Arthritis sufferers get relief with Boswellia in 7 days

An enriched extract of the ‘Indian Frankincense’ herb Boswellia serrata has been proven to reduce the symptoms of osteoarthritis. Research published today in BioMed Central’s open access journal Arthritis Research & Therapy has shown that patients taking the herbal remedy showed significant improvement in as little as seven days.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis; it commonly affects weight-bearing joints such as the knees and hips, along with the hands, wrists, feet and spine. The symptoms include pain, stiffness and limited movement. This randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial of 70 patients will be of great interest to sufferers, especially those who don’t get adequate relief from existing treatments.

The study was led by Siba Raychaudhuri, a faculty member of the University of California, Davis, in the United States. According to Raychaudhuri, “The high incidence of adverse affects associated with currently available medications has created great interest in the search for an effective and safe alternative treatment”. The extract the authors used was enriched with 30% AKBA (3-O-acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid), which is thought to be the most active ingredient in the plant. Raychaudhuri said, “AKBA has anti-inflammatory properties, and we have shown that B. serrata enriched with AKBA can be an effective treatment for osteoarthritis of the knee”. This is a proprietary product developed by Laila Nutraceuticals.

B. serrata has been used for thousands of years in the Indian system of traditional medicine known as ‘Ayurveda’. This study is the first to prove that an enriched extract of the plant can be used as a successful treatment.

The same authors have previously tested the safety of their remedy in animal experiments. They say that, “In this study, the compound was shown to have no major adverse effects in our osteoarthritis patients. It is safe for human consumption and even for long-term use”.

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Article adapted by MD Only from original press release.
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Contact: Graeme Baldwin
BioMed Central 

 

References

1. A double blind, randomized, placebo controlled study of the efficacy and safety of 5-Loxin(R) for treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee Krishanu Sengupta, Krishnaraju V Alluri, Andey Rama Sathis, Simanchala Mishra, Trimurtulu Golakoti, Kadainti VS Sarma, Dipak Dey and Siba P Raychaudhuri Arthritis Research & Therapy (in press)

2. Arthritis Research & Therapy is an international, peer-reviewed online and print journal, publishing original research, reviews, commentaries and reports. Studies relate to the rationale and treatment of arthritis, autoimmune disease and diseases of bone and cartilage. The journal is edited by Prof Peter E Lipsky (USA) and Prof Sir Ravinder N Maini (UK) and has an Impact Factor of 4.04.

3. BioMed Central (http://www.biomedcentral.com/) is an independent online publishing house committed to providing immediate access without charge to the peer-reviewed biological and medical research it publishes. This commitment is based on the view that open access to research is essential to the rapid and efficient communication of science.

Smart Bone Cells May Add or Remove 3% Bone Mass Per Month

Liyun Wang, UD assistant professor of mechanical engineering, views osteocytes (bone cells) in her lab, as graduate students Wen Li and Xiaozhou Zhou examine the magnified images in the background.  Click here for more information.

Ten million people in the United States are estimated to already have bone diseases, and almost 34 million more are estimated to have low bone mass, putting them at increased risk for osteoporosis, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation.

Liyun Wang, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Delaware, knows the serious consequences of osteoporosis.

Two of Wang’s aunts have suffered from the insidious bone-thinning disease, and one aunt died within a year after falling and fracturing her hip.

Wang is now leading research that will shed light on how osteocytes–the cells encased inside your bones–sense external stimuli and communicate with cells on the surface, signaling them to either build more bone or remove existing bone.

The five-year, $1.6 million project, ranked in the top 5 percent of research proposals recommended for funding by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) this year, holds promise in unveiling the mysteries of bone and joint diseases afflicting people worldwide.

The results may not only help scientists home in on the cause of osteoporosis and arthritis, but also develop more effective drug therapies to treat the debilitating bone and joint diseases.

The project will involve an interdisciplinary team of investigators at UD, including Prof. Mary C. Farach-Carson and Associate Prof. Randall Duncan, who hold primary appointments in biological sciences with joint appointments in mechanical engineering, and John Novotny, assistant professor of mechanical engineering.

“Bone and joint disorders affect almost half of all people over 50 years old, at a cost of $250 billion annually in the United States,” Wang said. “A third of the people who suffer a fracture due to bone loss end up dying within a year.”

