In Some Patients, Hypertension Meds Raise Blood Pressure
Thursday - August 26th, 2010 at 4:17 pm
WEDNESDAY, Aug. 25 (HealthDay News) — Popular prescription medications taken to control hypertension may actually boost blood pressure in a “statistically significant” percentage of patients, researchers report.
The warning stems from a new study appearing in the online edition of the American Journal of Hypertension. The research involved 945 New York City residents participating in a program designed to control high blood pressure in the workplace from 1981 to 1998.
“Every clinician knows that there’s a variation in response to antihypertensive treatment, and that some patients will have an elevation in blood pressure,” study author Dr. Michael Alderman, a professor of epidemiology & population health and of medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and a former president of the American Society of Hypertension, said in a news release from the society. “The latter phenomenon is generally attributed to patients’ failure to take their medications or to a random event. But these data show that it’s not a random event.”
None of the study participants, who all had systolic blood pressure of at least 140 mm Hg,
More >> In Some Patients, Hypertension Meds Raise Blood Pressure: MedlinePlus.
Car built by high school students achieves 444 mpg
Wednesday - August 25th, 2010 at 6:38 pm
This story will challenge your beliefs about what high school students, especially those who live below the poverty line and face alcohol and drug problems, are capable of. Autopia, a blog at Wired.com, reported on the story of a class project at the Automotive Design Studio at the DaLeSalle Education Center which serves as an alternative high school. The project was to design and build an electric car that weighed less than 1500 pounds, half the weight of 98% of most electric vehicles today.
The car the students had to work with was a damaged 2000 Lola Champ Car which was purchased for $2500 and repaired by students who had collision repair courses. One of the eye-catching traits of the car is its transparent body, which is made of a material by 3M which is the same that is used to shrink wrap windows. The student’s attached the film to the bottom wire of the body and then stretched it using a heat gun across the rest of a wire frame in a process that takes an hour. To date, the skin has shown no fatigue or damage after trial runs.
Read the rest here >> Car built by high school students achieves 444 mpg – Tech Products & Geek News | Geek.com.
Study compares risk with two diabetes drugs
Wednesday - August 25th, 2010 at 6:24 pm
#Diabetes
According to this study, the risk between Actos and Avandia are the same.
Study highlights:
* A new analysis of data on patients covered by a single insurance company reports that risks of heart disease events and death were no different between patients who took the diabetes drugs rosiglitazone or pioglitazone.
* In this analysis, approximately 4 percent of patients taking either drug – sold as Avandia and Actos – suffered a heart attack, heart failure, both or died over a 33-month period.
* See links below to the American Heart Association’s statement on TZDs and comment on the FDA advisory committee’s recommendation on rosiglitazone.
DALLAS, Aug. 24, 2010 – In contrast to previous reports, the risks of the composite endpoint of heart attack, heart failure, both, or death were the same – about 4 percent – for patients taking the diabetes drugs rosiglitazone or pioglitazone, according to a study published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.
“This study provides patients and their doctors with another source of information about rosiglitazone and pioglitazone (sold as Avandia and Actos, respectively) as they determine the best therapy for diabetes patients,” said Debra Wertz, Pharm.D., lead author and outcomes research manager at HealthCore, Inc., the research subsidiary of health insurance company WellPoint, Inc.
Read on >> Study compares risk with two diabetes drugs.
Bottled Teas May Not Deliver on Antioxidants
Wednesday - August 25th, 2010 at 6:15 pm
MONDAY, Aug. 23 (HealthDay News) — When you buy a bottled tea, you may not be getting the health boost you expect.
A new study finds that these increasingly popular beverages may contain far lower levels of antioxidants called polyphenols than green or black tea that you brew at home. In fact, some commercial tea beverages contain such small amounts of polyphenols that you would have to drink 20 bottles to get an amount equal to what’s in one cup of home-brewed tea.
Polyphenols are believed by scientists to have anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic properties.
“Consumers understand very well the concept of the health benefits from drinking tea or consuming other tea products,” researcher Shiming Li said in an American Chemical Society news release. “However, there is a huge gap between the perception that tea consumption is healthy and the actual amount of the healthful nutrients — polyphenols — found in bottled tea beverages. Our analysis of tea beverages found that the polyphenol content is extremely low.”
via Bottled Teas May Not Deliver on Antioxidants: MedlinePlus.
Could Drinking Water Before Meals Help You Lose Weight?
Wednesday - August 25th, 2010 at 6:14 pm
MONDAY, Aug. 23 (HealthDay News) — Close the diet books and skip the pills. The latest weight-loss trick may be as simple as gulping a couple of glasses of water before you eat.
A new study found that middle-aged and older adults who drank two cups of water before each meal consumed fewer calories and lost more weight than those who skipped drinking water.
Researchers divided two groups of overweight and obese men and women aged 55 to 75 into two groups: one group was told to follow a low-fat, low-calorie diet; the other group was told to follow the same diet and to drink two cups of water before breakfast, lunch and dinner.
After 12 weeks, those who drank water before meals had lost 15.5 pounds, compared to 11 pounds for the non-water drinkers, a nearly 30 percent difference.
More >> Could Drinking Water Before Meals Help You Lose Weight?: MedlinePlus.
Recall of Deli Meat Sold at Walmart Stores
Wednesday - August 25th, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Aug. 24, 2010 — Zemco Industries of Buffalo, N.Y., has voluntarily recalled about 380,000 pounds of deli meat products distributed nationwide to Walmart stores because of possible contamination with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. Such bacteria can cause listeriosis, a rare but potentially deadly disease.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) made the announcement today.
The meat was distributed to Walmart stores across the country, where it is used to make Marketside Grab and Go deli sandwiches.
The products subject to recall include:
* 25.5-pound cases of “Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches BLACK FOREST HAM With Natural Juices Coated with Caramel Color” with the number 17800 1300.
* 28.49-pound cases of “Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches HOT HAM, HARD SALAMI, PEPPERONI, SANDWICH PEPPERS” with the number 17803 1300.
* 32.67-pound cases of “Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches VIRGINIA BRAND HAM With Natural Juices, MADE IN NEW YORK, FULLY COOKED BACON, SANDWICH PICKLES, SANDWICH PEPPERS” with the number 17804 1300.
* 25.5-pound cases of “Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches ANGUS ROAST BEEF Coated with Caramel Color” with the number 17805 1300.
The recalled packages also have vendor number “398412808″ on the label and the USDA mark of inspection. The deli meat products were produced between June 18 and July 2, 2010. The packages have various “Use By” dates ranging from Aug. 20 to Sept. 10, 2010.
A statement issued by Walmart says the recall involves the following half- and whole-sized Marketside Grab and Go sandwiches with a “sell by” date of Aug. 25, 2010 or before:
* Ham and Swiss Sandwich
* Italian Hero Sandwich
* Roast Beef and Cheddar Sandwich
* Smokehouse Hero Sandwich
After learning of the voluntary recall, Walmart instructed all stores to remove the items from the shelves. Customers who have purchased any of the recalled items may contact the store for a refund.
Continued info >> Recall of Deli Meat Sold at Walmart Stores.
Adding Fish Oil to Low-Fat/High-Carb Diet May Improve Cholesterol
Tuesday - August 24th, 2010 at 3:46 am
FRIDAY, Aug. 20 (HealthDay News) — For people with the metabolic syndrome — a cluster of risk factors such as obesity, high blood pressure, high levels of blood fats or triglycerides and high blood sugar — adding a little fish oil to a diet low in saturated fats and high in complex carbohydrates might be just the ticket, a new study suggests.
“When you add omega-3 to a high carbohydrate, low-fat diet, you can prevent the long-term adverse effect that a high-carbohydrate diet induces on [blood fats],” said study author Dr. Jose Lopez-Miranda, a professor of medicine at the Reina Sofia University Hospital and the University of Cordoba, Spain.
The study is published in the September issue of the Journal of Nutrition.
