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Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 1/8/03:

Maker to withdraw antidepressant Dutonin in Europe - Reuters, 1/8/02 - "As of December 2002, worldwide there have been 26 reports of liver failure," ... The drug is known as Serzone in the US"

Vitamin Supplementation in Elderly Persons - JAMA, 1/8/03 - "Ms Graat and colleagues1 found that multivitamin supplements did not prevent acute respiratory tract infections in healthy elderly persons. The authors used a multivitamin and trace-element preparation that contained recommended daily allowances (RDAs) of vitamins but only 25% to 50% of the RDAs for minerals. The RDAs, however, are intended to prevent nutritional deficiency, and may be too low to produce further benefits.2, 3 Other studies, using nutrients in amounts based on physiological dose-response curves and immune responses, have found beneficial effects.4, 5" - Like I've been saying, quality counts. - Ben

Zinc Spray Shortens Colds - WebMD, 1/7/03 - "patients using Zicam, an over-the-counter nasal spray, cut the length of their colds an average of 1.5 days compared with those treated with a placebo. However, some patients slashed their cold duration in half -- from six days to only three" - See Zicam at drugstore.com .

Vitamin C, Fish, And A Gout Drug Target Artery Damage From Smoking - Intelihealth, 1/7/03 - "vitamin C and taurine, an amino acid in fish, reversed abnormal blood vessel response associated with cigarette smoking - a discovery that may provide insight into how smoking contributes to "hardening of the arteries,"" - See iHerb (5% discount "qc") or taurine products.  Several years ago when I first started my web site I was getting numerous emails and phone calls from Canadians asking were they could purchase taurine.  The only thing I could figure was that a Canadian news service might have come out with something on taurine.  I take a gram a day of the Jarrow brand.

Peruvian plant extract may benefit arthritis - Reuters, 1/7/03 - "the plant extract [Cat's claw] was found to modulate patients' immune systems, safely reducing the number of swollen and tender joints ... treatment with the extract reduced the number of painful joints by 53% compared to 24% for patients given an inactive placebo ... One advantage of using the plant is that there were no or only minor side effects" - See iHerb (5% discount code "qc") or  Vitacost Cat's claw products.  Related article from last week's newsletter:

• Research Sharpens Interest in Cat's Claw - Natural Foods Merchandiser, 1/03 - "One study showed that cat's claw extract in vitro is a potent antimutagen in relation to breast cancer cells (Anticancer Research, 2001). Another study suggested that cat's claw can inhibit the growth of both leukemia and lymphoma cells (Anticancer Research, 1998) ... In addition, its immune-enhancing and antiviral properties may have a positive effect on viral diseases such as herpes and shingles (Alternative Medicine Review, 2001) ... cat's claw's ability to fight inflammation rivals its immuno-stimulating properties ... The plant has been shown to be effective in treating a wide variety of gastrointestinal conditions, including Crohn's disease, parasites, diverticulitus, leaky bowel syndrome and ulcers"

Alzheimer's Drugs Help More Than Memory - WebMD, 1/7/03 - "Four such drugs have been approved by the FDA for use in the U.S. -- Reminyl, approved in 2001; Exelon, approved in 2000; Aricept, approved in 1996; and Cognex, approved in 1993, but rarely used now because it can cause liver problems ... treatment with one of these drugs for at least one month slowed the worsening of functional skills such as the ability to dress, bathe and shop. And it improved psychiatric symptoms including depression, hallucinations, delusions, anxiety, and apathy"

BP Drug Cozaar Also Prevents Stroke - WebMD, 1/7/03 - "Cozaar reduced the risk of stroke by about 25% compared with atenolol" - Cozaar is an ARB.  See my ARB page.  Seems like every month there's another study supporting ARBs over other anti-hypertensives.  Plus, because they have the least side effects, ARBs have the highest compliance.  One the down side, I don't believe they have been around long enough to know if there are any long term negative effects.

HRT May Reduce Diabetes Risk - WebMD, 1/6/03 - "postmenopausal women with heart disease who took a combination of estrogen and progestin (Prempro) had a 35% lower risk of developing diabetes than those who took a placebo. The women on HRT also had more normal fasting blood sugar levels, which when high suggest the likely onset of diabetes"

Newly Approved Rheumatoid Arthritis Medication, Humira (Adalimumab) Available To US Pharmacies This Week - Doctor's Guide, 1/6/03 - "it will begin supplying its newly approved biologic, Humira™ (adalimumab), to pharmacies throughout the United States this week, making it available to people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) by mid-January"

Testosterone May Help Depressed Men - WebMD, 1/3/03 - "nearly half of the men who had not responded to conventional depression treatment had low or low-to-normal testosterone levels. And several showed dramatic improvement when the male hormone was given along with antidepressants" - Click here for the abstract.