The embedded bone cells, or osteocytes, that Wang is studying, act like the bone’s “brain.”

“The osteocytes are very smart,” Wang says. “They can tell whether a person is using his or her bones or not. If the person is physically active, the osteocytes tell cells on the surface that it’s okay to put on more bone. Otherwise, they signal the surface cells to remove bone at a rate that can be as high as 3 percent bone mass per month, which is the case for patients confined to long-term bed rest and for astronauts,” she notes.

The osteocytes lie in tiny pits or holes, called lacunae, within the bone. These living cells have many long arms that connect them to surface bone cells and the bone’s vascular system. The narrow channels housing the osteocyte’s arms (canaliculi) and the lacunae form a network through which a mixture of water, nutrients and other bioactive molecules flows.

“Although it is hard as cement, bone is actually like a stiff sponge,” Wang says. “It’s porous and has water inside. When we have mechanical loading, when you run, for example, a part of the leg bone is compressed, and water is pushed through gaps, less than a micrometer in size, between the osteocytes and the bone cement that surrounds them.”

This powerful wave of fluid keeps the osteocytes happy and functioning well, Wang says, delivering nutrients to them from nearby blood vessels and quickly dispersing signaling molecules, such as calcium ions, from one cell to its neighbors.

Using a novel microscopic imaging method that Wang developed, which is based on fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP), the research team hopes to do what no one has done before: see inside living bone and determine how rapidly these signaling and nutrient molecules are transferred between the cells when a bone is at rest and when it is at work.

A high-powered laser-scanning microscope will be used to assess the movement of molecules in the tibia of an anesthetized mouse. A harmless green fluorescent dye, tagged to various-sized proteins, signaling molecules and cell nutrients, will be injected into the animal’s bloodstream.

The dyed molecules will be subjected to a flash of intense light, temporarily photobleaching them black, leaving a distinct black sector surrounded by green. Thus, if the molecules diffuse into one another’s territories, they can easily be tracked by color.

Using similar techniques, Wang is investigating the communication between bone and cartilage in the development and progression of osteoarthritis, one of five projects in an $11 million NIH grant led by Thomas Buchanan, professor and chairperson of the UD Department of Mechanical Engineering. The UD effort includes a unique mentoring program for women scientists.

Wang says she is grateful for the mentoring and support she has received from her colleagues at UD since she joined the faculty in 2005, as well as from her doctoral advisers at the City College of New York, including Profs. Susannah Fritton, Steve Cowin, and Sheldon Weinbaum; and Dr. Mitchell Schaffler, with whom she worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine.

Currently, Wang’s laboratory group includes Wen Li, a graduate student in biomechanics and movement science, Xiaozhou Zhou, a graduate student in mechanical engineering, and undergraduate students Ben Keller and Laura Schultz, who are both working on degrees in mechanical engineering, and Samantha Nigro, who is pursuing her degree in biological sciences. Research associate Jun Pan will join the group at the end of this year.

“My students have been excellent,” Wang says, smiling. “They are well-organized and eager to learn how to do research. They are very motivated, and that is important. We have exciting work ahead of us!”

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Contact: Tracey Bryant
tbryant@udel.edu
302-831-8185
University of Delaware

Wang is seeking two additional doctoral students and one postdoctoral researcher in the areas of biomechanics, orthopedic biology or mechanical engineering to join her research team. For more information, contact Wang at [lywang@udel.edu].

Stanford/Packard scientists discovery way to speed bone healing

Blocking a naturally occurring inhibitor of bone formation accelerates healing of skull defects in mice, say researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. The finding advances the understanding of how the skeleton develops and opens new therapeutic avenues for many of the disorders that are expected to afflict aging baby boomers.

“This could potentially lead to much more effective therapies for how we replace bone or promote bone healing,” said Michael Longaker, MD, professor of plastic and reconstructive surgery. “Let’s say I’m an 80-year-old with a fractured hip. It would be invaluable to be able to heal more quickly and regain mobility and strength.”

The study will be published in the Sept. 7 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
Scientists have known for some time about a class of proteins called bone morphogenetic proteins, or BMPs, which stimulate bone formation. In fact, some current therapies for stimulating bone formation, such as spinal fusions, use recombinant BMPs to help healing. But Longaker’s new study of a protein called Noggin, which blocks bone growth, suggests there might be another, more efficient approach.

