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Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 5/15/02:

I've started putting the newsletter that is under construction for the following week at http://www.qualitycounts.com/newsletter/.

Omega 3: Implications in human health and disease - PowerPak (39 page CME course for Registered Dietitians), exp. 8/1/03 - "From these early models, we know that diets high in the omega 6 LA—the typical American diet—suppress the metabolism and accretion of blood and tissue omega 3 fatty acids ... On average, our society consumes around 35% of its caloric intake from fat, mainly as vegetable oil. The omega 6 LA comprises 7% to 9% of our daily caloric intake, while the omega 3 LNA makes up about 0.7% of energy. It is therefore estimated that the dietary ratio of LA to LNA ranges from 10 to 20:1, at which level the metabolism of LNA is strongly suppressed.2,25 Again, this is far more than the recommended ratio of 2.3:1" - Note that the omega-3 in a supplement is the total of the eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) and docosahexaenoic acids (DHA), not the total fish oil that is says on the label.  That's a confusing area the the FDA should be cracking down on.  TwinLab TwinEPAicon is the highest potency I've been able to find.

Fiber Stalls High Blood Pressure - WebMD, 5/15/02 - "Whole grains are included as part of the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet, which has been found to help reduce blood pressure. The diet emphasizes fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products and recommends a daily intake of more than 25 grams of fiber a day. But Samuel says that based on the results of this study, whole grains aren't emphasized enough"

Take Aspirin at Night for Heart Benefits - WebMD, 5/15/02 - "Aspirin didn't affect blood pressure if given in the morning. But when given at night, it had a significant effect: a 7.0 mmHg decrease in systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood-pressure reading) and a 4.8 mmHg decrease in diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number)."

Aspirin Has a One-Two Punch That Protects Heart - ABC News, 5/14/02 - "Researchers attribute aspirin's ability to prevent heart disease to its ability to decrease the "stickiness" of platelets, cells that play a key role in blood clot formation. However, the results from this study suggest that some of the benefits of aspirin may actually stem from its anti-inflammatory properties"

Vegetarian Diet May Protect Against Breast Cancer - ABC News, 5/14/02 - "In the study, the women who consumed the most vegetables and fiber were the least likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer"

Diabetics May Be Taking Wrong Drug - ABC News, 5/14/02 - "The drug package insert warns that Glucophage can cause a rare side effect called lactic acidosis, a buildup of lactic acid in the blood that is fatal in about half of all cases. The label says it should not be used by patients with kidney disease or those who are taking drugs for heart failure" - Note:  Some feel that Glucophage (metformin) is important for anti-aging.  See:

Lymphocyte Oxidative DNA Damage and Plasma Antioxidants in Alzheimer Disease - Archives of Neurology, 5/02 - "Markers of oxidative damage are increased in AD and correlate with decreased levels of plasma antioxidants. These findings suggest that lymphocyte DNA 8-OHdG content in patients with AD reflects a condition of increased oxidative stress related to a poor antioxidant status"

Calcium and Vitamin D3 Effective and Cost-Saving in Preventing Hip Fracture in Elderly European Women - Doctor's Guide, 5/13/02 - "simple dietary supplementation with calcium and vitamin D not only helps prevent hip fracture in institutionalized elderly women, it also saves up to 711,000 Euros (some US $640,000) per 1000 treated ... One group received elemental 1200 mg/day calcium plus 800 IU/day vitamin D3, while the other received a placebo. After three years, 25 percent fewer hip fractures were found among members of the supplemented group ... The savings may even be greater than this: remember, this study only takes into account hip fractures, but supplementation could prevent many other types of fracture as well" - See Body Wise Essential Calcium

Older Adults Can Exercise Just Once A Week To Maintain Muscle Strength - Doctor's Guide, 5/13/02 - "skeletal muscle strength gains achieved during a 12-week progressive resistance training program would be maintained by resistance training once per week"

