could have implications for possibly reducing childhood obesity and better understanding the obesity epidemic. Like any scientific discoveries, the results need to be replicated by other studies."

After controlling for a child's age at each weight measurement, child gender, maternal age at delivery, pre-pregnancy BMI, race, education level, smoking during pregnancy and breastfeeding, researchers reported a 50 percent increase of participants being obese or overweight for medium in-utero levels (1.5-2.5 mG), and an 84 percent increased risk for high in-utero levels (more than 2.5mG). An mG, or milligauss, represents a unit of magnetic field level or strength as measured using a gaussmeter.

This study follows previous work from Dr. Li (and others) that showed electromagnetic fields may impact pregnancy outcomes and childhood diseases including asthma. Higher EMF levels have also been associated with diabetes in humans, being overweight and high glucose levels in animals, and ADHD in mice offspring, explained Dr. Li.

In the current study, among those children with longer follow-up time (to the end of the study), the observed association was stronger (2.35 times the risk of childhood obesity/overweight for in-utero MF level > 1.5 mG vs. ≤ 1.5 mG). Similarly, if the study only considered those who were persistently obese/overweight through childhood during the follow-up, the association was also much stronger (almost five-fold increased risk of obesity/overweight for in-utero MF level > 1.5 mG vs. < 1.5 mG).

"EMF exposure during pregnancy could impact the fetal development, including endocrine and metabolic systems, predisposing offspring to higher risk of obesity," Dr. Li said. He added that environmental impacts tend to be amplified during fetal development, both in terms of affecting multiple organ systems and having long-lasting changes to physiology, such as to the endocrine systems and hormone receptors.

Researchers examined maternal factors, prenatal factors, childhood factors, outcome measures and other factors that could be confounders. Among 18 factors examined, only family income and childhood habits of eating fruits and vegetables varied among the three maternal MF exposure groups. However, there was not a consistent pattern of MF exposure with family income: women with either low or high family income had lower MF exposure level than women with medium family income. Children eating more fruits and vegetables tended to have a mother who had higher MF exposure during pregnancy. There was no difference among the three MF exposure groups in the average number of weight measurements per child. The proportion of children who remained in the Kaiser Permanente Northern California integrated care delivery system at the end of the study (11 years and older) was almost identical in all three groups. None of the 18 factors examined could explain the observed association.

"Expectant mothers should take this new research into account, but they should not panic," said Ruth Shaber, MD, medical director of the Center for Healthcare Delivery at the Kaiser Permanente Care Management Institute. "We still have a lot more to learn about the impact of the environment on pregnancy and young children."

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Merck quarterly earnings beat forecasts

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Austria's religious leaders defend circumcision

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Going Gray With HIV, a Complicated Affair

(ABCNEWS.com)

No one would argue that living a long time after receiving an HIV diagnosis is a good thing.

"I feel fabulous," says Carlton Smith, who was diagnosed with HIV 25 years ago. He is on the cusp of 50, "but I don't look like it," he is quick to say.

But what lies ahead for people like Carlton, diagnosed with HIV decades ago? They are living far beyond what anyone predicted when the HIV epidemic hit the United States in the 1980s.

By the year 2015, more than 50 percent of Americans living with HIV will be older than 50. As the availability of anti-iretroviral medications continues to expand, the rest of the world will not be far behind. But researchers are only beginning to understand how HIV and its treatment affects those living with HIV as they age.

Not that HIV hasn't always been a complicated disease for patients and their doctors to manage.

"Before aging was an issue,

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How Computers Could Reduce the Spread of HIV

Scientific American – Fri, Jul 27, 2012 Visualization of computer model showing HIV risk behaviors; red dots are injection drug users that engage in needle sharing or unprotected sex; courtesy of Brandon Marshall/Brown University

Condom use, earlier treatment and increased education have gone a long way to reducing HIV spread in the U.S. Nonetheless, some 4,000 inhabitants of New York City still became infected with HIV in 2009.

Injection drug users make up a small portion of the new infections (just over 4 percent in NYC, and about 9 percent nationally), but they represent a finite and targetable population that can benefit from low-cost and well-vetted programs, such as needle exchanges.

Establishing even better needle exchange programs or more widespread substance-abuse treatment opportunities might help to limit these new infections among drug users. But finding out how effective these prevention programs truly are with scientifically controlled studies can take years and lots of money. If only researchers could run computer simulations to come up with some answers, as they do to model other complex systems

Now they might just be able to, with the help of a high-power, automated version of what you could call Sims for the urban class. The goal of the computer model, conceived of in part by Brandon Marshall, an epidemiologist at Brown University, is to

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Only 1 in 4 Americans With HIV Have Virus Under Control: CDC

HealthDay – Fri, Jul 27, 2012 FRIDAY, July 27 (HealthDay News) -- Among the 1.1 million Americans living with HIV, just one in four has the virus under control, U.S. health researchers say.

In a report presented Friday at the International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C., researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the problem applies to patients of all ages, races and ethnic groups, but especially to young people and blacks.

"This is the first time that we have ever looked at the outcome of continuum of care across all patient groups," said CDC epidemiologist Irene Hall. "And what we found is that, overall, too few people with HIV have viral suppression." People with viral load suppression are healthy and less likely to transmit the virus to others.

"Only if we get everyone under regular care for HIV/AIDS can we recognize the full benefits of treatment and prevention," said Hall, chief of the HIV incidence and case surveillance branch in the CDC division of HIV/AIDS prevention.

For the report, Hall and her colleagues pored through 2009 data collected by the CDC, which included rates of HIV testing, patient participation in the health care system, continuity of care for HIV, treatment prescribed, and the patient's viral load status in terms of suppression.

Overall, about 82 percent of all those infected with HIV know their status, meaning that more than 200,000 Americans now infected with HIV are not aware of their condition.