Noggin was first identified in 1992 by one of Longaker’s collaborators, Richard Harland, PhD, now a faculty member at the University of California-Berkeley, as a protein that guides tissue fate in developing frog embryos. In 2003, the researchers found that Noggin prevents the premature fusion of bones in the skull during infancy by blocking the actions of BMPs.

Longaker and the first author of the new study, Derrick Wan, MD, a postdoctoral scholar at Stanford, wondered whether interfering with Noggin expression could speed bone growth.In the new study, they initially found through work with tissue cultures that using small pieces of RNA to block Noggin expression in bone-forming cells increased the activity of the cells’ BMPs and nudged them further down the bone-producing path. Furthermore, bone-forming cells in which Noggin expression was suppressed were able to heal large skull defects in mice significantly more quickly than Noggin-expressing cells.

“Basically we just took away the natural brake and let the accelerator go to town,” said Longaker, who is also a pediatric craniofacial surgeon at Packard Children’s Hospital.

Despite the accelerated rate of healing seen in the mice treated with the Noggin-challenged cells, bone formation didn’t run rampant in these animals. After eight weeks, the healed skulls of the two groups of mice looked similar. This is important because over-enthusiastic bone formation could exacerbate rather than solve musculo-skeletal problems.

“The bone that was formed looked very normal,” said Longaker. “It’s not as if these mice grew horns or anything.”

In addition to the obvious therapeutic implications, the discovery of the interplay between Noggin and BMPs also sheds light on a perplexing developmental mystery: What guides skeletal formation during embryogenesis, when BMPs are expressed in many cells not destined to become bone? Now it appears that Noggin, along with other potent BMP inhibitors, keeps the BMPs in check throughout most of the body. This type of yin-yang relationship keeps the body primed to respond quickly to damage like fractures.

Although the concept needs to be tested in humans, the researchers envision a day when many disorders could benefit by tweaking Noggin levels up or down.

“Think of the way we treat arthritis,” said Longaker. “Right now, we cut off the diseased part of the joint and glue in a metal implant. Imagine if we could instead use a biodegradable replacement seeded with a compound that could knock down Noggin expression in the area and slowly secrete BMPs. Over two or three years, the implant would dissolve, to be replaced by the individual’s own healthy bone. This is a first step toward the concept of personalized bone tissue engineering.”

In addition to Wan, Longaker’s Stanford collaborators include Jason Pomerantz, MD, postdoctoral scholar; Jae-Beom Kim, PhD, research associate; and Helen Blau, PhD, the Donald E. and Delia B. Baxter Professor of Pharmacology. Longaker also collaborated with researchers at UCLA.

The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Oak Foundation, a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award, and an Ethicon-Society of University Surgeons Research Fellowship.

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Contact: Krista Conger
Stanford University School of Medicine

Low Vitamin D Linked to Higher Risk of Hip Fracture

 Women with low levels of vitamin D have an increased risk of hip fracture, according to a study led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health presented this week at the 29th annual meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research at the Hawaii Convention Center. Jane A. Cauley, Dr.P.H., professor of epidemiology, and colleagues evaluated patient data on 400 women enrolled in the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study Cohort who had experienced hip fracture, confirmed by their medical record, over a median of 7.1 years. Levels of 25 hydroxyvitamin D, an indicator of vitamin D status, in the bloodstream were measured for these patients and compared with those of a control group matched for age, race, ethnicity and the date of relevant blood work. As vitamin D concentrations decreased, the risk of hip fractures climbed.“The risk of hip fractures was 77 percent higher among women whose 25 hydroxyvitamin D levels were at the lowest concentrations,” said Dr. Cauley, who has spent much of the past 15 years investigating the physical changes that take place in postmenopausal women. “This effect persisted even when we adjusted for other risk factors such as body mass index, family history of hip fracture, smoking, alcohol use and calcium and vitamin D intake.”Vitamin D deficiency early in life is associated with rickets – a disorder characterized by soft bones and thought to have been eradicated in the United States more than 50 years ago.

Though the exact daily requirement of vitamin D has not been determined, most experts think that people need at least 800 to 1,000 international units a day. Many experts believe the current recommended levels of 400 IUs daily should be increased.

