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

Archive for March, 2009

March was colorectal cancer month

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

Here’s a summary of what has been covered on this site about CAM and colorectal cancer. (more…)

Internet-based obesity prevention program

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

 Researchers from Baylor College of Medicine, in Houston, Texas studied whether an Internet-based program could help young girls at risk for obesity eat more fruit, juice, veggies, and water. (more…)

Smoked medicinal cannabis for neuropathic pain in HIV

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

It was reportedly effective when used in addition to pain treatment in patients with medically refractory pain due to HIV.

But as Paul Harvey said, “Now, the rest of the story.” (more…)

Diet and exercise to prevent weight gain in breast cancer

Sunday, March 29th, 2009

Patients with breast cancer on adjuvant chemotherapy can experience weight gain and concurrent loss of muscle mass.

Researchers at the University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston studied the feasibility and impact of home-based diet/exercise options. (more…)

Homoeopathic proving of Galphimia glauca

Saturday, March 28th, 2009

“Homeopathic pathogenetic trials (provings) are the pillar of homeopathy,” according to researchers at the University Hospital Freiburg, in Germany. “Symptoms experienced by healthy volunteers are used to find the correct medicine for therapy.”

In this study, researchers Berlin, Germany compared the symptoms produced by Galphimia glauca (a botanical component in the nasal spray, Zicam, which is used to treat upper respiratory symptoms) to placebo. (more…)

FDA recalls Zencore Plus

Tuesday, March 24th, 2009

It turns out that this widely advertised product is not as “natural” as its manufacturer claims. (more…)

Warnings expanded for 72 weight-loss products

Monday, March 23rd, 2009

 The FDA has posted a list with the specific contaminants in each mislabeled product, plus FAQs. (more…)

Problem-solving therapy for stroke patients

Sunday, March 22nd, 2009

Depression occurs in more than half of patients who experience a stroke.

Researchers from the University of Iowa in Iowa City compared the number of cases of depression in stoke patients while taking escitalopram (Lexapro) or participating in problem-solving therapy (PST) during the first year following their stroke. (more…)

Chiropractic vs a pain clinic for chronic low-back pain

Saturday, March 21st, 2009

This study was performed at a National Health Service (NHS) hospital outpatient pain clinic in the United Kingdom. (more…)

Vitamin C for asthma?

Friday, March 20th, 2009

 Vitamin C is an antioxidant found in the fluid that surrounds the lung. Low vitamin C intake is associated with lung dysfunction.

This Cochrane review looks at the evidence for vitamin C (ascorbic acid) as treatment for asthma. (more…)

Benefits of exercise in overweight children

Friday, March 20th, 2009

 Exercise has a positive effect on depression and improves self-esteem, according to researchers at the Medical College of Georgia. (more…)

Searching for the correct dose of vitamin D

Friday, March 20th, 2009

In adults, vitamin D deficiency is associated with osteopenia, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, fractures, cancer, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases and cardiovascular diseases. And adequate doses might reduce the risk of certain cancers and type 1 diabetes.

The current recommendation of 5 mcg (200 IU) may be too little, according to researchers in Maine and South Carolina. (more…)

Benefits of being a night exerciser

Thursday, March 19th, 2009

I exercise at night — when I exercise that is. (more…)

Maintaining vitamin D levels in nursing home patients

Wednesday, March 18th, 2009

 In older adults, 25-hydroxyvitamin D (aka vitamin D3) blood levels of 75 nmol/L reduce the risk of fracture.

Eating a fortified bun once daily is all it takes to meet this goal, according to researchers Canada and Romania. (more…)

Massage in children with sickle cell disease

Wednesday, March 18th, 2009

 Researchers from Ohio and Philadelphia come to a surprising finding. (more…)

CAM use among patients with arthritis

Wednesday, March 18th, 2009

Researchers from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill reviewed the evidence. (more…)

Auricular acupuncture during opiate detoxification

Tuesday, March 17th, 2009

 Researchers from South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, UK set about to determine whether auricular acupuncture leads to less severe opiate withdrawal symptoms and craving when used as an adjunct to methadone detoxification. (more…)

Let’s chronicle the health benefits of walking

Tuesday, March 17th, 2009

Dr. James Levine from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota has reviewed the evidence. Here are the benefits. (more…)

Delaying the onset of diabetes

Tuesday, March 17th, 2009

Diet combined with exercise can delay the onset of type 2 diabetes up to 14 years, according to researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia and the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, China. (more…)

Non-pharmacological treatments for breathlessness

Monday, March 16th, 2009

 Here are the results of a Cochrane review of non-drug options in advanced stages of malignant and non-malignant diseases. (more…)