Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 5/12/04:

Most Use Caffeine Wrong, Study Suggests - WebMD, 5/11/04 - "it's better to take tiny amounts of caffeine -- about two ounces of coffee -- every hour, all day long"

Supplement May Lower Diabetes Heart Risks - WebMD, 5/10/04 - "Diachrome contains chromium, in the form of chromium picolinate, and biotin, which is thought to improve insulin's action to improve blood sugars ... After 30 days ... Average fasting blood glucose dropped by 26.2 mg/dL"

High Blood Testosterone Levels Associated With Increased Prostate Cancer Risk - Science Daily, 5/10/04 - "One form of testosterone, called free testosterone, which is biologically active and can actually be used by the prostate, was found to be associated with increased prostate cancer risk" - See my testosterone page for possible ways to reduce that risk.  Or an alternative:

• Carnitine Improves Symptoms of Male Aging - Medscape, 4/14/04 - "Carnitine is more active than testosterone for improving symptoms of male aging such as sexual dysfunction, depressed mood, and fatigue ... In this trial, 120 patients were randomized to receive testosterone undecanoate 160 mg/day, propionyl-L-carnitine 2 g/day plus acetyl-L-carnitine 2 g/day, or placebo for six months" [Abstract] - See iHerb or Vitacost acetyl-l-carnitine products.  Propionyl-L-Carnitine is l-carnitine.  Refs: Healthwell and Genesis.  See iHerb or Vitacost l-carnitine products.

Atacand (Candesartan Cilexetil) Appears More Effective Than Cozaar (Losartan) at Lowering Blood Pressure - Doctor's Guide, 5/10/04 - "Candesartan was shown to lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure by 2 to 3 mm Hg on average more than losartan potassium when measured at the time of either peak or trough effect"

Zinc Supplements Associated With Improved Survival - Medscape, 5/10/04 - "Various ocular disorders (eg, visual impairment and cataract and those in persons with diabetes mellitus, severe retinopathy, or visual impairment) have been reported to be significant predictors of a decreased life span ... Compared with subjects not taking zinc, those randomized to receive any zinc (zinc alone or with antioxidants) had 27% lower mortality" - See iHerb or Vitacost zinc products.

Can Viagra Cure Impotence? - HealthDay, 5/10/04 - "After a year, the men were taken off Viagra, and the researchers found 59 percent of those who had taken Viagra nightly had normal erectile function after discontinuing the drug"

PSA Test a Thing of the Past? - HealthDay, 5/10/04 - "Because we all develop the cancer, we're now removing prostates from men whose cancer is so small that they do not need the procedure. We're finding all these little cancers that are never going to be a danger to the patient"

Lack Energy? Maybe It's Your Magnesium Level - Science Daily, 5/10/04 - "inadequate magnesium is associated with a need for increased oxygen during exercise. They found that during moderate activity, those with low magnesium levels in muscle are likely to use more energy—and therefore to tire more quickly—than those with adequate levels"  - See iHerb or Vitacost magnesium products.

Magnesium may reduce risk of diabetes - MSNBC, 5/7/04 - "The conclusions of these three studies are generally supported by earlier large population studies. Laboratory studies suggest that magnesium influences the action of insulin in the body. A lack of magnesium may worsen insulin resistance, triggering the onset of diabetes" - See iHerb or Vitacost magnesium products.  Related story:

• Magnesium--A Forgotten Mineral - Health & Nutrition Breakthroughs, 9/97 - "Excess calcium and phosphate also interfere with magnesium absorption. (Thus, taking calcium supplements without adding magnesium could result in magnesium deficiency.)"

Does a Low-Fat Diet Increase Heart Risk? - HealthDay, 5/7/04 - "the low-fat diet saw their LDL cholesterol drop by more than 20%. Their HDL cholesterol dropped, too -- by 10% ... ratios of the different kinds of HDL favored the type of HDL that actually pulls bad cholesterol out of the arteries"

Nutritional Supplement May Improve Female Fertility - Medscape, 5/7/04 - "Five of 15 women taking the supplement [FertilityBlend] for five months became pregnant compared with none of 15 women in the placebo group" - See FertilityBlend at drugstore.com.

Aspirin's Heart Benefit Muted When Coated - HealthDay, 5/6/04 - "plain, uncoated, low-dose (75 mg) aspirin reduced levels of thromboxane to a healthy 0.28 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml) of blood. In contrast, Caprin, an equal-strength brand of coated aspirin, lowered thromboxane to just 2.24 ng/ml. Two other brands of coated aspirin, Nu-Seals and Protec, reduced blood levels of thromboxane to ineffective levels of 2.75 ng/ml and 5.5 ng/ml, respectively"

Testosterone Improves Sex for Some Women - WebMD, 5/5/04 - "his study is the first large study of its kind to demonstrate that small doses of testosterone improve sexual function in these women"

Supplement SAM-e Helps Beat Depression - WebMD, 5/5/04 - "When SAM-e was added to their usual medication, half of the patients improved and 43% went into remission, Alpert reports. "These are quite strong responses and remission rates for a population that failed traditional therapy."" - See iHerb or Vitacost SAMe products.

Abstracts from this week's Doctor's Guide Nutrition/Dietetics:

Plant stanol and sterol esters in prevention of cardiovascular diseases - Ann Med. 2004;36(2):126-34 - "A small dose of statin should be added to treatment in individuals resistant to monotherapy with plant stanol ester spread. A life-long consumption of plant stanol ester spread has been predicted to lower coronary events by about 20%" - Note:  Smart Balance Omega-Plus contains plant stanol esters and omega-3 from fish oil.

Eicosapentaenoic acid-rich essential fatty acid supplementation in chronic fatigue syndrome associated with symptom remission and structural brain changes - Int J Clin Pract. 2004 Mar;58(3):297-9 - "The EPA-rich essential fatty acid supplementation led to a marked clinical improvement in her symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome, starting within 6-8 weeks" - See Mega Twin EPA at Vitacost or iHerb.

Role of vitamins in the risk, prevention, and treatment of breast cancer - Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol. 2004 Feb;16(1):19-25 - "High intake of folate or adequate circulating levels of folate may reduce the risk of breast cancer. Adequate folate levels may be particularly important for women who are at higher risk of breast cancer because of high alcohol consumption. The inverse association between vitamin D and risk of breast cancer needs to be evaluated in more studies" - See iHerb or Vitacost folic acid products.

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