Associated Press: Federal health regulators have issued warnings to the makers of Canada Dry ginger ale and Lipton tea for making unsubstantiated nutritional claims about their green tea-flavored beverages. In a warning letter issued Aug. 30, the Food and Drug Administration takes issue with the labeling of Canada Dry Sparkling Green Tea Ginger Ale. Tea leaves Camilla sinensis made into green tea has plenty of health benefits, including most experts agree, some protection against breast cancer. Tea is refreshing, slightly diuretic and cleansing for safe weightloss. Why bother with green tea pop?
Tag Archive for 'cancer'
Medpage Today: In an analysis involving some 80,000 patients tracked for more than seven years on average, individuals diagnosed with esophageal cancer of were 1.93 times as likely to have received at least 10 prescriptions for oral bisphosphonates compared with controls not having cancer, reported Dr. Jane Green of the University of Oxford in England and colleagues online in BMJ.. . The FDA has collected a total of 68 case reports of esophageal cancer in patients taking bisphosphonates — half in the United States and the rest in Europe and Japan — but has not ordered label warnings.
Common oral bisphosphonates:
etidronate (Didronel), pamidronate (Aredia), alendronate (Fosamax), risedronate (Actonel), zoledronate (Zometa or Reclast), ibandronate (Boniva)
The bisphosphonates are powerful, causing dramatic changes in the bone physiology. In women or men whose bone density T-score is lower than -2.5, or who already have a vertebral fracture, these medicines are prescribed to “reduce the incidence of fractures and improve the quality of life.”
Does reducing or increasing “stress” improve our survival from cancer? Telegraph/uk: July 9, 2010:
“Cancer patients who change their lifestyle to keep company with more people could see substantial improvements in their condition, the study suggests.”
Researchers found that moving mice with cancer from their standard laboratory lodgings – where they live in groups of five – to more spacious accommodation shared with up to 20 other rodents had a significant positive effect on the progress of their condition. Their tumors shrunk in weight by an average of 77 per cent (43 per cent by volume), while five per cent of the mice showed no evidence of cancer after three weeks. The mice’s “enriched” environment also included more space them exercise and toys with which to play, but the researchers identified the “stress of socialising” as the key factor in suppressing the cancers. . . What’s wrong with this study? Why can’t it be applied to people? No one asked the mice if living in a larger, more densely populated community was positive or negative stress.
Dried, sliced astragalus sold in Chinese herb shops and supermarkets.
WebMD: July 7, 2010 — Aging cells greatly increase your risk of deadly cancer — even if you’re still relatively young. Cells stay young as long as they are able to repair their own DNA. That’s up to telomeres, the proteins at the end of each chromosome. But every time a cell reproduces, its telomeres get shorter. A startling new study now shows that people who accumulate a lot of cells with short telomeres have greatly increased risk of fatal cancers. What increases telomere strand length–thereby protecting DNA and preventing cancers? Astragalus. Simmer 8 slices in a quart of water for 30 minutes and drink it between meals for improved energy and immunity. Here are three important studies.
Is there one herb you can use for fever, hot flashes, anxiety, and insomnia? It may be skullcap named for the decorative hat worn by women during early American colonial times. Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora,) AKA helmet flower, blue pimpernel, Quaker bonnet, hoodwort, and mad dog weed, grows wild in the woods of eastern North America. Skullcap was originally used as a treatment for rabies because of its tranquilizing effect on the central nervous system. Clinical studies have demonstrated skullcap’s ability to improve blood flow in the brain, inhibit muscle spasms, and act as a sedative. Some alternative health practitioners are now using skullcap to help treat symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Skullcap is used in the treatment of a wide range of nervous conditions including epilepsy, insomnia, hysteria, anxiety, delirium tremens, withdrawal from barbiturates and tranquilizers.
In Greek mythology, Zeus decided to give the city of Athens to the god who provided the most useful gift to humanity. Poseidon, god of sea and storms, sent a bolt that created a spring. Athena, goddess of war, civilization, wisdom, strength, strategy, justice, and skill, created the olive tree, and won the competition. Olive wreaths were worn by Greek brides and awarded to Olympic victors. In Ancient Rome, a defeated army carried olive branches as a gesture of peace. Olive leaf is one of the most health-giving herbal teas.
You may not smoke but breathe city air. Pollution, stress, hormonal changes, and bad habits increase the damage. We all know smoking causes mouth, throat, and lung cancers. Smoking is bad for your heart, lungs, brain, and even your sex life. But few people take into account the disastrous effects smoking has on beauty and vitality. Here are common signs of smoking damage: bags under the eyes; psoriasis; icky teeth, yellow nails, premature aging and wrinkles, thinning hair, warts, scarring, tooth loss, slow-healing wounds, stretch marks, tummy fat, dull complexion, skin cancer, and cataracts to name a few. June 2, 2010, CDC news: American cigarettes are even more cancer-provoking than those smoked around the world. What can you do?
Continue reading ‘15 Ways Smoking (& pollution) Wreck Your Looks’
Reuters: That tens of thousands of Americans lost their health insurance shortly after being diagnosed with life-threatening, expensive medical conditions has been well documented by law enforcement agencies, state regulators and a congressional committee. Insurance companies have used the practice, known as “rescission,” for years. And a congressional committee last year said WellPoint was one of the worst offenders.
WellPoint also has specifically targeted women with breast cancer for aggressive investigation with the intent to cancel their policies, federal investigators told Reuters. The revelation is especially striking for a company whose CEO and president, Angela Braly, has earned plaudits for how her company improved the medical care and treatment of other policyholders with breast cancer. WellPoint declined to comment on specific cases without a signed waiver from them, citing privacy laws.
Angela Braly
was recognized by the St. Louis Business Journal as one of the 25 Most Influential Women in Business for 2000 and was named one of Modern Healthcare’s Top 25 Women in Healthcare in 2007. Forbes listed Braly as the sixteenth most powerful woman in the world in 2007.
A recent investigation by Reuters showed that another health insurance company, Assurant Health, similarly targeted HIV-positive policyholders for rescission. That company was ordered by courts to pay millions of dollars in settlements. “People have this idea that someone is going to flip a switch and rescission and other bad insurance practices are going to end,” says Peter Harbage, a former health care adviser to the Clinton administration. “Insurers will find ways to undermine the protections in the new law, just as they did with the old law. Enforcement is the key.” Papa Bear says, “Don’t wait for the government to enforce the health care law. Instead, take the insurance company to court and sue them for damages both physical and emotional. If they are in violation of the law, they will be subject to a punitive judgment which can reach several times the award given to the plaintiff.”
Stem Cell photo: University of Texas.
Did you catch the special report Saturday March 20th, 2010 on CNN about American doctors who are able to “grow” new organ tissue using a patient’s own stem cells? Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC was featured. CNN showed how doctors could “grow” an ear using the patient’s stem cells. It was “grown” using a form shaped like an ear. The field of Regenerative Medicine is multidisciplinary by necessity. Even the most simplistic attempt to replicate the functional regeneration of tissues and organs requires the coordinated expertise of biologists, chemists, physiologists, engineers, and physicians. One approach to coalescing investigators into functional teams is to begin their multidisciplinary training early. This is the goal of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) Summer Scholars Program.