The vitamin is manufactured in the skin after sun exposure, and is not available naturally in many foods other than fish liver oils. Some foods are fortified with the vitamin.

Dr. Cauley’s work also focuses on use of estrogen, risks of hip fractures, bone density and cholesterol levels of women who are going through menopause. As a co-principal investigator for the University of Pittsburgh’s site of the Women’s Health Initiative, a National Institutes of Health-sponsored study, Dr. Cauley and her colleagues continue to examine the effects calcium and vitamin D have on osteoporosis.

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Contact: Michele Baum
University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH)

Founded in 1948 and fully accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health, GSPH is world-renowned for contributions that have influenced public health practices and medical care for millions of people. One of the top-ranked schools of public health in the United States, GSPH was the first fully accredited school of public health in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, with alumni who are among the leaders in their fields of public health. A member of the Association of Schools of Public Health, GSPH currently ranks third among schools of public health in NIH funding received. The only school of public health in the nation with a chair in minority health, GSPH is a leader in research related to women’s health, HIV/AIDS and human genetics, among others.

For More Information About Supplementing Vitamin D Click Here

How Good Is Your Calcium Supplement?

Calcium is essential for many functions in the body, including:

• regulating the heartbeat
• conducting nerve impulses
• stimulating hormone secretions
• clotting of blood
• building and maintaining healthy bones.

Calcium is a mineral found in many foods. Getting enough of this nutrient is important because the human body cannot make it. Even after you are fully grown, adequate calcium intake is important because the body loses calcium every day through the skin, nails, hair, and sweat, as well as through urine and feces. This lost calcium must be replaced daily through the diet. Otherwise, the body takes calcium out of the bones to perform other functions, which makes the bones weaker and more likely to break over time.

Experts recommend that adults get 1,000 to 1,200 mg (milligrams) of calcium each day. Although food is the best source of calcium, most Americans do not get enough of it from food sources. Calcium-fortified foods (like orange juice, bread, cereals, and many others on your grocer’s shelves) and calcium supplements can fill the gap by ensuring that you meet your daily calcium requirement.

What to Look for in a Calcium Supplement

Calcium exists in nature only in combination with other substances. These substances are called compounds. Several different calcium compounds are used in supplements, including:

• calcium carbonate
• calcium phosphate
• calcium citrate.

These compounds contain different amounts of elemental calcium, which is the actual amount of calcium in the supplement. It is important to read the label carefully to determine how much elemental calcium is in the supplement and how many doses or pills to take.

Calcium supplements are available without a prescription in a wide range of preparations and strengths, which can make selecting one a confusing experience. Many people ask which calcium supplement they should take. The “best” supplement is the one that meets your needs. Ask yourself these questions:

• How well does my body tolerate this kind of supplement? Does it cause any side effects (like gas or constipation)? If so, you may want to try another kind or a different brand.
• Is this kind of supplement convenient? Can I remember to take it as often as recommended each day?
• Is the cost of this supplement within my budget?
• Is it widely available? Can I buy it at a store near me?

Other Important Things to Consider

Purity: Choose calcium supplements with familiar brand names. Look for labels that state “purified” or have the USP (United States Pharmacopeia) symbol. Avoid calcium from unrefined oyster shell, bone meal, or dolomite without the USP symbol, because it may contain high levels of lead or other toxic metals.

Absorbability: Most brand-name calcium products are absorbed easily in the body. If you are not sure about your product, you can find out how well it dissolves by placing it in a small amount of warm water for 30 minutes and stirring it occasionally. If it hasn’t dissolved within this time, it probably will not dissolve in your stomach. Chewable and liquid calcium supplements dissolve well because they are broken down before they enter the stomach.

Calcium, whether from food or supplements, is absorbed best by the body when it is taken several times a day in amounts of 500 mg or less, but taking it all at once is better than not taking it at all. Calcium carbonate is absorbed best when taken with food. Calcium citrate can be taken anytime.

Tolerance: For certain people, some calcium supplements may cause side effects such as gas or constipation. If simple measures (such as increasing your intake of fluids and high-fiber foods) do not solve the problem, you should try another form of calcium. Also, it is important to increase the dose of your supplement gradually: take just 500 mg a day for a week, then slowly add more calcium. Do not take more than the recommended amount of calcium without your doctor’s approval.