Two-thirds of the nation's HIV patients do have some relationship with a care provider, the report indicates, and more than one-third (37 percent) receive continuous HIV care, while one-third are treated with antiretroviral therapy.

But just over one-third of black patients were found to have ongoing care, compared with 37 percent to 38 percent of Latinos and whites. Similarly, just a little over one in five black patients was found to have viral load suppression, compared with 26 percent of Latinos and 30 percent of whites.

Blacks infected with HIV were the least likely to find out they were infected in the first place and the least likely to get any care for HIV, Hall added.

Younger HIV patients were also much less likely than older patients to know their HIV status and to obtain routine care, Hall said.

Suppression rates were also poorer among younger patients, with just 15 percent of those aged 25 to 34 having their virus under control compared with 36 percent among those aged 55 to 64.

No significant differences were seen between males and females in terms of diagnosis, treatment or disease control.

For now, the report authors can only theorize about what lies behind these differences in HIV care.

"Our study did not look at the reasons for why people are not in care, or are not prescribed

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HIV Fight, Through a Young Doctor's Eyes

Dr. Helen Koenig has grown up watching the evolution of HIV treatment. Now she looks forward to a cure. (Dr. Helen Koenig)

A 35-year-old physician based in Philadelphia, Dr. Helen Koenig primarily treats patients with HIV. In her lifetime, AIDS has gone from a death sentence to a disease patients can live with for decades.

This past week, she's been attending the International AIDS conference in Washington, D.C. -- her first -- and its themes and findings are part of the highs and lows of her life as a physician who treats HIV.

Koenig started practicing two years ago at the Jonathan Lax Center, a community HIV clinic that is part of the comprehensive AIDS service organization Philadelphia FIGHT.

"As a young HIV doctor, this was going to be a landmark conference that I couldn't miss," said Koenig. The location itself was historic, marking the return of the conference after more than two decades, thanks to the federal government's recent lifting of the ban on travel visas to the U.S. for people with HIV.

The conference hasn't disappointed. Thirty years after the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, 30 million deaths and untold human suffering later, experts have finally dared to speak of "turning the tide," on the epidemic, and -- perhaps even more boldly -- a cure.

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Big AIDS meeting's bottom line: More treatment

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Catholic business owners win temporary halt to Obama birth control mandate

Reuters – Fri, Jul 27, 2012 (Reuters) - A Colorado business owned by a Catholic family does not have to comply with President Barack Obama's new healthcare mandate that private employers provide employees with insurance coverage of birth control, a Colorado federal judge ruled on Friday.

District Judge John Kane in Denver temporarily blocked the government from the enforcing the contraception requirement against the religious owners of Hercules Industries Inc, a private manufacturer of heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment.

The ruling only affects this plaintiff but opens the door for any company to seek relief on religious grounds. Lawyers for the Department of Health and Human Services argued that a temporary exemption for Hercules would interfere with the government's ability to implement the law. But Kane was not persuaded.

"This harm pales in comparison to the possible infringement upon (the Newland family's) constitutional and statutory rights," the judge wrote. He noted that the government had already created numerous exceptions for religious employers, exempting over 190 million health plan participants.

The law posed an imminent harm to the company's owners by forcing them to support contraception, sterilization and abortion in violation of their religious beliefs or face steep fines, Kane said.

Members of the Newland family, which owns Hercules, sued in April, challenging the provision that is part of the new health care law, the Affordable Care Act of 2010.

Roman Catholic bishops and many Republican lawmakers oppose the provision. The Catholic Church launched a campaign against it from Sunday Mass pulpits across the country. Catholic Church doctrine opposes artificial contraception but most American Catholics do not adhere to church policy.

Hercules provides a self-insured group plan for its 265 full-time employees that does not cover birth control, sterilization or abortion-inducing drugs. But the new regulation would require Hercules to provide such coverage by November 1, the ruling said.

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius expressed disappointment with the decision in a statement.

"This lawsuit was not brought by a religious organization. Rather, it was brought by a for-profit commercial enterprise whose purpose is to sell HVAC equipment," she said, adding that healthcare decisions should be between women and their doctors, not their employers.

"Every American, including family business owners, should be free to live and do business according to their faith," Matthew Bowman, a lawyer for Hercules with the Alliance Defense Fund, said in a statement.

More than 20 lawsuits are pending around the country against the birth control mandate, brought by organizations including the University of Notre Dame, Catholic University of America and the Archdiocese of New York.

On July 17, another federal judge in Nebraska dismissed a similar lawsuit brought by seven states, two Catholic individuals and three Catholic non-profit institutions, finding that the plaintiffs did not face any immediate harm from the law.

(Reporting by Terry Baynes in New York; Editing by Greg McCune and Lisa Shumaker)

(This story was corrected to fix the name of family to Newland instead of Newman)

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Only 1 in 4 Americans With HIV Has Virus Under Control: CDC

HealthDay – Sat, Jul 28, 2012 FRIDAY, July 27 (HealthDay News) -- Among the 1.1 million Americans living with HIV, just one in four has the virus under control, U.S. health researchers say.

In a report presented Friday at the International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C., researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the problem applies to patients of all ages, races and ethnic groups, but especially to young people and blacks.

"This is the first time that we have ever looked at the outcome of continuum of care across all patient groups," said CDC epidemiologist Irene Hall. "And what we found is that, overall, too few people with HIV have viral suppression." People with viral load suppression are healthy and less likely to transmit the virus to others.

"Only if we get everyone under regular care for HIV/AIDS can we recognize the full benefits of treatment and prevention," said Hall, chief of the HIV incidence and case surveillance branch in the CDC division of HIV/AIDS prevention.