Study Links Statins to Risk of Nerve Damage - Doctor's Guide, 5/13/02 - "Compared to a "control" group of people who did not have neuropathy, people who had taken statins were 4 to 14 times more likely to develop polyneuropathy that did not have a known cause ... Any side effects of the drugs must be weighed against this "very substantial benefit," ... the study shows that polyneuropathy occurs in 1 out of every 2,200 patients who take statins" - Another reason why it may be better to combine (at lower doses) cholesterol lowering supplements that work via different pathways (such as red yeast rice, policosanol, guggul, etc.).  See my cholesterol page for others.  Jarrow already has a formulas like that.  See Cholestame with Red Yeast Rice or with policosanol called Cholestame with Policosanol

Tea May Strengthen Bones - ABC News, 5/13/02 - "Tea contains fluoride and chemical compounds known as flavenoids that include estrogen-like plant derivatives both of which may enhance bone strength ... The highest overall bone-mineral density was found in people who said they had consumed tea regularly for more than 10 years; their hip-bone density was 6.2 percent higher than in non-habitual tea drinkers" - See Nature's Way Green Tea Extract.

Results Of Head-To-Head Efficacy Study Of Osteoporosis Drugs Unveiled - Fosamax® (Alendronate Sodium), The Only Once Weekly Osteoporosis Medication Approved In Canada, Shown To Be More Effective Than Risedronate - Doctor's Guide, 5/13/02 - "In the first head-to-head efficacy study(1) comparing Fosamax® (alendronate sodium) 70 mg once weekly and Actonel® (risedronate) 5 mg once daily, alendronate was shown to be more effective in the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis"

Serum Folate And Estradiol Levels Interact In Alzheimer's Disease - Doctor's Guide, 5/13/02 - "a high ratio of estradiol to total estrogens is linked with AD. At the same time, in women with a high ratio, the severity of dementia is lower in those with high serum folate levels ... If this association is causal, then supplementation with folic acid may have a role in future studies of estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) in Alzheimer's disease (AD)"

New twists in cardio, strength, and flexibility - US News & World Report, 5/13/02 - "Cooper and his colleagues had believed cardio conditioning was the shining path to wellness, overcoming even the effects of a bad diet. But their studies now show that cardio alone can't do it. He now advocates a heart-healthy diet and vitamin supplements like antioxidants (Cooper's latest cause). He also says that eliminating tobacco products and habit-forming drugs, controlling alcohol, keeping stress levels down, and getting periodic health exams will round out everyone's fitness picture."

Women who lift weights get healthier, better bodies--not, new research shows, bulkier ones - US News & World Report, 5/13/02 - "the list of health benefits women can gain from lifting weights is growing and now includes some surprising pluses. Pumping iron increases energy-burning muscles, so you burn more calories even when you're sitting on the couch. Muscle takes up less room than fat, so you're likely to drop a size or two along with some pounds. And don't worry: It's very difficult to start looking like the Incredible Hulkette. Women have less muscle tissue and far less testosterone than men, both of which make it tricky for all but the most genetically gifted to get bulked and ripped"

Will New Drugs Head Off Diabetes? - WebMD, 5/10/02 - ""We think of IGT [impaired glucose tolerance] and diabetes as parts of what we call the metabolic syndrome. This is something that affects one in four Americans -- and up to half of the U.S. population by age 60. What we have to target is high blood sugar, whether it is IGT or type 2 diabetes." ... One diabetes drug, Glucophage, has already been shown to help prevent type 2 diabetes in people with IGT. But that same study, published in the February 2002 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, showed that exercise was even better than Glucophage at preventing diabetes"

C-Reactive Protein Predicts Diabetes Risk in Middle-Aged Men - Medscape, 5/10/02 - "The mean natural logarithm of sensitive CRP was 1.05 among those who developed diabetes versus 0.53 for the remainder of subjects, indicating its strong predictive value (p < 0.0001). Individuals with CRP greater than 4.18 mg/L had more than six times the risk of diabetes compared with those with CRP levels 0.66 mg/L or lower" - See my inflammation page for ways to reduce CRP.  Statins are one option and red yeast rice is a non-prescription statin.  See:

The Pill Seen Cutting Baby Boomer Cancer Rates - ABC News, 5/9/02 - "Studies suggest that routine use of birth control pills, which contain the female hormones estrogen and progestin, reduces a woman's risk of ovarian cancer by 30 percent to 50 percent ... Researchers theorize that the progestin component in the pill accounts for its cancer-fighting impact, rather than estrogen"

Drinking Tea May Help Prevent Heart Attacks - Doctor's Guide, 5/9/02 - "Drinking more tea and increasing flavonoid intake may help primary prevention of ischaemic heart disease ... The intake of the dietary flavonoids quercetin, kaempferol and myricetin was significantly associated inversely with fatal myocardial infarction only in upper tertiles of intake"

Calcium, Vitamin D3 Supplementation Reduces Hyperparathyroidism And Hip Fracture - Doctor's Guide, 5/9/02 - "Supplementation with a combination of calcium and vitamin D3 reverses hyperparathyroidism and the risk of hip fracture in elderly women"

Glycemic Index Helpful in Food Selection - Medscape, 5/8/02 - "11 healthy men were randomly allocated to 5 weeks of a low- or high-glycemic index (LGI or HGI) diet separated by a 5-week washout period in a crossover design. Compared with the HGI diet, the LGI diet resulted in lower postprandial plasma glucose and insulin profiles and areas under the curve, lower plasma triacylglycerol excursion after lunch, decreased total fat mass by approximately 700 g, and a tendency to increase lean body mass without changing body weight. Decreased leptin, lipoprotein lipase, and hormone-sensitive lipase mRNA quantities in the subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue accompanied decreased fat mass" - Body Wise has a "Lean Index" weight management line.  The Lean Index™ Bars and Shakes have a glycemic index of 38 and 20 respectively.

The phantom fat - MSNBC, 5/8/02 - "Trans fatty acids, commonly referred to as trans fats, are formed when vegetable oils are “hydrogenated” to harden and stabilize them. They have been associated with an increased risk of heart disease. The full extent of their impact on our health is not yet fully known ... For now, consumers should check the list of ingredients on snack foods and baked goods. If hydrogenated oil appears far down the list, there is no cause for alarm, but if it’s near the top, a different product would probably be a better choice"

Human Growth Hormone in a Pill - Part 1 - Cooper Wellness, 3/02 - "Medical professionals only use HGH intravenously, because the substance is destroyed in the digestive tract when taken by mouth. Manufacturers of oral supplemental HGH, of course have not shared this information with consumers. Although many of these nutritional products claim to have a special patented formula, which is "backed by research", take precaution because these "studies" are most likely not from the actual testing of the product, but from the mere "borrowing" of studies using the intravenous form. In addition, many "HGH" products do not even have HGH listed on their label, but instead include a wide variety of amino acids"

I updated my Coleus forskholii page. Coleus forskholii was named Nutracon best new product of 2001.  Sounds like what everyone is looking for:

Body Wise is working on a new web site specifically for doctors.  See ImmuneSolutions.net.

Affiliates (I could sure use some sales.  Click here for more stores):

Life Extension Foundation / iHerb - use this link to receive a 5% discount (discount code "qc") plus free shipping on orders over $60 / Vitacost.com / VitaminShoppe / Gerovital / drugstore.com / GNC / Body Wise International / Gero Vita International / DermaDoctor / Dr. Whitaker / Online Prescriptions / Body by Jake / ArginMax / Love Scents Pheromones / Mass Quantities / Netrition.com / Road Runner Sports / Amazon.com / Office Depot / The Sports Authority / J & R Appliance Store / Dell Computer / Buy.com / Lands' End / Walmart / Tupperware / REI / REI Outlet / Verizon DSL Internet Service / Verizon Wireless!

Life Extension Foundation buyers club Life Extension "Mix

iHerb policosanol products - use this link to receive a 5% discount (discount code "qc") plus free shipping on orders over $60 - see policosanol

Anti-aging Recommendations

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