Insomnia Update
July 31, 2009
It seems that most of us have insomnia for periods of time, if not pretty much permanently. Insomnia is must be due in part to our 21st century lifestyle and perhaps changes in our sleep habits as we age.
A few weeks back I had a post Sleep Problems. In that post I talked about insomnia and gave a few statistics. The amazing one, to me, was that it is estimated that the market for insomnia drugs will be $3.9 billion by 2012. $3.9 billion?
At the end of the post I said I was going to sign up for an online course/consultation for treating insomnia with cognitive behavioral therapy or CBT. The course lasts 5 weeks and you get pdfs, your weekly sleep diary analyzed and advice on how to change your sleep habits. See the other post for more info; the course link is cbtforinsomnia.com.
I kept my first sleep diary for a week, and then emailed it. A day later I got my first guidelines.
My problem is not getting to sleep, but waking up in the early hours of the morning and not getting back to sleep for quite a long time. The advice for me was basically to go to bed later, but still get up at the same time every day and not lie in bed once I awoke in the morning.
I got very tired but it seems to have really helped. I have had one night where I did not wake at-all. By the end of the third week, I was wakening once or twice per night, but was not awake for very long, and my brain did not go into that super active mode that kept me awake before.
The verdict? So far a success. Hopefully, when I start to go to bed a bit earlier, I will have trained myself and no longer wake up with an active brain and be awake for long periods of time. Waking briefly is fine with me.
If you have insomnia and want to try a simple and different approach, it might be worth a shot.
photo credit: Photo4jenifer
Technorati Tags: insomnia, cognitive behavioral therapy, CBT, sleep problems
So Excited – Finally Can Get Boots No7 Protect & Perfect In The US
July 28, 2009
There are only a few products that have been demonstrated to reduce wrinkles. The retinoids are one, and Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Serum is another. Now it is available in the US.
I have written before about Protect & Perfect (An Anti-Aging Cream That Really Works).
If you read this previous post you will see that it has been scientifically tested and shown to reduce lines.
There was a test by The University of Manchester that showed significant reduction of wrinkles and lines in those study participants who used the cream, but not in those who got a placebo. Check out the article and pictures. They are pretty convincing.
There are two choices for the face Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Beauty Serum and Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Beauty Serum
. Both have been shown to reduce wrinkles. The Manchester study was on the Intense Beauty Serum.
Interestingly the price is cheaper in the US than it is in the UK. Boots is the name of the drugstore (called a chemist in the UK). It was started by John Boot in 1849. Their No7 of skin and makeup products is the number one selling brand in the UK. Boots was the company that developed ibuprofen in 1960.
The Protect & Perfect Intense Beauty Serum is $22.99 and there is a buy 2 get 30% off the third offer. The original Protect & Perfect Beauty Serum
is $19.99.
There is also a Protect & Perfect Moisturising Body Serum for $19.99.
For something that actually works, I think the prices are really low. How many $70+ creams, lotions and potions have we all bought, that were totally useless?
It works and it feels great on your skin. My mother has been sending me supplies from the UK; which with the postage makes it much more expensive.
I am so excited I have already placed my order. I got some Intense Serum and some Body Serum.
Technorati Tags: Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Body Serum, Protect & Perfect Beauty Serum, Protect & Perfect Body Serum, wrinkles, reduce wrinkles, lines
Cardiovascular Roundup: Healing Heart Attacks and Protection Against Dementia
July 27, 2009
Today, two studies that may show ways to improve quality of life for those with cardiovascular problems. Research suggests that some blood pressure drugs may protect against dementia, and injection of a growth factor may improve the repair of a heart after a heart attack.
Many people are taking blood pressure drugs for lowering blood pressure. Now there is a evidence that some members of the class of drugs known as ACE inhibitors may help protect against dementia.
The type of ACE inhibitors that seem to be effective are those that enter the brain. The brain is protected by a barrier called the blood-brain barrier, which stops many things entering the brain. This is a mechanism to protect the brain. The ACE inhibitors that can get into the brain are called “centrally-acing”.
Centrally-acting ACE inhibitors include captropril (Capoten®), fosinopril (Monopril®), lisinopril (Prinivil® or Zestri®), perindopril (Aceon®), ramipril (Altace®) and trandolapril (Mavik®). The other ACE inhibitors are not centrally acting.
The study found that those taking centrally-acting ACE inhibitors had less mental decline and dementia, than those taking other blood pressure medications. The other medications studied, including non centrally-acting ACE inhibitors had no effect on the rate of mental decline or dementia. Patients were taking other blood pressure medications were no different from those not taking blood pressure medication.
This study seems to suggest that if you have to take blood pressure medicine you might as well slow your potential mental decline and risk of dementia as the same time. Before we all rush out to change our blood pressure medicine; this is only one study and different blood pressure drugs have different effectiveness in different people.
When a heart attack occurs there is damage to the heart. The heart seems to have only a limited capacity to repair itself. This is one of the promises of stem cells. The idea is that you would bank your own stem cells at birth, and then they could be used later in life for problems such as a heart attack. (In the media stem cells seems to equal embryonic stem cells. In reality, most research is done on stem cells that did not come from embryos.)
Now researchers have shown that injecting a growth factor called neuregulin 1 may help with repairing the heart. Neuregulin 1 is a growth factor that is important for the growth and development of the heart in the fetus. In the experiments mice that had had heart attacks showed more repair if they had been injected daily with neuregulin 1, than those that had no received the growth factor. The neuregulin 1 treated mice regained much better heart function than the other mice.
Getting more heart function back after a heart attack would make a huge difference in quality of life for a large number of people. It would save money too. Lets hope that a treatment like neuregulin 1 is found to be safe and effective and become widely available soon.
photo credit: ♪ Sleeping Sun ♪
Technorati Tags: ACE inhibitors, centrally-acting ACE inhibitors, blood-brain barrier, mental decline, dementia, heart attack, neuregulin 1, growth factor, heart function
Does Your Diet Affect Your Risk Of Alzheimer’s And Mental Decline?
July 22, 2009
For the “diseases of aging” there is much research into whether lifestyle affects the risk of getting these diseases and whether there is an impact of when you get the diseases and their severity.
A series of research papers presented at the 2009 International Conference of Alzheimer’s Disease suggest that diet (and physical activity level) can the risk of mental decline.
You have probably heard of the DASH diet. The name stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. The diet was developed to help lower blood pressure naturally. High blood pressure is considered a risk factor for both Alzheimer’s and some other forms of mental decline.
The DASH diet is a healthy diet, high in fruits, vegetables and beans, low in salt and has moderate consumption of meat and low-fat dairy products. (If you want more info here is a general overview of the diet and a detailed pdf with complete information, a weekly diet plan, recipes etc.)
In the study adults over 65 were assessed for cognitive abilities and how close their diet was to the DASH diet.
The researchers found that the closer a person’s diet was to the DASH diet, the more likely they were to have higher mental function.
Further analysis of the diets found that it was the higher levels of consumption of vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, and nut/legumes were related to better mental function. Interestingly there was no mention of fruit, suggesting that a high intake of fruit was not related to higher mental cognitive function.
The research suggests that feeding your brain a healthy diet conserves its function, and slows its rate of aging. Yet another reason to try and improve your diet.
Technorati Tags: Alzheimer’s, mental decline, DASH diet, cognitive function, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, nut/legumes
My Nephew Has Swine Flu
July 20, 2009
One of my nephews has swine flu. I talked to his Dad, one of my brothers, yesterday and he too was starting to feel bad. So it is likely that he caught it from his son.
For some reason (weather?), swine flu is rampant in the UK.
I just looked at the NHS (National Health Service) webpage for swine flu. The Health Protection Agency estimates that there were 55, 000 new cases last week!!
The ages that are most affected are 14 and under. Plus those that have some other health problem.
My nephew is 16. The school year runs much longer in the UK than it does in the US. He was on an end of term school trip to Newquay, which is in the extreme southwest of England. There were about 100 of them on the trip and 75 of them came down with swine flu. One of the students was hospitalized.
It is really bad timing. My brother and his family are supposed to be flying out to the US, to visit me, in two weeks. I am sure that my nephew and brother will be fine by them, but if it spreads through the rest of the family slowly, it is possible that not everybody will be well enough to come.
The NHS webpage on symptoms is good with lots of information.
Here in the US, swine flu is expected to spread rapidly as soon as schools open at the end of the summer. It is going to be an interesting fall.
photo credit: Corey Tegeler
Technorati Tags: swine flu, UK, nephew
Naringenin, Found In Grapefruit, May Help Prevent Weight Gain
July 15, 2009
Grapefruit is has been part of popular low calorie diets for many years. The Grapefruit Diet or Hollywood Diet is classed as a very low calorie diet, since it often has less than 800 calories per day. Now there is some evidence that there is a compound naringenin, found in grapefruit may help prevent weight gain and help prevent the development of metabolic syndrome.
Naringenin, not to be confused with naringen, a related compound, is found in grapefruit and other citrus fruits. It is an antioxidant that has been suggested to also have anti-inflammatory properties and suppress glucose production by the liver.
New research suggests that naringenin may help prevent weight gain and other symptoms of metabolic syndrome. The researchers showed that naringenin normalized blood triglyceride levels and returned glucose processing to normal in mice that had been fed a high fat diet and had developed metabolic syndrome.
Further those mice that had naringenin in their diet did not become obese, whereas the mice on the same diet without naringenin did gain weight. This suggests that naringenin may be useful for weight loss or stopping weight gain.
This research suggests that there might be benefit to humans in eating citrus fruits including grapefruit. However, it should be noted that the amounts of naringenin that were fed to mice were much greater than you could get from eating a reasonable amount of citrus. This is a bit like resveratrol, the compound in red wine. To get the levels of resveratrol used in many studies, you would have to drink red wine out of a 5 gallon bucket not a wine glass.
It will be interesting to see if the results in mice can be replicated in humans. If naringenin becomes available as a supplement, make sure before you take it, that you talk to your doctor, if you are taking any drugs including those that do not need a prescription. It can interfere with the processing of certain drugs in the body and could have bad health consequences.
So a modified healthy grapefruit diet may actually help prevent weight gain.
photo credit: shawncampbell
Technorati Tags: naringenin, grapefruit, metabolic syndrome, weight gain, glucose
Clean Teeth And Flossing Are Good For Your Heart
July 13, 2009
There are several research news items this week that provide further evidence that good care of teeth and gums is important for your overall health. Cleaning our teeth and flossing
Whenever I take my dog to the vet, I see several posters about how keeping your pet’s teeth clean and stopping gum disease are important for maintaining the overall health of the pet. Somehow the message has got through for pets but not for humans.
Recently there has been a greater appreciation of the fact that atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) diabetes and other chronic diseases have a strong inflammatory component. Long term constant inflammation is bad for us. It increases our risk of having health problems.
If you have gum disease periodontis, the gums are swollen and inflamed. This long term constant inflammation will have negative consequences for health.
The number of people who have periodontis (inflammation of the gum) is astonishingly high. It is estimated that 30-50 % of US adults have some form. Of course, for many it is quite mild, with gum problems progressing slowly. However, it is estimated that 1 in 10 adults have severe periodontis.
Several studies have all found the same result. Those with periodontis have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. The increased risk includes atherosclerosis, heart attack, heart failure, stroke and high blood pressure.
In fact, there has been a suggestion that those with moderate to severe periodontis should be evaluated for cardiovascular disease and if necessary given treatments to reduce their risk.
For both good dental and heart health it is important to both clean our teeth and floss regularly. Floss for a healthy heart.
photo credit: Bee Skutch
Technorati Tags: gum disease, periodontis, inflammation, cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, floss
Vinegar May Decrease Accumulation Of Body Fat
July 8, 2009
Vinegar has been used as a folk remedy for many years, by many cultures. Now there is evidence that vinegar may decrease accumulation of body fat.
Vinegar is made from many plants including fruits such as apple, barley, rice and wine. Different vinegars have diverse flavors. However, they all contain acetic acid, which is what the makes the vinegar acid, and gives it many of its properties.