For the report, Hall and her colleagues pored through 2009 data collected by the CDC, which included rates of HIV testing, patient participation in the health care system, continuity of care for HIV, treatment prescribed, and the patient's viral load status in terms of suppression.

Overall, about 82 percent of all those infected with HIV know their status, meaning that more than 200,000 Americans now infected with HIV are not aware of their condition.

Two-thirds of the nation's HIV patients do have some relationship with a care provider, the report indicates, and more than one-third (37 percent) receive continuous HIV care, while one-third are treated with antiretroviral therapy.

But just over one-third of black patients were found to have ongoing care, compared with 37 percent to 38 percent of Latinos and whites. Similarly, just a little over one in five black patients was found to have viral load suppression, compared with 26 percent of Latinos and 30 percent of whites.

Blacks infected with HIV were the least likely to find out they were infected in the first place and the least likely to get any care for HIV, Hall added.

Younger HIV patients were also much less likely than older patients to know their HIV status and to obtain routine care, Hall said.

Suppression rates were also poorer among younger patients, with just 15 percent of those aged 25 to 34 having their virus under control compared with 36 percent among those aged 55 to 64.

No significant differences were seen between males and females in terms of diagnosis, treatment or disease control.

For now, the report authors can only theorize about what lies behind these differences in HIV care.

"Our study did not look at the reasons for why people are not in care, or are not prescribed

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Multifaith call in Austria for circumcision clarity

"An eight day-old baby is held during his circumcision ceremony in Haifa in 2006. A row over religious circumcision in Austria that has spread from Germany made more waves Saturday after an unprecedented joint call by Jews, Muslims and Christians for unequivocal government support. (AFP Photo/Menahem Kahana)" title

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Weight Control Can Cut Women's Diabetes Risk, Study Shows

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McKesson to pay $151M to settle drug-pricing suit

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Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. being treated in Mayo Clinic

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The Scienceblogging Weekly (July 27th, 2012)

Scientific American – Sat, Jul 28, 2012 Blog of the Week:

Science Decoded is a wonderful mix of science, book reviews, and thoughts about the media, written by Erin Podolak, alumna of the University of Wisconsin program for Science Journalism, and now a science writer for The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

 

Top 10:

A Killer Without Regret by Deborah Blum:

In the summer of 1920, a 29-year-old son of Minnesota farmers docked his boat (acquired with stolen money) at a small island in New York City s East River. One by one he hired out-of-work sailors to crew for him. And one by one, he shot them in the head with a Colt .45 and dumped their bodies in the water. Before he was executed in 1930, Carl Panzram put the sailor body tally at 10 although he estimated that was only about half his total murder count. For all these things, I am not in the least sorry, he wrote in a jail house confessional. I was so full of hate that there was no room in me for such feelings as love, pity, kindness or honor or decency.

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India's Dr Reddy's says U.S. regulator lifts ban on Mexico plant

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Substances and methods used in doping

Reuters – Sat, Jul 28, 2012 LONDON (Reuters) - The International Olympics Committee (IOC) said on Saturday that 1001 drugs tests have been conducted since the start of the London 2012 Olympic period on July 16.

Of these, 715 were urine tests and 286 were tests on blood.

IOC President Jacques Rogge says a crackdown on doping cheats in the run-up to the London Olympics has been a success, with testers catching more than 100 athletes using performance-enhancing drugs in recent months.

Albanian weightlifter Hysen Pulaku became the first athlete to be ejected from the London 2012 Olympics on Saturday after traces of the anabolic steroid stanozolol were found in his urine sample.

Substances and doping methods are banned when they meet at least two of the three following criteria: enhance performance, pose a threat to athlete health, or violate the spirit of sport.

Following are some of the substances and methods used for doping in sport:

ERYTHROPOIETIN (EPO)

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China cancels waste project after protests turn violent

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Some Multitasking Is More Taxing

Scientific American – Sat, Jul 28, 2012 Click here to listen to this podcast

Multitasking. Most of us have tried it since digital devices became unavoidable.

Now a study finds that some tasks are tougher to do at the same time than others.

Researchers had two groups of people complete a puzzle on a computer screen. One group also gave directions to another person via instant messaging. The other group gave the directions through an audio chat. 

Subjects who performed the visual and audio task had a 30 percent drop in their puzzle performance. But those who performed two visual tasks

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Why Texting While Driving Will Never Work

Scientific American – Sat, Jul 28, 2012 Click here to listen to this podcast

Multitasking. Most of us have tried it since digital devices became unavoidable.

Now a study finds that some tasks are tougher to do at the same time than others.

Researchers had two groups of people complete a puzzle on a computer screen. One group also gave directions to another person via instant messaging. The other group gave the directions through an audio chat. 

Subjects who performed the visual and audio task had a 30 percent drop in their puzzle performance. But those who performed two visual tasks

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Dope cheats face testing times at London 2012

Reuters – Sat, Jul 28, 2012 LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists working around the clock at a specially equipped anti-doping lab on the outskirts of London will analyze more than 6,000 urine and blood samples during the 2012 Olympics.

The process - from obtaining the sample through to delivering what may be career-ending results back to athlete and coach - is highly sensitive and demands high levels of speed, skill and security.

Any of the more than 10,000 athletes can be required to test anytime, anywhere - trackside, poolside, in the athletes village or in private houses and whether they are already in Britain or still at training camps outside of the country.

The testing experience - which has the potential to bring shame and humiliation down on anyone caught cheating - starts when an Olympic anti-doping official approaches an athlete and tells them they've been selected.

TESTING TIMES

It's a conversation that will take place with thousands of athletes across all sports and nationalities and will include all medal winners, organizers say.

Many top athletes will face repeat tests before the Games end on August 12.

If they refuse to give a sample, athletes can be banned from coming to London to compete or they can be sent home, as Hungarian discus thrower Zoltan Kovago found out last week.