Lopez-Miranda and his team looked at 117 people with metabolic syndrome, which raises the risk of heart disease and stroke. They assigned them to one of four diets for 12 weeks. The diets were: high fat/rich in saturated fats; high fat/rich in monounsaturated fats (such as fish and olive oil), low fat and high in complex carbohydrates (such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables), low fat and high in complex carbs but with the fish oil supplement included.
All four diets included about the same number of calories. The researchers tested blood before and after eating, looking for blood fat levels.
At the study’s start, all participants had similar post-meal blood fat responses. But by the end of the three-month trial, those on the high-fat/monounsaturated fat-rich diet or the low-fat, high complex carbohydrate diet with fish oil had better responses.
More >> Adding Fish Oil to Low-Fat/High-Carb Diet May Improve Cholesterol: MedlinePlus.
Green, Leafy Vegetables Linked to Lower Type 2 Diabetes Risk
Tuesday - August 24th, 2010 at 3:09 am
FRIDAY, Aug. 20 (HealthDay News)(#diabetes)( #fb ) – A new analysis of existing research suggests that eating more green, leafy vegetables can significantly reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, but more study is needed.
An estimated 6.4 percent of people in the world have diabetes, and the rates of type 2 diabetes have been going up in the United States as the population has become more overweight, the authors of the analysis noted. Scientists have been trying to understand the role that diet plays in the development of the disease.
Researchers, led by nutritionist Patrice Carter at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom, examined six studies that looked at the links between diet and the incidence of type 2 diabetes. They found that compared with those who ate the least amount of green, leafy vegetables (0.2 servings daily), people who ate the most (1.35 servings daily) had a 14 percent reduction in risk for type 2 diabetes.
More >> Green, Leafy Vegetables Linked to Lower Type 2 Diabetes Risk: MedlinePlus.
Pollute a river and only pay a mere $56,736 for it
Tuesday - August 24th, 2010 at 2:46 am
Release date: 08/23/2010
Contact Information: Chris Whitley, 913-551-7394, whitley.christopher@epa.gov
Environmental News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Kansas City, Kan., August 23, 2010) – Western Sugar Cooperative, of Denver, Col., has agreed to pay a $56,736 civil penalty, and will spend an additional $350,000 on plant upgrades to cut pollution and save water and energy, to settle allegations that its sugar beet processing facility in Scottsbluff, Neb., had excessively high discharges of fecal coliform bacteria in wastewater.
Western Sugar’s facility at 2100 East Overland Drive in Scottsbluff allegedly violated the federal Clean Water Act on at least 14 occasions between December 2007 and January 2010, according to an administrative consent agreement and final order filed in Kansas City, Kan.
The plant’s National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit allowed it to discharge a daily maximum limit of 400 colony forming units (CFUs) of fecal coliform per 100 milliliters (mL) of water. However, an EPA inspection of records showed that the Scottsbluff facility reported excessive discharges ranging from 485 to 20,000 CFUs per 100 mL.
Iowa State Fair attendance down this year
Tuesday - August 24th, 2010 at 1:32 am
Iowa State Fair attendance down this year
by O. Kay Henderson on August 23, 2010
Attendance for this year’s Iowa State Fair will fall short of the one “million mark.” Skies were clear Sunday on the fair’s closing day, but Lori Chappel, the fair’s marketing manager, says school start dates were a factor.
“It does impact our attendance, especially on that last Sunday, as people are getting ready to head back to college and school for some is already in session,” Chapel says. “So for a lot of folks they pass on coming to the fair and usually will stay home to get ready for school.” Just over 877,000 people were admitted to the fairgrounds for the first 10 days of the fair.
Sunday was the 11th and last day of the 2010 fair. “We are fairly certain we won’t hit the million mark. We needed a pretty large number headed into yesterday. We don’t have the final number yet,” Chappel says. “We did have a lot of fairgoers here, though. Hopefully they all had a great time. That’s what it’s all about.”
Continued >> Iowa State Fair attendance down this year.
