Daily Archives: January 12, 2008

Drug companies spend more on advertising than research.

Posted on January 12, 2008 by | 1 Comment

Who would have thunk it? Drug companies spend more on advertising than research? A big part of the problem is direct to consumer advertising where drug companies attempt to market to the patients, who then go to their doctors requesting this medicine. In most cases, a generic alternative is available for pennies on the dollar in place of the name brand television/magazine advertised drug.

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That’s hardly a new contention, but a pair of researchers have attempted to inject a new analysis into the debate. And so they contend their findings indicate drugmakers spend almost twice as much on marketing and promoting their meds than on R&D, according to their study, which is published in PLoS Medicine.

They analyzed data from IMS and CAM and found that drugmakers spent $57.5 billion on promotional activities in 2004. By comparison, spending on industrial pharmaceutical research and development in the US was $31.5 billion in the same year, according to a report by the National Science Foundation, which included public funding for industrial research…Read the whole article here at Pharmalot Blog

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Posted in Diseases, Drugs, Politics and Medicine

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Chubby kids at risk for heart attacks?

Posted on January 12, 2008 by | 1 Comment

Chubby kids at risk for heart diseae If your child is chubby, they are likely on their way to developing heart disease! Parents, its time to start feeding your children healthy food. No more fast food and sodas!  Read food labels and through away anything that has high fructose corn syrup in it.  Parents please take your child’s health and diet serious or else you  may cause your kids to have a heart attack early in life.  Encourage your children to play outside, ride their bike, play sports and eat right.  You may actually be saving their life if you do so.  Make an appointment with your family doctor or pediatrician so  they can calculate your child’s BMI and determine their risk

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Children who are obese or who are at risk for obesity show early signs of heart disease similar to obese adults with heart disease, a study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found.

“Based on this study, these subtle markers can help us predict who could be at risk for heart disease and heart attacks,” said Angela Sharkey, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics at Washington University School of Medicine and a pediatric cardiologist at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

The study was published in the Winter 2007 issue of the Journal of Cardiometabolic Syndrome.

Childhood obesity in the United States is an epidemic nationwide, 19 percent of children ages 6 to 11 and 17 percent of those 12 to 19 are overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Those who are overweight during childhood also have an increased risk of obesity in adulthood and are at greater risk for complications such as diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, because obesity increases total blood volume, which leads to extra stress on the heart.

Sharkey and Steven M. Lorch, M.D., a former fellow at the School of Medicine now at University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, analyzed data from 168 children ages 10 to 18 who had been referred to them for cardiac ultrasound with symptoms including heart murmur, chest pain, acid reflux or high blood cholesterol. Based on CDC guidelines for body mass index for age (BMIA), 33 patients were found to have a BMIA as obese, or the 95th percentile or above for their age; 20 had a BMIA that classified them as at risk for obesity, or between the 85th and 94th percentile; and 115 were considered normal, or below the 85th percentile.

To analyze the hearts of the obese children and those at risk, Sharkey and Lorch used a new tissue Doppler imaging technique called vector velocity imaging which tracks the movement of the heart’s muscular wall. Any changes in the rate of motion of heart muscle were averaged within each group and compared to the normal rate of motion.

“In the patients who are obese, the rate of motion of heart muscle changed,” Sharkey said. “As a child’s BMIA increases, we see alterations in both the relaxation and contraction phase of the heartbeat. Many of these changes that have been seen in adults were assumed to be from long-standing obesity, but it may be that these changes start much earlier in life than we thought.”

As vector velocity imaging becomes more broadly available, Sharkey said, it could potentially help pediatric cardiologists follow these children more closely over time to see if changes in the heart progress.

“We may be able to determine whether we could intervene in the process, such as focusing the families on understanding the importance of regular exercise and dietary modifications for weight loss and prescribing statin drugs for high-blood cholesterol,” she said.

Sharkey said the results of the study give more ammunition to physicians to use in counseling pediatric patients and their parents about the risks of obesity and the need to attain a healthy weight.

“Even in teenagers, obesity leads to decreased myocardial performance and abnormal diastolic function,” she said.

