Soul Searching

By NICHOLAS WADE

Red wine may be much more potent than was thought in extending human lifespan, researchers say in a new report that is likely to give impetus to the rapidly growing search for longevity drugs.

The study is based on dosing mice with resveratrol, an ingredient of some red wines. Some scientists are already taking resveratrol in capsule form, but others believe it is far too early to take the drug, especially using wine as its source, until there is better data on its safety and effectiveness.

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A traditional Chinese herbal medicine consisting of five herbs may ease eczema symptoms, a study suggests.

Researchers found the treatment reduced the need for conventional
medicines, and improved the quality of life for young patients with
atopic eczema.

The study of 85 patients by the Chinese University of Hong Kong is reported in the British Journal of Dermatology.

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NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Cutting calories helps people lose
weight, but doing so by filling up on whole grains may be particularly
heart-healthy, new research suggests.

In a study of obese adults at risk of heart disease, researchers
found that those who trimmed calories and increased their whole-grain
intake shed more belly fat and lowered their blood levels of C-
reactive protein or CRP.

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Print Story: Tango Classes Put Parkinson s Patients a Step Ahead on Yahoo! News
Tango Classes Put Parkinson s Patients a Step Ahead

Thu Feb 14, 11:47 PM ET

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 13 HealthDay News — Not only is the tango a dance of romance and passion, it also helps improve balance and mobility in people with Parkinson s disease, a new study suggests.

Researchers at the Washington University in St. Louis medical school compared the effects of Argentine tango lessons and exercise classes on the functional mobility of 19 Parkinson s patients. The patients were randomly assigned to do 20 one-hour tango classes or group strength and exercise sessions designed for Parkinson s patients and the elderly.

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BBC NEWS | Health | Pepper ‘to treat pigment disease’

Pepper ‘to treat pigment disease’

Black pepper could provide a new treatment for the skin disease vitiligo, research suggests.

Vitiligo is a condition in which areas of skin lose their normal pigment and become white.

Researchers discovered that piperine - the compound that gives black pepper its spicy, pungent flavour - can stimulate pigmentation in the skin.

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A stressful life may make it tougher to fight the virus which causes the majority of cervical cancer cases, say scientists.

HPV is a sexually transmitted infection - but only a small percentage of women who catch it develop cancer.

US researchers, writing in the journal Annals of Behavioural Medicine, said that stressed women had a weaker immune response to the virus.

But the study did not prove that stress was the root cause of the problem.

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By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer

CHICAGO - Living to 100 is easier than you might think. Surprising new research suggests that even people who develop heart disease or diabetes late in life have a decent shot at reaching the century mark.

“It has been generally assumed that living to 100 years of age was limited to those who had not developed chronic illness,” said Dr. William Hall of the University of Rochester.

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Diabetes Study Partially Halted After Deaths
By GINA KOLATA

For decades, researchers believed that if people with diabetes lowered their blood sugar to normal levels, they would no longer be at high risk of dying from heart disease. But a major federal study of more than 10,000 middle-aged and older people with Type 2 diabetes has found that lowering blood sugar actually increased their risk of death, researchers reported Wednesday.

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By NICHOLAS BAKALAR

Researchers have found a correlation between drinking diet soda and metabolic syndrome — the collection of risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes that include abdominal obesity, high cholesterol and blood glucose levels — and elevated blood pressure.

The scientists gathered dietary information on more than 9,500 men and women ages 45 to 64 and tracked their health for nine years.

Over all, a Western dietary pattern — high intakes of refined grains, fried foods and red meat — was associated with an 18 percent increased risk for metabolic syndrome, while a “prudent” diet dominated by fruits, vegetables, fish and poultry correlated with neither an increased nor a decreased risk.

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Study: Try Honey for Children’s Coughs

By CARLA K. JOHNSON
Associated Press Writer

CHICAGO (AP) — A teaspoon of honey before bed seems to calm children’s coughs and help them sleep better, according to a new study that relied on parents’ reports of their children’s symptoms.

The folk remedy did better than cough medicine or no treatment in a three-way comparison. Honey may work by coating and soothing an irritated throat, the study authors said.

“Many families are going to relate to these findings and say that grandma was right,” said lead author Dr. Ian Paul of Pennsylvania State University’s College of Medicine.

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