Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 7/2/03:

Too Much Zinc Linked to Prostate Cancer - WebMD, 7/1/03 - "although taking zinc supplements of up to 100 mg per day did not increase men's overall risk of prostate cancer, men who took more than 100 mg of supplemental zinc per day were more than twice as likely to develop advanced prostate cancer than nonusers ... they can't rule out the fact that some other factor may account for the increase in advanced prostate cancer risk associated with excessive zinc supplementation found by the study" - See my zinc page.  Zinc interferes with copper absorption so maybe the cause is low copper.

• Increasing the Good Cholesterol - Health & Nutrition Breakthrough, 1/99 - "Low copper levels, which can be induced by taking more than 25 mg/day of zinc, may increase triglycerides as well as reduce HDL levels.25 Zinc/copper ratios should be monitored."

Nine in Ten Men Report Improvement in Erections with Levitra® (vardenafil HCl) Over a Two-Year Period - Doctor's Guide, 6/30/03 - "Men were five times more likely, on average, to report success in maintaining erections to completion of successful intercourse after taking Levitra 20 mg than before they took the drug (89.3% vs. 17.4%, respectively). Similar findings were seen in men taking Levitra 10 mg (86.5% vs. 15.9%, respectively)." - See Sexual Health Doctor - Has Levitra (vardenafil), Uprima® (apomorphine), Cialis (tadalafil) and testosterone gel from the United Kingdom.

Growth Hormone May Help Obesity - HealthDay, 6/27/03 - "gave small doses of growth hormone to 39 people who were about 40 percent overweight. The volunteer participants lost an average of slightly more than 5 pounds ... Growth hormone, they believe, helps control appetite and speeds up the metabolism, which burns calories. When people are obese, the amount of growth hormone in their bodies decreases, which contributes to the accumulation of fat and loss of muscle mass. That, in turn, may sap the person's energy to exercise" - See www.somatropinonline.com.

Why Stress Strains Health of Elderly Caregivers - HealthDay, 6/30/03 - "Looking after a spouse with Alzheimer's disease or another form of dementia causes a marked increase in blood levels of interleukin 6 (IL-6) ... IL-6 is a cytokine, a member of a large family of proteins that regulate many cell functions. IL-6 has been connected with heart disease because it stimulates production of C-reactive protein, an inflammatory molecule identified as a cardiovascular risk factor"

Testosterone Increases Libido in Women - WebMD, 6/26/03 - "Half the women were treated for 16 weeks with the low-dose oral estrogen-testosterone combination drug Estratest HS ... By week eight, the testosterone-treated patients had measurable improvements in testosterone levels that put them in the upper normal range, and they reported improved interest in sex. They also reported none of the common side effects of treatment with larger doses of testosterone, such as excessive hair growth and acne" - See Estratest at drugstore.com.

A Super Pill to Thwart Heart Attacks and Stroke? - HealthDay, 6/26/03 - "The six components of the pill would include aspirin (for blood platelet levels), a cholesterol-lowering drug, and three blood pressure-lowering drugs at half the standard dose. It also would contain folic acid for lowering levels of the amino acid homocysteine, which may contribute to blockages in the arteries ... a Polypill combining existing drugs potentially could prevent 88 percent of all heart attacks and 80 percent of strokes. About one in three people would directly benefit, each gaining about 11 or 12 years of life without a heart attack or stroke ... The one I'm most worried about are ACE inhibitors (used to treat high blood pressure) with people with kidney diseases" - Seems like you could make an over the counter one containing aspirin, red yeast rice, Anti-ACE Peptides, celery extract, coenzyme Q10, and folic acid. - Ben

Add 1 lb. of veggies, olive oil - USA Today, 6/25/03 - "participants were rated on a scale of 0 to 9, based on how closely they stuck to the traditional Mediterranean diet. The higher the score, the better the adherence ... A two-point increase in the adherence score was associated with a 25% reduced risk of death from all causes, a 33% reduced risk of death from heart disease and a 24% reduced risk of death from cancer ... People in Greece eat about a pound of vegetables a day, mostly cooked ... Salads are served with fish, and vegetables like zucchini and spinach are boiled and seasoned with lemon and olive oil"

Only half are receiving optimal treatment for conditions - HealthDay, 6/25/03 - "Most people receive only about half the health care considered optimal for their conditions ... That rate holds for prevention measures, treatment of chronic problems such as high cholesterol and blood pressure, and even immediate conditions like headaches and hip fractures" - Good reason to keep on top of research with my newsletters. - Ben

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

The effect of conjugated linoleic acid supplementation after weight loss on body weight regain, body composition, and resting metabolic rate in overweight subjects - Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2003 Jul;27(7):840-7 - "As a consequence of an increased regain of fat-free mass by CLA, resting metabolic rate was increased by CLA (LD 12.0+/-11.4%, HD 13.7+/-14.4%) compared to placebo ... In conclusion, the regain of fat-free mass was favorably, dose-independently affected by a 13-week consumption of 1.8 or 3.6 g CLA/day and consequently increased the resting metabolic rate. However, it did not result in improved body weight maintenance after weight loss" - See iHerb or Vitacost CLA products.

Free testosterone plasma levels are negatively associated with the intima-media thickness of the common carotid artery in overweight and obese glucose-tolerant young adult men - Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2003 Jul;27(7):803-7 - "Hypotestosteronemia may accelerate the development of atherosclerosis and increase the risk for CHD in obese men"

Habitual Dietary Intake of n-3 and n-6 Fatty Acids in Relation to Inflammatory Markers Among US Men and Women - Circulation. 2003 Jun 23 - "These results suggest that n-6 fatty acids do not inhibit the antiinflammatory effects of n-3 fatty acids and that the combination of both types of fatty acids is associated with the lowest levels of inflammation. The inhibition of inflammatory cytokines may be one possible mechanism for the observed beneficial effects of these fatty acids on chronic inflammatory-related diseases" - See TwinLab Mega Twin EPA at Herb.

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