Curry may help stave off cancers

Posted on November 6, 2007

Curry may help stave off cancers

WASHINGTON: Eating curry really may be good for your health, for a new study has found two new molecular analogues of curcumin, the yellowish component of turmeric that gives curry its flavour, which have powerful tumour suppressive properties that may help fight colorectal cancers.

The study was conducted on a mouse model by researchers from Tohoku University in Sendai, Japan, and will be presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Centennial Conference on Translational Cancer Medicine.

Research has associated curcumin with several distinct actions, including the suppression of genes that promote cell growth, and induction of programmed cell death (apoptosis) in colorectal cancer.

However, the downside is that natural curcumin has “low bioavailability” i.e. the molecule quickly loses its anti-cancer attributes when ingested.

With the aim of improving the therapeutic potential of curcumin lead researcher Hiroyuki Shibata, M.D, and his colleagues synthesized and tested 90 variations of the molecule’s structure.

They found that two variations, namely GO-Y030 and GO-Y031, proved to be more potent and bioavailable, than natural curcumin.

“Our new analogues have enhanced growth suppressive abilities against colorectal cancer cell lines, up to 30 times greater than natural curcumin,” said Shibata, associate professor in the Department of Clinical Oncology at the Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer at Tohoku University.

On the study they conducted on mice with colorectal cancer, they found that when fed with the variations, the rodents fared better than those in a control group.

“In a mouse model for colorectal cancer, mice fed with five milligrams of GO-Y030 or GO-Y031 fared 42 and 51 percent better, respectively, than did mice in the control group.”

Like curcumin, the researchers believe the new analogues have clinical potential that extends beyond colorectal cancer.

“In addition to colorectal cancer, the â catenin-degrading abilities of these molecules could apply to other forms of cancer, such as gastric cancer,” said Shibata.

“Like curcumin, these analogues also down-regulate a number of gene products, such as NF-kappa B, ErbB2, K-ras, that are also implicated in breast, pancreas and lung cancers among other diseases.

“In addition to their chemopreventative abilities, these molecules might also form the basis of a potent chemotherapy, either alone or in combination with other modes of therapy.”

The next step, the researchers state, is to further examine the drug delivery mechanisms, toxicology and pharmacokinetics of these analogues, before extending the research to clinical trials.

The study was funded by the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science and the Miyagi Health Service Association.

Breastfed babies have higher IQ

Posted on November 6, 2007

Breastfed babies have higher IQ
AFP news

CHICAGO: Scientists have identified a gene which leads children to have higher IQs if they are breastfed, a study said.

The study, released on Monday, took a bite out of the nature versus nurture debate by showing that intellectual development is influenced by both environmental and genetic factors.

“There has been some criticism of earlier studies about breastfeeding and IQ that they didn’t control for socioeconomic status, or the mother’s IQ or other factors,” said study co-author Terrie Moffitt, a professor of psychological and brain sciences at Duke University and King’s College in London.

“Our findings take an end-run around those arguments by showing the physiological mechanism that accounts for the difference.”

Researchers examined more than 3,000 breast-fed infants in Britain and New Zealand and found that the child’s IQ was an average of 6.8 points higher if the child had a particular version of a gene called FADS2.

This difference remained after researchers were able to rule out the influence of socioeconomic status, the IQ scores of the mother, birth weight and gestational age as factors.

“The argument about intelligence has been about nature versus nurture for at least a century,” Moffitt said. “We’re finding that nature and nurture work together.”

Ninety per cent of the children had at least one copy of version of the gene which yielded higher IQ if they were breast-fed.

Floating best stress and pain buster

Posted on November 6, 2007

Floating best stress and pain buster
ANI news

WASHINGTON: A recent study has found that relaxing in large, sound –and –light proof tank with salt water-floating is an effective way of easing long-term stress-related pain.

The study was conducted at the Human Performance Laboratory at Karlstad University and was carried out in collaboration with the health authorities under the Varmland County Council.

It was authored by Sven-Ake Bood, who recently completed his doctorate in psychology, with a dissertation from Karlstad University in Sweden.

The research project took under four years for concluding and included 140 individuals, all with some form of diagnosis involving stress-related long-term pain.

The recent research also agrees with an earlier thesis that improved sleep patients feels more optimistic, and the content of the vitalizing hormone prolactin increases. Anxiety, stress, depression and perception of pain declines.

The research comprised four studies that involved the treatment of pain and stress-related disorders with the aid of a floating tank. A control group that was not treated in a floating tank experienced no improvement in their health. After a period of treatment lasting a total of seven weeks, 22 percent of the participants in the floating group were entirely free of pain, and 56 experienced a clear improvement. Nineteen percent felt no change and 3 percent felt worse. And the effect persists after the treatment is completed.

