Thinking of quitting smoking? Today's the day

Quitting smoking is famously hard. However, according to recent findings, the sooner one stops, the better. Perhaps today is the day?

Smoking tobacco, as most of us are well aware, increases the risk of a wide range of serious health issues.

Associated conditions include heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and several types of cancer.

Despite many of these dangers being common knowledge, giving up tobacco is challenging in the extreme.

That said, cigarette smoking is on the decline in the United States.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of people who currently smoke in the U.S. has dropped from 20.9 percent of the adult population in 2005 to 15.5 percent in 2016.

The fact that so many people are giving up also means that there are now millions of people who used to smoke.

Former smokers investigated

Already, some researchers have attempted to find out how the disease risk of people who used to smoke changes after they quit.

Earlier studies concluded that cardiovascular risk drops just a few years after quitting. However, most early studies were based on relatively small numbers of participants and there was often little follow-up to check smoking status over time.

Now, thanks to a large new subset of people who used to smoke, it is possible to get a better understanding of how quickly (or slowly) cardiovascular health returns to normal. And, because more people used to smoke, it is important to understand how their health might change over time.

To investigate, researchers took data from the Framingham Heart Study. They had access to the health information of 8,700 people, none of whom had any signs of cardiovascular disease at the start of the study.

The scientists followed each participant for an average of 27 years. During this time, there were 2,386 cardiovascular events.

They compared the cardiovascular health of people who currently smoke, those who used to smoke, and people who have never smoked.

There are a wide range of factors that can impact an individual's cardiovascular health. With this in mind, the researchers controlled the analysis for as many of these variables as possible, including education level, sex, age, decade of birth, diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol levels, alcohol use, and body mass index (BMI).

Only time heals

The analysis showed that 70 percent of cardiovascular events occurred in those who smoke or used to smoke the equivalent of 20 cigarettes per day for 20 years.

Compared with those who continued to smoke, individuals who had quit smoking within the past 5 years reduced their cardiovascular disease risk by 38 percent.

They also showed that it took around 16 years from the last cigarette for the risk of cardiovascular disease to return to the same levels as someone who had never smoked. This is significantly longer than previous estimates.

The team presented these findings at the American Heart Association's (AHA) Scientific Sessions 2018, held in Chicago, IL. The study was authored by Meredith Duncan, a Ph.D. student at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN.

Source: Medical News Today

Left brain vs. right brain: How does one dominate?

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he two hemispheres of our brain — left and right — specialize in different tasks. A recent study asks how this occurs and reaches a surprising conclusion.

Exactly how do the left and right brain compete for dominance?

Hemispheric dominance, also known as lateralization of brain function, describes the tendency for either the left or the right side of the brain to carry out specific brain activities.

Even though both sides of the brain are almost identical, one hemisphere primarily carries out some functions over others.

For instance, the left hemisphere houses brain regions linked to speech (or the right hemisphere in left-handed people).

Previously, scientists thought humans were the only creatures to exhibit this phenomenon. However, recent research has found lateralized brain function throughout the animal kingdom — from insects, such as honeybees, to aquatic mammals, including killer whales.

The corpus callosum — a thick tract of nerve cells, known as commissural fibers — connects the two hemispheres. Exactly how dominance is produced remains uncertain.

Recently, researchers from Ruhr-Universität Bochum in Germany set out to investigate this question. They chose to study the visual system of pigeons, and they have published their findings in the journal Cell Reports.

Bird brains and old ideas

Previously, scientists have theorized that one side of the brain simply inhibits the other, allowing it to take dominance.

Co-lead author Prof. Onur Güntürkün explains that "[i]n the past, it had been assumed that the dominant hemisphere transmits inhibitory signals to the other hemisphere via the commissures, thus suppressing specific functions in that region."

In effect, the dominant hemisphere is thought to overpower its neighbor. However, scientists have also noted that excitatory messages run both ways, so there must be more to this interaction.

The researchers decided to use a pigeon model because other studies have described hemispheric dominance in this species in some detail over recent years.

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For instance, in pigeon brains, the left hemisphere takes the lead when it comes to visual processing of patterns and colors. Conversely, the right brain more often deals with social or emotionally charged stimuli.

