Weight Loss Program For Teen Confirms Some Benefits

Weight Loss Program For Teen Confirms Some Benefits

A low-key, long term approach to teen weight loss produced modest benefits in a clinical trial, Australian researchers report, though a version of the program that added texts and emails didn't help kids slim down any further.

The study, by Binh Nguyen at the University of Sydney and colleagues, included 151 teenagers in a 24-month program called Loozit, based on group behavior-modification sessions for teens and their parents.

At the 12-month mark, 40 percent of the teens had reduced their body mass by at least five percent and a quarter had reduced by at least 10 percent, though most remained overweight.

Despite the small effect on weight, Elissa Jelalian of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, said the results are promising because the program was less intensive than other weight loss efforts, and yet had nearly the same impact.

"I think it's certainly worthy of further investigation," Jelalian, who was not involved in the new work, told Reuters Health.

During the first two months of Loozit, the kids, who were between 13 and 16 years old, participated in seven weekly group sessions that focused on healthy eating habits, increasing physical activity, decreasing time spent in front of a screen and improving self esteem.

They also spent some time exercising and preparing and tasting foods during the sessions.

Parents, too, attended weekly group sessions where lifestyle-modification was discussed.

For the next 22 months, teens and parents went to booster sessions every three months.

The study's results, published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent, only include outcomes from the first 12 months of the program, which 124 kids completed.

Jelalian said other weight loss programs for kids have relied on group interventions, "which I think can be helpful. They try to mobilize other kids their age who are dealing with similar challenges and to create a peer group."

The differences between Loozit and other programs is that the kids only go through 14 sessions over two years, compared to about 20 in other cases, and the discussions are held in community locations rather than in academic or hospital settings.

Most studies of teen weight-loss approaches have centered on more intensive and heavily monitored interventions, sometimes in in-patient settings, the researchers note.

The other thing Nguyen's group did differently is that half of the kids also received text messages, emails and phone calls to follow up and coach them through the program.

"That's the direction a lot of people are going. And it makes sense, teens are plugged in," said Jelalian, who was not involved in this study. "Unfortunately, it didn't look like that added anything to their findings."

After the 12 months there were no differences in weight loss, cholesterol levels, mental health and behavioral measures between the two groups.

"It is possible that the (additional contact) provided was too mild and that participants could have benefited from more frequent, intensive contact," Nguyen wrote in an email to Reuters Health.

She added that the results don't prove that coaching through texts or emails is ineffective, and future research should look at whether more frequent contact could help make a difference.

There were positive differences between where the teens started out and where they ended up, the researchers point out.

The kids had lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels at the end of the year as well as higher scores on measures of self worth, academic and athletic abilities, and social acceptance.

On average, the kids actually gained weight -- which isn't necessarily surprising, given that they grew more than an inch during the study period.

To account for this, the researchers looked at changes in the kids' body mass index (BMI), a measure of weight relative to height.

After adjusting for a child's age and sex, the researchers found a slight drop in BMI after 12 months, indicating that the kids were shifting toward a more normal body size, although they were still overweight.

Jelalian said it's important to try new approaches to getting overweight and obese kids to lose weight, because research has typically focused on adults or younger children.

"There are some developmental considerations for adolescents that are unique," she said, such as the onset of puberty and a growing independence from parents.

"There are few other programs for this age group and that are sustainable in community-based settings," Nguyen said. "We know of no others in Australia that have been tested in research studies."

She said she would definitely recommend Loozit for overweight teens. And that her team is following up with a study on the results of the full 24 months of the trial.

So far, "These findings highlight the potential benefits of a low intensity weight management program targeted at adolescents that is sustainable in community settings," Nguyen and her colleagues write in their report.

Vitamin D Has Varied outcomes on Cancer, Broken Bones

Vitamin D Has Varied outcomes on Cancer, Broken Bones

Extra vitamin D and calcium may offer some protection against fractures in elderly people, but have little or no impact on cancer risk, according to a fresh look at the medical evidence.

Some research has suggested that vitamin D, with or without calcium, might help stave off cancer, but recent trials have slashed those hopes.

"It turns out that as a group, all of the micronutrient supplements have been disappointing," said Dr. Michael Pollak, who heads the division of cancer prevention at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and was not involved in the new work.