Calcium Interactions: It is important to talk with a doctor or pharmacist about possible interactions between your over-the-counter and prescription medications, and calcium supplements. For example, calcium supplements may reduce the absorption of the antibiotic tetracycline. Calcium also interferes with iron absorption. So you should not take a calcium supplement at the same time as an iron supplement – unless the calcium supplement is calcium citrate, or unless the iron supplement is taken with vitamin C. Any medication that you need to take on an empty stomach should not be taken with calcium supplements.

Combination Products

Calcium supplements are available in a bewildering array of combinations with vitamins and other minerals. Calcium supplements often come in combination with vitamin D, which is necessary for the absorption of calcium. However, calcium and vitamin D do not need to be taken together and/or in the same preparation in order to be absorbed by the body. Minerals such as magnesium and phosphorus also are important but usually are obtained through food or multivitamins. Most experts recommend that nutrients come from a balanced diet, with multivitamins used to supplement dietary deficiencies.

Getting enough calcium – whether through your diet or with the help of supplements – will help to protect the health of your bones. However, this is only one of the steps you need to take for bone health. Exercise, a healthy lifestyle, and, for some people, medication, are also important.

Source: NIH/National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases

Exercise Reduces Muscle and Joint Pain 25%

People who exercise regularly experience 25% less muscle and joint pain in their old age than people who are less active. Research published in Arthritis Research & Therapy reveals that people who regularly participate in brisk aerobic exercise, such as running, experience less pain than non-runners even though they are more likely to suffer from pain from injuries.

Bonnie Bruce and colleagues from Stanford University, USA, compared the level of pain in a group of runners and a group of community-based individuals who acted as controls. Participants were followed for 14 years, and were on average in their mid-sixties when the study started. Each year, they completed a questionnaire about their health status, exercise habits and history of injuries. In total, the study included 866 subjects: 492 Runners’ Association members and 374 controls.

Bruce et al.’s results show that the greater majority of physically active participants did, on average, between 355 and 2,119 minutes of exercise per week over the course of the study, while controls exercised significantly less. After adjusting for confounding factors such as gender, age, weight and health status the results show that pain increased in both groups over time. But members of the Runners’ Association experienced 25% less musculoskeletal pain than controls. This reduction persisted throughout the study period, until the subjects reached an age of 62 to 76 years.

“Exercise was associated with a substantial and significant reduction in pain even [...] despite the fact that fractures, a significant predictor of pain, were slightly more common among runners,” conclude the authors.

More research is needed to investigate the mechanisms that might underlie the effect of exercise on musculoskeletal pain in old age.

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Aerobic Exercise And Its Impact On Musculoskeletal Pain In Older Adults: A 14-Year Prospective, Longitudinal Study
Bonnie Bruce, James F. Fries, Deborah P. Lubeck
Arthritis Research & Therapy 2005, 7:R1263-R1270 (19 September 2005)

Juliette Savin
press@biomedcentral.com
44-207-631-9931
BioMed Central
http://www.biomedcentral.com

Arthritis Research & Therapy (http://arthritis-research.com/) is published by BioMed Central (http://www.biomedcentral.com), an independent online publishing house committed to providing open access to peer-reviewed biological and medical research. This commitment is based on the view that immediate free access to research and the ability to freely archive and reuse published information is essential to the rapid and efficient communication of science.

Achieve Maximum Heart Health Eating Omega-3 Fatty Acids

While a heart-healthy diet has become synonymous with plenty of fruits and vegetables and little fat and cholesterol, there’s more to the story. Omega-3 fatty acids should be part of a heart-healthy diet, too, according to the August issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter.

Omega-3 fatty acids are a form of polyunsaturated fat important to overall health. As it pertains to heart disease, their main benefit is their ability to reduce the risk of heart rhythm problems in certain groups of people, thus reducing the risk of sudden cardiac death. In addition, omega-3s may help reduce triglycerides, lower blood pressure slightly and reduce blood clotting.

The best source of omega-3s is fatty, cold water fish such as herring, mackerel, salmon and tuna. Plant oils, such as canola and flaxseed oils, also are sources of omega-3s.

