Health News

CROSSFEED 4-98

AEROMEDICAL NEWS

HEALTH NEWS

by Larry Kline

AVOIDING LIGHT-HEADEDNESS - if you feel faint when you stand up suddenly, try raising your arms over your head, which will increase blood flow to the brain. This will help if the problem is orthostatic hypotension - low blood pressure that occurs when you suddenly change position. U.C. Berkeley Wellness Letter, 5/98.

THE POWER OF GREEN TEA - laboratory studies show that antioxidants in green tea help prevent the cell damage that can lead to cancer. Now it appears the leaves may hold even greater food fortune. Scientists at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine had found that these compounds also kill cells once they’ve become cancerous, while leaving healthy cells unharmed. The researchers say green tea may soon be used in cancer treatment as well as prevention. Health 4/98.

PINK IS BETTER - pink grapefruit has about 25 times more beta carotene as white grapefruit, but about the same calories and vitamin C. U.C. Berkeley Wellness Letter, 10/97.

SMALLER IS BETTER - mealwise, that is. Older folks are more likely than young to store fat calories after eating big meals, a Tufts University study suggests. Smaller meals don’t seem to cause the same response. The researchers recommend that seniors older than 60 who want to maintain their weight try eating four or five mini-meals a day. Health 5/98.

LOW FAT DIET = LOWER SKIN CANCER RISK - a recent study found that subjects with a diet consisting of less than 21 percent fat developed one-quarter the number of actinic keratoses than the group with a diet closer to 40 percent fat. Actinic keratoses are premalignant lesions that can progress to squamous cell cancer.

Since this type of intervention works after the damaging UV exposure, it is never too late to benefit from a low-fat diet. Prime Health & Fitness, Summer/98.

BEATING DIABETES - if diabetes runs in your family, aerobic exercise can lower insulin resistance - a condition that often lead to diabetes - in one week! A study at the University of Pittsburgh compared subjects with insulin resistance and found that in just one week their insulin resistance dropped by 58 percent. Exercise may improve insulin function by increasing the muscles’ demand for glucose. The researchers concluded that aerobic exercise several times a week for at least 30 minutes a session may lessen diabetic risk. Men’s Health 5/98.


YET ANOTHER BENEFIT OF EXERCISE - you already know exercise (aerobic and strength training and stretching) is important, but it’s worth emphasizing again given a recent study. In a quest to finally separate the influences of heredity and exercise on longevity, researcher followed 16,000 twins for 19 years. They found that you can overcome genetic faults. Individuals who took brisk 30-minute walks just six times a month were 56 percent less likely to die than their more sedentary twin brothers or sisters. Men’s Health 6/98.

SLOWER IS BETTER - oatmeal is a great source of soluble fiber, the kind that protects against heart disease. But instant oatmeal only delivers about one-half the amount of soluble fiber (three grams for instant versus six grams) as the slow-cooking oats that require at least 15 minutes on the stove. Health 4/98.

YOGURT - THE WONDER FOOD - it’s low in fat, high in minerals and vitamins, and appears to boost immunity and relieve stomach distress. But the big bonus may be the live cultures, or bacteria, in yogurt that create its creamy texture and sour taste. These bacteria are called probiotics, which means “for life” and refers to any live organism in food that has benefits beyond simple nutrition. Two key bacteria in yogurt are Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus, yogurt’s starter cultures. They turn milk into yogurt by converting lactose (milk sugar) into lactic acid (the same acid that collects in muscles after a tough workout). The lactic acid works the proteins into longer knots that causes the milk to curdle.

Besides the starter bacteria in yogurt (which generally do not survive stomach acid), a variety of Lactobacillus called acidophilus and another bacteria, Bifidobacterium (bifido for short) can survive stomach acid and will settle in the small and large intestines. There, they may help suppress some food-borne bacteria like salmonella or campylobacter. Antibiotic use may result in diarrhea, as the antibiotic will attack all bacteria in your digestive tract, good and bad. Consuming acidophilus and bifido bacteria in yogurt can restore your digestive “balance” after antibiotic use.

Acidophilus-rich yogurt also can combat vaginal yeast infections. A 1992 study showed that women who ate eight ounces of acidophilus-rich yogurt had significantly fewer infections than they had in the previous six months.

Probiotics in yogurt appear to boost immune system function. Both acidophilus and bifido increase the activity of phagocytes, blood cells that combat invading organisms. Some studies show that eating yogurt containing bifido bacteria switches off an enzyme associated with colon cancer.

The National Yogurt Association has standards that demand that any yogurt that has at least 100 million live bacteria per gram-the minimum believed to have any health benefit-may carry the LAC (live active cultures) seal. These bacteria may only be the starter bacteria, however, which would mainly benefit people with lactose intolerance. For greater health benefits, look for products that have the LAC seal and list acidophilus and bifido. There are even a few frozen yogurts that meet NYA standards - Dannon, for example, freezes its yogurt so fast that the live cultures aren’t destroyed, but held in suspended animation until the yogurt thaws.


Finally, yogurt is a great source of calcium, better than a comparable serving of milk or cheese. Health 5/98.

PROTECT YOUR LIVER - eating artichokes, which contain the antioxidant silymarin, may prevent liver damage. One study showed a 50 percent decrease in mortality rates of alcoholics with cirrhosis of the liver with treatment with silymarin. Men’s Health 5/98.


ONCE IS ENOUGH - when it comes to lifting weights, many folks believe more is better. But new American College of Sports Medicine research shows that might not be true. During a six-month study, exercise physiologist Michael Pollock found that performing three sets resulted in no strength gains over performing one set. Men’s Fitness 4/98.

