October 8th, 2010 by Toni Brayer, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Research
Tags: Absorption, Anti-depressant, Anti-Viral Effects, Biochemistry, Brain Health, Canada, Cancer-Fighting Effects, Cardiology, Cardiovascular Health, Dietary Supplements, Dietetics, Dr. Fereidoon Shahidi, Dr. Toni Brayer, EGCG, Epigallocatechin Gallate, Everything Health, Green Tea, Green Tea-Omega 3 Combo, Health Health, Memorial University, Neurology, Newfoundland, Omega-3 Fatty Acids
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We have know for some time that there are health benefits from drinking green tea. Research also shows that Omega 3 fatty acids have beneficial effects on a number of organs in the body, including the cardiovascular system, the brain, and even depression.
Dr. Fereidoon Shahidi, research professor in the Department of Biochemistry at Memorial University in Newfoundland, Canada, is hoping to show that green tea polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), may also prevent colon cancer and even have anti-viral effects when combined with certain Omega 3 fatty acids.
“We know from experience that green tea is not well absorbed by the body,” Dr. Shahidi said. “Our premise was to see if by adding something to it that has its own benefits, like Omega 3 fatty acids, we might get an entity that would have improved properties in terms of its absorption and health benefits,” he said. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth*
October 8th, 2010 by DrWes in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Opinion, Research
Tags: Accelerated Heart Rate, Acute Myocardial Infarction, Cardiac Arrhythmia, Cardiology, Circulation, Dr. Wes Fisher, Exhaustion, Healthy Relationship, ICD, ICD Shocks, Implantable Cardiac Defibrillator, Intercourse, Regular Physical Exertion, Sexual Activity, Sexual Health, Shortness of Breath
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Have a defibrillator and feel like getting frisky? For the first time that I can recall, there’s a very helpful article published in Circulation addresses the concerns of implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD) patients and sexual activity. There’s all kinds of helpful tidbits, like this one:
A study of 1,774 patients who had experienced an acute myocardial infarction showed that sexual activity was a likely contributor in fewer than 1 percent of cases. In fact, regular physical exertion, such as that associated with sexual activity, was associated with a decreased risk of cardiac events in patients.
Now that’s helpful!
Recall that defibrillators are designed to detect rapid, potentially life-threatening arrhythmias. Most of the time, sexual activity does not lead to heart rates at a level that ICD’s would consider elevated during intercourse. (This, of course is patient specific). While your doctor can tell you the rate cut-off at which your ICD might possibly fire, watching your heart rate rise with a monitor during those moments might be a bit of a, shall we say, turn-off. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Dr. Wes*
October 8th, 2010 by RyanDuBosar in Better Health Network, Humor, News, Quackery Exposed, Research
Tags: Boost in Energy Level, Caffeine, CareerBuilder, Coffee, Coffee-Fueled Careers, Dunkin' Donuts, Energetic, Energy Drinks, General Medicine, Lack of Concentration, Less Productive, Medical Humor, National Coffee Day 2010, Nurses And Doctors, Productivity, Stimulant
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Nurses and doctors depend on coffee to perform their jobs the most of any profession, reports a survey.
Nurses ranked first and doctors second when asked if they needed coffee to get through their day. The rest of the coffee-fueled careers were a mixed bag of white collar and blue collar positions. Among other findings:
— 48 percent of those in the Northeast said they were less productive without coffee, compared to 34 percent of Midwesterners.
— 40 percent of those aged 18 to 24 said they can’t concentrate as well without coffee.
— 37 percent said they drink two or more cups a day.
NOTE: The study was funded by CareerBuilder and Dunkin’ Donuts.
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*
October 6th, 2010 by StevenWilkinsMPH in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Research, True Stories
Tags: Family Medicine, Healthcare Outcomes, Journal of General Internal Medicine, Mind The Gap, Patient Disagreement, Patient Happiness, Patient Preferences, Patient Satisfaction, Patient-Centered Approach, Patient-Centered Care, Patient-Centered Medicine, Patient-Centeredness, Patients' Health Goals, Physician-Patient Agreement, Primary Care, Provider-Centered Medicine, Steven Wilkins MPH, Unhappy Patients, When Patients And Doctors Disagree
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A 69-year-old woman who swims in my master program came back to the pool after a total knee replacement. I asked her how she was doing. She said she is still in a lot of pain because of her physical therapy. She said that her physical therapist was disappointed that she still was still unable to achieve full flexion of 120 degrees. Why 120 degrees? Did you set that goal I asked her? “No,” she said, “the therapist did.”
She went on to tell how she already had more range of motion in her knee than she did before the surgery. My friend was quite satisfied with her progress and wanted to stop physical therapy. The pain from the PT was worse than anything she had experienced before the knee replacement. I knew she and her 80-year-old boy friend were going on a cruise and she didn’t want to still be hobbling around.
It turns out that patients and physicians disagree on quite a few things. We hear a lot about patient-centered care. You know, that’s where the provider is supposed to consider the patient’s needs, preferences, and perspective when diagnosing and treating health problems. But medicine is still very provider-centered. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Mind The Gap*
October 5th, 2010 by GarySchwitzer in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Health Tips, News, Opinion, Research, Video
Tags: AP, Associated Press, Breast Cancer Prevention, Breast Cancer Research, Breast Cancer Screening, Cancer Journal, Dr. Russell Harris, Evidence-Based Health Reporting, Gary Schwitzer, Government, Health Journalism, HealthDay, HealthNewsReview.org, Inaccurate Health Reporting, LA Times, New York Times, North Carolina School of Public Health, Overtesting, Preventive Health, Preventive Medicine, Preventive Screening, Swedish Mammography Study, Too Much Testing, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, Unnecessary Testing, USPSTF
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We reviewed four stories on the Swedish mammography study that appeared in the journal Cancer last week. Three of the four stories gave a pretty clear indication that there were methodological concerns about the Swedish research (of the four reviewed, only HealthDay offered no such hint):
• 4th paragraph of AP story: “The new study has major limitations and cannot account for possibly big differences in the groups of women it compares.”
• 1st paragraph of LA Times blog story: “Critics charged that the study was poorly designed and potentially vastly misleading.”
• 2nd sentence of NY Times story: “Results were greeted with skepticism by some experts who say they may have overestimated the benefit.”
But none of the stories did a very complete job of explaining those potential limitations. Because of the confusion that must be occurring in the minds of women — especially those in their 40s — this is a time in which journalism must rise to the need and do a better job of evaluating evidence and helping readers make sense of what appear to be conflicting findings.
I was in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, when the study was published and had the chance to talk about it with former U.S. Preventive Services Task Force member, and a recognized thought leader on issues of prevention and especially of screening tests, Dr. Russell Harris, Professor and Director of the Health Care and Prevention Concentration of the University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Public Health. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Gary Schwitzer's HealthNewsReview Blog*
