Dairy Fat Intake Linked to Better Cardiovascular Health and Less Risk for Diabetes

The idea that all saturated fat is a health evil permeates the defunct dogma of Western medicine and its Big Pharma toxic pill pushers. It has probably never occurred to them that saturated fat is perhaps the best calorie for energy production, and quite good for long lasting energy if you don’t consume too much. Two studies in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition continue a long list of studies questioning the assertion that saturated fat causes disease, in and of itself.

The first study comes from researchers at the University of Texas School of Public Health. Researchers followed a multiethnic group of 5,209 adults, aged 45 – 84, for 10 years while tracking their diets, and looking into the diets of those who developed cardiovascular disease (316 cases) during the course of the study.  They found that those with the highest intake of saturated fat from dairy had up to a 38 percent risk reduction for developing cardiovascular disease. This is a rather shocking finding for the promoters of skim milk and other no-fat dairy.  On the other hand, the study found that those with the highest intake of saturated fat from meat had up to a 48 percent increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, replacing two percent of meat calories with dairy fat lowered overall risk by 25 percent.

It is likely that many of the cofactor nutrients in dairy help to metabolize the saturated fat, helping to make it a cardio friendly food. In defense of meat fat, my opinion is that it is really an issue of how the beef was raised, and what it was fed. Many sickly and pathetically unhealthy animals have lived on toxic junk food their entire lives and had no exercise – of course their fat is not worth eating. There is no substitute for quality raised and fed meat, such as range raised and grass fed.

Furthermore, those who eat the most toxic meat are also likely to be eating other junk food and also lacking fiber, fruit, and vegetables. This is not rocket science.

In the second study Danish researchers evaluated 340,234 adults from eight European countries for their intake of dairy and risk of type 2 diabetes. This is a very large study representing four million human years of follow up. Researchers found that dairy intake, regardless of the amount of fat taken in, was not linked to the development of type 2 diabetes. To the contrary, certain types of dairy such as cheese and yogurt were linked to a 12 percent risk reduction. 

Americans should keep in mind that the quality of dairy products is much higher in Europe. It is highly advised that Americans consume organic dairy and cheeses of higher quality.

The simple fact of the matter is that there is no need to fear saturated fat. If you consume high quality forms of saturated fat as a reasonable portion of your daily calories, along with omega-3 oils like DHA Docosahexaenoic acid Essential omega 3 fatty acid integral to the health of all cell membranes, nerve and brain function. Must be gotten through the diet via cold water oceanic fish or some very limited plant sources or taken as a supplement., fruit, vegetables, and adequate dietary fiber, then saturated fat is likely to be an energy sustaining friend, which actually helps your metabolism run better, and is not at all associated with risk for disease.

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Older Americans See Better Today, Study Finds

HealthDay – 1 hr 23 mins ago FRIDAY, July 20 (HealthDay News) -- Older Americans see better than their parents did in old age, according to a new study that finds visual impairment among the U.S. elderly has declined 58 percent since the 1980s.

Improved techniques in cataract surgery and lower rates of macular degeneration may be two of the main reasons for the trend, say researchers from Northwestern University.

"From 1984 until 2010, the decrease in visual impairment in those 65 and older was highly statistically significant," said the study's first author, Dr. Angelo Tanna, vice chairman of ophthalmology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and an attending physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

"The findings are exciting, because they suggest that currently used diagnostic and screening tools and therapeutic interventions for various ophthalmic diseases are helping to prolong the vision of elderly Americans," said Tanna in a university news release.

After analyzing national survey data collected from 1984 to 2010, the researchers found that in 1984, poor eyesight caused 23 percent of older adults to have trouble reading or seeing newspaper print. By 2010, however, only 9.7 percent of seniors reported the problem. The researchers also saw a significant drop in eyesight problems that limited the ability of older people to perform normal daily activities, such as dressing and bathing.

Little change in visual impairment was detected among adults younger than 65.