The scientists trained the birds to perform a color differentiation task. In particular, this challenge involves part of the brain that uses visual information to guide motor activity. In this type of task, the left side of the brain is dominant.

To understand how cross-talk between hemispheres influences dominance, Prof. Güntürkün and co-author Dr. Qian Xiao intermittently switched off some of the neurons that run between the two sides of the brain.

Interfering in cross-talk

After blocking specific neurons running from one side, they would observe the activity of the neurons that usually receive their input on the opposite side. In this way, they could pick apart the way in which the dominant hemisphere exerts its control.

The researchers showed that, rather than merely inhibiting the right side of the brain during this task, the left brain could delay the response of the right brain, so preventing it from getting involved.

As Prof. Güntürkün explains, "The right hemisphere simply acts too late to control the response."

Rather than merely inhibiting the response, the right brain still operates, but its signals are too late to the party to make a difference to the bird's behavior.

"These results show that hemispheric dominance is based on a sophisticated mechanism. It does not hinge on one general inhibitory or excitatory influence; rather it is caused by minute temporal delays in the activity of nerve cells in the other hemisphere."

Prof. Onur Güntürkün

The findings provide an entirely new way to look at hemispheric dominance. Research is bound to continue into this rather peculiar phenomenon that evolution has lovingly conserved throughout many branches of life.

However, it is likely to be quite some time before we understand why dividing tasks between the hemispheres is so evolutionarily advantageous.

Source: MedicalNewsToday

6 months of exercise may reverse mild cognitive impairment

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ew research finds that a 6-month regimen of aerobic exercise can reverse symptoms of mild cognitive impairment in older adults.

Just 6 months of exercise that raises the heart rate can reverse signs of age-related cognitive impairment.

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is characterized by a mild loss of cognitive abilities, such as memory and reasoning skills.

A person with MCI may find it hard to remember things, make decisions, or focus on tasks.

While the loss of cognitive abilities is not serious enough to interfere with daily activities, MCI raises the risk of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

According to the Alzheimer's Association, 15–20 percent of adults aged 65 and over in the United States have MCI.

New research suggests that there might be a way to reverse these age-related cognitive problems. James A. Blumenthal, Ph.D. — of Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC — and colleagues examined the effects of regimented exercise in 160 people aged 65 on average.

They published their findings in the journal Neurology.

Studying exercise, diet, and MCI

The participants included in the research were sedentary at the beginning of the study. They had cardiovascular risk factors and reported symptoms of MCI.

The researchers wanted to investigate the impact of both physical activity and diet on cognitive abilities.

The participants followed the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet. The DASH diet consists of high-fiber, low-sodium foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, grains, and lean meat, as well as low-fat dairy.

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The researchers divided the participants into four groups:

·         One group did only aerobic exercise.

·         One group adhered to the DASH diet (without any exercise).

·         One group both exercised and adopted the DASH diet.

·         One group received health-related educational phone calls.

Those who exercised worked out three times per week in 45-minute sessions, including warmup exercises followed by walking, jogging, or cycling.

Blumenthal and his team assessed the reasoning and memory skills of the participants both at baseline and 6 months later using cognitive tests, and they measured the participants' cardiorespiratory fitness using treadmill stress tests.

Finally, the team assessed the participants' cardiovascular health by measuring their blood pressure, blood sugar, and lipids.

A 9-year improvement in executive function

The new study revealed a 5-point average increase on executive function skills among people who exercised and dieted, compared with those who either only exercised or only dieted.

Executive function is the cognitive ability that enables a person to plan and organize goal-driven actions, as well as focus and self-regulate their behavior. The researchers found no significant improvement in memory.

"The results are encouraging in that in just 6 months, by adding regular exercise to their lives, people who have cognitive impairments without dementia may improve their ability to plan and complete certain cognitive tasks."

James A. Blumenthal, Ph.D.

The lead researcher explains that the participants' executive function scores were, at the beginning of the study, equivalent to those of 93-year-olds, even though their chronological age was 28 years younger.

However, following 6 months of added exercise, the average score corresponded with those of people who were 84 years old, which equates to a 9-year improvement in executive function.

