Being social may ward off physical decline

June 10, 2009 by mark · Leave a Comment

web-laugh-pic All of us will see some decline in our ability to get around as we age, but for people who are more socially active, this decline may happen more slowly, new research shows.
“Being more active in a wider array of activities looks like it might be good for you,” Dr. Aron S. Buchman of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago told Reuters Health. Loss of motor function is a major public health problem, Buchman noted, and the nation’s aging population is growing. “If it turns out to be true, it’s something that we can intervene with on a large scale without costing society a lot of money.”
Several studies have shown that being physically active helps stave off motor decline in older people, Buchman and his team note in the Archives of Internal Medicine, and there’s growing evidence that social activities and other pursuits keep people’s minds sharp and extend their lives. But to date, no one has looked at whether social activity might have physical benefits.
To investigate, Buchman and his colleagues looked at 906 people participating in a long-term study of aging. At the study’s outset, all were quizzed on how frequently they engaged in six different types of social activity, from going out to restaurants to playing bingo and visiting friends. They also underwent a battery of tests of motor function.
People with higher levels of social activity had better physical function, the researchers found. A one-point lower score on the scale the researchers used to gauge social activity was equivalent to a person having the motor function of a person 5 years older.
And over 5 years of follow-up, people with lower social activity scores had a faster physical decline. People with lower levels of physical activity were also more likely to become disabled and more likely to die.

Depression is a family matter: report

sad-desperate3 In a report released last month at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine call for a new family-focused model of depression care to minimize risks and problems for parents with depression and prevent possible spillover effects in their children.

“To break the vicious circle of depression, we need to refocus our view of this illness through a broader lens that sees the whole family, not just the individual with depression,” committee chair and psychiatrist Dr. Mary Jane England, president of Regis College, Weston, Massachusetts, noted in a prepared statement.

“Our report describes a new vision for depression care that would provide comprehensive services not just to adults, but to their children as well. It will take significant policy changes to make this vision a reality, but the benefits warrant the effort,” England added.

In a given year, an estimated 7.5 million adults with depression have a child under the age of 18 living with them, accounting to the report committee members. It is estimated that 15.6 million children live in households with parents who suffer from “major or severe” depression.

Depression in parents interferes with parenting quality and boosts the odds of health, emotional, and behavioral problems in children, the committee warns.

Effective screening tools and treatments for adult depression are available and offer substantial promise for reducing the negative consequences of the disorder, the committee notes. Yet, only one in three adult depression sufferers get adequate treatment.

“In short, parental depression is prevalent, but a comprehensive strategy to treat the depressed adult and to prevent problems in the children in their care is absent,” the committee concludes.

To successfully move to a family-focused model of depression care, federal and state agencies, nonprofits, and the private sector will have to work together to develop nontraditional ways of organizing, paying for, and delivering services, the committee acknowledges.

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Vinegar At Bedtime May Benefit Type 2 Diabetics

May 31, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment

Specific diet patterns help individuals with diabetes manage their condition

The results of a study suggest that a dose of vinegar taken at bedtime may favorably impact waking glucose concentrations in patients with type 2 diabetes. “Given the importance of maintaining acceptable blood glucose concentrations, there is much interest in identifying foods and diet patterns that will help individuals with diabetes manage their condition,” researchers said.

Researchers examined the effect of vinegar taken at bedtime in four men and seven women (ages 40 to 72 years) with type 2 diabetes who were not taking insulin. The patients measured fasting glucose at 7 a.m. for three consecutive days before the study. They then followed a standardized meal plan for 2 days, consuming either 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or water at bedtime with 1 oz cheese. After a 3- to 5-day “washout period,” in which they took no vinegar, the subjects crossed over to the alternate bedtime treatment.

The investigators found that the vinegar treatment was especially effective for the six subjects who had a typical fasting glucose greater than 7.2 mmol/L. Fasting glucose in these participants was reduced by 6 percent compared with a reduction of 0.7 percent in those with a typical fasting glucose less than 7.2 mmol/L.

Testosterone Shot Useful for Contraception in Men

Finally, an effective method of birth control for men may be on the way, Chinese researchers report in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. The researchers found that monthly injections of testosterone are a “safe, effective, reversible, and reliable” means of contraception for men. However, the long-term effectiveness and safety of this treatment still needs to be established, they add.Their findings are based on a study of 1,045 healthy fertile Chinese men. “We are satisfied with findings from this study,” Dr. Yiqun Gu told Reuters Health.

“This male hormonal contraceptive regimen may offer a novel and workable alternative to existing family planning options for couples who can not or prefer not to use only female-oriented contraception throughout their reproductive years,” added Gu, who is from the National Research Institute for Family Planning in Beijing. The men in the study were between 20 and 45 years old and had fathered at least one child within the two years prior to enrollment in the study. Their female partners were between 18 and 38 years old and had normal fertility.

The men received monthly testosterone injections for 30 months. During the first 6 months, the men were tested to make sure that the injections had been effective in eliminating or markedly reducing the sperm levels in their semen. Only men with little or no sperm were allowed to continue into next 24 months of the study.

During the follow-up period, nine pregnancies occurred, which translates into a contraceptive failure rate of roughly 1 per 100 men. This rate, Gu said, is “excellent” compared with other contraceptive methods, including condoms and birth control pills.

No serious side effects were noted and after stopping the shots; sperm-making ability returned to normal in all but two men.

The investigators conclude that further study of testosterone injections is warranted to ensure long-term safety. Moreover, refinements are needed to make sure that all men have no sperm production while receiving this contraceptive.

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Being social may ward off physical decline

Vinegar At Bedtime May Benefit Type 2 Diabetics

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