Those who agree to be tested are accompanied by a chaperone at all times until they get to a doping control station where samples are taken.

The athlete provides a sample - of either urine or blood -which is then split into two lots, A and B, so that one can be used for back-up testing if results on the A sample are queried.

The athletes themselves are required to seal the bottles and fill in the paperwork - a protocol designed to minimize the risk of contamination.

The sample bottles have tamper-proof seals that can only be opened using specialist equipment in the lab.

In a detailed statement on Saturday about how the Albanian weightlifter Hysen Pulaku was caught, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said that after traces of the anabolic steroid stanozolol were found in his A sample, given on July 23, he was contacted and told of the findings.

Pulaku became the first athlete to be ejected from London 2012 and now faces a possible two-year sanction by the International Weightlifting Federation.

Both Pulaku and his coach and uncle Sami Pulaku said they could not understand how the drug ended up in the athlete's body, but they accepted the result and said they would not be contesting the decision.

The coach, who according to minutes of the meeting said he was "depressed" to hear Hysen Pulaku had tested positive, also said he didn't feel it was necessary to test the B sample.

But the weightlifter disagreed, and asked for tests on the B sample to be carried out. Under a strict protocol, designed to ensure fairness, Pulaku's B sample was opened and analyzed in his presence on July 25.

The results, which confirmed the A sample findings, were sent to the IOC the following day.

ANONYMITY ENSURES SECURITY

Experts say one of the most important features of accurate and secure drug testing is anonymity.

"Being found guilty of being a dope cheat in sport carries an enormous stigma, so it is only fair to the athletes that systems for testing are flawless," said Leon Edwards who runs Versapak Doping Control, a tamper-proof equipment maker.

"Modern procedures have every step covered, from incorruptible sample-gathering, tamper-evident methods of transportation and robust lab tests," he added.

At London 2012, samples are identified only by a barcode from the point at which they are secured in bottles. This means neither the couriers carrying the samples to and from the lab, nor any of the scientists carrying out the tests, are able to know which athlete is being tested.

The samples are sent on an hourly basis and arrive at the anti-doping lab in Harlow, east of London, in a blue silver-lined box and have the barcode scanned in before testing begins.

The first task is for one of the 150 international scientists working to open and analyze sample A, and freeze and securely store sample B. The testing uses liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry equipment that can screen for more than 240 banned substances in less than 24 hours.

David Cowan, head of the Drug Control Centre at King's College London and the man overseeing London 2012's anti-doping regime, has said his team can screen up to 400 samples a day and expects to analyze around 6,250 in total during the Games.

"It is always a sad day when a cheating athlete is caught," IOC spokesman Mark Adams said on Saturday. "I hope there will not be more."

(Editing by Jason Neely)

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Multifaith call in Austria for circumcision clarity

"An eight day-old baby is held during his circumcision ceremony in Haifa in 2006. A row over religious circumcision in Austria that has spread from Germany made more waves Saturday after an unprecedented joint call by Jews, Muslims and Christians for unequivocal government support. (AFP Photo/Menahem Kahana)" title

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WWE Star Has Tumor Removed That Caused His Size

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Experts Offer Tips to Cut Kids' Screen Time During Summer

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Olympic-Class Athletes Abound in Animal Kingdom

HealthDay – 13 hrs ago FRIDAY, July 27 (HealthDay News) -- When it comes to speed, strength and endurance, even Olympic athletes can't compete with the animals who are champions in their fields, a British researcher says.

For example, cheetahs and pronghorn antelopes are among the animals that are faster than Usain Bolt, who is currently the fastest person in the world, according to Craig Sharp of the Center for Sports Medicine and Human Performance at Brunel University in London.

The fastest a human can run is 23.4 miles per hour (mph). A cheetah is nearly twice as fast, at 64 mph, while a pronghorn antelope can run at 55 mph.

An ostrich is the world's fastest running bird at 40 mph, or 59 feet per second. The fastest greyhound has been clocked at 43 mph and the fastest thoroughbred racehorse at 55 mph.

When it comes to strength, an African elephant can lift 661 pounds with its trunk and carry 1,807 pounds. A gorilla can lift 1,984 pounds and a grizzly bear can lift 1,000 pounds.

Humans have various features that make them well-suited for long-distance running, such as long legs, short toes, arched feet and ample fuel storage capacity, Sharp said. But the top marathoners would be hard-pressed to beat camels, which can maintain speeds of 10 mph for more than 18 hours, or the Siberian huskies that set a record in 2011, racing for eight days, 19 hours and 47 minutes, covering 114 miles a day.

In long jumping, a red kangaroo has covered 42 feet, compared with the human record of 29 feet. In high jump, the red kangaroo can leap 10 feet, compared with the human record of 8 feet.

However, no single animal species matches the physical versatility of humans, which is what the Olympic Games are designed to showcase to best effect, Sharp concluded.

The article was published July 28 in the journal Veterinary Record.

More information

The U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute offers a guide to physical activity.

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Ebola outbreak in Uganda kills 13: official

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Teething Baby? Avoid Benzocaine, FDA Says

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Controversial Down's syndrome testing gets Swiss go-ahead

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Big AIDS meeting's bottom line: More treatment

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Hundreds protest toughening Spain's abortion law

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Mysterious nodding disease afflicts young Ugandans

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India had 56% of new leprosy infections in 2010

"An Indian leper cooks chicken outside her home in Hyderabad. India accounted for 56% of the world's new leprosy infections in 2010 despite declaring itself free of the nerve-destroying disease five years earlier, a report said Saturday" title

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Ebola outbreak in Uganda kills 14

"A nurse takes care of a patient with the Ebola virus in a Ugandan hospital in 2007. An outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus that erupted in western Uganda at the start of July has killed 14 people, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Saturday. (AFP Photo/)" title

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Spain angers feminists with plan to tighten abortion law

"Women with slogans written on their bodies reading "Yes to life, but I choose" and "Priests and judges out of my body" take part in a protest against a reform of the country's abortion law recently proposed by the Spanish conservative government, at Tirso de Molina Square in Madrid. (AFP Photo/Dani Pozo)" title

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Noodles to Host Free Wine Up Wednesdays Wine Tasting for Charity

and Sushi Bar in Naples, Florida, will be hosting "Wine Up Wednesdays" at 6 p.m. every Wednesday night.

Naples-Marco Island, FL (1888PressRelease) July 26, 2012 - Noodles Italian Caf

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Caf� 21, -Nature's Kitchen,- launches new dinner menu, featuring ingredients 100% sourced from local farms

21, "Nature's Kitchen," launches new dinner menu, featuring ingredients 100% sourced from local farmsNew menu reflects cafe 21's commitment to being "Nature's Kitchen" within San Diego.

San Diego, CA (1888PressRelease) July 26, 2012 - Caf

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Popular Vegan Cleanse Kaeng Raeng Now Available in Southern California and Midwest Whole Foods Stores

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Jul
2012Kaeng Raeng Inc. is excited to announce its expansion into the Southern Pacific and Midwest regional Whole Foods Market stores in the US.

Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA (1888PressRelease) July 26, 2012 - Kaeng Raeng Inc., a nutraceutical company based in Palo Alto, is proud to announce its expansion into Southern Pacific and Midwest regional Whole Foods stores in the US. Kaeng Raeng is currently sold in Woodland Hills, Santa Monica, Venice, Beverly Hills, Westwood, Phoenix, and San Diego stores in SoPAC and Chicago South Loop and Deerfield stores in the Midwest.

"We are so excited about our expansion into these new regions," said Lindsay Reinsmith, founder and CEO of Kaeng Raeng. "We have requests from customers all over the country to buy the product in their local Whole Foods Market stores and we want to honor those requests."

Kaeng Raeng has been available in Northern California Whole Foods Market stores since June 2010 including Palo Alto, Redwood City, Cupertino, and San Mateo among others.

"Whole Foods is a natural fit for our brand," Reinsmith said. "We are dedicated to providing a safe, natural product to customers at an affordable price. Kaeng Raeng has absolutely nothing artificial in it and is sustainably made with only locally sourced ingredients."

Kaeng Raeng Inc is a privately-owned nutraceutical company based in Palo Alto, CA. It is sold online at http://www.kaengraeng.com and in select Whole Foods Market stores in the US.

For more information, please contact press (

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Tyrosine Helps Maintain Mental Ability Under Stress

Tyrosine, a simple amino acid Building blocks of peptides and protein and have multiple roles of function in life including muscle function, growth, detoxification and metabolic pathways, and neurotransmitter function., is the precursor for several important neurotransmitters, including dopamine1 and norepinephrine. These neurotransmitters help you have drive, alertness, and motivation – giving you horsepower to get things done. Tyrosine also helps make thyroid hormone, coenzyme Enzyme in its most active form that assists with biochemical transport and is considered an active constituent. Q10, and melanin skin pigmentation. A unique form of tyrosine, n-acetyl-l-tyrosine, is more soluble, very easy to absorb, and readily crosses the blood brain barrier.

Just as a carpenter needs 2-by-4-inch lumber and plywood before building anything, so it is that your brain needs tyrosine before it can make norepinephrine and dopamine – a fact that has been well established for 30 years2. Researchers found that simple use of tyrosine could help with depression3. This is rather interesting, since inflammation and other factors are significant in blocking mood. The fact that a simple nutrient precursor could be of any help at all in boosting neurotransmitters in people who don’t feel good represents a first line and fundamental approach to mood boosting. Animal studies help confirm the anti-stress effects of tyrosine4, showing that tyrosine can prevent inappropriate weight loss from stress. The nature of the findings led the researchers to conclude that “Tyrosine might be a potential therapy for cognitive and mood problems associated with the maintenance of a reduced body weight in the treatment of obesity.”

Tyrosine offsets fatigue and stress, helping to keep your brain alert and more functional. A variety of human studies show that tyrosine boosts mental performance under stress. Tyrosine was shown to prevent mental performance decline that is associated with sleep deprivation5. Under conditions of highly stressful training6 tyrosine was shown to improve cognitive performance and lower blood pressure. Tyrosine offset the effects of cold temperatures7 (another form of stress) on cognitive performance – meaning it might help you function better in the winter.

Tyrosine is a basic nutritional building block for nerve transmission involving alertness, drive, and motivation. The supplemental use seems especially important under stress, which is a test of neurotransmitter function. Since a loss of dopamine results in inappropriate food cravings and the risk for addiction, maintaining basic dopamine status during times of stress not only helps cognitive performance but is also likely to reduce the risk for “quick fix” brain stimulants that are generally unhealthy.

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Supplements that contain tyrosine
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Berries for Brain Anti-Aging
Acetyl-l-Carnitine – Anti-Aging for Brain & Metabolism

Referenced Studies:

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How malnutrition leads to inflamed intestines

ScienceDaily (July 24, 2012) — More than one billion people in poor countries are starving, and malnutrition remains a major problem even in rich countries, making it a leading cause of death in the world. For over a hundred years, doctors have known that a lack of protein in the diet or low levels of amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, can lead to symptoms like diarrhoea, inflamed intestines and other immune system disorders, which weaken the body and can be fatal. However, the molecular mechanism which explains how malnutrition causes such severe symptoms has been largely unexplored.

