Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 2/13/02:

Estrogen: A Villain And A Possible Savior - Time Magazine Cover Story,  2/18/02 - "There is no single cause for breast cancer, but one major factor is estrogen" - Also see: The New Thinking on Breast Cancer, Graphic:  Cutting Edge Treatments, Graphic:  Autonomy of a Tumor

New Alzheimer's Risk Factor Identified - WebMD, 2/13/02 - "High blood levels of a substance called homocysteine have been linked to an increased risk for both heart attack and stroke. Now, new research finds it to be a major risk factor for Alzheimer's disease and other age-related dementias ... It is known that B-vitamins like folic acid, B-6, and B-12 lower homocysteine levels"

Pre-hospital magnesium dose helps stroke patients - Reuters, 2/13/02 - "In a small new study, an intravenous dose of magnesium given en route to the hospital resulted in what researchers said was a "dramatic" recovery in 25% of stroke patients"

Bobsledder's Doping Suspension At Olympics Renews Debate Over Dietary Supplements - Intelihealth, 2/13/02 - "An International Olympic Committee study of 635 supplements found that 20 percent contained substances not listed on labels that could lead to a drug violation ... The onus is really on the manufacturer to not only provide a safe product, but an accurately labeled product ... However, independent tests show that doesn't always happen. In a study of 12 brands of bodybuilding supplements, UCLA found only one contained the amount of androstenedione or related ingredients the bottle promised" - This is why I named my web site QualityCounts.com and stick with brand name supplements.

Study Confirms HRT Ups Breast Cancer Risk - WebMD, 2/12/02 - "The risk of ductal cancer -- the most common form of breast cancer -- increases by 50% in women who have used HRT for five recent years ...If our results are correct, then nonusers of HRT would have an incidence of ductal cancer of about 230 per 100,000 women per year, whereas women with five years of recent HRT use would have a rate of 349 per 100,000 women per year"

Hormone Replacement Therapy in Relation to Breast Cancer - JAMA, 2/13/02 - "Our data add to the growing body of evidence that recent long-term use of HRT is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer and that such use may be related particularly to lobular tumors"

Participation in Cognitively Stimulating Activities and Risk of Incident Alzheimer Disease - JAMA, 2/13/02 - "These results suggest that frequent participation in cognitively stimulating activities is associated with reduced risk of AD"

Healthful Habits Key In Curbing Stroke Among Elderly - Doctor's Guide, 2/12/02 - "In women, risk of cerebral occlusion decreased significantly with increasing duration and recency of estrogen use ... Hypertension, diabetes, heart attack, and smoking were significant stroke risk factors in both women and men ... Exercise reduced stroke risk in general, and antioxidant vitamin supplements decreased risk of cerebral occlusion ...major emphasis should be directed in this population toward the reduction of modifiable predictors: hypertension, smoking, physical inactivity, and poor diet"

Family Life and Financial Stability Affect Male Risk of Death From Stroke - Doctor's Guide, 2/12/02 - "the risk of dying from a stroke was 4.8 percent for the men reporting very serious family problems, 4.5 percent for those reporting serious family problems, 3.3 percent for those reporting non-serious family problems and 3.5 percent for those reporting no family problems ... The risk of death by stroke was 4.7 percent for the men reporting very serious financial difficulties, 3.7 for those reporting serious financial difficulties, 3.1 percent for those reporting non-serious difficulties, and 3.7 for those reporting no financial difficulties"

Blood Pressure Drugs Help the Heart - WebMD, 2/11/02 - "It's the first time researchers have documented structural changes in the heart's main pumping chamber, the left ventricle, and improved heart function through the use of blood pressure-lowering (antihypertensive) medications ... The patients received one of two blood pressure-reducing drugs -- either Cozaar, or Tenormin (atenolol), a beta-blocker ... After a year, the participants were examined again, and researchers found the treatment reduced blood pressure by an average of 23 mmHg systolic and 11 mmHg diastolic. Heart size was also reduced by an average of 10%, which led to improved blood flow into the heart's main pumping chamber ... At the start of the study, only 15% of the participants had normal blood flow into the left ventricle, but after a year of treatment with blood pressure-lowering medications that number grew to about 26%. In addition, researchers found an improvement in the heart's ability to relax, and stiffness was reduced"

Regular Exercise Appears to Lower Homocysteine Levels in Stroke Patients - Doctor's Guide, 2/11/02 - "There is a lot of data from cardiological studies showing that inactivity raises homocysteine levels. This is the first to show that regular exercise can actually lower homocysteine levels"

Thyroid Disorders are Inherited, Often Hidden - Doctor's Guide, 2/11/02 - "Our research shows that there is a large population of Americans who suffer from hidden thyroid disorders"

Levothyroxine Treatment and Occurrence of Fracture of the Hip - Archives of Internal Medicine, 2/11/02 - "Prescription of levothyroxine [T4] was an independent predictor of fracture occurrence in males (AOR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.12-2.56; P = .01) but not females"

Physical Activity and Cognitive Decline in Elderly Persons - Archives of Internal Medicine, 2/11/02 - "Women with high-level physical activity at baseline [walking at least 2 km [1.23 miles] per day] were less likely to experience mental decline during 12 years of follow-up; in fact, cognitive decline (a loss of 1 or more MSQ points) occurred in 16.7% of the high-activity elderly women compared with 39.5% of those with low activity levels (P = .02). Furthermore, after controlling for the MSQ at baseline, low level of physical activity was associated with higher risk of 12 years' cognitive decline (relative risk, 3.7; 95% confidence interval, 1.2-11.1)"