Although the study did not identify the cause of the lower rate of vision problems among older adults, the researchers suggested three likely reasons:

Better techniques in cataract surgeryA decline in smoking, which resulted in reduced rates of macular degenerationImproved treatments for diabetic eye diseases

The study authors said more research is needed to determine which treatment strategies help prevent vision loss in older adults so they can be made more accessible.

The study was recently published online in the journal Ophthalmology.

More information

The American Academy of Family Physicians provides more information on common causes of vision loss in older people.

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Obesity, larger waist size associated with better outcomes in heart failure patients

ScienceDaily (July 3, 2012) — A slim waist and normal weight are usually associated with better health outcomes, but that's not always the case with heart failure patients, according to a new UCLA study.

See Also:Health & MedicineObesityHeart DiseaseCholesterolStroke PreventionDiseases and ConditionsDiet and Weight LossReferenceArtificial heartIschaemic heart diseaseRheumatic feverHypertension

Researchers found that in both men and women with advanced heart failure, obesity -- as indicated by a high body mass index (BMI) -- and a higher waist circumference were factors that put them at significantly less risk for adverse outcomes.

The study findings are published in the July 1 online issue of the American Journal of Cardiology.

Heart failure affects 5.8 million people, including 2.5 million women. Approximately one-half to two-thirds of heart failure patients are overweight or obese.

Women and men are known to have differences in body composition and body-fat distribution, and this study is one of the first to specifically assess the impact of BMI and waist circumference on women and compare it with men.

The findings also offer further insight into an observed phenomenon in chronic heart failure known as the "obesity paradox": Obesity is a known risk factor for developing heart disease and heart failure, but once heart failure has manifested, being overweight may provide some protective benefits.

"The study provides us with more insight about how both genders of heart failure patients may be impacted by the obesity paradox," said senior author Dr. Tamara Horwich, an assistant professor of cardiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "Heart failure may prove to be one of the few health conditions where extra weight may prove to be protective."

For the study, researchers analyzed data on advanced heart failure patients treated at UCLA Medical Center from 1983 to 2011. The team assessed 2,718 patients who had their BMI measured at the beginning of heart failure treatment and 469 patients who had their waist circumference measured at the beginning of treatment.

Using standardized measures, the researchers identified men or women as having a high BMI if they were greater or equal to 25 kg/m² -- this included both overweight patients (25 to 29.9 kg/m²) and obese patients (30 kg/m² or greater).

For men, a high waist circumference was considered 40 inches (102 cm) or greater, and for women, 37 inches (88 cm) or greater. This assessment also included patients who were either overweight or obese.

At the two-year follow-up, researchers used statistical analysis and found that in men, a high waist circumference and high BMI were associated with event-free survival from adverse outcomes like death, the need for a heart transplant, or the need for ventricular assist device placement.

Women with a higher BMI also had better outcomes than their normal-weight counterparts, and women with a high waist circumference also trended toward improved outcomes.

Both men and women with a normal BMI and waist circumference were at a substantially higher risk for these adverse outcomes. In fact, a normal BMI was associated with significantly worse outcomes -- a 34 percent higher risk in men and a 38 percent higher risk in women -- than a high BMI.

Normal waist circumference was also associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes in both genders, with men's risk doubling and women's risk tripling.

"We knew that obesity might provide a protective benefit for heart failure patients, but we didn't know whether this obesity paradox applied specifically to women with heart failure, as well as men -- and it does," Horwich said.

BMI measurement has been used for years as a surrogate measure of body fat. Since it measures all mass -- including lean muscle, which weighs more than fat -- the measurement may not be specific for total body fat. Waist circumference is a newer addition that may provide a more direct connection to body fat, since it measures the fat accumulated around the belly.

"The study also demonstrates how BMI and waist circumference can be used together to provide a more accurate measure of fat in the body to help determine obesity and assess risk," said the study's first author, Adrienne L. Clark, a resident in the department of medicine at the Geffen School of Medicine.