Now a research group led by Josef Penninger, the director of the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) in Vienna, Austria, in cooperation with Philip Rosenstiel, University of Kiel, Germany, has found a molecular explanation for the increased susceptibility to intestinal inflammation in malnutrition.  The researchers were studying an enzyme which helps to control blood pressure, kidney failure in diabetes, heart failure and lung injury, called the Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2, or ACE2.  This enzyme was identified as the key receptor for SARS virus infections, but the researchers also discovered an entirely new function.  ACE2 controls the way our intestines take in amino acids from our food, via amino acid transporters, and in particular the uptake of the essential amino acid tryptophan.

Too little tryptophan alters our natural immune system, which changes the types of bacteria which can live in our bowels and guts, leading to higher sensitivity and eventually diarrhoea and inflamed intestines.  Increasing the intake of tryptophan in their diet provided relief for mice suffering from intestinal inflammation. The mixture of bacteria returned to normal, the inflammation died down, and the mice also became less susceptible to new attacks.

"The research shows how the food we eat can directly change the good bacteria in our intestines to bad bacteria and so influence our health”, says Thomas Perlot, the first author of the study. “Our results might also explain nutritional effects that have been known for centuries and provide a molecular link between malnutrition and the bacteria living in our intestines. This discovery could be used in the future to treat patients with a simple regulated diet or by taking tryptophan as a food supplement.  And there is hardly any risk of side effects from artificially increasing an amino acid found in the normal diet.”

Josef Penninger, the lead author, says “I have studied ACE2 for more than 10 years and was completely stunned by this novel link between ACE2 and amino acid balance in the gut. Biology continues to surprise me. Up to a billion people in the world are malnourished, especially the poor and disadvantaged. In Austria alone, around 80,000 people suffer from a chronic inflammatory bowel disease like ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease. I hope that our findings have opened a door to a better molecular understanding how malnutrition affects human health. Whether simple tryptophan diets can indeed cure the effects of malnutrition in humans now needs to be carefully tested in clinical trials.”

See Also:Health & MedicineGastrointestinal ProblemsDietary SupplementNutritionDiet and Weight LossCholesterolDiabetesReferenceInflammation of the kidneyNeurotransmitterHeat shock proteinInflammationShare this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

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How a low-protein diet predisposes offspring to adulthood hypertension

ScienceDaily (July 25, 2012) — Studies have shown that the offspring of mothers on a low-protein diet are more likely to develop hypertension as adults. Now, Drs. Gao, Yallampalli, and Yallampalli of the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston report that in rats, the high maternal testosterone levels associated with a low-protein diet are caused by reduced activity of an enzyme that inactivates testosterone, allowing more testosterone to reach the fetus and increase the offspring's susceptibility to adulthood hypertension.

See Also:Health & MedicineProstate HealthPregnancy and ChildbirthHypertensionProstate CancerMen's HealthNutritionReferenceTestosteroneProgesteroneAndrogenEndocrine system

Fetal programming is a term used to describe the impact of maternal stress on an unborn child's physical characteristics at birth, as well as its long-term health. The placenta is thought to be a major contributor to fetal programming due to its critical roles in hormone production and nutrient transport, as well as its susceptibility to environmental disruptions.

Recently, a study found that protein restriction doubles the plasma testosterone levels in pregnant rats. Elevated testosterone levels are associated with pregnancy-related complications such as preeclampsia and polycystic ovarian syndrome in humans, and emerging evidence suggests that testosterone may play a role in fetal programming of hypertension.

Gao et al. hypothesized that the increased testosterone levels were caused either by increased activity of an enzyme that produces testosterone or by decreased activity of an enzyme that reduces testosterone, specifically Hsd17b2, which converts testosterone to a less potent androgen, androstenedione.

The team found that Hsd17b2 expression in rats was affected by protein restriction in two parts of the placenta. It was increased in the junctional zone, which is responsible for hormone production, but was reduced in the labyrinth zone, which is essential for nutrient transport from mother to fetus and also acts as a protective barrier.

Based on this novel finding, Gao et al. propose that the reduction in Hsd17b2 expression in the protective labyrinth zone may allow more testosterone to reach the fetus and play a role in fetal programming of hypertension.

The finding that Hsd17b2 was the only enzyme for testosterone production affected by gestational protein restriction suggests an important role for Hsd17b2 in regulating the testosterone levels at the maternal-fetal interface; further research is needed to determine its exact functions.

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New drug could help maintain long-term weight loss

ScienceDaily (July 26, 2012) — A new drug could aid in losing weight and keeping it off. The drug, described in the journal Cell Metabolism on July 26, increases sensitivity to the hormone leptin, a natural appetite suppressant found in the body. Although so far the new drug has only been tested on mice, the findings have implications for the development of new treatments for obesity in humans.

See Also:Health & MedicineObesityDiet and Weight LossFitnessPharmacologyDiseases and ConditionsControlled SubstancesReferenceAppetiteAnti-obesity drugDetoxBlood sugar

"By sensitizing the body to naturally occurring leptin, the new drug could not only promote weight loss, but also help maintain it," says senior study author George Kunos of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. "This finding bodes well for the development of a new class of compounds for the treatment of obesity and its metabolic consequences."

Although leptin is an appetite suppressant, leptin supplements alone have not been effective at reducing body weight in humans. It's thought that this is because of desensitization to the hormone; leptin is still there, but our bodies can no longer respond to it. While it is not entirely clear how this desensitization occurs, cannabinoid receptors, which mediate the feelings of hunger produced by marijuana and naturally occurring cannabinoids in the body, are thought to be involved. So blocking these receptors, rather than providing excess leptin, could be more effective at long-term weight loss. Knowing that marijuana use causes the munchies, scientists had developed anti-obesity drugs that target cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1R). One CB1R-binding drug called rimonabant was sold in Europe beginning in 2006, but it was taken off the market a few years later due to serious psychiatric side effects, including anxiety, depression and thoughts of suicide.

