Melatonin may lower prostate cancer risk – Higher levels of melatonin, a hormone involved in the sleep-wake cycle, may suggest decreased risk for developing advanced prostate cancer. Melatonin is a hormone that is produced exclusively at night in the dark and is an important output of the circadian rhythm, or the body’s inherent 24-hour clock.
Here comes the sun to lower your blood pressure – Exposing skin to sunlight may help to reduce blood pressure and thus cut the risk of heart attack and stroke, a study published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology suggests. Research carried out at the Universities of Southampton and Edinburgh shows that sunlight alters levels of the small messenger molecule, nitric oxide (NO) in the skin and blood, reducing blood pressure.
The Secret to Fewer Doctor Office Visits after 70 – Play High School Sports – Seventy year olds who don’t frequently visit the doctor have something unexpected in common – most played high school sports. They were active on a team over 50 years ago and are more likely to be active into their late 70s.
High salt levels in common medicines put patients at increased risk of cardiovascular events — Researchers call for salt content of medicines to be labeled in same way as foods – Taking the maximum daily dose of some medicines would exceed the recommended daily limits for sodium, without any additional dietary intake. Public should be warned about the potential dangers of high sodium intake from prescribed medicines, reveals new study.
2009 Pandemic Flu Death Toll Much Higher Than Official Worldwide Estimates – A research team consisting of more than 60 collaborators in 26 countries has estimated the global death toll from the 2009 outbreak of the H1N1 virus to be 10 times higher than the World Health Organization’s count, which was based on laboratory-confirmed cases of this flu.
Regular physical activity in later life boosts likelihood of ‘healthy aging’ up to sevenfold — Helps stave off major ill health and dementia even for those getting started relatively late – It’s never too late to get physically active, with even those starting relatively late in life reaping significant health benefits, reveals researchers. Four years of sustained regular physical activity boosted the likelihood of healthy ageing sevenfold compared with consistent inactivity.
Large study links nut consumption to reduced death rate — Research also shows people who eat nuts weigh less – In the largest study of its kind, people who ate a daily handful of nuts were 20 percent less likely to die from any cause over a 30-year period than were those who didn’t consume nuts, say scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and the Harvard School of Public Health.
Study may impact guidelines for mitral valve surgery for severe ischemic mitral regurgitation — New findings showing mitral valve replacement may be more effective than mitral valve repair reported at AHA Scientific Sessions 2013 and in New England Journal of Medicine – The Cardiothoracic Surgical Trials Network (CTSN), whose Data and Clinical Coordinating Center is at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, is reporting for the first time evidence on whether or not there is any significant difference between the two current surgical approaches to treat patients with severe ischemic mitral regurgitation — mitral valve repair and mitral valve replacement.
FDA takes two important actions on drug shortages — Strategic plan and proposed rule on early notification by manufacturers will help agency build on recent progress – US FDA is taking two actions to further enhance the agency’s ongoing efforts to prevent and resolve drug shortages, a significant public health threat that can delay, and in some cases even deny, critical care for patients.
Healthier diets possible in low-income, rural communities in America — According to new study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics – In the United States, children don’t eat enough fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Instead, their diets typically include excessive amounts of sugars and solid fats, counter to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommendations, increasing the risk of obesity and diabetes.
Older people exposed to aircraft noise may face greater risk of hospitalization from heart problems – Older people exposed to aircraft noise, especially at high levels, may face increased risk of being hospitalized for cardiovascular disease. Researchers found that, on average, zip codes with 10-decibel higher aircraft noise had a 3.5% higher cardiovascular hospital admission rate.
A Major Cause of Age-Related Memory Loss Identified — Study points to possible treatments and confirms distinction between memory loss due to aging and that of Alzheimer’s – The researchers have identified a protein-RbAp48-that, when increased in aged wild-type mice, improves memory back to that of young wild-type mice. They have found that deficiency of a protein called RbAp48 in the hippocampus is a significant contributor to age-related memory loss and that this form of memory loss is reversible.
