Tag Archives: united

US adult smoking rate dips to 18 percent

Fewer U.S. adults are smoking, a new government report says. Last year, about 18 percent of adults participating in a national health survey described themselves as current smokers. The nation's smoking rate generally has been falling for decades, but had seemed to stall at around 20 to 21 percent for about seven years. In 2011, the rate fell to 19 percent, but that might have been a statistical blip. Health officials are analyzing the 2012 findings and have not yet concluded why the rate dropped, a spokesman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. The CDC released its study Tuesday. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable illness and death in the United States. It's responsible for the majority of lung cancer deaths and is a deadly factor in heart attacks and a variety of other illnesses. Concerned about the stalled smoking rate, the CDC launched a graphic advertising campaign last year that was the agency's largest and starkest anti-smoking push. The campaign triggered an increase of 200,000 calls to quit lines, and CDC officials said thousands of smokers probably went on to kick the habit. The CDC did a second wave of the ads earlier this year. The new report is from a survey of about 35,000 U.S. adults. Current smokers were identified as those who said they had smoked more than 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and now smoke every day or some days. The rate was only 9 percent for people ages 65 and older, but about 20 percent for younger adults. More men than women described themselves as current smokers. The report did not include teens. About 16 percent of high school students were smokers in 2011, according to an earlier CDC report. Patrick Reynolds, executive director of the Foundation for a SmokeFree America, told The Associated Press that he was elated that the adult smoking rate, for years at about 20 percent, had dropped below that longstanding plateau. He said factors he thinks have contributed to fewer adults smoking include rising state and federal tobacco taxes, more spending on prevention and cessation programs, and more laws banning smoking in public. “This is a real decline in smoking in America. I'm ecstatic about it. It's proof that we are winning the battle against tobacco,” he said by telephone from Los Angeles.source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/18/us-adult-smoking-rate-dips-to-18-percent/

‘Gene signature’ test diagnoses benign thyroid growths

"We have developed a ‘gene signature’ that effectively identifies benign thyroid nodules," said Hernan Gonzalez, MD, PhD, associate professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in Santiago. "This test is potentially useful to identify patients who do not require surgery." The thyroid gland, located in the front of the neck, secretes thyroid hormone…

Number of new primary care physicians in US ‘abysmally low’

Fewer doctors in the United States are choosing to become primary care physicians – especially in rural areas of the country, Medical Daily reported. In fact, the rate at which U.S. medical schools are producing primary care physicians is “abysmally low,” said Dr. Candice Chen, from the George Washington University School of Public Health and Human Services. Chen and her fellow researchers studied a group of nearly 9,000 doctors who graduated from more than 750 different residency sites between 2006 and 2008. Less than a quarter of these doctors chose to become primary care physicians after their residencies, and less than one in 20 chose to work in rural areas of the country, according to Medical Daily. Additionally, 198 of the 759 medical institutions studied failed to graduate a single doctor who went on to practice in a rural area. “If residency programs do not ramp up the training of these physicians, the shortage in primary care – especially in remote areas – will get worse,” Chen told reporters. “The study's findings raise questions about whether federally funded graduate medical education institutions are meeting the nation's need for primary care physicians.” Some experts believe the country's medical education system will need to change to fix the shortage. An editorial published in the New York Times suggested that the U.S. educate future doctors for free to eliminate the large debt most medical students incur. The program would be funded by issuing penalties to any doctor who chose to pursue a specialty outside of primary care. Click for more from Medical Daily.source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/17/number-new-primary-care-physicians-in-us-abysmally-low/

Are probiotics miracle food?

Probiotics claim to support immunity and fix everything from bloat to skin trouble, and they're popping up in all kinds of foods and drinks—more than 500 new products in the last decade. Clearly lots of people are on board: Sales of anything touting the probiotic promise increased by $1 billion in the United States in the past two years alone. So should you stock up? Well, it's complicated. Related: Delicious Mediterranean Dishes Under 400 Calories Yes, probiotics do have some awesome health powers. But to really get how they work, you first need to understand a few things about your body and, well, bugs.  From the time you're born, millions of bacteria (those bugs) from your mom, food, air and the things you touch start setting up camp in and on your body.  Related: Tone Up Your Trouble Spots The mix is called the microbiome, and most of it lives in your colon (happily), where it helps signal your body to digest food, fight pathogens, break down cholesterol and more, Gregor Reid, director of the Canadian Research & Development Centre for Probiotics, said. Animal studies suggest the microbiome may affect blood pressure and even behavior. Related: 6 Moves To Resize Your Butt and Thighs Can't believe we're actually saying this, but the microbiome is very trendy right now. There's tons of new research on it: Scientists say it's the next frontier in understanding the human body.  Certain “good” bacteria strains (aka probiotics) seem to help the body function more efficiently, while “bad” bacteria tax it. And when the balance of the gastrointestinal system is off (blame stress, illness, a poor diet or taking antibiotics), we may be left susceptible to disease-causing organisms and diarrhea.  So the theory makes sense: If you have microbiome imbalance, ingesting extra good bacteria—found naturally in certain foods like yogurt and sauerkraut and added to others like tea—might help make you healthier. But you need to make sure you're eating the right stuff. Research suggests taking large doses of certain probiotics—several strains of lactobacillus and bifidobacteria found in fortified yogurts and pills, specifically—may help prevent colds and soothe digestive problems. Plenty of docs recommend these products as natural meds, and they seem to be generally safe for most people. But there's a catch: The FDA doesn't regulate most probiotics the way it does drugs. Some reports suggest claims about the amount and type of bacteria on product labels aren't always accurate. And many products are never clinically tested for efficacy. So sketchy pills—like ones that combine a bunch of strains experts don't know much about—are on store shelves.  “A lot of things called probiotics shouldn't be, because they've never been tested in humans,” Reid said. The bottom line: Probiotic supplements may help prevent colds and ease GI issues, but no need to pop pills every day to balance your microbiome when your diet can do it, too, Dr. David Rakel, director of the University of Wisconsin Integrative Medicine Program. said.  Have at least three weekly servings of fermented foods—yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi—which contain probiotics naturally, Dr. Rakel said. (There's no guarantee fortified sources like cereals and teas will help, so it might not be worth it to shell out the cash.) Finally, fill up on fiber from veggies and whole grains: It helps create a more probiotic-friendly environment in your gut.  We'll take food over pills any day. This article originally appeared on Self.com. source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/14/are-probiotics-miracle-food/

Protein protects against breast cancer recurrence in animal model

Precisely what causes breast cancer recurrence has been poorly understood. But now a piece of the puzzle has fallen into place: Researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania have identified a key molecular player in recurrent breast cancer — a finding that suggests potential new therapeutic strategies. The study, performed in the laboratory of Lewis A. …

New diet craze offers 5 days of feasting for 2 days of famine

Forget abandoning carbohydrates or detoxing. The new dieting craze sweeping Britain and taking off in the United States lets people eat whatever they like - but only five days a week. “The Fast Diet”, also known as the 5:2 diet, is the brainchild of TV medical journalist Michael Mosley and journalist Mimi Spencer and allows people to eat what they want for five days but only eat 600 calories a day on the other two. Their book, “The Fast Diet”, has topped bestselling book lists in Britain and the United States this year and been reprinted more than a dozen times. Mosley said the diet is based on work by British and U.S. scientists who found intermittent fasting helped people lose more fat, increase insulin sensitivity and cut cholesterol which should mean reduced risk of heart disease and diabetes. He tried this eating regime for a BBC television science programme called “Eat, Fast, Live Longer” last August after finding out his cholesterol level was too high and his blood sugar in the diabetic range. He was stunned by the results. “I started doing intermittent fasting a year ago, lost 8 kgs (18 pounds) of fat over 3 months and my blood results went back to normal,” Mosley told Reuters. Mosley said he had been amazed at the way the diet had taken off with a list of websites set up by followers of the 5:2 diet or variations of the eating regime to share their experiences. Following the success of “The Fast Diet”, Spencer joined forces with dietitian Sarah Schenker to bring out “The Fast Diet Recipe Book” in April which has topped amazon.co.uk's food and drink list with 150 recipes containing under 300 calories. Eating a 600 calorie daily diet - about a quarter of a normal healthy adult's intake - could consist of two eggs for breakfast, grilled chicken and lettuce for lunch, and fish with rice noodles for dinner with nothing to drink but water, black coffee or tea. One day at a time Mosley put the diet's success down to the fact it is psychologically attractive and leads to steady drop in weight with an average weekly loss of 1 pound (0.46kg) for women and slightly more for men. “The problem with standard diets is that you feel like you are constantly having to exercise restraint and that means you are thinking about food all the time, which becomes self-defeating,” said Mosley. “On this regime you are only really on a diet two days a week. It is also extremely flexible and simple.” Britain's National Health Service (NHS) initially expressed doubts about the diet and its long-term effects, saying side effects could include sleeping difficulties, bad breath, irritability, anxiety, and daytime sleepiness. But as the popularity of the 5:2 diet has grown and become one of the most searched diets on the Internet, the NHS has started to look again at the diet and its effects. On its website last month the NHS said the British Dietetic Association (BDA) reviewed a 2011 study by researchers at the UK's University Hospital of South Manchester that suggested intermittent fasting could help lower the risk of certain obesity-related cancers such as breast cancer. “The increasing popularity of the 5:2 diet should lead to further research of this kind,” the BDA said in a statement. Schenker, a sports and media dietitian who works with football clubs and food companies, said it was a shame that the NHS had criticized the eating regime that had proved such a success with so many people. “We are in the midst of an obesity crisis and you need to balance up which is worse - intermittent fasting of staying obese?” Schenker told Reuters. Despite concerns raised by the NHS, the 5:2 diet has been widely praised by those who follow it. Deb Thomas, 50, a management coach from London, said she has followed the diet for six months and dropped a couple of dress sizes. This has also inspired her husband to join her in fasting two days a week. “It is such an easy diet to follow that fits into my way of life,” Thomas said. “You have a tough day of not eating but you know the next day you can eat normally again, and that keeps you going.”source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/13/new-diet-craze-offers-five-days-feasting-for-two-days-famine/