"Even one of the best candidates, which is vitamin D, is certainly no slam dunk," he told Reuters Health.

The new report, out Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine, was commissioned by the government-backed U.S. Preventive Services Task Force to inform its public recommendations.

It pulls together 19 gold standard experiments -- so-called randomized controlled trials -- on vitamin D with or without calcium. The trials lasted anywhere from seven months to seven years and ranged in size from a few thousand participants to tens of thousands.

Only three of them reported on cancer, however. While one small study found some protection against cancer in postmenopausal women taking vitamin D and calcium, the larger studies found no benefits.

"I don't have confidence in any of the findings because they could be chance findings," lead researcher Mei Chung, of Tufts Medical Center in Boston, told Reuters Health.

Last month, another randomized controlled trial was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. Although it wasn't included in Chung's report, it confirms her results.

In that study, among seniors taking 800 IU of vitamin D daily for a few years, 32 out of every 100 died during the study, while 33 out of every 100 people who did not get the supplement died.

That small difference could easily have been due to chance, the researchers found. There were no differences in deaths from cancer or heart disease either, just as calcium also proved unhelpful.

According to Chung, one large U.S. study, known as the Women's Health Initiative, also showed that women taking the supplements had higher rates of kidney and bladder stones.

Marji McCullough, a nutritional scientist at the American Cancer Society, said her organization does not advise dietary supplements to prevent cancer.

"Various researchers have recommended that, but large consensus panels have not," she told Reuters Health. "There is no compelling evidence currently that taking supplements will lower your cancer risk."

The Institute of Medicine recommends that most adults get 1,000 to 1,200 milligrams (mg) of calcium per day and 600 to 800 IU of vitamin D. It sets a recommended upper limit at 2,000 mg of calcium and 4,000 IU of vitamin D.

However, Chung's team did find a small reduction in fracture risk among elderly people living in an institution such as a nursing home, with extra vitamin D and calcium preventing two out of every 100 expected fractures.

But the risk reduction was smaller for people living on their own, and might have been due to chance, she added.

Chung, who is assistant director of the Evidence-based Practice Center at Tufts, said that in an earlier report from 2009, which looked at several possible health benefits, only the fracture benefit was convincing.

Pollak said it's possible that a few people who have low levels of vitamin D may get some benefit from it, but that doesn't warrant everybody taking extra vitamins.

"You can have too much of a good thing," he told Reuters Health.

For people interested in lowering their cancer risk, he added, there are better ways to go than supplements.

"Don't smoke and stay as close as you can to your ideal body weight," Pollak urged. "Those two things will definitely lower you cancer risk and they will have many other health benefits as well -- and there are no possible downsides."

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force could not say when its new vitamin D guidelines will be released.

Heart-Related Illness can be reduced by Fish Oil

Heart-Related Illness can be reduced by Fish Oil

Fish oil, and its high level of omega-3 fatty acids, has been proven reduce the risk of some forms of cancer, relieve joint pain and other rheumatoid problems, and lessen the effects of depression and other mental disorders. Omega-3 fats can also help with some forms of skin problems and has been reported to ward off Alzheimer’s disease. Now there are heart benefits as well.

An omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) study was conducted by Italian researchers to test the benefits of fish oil. They enlisted more than 7,000 people who had been diagnosed with heart failure, a condition in which the heart becomes enlarged and loses its ability to effectively pump blood around the body.  Half of the participants were given a daily capsule of omega-3, in addition to their other daily medications, while the other half took a placebo. They were followed for an average of four years, during which 1,981 (27 percent) of the group taking omega-3 died of heart failure or were admitted to the hospital with cardiovascular problems, compared to 2,053 (29 percent) of the placebo group.

In a parallel study, the same team studied heart failure rates of 2,285 patients who were given the statin rosuvastatin, also known as Crestor, while 2,289 were given a placebo. After tracking the patients for an average of four years, the doctors found little difference in the death rate between the two groups. When they compared the results from both studies, the researchers concluded that omega-3 is slightly more effective than the drug because it performed better against a placebo. “Our study shows that the long-term administration of 1g per day of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acid was effective in reducing both all-cause mortality and admissions to hospital for cardiovascular reasons,” said Professor Luigi Tavazzi from the research centre of the of the Italian Association of Hospital Cardiologists based in Florence.

This study confirms the results of previous studies that investigated the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids, but they have largely been observational and have lacked a direct comparison to a placebo. “This study changes the certainty of the evidence we have about fish oils,” said Dr. Douglas Weaver, president of the American College of Cardiology. He said that guidelines in the U.S. would likely change to recommend more heart patients take supplements or eat more fish. “This is a low-tech solution and could help all patients with cardiovascular problems,” he said.

However, in an editorial accompanying the journal report, Dr. Gregg Fonarow, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, said the positive trial results doesn’t mean that a statin should not be prescribed for someone with heart failure and high cholesterol, but “indicates that heart failure, in and of itself, should not be a reason to start a patient on a statin.” He also stressed that people with heart failure should not start taking fish oil supplements on their own. “They used a specific formulation, a prescription formulation. Heart failure is a very high-risk condition. It is absolutely critical for patients, whether it is a prescription medicine or modification of diet or a supplement, that they consult their physician,” he said.

Public health organizations recommend eating fish twice a week. Oily fish, such as salmon, mackerel, halibut, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and anchovies are an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids. However, fish is not the only source. You should also consider other seafood, such as Pacific oysters, shrimp, mollusks and Alaskan king crab. Walnuts and flaxseed can also add substantial amounts of omega-3 to your diet, as can vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, and cauliflower. But the most certain prescription is to take a fish oil supplement, since it has specified doses of EPA and DHA, and can also alleviate concerns about fish being contaminated with mercury or PCBs.  

For Prevention of Colds and Flu : Homeopathic Treatments

For Prevention of Colds and Flu : Homeopathic Treatments

Homeopathic medicines can help prevent a cold as well as treat the symptoms. The remedies are available in most health food stores and online.

Homeopathy is a system of medicine pioneered by Samuel Hahnemann over a hundred years ago. The remedies work by treating along a specific Law of Cure, described as “like cures like.” Homeopathic pharmacies prepare the remedies according to a specific protocol that involve using the most minute doses needed for a cure.

Homeopathic Remedies to Prevent Colds and Flu

Both of these remedies are most effective when you are first coming down with a cold.

Oscillococcinum is made from the liver of a goose. Geese fly great distances each year. They are exposed to many viruses in their travels, and build up immunity in their livers to each. By taking this remedy, you gain that immunity. It is safe to combine with prescription medications, for children or the elderly, and causes no drowsiness or stimulant effect. There are numerous clinical trials showing good results using this product. It is useful for intestinal flu as well. DIRECTIONS: Oscillococcinum can be taken every 12 hours to stave off a cold.

Influenzinum is made from the same flu vaccine substances that are prepared by the World Health Organization. It is updated each year and the substance is prepared in dilute quantities, and then homeopathically potentized. The remedy is used instead of a flu vaccine to stimulate the body’s defense system in order to resist the season’s flu strains. Its action boosts the immune system. DIRECTIONS: Influenzinum is useful after first exposure, in the early stages of a cold, or as a preventative. Recommended dosage is once a day for a month.

Homeopathic Remedies for the Early Stages of a Cold.

Aconite is for that cold or fever that comes on within an hour of exposure to a cold wind. It works best in the early stages of an illness with a sudden onset of intense symptoms. The person needing Aconite feels thirst for cold water and restlessness and anxiety. The skin can be red and dry.

Ferrum Phosphoricum is a good remedy at the start of a cold when there are no clear symptoms or weakness with inflammation. There can be a low-grade fever. The cough is short and tickling and the head is sore and worse movement or cold.

Gelsemium can treat early symptoms of a cold. Gelsemium symptoms include dry throat, dry cough, runny nose, and achiness. The patient may be irritable or have chills running up and down the back. Gelsemium is also a good remedy for bronchitis.

Vincetoxicum treats a rapid onset cold (within 1-6 hours). The symptoms include weakness, leaden tiredness, aching bones and shivering. Vincetoxicum is useful for viral infections as well. The cough is spasmodic and the sore throat feels worse when swallowing. The patient has a low-grade fever but feels very hot, or they can alternate with feeling hot then cold.

Note: If you have a cold for more than 5-7 days, seek medical attention. Or if you become extremely lethargic or weak, visit a doctor immediately or head to the emergency room.

Increasing Number of Americans Using Vitamin Supplements

Increasing Number of Americans Using Vitamin Supplements

In a new study of people with moderate or severe lung disease, taking large amounts of vitamin D was not linked to any symptom relief, researchers from Belgium report.

Prior research suggested that up to three quarters of people with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, are deficient in the vitamin. So it was thought that giving them extra vitamin D might help prevent exacerbations in symptoms or trips to the hospital because of shortness of breath or mucus in the airways -- but that turned out not to be the case.

"Supplementation with vitamin D is not going to cure their disease," said Dr. Wim Janssens, one of the study's authors from University Hospitals Leuven.

"It is again clear for COPD patients that these exacerbations are really hard to treat" and prevent, Janssens told Reuters Health.

"There are a lot of relapses. We're basically failing in treating these."

Though vitamin D is most often associated with bone health and osteoporosis, Janssens said the theory has been that the vitamin may help reduce inflammation, including inflammation in the airways that worsens COPD symptoms, such as coughing and trouble breathing.

COPD is irreversible impairment of lung function, including emphysema and chronic bronchitis, often caused by smoking. One large national health survey suggests some 24 million Americans have the condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Janssens and his colleagues randomly assigned 182 people at their hospital with moderate to severe forms of the disease to take high-dose vitamin D pills, or a vitamin-free placebo pill, every four weeks for a year. One hundred and fifty of them finished the study.

Over that year, patients on vitamin D reported a total of 229 exacerbations in symptoms, for an average of 2.8 exacerbations in each patient. That was not statistically different from the 239 exacerbations, or 2.9 per patient, among those taking the placebo.

Symptoms were severe enough to send patients taking vitamin D to the hospital 79 times during the study, and people in the placebo group 73 times.

There was also no difference between the two groups in the amount of time until patients had their first exacerbation, or in measures of lung functioning, fatigue or the risk of death.

The researchers did find that among 30 people who had a very severe vitamin D deficiency at the start of the study, those taking the supplements had fewer problems with symptoms.

But because they didn't plan to explore that question from the beginning, and only found it on a second look at the data, it's hard to tell what the finding means.

"That would indicate that if there's any effect, there might be something in patients with really low levels. That's not the majority of patients with COPD," said Dr. Ken Kunisaki, from the Minneapolis VA Healthcare System.

More research would be needed to confirm if the vitamin is of any benefit even in those very deficient patients, added Kunisaki, who has also studied vitamin D in COPD but wasn't involved in the new research.

He said the current findings are in line with other research suggesting that although vitamin D deficiency might be more common in people with COPD, higher levels don't necessarily seem to equate with fewer symptoms.

"Unfortunately the results have been somewhat disappointing," Kunisaki said. "Right now there's no evidence that patients with COPD are going to benefit from additional vitamin D."

Researchers have also proposed that vitamin D may be helpful in patients with multiple sclerosis or tuberculosis, among other diseases, but studies generally haven't panned out, Janssens and his colleagues wrote in their report, published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

He said that in spite of his team's lack of positive findings, people with or without COPD shouldn't ignore very low vitamin D levels.

"If you're deficient, you need supplementation to normal levels just to treat your bone, to protect from osteoporosis and fractures," he said. "If you (have) severe deficiency, supplementation might also be effective for inflammation" associated with COPD.

Kunisaki cautioned that researchers still don't know whether there are long-term risks associated with taking high doses of vitamin D or other vitamins.

Top 4 Tips For Choosing Right Nursing Home

Top 4 Tips For Choosing Right Nursing Home

Many baby boomers will need to cope with aging parents who are no longer able to live safely on their own. Despite the best efforts of all involved, mom and dad may reach a point when they need assistance to meet their daily needs. In some cases the attention and care required may be beyond what the family is capable of providing, so having your folks move in is not an option.

If you decide that a nursing home is the best solution, it is important to carefully research the options and ask the right questions. You want to find a place mom and dad will enjoy that is also safe and provides the care they need. But this is far from an easy task. Here are some guidelines to help evaluate and identify the best nursing home for your family:

1.            Ask the right questions.

--Is the home licensed?

--Do all staff members undergo background checks?

--Do they screen for a history of abuse?

--How much time each day do staff members spend with residents?

--How are complaints handled?

