Month: October 2009

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Healthy Tips

Check Your Breasts for Cancer

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Cancer. The word is derived from “crab” and conjures up visions of multiple tentacles insidiously spreading all over the body. Unfortunately, the vision includes undiagnosed, undetected, untreated versions of the dreaded disease.

Women in India are prone to cervical (lower end of the uterus) and breast cancer. A vaccine (HPV or human papillovirus vaccine) was recently introduced to reduce the incidence of cancer of the cervix. However, there is no vaccine to prevent breast cancer. One in 22 women in India are projected to be diagnosed with breast cancer in the course of their lifetime. The incidence varies from eight per 1,00,000 women in rural India to 27 per 1,00,000 women in urban areas. Breast cancer is not a disease confined to women; in rare occasions, it can occur in men too.

Lumps in the breast can be felt when they are pea sized. The tissue feels different, and is firmer and harder than in the surrounding areas. Later the skin over the lump may be discoloured or thickened (resembling an orange peel). Also, there may be retraction (pulling inward) of the nipple.

Many lumps are harmless non-cancerous fibroadenomas. Others are not real lumps but nodular breasts reflecting the hormonal changes that occur during the course of a normal menstrual cycle. All lumps, however, must be taken seriously and evaluated as soon as they appear.

Evaluation of a breast lump is usually done with a mammogram or an ultrasound examination. Once the position has been accurately localised, the lump is aspirated with a fine needle. Cells obtained during the procedure are used to diagnose the nature of the lump. Depending on the diagnosis, the breast is operated. This is followed by chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormone therapy and immunotherapy.

Breast cancer can occur at any age, though it is less common under the age of 25 years. The exact mechanism which sets in motion the changes responsible for breast cancer is not known. Certain environmental and genetic factors are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.

• Long years of menstruation with early menarche (less than 12) and late menopause (over 55)

• Delayed childbirth

• Failure to breast-feed children

• Breast or ovarian cancer in first degree relatives

• Smoking and drinking alcohol

• Obesity

• Cancer elsewhere and exposure to radiation

• Post menopausal hormone replacement therapy for more than four years.

In developed countries, the majority of cases is discovered by routine screening, even before a lump is palpable. In India, by the time the patient arrives for an evaluation, the cancer has usually spread locally. This is unfortunate as a 20-year survival is found in 90 per cent of patients if the tumour diameter is less than 1cm. Early detection and diagnosis are therefore of paramount importance.

One of the most useful tools for early detection is breast self examination. It is simple, easy and sensitive. It can be done in five steps, preferably on the same day every month. This is to negate any changes in consistency because of hormonal effects.

………….breast_self_test

Step 1: Begin by looking at your breasts in the mirror, uncovered, with your shoulders straight and arms on your hips. Check that the breasts are their usual size, shape and colour. There should be no visible distortion or swelling. The danger signs are dimpling, puckering, bulging of the skin, redness, soreness, rash or swelling, or a nipple that has changed position.

Step 2: Look for the same changes with raised arms.

Step 3: Gently squeeze each nipple between your finger and thumb and check for nipple discharge.

Step 4: Next, feel your breasts while lying down, using your right hand to feel your left breast and then your left hand to feel your right breast. Use a firm, smooth touch with the first few fingers of your hand, keeping the fingers flat and together. Cover the entire breast from top to bottom, side to side from the armpit to the cleavage. Follow a pattern to be sure that you cover the whole breast.

5. Begin examining each area with a very soft touch, and then increase pressure so that you can feel the deeper tissue, down to your ribcage.

Step 5: Finally, feel your breasts while you are standing or sitting.:-

Mammograms can detect tumours before they are felt with the hand. After the age of 45 years, they should ideally be done every two years. In case of any abnormality, see a competent surgeon immediately. The process may be expensive, but is well worth the cost.

A few lifestyle changes can reduce your risk of developing breast cancer.

• Maintain a BMI (weight in kg / height in metre squared) of around 23

• Reduce the intake of fat

• Eat five helpings of fruits or vegetables a day

• Regular exercise (jogging, cycling swimming, running) for 45 minutes at least four times a week has a positive effect on the immune system.

You may click to see:-

10 tips to reduce Cancer risk
Aspirin reduces Breast Cancer Risk by 20%
Red wine improves cancer prognosis

Source: The Telegraph (Kolkata, India)

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Air Pollution May Cause Appendicitis

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Air pollution is already linked to respiratory and cardiovascular ills, and now researchers say the dirty air you breathe may also cause appendicitis.

Authors of a new study published in the Oct. 5 issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that cases of appendicitis go up when the air is dirtier.

“This makes us think about the underlying cause of appendicitis that could potentially be linked to air pollution,” said Dr. Gilaad G. Kaplan, senior author of the study and assistant professor of medicine in the division of gastroenterology at the University of Calgary in Alberta. “Air pollution is a modifiable risk factor. If these findings are confirmed and we are able to legislate better air pollution control, cleaner air, then potentially we could prevent more cases of appendicitis.”
But at this early point in the research, the implications are not so clear-cut, warned another expert.

“It’s provocative, but there’s a huge difference between correlating any number of factors with a disease and proving that any of these factors might actually cause a disease, and this study fails to show causation,” said Dr. F. Paul Buckley III, assistant professor of surgery at the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine and a surgeon at Scott & White Healthcare Round Rock, Texas.

“Do we all want to decrease pollution? Yes. Is that going to decrease the incidence of appendicitis? I doubt it,” said Buckley.

Parts of the findings were presented at a conference a year ago.

No one really knows why appendicitis, or swelling and infection of the appendix, occurs.

Appendicitis cases rose significantly in the late 19th century and early 20th century, as industrialization took hold. Cases declined in the middle and later parts of the last century, at about the time clean air legislation gained headway. Meanwhile, countries that are just now industrializing have increasing rates of the condition, the study authors stated.

A prevailing theory is that appendicitis occurs when the opening to the appendix, a pouch-like organ attached to the large intestine, gets blocked. Specifically, some experts believe that lower fiber intake among citizens of industrialized countries leads to obstruction of the appendix by the stool.

But that doesn’t explain the decreased incidence of appendicitis in the second half of the 20th century, Kaplan said.

Air pollution is already linked with a wide range of health conditions, most notably respiratory diseases and cardiovascular disease, including heart attack and stroke.

Kaplan and his colleagues looked at more than 5,000 adults who were hospitalized in Calgary with appendicitis between April 1, 1999, and the end of 2006. This data was cross-referenced with an analysis of air pollutants the week prior to the admissions.

“We found that individuals were more likely to come in with appendicitis in weeks with higher concentrations of air pollutants, specifically ozone and nitrogen dioxide,” Kaplan said.

More appendicitis admissions took place during Canada’s warmest months (April through September, when people are more likely to be outdoors), and men seemed more likely to be affected by air pollutants than women. It’s unclear why this gender difference exists, the researchers said.

Kaplan theorizes that inflammation may explain the link — if it proves to exist — between air quality and appendicitis.

“It’s speculative, but air pollution might be driving inflammation which triggers appendicitis,” he said. “We’re a few steps away before we can make that statement. We need to confirm and replicate these findings.”

Kaplan and his co-authors plan more studies in multiple cities in Canada.

Last year, Forbes magazine rated Calgary as the world’s cleanest city and Baku, Azerbaijan, as the dirtiest.

Source: Health News. 5Th.Oct.’09

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Newly Discovered Role of Vitamin C in Skin Protection

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Scientists have uncovered a new role played by vitamin C in protecting the skin, which could lead to better skin regeneration.

A form of vitamin C helped to promote wound healing and also helped protect the skin cells from DNA damage.

Even though vitamin C was discovered over 70 years ago, its properties are still under much debate in the scientific community. However, antioxidants such as vitamin C are known to counter the damaging effects of free radicals.