As Blumenthal cautions, "More research is still needed with larger samples, over longer periods of time to examine whether improvements to thinking abilities continue and if those improvements may be best achieved through multiple lifestyle approaches like exercise and diet."

Source: MedicalNewToday

MS: Disease impact is greater in those with food allergies

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ndividuals with multiple sclerosis are more likely to experience higher levels of disease activity if they also have food allergies, according to recent research.

New research finds that the impact of MS is twice as high among people with food allergies.

Previous studies have proposed that allergy could have a role in multiple sclerosis (MS).

However, while they have mentioned potential candidates, such as pollen, grass, pets, drugs, and various foods, the studies have been largely inconclusive.

Now, researchers from the Partners MS Center at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) in Boston, MA have conducted a study looking more closely at links between allergy and MS disease activity.

They used data on 1,349 people with MS from a study called the Comprehensive Longitudinal Investigation of Multiple Sclerosis at the Brigham and Women's Hospital (CLIMB).

CLIMB gave them survey data about "environmental, food, and drug allergies" and on disease activity from clinical questionnaires and MRI scans. The data covered the period 2011–2015.

The team reports the findings in a paper that features in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry.

An inflammatory, unpredictable disease

MS is an unpredictable, long-term disease that affects the central nervous system (CNS), which includes the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves.

Experts believe that MS is an autoimmune disease, that is, one in which the immune system launches inflammatory attacks on healthy tissue as if it were a threat.

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In the case of MS, the inflammatory attacks damage the fatty myelin coating that protects nerve fibers and the electrical signals they carry.

The attacks can also damage the nerve fibers themselves and the cells that make the myelin.

MS symptoms can persist and gradually get worse, or they can come and go. Although the disease can strike at any age, most people are aged 20–50 years when they find out that they have MS.

The symptoms can vary widely, depending on the extent and location of CNS damage. They can range, for example, from vision disturbances, extreme fatigue, movement difficulties, and memory and concentration problems, to tremors, slurred speech, numbness, blindness, paralysis, and more.

While it is not clear what course the disease will take in any one person, doctors recognize four main types of MS. The types vary, according to the pattern and severity of symptoms.

MS organizations suggest that there are around 2.3 million people worldwide living with the disease.

The structure of the study

Using the self-reported data, the BWH team arranged the 1,349 CLIMB individuals in four groups: environmental, food, drug, or "no known allergies."

Of the total, 586 reported having an environmental allergy, 238 said that they had a food allergy, and 574 a drug allergy. The number reporting no known allergies was 427.

The researchers then assessed MS disease activity in each of the groups. For the assessment, they used a number of "clinical and radiological variables."

The clinical variables included the number of MS attacks, or relapses, and scores on severity and disability questionnaires that the individuals had completed in the most recent clinic visit.

The radiological variables came from MRI scans on which it was possible to detect the presence and number of active lesions.

The team used data from the scans taken at the most recent visit to the clinic.

The scans came from a type of MRI that uses a contrast agent to highlight areas of active inflammation in the brain and spinal cord.

The contrast agent is a large molecule containing the element gadolinium, which cannot usually cross the blood-brain barrier that exists between the bloodstream and the CNS.

However, the contrast agent is able to cross the blood-brain barrier during active MS disease because inflammation weakens it.

Food allergy tied to double rate of active disease

A first analysis found that, compared to having no known allergies, having any allergy was associated with a 22 percent higher rate of cumulative MS attacks.

However, when the analysis ran again, this time accounting for other potential influencing factors, the link disappeared.

When the team drilled down to specific allergies, there was a different story.

Compared with having no known allergy, having a food allergy was tied to a 27 percent higher cumulative rate of MS attacks, even after accounting for potential influencing factors.

The link between active disease and allergy was even more striking. The odds that the MRI scans would show evidence of active disease was higher for any allergy, compared with no known allergies.

However, the odds that the food allergy group would show MRI evidence of active disease was double that of the no known allergies group.

The team found no links between scores of severity or disability and any form of allergy.

Further studies need to confirm findings

Because the study looked at a snapshot of the disease at a certain point in time, the analysis cannot examine cause and effect.