AIDS drugs halve HIV risk for intravenous drug users in study

A daily dose of powerful anti-HIV medicine helped cut the risk of infection with the AIDS virus by 49 percent in intravenous drug users in a Bangkok study that showed for the first time such a preventive step can work in this high-risk population. “This is a significant step forward for HIV prevention,” said Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which helped conduct the clinical trial along with the Thailand Ministry of Health. The study, published on Wednesday in the journal Lancet, looked at the treatment approach known as pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, in which HIV treatments are given to uninfected people who are at high-risk for HIV infection. The drug used in the study was Gilead's older and relatively cheap generic HIV drug tenofovir. The study was launched in 2005. Prior studies of this approach showed it cut infection rates by 44 percent in men who have sex with men, by 62 percent in heterosexual men and women and by 75 percent in couples in which one partner is infected with HIV and the other is not. The new results showed that it also protects intravenous drug users. “We now know that PrEP can work for all populations at increased risk for HIV,” Mermin said in a statement. Based on the results, the CDC plans to recommend that U.S. doctors who wish to prescribe this treatment for their patients follow the same interim guidelines issued last year to prevent sexual transmission among other high-risk individuals. Intravenous use of drugs like heroin accounts for about 8 percent of all new HIV infections in the United States and about 10 percent of new HIV infections worldwide. In some regions, such as Eastern Europe and Central Asia, injection drug abuse accounts for about 80 percent of all new infections. The new findings involved more than 2,400 intravenous drug users in Bangkok who were not infected with the human immunodeficiency virus, which causes AIDS, and were being treated at the city's drug treatment clinics. Half took tenofovir and half took a placebo. All participants were given HIV prevention counseling, risk-reduction strategies such as condoms and methadone treatment, and monthly HIV testing. At the end of the study, there were 17 HIV infections among people taking the HIV medication, compared with 33 infections among those not taking the drugs, the researchers found. The researchers also looked to see what factors influenced infection rates among those taking the HIV medication. They found that people who took their medication at least 71 percent of the time had a 74 percent lower risk of becoming infected with HIV. Although it was not clear how the preventive drug treatment worked - by stopping infections caused by sharing dirty needles or by unprotected sex among drug users - the study produced a reduction in infection rates, said Dr. Salim Abdook Karim of the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, South Africa and of Columbia University in New York. “The introduction of PrEP for HIV prevention in injecting drug users should be considered as an additional component to accompany other proven prevention strategies like needle exchange programs, methadone programs, promotion of safer sex and injecting practices, condoms, and HIV counseling and testing,” Karim, who was not involved in the study, wrote in a commentary accompanying the study in the Lancet. “PrEP as part of combination prevention in injecting drug users could make a useful contribution to the quest for an AIDS-free generation,” Karim added.source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/13/aids-drugs-halve-hiv-risk-for-intravenous-drug-users-in-study/

Bug bites causing allergies? How to avoid dangerous tick bites

As we transition into summer, it is expected that the now infamous lone star tick will continue to spread throughout the United States.  When the lone star tick bites, saliva is injected into the victim that contains a specific sugar known as “alpha gal,” according to research from the University of Virginia. In as little as a few weeks, this appears to cause an antibody surge that can precipitate a full blown allergic reaction after eating red meat, such as beef, pork and/or lamb, but not poultry.   It’s important to be aware of health issues related to tick bites, and of course to plan ahead to reduce the likelihood of giving your favorite host a warm-blooded meal.  That means following some of the suggestions by the CDC: 1. Know your neighborhood.  Find out whether deer or lone star ticks are prevalent in your area. 2. Assess the risk of your activity and the chance of exposure to ticks, i.e. hiking in woods vs. back yard picnics.   3. Know the proper way to apply both DEET and natural based insect/tick repellents, how long they protect and what concentration is appropriate for adequate protection for adults and children.   4. Consider dressing in light clothing making it easier to spot very small ticks. 5. Always due a close inspection and tick check when returning from tick endemic areas. 6. Learn the recommended techniques in removing a tick. 7. Save the recovered tick for analysis by your local department of health, and they can determine the type of tick and whether it may contain the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, for example. So be prepared - and avoid getting “ticked off” this summer!Dr. Clifford Bassett is an adult and pediatric allergy specialist, and diplomat of the American Board of Allergy and Immunology. He is the medical director of& Allergy and Asthma Care of NY.& & Bassett is a clinical assistant professor of medicine and on the teaching faculty of NYU School of Medicine and NYU Langone Medical Center and assistant clinical professor of Medicine and Otolaryngology at SUNY LICH. Follow him on& Twitter. & source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/12/how-to-avoid-tick-bites-that-could-cause-red-meat-allergies/