Further study is needed to determine how soon the changes in the heart set in after a child becomes obese and whether those changes are reversible with weight loss.

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Foods with Anti-Inflammatory Effects on the body

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There are several foods and supplements that are associated with anti-inflammatory effects in the body.  This could help those with arthritis and chronic pain.  Pineapples have long been known to have anti inflammation effects as they contain an active ingredient called  bromelain, which is a chemical that acts similar to  ibuprofen. 

In addition,  omega-3 fish oil supplements also have anti inflammatory benefits. The most potent omega-3s are found in seafood, especially coldwater fish like salmon, tuna, and mackerel.  Vegetarian sources of omega-3s include flaxseed oil, dark greens, and walnuts.

Foods such as red grapes, red and yellow onions, garlic, broccoli, and apples have anti-histamine effects as they contain quercetin.

The article below  adds a new food to this list, strawberries.

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Strawberries are not only delicious and nutrient-rich, new research from Harvard Medical School found that they may offer cardiovascular disease protection. The new study found that those who reported eating the most strawberries experienced lower blood levels of C-reactive protein, a biomarker for inflammation in the blood vessels.

Howard Sesso, ScD and colleagues at the Harvard School of Public Health reported their findings in the August issue of the Journal of the American College of Nutrition. Using dietary intake records of approximately 27,000 of the women who participated in the decade-long Women’s Health Study, Sesso looked at levels of strawberry consumption and several risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The findings revealed that women who ate the most strawberries two or more servings per week compared to those who reported eating none in the past month, were 14 percent less likely to have elevated C-reactive protein levels.

C-reactive protein or CRP is a blood biomarker that signals the presence of inflammation in the body. Elevated levels of CRP have been shown in multiple studies to be a potentially good predictor of risk for both heart disease and stroke, as it is generally a signal of atherosclerosis. As a result, The Centers for Disease Control and American Heart Association have established guidelines suggesting that blood levels of CRP higher than 3 mg/L may be important in the risk stratification and prevention of cardiovascular disease.

Researchers found that those women who had higher strawberry intakes were also more likely to lead a heart-healthy lifestyle. On average, women in the highest strawberry intake group ate about twice as many servings of fruits and vegetables every day as did women in the lowest intake group. Not surprisingly, they had much higher average intakes of important heart-healthy nutrients like fiber, vitamin C, potassium and folate. They were also most likely to be non-smokers and get daily physical activity. In addition, the high strawberry consumers had modestly lower levels of both total and LDL cholesterol, the so-called “bad” cholesterol.

“Higher intakes of fruits and vegetables have consistently been associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Strawberries are a rich source of several key nutrients and phytonutrients that may play a role in protecting heart health. This is the first study to show that strawberries may help reduce the likelihood of having elevated CRP levels in the blood. While more research is needed, this study helps provide more evidence that eating fruits and vegetables will help reduce risk for cardiovascular disease,” said Sesso.

Strawberries are a powerhouse of nutrients and antioxidants that have been shown in other studies to help reduce risk factors for heart disease and some types of cancer. Eighty-eight percent of the nation’s supply of strawberries comes from California. Further information about scientific research into the links between California strawberries and health can be found at http://www.calstrawberry.com.

Sesso HD, Gaziano JM, Jenkins D, Buring, JE, 2007. Strawberries and CVD in women. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, August 2007 issue.

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Posted in Diet and Nutrition, Health & Fitness, Herbal Medicine, Medicine

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What time do you take your blood pressure medicines?

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Timing of blood pressure pills matters

Switching to bedtime dose may give high-risk arteries needed rest
The Associated Press

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WASHINGTON – Taking a blood pressure pill at bedtime instead of in the morning might be healthier for some high-risk people.

New research suggests that simple switch may normalize patterns of blood pressure in patients at extra risk from the twin epidemics of heart and kidney disease.

Why? When it comes to blood pressure, you want to be a dipper. In healthy people, blood pressure dips at night, by 10 to 20 percent. Scientists don’t know why, but suspect the drop gives arteries a little rest….. Read more here

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Posted in Drugs, Medicine

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