The researchers could not, therefore, conclude whether having allergies causes or worsens MS, and neither could they say whether having MS causes or worsens allergies.

Other studies have suggested, however, that allergies may aggravate inflammation in MS and that this might be linked to genetic factors that MS and other autoimmune diseases have in common.

Another potential explanation could be that, through their influence on gut bacteria, food allergies might alter chemicals that affect the CNS.

Another factor that limits the recent investigation is that much of the data came from self-administered surveys. This emphasizes the need for further studies to confirm the results.

The authors conclude:

"Our findings suggest that MS patients with allergies have more active disease than those without, and that this effect is driven by food allergies."

Souce:MedicalNewsToday

Health benefits of gold, frankincense, and myrrh

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hree compounds, connected by their mention in the story of Jesus' birth, may provide benefits beyond their gift of seasonal joy. Here, we investigate their healing powers.

We will never know whether the three wise men knew how healthful their gifts were.

When writing for a medical website, creating uplifting seasonal content can be challenging.

There are many opportunities to write about medical dangers.

For instance, we could write about the physical impact of overeating or overdrinking.

We could cover the increased risk of poisoningthe dog with chocolate or the spike in heart attacks during the festive period.

This Spotlight, however, is a little less somber. The title was begging to be written and, thankfully, there is much to say about gold, frankincense, and myrrh's contribution to medical science.

First, a brief introduction to our triumvirate of seasonal compounds. Gold, unarguably the most famous of the three, is a dense, soft, transition metal. Frankincense and myrrh are both aromatic resins extracted from trees.

In brief, I will outline some of the potential health benefits that these three compounds might offer. Although the evidence is sketchy in places, each compound's tale is interesting in its own right.

Gold

One of the first things that spring to mind when considering gold is its high price. Its monetary worth means that any health claims about gold should be approached with caution — it would be of great financial benefit to any company that could convince us that gold might save our lives.

There's more to gold than its high price.

Because of its high status, gold has been used as a medicine for thousands of years.

The earliest documented use occurred in China around 2,500 years before it was presented to the baby Jesus.

In medieval times, and still today, certain outlets promoted the consumption of gold to alleviate depressive symptoms and migraines, while improving concentration and alertness.

In the 19th century, gold was considered nervine — an agent that calms the nerves — and it was used to treat diverse conditions ranging from alcoholism to epilepsy.

Many of the claims made about gold are baseless, but not all.

Ingesting gold in its standard elemental form has no effect: It is inert and impervious to the body's digestive juices — in other words, it passes straight through and out the other side.

Some gold salts, though, can be processed by the body and have anti-inflammatory properties. Some arthritis drugs include gold salts, such as sodium aurothiomalate and auranofin.

Gold versus cancer

The isotope gold-198 is used in the treatment of some cancers. Gold is excellent at absorbing X-rays, and loading tumors with gold can increase radiation therapy's efficiency. This means that less powerful treatment is needed, minimizing damage to healthy tissue.

One study used an intriguing approach; the researchers combined a green tea compound with radioactive gold nanoparticles and used them to attack prostate cancer.

The tea compound, called epigallocatechin-gallate, is easily absorbed into tumors, and when radioactive gold is attached to the compound, it gets a free ride to the heart of the tumor, where it can destroy the cells without damaging other tissues.

According to the authors, their technique "may provide significant advances in oncology for use as an effective treatment for prostate and other solid tumors."

Frankincense

Frankincense is produced from trees of the genus Boswellia. It has an impressive pedigree and has been traded on the Arabian Peninsula for around 6,000 years.

The aromatic resin is used in incense and perfumes; it produces a sweet, earthy, and woody aroma.

Today, with a popular focus on well-being and alternative therapies, essential oils and aromatherapy have given frankincense a rebirth in the West.

Modern peddlers assign it a fair few health claims, including the reduction of acne, anxiety, colds, ulcers, coughs, and even indigestion.

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Although these claims lack evidence, not all of frankincense's health benefits can be pooh-poohed out of hand. In 2008, BMJ published a review of seven randomized clinical trials, all of which investigated the benefits of ingesting frankincense.