This new evidence suggest that, in addition to ‘mopping up’ free radicals, vitamin C can help remove the DNA damage they form if they get past a cell’s defenses.These findings are believed to be of great relevance to the cosmetics industry.

Resources:
Eurekalert September 9, 2009
Free Radical Biology & Medicine January 1, 2009; 46(1):78-87

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Sex, Chemicals and Longevity

A substance released during intercourse can extend the lifespan of an organism:

Intimate bedroom moments have given researchers new clues about combating ageing. A team of European researchers, led by a biologist in Austria, has found that a substance released in copious amounts during sexual intercourse can actually extend the lifespan of a range of organisms — from flies to worms and even mammals.

Spermidine, an important constituent of seminal fluid which helps neutralise the acidic pH of the vagina — the first step in the sperm’s journey towards fertilising an egg — is known to be necessary for cell growth and maturation. Scientists have previously found that when ageing sets in, its concentration dips in living cells. However, it was unclear if its decrease was the cause or consequence of ageing.

But in an interesting study reported online in the journal Nature Cell Biology, scientists led by Frank Madeo of the Institute of Molecular Biosciences, University of Graz, Austria, have shown that the levels of spermidine can be propped up in cells through the oral route. Experimenting with laboratory mice, the scientists found that an additional dose of spermidine rejuvenated the cells, as a result of which the animals lived longer.

“Our studies have shown that spermidine-treated fruit flies and worms can live up to 30 per cent longer than their average lifespan,” Madeo told KnowHow.

Madeo thinks the study is important for a variety of reasons. First, spermidine is an intrinsically natural compound abundantly found in every type of cell or eukaryotic organism and hence part of normal human nutrition. It is found in abundant quantities in soybeans as well as grapefruit, a subtropical citrus fruit known for its bitter taste.

“Intriguingly, spermidine is (released)… in huge concentrations during sexual intercourse. This means that it is already approved by nature,” says Madeo. The second fascinating thing, according to him, is the way it does cellular “clean up”. Spermidine is capable of inducing a process called “autophagy” by which a cell itself destroys its own degraded components. Scientists have known for long that autophagy plays a critical role in halting the progression of cancers and certain neurodegenerative disorders.

A similar study about three months ago by a team of French scientists found that melatonin, a naturally occurring hormone, when supplied externally, could delay the onset of ageing.

“It is too early to speculate if and to which extent these two substances (melatonin and spermidine) might interfere with ageing through similar mechanisms. It is worthwhile, however, to note that both the studies addressed the effect of a single compound that is naturally produced in the human body,” says Madeo.

Altering the concentrations of these compounds through external supply seems to be efficient in retarding the signs of ageing, he adds.

The advantage, particularly in the case of spermidine, says Madeo, is that its application is easy. Madeo and his team received positive results when they used spermidine simply as a nutritional supplement to food or drinking water in their experiments.

The scientists are also hopeful that spermidine will help them formulate therapies for several neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease which are normally associated with longevity.

In fact, Madeo along with his associate Tobias Eisenberg is currently engaged in a series of experiments on mice to see whether spermidine could be effective against such neurodegenerative diseases.

Milind Gajnan Watve, professor of biology at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune, feels the work is interesting. It indicates that the biology of ageing is very similar in a range of organisms, from simple single-cell creatures to humans. “The study is promising, but has a long way to go,” he adds.

Source:The Telegraph (Kolkata, India)

 
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High Fruit and Vegetable Intake Keeps Brain Function at its Peak…

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Researchers have found that individuals with a high daily intake of vegetables and fruits also demonstrate higher cognitive performance.  Please notice that vegetables are mentioned first because they are FAR more important than fruits.
………….
Subjects with a high intake (about 400 grams per day) of fruits and vegetables had higher antioxidant levels, lower indicators of free radical-induced damage, and better cognitive performance.

The findings were independent of age, gender, body mass index, and level of education. Further studies are planned that will include larger subject cohorts, patients with Alzheimer’s disease, and patients with mild cognitive impairment.

Reources:
Eurekalert September 8, 2009
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease August 2009: 17(4); 921-927

 
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