PROTIME-FITNESS HOLISTIC HEALTH AND WELLNESS

  The difference in blood pressure between arms linked to greater early death risk Robust evidence from a large international study confirms that a difference in blood pressure readings between arms is linked to a greater risk of heart attack, stroke, and death. Led by the University of Exeter, the global INTERPRESS-IPD Collaboration conducted a meta-analysis of all the available research, then merged data from 24 global studies to create a database of nearly 54,000 people. The data spanned adults from Europe, the US, Africa, and Asia for whom blood pressure readings for both arms were available. Funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and published today in  Hypertension , the study is the first to conclude that the greater the inter-arm blood pressure difference, the greater the patient's additional health risk. International blood pressure guidelines advise health professionals to measure blood pressure in both arms when assessing cardiovascular risk- ye...

  COLORECTAL CANCER IN PEOPLE OF EUROPEAN AND AFRICAN DESCENT EXPLAINED One side of the colon ages faster than the other, scientists reveal The colons of African-Americans and people of European descent age differently, new research reveals, helping explain racial disparities in colorectal cancer -- cancer that killed beloved "Black Panther" star Chadwick Boseman, at only 43 . Scientists led by UVA Health's Li Li, MD, Ph.D.; Graham Casey, Ph.D.; and Matt Devall, Ph.D., of the Center for Public Health Genomics, found one side of the colon ages biologically faster than the other in both African-Americans and people of European descent. In African-Americans, however, the right side ages significantly faster, explaining why African-Americans are more likely to develop cancerous lesions on the right side and why they are more likely to suffer colorectal cancer at a younger age, the researchers say. "Our discovery provides novel insight of the mechanistic underpinning for ...

  AEROBIC EXERCISE MAY ENHANCE BRAIN FUNCTION Regular aerobic exercise may decrease the likelihood of developing Alzheimer's disease Individuals at risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD) because of family history or genetic predisposition who engaged in six months of aerobic exercise training improved their brain glucose metabolism and higher-order thinking abilities (e.g., planning and mental flexibility) called executive function; these improvements occurred in conjunction with increased cardiorespiratory fitness. This study's results are published in a special issue of  Brain Plasticity  devoted to Exercise and Cognition. Drugs currently available to treat AD have limited therapeutic capacity. When both the human and monetary costs of the disease are projected to rise dramatically in the coming decades, there is a critical need to provide individuals with readily-deployable strategies that can decrease the likelihood of acquiring the disease or slow its progression. Therefo...

  CAN VITAMIN D PROTECT AGAINST CANCER? According to a new research review, a good vitamin D status is beneficial both in cancer prevention and in the prognosis of several cancers. The anti-cancer effects of vitamin D are especially pronounced in preventing and treating colon cancer and blood cancers. Also, high vitamin D responsiveness can be linked to smaller cancer risk. Vitamin D responsiveness varies between individuals, affecting their need for vitamin D supplementation. The review article, published in  Seminars in Cancer Biology  and written by Professor Carsten Carlberg from the University of Eastern Finland and Professor Alberto Muñoz from the Autonomous University of Madrid, provides an updated molecular basis of vitamin D signaling and its role in cancer prevention and therapy. Vitamin D is commonly known for its crucial role in bone health. Still, the authors point out it also regulates the immune system, and its anti-cancer effects are mediated mainly by imm...

  BRAIN PRESSURE DISORDER LINKED TO OBESITY The increase corresponds with obesity rates, linked to low socioeconomic status in women A new study has found a brain pressure disorder called idiopathic intracranial hypertension is on the rise, and the increase corresponds with rising obesity rates. The study is published on January 20, 2021, online issue of  Neurology® , the American Academy of Neurology's medical journal. The study also found that socioeconomic factors like income, education, and housing may play a role in their risk for women. Idiopathic intracranial hypertension is when the pressure in the fluid surrounding the brain rises. It can mimic a brain tumor's symptoms, causing chronic, disabling headaches, vision problems, and in rare cases, vision loss. It is most often diagnosed in women of childbearing age. Treatment is often weight loss. In some cases, surgery may be required. "The considerable increase in idiopathic intracranial hypertension we found may be ...

  LIFESTYLE CHANGES CAN HELP TREAT GERD. Findings from the Nurses' Health Study, one of the longest-running studies of women's health, show that five diet and lifestyle factors, including regular exercise, can significantly impact gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) heartburn symptoms. GERD is a common condition affecting about a third of the U.S. population; the main symptom is heartburn, and it is often managed with medications. However, this new study suggests that following diet and lifestyle guidelines may substantially reduce symptoms and make medication unnecessary for some patients. It was published as a letter in  JAMA Internal Medicine . The five factors include normal weight, never smoking, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity for at least 30 minutes daily, restricting coffee, tea, sodas to two cups daily, and a "prudent" diet. "This study provides evidence that common and debilitating gastrointestinal symptoms could be well controlled in many cases with ...

  Fried food intake linked to increased serious heart disease and stroke risk Risk rises with each additional weekly 114 g serving, pooled data analysis shows. Fried-food intake is linked to a heightened risk of major heart disease and stroke, finds a pooled analysis of the available research data, published online in the journal  Heart . And the risk rises with each additional 114 g weekly serving, the analysis indicates. It's clear that the Western diet doesn't promote good cardiovascular health, but it's not clear exactly what contribution fried food might make to the risks of serious heart disease and stroke, say the researchers. To shed some light on this, they trawled research databases, looking for relevant studies published up to April 2020, and found 19. They pooled the data from 17, involving 562,445 participants and 36,727 major cardiovascular 'events,' such as a heart attack or stroke, to assess cardiovascular disease risk. And they pooled the data from ...