To minimize these side effects, Kunos and his team previously developed a CB1R-targeting drug that did not enter the brain as easily as rimonabant. However, the drug was not as effective at reducing weight and improving metabolic health, possibly because of its specific mode of action. In the new study, Kunos tested a new compound, JD5037, that targets CB1R without penetrating the brain. JD5037suppressed the appetite of obese mice, caused weight loss, and even improved metabolic health, in part by resensitizing mice to the appetite-suppressing hormone leptin. Importantly, the mice did not show signs of anxiety or other behavioral side effects.

"Obesity is a growing public health problem, and there is a strong need for new types of medications to treat obesity and its serous metabolic complications, including diabetes and fatty liver disease," says Kunos.

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Lower vitamin D could increase risk of dying, especially for frail, older adults

ScienceDaily (July 26, 2012) — A new study concludes that among older adults -- especially those who are frail -- low levels of vitamin D can mean a much greater risk of death.

See Also:Health & MedicineVitamin DVitaminCholesterolDietary SupplementVitamin CVitamin BReferenceB vitaminsEssential nutrientVitamin DNutrition and pregnancy

The randomized, nationally representative study found that older adults with low vitamin D levels had a 30 percent greater risk of death than people who had higher levels.

Overall, people who were frail had more than double the risk of death than those who were not frail. Frail adults with low levels of vitamin D tripled their risk of death over people who were not frail and who had higher levels of vitamin D.

"What this really means is that it is important to assess vitamin D levels in older adults, and especially among people who are frail," said lead author Ellen Smit of Oregon State University.

Smit said past studies have separately associated frailty and low vitamin D with a greater mortality risk, but this is the first to look at the combined effect. This study, published online in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, examined more than 4,300 adults older than 60 using data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

"Older adults need to be screened for vitamin D," said Smit, who is a nutritional epidemiologist at OSU's College of Public Health and Human Sciences. Her research is focused on diet, metabolism, and physical activity in relation to both chronic disease and HIV infection.

"As you age, there is an increased risk of melanoma, but older adults should try and get more activity in the sunshine," she said. "Our study suggests that there is an opportunity for intervention with those who are in the pre-frail group, but could live longer, more independent lives if they get proper nutrition and exercise."

Frailty is when a person experiences a decrease in physical functioning characterized by at least three of the following five criteria: muscle weakness, slow walking, exhaustion, low physical activity, and unintentional weight loss. People are considered "pre-frail" when they have one or two of the five criteria.

Because of the cross-sectional nature of the survey, researchers could not determine if low vitamin D contributed to frailty, or whether frail people became vitamin D deficient because of health problems. However, Smit said the longitudinal analysis on death showed it may not matter which came first.

"If you have both, it may not really matter which came first because you are worse off and at greater risk of dying than other older people who are frail and who don't have low vitamin D," she said. "This is an important finding because we already know there is a biological basis for this. Vitamin D impacts muscle function and bones, so it makes sense that it plays a big role in frailty."

The study divided people into four groups. The low group had levels less than 50 nanograms per milliliter; the highest group had vitamin D of 84 or higher. In general, those who had lower vitamin D levels were more likely to be frail.

About 70 percent of Americans, and up to a billion people worldwide, have insufficient levels of vitamin D. And during the winter months in northern climates, it can be difficult to get enough just from the sun. OSU's Linus Pauling Institute recommends adults take 2,000 IU of supplemental vitamin D daily. The current federal guidelines are 600 IU for most adults, and 800 for those older than 70.

"We want the older population to be able to live as independent for as long as possible, and those who are frail have a number of health problems as they age," Smit said. "A balanced diet including good sources of vitamin D like milk and fish, and being physically active outdoors, will go a long way in helping older adults to stay independent and healthy for longer."

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Cancer Drug May Flush Out 'Hidden' HIV: Study

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Women with HIV too often unseen: US advocate

"A worker passes out flyers for free HIV testing outside a Walgreens pharmacy in New York on June 27. In the US, black heterosexual women made up the next largest group of new infections after gay men of all races in 2009, with about 5,400 cases according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (AFP Photo/Mario Tama)" title

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Why Baby Boomers Need Hep C, HIV Testing

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This is the same group that began that public school experiment called “sex education.”

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AIDS Forum a Reminder of D.C. Epidemic

," prominent HIV-testing advocate A. Toni Young said.

The reference to the river that runs through Washington, D.C., was significant for two reasons. For one, Young happened to be speaking at the International AIDS 2012 Conference, hosted this year in Washington.

But it was also relevant in light of the fact that the city through which the Potomac River flows struggles with an HIV prevalence rate of nearly 3 percent.

Yet, there seems to be signs of real progress. Young is founder of the Community Education Group, a nonprofit organization working to increase HIV testing and provide HIV education in the District, particularly for black women. She was joined by city officials and researchers at the AIDS conference to showcase the results.

"The results speak for themselves," said Dr. Mohammad Akhter, director of the D.C. Department of Health.

The number of deaths among people with HIV has declined by nearly half, from 399 in 2006 to 207 in 2010. The number of AIDS cases -- a signal of a late diagnosis of HIV -- dropped by nearly one-third in the same time period. No babies have been born with HIV in the District since 2009.

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Gay sex fuels HIV rise in Catholic Philippines

"A gay activist is silhouetted by the rainbow flag during a rally of the lesbian, gay, transgender and bisexual community at the University of the Philippines in the town of Los Banos, Laguna province, south of Manila. Gay sex in a conservative Catholic society where the influential church forbids the use of condoms is fuelling an alarming rise of HIV infections in the Philippines, experts warn. (AFP Photo/Jason Gutierrez)" title

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2 Patients HIV-Free After Transplants

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By LIZA McCLELLAN, M.D.

Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston have discovered that, following bone marrow transplants, two men no longer have detectable HIV in their blood cells.

