Airborne, the “natural” product that claims to prevent the onset of the common cold has agreed to pay $23.3 million to settle a lawsuit over false advertising. Continue reading “No credible evidence” for Airborne
Category Archives: J. CONDITIONS TO TREAT
Consumer alert: Aspire36 and Aspire Lite Dietary Supplements
Guess what was found? Continue reading Consumer alert: Aspire36 and Aspire Lite Dietary Supplements
Limits of breathing control to manage breathlessness
Breathing control (aka relaxed basal breathing, diaphragmatic and abdominal breathing) is a technique used in physiotherapy to manage breathlessness.
Researchers from the University of South Australia in Adelaide reviewed 57 studies to determine the state of the art. Continue reading Limits of breathing control to manage breathlessness
Vitamin E supplements and the risk of lung cancer
A recent review of the medical literature revealed that except for prostate cancer, there was no evidence that vitamin E could protect from getting lung, stomach, esophageal, pancreatic, breast, or thyroid cancer.
Now, this study by researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle reports negative news for the vitamin E supplements and lung cancer. Continue reading Vitamin E supplements and the risk of lung cancer
Aromatherapy: Feel good or make well?
Here’s a hint.
The most comprehensive study of aromatherapy failed to show improvement in immune status, wound healing, or pain control. Continue reading Aromatherapy: Feel good or make well?
Does diet affect the survival of women with breast cancer?
Not if the diet is high in vegetables, fruit, and fiber, and low in total fat. But don’t be discouraged.
Here are the results from the Women’s Healthy Eating and Living (WHEL) Randomized Trial. Continue reading Does diet affect the survival of women with breast cancer?
Preventing pressure ulcers
They occur when the skin breaks down after staying in one position for too long. Constant pressure against the skin reduces the blood supply and the tissue dies.
It’s a problem for people in a wheelchair or bedridden. Continue reading Preventing pressure ulcers
Benefits of omega-3 on heart rate after heart attack
Atrial fibrillation is an abnormal heart rhythm where the upper chambers of the heart quiver instead of beating normally.
Of course, this is not good for circulating the blood. Continue reading Benefits of omega-3 on heart rate after heart attack
We’re losing the war on obesity. Does it matter?
Dr. Linda Bacon is nutrition researcher at the University of California, Davis, and nutrition professor at the City College of San Francisco. In a Medscape editorial she makes some surprising statements about the relationship between obesity and health.
Challenge your assumptions.
Continue reading We’re losing the war on obesity. Does it matter?
A different approach to dieting
March is National Nutrition Month. “More than one-third of adults are trying to lose weight, but few have long-term success.”
If this sounds familiar, one alternative option is to consult a professional.
Ginkgo delays progression to dementia
But only if you remember to take it.
That’s the conclusion from researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland. Continue reading Ginkgo delays progression to dementia
Probiotics reduce diarrhea in children
Researchers from Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Australia evaluated a milk product containing probiotics and prebiotics (Cupday Milk) on the incidence of diarrhea in children in daycare centers. Continue reading Probiotics reduce diarrhea in children
Lack of benefit from calcium supplements in young girls
A recent review of the medical literature concluded that calcium supplementation is unlikely to reduce the risk of fracture, either in childhood or later life.
Now, researchers from the University of Sheffield in the UK take another look at the effects of calcium supplementation on bone growth in adolescent girls. Continue reading Lack of benefit from calcium supplements in young girls
Benefits of music therapy in children with cancer
Researchers from no fewer than 11 centers in the US report that music therapy helps with coping-related behaviors in hospitalized children receiving cancer treatment. Continue reading Benefits of music therapy in children with cancer
Black cohosh has no estrogenic effects on the breast
Black cohosh is an alternative to hormonal therapy to treat hot flashes, mood disturbances, sweating, heart palpitations, and vaginal dryness.
Apparently, this is accomplished in the absence of any “systemic or breast-specific estrogenic effects.” According to researchers from the University of Missouri in Columbia. Continue reading Black cohosh has no estrogenic effects on the breast
Training the elderly to maintain their reasoning ability
A large-scale study of elderly people reports that training to improve reasoning results in less functional decline in activities of daily living over 5 years of follow-up.
Here are the details from the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) study.
Continue reading Training the elderly to maintain their reasoning ability
Summarizing benefits of acupuncture
Dr. Paul White from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas has reviewed the medical literature and published a summary of the state of the art of acupuncture to manage pain. Continue reading Summarizing benefits of acupuncture
Adding yoga to schizophrenia treatment
Yoga instructor Janette Scott wrote in Yoga Magazine, “Yoga has been shown to give many positive benefits to people with the disease for maintaining balance and harmony in their lives.” She also knew, “there needs to be a lot of further research and verification of the effects and benefits of yoga for this condition.”
Now, 10 years later, here’s a study from the National Institute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences in Bangalore, India. Continue reading Adding yoga to schizophrenia treatment
Kampo medicine to treat atopic dermatitis
Hochu-ekki-to (TJ-41) is an herbal medicine that contains a mixture of 10 medicinal plants (listed below). It’s produced by Tsumura Co., Ltd. in Tokyo, which specializes in selling Kampo medicine — the adaptation of traditional Chinese medicine to Japanese culture.
In this study, the use of topical medicines (steroids and/or tacrolimus [Protopic]) decreased when patients with atopic dermatitis took Hochu-ekki-to. Continue reading Kampo medicine to treat atopic dermatitis
The facts about fish oil and omega-3 fatty acids
The Canadian Medical Association Journal has published all you really need to know about omega-3 fatty acids and heart health.
And, it took just one page to do it. Continue reading The facts about fish oil and omega-3 fatty acids