For heart disease prevention, near-maximum benefit comes from eating two 3-ounce servings of cold water fish a week. More than that doesn’t appear to offer any additional preventive benefit.

Higher amounts of two kinds of omega-3, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), may benefit some people with established heart disease or high triglyceride levels and can have an anti-inflammatory effect for people with rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, DHA is being studied to see if it can slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

For those who don’t eat fish, a fish oil supplement or an algae supplement can provide omega-3 fatty acids. However, supplements aren’t cheap, and the amount of DHA and EPA in supplements varies widely. Except for people who have established heart disease, the evidence of heart disease prevention is stronger when one eats fish instead of taking supplements. Supplements can pose risks, too. Taking more than 3 grams of fish oil a day may increase the risk of bleeding, worsen heart rhythm problems in those who have arrhythmias or cause other side effects.

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Mayo Clinic
200 First St. SW
Rochester, MN 55902
United States
http://www.mayoclinic.com

Little Children Not Getting Enough Fiber

A Penn State analysis of the diets of a nationally representative sample of U.S. preschoolers, ages 2 to 5, shows that more than three-quarters of the children are not getting enough fiber.

Children who consumed the most fiber also had the most nutrient-rich diets. However, all children in the study ate fewer dairy servings than recommended by the Food Guide Pyramid.

Dr. Sibylle Kranz, assistant professor of nutritional sciences who led the study, says, “There is clinical evidence that children with low fiber intakes are at risk of chronic constipation. However, there are also other reasons to encourage fiber consumption in children. For example, fiber has been shown to lower cardiovascular risk in adults. Children who eat high-fiber foods are more likely to grow up into adults who consume adequate fiber.”

The study detailed in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association in a paper, Dietary Fiber Intake by American Preschoolers is Associated with More Nutrient-Dense Diets. (view abstract) The authors are Kranz; Diane C. Mitchell, Penn State Diet Assessment Center coordinator; Anna Maria Siega-Riz, associate professor of maternal and child health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; and Dr. Helen Smiciklas-Wright, Penn State professor of nutritional sciences.

In the study, dietary consumption estimates were based on 2-day averages of 5,437 children whose parents provided information in the 1994-1996 and 1998 Continuing Survey of Food Intake by Individuals conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The researchers conducted separate analyses on the 2 and 3 year olds and the 4 and 5 year olds and compared them.

The younger children had, on average, a higher fiber intake than the older children. The two and three year olds, whose fiber intake placed them in the top quarter of the sample, met the new National Academy of Sciences Dietary Reference Intake level. These guidelines propose that Americans of all ages consume 14 g total fiber per every 1,000 calories based on evidence for reduced cardiovascular disease risk at that level.

The main fiber sources consumed by the children were, in order: low-fiber fruits, such as applesauce; legumes; and high-fiber cereal. Other low-fiber, low-nutrient foods that contributed very small amounts of fiber to the children’s diets included pizza and other high-fat, grain-based mixed dishes and high-fat salty snacks such as chips. High-fiber vegetables and fruit, which should be a major source of fiber, were consumed in too small quantities to contribute to the total average fiber intake.

“If parents feed their preschoolers fiber-rich foods, they are most likely providing important nutrients for the children as well,” Kranz says. “An easy substitution to get more fiber into their diets is to change to whole-grain products and high-fiber cereals. Also, children usually like sweet potato, baked beans, grapes and oranges and they’re all high-fiber, high-nutrient foods.”

The study was supported by a seed grant from the Penn State College of Health and Human Development.

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Source: Andrea Elyse Messer
Penn State

Taking Painkillers, NSAID Increase the Risk for Heart Attack

Painkillers-new and old-increase the risk for heart attack

 Cardiovascular side effects aren’t limited to the use of the newer painkillers called COX-2 inhibitors-a category that includes Celebrex and the recently discontinued Vioxx and Bextra. Old standbys, like ibuprofen and aspirin, aren’t entirely blameless, reports the October 2006 issue of the Harvard Heart Letter. The cardiovascular risks associated with traditional NSAIDs are small, but worth being aware of.

Ibuprofen, aspirin, and COX-2s all belong to the class of medicines called nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Most of them boost blood pressure and can counteract the effect of some blood-pressure drugs. They can also impair blood vessels’ ability to relax and may stimulate the growth of smooth muscle cells inside arteries. All these changes can contribute to the artery-clogging process known as atherosclerosis.

