We're keeping an eye on the research
A study published in the June 1, 2022 issue of JAMA Network Open found that the risk of stroke went up when people sat for long periods of time but went down when they moved around more, even if they just did simple things like housework.
More specifically, 7,607 adults participated in the study by wearing an accelerometer (a device that records how fast you move) on their hips for seven days. Typically, these people were 63 years old. Two hundred forty-six people had strokes during the average 7.4-year follow-up period.
It was found that people who sat for 13 or more hours a day during the first week of motion tracking had a 44% higher risk of having a stroke than those who sat for less than 11 hours a day. There was also a higher risk when people sat for more than 17 minutes at a time, compared to when they sat for less than eight minutes at a time.
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If you never start your day without a cup of coffee, you may be interested to hear that a new study suggests that drinking this very popular drink may make you much less likely to die in the coming years.
The study, which was published online by Annals of Internal Medicine on May 31, 2022, analysed data about coffee consumption from more than 170,000 people (average age 56) in the United Kingdom who did not have cancer or cardiovascular disease at the beginning of the study. On average, researchers followed participants for seven years. In addition, they considered lifestyle, diet, gender, age, and ethnicity.
People who consumed 1.5 to 3.5 cups of coffee per day, even with one teaspoon of added sugar per cup, were 30% less likely to die during the study period compared to those who did not consume coffee. It did not appear to matter whether the coffee contained caffeine or not, but the benefit diminished after 4.5 cups per day.
Researchers have identified a viable new treatment option for individuals whose PSA levels rise after radical prostatectomy.
Numerous men who undergo radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer live their entire lives without a recurrence of the disease. Twenty to forty per cent of them will suffer an increase in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) values within ten years of surgery. If the prostate has been removed, PSA levels in the blood should be undetectable, indicating that cancer may have returned. This is known as a biochemical relapse, and it is often treated with radiation to the prostate bed, where the prostate resided prior to its removal. This type of treatment, known as pelvic bed radiation therapy or PBRT, is frequently successful in reducing PSA levels to zero for years.
Now, a comprehensive study demonstrates that PBRT is even more beneficial when paired with other therapies. Men who experience a biochemical recurrence following radical prostatectomy may benefit from these findings.
Funded by the National Cancer Institute, almost 300 medical centres in the United States, Canada, and Israel participated in the SPPORT phase 3 clinical trial. Between 2008 and 2015, a total of 1,797 men with post-surgical PSA values between 1 and 2 nanograms per millilitre (ng/mL) were included.
Is this something you've heard before?
You're sitting at your computer, staring at a wall of e-mails. You hit "send" after finishing your response and reach for the bulging tuna wrap on your desk. You set the wrap down, grab a handful of chips, and open the next message after a few bites, chewing while glancing at the screen. Before you know it, you've finished your meal without even realizing it.
A small but growing body of research suggests that eating more slowly and thoughtfully may help with weight issues and may steer some people away from processed foods and other less-healthy options.
This alternative method is known as "mindful eating." It is based on the Buddhist concept of mindfulness, which entails being fully aware of what is going on inside and outside of you at the time. Mindfulness techniques have been proposed in other areas as a way to relieve stress and alleviate problems such as high blood pressure and chronic gastrointestinal issues.
What is Mindful eating?
Mindful eating (i.e., paying attention to our food intentionally, moment by moment, and without judgment) is an approach to food that emphasizes sensuous awareness of the food and the experience of eating. It is unrelated to calories, carbs, fat, and protein.
Mindfulness in eating entails noticing the colours, smells, flavours, and textures of your food; chewing slowly; eliminating distractions such as TV or reading; and learning to cope with food guilt and anxiety. Some aspects of mindful eating appear to be influenced by the ideas of Horace Fletcher, an early twentieth-century food faddist who believed that chewing food thoroughly would solve a variety of health problems.
The mind-gut relationship
Digestion involves a complex series of hormonal signals between the gut and the nervous system, and it appears that the brain takes about 20 minutes to register satiety (fullness). If someone eats too quickly, satiety may occur after overeating rather than stopping it. There's also evidence that eating while distracted by activities like driving or typing may cause digestion to slow or stop, similar to how the "fight or flight" response works. And if we don't digest well, we may be missing out on the full nutritive value of some of the food we eat.
In her 2010 book Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life, co-written with Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, nutritionist and Harvard School of Public Health lecturer Lilian Cheung lays out the rationale for mindful eating as a way to lose weight. The book, which combines science and Buddhist philosophy, has spawned a thriving Facebook page where people share recipes and other healthy living advice.
Stephanie Meyers, a dietician at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, uses mindfulness techniques to assist cancer patients with their diets in a variety of ways. For example, she will encourage head and neck cancer survivors to meditate on food as they make the sometimes difficult transition from a feeding tube back to eating. Patients could practice this meditation by biting into an apple slice, closing their eyes, and focusing on the sensory experience of tasting, chewing, and swallowing.
According to new research, routine mammograms, which are used to check for breast cancer, may also reveal information about a woman's risk of heart disease.
On mammograms, white patches or lines indicate calcium buildup in the breast arteries. This type of calcification differs from the calcification of the coronary arteries, which is recognized to be a sign of increased cardiovascular risk. Researchers tracked 5,059 postmenopausal women (ages 60 to 79) for six and a half years for this study. They discovered that women with breast artery calcification were 51 per cent more likely than women without calcification to develop heart disease or have a stroke. Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging published the study on March 15, 2022.