According to Horwich, no one knows exactly why the obesity paradox exists for heart failure patients, but there are several possible explanations.

Being underweight is traditionally associated with a poorer prognosis in heart failure patients. Obesity may be at the other end of the spectrum, and patients may thereby benefit from increased muscle mass, as well as metabolic reserves in the form of fatty tissue. In addition, increased levels of serum lipoproteins that are associated with increased body fat may play an anti-inflammatory role, neutralizing circulating toxins and inflammation-related proteins.

Obese patients also present at an earlier stage of heart failure due to increased symptoms and functional impairment caused by excess body weight, so they may be getting help sooner, which also could improve outcomes, the researchers said.

The next steps in research will include larger studies with longer follow-up times, as well as a closer look at the physiology behind the obesity paradox.

The study was funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health (grant 1K23HL085097).

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With CPR, two bystanders are better than one: study

Reuters – 3 hrs ago (Reuters) - When somebody suffers cardiac arrest in a public place, the odds of survival are better when more than one bystander comes to the rescue, according to a Japanese study.

But the researchers, whose report appeared in the journal Resuscitation, said that there was no survival advantage to having multiple rescuers for cardiac arrests suffered at home, which is where most take place.

"An increased number of rescuers improves the outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests," wrote study leader Hideo Inaba of Kanazawa University Graduate School of Medicine.

"However, this beneficial effect is absent in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests that occur at home."

The American Heart Association (AHA) and other groups say that everyone should learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, which generally means "hands-only," or just chest compressions without any mouth-to-mouth breathing.

Studies have shown this is just as effective as the traditional way when it comes to helping adult cardiac arrest victims.

The Japanese study found that among more than 5,000 adults who went into cardiac arrest outside of a hospital, the odds of surviving were up to two-times higher when more than one person tried to help.

Six percent of victims were alive one year later when three or more "rescuers" were there, versus 3 percent when only one person came to their aid. When two people responded, the survival rate was 4 percent.

The researchers did not know if all of those rescuers performed CPR. Some may just have tried to help in some way, the researchers noted.

Still, the findings do show that the more bystanders who jump into action, the better, said Michael Sayre, an associate professor of emergency medicine at Ohio State University in Columbus, who is also a spokesman for the AHA.

"The study confirms the importance of bystanders responding to cardiac arrest, and the importance of early CPR," he told Reuters Heatlh.

Inaba's team found no clear reason why there was no survival advantage to having multiple rescuers when a cardiac arrest occurred at home, and Sayre agreed that many factors could be at work. Among others, those who are out and about when cardiac arrest strikes may be relatively healthier.

Cardiac arrests in the elderly and frail are very likely to happen at home.

CPR alone cannot restart the heart when it stops, but it can keep the flow of blood and oxygen moving until medical help arrives. So along with performing CPR, bystanders need to immediately call for emergency help.

According to the AHA, more than 380,000 people in the United States go into cardiac arrest outside a hospital each year, but most people have either not learned CPR at all or their training has lapsed.

"Hands only" CPR is easily learned, with or without a class, Sayre said. The AHA website has a teaching video at: http://bit.ly/LhVoQl.

The basic instruction is to give strong, steady chest compressions at a rate of 100 per minute. Experts have pointed out that humming the Bee Gees' 1970s disco song "Stayin' Alive" will help rescuers find the 100-beat-per-minute rhythm.

"Learning CPR is something people often feel that they can put off," Sayre said. "But you never know when you'll be called upon to act." SOURCE: http://bit.ly/LjRENu

(Reporting from New York by Amy Norton at Reuters Health; editing by Elaine Lies and Bob Tourtellotte)

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Better Health Screening Urged for Female College Athletes

HealthDay – 4 hrs ago THURSDAY, June 21 (HealthDay News) -- Shortfalls in the screening of female college athletes for a trio of medical issues called the "female athlete triad" could put them at risk for lifelong health problems, according to a new study.

