Allergy sufferers need better care worldwide
Friday June 20th, 2008
The plight of allergy sufferers around the world has been put under the spotlight in a new global report from the World Allergy Organisation.
It highlights the vast numbers of allergy and chronic respiratory disease patients and demands an immediate rise in the number of healthcare professionals trained to deal with the problem.
The WAO reports that allergic diseases have risen significantly in the last 20 to 30 years, and show no signs of declining.
Worldwide, 400 million people have allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and 300 million have asthma - many undiagnosed and untreated.
At the release of the report this week, WAO President, Professor Walter Canonica, said the report "presents a concerning picture of the rising prevalence of all types of allergic diseases".
"However, healthcare resources are not increasing commensurately," he warned. "The WAO is determined to address the global allergy problem, in particular the medical, social and economic issues associated with allergic diseases."
He said allergic asthma, food allergies, anaphylaxis and rhinoconjunctivitis were all increasing.
Improved hygiene and rapid industrialisation are making allergies more common, complex and aggressive, he said.
Professor Canonica said: "The WAO is determined to provide a framework for the collaboration among physicians, scientists and government officials to address the global allergy problem, in particular the medical, social and economic issues associated with allergic diseases."
Grape seed may boost brain power
Thursday June 19th, 2008
A grape seed extract could provide a "memory pill" to help ward off Alzheimer's disease and brain decay, researchers reported yesterday.
Laboratory studies of an extract of seed from the red grape suggest it may be successful in preventing brain disease, according to the Journal of Neuroscience.
The extract is based on chemicals known as catechins, which researchers say can be effective at quite low doses. They are one class of a group of much-studied plant chemicals called polyphenolics.
Developers say the extracts may provide an alternative to drinking red wine. The US authorities currently support the daily drinking of red wine.
The study at Mount Sinai Hospital, USA, found the extract - which is already commercially available - reduced the development of the brain plaques that cause Alzheimer's disease. It was tested on laboratory mice, genetically bred to be susceptible to the disease.
The study also showed that the mice enjoyed improved "spatial memory" - the ability to find their way around.
Researcher Dr Giulio Maria Pasinetti said: "The implications of these studies, however, are not limited to patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
"In fact, amyloid is present in everyone's brain and whenever it comes together in a more complex structure it makes the brain to function less efficiently like in Alzheimer' disease."
But independent expert Dr Karen Hsiao Ashe, of the University of Minnesota, USA, warned: "Unanswered questions pertaining to the polyphenolic extract's use in humans to prevent Alzheimer's disease include: when to start taking it, for how long, how much to take, and most importantly, how does a person know if it is helping to prevent the aggregation of amyloid beta protein in the brain?
"These questions must be answered before polyphenolics can be recommended as a preventive measure for Alzheimer's disease."
The Journal of Neuroscience June 18 2008
Big breakfast boosts weight loss
Wednesday June 18th, 2008
A hearty breakfast loaded with carbs and protein could be the key to weight loss, researchers reported yesterday.
The study found a big breakfast packed with carbohydrates and protein, followed by a low-carb, low calorie diet for the rest of the day was much more effective in helping a group of obese, physically inactive women lose weight.
Author Dr Daniela Jakubowicz of the Hospital de Clinicas, Caracas, Venezuela, said the study showed a diet's long-term effectiveness depended on its ability to increase a sense of fullness and bring down carb cravings.
Researchers compared the results of 46 women on a very low carb diet to 48 women on the 'big breakfast diet', comprising 58 grams of carbs, 47 grams of protein and 22 fat grams.
The first half of the study focused on weight loss and the last four months on weight maintenance.
They found women on the low-carb diet lost an average of 28 pounds at four months, compared with 23 pounds for the big breakfast dieters.
But at eight months, the low-carb dieters regained an average of 18 pounds, while the big-breakfast group continued to lose weight, shedding another 16.5 pounds.
Those on the new diet lost more than 21 per cent of their body weight, compared with just 4.5 per cent for the low-carb group.
Dr Jakubowicz said the big-breakfast diet worked because it controlled appetite and cravings for sweets and starches.
"Most weight loss studies have determined that a very low carbohydrate diet is not a good method to reduce weight," she said.
Researchers presented the study at The Endocrine Society's 90th Annual Meeting in San Francisco, California, USA, on June 17.
Coffee boost for heart
Tuesday June 17th, 2008
Coffee - but possibly not caffeine - may help to reduce heart disease, researchers reported last night.
Drinking decaf coffee, along with normal coffee, is linked with a reduced rate of death, researchers found.
The study of more than 125,000 men and women set out to find if coffee increased death rates - as it has been thought to contribute to high blood pressure.
Reporting in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the researchers say the possibility that coffee may protect the heart and extend life needs investigation.
A 24-year study involving some 84,000 women found that those who drank at least two cups of caffeinated coffee a day had a 25 per cent reduced risk of heart disease. The same effect was not found for men.
A small beneficial effect was found for decaffeinated coffee.
The study was conducted at Harvard University, Boston, USA, and in Madrid, Spain.
The findings may demonstrate the impact of the chemicals within coffee - but they may also simply reflect the nature of coffee-drinkers.
Researcher Dr Esther Lopez-Garcia writes: "Coffee consumption has been linked to various beneficial and detrimental health effects, but data on its relation with death were lacking.
"Coffee consumption was not associated with a higher risk of mortality in middle-aged men and women. The possibility of a modest benefit of coffee consumption on heart disease, cancer, and other causes of death needs to be further investigated."
Annals of Internal Medicine 2008 148: I-40
Living organ donation debate rages
Monday June 16th, 2008
International experts have been debating the question of paying for organ donations.
Writing in the British Medical Journal, Dr Arthur Matas of the University of Minnesota, USA, argues that financial compensation for living donors may be the solution to the growing shortage of kidneys.
He says that the death rate for transplant candidates is rising, and "a regulated compensation system would increase the number of available organs". Such a system would also protect the dignity and humanity of donors, he adds.
On the other hand, Professor Jeremy Chapman, from the Centre for Transplant and Renal Research in Sydney, Australia, believes that this could reduce the supply of organs because "the idea of the regulated market is a myth".
He says it would not help lift the donors out of poverty, may prevent family members from donating, and lead bereaved families to demand money for organs after death.
"The reality of regulated organ purchase will be a reduction in organ donation, and the destruction of kidney, heart, lung, liver, and pancreas transplantation," he concludes.
Also in the journal, Professor Maqsood Noorani, formerly of Barts and The London NHS Trust, highlights the "inhumane" practice of transplant tourism.
Having personally treated British patients suffering complications after buying a kidney from a live donor in Pakistan, he calls on the UK government to bring in presumed consent system for organ donation, or a controlled donor compensation programme for unrelated live donors.
Only by becoming self-sufficient themselves can rich countries discourage patients from travelling for illegal organ transplants, he concludes.
Matas, A. J. and Chapman, J. Head to Head: Should we pay donors to increase the supply of organs for transplantation? The British Medical Journal, Vol. 363, June 14, 2008, pp. 1342-43.
Noorani, M. A. Personal View: Commercial transplantation in Pakistan. The British Medical Journal, Vol. 363, p. 1378.
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