Is growing older a positive or negative experience for you? According to a study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, having a positive attitude toward ageing may aid in your recovery from a health setback. A Connecticut health plan provided 598 patients (mostly women) for the study. Over the course of ten years, participants were interviewed once a month and completed home-based assessments. The words individuals chose to describe growing older were utilized to assess their age preconceptions (ranging from positive terms like "spry," to negative terms such as "decrepit"). People with a positive attitude about aging were 44 per cent more likely than those with a negative attitude to recover from handicap. They were also better at going about their everyday routines. More research is needed to see if initiatives aimed at changing people's views about aging might help older people live more independently.
According to a recent survey, one in every five people owns a smartwatch or fitness tracker. These wrist-worn monitors are a convenient way to track your daily steps, and they're likely more accurate than the tally on your smartphone, which you may not have with you at all times. Most wearable devices also provide a variety of other data, such as your heart rate, walking speed, and so on.
But does using one have an impact on how active people are? The answer is yes, according to the largest study on the subject to date (see "Fitness trackers and activity levels: What's the evidence?"). Regular physical activity is essential for a healthy heart, and the improvements seen in this study could potentially make a difference, according to Dr Megan Wasfy, a cardiologist at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital's Cardiovascular Performance Laboratory.
"The increase in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was close to 50 minutes per week, which is one-third of the 150 minutes recommended by federal activity guidelines," Dr. Wasfy says. The extra 1,200 daily steps taken when people wore trackers were roughly the same as the number of steps linked to a longer life in several studies. 10,000 steps a day has been recommended as a daily goal for a long time, but research shows that 8,000 steps a day is almost as good for your health, especially in older people.
What is the evidence for fitness trackers and activity levels?
A group of Danish researchers looked at the evidence and analyzed it to find out how feedback from wearable fitness trackers affects how much people work out and do other things.
They found 121 different studies involving nearly 17,000 mostly healthy adults ages 18 to 65. The participants' median age was 47, and the majority were female. The study's intervention periods had a median duration of 12 weeks.
Researchers discovered that using physical activity monitors led to an extra 1,235 steps per day and 49 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per week on average. They also stood for an additional 10 minutes per day, though this was insignificant. The study was published in The BMJ on January 26, 2022.
Depression in Older Adults May be Prevented by Insomnia Treatment.
Depression is very common among the elderly. According to some estimates, more than 10% of people over the age of 60 had experienced major depressive disorder (MDD) in the previous year. Depressed mood, loss of interest in pleasurable activities, difficulties concentrating, thoughts of worthlessness or guilt, thoughts of death or suicide, weariness, sleep disorders, unanticipated weight loss or gain, a change in appetite, and delayed or agitated movement are some of the symptoms of MDD.
What is the relationship between sleep and depression?
In someone with MDD, insomnia (difficulty getting asleep, remaining asleep, and/or waking up too early) and hypersomnia (sleeping excessively) are both common. Insomnia, in particular, doubles the risk of MDD. This is especially true for the elderly, as one study found that over 70% of those over the age of 65 suffer from at least one symptom of insomnia.
Why would scientists look into insomnia therapy as a means of preventing depression?
There is growing evidence that treating insomnia in patients with both insomnia and MDD can help them sleep better and feel better. In one trial done in Australia (CBT-I), participants with insomnia and MDD were treated with cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia. CBT-I is a set of tools meant to help patients treat only their insomnia, as opposed to other conditions where cognitive and behavioural methods are often utilized, such as depression. This indicates that the skills learned during CBT for depression will not help people suffering from sleeplessness. 61 per cent of research participants who underwent CBT-I from a behavioural sleep medicine expert felt better, and many symptoms of their depression improved—to the point where their MDD was declared to be in remission.
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A new follow-up study looked at death rates from cancer, cardiovascular disease, and all causes in later years, and the results for each group were surprising in various respects.
What are the benefits of slowing or preventing diabetes?
Diabetes type 2 is one of the most common long-term conditions in the world. It can lead to heart disease, nerve damage, eye issues, and renal problems over time, increasing the risk of disability and death. If a person's blood tests reveal that they have prediabetes, well-tested strategies can help them delay or prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes. This could help individuals live longer and better lives.
What did the follow-up research reveal?
The findings of the original study suggest that both lifestyle changes and metformin medication can significantly reduce the risk of developing diabetes in people with prediabetes. The risk was reduced by 58% and 31%, respectively when compared to the control group.
The original DPP cohort of 3,234 people was invited to stay in the Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study, a follow-up observation Study (DPPOS). Most of the people in the study have been followed for more than 20 years, giving researchers a unique chance to look at several important health outcomes.
After an average of 21 years, the researchers looked at participant fatalities from any cause, cancer, or cardiovascular disease. Researchers found no difference in death rates between the people in the intensive lifestyle arm of the study and the people in the metformin arm of the study compared to the people in the control group.
We're keeping an eye on this research.
A recent study shows that middle-aged men who worry or feel anxious a lot are more likely to have problems that make them more likely to get heart disease as they get older than their friends who don't worry as much.
The study, which began in 1975, comprised 1,561 men without cardiac disease with an average age of 53. All of the males took tests to see how worried they were and how neurotic they were, a personality trait linked to feelings of dread, grief, and rage. Researchers collected data on the men's risk of cardiometabolic disease (which includes heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes) every three to five years until they died or dropped out. Blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugar, BMI, and a blood marker of inflammation were all measured.
A recent study shows that middle-aged men who worry or feel anxious a lot are more likely to have problems that make them more likely to get heart disease as they get older than their friends who don't worry as much.
The study, which began in 1975, comprised 1,561 men without cardiac disease with an average age of 53. All of the males took tests to see how worried they were and how neurotic they were, a personality trait linked to feelings of dread, grief, and rage. Researchers collected data on the men's risk of cardiometabolic disease (which includes heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes) every three to five years until they died or dropped out. Blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugar, BMI, and a blood marker of inflammation were all measured.
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