Healthy Tips from HealthyLife

Beth Cooney offers tips to keep you healthy

Archive for 2012

Grapefruit and Meds Don’t Mix

Friday, December 7, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

If you take certain kinds of prescription drugs; better to skip the morning grapefruit.

Indeed, Canadian researchers are reporting that because of new chemical formulations, more medications now interact badly with tart and refreshing grapefruit.

According to research reported recently online in the journal of the Canadian Medical Association some 85 prescription medicines are now known to interact badly with grapefruit and 43 of these interactions are said to result in “serious” side effects.

Included in this troublesome category are certain cholesterol medications, some antibiotics (including erythromycin), some cancer treatments and blood pressure medications. Researchers noted even consuming small amounts of grapefruit along with these medications can have a host of harmful effects that range from respiratory issues to sudden death.

Grapefruit contains a substance called furanocoumarins, that cause the reactions by inhibiting certain enzymes. The resulting reaction can result in the body metabolizing too much of the medication, leading to disastrous results.

The Canadian researchers also noted many doctors are not aware of the number of medications that pose this hazard when combined with grapefruit.

Besides being extra careful about mixing grapefruit and medicine, another take away here is for consumers to always discuss potential harmful interactions with their pharmacist and physician.

Autism: Is it Something in the Air?

Tuesday, December 4, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

Concern about skyrocketing rates of autism in children has prompted a growing body of research into genetic and environmental factors that may play a role in the disorder. Now scientists are looking at whether there’s something in the air that’s playing a role in escalating rates of this heartbreaking disorder.

And a new study out of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles suggests that maternal exposure to air pollution, even during pregnancy, may be a contributing factor in autism.

The study found that infants who had the highest exposures to air pollution experienced autism rates three times higher their peers.

That doesn’t mean, however, that there’s a direct cause and effect relationship between air pollution and developing autism.

For example, researchers noted it’s possible certain toxic chemicals in polluted air may be a contributing factor. That thinking relates to theories that autism may somehow be related to an immune system response. Certain pollutants, for example, might play a role in suppressing the immune system.

So while just blaming “air pollution” per se is premature and extreme the researchers noted their findings call for more investigation and study.

The USC researchers’ findings were reported recently in the Archives of General Pyschiatry.

The Corn Syrup Diabetes Connection

Monday, December 3, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

Controversial high fructose corn syrup; the sugary sweetener often blamed for skyrocketing obesity rates in American adults and kids just got blot on its already tarnished public image.

A new study suggests that diabetes rates are higher in countries where the use of high fructose corn syrup as food additive is more prevalent, according to a study published online Nov. 27 in Global Public Health.

Researchers, looking at data gathered from 199 nations, looked at factors such as weight, BMI (or Body Mass Index) and found these rates were comparable. However, in countries where they found higher rates of high fructose corn syrup consumption the rates of diabetes were higher.

While, that does not prove any kind of cause-and-effect relationship, researchers say it prompts questions about whether certain kinds of sweeteners or foods and beverages –such as sweetened sodas or treats-have a more detrimental impact on health than others.

Of course, the common sense take away here is to be careful about what you eat; paying particular attention to limited adding sugars. And read ingredient labels.

E-Medicine Not a Cost Cutter

Thursday, November 29, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

As our nation grapples with the complex and politically-charged debate over health care; more and more experts have suggested the practice of e-medicine –encouraging patients to access their medical test results and communicate with physicians online–might be the essential wave of the future.

But a new study suggests that giving patients access to their records may actually encourage more doctors visits and not really reduce burdens on health-care providers.

Patients given online access to their medical records in a study conducted by the Kaiser Permanente Colorado Institute for Health Research visited the doctor 16 percent more than their counterparts who were not given similar access.

Why online access was associated with greater use of medical services wasn’t clear, researchers said. But one thing they noted was that since ultimately the most important goal is for people to lead healthier lives, the uptick in doctor’s visits –while surprising–may not be such a bad thing.

Bulk Up Those Boy Biceps

Tuesday, November 27, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

If you’ve got a teenage boy at home, you may want to encourage him to bulk up his muscles a bit.

A recent study out of Sweden makes an intriguing correlation between low muscle density in teenage boys and higher death rates (from a variety of causes) in adult men.

In what may simply be a correlation between healthy physical habits of youth (such as regular exercise) and longevity; the study involved a comprehensive look at the health of a group of more than 1 million boys (ages 16-19) who were followed for 24 years.

The researchers found a fairly startling difference in the death rates of boys who had high muscle mass as teens and their peers who were weaker in their youth. Indeed, deaths from cancer, heart disease and hypertension-related causes were significantly lower in the group that had been muscular teens.

It sounds like a call to really strong arms for teenage boys!

Of course, many muscle-bound teens get their bulk from playing team sports–which aren’t for everybody– but there are other physical outlets, from individualized sports to biking, hiking, and running that can help build strength. Sedentary boys may want to consider these options to keep themselves lean now and healthy for the long haul.

The Swedish study was reported recently in the journal BMJ.

Airport Smoking Areas: Unhealthy Zones

Monday, November 26, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

Ever walk by one of those airport smoking lounges and wrinkle your nose at the stench? Well, unless you are a smoker who wants to light up before take off; you’ve got a good, science-based reason for avoiding them.

The Centers for Disease Control has declared that levels of unhealthy secondhand smoke are five times higher at airports with such smoking lounges than in U.S. airports that prohibit smoking on their premises. The federal agency declared such lounges pose a health risk to both travelers and airport employees.

Currently five of the 29 major U.S. airports have designated smoking areas. They include McCarran International in Las Vegas, Salt Lake City International Airport, Wasington Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta and Denver International Airport. About 15 percent of U.S. air travel flows through these facilities.

The findings confirm that ventilated smoking rooms and designated smoking areas “are not effective,” said Dr. Tim McAfee, director of the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health in an agency news release.

Smoking is banned on U.S. air flights, but their is no law that requires airports to prohibit smoking.

Is Obesity Worse Than Smoking?

Thursday, November 22, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

If you want to keep the doctor away, lose weight. In a provocative study out of Canada, an economics professor has determined that obese people visit doctors most — even more than smokers. “The fact that obesity is more serious than smoking helps people understand the gravity of the problem because they already have some kind of intuitive understanding that smoking is bad,” James McIntosh, a professor of economics at Canada’s Concordia University says in a university press release. In a comprehensive health survey of Canadians — where one of four citizens is considered obese — McIntosh found if obesity was not a factor, doctors visits were reduced by 10 percent. He also discovered that smokers of a healthy weight visit doctors less often than their obese counterparts. McIntosh says the research may ultimately have broad public policy implications, influencing weight-loss programs people to curb health care costs. Meanwhile, not smoking continues to be an excellent personal health choice.

Family Matters: The Case for Friends

Tuesday, November 20, 2012 by:Beth Cooney

Turns out there’s really something to the expression “friends with benefits.” But the tongue-in-cheek double entendre we’re using here isn’t exactly what British researchers had in mind when they delved into the importance of friends and relatives in the lives of middle-aged men and women.

Researchers concluded that the broader a circle of friends men and women can claim in middle age, the more likely they are to describe themselves as content. Interestingly, men also needed a close-knit group of relatives to possess a rosy outlook on life. Why women didn’t have this need for the relative connection wasn’t examined, but researchers speculate it may be because we rely more on friends to support our choices.

The findings were reported in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. The adults involved were participants in Britain’s ongoing National Child Development Study.

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