--Ask to see an activity schedule or calendar.

--How are emergencies handled?

--What is the staff turnover? Why do employees leave?

2.            Visit the home numerous times. Drop by at different times of the day. See what the morning routine, meal times, activity time, and bedtime are like. Are residents eating together or alone in their rooms? Take note of the overall attitude and demeanor of the residents and the staff. Check out the facilities for cleanliness and safety. How would you feel if this was where you were to live and spend your time each day?

3.            Check out the ratings. The Consumer Reports nursing home quality monitor offers state-by-state findings about the quality of care. U.S. News honored the best nursing homes in 2012. And the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services keeps records of violations by nursing homes and the citations that result from failure to comply with mandatory safety rules.

4.            Check in frequently. No one wants to feel abandoned or put out to pasture. Even in the best of surroundings, a visit from family members is critical. Think of these visits as no different than regular visits to their house before the nursing home.

Latest Drug For Diabetes Lowers Blood Pressure, Weight and Blood Sugar

Latest Drug For Diabetes Lowers Blood Pressure, Weight and Blood Sugar

A new drug known as Liraglutide, for use in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, has been proven to enhance blood glucose control, reduce weight and even lower blood pressure with once-daily injections. Liraglutide maker Novo Nordisk funded a one-year study, led by Dr. Alan Garber of Baylor College of Medicine, of 746 patients having early type 2 diabetes. Participants received a once-daily injection in a dose of either 1.2 mg or 1.8 mg of Liraglutide or were given a once daily oral tablet of Amaryl (glimepiride), a widely used oral anti-diabetic drug. Patients who received Liraglutide were also given dummy pills while those receiving Amaryl were given injections of a placebo.

Before treatment, patients’ long-term blood sugar control scores (HbA1c scores) were recorded as ranging from 7 to 11 percent. After receiving treatment for one year, the HbA1c scores of patients receiving 1.8 mg of Liraglutide dropped by 1.14 percent with the scores of those taking 1.2 mg of Liraglutide dropping by 0.84 percent. HbA1c dropped 0.51 percent in patients receiving Amaryl.

The analysis found that 51 percent of patients getting 1.8 mg doses of Liraglutide achieved the American Diabetes Association (ADA) target HbA1c level of less than 7.0 percent and 43 percent of patients who received 1.2 mg doses of Liraglutide attained the ADA target HbA1c level. Only 28 percent of patients getting Amaryl reached the ADA target HbA1c level. During the first 16 weeks of the study, patients treated with Liraglutide experienced weight loss that was maintained after one-year, while the majority of those treated with Amaryl gained weight.

Nausea is a common side effect of Liraglutide, and caused six Liraglutide patients to drop out of the study due to vomiting. Patients who experienced nausea in excess of seven days lost 7.1 pounds while on the 1.2 mg dosage of Liraglutide, while those taking the 1.8 mg dosage lost 7.5 pounds. Those taking Amaryl lost 3.15 pounds. Patients with nausea for seven days or less lost 4.1 pounds on Liraglutide with the 1.2 mg dose, five pounds with the 1.8 mg dose, and gained 2.7 pounds on Amaryl. In addition, more Liraglutide patients experienced a decrease in blood pressure than Amaryl patients.

Liraglutide is an analog of a hormone called GLP-1, which stimulates insulin secretion and expands insulin-making beta cells in the pancreas. The most common side effects of the drug are nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, which tend to subside after the first 30 days of treatment. Amaryl is a member of a commonly used class of drugs known as sulfonylureas, which also stimulate insulin secretion.

In The Lancet, Garber and colleagues write, "We conclude that Liraglutide is safe and effective as initial pharmacological therapy for type 2 diabetes mellitus and has advantages over other drugs used in monotherapy, such as greater reductions in weight, the number of events (of Blood Pressure, Weight and Blood Sugar), and systolic blood pressure. Although the findings could make an endorsement likely, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not yet approved Liraglutide.

Type 2 diabetes is a progressive disease. Many treatments lose their effectiveness against it later in the course of the disease. Researchers continue to search for treatments that will maintain their effectiveness in the fight against type 2 diabetes.

Novo Nordisk is a healthcare company with the most wide-ranging diabetes product group in the industry. The company has a history of 85 years of revolutionary advances and achievements in the care of diabetes.