The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point

Archive for January, 2009

Does drinking green tea reduce breast cancer risk?

Friday, January 30th, 2009

Researchers from Vanderbilt School of Medicine Nashville, Tennessee and the Shanghai Center for Disease Prevention and Control in the People’s Republic of China report a weak association. (more…)

Lose weight, gain control over incontinence

Thursday, January 29th, 2009

Obesity correlates with urinary incontinence. Might weight loss be an effective treatment?

Researchers from across the US decided to find out. (more…)

CAMophobia at Medscape

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

 Here’s the link to a brief review written by Dr. Jonathan Silver from New York University School of Medicine.

You need read no further than the first paragraph to see the bias. (more…)

More tainted weight loss products

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

Here’s an updated list of 69 contaminated products identified by the FDA.

What’s a consumer to think? (more…)

Soy effects on bone mineral density

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

Supplementation is unlikely to have significant favorable [effect] on bone mineral density (BMD), according to this review by researchers at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China.

Is this the final word? (more…)

ConsumerLab tests Coenzyme Q10

Saturday, January 24th, 2009

Just 1 of 39 coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) (ubiquinol) supplements tested contained levels lower than listed on the label.

But large variations in dose and forms may confuse consumers, according to ConsumerLab in their latest report. (more…)

The STEP report on saw palmetto safety

Saturday, January 24th, 2009

STEP stands for “Saw palmetto for Treatment of Enlarged Prostates.” (more…)

Treating tension-type headache with acupuncture

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

It could be a valuable non-pharmacological tool in patients with frequent episodic or chronic tension-type headaches, according to this Cochrane review. (more…)

Acupuncture to prevent migraine

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

New data since the last review lead the authors of this Cochrane review to conclude, “Acupuncture should be considered a treatment option.” (more…)

Omega-3 not effective for Crohn’s disease, again

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

 That’s the conclusion from this Cochrane review. (more…)

Food allergy and intolerance week

Thursday, January 22nd, 2009

It started January 19th, but it’s never too late to join in.

Here are several summaries posted over the past 2 years related to food preferences and the risk of allergy in infants. (more…)

Background on vitamin B-2

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009

Riboflavin (vitamin B-2) was originally recognized as a growth factor in 1879 and named vitamin B-2 according to the British nomenclature system.

Here’s what we know today. (more…)

An innovative way to get elderly people to exercise

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009

Exercise, or simply expending energy through an activity that is a regular part of a person’s lifestyle may provide survival advantages, according to National Institute on Aging. The challenge is that about 75% of Americans over the age of 75 years live sedentary lives.

Here’s an innovative way to meet that challenge.

(more…)

Does vitamin D reduce the risk of diabetes in infants?

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009

Vitamin D treatment during infancy might protect from the development of type 1 diabetes, according to this review of the medical literature by researchers from the Central Manchester and Manchester Children’s University Hospitals in the UK. (more…)

Apitherapy: Experience of German Beekeepers

Tuesday, January 20th, 2009

 Apitherapy is the use of bee products such as honey to prevent or treat illness and promote healing.

Researchers at Justus-Liebig-University in Giessen, Germany conducted a survey of beekeepers. (more…)

Omega-3 and the nephrotic syndrome

Tuesday, January 20th, 2009

Nephrotic-range proteinuria is defined as urinating more than 3.5 grams of protein per day. That’s 25 times the normal amount, and is the primary indicator of the nephrotic syndrome — a group of diseases that damage the kidneys’ filtering system.

Researchers at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary in the United Kingdom looked at the effect of omega-3 fatty acids. (more…)

Are the benefits of eating fatty fish due to selenium?

Tuesday, January 20th, 2009

 Researchers at Hopital La Colombiere in Montpellier, France tell us, “The observed health benefits of fish consumption in the elderly could be related not only to the increase in omega-3 fatty acid intake but also to other nutrients such as selenium.” (more…)

Prevalence of vitamin B-12 deficiency

Monday, January 19th, 2009

 Since fortification of flour with folic acid started 10 years ago in the US, efforts have been taken to fortifying flour with vitamin B-12.

So, how prevalent is B-12 deficiency? (more…)

How many patients for an acupuncture study?

Monday, January 19th, 2009

 It’s an important issue when planning clinical studies of CAM.

Researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles address this issue for a study of acupuncture in the relief of post-chemotherapy fatigue in breast cancer patients. (more…)

Farm animals help treat mental disorders

Monday, January 19th, 2009

Researchers from the Norwegian University tell us, “The benefits of animal-assisted therapy (AAT) for humans with mental disorders have been well-documented using cats and dogs.”

But what about farm animals? (more…)