Researchers have determined that use of a COX-2 inhibitor increases the chances of having a heart attack. Vioxx, which was taken off the market because of possible heart complications, may lead to or worsen heart failure-but so can traditional NSAIDs. In general, cardiovascular side effects are most likely to happen in people with existing heart disease or those at high risk for it. 

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Source: Harvard Health Publications
Contact: hhpmedia@hms.harvard.edu
Web site: http://www.health.harvard.edu

Eating red meat may increase rheumatoid arthritis risk

Consuming high levels of red meat study says is an independent risk factor in the development of inflammatory arthritis

A chronic inflammatory disease of the immune system, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has been linked to a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Aspects of lifestyle may explain as much as 40 percent of the risk. Cigarette smoking has consistently been found to play a role in RA’s development. The role of nutritional factors is less certain. Studies have suggested the protective benefits of eating fish, the dangers of drinking coffee, and a reduction in disease risk for women who enjoy alcohol in moderation. Such associations, however, are still wide open to debate and further research.Recently, a team of British researchers found that a diet lacking in fruit, especially varieties high in vitamin C, increases the risk of inflammatory arthritis, a common early sign of RA, as much as three-fold. Building on this compelling finding, they set out to investigate the association of other dietary habits with the onset of RA. Their results, published in the December 2004 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism (http://www.interscience.wiley.com/journal/arthritis), indicate a high level of red meat consumption as an independent risk factor for inflammatory arthritis.

Led by Professors Alan Silman and Deborah Symmons at the University of Manchester, the team drew its subjects from a large, established research sample–over 25,000 men and women between the ages of 45 and 75 enrolled in the European Prospective Investigation of Cancer in Norfolk, England. Within this population, 88 new patients with inflammatory arthritis, affecting at least two major joints, were identified.

Nearly 40 percent of these patients satisfied the American College of Rheumatology criteria for RA at baseline. The patients were then matched, for age, sex, and body mass index, with 176 controls. At the study’s onset, each participant completed a detailed 7-day food diary, with advance instruction on measuring food portions to help them be as specific as possible in recording their intake. Each participant also supplied information on his or her past and present status as a smoker.

Patients were more likely to have been former smokers; only 35 percent of the patients had never smoked compared with 85 percent of the controls. In terms of dietary factors, patients and controls were similar in most areas, including intake of total calories, fat grams, and vitamin D, as well as coffee, tea, and alcohol consumption. Patients had a lower intake of vitamin C, although the association of this factor with disease risk was not as strong as it was in the team’s previous study. The most striking difference between the two groups was directly related to red meat consumption. After adjusting for smoking and other possible dietary confounders, patients with the highest level of red meat consumption had a two-fold risk for the development of RA. Patients who consumed high levels of red meat combined with other meat products showed similar high risk levels. Interestingly, a higher level of protein intake from all dietary sources was also associated with an increased disease risk, while higher levels of dietary fats, including saturated fat, did not have an impact.

Routinely eating burgers and steak, however, may only influence people with a predisposition for RA. “It may be that the high collagen content of meat leads to collagen sensitization and consequent production of anticollagen antibodies, most likely in a subgroup of susceptible individuals,” the authors note. “Meat consumption may be linked to either additives or even infectious agents, but, again, there is no evidence as to what might be important in relation to RA.”

“A high level of red meat consumption may represent a novel risk factor for inflammatory arthritis or may act as a marker for a group of persons with an increased risk from other lifestyle causes,” Dr. Pattison and colleagues conclude. “It is unclear whether the association is a causative one.”

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Article adapted by MD Only Weblog from original press release.
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Article: “Dietary Risk Factors for the Development of Inflammatory Polyarthritis: Evidence for a Role of High Level of Red Meat Consumption,” Dorothy J. Pattison, Deborah P.M. Symmons, Mark Lunt, Ailsa Welch, Robert Luben, Sheila A. Bingham, Kay-Tee Khaw, Nicholas E. Day, and Alan J. Silman, Arthritis & Rheumatism, December 2004; 50:12; pp. 3804-3812.

Contact: Amy Molnar
amolnar@wiley.com
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.