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

Archive for February, 2011

So, just how good is exercise to treat depression?

Saturday, February 26th, 2011

It’s very good, according to researchers at the University of Washington Department of Family Medicine, in Tacoma.

Here’s what we know. (more…)

Acupuncture: Does the number of needles matter?

Friday, February 25th, 2011

Not according to this study of patients with neck pain, reported by researchers in Italy. (more…)

Tai chi in female computer users

Thursday, February 24th, 2011

Workplace computer use has been linked to musculoskeletal disorders, a leading cause of work disability and productivity losses in industrialized nations.

Researchers from York University, in Toronto, Ontario studied tai chi as a workplace physical exercise for health promotion. (more…)

Are happy people at lower risk of heart disease?

Wednesday, February 23rd, 2011

Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center, in New York City examined the association between positive affect and cardiovascular events. (more…)

Smoking cannabis to treat neuropathic pain

Wednesday, February 23rd, 2011

Neuropathic pain is a complex, chronic pain state that usually is accompanied by tissue injury.

Researchers at McGill University, in Montreal, Quebec, report that inhaled medical marijuana is better than no treatment… but not by much. (more…)

Topical arnica increases muscle pain

Wednesday, February 23rd, 2011

Oops. Topically applied Arnica montana is reputed to decrease bruising and muscle pain.

But in this study, researchers at the Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program, in Sugar Land, Texas, found an opposite effect. (more…)

Looking for an association between vitamin D and frailty

Tuesday, February 22nd, 2011

Researchers at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, studied elderly men. (more…)

Vitamin D and the risk of Parkinson’s disease

Tuesday, February 22nd, 2011

Almost everyone is deficient in vitamin D, and this deficiency is implicated in several diseases.

Now, researchers at the National Institute for Health and Welfare, in Helsinki, Finland, look for an association with Parkinson’s disease. (more…)

Review: Mind-body treatments for insomnia

Monday, February 21st, 2011

Researchers at Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo, in Brazil, reviewed the evidence. (more…)

Failure of self-managment couseling in heart failure patients

Monday, February 21st, 2011

Researchers at Rush University Medical Center, in Chicago tell us, “Motivating patients with heart failure to adhere to medical advice has not translated into clinical benefit.”

They think past studies were flawed. So, in this study, they studied the value of self-management counseling + heart failure education, compared with heart failure education alone. (more…)

Raising the head of the bed to treat orthostatic hypotension

Sunday, February 20th, 2011

Orthostatic hypotension is an excessive decrease in blood pressure that occurs when a person stands up. It results in reduced blood flow to the brain and dizziness or fainting.

Researchers in Ireland studied the effects of sleeping on a bed where the head is raised 6 inches. (more…)

Review: Moxibustion for rheumatic conditions

Saturday, February 19th, 2011

Moxibustion, an acupuncture-like treatment, is increasingly used in the management of rheumatic conditions.

Prof. Ernst and colleagues reviewed the evidence. (more…)

Soap and water wipes reduce infections in wrestlers

Saturday, February 19th, 2011

Medscape reports from the 50th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy that researchers at the University of Minneapolis, in Minnesota, studied high school wrestlers who used skin wipes after each match during a marathon day of wrestling.

The objective was to compare soap and water to alcohol swabs. (more…)

Effect of vegetarian diets on mood

Saturday, February 19th, 2011

Vegetarian diets exclude fish, the major dietary source of fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which are critical regulators of brain cell structure and function.

Researchers at Arizona State University, in Mesa, examined associations between mood and polyunsaturated fatty acid intake in vegetarian and omnivorous diets. (more…)

Benefits of music on stress after surgery

Saturday, February 19th, 2011

Researchers at Orebro University Hospital, in Sweden, evaluated the effect of bed rest + music on the first day after surgery in order to decrease stress. (more…)

Review: Acupuncture to treat peripheral joint osteoarthritis

Friday, February 18th, 2011

This Cochrane review covers osteoarthritis of the knee, hip, or hand. (more…)

St. John’s wort to treat IBS?

Friday, February 18th, 2011

Here’s the rationale supporting this study by researchers at the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minnesota.

St. John’s wort treats mild-to-moderate depression. Antidepressants are often used to treat irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). But no one has studied the effects of St. John’s wort in patients with IBS. (more…)

Should you drink milk to lose weight?

Friday, February 18th, 2011

Researchers from the US and Israel studied the effects of dairy calcium and vitamin D for weight loss. (more…)

Feldenkrais exercises in older community-dwelling adults

Thursday, February 17th, 2011

Researchers at the University of South Carolina, Columbia, examined the effects of Feldenkrais exercises to improve balance, mobility, and balance confidence. (more…)

Alternate-day fasting as a diet strategy

Thursday, February 17th, 2011

Alternate-day fasting as a diet strategy

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago examined the effects of alternate-day fasting under controlled conditions on body weight and coronary artery disease risk in obese adults. (more…)