The National Stroke Association along with Bristol-Meyers Squibb Sanofi Pharmaceuticals sponsors the STARS program, which is designed to inform stoke patients how to reduce their risk for recurrent stroke.
There are 5 things to do. How many of them include at least some component of CAM? Continue reading STARS (Steps Against Recurrent Stroke)
This study failed to find evidence of its effectiveness, according to researchers at Cambridge Health Alliance in the UK. Continue reading Acupuncture for repetitive use arm pain
Researchers from Stanford University Medical Center in California combined mindfulness meditation with cognitive-behavior therapy for insomnia. Continue reading Treating insomnia with meditation plus CBT
There were benefits reported in this study from the Swami Vivekananda Yoga Research Foundation in Bangalore, India. Continue reading More on yoga and menopause
Several nutritional supplements are purported to treat anxiety. However, only inositol has evidence of superiority vs placebo and comparability with the SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) fluvoxamine (Luvox; not available in the US).
That’s the conclusion from Dr. Sy Atezaz Saeed and 2 coauthors from East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina. Continue reading Inositol to treat anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder
 Dr. Désirée Lie from the University of California in Orange has reviewed the evidence.
Here are the highlights. Continue reading Red yeast rice review
Researchers from the Universidade Federal do Paraná in Brazil report that Parkinson’s disease “patients taking fish oil, with or without antidepressants, presented improvement in depressive symptoms.” Continue reading Omega-3 to treat depression in Parkinson’s disease
Let’s start by stating that “habit” cough is rare. Don’t jump to the conclusion that a cough lasting a month or so is “just” habit cough. See your doctor.
Because it’s rare there are no large clinical studies of treatment options. Here’s a case report where biofeedback and cognitive coping was effective.
Researchers from The University of Tokushima in Japan initially used Kampo to reduce the side effects and improve the quality of life of patients with uterine cervical cancer being treated with radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Continue reading Survival in cancer patients receiving Kampo therapy
In addition to cutting hair, barbers once performed surgery (blood letting) and dentistry. Today, they’re making a comeback as lay prostate educators.
Medscape reports on an abstract presented by researchers at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida during the Cancer, Culture & Literacy Conference. Continue reading Barbers Against Prostate Cancer
People at high risk of heart disease or stroke who changed to the Traditional Mediterranean Diet (TMD) showed significant reductions in LDL (bad) cholesterol. Continue reading More benefits of the traditional Mediterranean diet
Researchers from The Great Western Hospital in the UK report that acupuncture achieved short-term improvement in function. Continue reading Acupuncture in patients with severe knee osteoarthritis awaiting knee replacement
This review from the Taipei Medical University asks the question, where in medicine might reflexology be useful. Continue reading Reflecting on the value of reflexology
Over the past 2 years, researchers from all over the world have failed to confirm the results of early studies in Cuba that reported a cholesterol-lowering effect with policosanol (a mixture of fatty alcohols from waxes of sugar cane).
Here’s the latest study from researchers at the McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Continue reading A final nail in the policosanol coffin
Professor Ernst finds that “The value of reiki remains unproven.” Continue reading Is there a role for reiki in medicine?
On May 19th, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) premiered its first annual Yoga Week.
Others have held yoga weeks in the past. What’s different is the involvement of the NIH. Continue reading First annual Yoga Week
Although the researchers identified 45 potentially relevant studies, only 5 were good enough to review. And the differences in the studies made it impossible to pool the results for a reanalysis of the data (meta-analysis). Continue reading Limited support for tai chi in rheumatoid arthritis
Over 22 years, men who ate fish had a lower risk of colorectal cancer, according to the latest findings from the Physicians’ Health Study. Continue reading Fish oil and colorectal cancer risk
Eating foods with a low glycemic index is the way to go if you want to lose weight. That’s the conclusion in the latest Cochrane Review, as reported by Ivanhoe.
What’s your glycemic index IQ? Continue reading Test your knowledge of the glycemic index
Sprinkles is a nutritional supplement containing iron, zinc, vitamin A, folic acid, and vitamin C. Researchers from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York traveled to Haiti to do the study. Continue reading Using Sprinkles to reduce anemia in children