The author notes that "all the included trials had flaws: The most common limitations were small sample size and incomplete reporting of data."

Anti-inflammatory benefits?

However, there were some potential benefits seen in asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, knee osteoarthritis, and collagenous colitis, which is a type of inflammatory bowel disease.

Unfortunately, because there were so few studies to assess, there was little replication — they were nearly all looking at different conditions.

Frankincense is derived from the sap of Boswellia trees.

The only exception was osteoarthritis.

The author also mentions the possibility of publication bias, saying that "complementary medicine journals rarely publish negative results."

On a more positive note, the adverse effects of frankincense appeared to be minor or nonexistent.

Historically, frankincense has been used as an anti-inflammatory, and all of the conditions that are covered in the studies above involve inflammation.

The main active ingredients of frankincense are alpha- and beta-boswellic acid and some other pentacyclic triterpenic acids. Studies have shown that these compounds reduce inflammation, so there may well be some benefits for certain people with inflammatory conditions.

Still, as the author of the review writes, "The evidence evaluated here may be encouraging, but it is not convincing."

Is it safe?

Frankincense is widely available as a food additive and supplement and, because there is no evidence of drug interactions or serious side effects, it could become the basis of useful treatments in the future.

But as the author of the review dryly notes, "absence of evidence is not the same as evidence of absence."

The author is also quick to inform the reader that many of the medical and cosmetic claims made by companies who sell these products "are not supported by the available evidence." The final words of the review say it all:

"In conclusion, it might be tempting to buy 'instant youth' in the form of a [frankincense] product for Christmas, but sadly the evidence for this claim is nonexistent."

Myrrh

Myrrh is also a compound derived from trees. It has been produced from the sap of small, thorny trees belonging to the genus Commiphora for millennia. Myrrh is most commonly used in perfume, incense, and religious ceremonies.

This odorous sap was considered medicinal in many parts of the ancient world. In traditional Chinese medicine, for instance, it was said to have a number of benefits, including purging stagnant blood from the uterus.

In Ayurvedic medicine, myrrh tonic is considered rejuvenating.

As with frankincense, myrrh is thought to be anti-inflammatory. It also appears to be, to some degree, antibacterial. Today, myrrh is used in many mouthwashes, gargles, and toothpastes.

Myrrh versus cancer

More interestingly, there is some evidence that myrrh might be toxic to cancer cells.

For instance, a study published in 2013 tested compounds derived from myrrh in the laboratory. The researchers found that the compounds inhibited the proliferation of prostate cancer cells.

Another study looked specifically at sesquiterpenoids extracted from myrrh.

Myrrh resin hardens quickly once it is removed from the tree.

Sesquiterpenoids are compounds widely found in plants and animals. They often function as defensive chemicals or pheromones.

The researchers found that these compounds inhibited androgen receptor signaling — a mechanism that supports the growth and migration of prostate cancer.

The authors conclude that "sesquiterpenoids could be developed as novel therapeutic agents for treating prostate cancer."

Other scientists believe that myrrh, when added to foods, might help reduce the risk of colon cancer. However, at this stage, not enough is known about myrrh and its effects on the body to recommend this.

Pain relief and wound healing

Aside from cancer, one study found that a mixture of frankincense and myrrh alleviated neuropathic pain in mice.

Again, although this combination has been prescribed for pain for thousands of years, the evidence is still scant.

Other scientists have investigated myrrh and its potential to speed up wound healing. A study in mice, for instance, found that Commiphora extract promoted the migration of fibroblasts — cells vital to the healing process. The authors write that myrrh "might be effective in wound healing."

Another study investigated the application of sage and myrrh oil to wounded rabbits. These authors also found that wound healing was "accelerated."

As it stands, though, the evidence is patchy at best, and more work will be needed before firm conclusions can be reached.

Also, we should mention that myrrh compounds appear to be antioxidants, but, since there is no evidence that antioxidant supplements have any benefits, we won't spend too much time on it.

Final word

If nothing else, I hope that you have learned a smattering of "interesting" facts to fall back on, should the conversation around the Christmas tree dry up. I also hope that this article has enveloped in you a strange, slightly medical Christmassy feeling.

Source: MedicalNewsToday