The triad refers to the interrelationship between energy availability, menstrual function and bone mineral density. Research has shown that many female athletes do not take in enough nutrition, which leads to the absence of menstrual periods, and loss of bone density and strength.

Medical College of Wisconsin researchers surveyed 257 NCAA Division I universities to find out when and how often athletes underwent physical examinations and had their health histories checked. The researchers also evaluated the pre-participation examination forms used to further assess athletes' health.

Sixty-three percent of the university athletic programs only completed a full medical history and examination on freshmen and transfer athletes, instead of on all athletes every year or every two years.

Only 9 percent of the universities had nine or more of the 12 Female Athlete Triad Coalition screening recommendations on their pre-participation exam forms, the investigators found.

"For an accurate picture, these forms really need to include a 72-hour food record to measure energy intake," corresponding author Dr. Anne Hoch, professor of orthopedic surgery and director of the women's sports medicine program, said in a Medical College of Wisconsin news release.

"An exercise history or an accelerometer, which is an inexpensive way to measure energy expenditure, is also helpful. These screening tools may result in early identification of athletes at risk for the triad," she added.

Further research is required to determine the most sensitive and specific items to include on a screening tool for the Female Athlete Triad, the researchers suggested.

The study was published in a recent online edition of the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine.

More information

The Nemours Foundation has more about the female athlete triad.

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Exercise Controls Weight in White Girls Better Than in Black Girls: Study

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Saw palmetto no better than placebo in men with BPH

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Four Tips For Better Skin Care

May 19, 2012 by admin

The skin is the largest organ of the body. It is what protects the body from the elements and is therefore prone to aging. It’s important to take care of the skin as it’s not possible to completely reverse the signs of aging. While there are some great ways to reduce the appearance of wrinkles or prolong the inevitability of getting them, those who take better care of their skin are those who will look younger for longer amounts of time. There are several tips for good skin care listed throughout this article below.

First, a good way to take care of the skin is to get rid of makeup’s that include skin irritants. All natural mineral makeup is the best way to go. Natural mineral makeup usually comes free of binders and fillers and is therefore much easier on the skin than heavier, unnatural types of makeup. Those who can make the switch will be doing their facial skin a great favor.

It’s important to exfoliate the skin frequently. The skin ends up drying out, peeling, and renewing itself on a continual cycle. Various items end up on and in the pores, too, which means that the skin must be scrubbed and exfoliated. While it is not necessary to do so every day, it is important to do it every now and again. A nice exfoliation session for a medical spa day will do wonders for renewing and making the skin softer.

The sun rays are full of damaging consequences for the skin. It is well known that sun spots, wrinkles and even harmful conditions such as skin cancer can be caused by excessive exposure to the sun. Opting for sunscreen instead of suntan lotion will do wonders for the skin. Those who still want a health glow may want to consider using spray tan methods as opposed to getting real tans.

The skin has a tendency of drying out. This often happens due to weather conditions, lack of water intake and many other reasons. Whatever the reason for this, it’s important to rehydrate the skin. This can be done with frequent use of lotion, drinking more water and investing in conditioning skin washes for the shower. Those that take care to use natural products on their skin, exfoliate, avoid the sun and keep their skin hydrated are those who will have healthy skin that they can be proud of.

Skin Care

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Sooner Is Better for Controlling Obese Kids' Weight: Study

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Cosmetic Dentist For Better Smile

April 28, 2012 by admin

Take care of teeth is very important, and we cannot deny the role of the dentist in achieving good oral health. One of the best ways to keep your dental problem under control is to visit your dentist regularly, but this issue is going to visit the dentist? The dentist’s role has changed, now people visit the dentist not only to solve their problem by mouth, as the cavity or to relieve pain, but now more and more people are consulted cosmetic dentist bright smile and teeth. Choosing a dentist can be a difficult task, but for the people of Arizona the choice of a professional dentist is not a difficult task.

