Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Mental And Physical Exercise Delays Dementia In Fatal Genetic Disease

Another example of the interaction between nature and nurture.
Huntington's disease is what killed Woodie Guthrie.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080124092540.htm

ScienceDaily (Jan. 29, 2008) — Scientists at Melbourne's Howard Florey Institute have discovered that mental and physical stimulation delays the onset of dementia in the fatal genetic disease, Huntington's disease.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Personality can’t predict breast cancer

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22902743/

updated 28 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - The idea that a woman's personality traits can make her more prone to breast cancer appears nothing more than a myth, according to a Dutch study.

Women who were unemotional, depressed or anxious were no more or less likely to get breast cancer than any other women, the study found. Nor were women who were optimistic, angry or understanding, or had any combination of personality traits.

Environmental pollution and diabetes may be linked

http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/news/press/dpp/2008012501

In the most recent edition of the Lancet, Drs. Oliver Jones and Julian Griffin highlight the need to research the possible link between persistent organic pollutants (POPs, a group which includes many pesticides) and insulin resistance, which can lead to adult onset diabetes.

In their commentary, Dr Jones and Dr. Griffin cite peer reviewed research including that of Dr D Lee, et al, which demonstrated a very strong relationship between the levels of POPs in blood, particularly organochlorine compounds, and the risk of type 2 diabetes.


Environmental pollution and diabetes may be linked
25 January 2008

Scientists call for more research into neglected area


Cambridge scientists are advocating additional research into the little understood links between environmental pollution and type 2 diabetes.

In the most recent edition of the Lancet, Drs. Oliver Jones and Julian Griffin highlight the need to research the possible link between persistent organic pollutants (POPs, a group which includes many pesticides) and insulin resistance, which can lead to adult onset diabetes.

In their commentary, Dr Jones and Dr. Griffin cite peer reviewed research including that of Dr D Lee, et al, which demonstrated a very strong relationship between the levels of POPs in blood, particularly organochlorine compounds, and the risk of type 2 diabetes.

“Of course correlation does not automatically imply causation,” says Dr. Jones. “But if there is indeed a link, the health implications could be tremendous. At present there is very limited information. Research into adult onset diabetes currently focuses on genetics and obesity; there has been almost no consideration for the possible influence of environmental factors such as pollution.”

Interestingly, in the Lee study an association between obesity and diabetes was absent in people with low concentrations of POPs in their blood. In other words, individuals were more at risk of diabetes if they were thin with high levels of POPs in their blood than if they were overweight but with low levels of POPs.

Friday, January 18, 2008

The Oneness of Being

In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, and in sympathy for the Haitian earthquake victims.

The Oneness of Bein
copyright Patricia M. Shannon 1992

The Earth is our mother, and the sun is our father,
They nourish us and sustain us.
Though I stand on a mountaintop alone.
I am not alone, for I am one with all.

The oneness is a blessing, a constant source of strength;
the loneliness of being will rend your heart no more.
But in this world imperfect, it also is a curse,
I feel the pain of others as if it were my own.

Let us work together, and join our hearts as one,
to make a world where children no longer die from guns.
Throw away your hatreds, your wars and your drugs;
the highest high you'll ever know is when you feel as one.

Eat Your Leafy Vegetables To Decrease Your Risk Of Cataracts

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080114162513.htm

ScienceDaily (Jan. 17, 2008) — Women who have higher dietary intake of lutein and zeaxanthin--compounds found in yellow or dark, leafy vegetables--as well as more vitamin E from food and supplements appear to have a lower risk for developing cataracts, according to a new article.

Calcium Supplements May Increase Heart Attacks In Older Women

Another darned if you do, darned if you don't problem, since osteoporosis can cause a broken hip, which often leads to premature death.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080116193102.htm

ScienceDaily (Jan. 17, 2008) — New research suggests that calcium supplements may increase the risk of heart attack in healthy postmenopausal women.

2007 Was Tied As Earth's Second Warmest Year

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080116114150.htm


ScienceDaily (Jan. 17, 2008) — Climatologists at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York City have found that 2007 tied with 1998 for Earth's second warmest year in a century.

Friday, January 11, 2008

Reversal Of Alzheimer's Symptoms Within Minutes In Human Study

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080109091102.htm

ScienceDaily (Jan. 9, 2008) — An extraordinary new scientific study, which for the first time documents marked improvement in Alzheimer’s disease within minutes of administration of a therapeutic molecule, has just been published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation.