STB's News You Can Use -- 2 May 1997

* News You Can Use! -- 2 May 1997 *

Stress is deadly for men with heart disease
8 million may be unaware they have diabetes
Reducing stress to help schizophrenics
Hepatitis: news about A, B, and C
Alzheimer's: strokes, red wine, & smoking
Influenza from 1918 still not solved
Asthma: huge study, and glaucoma risk
Health News & Notes
Buffalo News_ article on STB
Index of past newsletters

Stress can be a killer for men with heart disease

Psychologist Mark Ketterer studied 144 male heart patients, and found that those who didn't vent their feelings were four times more likely to die within five years. The Detroit researcher says suppressed anger and frustration is probably a greater risk factor for heart patients than smoking or cholesterol. He suggests that heart patients be screened for emotional distress. He presented his findings to the 19 March meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society. (Associated Press, 19 March 1997)

Raising awareness of diabetes, which may have caused train wreck

*** On March 25th, the American Diabetes Association held their American Diabetes Alert, a one-day public awareness campaign to find the eight million Americans who have diabetes and don't know it. That's right, eight million may not know they have the disease which is the fourth leading killer among all diseases in the United States. Check with your doctor if you have increased appetite combined with weight loss, frequent thirst or slow-healing wounds.
*** Ironically, on the same day, the National Transportation Safety Board blamed a diabetic engineer for causing a 1996 commuter train crash that killed him and two others, and injured 158. The NTSB says engineer John DeCurtis had an eye disease that degraded his ability to distinguish colors, and he didn't see the red light telling him to stop the train. Instead, he accelerated his commuter train, which sideswiped a train going in the opposite direction. The board recommends that the Federal Railroad Administration set guidelines to test locomotive engineers for color vision. (Associated Press, 25 March 1997)

Stress reduction helps people live with schizophrenia

The American Psychiatric Association published new guidelines April 1st to help the estimated two million schizophrenia patients in the United States. There is still no cure, but increased medication, psychiatric care could help them from relapsing, but the APA says doctors and drugs are not enough. They recommend family counseling and community help to help keep patients functioning. The red flags that a relapse is possible are tension, trouble sleeping and anxiety. Treating those symptoms, by reducing stress, has been one of the techniques that allows many patients to live at home and maintain jobs. Schizophrenia usually begins in adolescence or young adulthood, and is marked by periods of hallucinations, delusions and withdrawal. About ten percent of patients commit suicide. (Associated Press, 31 March 1997)

Hepatitis: outbreak of A, possible cure for B, and warnings about C

A batch of strawberries distributed by an U.S. Department of Agriculture surplus food program has been linked to an outbreak of Hepatitis A in Michigan. More than 150 students and staff members were sickened there. Federal officials believe the berries were harvested in Mexico in 1996, and shipped to California, where an American company, Andrew and Williamson Sales, apparently passed them off as domestically grown to make them eligible for the surplus food program. The president of the company involved has resigned. It's believed that tainted berries were shipped to Arizona, California, Georgia, Iowa, and Tennessee, as well as Michigan.
*** What is hepatitis A? It is a highly infectious disease that causes inflammation of the liver. It is difficult to detect at first, because symptoms usually appear two to four weeks after exposure. Those symptoms include jaundice, fatigue, abdominal discomfort, vomiting, fever and dark urine. Hepatitis A is relatively mild in children, potentially more serious in adults, especially those who are elderly or have weakened immune systems.
*** Hepatitis is spread orally or through human waste, often by food handlers with poor personal hygiene. Although food handlers make up less than five percent of Hepatitis A cases, they have greater impact, since they can spread it to large numbers of people. And many of those people are tourists who then leave the area and continue to spread the disease. Health officials stress proper hand-washing after each and every trip to the bathroom. The disease can also be spread through tainted water or ice, or undercooked shellfish from those infected waters. For more information, see the extensive FAQ file put together by Jeanne McLaughlin.
*** An agriculture official where the strawberries were grown doubts Mexico is to blame for the infection. He believes the berries were contaminated during processing and packing. One Mexican fruit dealer says his country has an "extremely rigorous procedure" for handling fruit, especially when it's for export.
*** More cases are possible in this outbreak, since officials in both Iowa and Los Angeles confirm that the berries were served with school lunches as recently as the week of March 24-28. Some regions have begun administering a gamma globulin inoculation to those who already may have been exposed.
*** Outbreaks of Hepatitis B in New York City and Ohio have been traced to devices used for pricking patients' fingers. Although nurses changed lancets between patients, they did not change the end caps, which rest on the patient's finger while the sample is taken. Since the NYC hospital began using completely disposable fingerstick devices last May, no new cases have been reported.
*** A possible cure for Hepatitis B has been brought to North America from Tibet. Michael Denk of the University of Toronto led a 1992 expedition to Tibet to learn from their elaborate and ancient medical system. They collected 420 plants and fungi with various medicinal uses, and three have reached the stage of clinical trials. One of those is a potential antibiotic for Hepatitis B, derived from a fungus that grows on caterpillars.
*** But authorities are warning about the danger of Hepatitis C. Identified as recently as 1989, it's already killing 1200 Americans a year, and health officials fear that number will triple by 2010. It's spread through intravenous drug use and cocaine snorting, and there is some concern that infection is also possible through non-sterile tattooing and body-piercing, although that link has not been proven. (Associated Press, 13 March 1997, 26 March, 1 April, 2 April; Broadcast News, 17 March)