There was a time when visiting the dentist is a painful process and people tend to avoid visiting the dentist, unless the situation was very serious because of a painful treatment and long beak, but with the advent of new technologies and equipment health services and dental insurance now, it’s easy to see a dentist and oral health care. Regular cleaning of the teeth is a good way to keep away dental problems.

Although the choice of a dentist for you first collect all relevant information from a dentist in your area, then choose depends on your needs. Finding a good cosmetic dentist takes a lot of research, only an expert professional dentists offer a full service cosmetic dentistry to its clients. Cosmetic dentistry is not only a beautiful smile and engaging personality, but cosmetic dentistry is mainly used to improve dental anomalies that may occur as a result of the accident, sickness and long in some cases because of genetic disorders. Only well-equipped clinic uses the latest technology could offer a better cosmetic dentist.

The issues are very sensitive teeth; you must choose the best dentist for your teeth and enjoy better oral hygiene. Find an expert experienced professional dentist and find a good treatment. Dental care is not just about appearance, but time dental problems are an indicator of other problems that occur inside the body, it is better not neglect your health problem and obtain proper treatment before it becomes serious problem.

Suggestions from friends and colleague are a good way to find a dentist reliable Internet is also useful to find a dentist that suits you.

Dental

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Hispanics Seem to Have Better Odds of Lung Cancer Survival

HealthDay – 1 hr 24 mins ago MONDAY, April 23 (HealthDay News) -- Hispanic people with lung cancer tend to live longer than white or black people with the disease, according to a new study.

Researchers say Hispanics' increased likelihood of survival may be due to genetic factors or environmental advantages, such as lower rates of tobacco use.

In the study, the researchers examined diagnosis and survival data on cancer patients from a national database that pooled information from U.S. cancer registries.

They identified 172,000 adults diagnosed with any stage of the most common form of lung cancer, known as non-small cell lung cancer, between 1988 and 2007. Of these patients, Hispanics had a 15 percent lower risk of death during the study than whites. This was true for both U.S.- and foreign-born Hispanics.

The study, published online in the journal Cancer, pointed out that Hispanics tend to have better odds of survival despite facing more obstacles to health care and higher rates of poverty than other groups.

"This is important because it shows that our findings are indicative of the Hispanic population in general and not specific to specific groups of Hispanics," lead study author Ali Saeed, an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, said in a journal news release.

The study's authors added that the white patients who were studied had a slightly higher likelihood of survival than those who were black. Hispanics were more likely to be diagnosed with a less serious form of lung cancer, known as bronchioalveolar carcinoma.

"Our findings will motivate researchers and physicians to understand why Hispanics have more favorable outcomes and may shed light on potential environmental factors and/or genetic factors that can explain our observations," said Saeed. "For instance, the fact that Hispanics developed higher frequencies of bronchioalveolar carcinoma could be due to genetic predispositions and/or their lower smoking rates."

More information

The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about lung cancer.

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Pricier therapy no better for early prostate cancer

Reuters – 1 hr 49 mins ago NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study suggests that expensive, high-tech proton beam radiation doesn't do any more for men with prostate cancer than the most commonly-used option.

Proton beam radiation, heavily promoted by facilities that perform the treatment, also came with a higher risk of certain side effects compared to intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), researchers found.

"This paper is the strongest evidence yet that proton beam (therapy) is not only not better, but probably not as good as IMRT," said Dr. Matthew Cooperberg, a urologist from the University of California, San Francisco, who didn't participate in the new research.

The findings suggest that men have multiple radiation options when it comes to treating early, localized prostate cancer.

Though not covered in the new study, their options also include surgery -- or getting no treatment at all and waiting to see how the disease progresses, researchers said.

Dr. Ronald Chen of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his colleagues used data from a nationwide cancer registry covering treatment records for men insured by Medicare who were diagnosed with prostate cancer starting in 2000.

At that time, less than one percent of prostate cancers that hadn't spread beyond the gland were treated with IMRT, a minimally-invasive treatment meant to limit damage to the surrounding organs. The rest were treated conformal radiation, the previous standard of care.