Too Few Heart Drugs Prescribed - WebMD, 1/3/03 - "Too few patients get the drugs they need to prevent serious heart diseases. The problem isn't cost -- it's doctors ... patients may need to be their own advocates ... They should make sure that these medications are a topic of conversation with their doctors"

EFA Combo Reduces Risk of Myocardial Infarction - Health Supplement Retailer, 1/3/03 - "Based on these positive changes in blood lipid and fatty acid profiles, researchers concluded the women in the 4:2 group [4 grams EPA/DHA plus 2 grams GLA] had an estimated 43-percent reduction in their 10-year risk of myocardial infarction" - My favorites are Twinlab Mega Twin EPA and Jarrow Max DHA. (5% discount code "qc").

Korean Red Ginseng Benefits Men with Impotence - New Hope Natural Media, 1/2/03 - "Men experiencing sexual difficulties due to inability to achieve erection may be helped by Korean red ginseng (Panax ginseng), according to a study published in the Journal of Urology ... It is a problem that affects nearly half of men over age forty worldwide ... Some 60% of participants reported improved erections while receiving ginseng. Improved sexual desire was also reported during ginseng treatment. Testosterone levels did not change with treatment, leading the researchers to conclude that improvements observed with ginseng are not due to hormonal effects" - See iHerb (5% discount code "qc") or Vitacost Korean (Panax) ginseng.

Atherosclerosis Affects Age-Related Renal Changes - Doctor's Guide, 1/2/03 - "Atherosclerosis speeds up kidney shrinkage and increases in serum creatinine levels on top of the known effects of aging ... the investigators conclude that atherosclerosis accelerates the decrease of renal size and the increase in serum creatinine with age"

Omega-3 Fatty Acid Treatment of Women With Borderline Personality Disorder: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study -  American Journal of Psychiatry, 1/03 - "The results of this study suggest that E-EPA may be a safe and effective form of monotherapy for women with moderately severe borderline personality disorder"

Everything you need to know about cancer-fighting foods, supplements, and herbs - Delicious! Online, 1/03 - "Research also suggests that including even small amounts of fish in your diet on a regular basis protects against cancer (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1999, vol. 70, no. 1). Fish contains omega-3 essential fatty acids (specifically EPA and DHA), which help stop cancer growth"

Combating Skin Aging - Life Extension Magazine, 1/03 - "Factors that induce skin damage involve the excessive production of free radicals. Protecting against these free radical insults is a proven way to slow the effects of aging ... the vitamin C-treated side of the face showed a statistically significant 71% combined score improvement ... The oral ingestion of fish, flax or perilla oil provides abundant quantities of the omega-3 fatty acids that are so beneficial to the health and appearance of the skin ... DMAE may be the first topical agent that can help firm sagging skin" - See Drugstore.com vitamin C serums and glycolic acid products. Dr. Perricone, author of The Wrinkle Cure was on PBS and DMAE was one of the supplements he was big on.

Understanding Essential Fatty Acids - Health Supplement Retailer, 01/03 - "EPA appears to be the omega-3 that is primarily responsible for lowering triglyceride levels and promoting cardiovascular health, while DHA is one of the most abundant fatty acids in the brain and is responsible for proper brain development and neural transmission ... The omega-6 LA is fairly prevalent in the human diet, as it is found in a wide variety of vegetable and seed oils. However, many people do not have good enzymatic conversion by the delta-6 desaturase enzyme of LA to GLA. GLA and dihomogamma linolenic acid (DGLA) are the precursors for the series 1 prostaglandins. As such, they regulate a number of body functions, including skin integrity and joint lubrication" - My favorites are Twinlab Mega Twin EPA and Jarrow Max DHA. (5% discount code "qc").

I modified my reduced calorie pumpkin pie receipt to increase the fiber and lower the sugar using Splenda.  Seems like one slice and I'm not hungry for about seven hours.  I haven't read anything bad about Splenda yet.  It's made with sugar but supposedly the molecule is too big to be absorbed.

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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 / Free Shipping at drugstore.com / GNC / Bare Necessities (everyone needs underwear) / Body Wise International / DiabetesStore.Com (syringes for hGH) / Gero Vita International / DermaDoctor / Dr. Whitaker / Online Prescriptions / Body by Jake / 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 / 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

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