“Through relaxing in floating tanks, people with long-term fibromyalgia, for instance, or depression and anxiety felt substantially better after only twelve treatments. Relaxing in a weightless state in the silent, warm floating tank activates the body’s own system for recuperation and healing,” said Sven-Ake Bood.

“The stress hormone decreases, as does blood pressure. The findings confirm and reinforce our earlier studies on the effects of relaxing in a floating tank

“The treatment method can be used for several groups, such as people with whiplash injuries, fibromyalgia, depression, and long-term stress-related pain.

“We can also see that a combination of treatment in a floating tank and traditional therapy can be effective. We are now moving on in our research and will be monitoring blood circulation in the capillaries, the oxygen uptake of the blood, and how the body’s reflexes are affected,” he added.

The study has been published in the prestigious American publication International Journal of Stress Management .

French health report smokes out shisha’s deadly secret

Posted on November 5, 2007 Updated on June 6, 2015

French health report smokes out shisha’s deadly secret

By Nina Muslim, Staff Reporter GULF NEWS

Dubai: Efforts to ban shisha-smoking in public, included in the UAE draft anti-smoking law, have got a boost from a French report which found one shisha was equivalent to smoking 70 cigarettes.

The French anti-tobacco agency (OFT), citing a national laboratory report, said one session with shisha produced 70 litres of smoke, which had 27 to 102 times the carbon tar of a cigarette, and 15 to 52 times more carbon monoxide, depending on the type of shisha smoked.

Dr Wedad Al Maidoor, head of the Anti-Smoking Committee responsible for drafting the law, told Gulf News that the study confirmed their suspicions.

“It gives a boost to our efforts. We always knew that shisha was dangerous, but we did not know by how much,” she said.

“Shisha is a very new field so there have been very few studies done on it,” other than studies done in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, she added.

Claims rubbished

Shisha, deeply associated with Arabic culture, is popular in the UAE and a draw with tourists. Shisha cafe operators have protested the proposed ban, which will only allow shisha-smoking at home.

They said the ban would adversely affect their business, the tourism industry and the economy. The proposal drew a mixed response from the public.

Dr Wedad said pooh-poohed businesses’ claims, saying the public shisha ban in Sharjah and GCC countries have shown no adverse impact on their economy. “Their economy is growing despite the ban. [In fact] we are behind them in implementing the ban,” she said.

She said the committee was working on an in-depth study on the draft law, requested by the Cabinet, addressed the possible effects of the ban on businesses, tourism industry and economy.

It also addresses increasing taxes and displaying bigger warning signs on tobacco products, limiting advertisements of tobacco products and reducing exposure to tobacco smoke.

Dr Layla Al Marzouqi, cardiologist at Dubai Hospital, hoped the findings would finally nail the health myths surrounding shisha.

“People think it is less dangerous to smoke shisha, because the water is supposed to filter the smoke. But that’s not true,” she said.

Anti-smoking: Draft law nears ratification

The draft law is close to becoming law, with only one step left. It is currently at the Cabinet level, which has to endorse it before going to President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan for ratification.

“After that, the law will pass,” said Dr. Wedad Al Maidoor, head of the Anti-Smoking Committee.

As a signatory to the World Health Organisation Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC), the UAE is required to pass legislation and implement the minimum requirements agreed upon to reduce access and limit exposure.

Beat cancer with onions, garlic

Posted on November 5, 2007

Beat cancer with onions, garlic
PTI News
NEW YORK: Better load up on the breath mints – a new study has found that eating lots of onions and garlic may help prevent cancers.

International researchers have carried out a study and found that people whose diets are rich in onions, garlic, and other alliums have a lower risk of several types of cancer than those who avoid the pungent herbs, ‘WebMD’ reported.
According to lead researcher Carlotta Galeone of the Istituto di Ricerche Farmocologiche in Milan, “The health benefits of onions and garlic have been touted for centuries, but few studies have been able to prove the benefits.

“Onion and garlic consumption could simply be a marker for a healthier lifestyle and a diet high in a variety of potentially cancer-fighting herbs and vegetables.”

In fact, in their study, the researchers used data from several Italian and Swiss cancer studies to look at the relationship between onions and garlic consumption and cancer at several body sites, including mouth, larynx, esophagus, colon, breast, ovary, and kidneys.

Overall, consumption of onions ranged from 0-14 portions per week among cancer patients and 0-22 portions per week among those without cancer. Garlic use was also lower among people with cancer, except for those with cancer of the breast, ovary, or prostate. The researchers found moderate consumption of onions appeared to reduce the risk of colorectal, laryngeal, and ovarian cancers.

The protective effect was even greater among those who ate the most onions compared to those who ate the least. People who ate the most onions also had a lower risk of oral and esophageal cancers than those who ate the least.

Again, the anticancer effect increased with the more garlic they ate. People who ate the most garlic had a lower risk of all cancers except breast and prostate cancers, which are mainly associated with hormonal and reproductive issues, the researchers found.