By 2008, almost 96 percent of men got the high-dose, targeted radiation.

Intensity-modulated radiation was tied to an approximately 10 to 20 percent lower risk of stomach problems and hip fractures compared to conformal radiation therapy, which exposes more organs around the prostate to radiation. But it also came with a 12 percent higher risk of erectile dysfunction.

Over the course of each year after radiation, 2.5 percent of men who'd received IMRT needed more cancer treatment -- suggesting their disease came back -- compared to 3.1 percent of men in the traditional-radiation group.

That was based on records of close to 13,000 men age 66 and older.

In a smaller analysis, Medicare patients who got proton beam therapy, the most high-tech type of radiation offered, didn't fare much better or worse than those who had IMRT -- except that proton-treated men had more stomach-related side effects.

HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS IN COSTS

The use of both of those technologies has driven up the cost of prostate cancer treatment by hundreds of millions of dollars, the researchers wrote in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

But with conformal radiation fading from popularity, patients' radiation choice now tends to come down to IMRT versus proton therapy -- which is available at far fewer cancer centers because of the technology required.

Researchers said that proton beam facilities can cost $100 million or more to build. A round of proton beam radiation treatment costs insurers up to $100,000 per patient, while IMRT is billed at about $50,000.

"Here we have more expensive therapy that is not proven to give a better outcome," said Dr. Eric Klein, a prostate cancer researcher at the Cleveland Clinic, who didn't take part in the new study.

Researchers agreed that policymakers, including those that decide how much Medicare will pay for various treatments, should reevaluate the evidence for cancer outcomes -- including whether proton beam therapy is worth its hefty price tag.

"There's a trend in this country of adopting newer, costly, promising treatments, without very much evidence to prove they're better," Chen told Reuters Health.

"What our data provides the patients is evidence that IMRT is a good prostate cancer treatment," he said. Until more rigorous studies are available, "That's the type of radiation that they should seek."

WATCHFUL WAITING?

Another perfectly good option for men with early prostate cancer is not to get treatment at all, but to wait and see whether the cancer grows or doesn't cause any harm, researchers said.

"Many men with early disease, especially men who are older, likely don't need treatment," said Dr. W. Robert Lee, a radiation oncologist at the Duke University School of Medicine in Durham who wasn't involved in the new study.

"Active surveillance really plays a very important role," he told Reuters Health.

Cooperberg told Reuters Health that if men find their doctor pushing one treatment option, especially if it's a high-tech radiation option, they should seek outside opinions and think about their priorities -- in terms of what side effects they can put up with and the chance of needing more serious treatment.

"Prostate cancer is very much a disease of options," Lee said.

SOURCE: http://bit.ly/hwxtTL Journal of the American Medical Association, online April 17, 2012.

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Trauma patients taken by chopper may fare better

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Vitamin D Doesn't Help Kids Do Better in School, Study Finds

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Bilingual Kids Are Better Multi-Taskers, Study Says

HealthDay – 59 mins ago FRIDAY, April 6 (HealthDay News) -- Children who grow up learning to speak two languages are better at multi-tasking than children who learn only one language, a new study finds.

But, the bilingual kids are slower to build their vocabulary.

The study of 104 children, age 6, compared those who spoke only English with those who were bilingual and spoke either Chinese and English, French and English, or Spanish and English.

The children were asked to press a computer key when they saw a series of computer images of either animals or depictions of colors. When their responses were limited to only one of the categories, all the children responded at the same speed.

However, when the children had to switch between categories and press different buttons for each category, the bilingual children were faster at making the change than the English-only children.

The U.S. National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development-funded study was conducted by researchers at the University of York in Toronto and appeared in the journal Child Development.

"In simplest terms, the switching task is an indicator of the ability to multi-task," Peggy McCardle, chief of the Child Development and Behavior Branch at the NICHD, said in a National Institutes of Health news release.

"Bilinguals have two sets of language rules in mind, and their brains apparently are wired to toggle back and forth between them depending on the circumstances," she explained.