Persistent Mild Depression In Older Adults May Lower Immunity And Ability To Fight Off Disease, According To New Study - Intelihealth, 2/11/02 - "even chronic, sub-clinical mild depression may suppress an older person's immune system. Those with chronic mild depression had poorer lymphocyte -T cell responses to 2 mitogens at the follow up 18 months later. And the older a person was, the poorer the immune response was to mitogens -- a model for how the body responds to outside agents, like viruses and bacteria"

Night Eating Syndrome Due to Stress, Not Hunger - ABC News, 2/11/02 - "The study group was "worn out," Birketvedt explained. For example, their levels of the stress hormone cortisol at the beginning of the study were higher than those seen in the comparison group ... these findings indicate that "the relationship between the adrenal gland (which releases cortisol), the hypothalamus, where the appetite center is and the pituitary, where a lot of hormones are produced, is out of control"

Choline Precursors Lower Stroke Death and Disability Rates, Meta-analysis Indicates - Doctor's Guide, 2/11/02 - "Choline precursors are a group of molecules that get converted to phospholipids in the brain. Phospholipids perform many functions, including serving as crucial nerve cell membrane components and acting as neurotransmitters. Choline precursors include drugs like lecithin and citicoline ... Death and disability rate was 54.6 (611/1119) percent for patients treated with choline precursors compared to 66.4 (561/844) percent for those on placebo ... choline precursors might improve ischemic brain damage in two ways, by neuroprotection or by enhancement of neurorepair processes" - Note:  Phosphatidylserine (PS) supplements contain mixture of phospholipids.  The best supplier of PS is Degussa Bioactives, which used to be Lucas-Meyer but they broke up into two companies.  See their phospholipids page.  Taking PS supplements has the added benefit of lowering cortisol.

Probiotics During Pregnancy, Lactation May Promote Immunoprotection Against Atopic Eczema - Doctor's Guide, 2/8/02 - "Probiotics administered during pregnancy and lactation appears to promote the immunoprotective potential of breast-feeding ... The probiotics also protect infants against atopic eczema during the first two years"

Feeling Fit: Good bacteria - CNN, 2/5/02 - "But because it can be hard to get good bacteria through diet alone, many people are turning to supplements" - See the video.

Infected gums leak toxins into bloodstream: study - Reuters, 2/7/02 - "People with severe gum disease may be prone to releasing bacterial poisons known as endotoxins into their bloodstream, which may help explain the link between gum infections and cardiovascular disease ... Those with severe periodontal disease were nearly four times as likely to have significant levels of endotoxins after chewing than those with healthy gums"

The Aging Eye ...and what can be done to protect it - Life Extension Magazine, 2/02 - "Few people know that poor vision from cataracts affects 80% of people 75 years of age and older ... The good news is that a lot of published research exists showing that the cataract progression can be slowed or prevented by the use of natural therapies and minor lifestyle changes"

Thermogenics and Weight Management - Body Wise Healthbeat Newsletter, 1/02 - "The Ayruvedic herb Coleus forskholii may well be the thermogenic agent we have all been waiting for, as it is both beneficial for fat burning and has no known harmful effects ... The active ingredient in coleus is forskolin, which directly activates a substance in the body called adenylate cyclase that in turn triggers an increase in a metabolic substance called cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). This increase in cAMP turns on the system responsible for release of fat from the cells of the body where it is stored (through a substance called hormone-sensitive lipase)"

Considering Cholesterol - LipidManagement Newsletter, Winter 2001/2002 - "Be aware that labels on most of these products do not indicate whether they contain trans fats. Instead, they state that the foods contain partially hydrogenated oils, which should be avoided. Also, labels on products containing trans fats—which some experts consider worse than saturated fats because they increase LDL-C and reduce HDL-C—may claim that they contain no cholesterol or saturated oils, but that doesn't mean they're heart-healthy!" - The following is a related trans fats article about Smart Balance Margarine, the only margarine I know of that doesn't have trans fats:

The Watch Magazine: Smart Balance - Brandeis University - "Smart Balance contains three different vegetable oils: canola oil, which serves as the primary source of monounsaturated fat, soybean oil, the primary source of polyunsaturated fat, and palm oil, the primary saturated fat source. Perlman explained that by combining the right type of saturates Hayes found the best cholesterol ratio of LDL (low density lipoprotein) to HDL (high density lipoprotein) by creating the ratio 8:12:8 of saturates: monounsaturate: polyunsaturates. In addition, Smart Balance does not have a trace of trans fatty acid, an unhealthy component of Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils used in fast food restaurants"

Heart Protection Study Reveals Promising Results of Statin Therapy - LipidManagement Newsletter, Winter 2001/2002 - "Risk of heart attack and stroke was reduced by at least one-third in both high-risk and lower-risk individuals taking an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor (statin) in the largest cholesterol-lowering study ever conducted" - Note:  Red Yeast Rice is also a statin and is still sold at VitaminShoppe.

I was updating my l-phenylalanine page and came across this:

Exercise Levels Of Phenylethylamine May Damp Depression - Doctor's Guide, 9/27/01 - "Administration of phenylethylamine or its precursor L-phenylalanine, in conjunction with selegiline, a selective monoamine oxidase B inhibitor, has been reported to alleviate depression and to produce improvements in mood. The effects are sustained and also apparent in some patients who are insensitive to conventional treatment"

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