Alzheimer's: small strokes may hasten it; red wine may cut your risk

*** Small strokes hasten Alzheimer's, according to a new study. The research, out of the University of Kentucky, appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The first documented link between strokes and Alzheimer's, the study says small strokes can hasten the development and worsen the symptoms of Alzheimer's. David Snowdon told the Associated Press that there are measures people can take to avoid strokes. They include quitting smoking, and controlling high blood pressure and diabetes.
*** A new French study touts the benefits of red wine: Already championed for healthier hearts, researchers found that those who drink red wine in moderation are 75 percent less likely to to develop Alzheimer's, and 80% less likely to develop senile dementia than teetotalers. They hasten to add that more research needs to be done...
*** ...which is also true of this next study. Recently, researchers found that nicotine may cut the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Men's Health magazine awarded their "Joe Science" award to tobacco giant Philip Morris, for partially funding the study that makes smoking seem to have health benefits.
*** Commentary: Just because it's bankrolled by tobacco money, doesn't mean the findings are wrong. Maybe nicotine would cut the risk of Alzheimer's, so let's find out. Too often science gets scared off from a project because of the politics involved. Don't clone because it's a science-fiction movie, don't test RU-486 because it's against our religious beliefs, don't test marijuana because it's an illegal drug. Just do the science, and let the findings stand on their own. (Associated Press, 11 March 1997, 27 March; CBS Radio, 30 January 1997)

The 1918 flu that killed over 20 million people could return

Scientists at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology used lung tissue taken at an autopsy 79 years ago to try and solve one of medicine's most deadly puzzles: the 1918 influenza pandemic. Originating in America, the disease cut a lethal swath through the nation. Now researchers say it evolved from American pigs, and although it was closely related to the swine flu, it doesn't match any virus that has been found since. And, perhaps most ominously, it could strike again. Although they haven't cracked its code, one scientist said that the knowledge will help design future vaccines. The study was reported in the journal Science. (Associated Press, 20 March 1997)

Canadian firm launches worldwide study; and a glaucoma risk

*** Astra Canada has launched what it calls the world's largest asthma study, spending 1.2 million dollars to look at 6800 people in 34 countries. Astra, which manufactures steroid inhalers for treating more advanced cases of asthma, wants to find out whether it's OK to prescribe a steroid inhaler much earlier, when the patient shows the first signs of asthma.
Recently, an expert panel recommended that asthma patients stick to steroid inhalers (such as Azmacort, Beclovent or Vanceril), and avoid over-the-counter drugs that temporarily open clogged airways (such as Primatene Mist or Proventil). The reason: inhalers control the airway inflammation that causes asthma attacks.
One downside to steroid inhalers appears to be an increased risk of glaucoma. Researchers at McGill University say some older people who use the inhalers at high doses (eight puffs a day for three months or more) were 39% to 44% more likely to develop glaucoma. But they also say don't stop using your asthma medication. Instead, study co-author Samy Suissa told the Canadian Press that people at risk should get regular eye examinations by glaucoma specialists. The study was reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association. (Broadcast News, 28 January 1997, 4 March; USA Today, 5 March)

News You Can Use! (but I couldn't squeeze in)

Ketchup may be good for you: A University of Toronto study has found that tomatoes, and especially processed tomato products like paste and ketchup, is good for your heart, and can cut the risk of cancer. Dr. Vetket Rao, a nutrition professor, says lycopenes found in tomato products reduce cell damage and DNA mutations. And that would cut the risk of chronic diseases, which are thought to be caused by tissue damage. (Associated Press, 19 March 1997)
Cure for insomnia?: "McCall's" magazine offers this natural cure for sleeplessness: a peanut butter sandwich and a warm glass of milk before bed. Peanuts and milk contain an amino acid that makes you sleepy. (Associated Press, 20 March 1997)
Grape juice good for your heart: Research at the University of Wisconsin found that eight or ten ounces of red grape juice a day makes it less likely for blood to form clots, which can lead to heart attacks. In fact, it might be even more potent than aspirin in this regard. Welch's, one of several companies that make red grape juice in the U.S., helped fund the research. (Associated Press, 18 March 1997)
Warning about sports drinks: The "British Journal of Sports Medicine" reports that those high-energy thirst quenchers marketed as sports drinks may rot your teeth. The high acid level in the drink erodes tooth enamel. So if you like them, drink with a straw, or very quickly. Don't sip and hold them in your mouth. (CBS Radio, 18 March 1997)
'Tis better to give: Finnish researchers say middle-aged men who periodically give blood reduce their risk of heart attack by 85%. I wouldn't be surprised if those who gave blood also took better care of themselves, but it's an interesting finding. (CBS Radio, 20 March 1997)

*** News You Can Use! -- 2 May 1997 ***

* News You Can Use! -- 2 May 1997 *