Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 12/14/05.  You should consult your doctor if you are taking any medications.

Relief for Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder? - Physician's Weekly, 12/19/05 - "The pill—a low dose of ethinyl estradol and drospirenon—was shown to decrease daily premenstrual dysphoric disorder symptom scores by half in 48%"

You thought coffee was bad for you? Actually, it seems to protect against all sorts of ills, from diabetes to liver cancer - US News, 12/19/05 - "a cup of joe--or a carafe--may chase away the blues; turn you into a better athlete; and protect against diabetes, Parkinson's disease, gallstones, and some cancers ... a two-cup-a-day habit can dramatically cut the risk of chronic liver disease in those at greatest risk"

Pancreatic Cancer Tied to Insulin Woes - WebMD, 12/13/05 - "Some of the men's blood samples showed higher levels of blood glucose, insulin resistance, and high insulin levels. Those men were more likely to later develop pancreatic cancer than those without insulin problems" - Related article on hyperinsulinemia and cancer:

• Diabetics Face Increased Risk of Colorectal Cancer - Doctor's Guide, 11/2/05 - "hyperinsulinemia and hyperglycemia promote the growth of colorectal cancer"

Fiber Not Protective for Colon Cancer - WebMD, 12/13/05 - "even if fiber does not have a major impact on colorectal cancer, there is convincing evidence that dietary fiber helps prevent heart disease, type 2 diabetes, the colon disease diverticulitis, and other several chronic conditions"

Testosterone May Ease Alzheimer's - WebMD, 12/12/05 - "testosterone replacement therapy improved the mood, overall well-being, and personal relationships of men with Alzheimer's disease"

High cholesterol may raise blood pressure - MSNBC, 12/12/05 - "Men with the worst levels of bad cholesterol compared to good cholesterol had a 54 percent higher risk of high blood pressure compared to the mean with the healthiest levels"

Tea May Cut Ovarian Cancer Risk - WebMD, 12/12/05 - "Women who drank at least 2 cups of tea per day had a 46% lower risk of ovarian cancer compared with nontea drinkers; each additional cup of tea was associated with an 18% lower risk of ovarian cancer" - See iHerb green tea products.

Dietary iron linked to upper GI cancer risk - MSNBC, 12/12/05 - "Consumption of high levels of dietary iron appear to be associated with an increased risk of throat and stomach cancer"

Researchers link vitamin D to healthier lungs - MSNBC, 12/12/05 - "those who had higher levels of vitamin D were able to inhale and exhale more air"

Fish Oil May Treat Lung Disease - WebMD, 12/12/05 - "People in the omega-3 group had two advantages. They had a significant drop in lung inflammation. They also walked farthest in the six-minute walking test" - See Mega Twin EPA at iHerb.

Folic Acid to Boost Memory? - Dr. Weil, 12/13/05 - "those who took the folic acid had memory scores equal to people five and a half years younger" - See iHerb folic acid products.

Pistachios Pummel Cholesterol - WebMD, 12/9/05 - "Among commonly eaten nuts and seeds, pistachios and sunflower seeds had the highest phytosterol content"

Vitamin D May Help Treat Some Asthma - WebMD, 12/8/05 - "vitamin D may help people with steroid-resistant asthma respond better to steroid pills taken for asthma"

Magnesium could reduce osteoporosis risk - Nutra USA, 12/8/05 - "Higher Mg intake through diet and supplements was positively associated with total-body [bone mineral density] BMD in older white men and women. For every 100 mg per day increase in Mg, there was an approximate 2 per cent increase in whole-body BMD" - See iHerb magnesium products.

Low-Glycemic Load Diet Facilitates Weight Loss in Overweight Adults with High Insulin Secretion - Doctor's Guide, 12/7/05 - "The regulation of body weight is, at least in part, influenced by how much insulin a person secretes in response to a load of glucose, as well as by how sensitive that person is to insulin's glucose-lowering effects" - [Science Daily] Related article:

• Vinegar as a Sweet Solution? - Science News, 12/18/04 - "2 tablespoons of vinegar before a meal—perhaps, as part of a vinaigrette salad dressing—will dramatically reduce the spike in blood concentrations of insulin and glucose that come after a meal ... vinegar cut their blood-glucose rise in the first hour after a meal by about half ... a 2-pound weight loss, on average, over the 4 weeks in the vinegar group" - See Vinegar tablets at iHerb (1 - 500 mg tablet equals 2 tsb of vinegar.  4.5 tablets equals about 3 tablespoons by my calculations).

A New Strategy for Preventing Metabolic Syndrome - Life Extension Magazine, 12/05 - "Nutraceutical strategy ... DHEA: 10-50 mg per day to start (men), 10-30 mg per day to start (women); assess effect via repeat blood test ... EPA/DHA: 2 capsules twice daily ... Lipoic acid: 150 mg once or twice daily ... Mixed bioflavonoids: 1400 mg twice daily ... Mixed tocopherols: 400 IU twice daily with mixed tocotrienols (75 mg twice daily) ... Vitamin A: 5000 IU per day, with mixed carotenoids (for example, lutein 5000 mcg, lycopene 3000 mcg, and zeaxanthin 360 mcg) daily ... Water-soluble cinnamon extract: 85 mg three times daily, 30 minutes before meals ... Barley extract: 2.5 grams three times daily with meals ... Pycnogenol: 200 mg daily ... Coffee extract standardized for 50% phenolic acids: 100 mg three times daily, 30 minutes before meals"

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

Tea Consumption and Ovarian Cancer Risk in a Population-Based Cohort - Arch Intern Med. 2005;165:2683-2686 - "Each additional cup of tea per day was associated with an 18% lower risk of ovarian cancer"

Effects of Testosterone on Cognition and Mood in Male Patients With Mild Alzheimer Disease and Healthy Elderly Men - Arch Neurol. 2006;63 - "For the patients with AD, the testosterone-treated group had significantly greater improvements in the scores on the caregiver version of the quality-of-life scale"

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