Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 4/27/05

ACE Inhibitor Use May Slow Calcium Build-Up in Aortic Valve - Medscape, 4/26/05 - "Treatment with an ACE inhibitor appears to slow the accumulation of calcium in the aortic valve"

Long or Short Sleep Time May Be Associated With Diabetes - Medscape, 4/26/05 - "Sleep duration of six hours or less or nine hours or more is associated with increased prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT)"

WBC Counts Predict Future CVD Events - Physician's Weekly, 4/25/05 - "Patients with WBC counts greater than 6.7 x 109 cells/L were found to be at high risk, even when clinicians had not identified traditional CVD risk factors"

Boost In Immune Response Fights Common Cold - Science Daily, 4/24/05 - "Nursing facility residents who consumed 200 International Units (IUs) of vitamin E daily for one year were less likely to get the sniffles than those who took a placebo ... those who took the moderate supplements were 20 percent less likely to contract upper respiratory infections, such as colds"

Fight Osteoporosis: Bone Up On B12 - Science Daily, 4/23/05 - "This study suggests adequate vitamin B12 intake is important for maintaining bone mineral density"

Purified Green Tea Polyphenol Capsules Taken Daily Appear to Substantially Reduce Prostate Cancer in High Risk Patients - Doctor's Guide, 4/22/05 - "researchers reported a 90% decrease in the rate of prostate cancer in men who received 200 mg doses of the polyphenol capsules three times a day for 1 year" - See iHerb green tea products (15% discount code "qc")

Vitamin E May Help Ease Menstrual Cramps - Reuters, 4/22/05 - "those who took vitamin E starting two days before their periods suffered far less cramping than their peers who used only standard pain medication"

Metformin May Cut Risk of Cancer in Diabetics - Medscape, 4/22/05 - "The odds ratio for any exposure to metformin since 1993 was 0.79" - See metformin at IAS.

FDA Approves New Oral Rinse To Help Treat Gingivitis - Science Daily, 4/21/05 - "The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved a new prescription treatment for gingivitis ... The Decapinol Oral Rinse treats gingivitis by reducing the number of bacteria that attach to tooth surfaces and cause dental plaque. Decapinol is approved for use in persons 12 years of age or older when routine oral hygiene is not adequate to prevent gingivitis"

Calcium Supplements Keep on Working Even After They Are Stopped - Doctor's Guide, 4/21/05 - "People at high risk of colon cancer appear to reduce the risk of developing polyps while taking calcium supplements and continue to benefit for as long as 5 years after they stop taking them"

High-Dose Omega-3 Oils Used to Treat Non-Surgical Neck and Back Pain - Doctor's Guide, 4/20/05 - "this could be the answer to the adverse effects seen with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), including cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 inhibitors, which have been associated with potentially catastrophic adverse effects ... 88% percent said they were pleased enough with the outcomes that they planned to continue using the fish oils" - See Mega Twin EPA at iHerb.

Breast Cancer Protection Starts in the Womb - WebMD, 4/20/05 - "Mothers who choose foods packed with omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy and while nursing and then feed their kids such a diet after weaning may reduce the risk of breast cancer in their daughters by nearly 90%, early research in mice indicates"

Electric Toothbrushes May Be Better At Fighting Plaque, Gum Disease - Science Daily, 4/20/05 - "Over the short term of one to three months, the rotating brushes reduced plaque by 11 percent over manual toothbrushes and reduced the signs of gingivitis, or gum inflammation, by 6 percent over the regular brushes ... The powered brushes reduced gingivitis by 17 percent over the manual brushes after more than three months’ use" [HealthDay] - See Braun Oral-B products at drugstore.com.

Chili, broccoli help prevent cancer, studies show - MSNBC, 4/20/05 - "Our results demonstrate that capsaicin is a potent anticancer agent, induces apoptosis in cancer cells and produces no significant damage to normal pancreatic cells, indicating its potential use as a novel chemotherapeutic agent for pancreatic cancer"

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

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