Over the years, vinegar has been suggested to have many healthful effects. Some of these suggested positive effects on health have included fighting infections and detoxifying the body.
In most countries the sale of vinegar is not regulated, so there are huge variations between brands and types. The range of amount of acetic acid can be quite significant.
If large quantities of vinegar, or vinegars with high acetic acid content, are taken there can be negative health consequences. Vinegar can burn your throat, esophagus and stomach. Taking too much over a period of time can deplete your body of potassium in the body, increase the rate of osteoporosis and increased blood pressure.
In new research, mice were fed a high fat diet and some were given acetic acid. Those with acetic acid supplementation gained less body fat. Up to 10% less body fat!
The researchers suggest that acetic acid is acting on the liver, turning on genes that are involved in breaking down fat. If more fat is broken down, there is less to be taken up by fat cells. Therefore, there is less fat on the belly or other places.
So perhaps taking a sensible amount of vinegar every day may help with weight gain. However, exercise caution. Too much vinegar could have bad health effects such as those described above. More is not necessarily better.
Technorati Tags: vinegar, body fat, weight gain, acetic acid
Can age-related muscle loss be reversed?
July 6, 2009
One aspect of aging is loss of strength and the amount of muscle that we have. In our late 20’s we start to lose muscle.
The age-related loss of muscle is called sarcopenia. This loss of muscle is slow at first, but then from the 40’, there is a more rapid loss of muscle. For more information see the post Dieters Lose Muscle If Not Exercising.
Sarcopenia can lead to problems for the elderly. Having weak muscles particularly in the legs can lead to a fall and that characteristic shuffling gait. With weak leg muscles, the feet are not lifted far enough off the ground. This increases the tendency to trip and fall since the feet can catch more easily. The fear of falling causes the gaze to be down, rather than ahead when walking, which besides reducing anticipation of problems ahead, makes you look old.
Exercising regularly will slow the loss of muscle and help maintain physical abilities much later in life.
Though exercising helps slow sarcopenia, it has been assumed that there is no way to reverse loss. Now there is research that suggests that there may be a way to, in part, reverse some of the loss.
The research looked at a growth factor called mechano growth factor, abbreviated to MGF. This growth factor is formed from the same gene as myotrophin, which has been investigated for use in increasing muscle mass, particularly in ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) with mixed results.
Mechano growth factor is made in muscle when they are stretched during exercise. It has been shown to cause satellite cells within the muscle (not fully developed “baby” muscle cells) to divide and fuse with muscle cells to repair them. It is the cycle of muscle damage and repair that results in increased muscle strength.
Now, it has been shown that elderly men who were given MGF, while in an exercise program had significantly increased muscle mass.
This suggests that there may be a way to partially reverse sarcopenia. If this turns out to be correct, there could be a huge impact on quality of life, with more confident walking and less falls. It could, also, result in reduced health care costs, both for hospitalization but also long term care.
Technorati Tags: sarcopenia, mechano growth factor, MGF, myotrophin, muscle, satellite cells
Orange juice is worse for your teeth than standard teeth whitening kits!
July 2, 2009
Orange juice is worse for your teeth than standard teeth whitening kits! A new microscopic technique that can examine the surface of teeth showed that orange juice was more damaging.
Teeth whitening kits, both home and professional, contain 6% hydrogen peroxide. It has been suggested that this strength of hydrogen peroxide is quite damaging to the surface of teeth.
The new technique looked at the surface of the teeth and estimated changes to the surface and hardness.
The researchers found that teeth whitening had little impact on the surface of the teeth, whereas orange juice slowly ate away at teeth. Therefore, over time regular drinking of orange juice could weaken teeth.
Sodas are also acidic and so may be having the same effect. Ditto for sports drinks and wine.
The length of time that teeth are in contact with acidic drinks is important. Sipping a drink exposes teeth to acid longer. So chug that drink!
A straw also helps protect teeth, since much of the drink bypasses the teeth.
Drinking water or eating cheese after an acidic drink helps reduce the acidic environment in the mouth. Anything that means I can eat more cheese is fine with me.
Technorati Tags: orange juice, teeth whitening, teeth, acid drinks, cheese
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