The English-only speaking children had the highest scores on tests of English vocabulary and English grammar and word meaning. This is because they are able to focus on one language, while bilingual children have to divide their time learning two languages, the researchers said.

More information

The National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families has more about children's development of thinking skills.

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People With Autism May Be Better at Processing Information

HealthDay – 6 mins ago MONDAY, March 26 (HealthDay News) -- People with autism have an enhanced ability to process information, which may explain the apparently higher-than-average percentage of people with autism who work in the information technology industry, British researchers say.

Along with this heightened capacity for processing information, people with autism are better able to detect information that is considered critical, according to the study, which appeared March 22 in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology.

Autism spectrum disorders include a range of neurodevelopmental disorders, all marked by difficulties with social and communication skills and repetitive behaviors.

People with autism have an increased ability to focus on certain tasks, but are also easily distracted by things such as flashing lights or particular sounds, it has been thought.

A University College London (UCL) researcher wondered if these conflicting characteristics might be due to a higher-than-normal ability to process information.

"Our work on perceptual capacity in the typical adult brain suggests a clear explanation for the unique cognitive profile that people with autism show," Nilli Lavie, a professor at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at UCL, said in a Wellcome Trust news release.

"People who have higher perceptual capacity are able to process more information from a scene, but this may also include some irrelevant information that they may find harder to ignore," she said. "Our research suggests autism does not involve a distractibility deficit but rather an information-processing advantage."

Lavie and her colleagues tested the theory by giving 16 adults with autism and 16 adults without autism a task designed to assess their "perceptual load capacity." Both groups were successful at the task in the easier initial stages, but the adults with autism significantly outperformed those without autism as the task became more difficult.

"Our study confirms our hypothesis that people with autism have higher perceptual capacity compared to the typical population," Lavie said. "This can only be seen once the task becomes more demanding, with more information to process. In the more challenging task conditions, people with autism are able to perceive significantly more information than the typical adult."

Lavie said the findings may help explain why people with autism spectrum disorders, such as Asperger's syndrome, may excel in information technology and other careers that require intense concentration and the ability to process large amounts of information from a computer screen.

More information

The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke has more about autism.

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Surgery better for diabetes in the obese: studies

"File photo. Two clinical studies suggest that gastric surgery is better than traditional methods of care when it comes to controlling diabetes in overweight and obese patients (AFP Photo/Jeff Haynes)" title

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Quercetin Helps Veins Function Better

Inflammation is common, especially when a person is under high stress or in a state of wear and tear for whatever reason.  In these situations the circulatory system, including your heart, most copes with an increased inflammatory burden.  A new study shows that quercetin can rather dramatically stabilize small blood vessels relating to your veins, helping reduce fluid retention and specifically boost the structural integrity of your heart.
Your circulatory system must maintain a level of “tightness” regarding the structure of its small parts. Otherwise, the pressure going through it leaks and causes inefficiency.  Part of your microcirculation involves picking up blood cells that have spent their oxygen.  These must be sent back through your veins to pick up more oxygen in your lungs.  While these tiny venules are porous by design, they can readily become irritated by anything inflammatory, making them too porous and not tight enough to function properly.  This leads to fluid accumulation and a much higher risk for inappropriate clotting.  In the current study quercetin was shown to stabilize the circulatory cells involved so they did not become too leaky.
While such a problem can happen anywhere in the microcirculation around your body, it can specifically happen in the microcirculation of the heart itself, leading to inflammatory fluid buildup and reduced heart function.  Quercetin can be added to the list of circulatory protective compounds such as DHA Docosahexaenoic acid Essential omega 3 fatty acid integral to the health of all cell membranes, nerve and brain function. Must be gotten through the diet via cold water oceanic fish or some very limited plant sources or taken as a supplement., tocotrienol Specialized form of vitamin E. Powerful antioxidant showing positive benefits for cholesterol, cardiovascular, neurological health and cancer risk reduction. E, grape seed extract, and horse chestnut.
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