The finding is significant because it suggests that by giving these patients transplants while they were on anti-retroviral therapy, they may have been cured of the AIDS-causing virus.

“We expected HIV to vanish from the patients’ plasma, but it is surprising that we can’t find any traces of HIV in their cells,” said Dr. Timothy Henrich, one of the researchers studying the two men. “It suggests that under the cover of anti-retroviral therapy, the cells that repopulated the patient’s immune system appear to be protected from becoming re-infected with HIV.”

The findings were presented Thursday at the AIDS 2012 conference in Washington, D.C. The story shares similarities with that of Timothy Ray Brown, also known as “the Berlin patient,” but there are important differences. While the cells used in Brown’s transplant procedure were specifically chosen from a donor who had a genetic mutation that resisted HIV, these patients received transplants with normal cells. Also, the two patients whose cases were presented at the meeting are still taking anti-retroviral medications normally used to treat HIV-positive patients, while Brown is no longer taking these medications.

Further study will need to be done to prove that the two patients are truly cured.

“Studies over time including biopsies of lymphatic tissue would be required,” said Dr. Michael Saag, an infectious disease expert from University of Alabama at Birmingham. He said only time will tell if these patients remain HIV-free.

While it appears from these cases, as well as that of the Berlin patient, that altering a patient’s immune system may lead to a “cure” for HIV, bone marrow transplants are currently too costly and dangerous for all HIV patients to be able to undergo them.

Separately, scientists are trying to use gene therapy to alter patients’ immune systems to free them of HIV.  Most of the research in this field is very preliminary, but scientists at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center are trying to perform stem cell transplants with cells that have been genetically modified to be resistant to HIV, much like the cells that the Berlin patient received.

“We have not yet transplanted any patient as part of our study,” said Dr. Hans-Peter Kiem of the Clinical Research Division at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and an attending transplant physician at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. But Kiem and his research team have recently been awarded a research grant to further investigate stem cell transplantation as treatment as a means to find a cure for HIV.

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Early HIV Treatment Might Save Livelihoods as Well as Lives

Scientific American – 7 hrs ago People can work more when their ailments are treated. And HIV is no exception. Adults who tested positive for HIV in Uganda but had a less severe infection were able to work more hours per week, and their kids were more likely to be in school, according to findings presented July 26 at the 2012 International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C.

If this correlation holds up in further research, more widespread testing and earlier treatment could mean greater earning potential for individuals

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Aging AIDS epidemic raises new health questions

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Small breakthroughs offer big hope of AIDS 'cure'

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HIV Undetectable in 2 Men After Bone Marrow Transplants: Study

HealthDay – 1 hr 12 mins ago THURSDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Following bone marrow transplants, two men infected with HIV no longer have any traces of the AIDS-causing virus in their lymphocytes, researchers report.

Lymphocytes are a type of white blood cell and are a key part of the immune system.

The U.S. researchers suspect that bone marrow transplantation along with continuation of antiretroviral therapy resulted in the dramatic effects evident eight months post-transplant. They are scheduled to present these preliminary findings Thursday at the International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C.

HIV patients on antiretroviral therapy often achieve "undetectable viral loads," meaning there are no virus particles in their blood. But they still have latent HIV in their lymphocytes, and if antiretroviral therapy were discontinued, the latent HIV could reactivate.

But having no traces of HIV in these white blood cells is an indication that this "reservoir" of latent HIV may have been eliminated, the researchers believe.

At this point, they are far from saying these patients are cured. But the findings are "exciting," said Dr. Savita Pahwa, director of the Center for AIDS Research at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, who was not involved with the study.

"Every hint you get that it's possible to wipe out the reservoir needs to be investigated," she said.

"Eliminating the reservoir is the key to the cure," said Pahwa. She also stressed that it would only be possible to say these patients were "functionally cured" if the virus did not rebound when the patients went off antiretroviral therapy.

The two men whose cases are described in the paper underwent chemotherapy for blood cancers before receiving stem cell transplants. One had his transplant two years ago; the other, four years ago. Both also developed graft-versus-host disease (when transplanted cells attack the host cells) and continued with their antiretroviral medications throughout and after the transplant procedures.

Any of these factors could theoretically explain their HIV-free status, but the bone marrow transplantation combined with antiretroviral therapy seems the most likely explanation, said the study authors.

"We believe the transplanted cells killed off and replaced all of the patients' own lymphocytes, including the infected cells, and the donor cells were protected from becoming infected themselves by the antiretroviral therapy they were taking throughout the transplant period," said study senior author Dr. Daniel Kuritzkes, chief of infectious diseases at Brigham and Women's Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston.

Graft-versus-host disease also probably played a role, he said. "The replacement of host cells by donor cells is itself a form of graft-versus-host reaction," Kuritzkes explained.

But the only way to verify that the transplant plus antiretroviral therapy can eradicate HIV is to take the patients off their medication regimens.

That would be the "next logical step," said Kuritzkes, adding that this would require patient consent and adherence to ethics protocols.

But even if the transplant procedure were found to eliminate the reservoir of latent HIV cells, bone marrow transplantation is a very risky procedure. Kuritzkes said he does not "foresee bone marrow transplantation being performed on otherwise healthy HIV-infected patients who are doing well on

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Late Shift Boosts Heart, Stroke Risk

Extreme Tanning: Cancer Scare Doesn't...More Health Headlines90 Arrests in War on Synthetic DrugsWhy Boomers Need Hep C TestingMother and Daughters Bond Over 'Russian...Drug Ecstasy May Cause Memory LossTest a Condom, Win a Year's SupplyIn The NewsArthritisAllergiesDr. Richard BesserCold & Flu Home> HealthLate Shift Boosts Heart Attack, Stroke RiskBy STACEY SCHOTT, M.D., ABC News Medical UnitJuly 26, 2012

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