SORRY, CHARLIE - tuna may be an American staple, but in a blind taste test at the University of Arkansas, more than 60 percent of participants preferred an Asian variety of carp. This is good news as the carp is lower in fat than white tuna packed in water and the carp is high in calcium and omega-3 fatty acids, which can reduce risk of heart disease. Canned carp should be available within one year domestically. Health 4/98.

DECREASE STRESS FOR A DECADE - while not a true health item, telemarketers can certainly increase stress by interrupting mealtime with unsolicited sales. Next time your meal is disturbed by carpet cleaning specials, etc., tell the telemarketer to, “Put this number on your ‘Don’t-call list’.” This magic phrase forbids a company, by law, from soliciting you at that number for the next 10 years. Men’s Health 5/98.

WATER BOTTLE HAZARD - weeks-old water bottles may harbor dangerous bacteria. Pseudomonas bacteria, the same organisms that inhabit dishcloths, can thrive in reused bottles. To clean yours, empty it, wash with a detergent and let it air dry. Men’s Fitness 4/98.

POPEYE’S FAVORITE GAL IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEART - olive oil protects against cardiovascular disease. Researchers in England at the University of Surrey fed test subjects diets rich in olive oil (higher in monounsaturated fats), while control subjects consumed the typical British diet high in saturated fats (and lacking any taste). After several months, the group who had a diet higher in olive oil produced up to 20 percent less of the “sticky” molecules that glue white blood cells to artery walls - a precursor to atherosclerosis. Men’s Health 5/98.

TELLTALE PROTEIN MAY REVEAL PROSTATE CANCER RISK - recent research at Harvard Medical School has found that men with elevated levels of a natural growth protein, IGF-1, were four times more likely to have prostate cancer. The researchers do not know the connection between this protein and prostate-cancer risk now, but if more studies confirm the link, physicians may soon test a man’s IGF-1 along with his prostate-specific antigen (PSA) to help determine prostate-cancer risk. Researchers feel that if the link is proven, IGF-1 levels could be reduced by drugs to reduce the risk of prostate cancer.

They additionally warn that consumption of human growth hormone (HGH) supplements (taken to speed muscle gains and by some for “anti-aging”) can boost IGF-1 levels and increase prostate-cancer risk. Men’s Health 5/98.


LESSENING THE EFFECTS OF A HIGH-FAT MEAL - eating a single fatty meal may temporarily boost your risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Danish researchers found that subjects eating a meal with about 55 grams of fat increased their blood-clotting agents by 60 percent. A University of Maryland School of Medicine study found that taking 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C and 800 mg of vitamin E before consuming a high-fat meal may reduce heart attack and stroke risk by keeping blood-vessel function normal compared with men who skipped the supplements. Researchers also found that foods rich in these antioxidants (vit. C = strawberries, oranges, melons; vit. E = nuts and oils) may still have a protective effect when eaten with a high fat meal. Men’s Health 5/98.

From the Flight Surgeon:

"Heads and Tails"

by Joe Battersby, D.O.

FAA Medical Examiner

(edited for this publication-LK)

I thought it was time to give the “Medicine Show” a rest for a bit and get to a subject that I haven’t talked about - Headaches. These fall into three major groups:

1. Tension Headaches: These are most commonly located on the back of the neck but they can occur in the temple or forehead area. These headaches signal stress that you are not coping with adequately. (Else why would you have them?) Some require job change, divorce, disowning teenagers, etc...For alleviation, over-the-counter meds will do if they are not too bad or frequent. Muscle relaxants or tranquilizers may be prescribed but as you know these cannot be used by pilots. I told you what you must do to get rid of them if they become too severe or occur too frequently! Why these are called “headaches” I don’t know because they are most frequently caused by persons or situations that are most often referred to as pain in another part of our anatomy - pains-in-the-bleep.

2. Migraine Headaches: These are said to be caused by the expanding of blood vessels in the head and tend to be pulsating in nature. Some patients get a warning about the onset of these. An “aura” such as visual disturbance, tingling sensations, etc. Most patients don’t receive these warnings, however. Many “triggers” for these have been blamed: smoked meat, red wine, artificial sweeteners and colorings, chocolate, etc. It certainly makes sense to make a try at eliminating the intake of these things in the off chance that they may bother you. Again, our old buddy stress can set these off as well. Fortunately, there are newer meds that seem to help for many migraine patients. This type of headache is disqualifying for airmen, but you may be issued after demonstrating adequate control with meds, a six month freedom from the problem, and a negative neuro work-up.


3. Cluster Headaches: Perhaps “worse” than migraines are these. They are also vascular in nature. I think they’re rather weird in that they may occur daily for weeks at a time, can last several hours and then can “go away” for long periods. Migraine meds can be used to prevent attacks during the period of “cluster”. Inhalation of pure oxygen can stop these attacks, but I’m not smart enough to know exactly why. As you can imagine this type of headache is also disqualifying and understandably difficult to negotiate with the F.A.A.

4. “Scary” Headaches: I owe this list to Dr. Lipman, a real expert in this area.

a. Headaches that persist and grow worse with time.

b. Headaches that occur with high temperature, nausea and vomiting.

c. Headaches that are very sudden and last more than a day.

d. Headaches that occur with weakness in limbs, slurred speech, or changes in vision.

e. Headaches that occur while straining at stool or worsen when you bend over.

f. Headaches that are “weird” in the sense that you’ve never had one like it before!

Notice I haven’t said anything about eye strain (computers?) Or brain tumors. I think I read in mid school that over 200 medical problems can be associated with headache. I wanted to outline only the main categories of headache so we wouldn’t be here forever. My final advice is as always - “when in doubt, check it out!”

I wish I could think of a headache joke, but I can’t seem to. I’ll settle for what Bill said to Hillary after sex, “I should be home in 20 or 30 minutes!”

Best,

Joe