Depression's Behavior Changes Linked to Heart Risks

(HealthDay News) -- Negative changes in health behaviors are a major reason why heart patients with depression have an increased risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attack, say U.S. researchers who followed 1,017 outpatients with stable coronary heart disease for an average of 4.8 years.

Depression has long been recognized as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease in healthy people and for recurrent events in patients with cardiovascular disease. But the reason for this association hasn't been clear.

Dr. Mary A. Whooley, of the VA Medical Center in San Francisco, and her colleagues used a questionnaire to measure the heart disease patients' symptoms of depression. The researchers then used various models to evaluate the connection between subsequent cardiovascular events (such as heart failure, heart attack, stroke), depression, disease severity at the start of the study, and biological and behavioral factors.

The researchers found that patients with depression had a 50 percent greater risk of cardiovascular events -- 10 percent among those with depression compared to 6.7 among those without depression. When the researchers adjusted for other existing conditions and cardiac disease severity, depression was associated with a 31 percent increased risk of cardiovascular events.

Whooley and her colleagues further adjusted for certain health behaviors, including physical inactivity, and found there was no longer a significant association between depression and cardiovascular events. They calculated that physical inactivity was associated with a 44 percent greater rate of cardiovascular events.

Heart patients with depression are less likely to follow dietary, exercise and medication recommendations, and poor health behaviors can lead to cardiovascular events, said the authors of the study, which was published in the Nov. 26 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"Understanding how depression leads to cardiovascular events is necessary for developing interventions to decrease the excess cardiovascular morbidity (illness) and mortality (death) associated with depression," Whooley and her colleagues wrote.

They said their findings "raise the hypothesis that the increased risk of cardiovascular events associated with depression could potentially be preventable with behavior modifications, especially exercise. Given the relatively modest effects of traditional therapies on depressive symptoms in patients with heart disease, there is increasing urgency to identify interventions that not only reduce depressive symptoms, but also directly target the mechanisms by which depression leads to cardiovascular events."

More information
Mental Health America has more about depression and co-occurring disorders.

175 pounds lighter, woman takes flight

Two years ago, Karen Daniel was wider around than she was tall. Weighing 375 pounds, the 45-year-old wife and mother had high blood pressure, her knees hurt and she was always hot. But with a lot of detremination, hard work and help Daniel has managed to shed almost half her weight and move down 16 dress sizes. full story

How to Avoid Infections at the Gym

High school, college, and pro athletes in sports including wrestling and baseball have come down with staph infections in recent years, in some cases MRSA, the potentially deadly strain that is immune to antibiotics. It's not always clear where these and other infections originate, but athletes are at risk because they tend to get nicks and cuts, and also to share equipment and towels.

However, you can take some common-sense steps to protect yourself at the gym:

• Make sure the equipment is clean. Gyms are supposed to regularly clean off the equipment, but you should take your own precautions.

• Sharing is not always best. Don't use someone else's towel. In some cases, you may also get more peace of mind by purchasing your own basic equipment, like yoga mats.

• Shower right after you exercise. Don't wait around in your sweaty clothes if you've been using common equipment or participating in a contact sport. Don't use a communal bar of soap, either.

• Wear flip-flops or shower shoes when showering. While staph gets the headlines, athlete's foot is still a pain. Protect yourself by keeping your feet off the communal shower floor.

• Think twice about the sauna or the whirlpool if you have a cut, scrape, or bad bruise. A couple of microbes thrive in hot water. If you do use a hot tub, shower afterwards.

• Don't ignore symptoms. Whether or not you've worked out lately, pay attention to a scratch, bruise, or cut that becomes red, hot, or tender.

Sources:
U.S. News & World Report October 28, 2008

Many Ignore Symptoms of Bladder Trouble

(HealthDay News) -- Are you paying enough attention to your bladder?

During November, which is Bladder Health Month, the American Urological Association is urging people to talk with their physicians about any symptoms they may have of possible urological conditions. These include:

• Incontinence. More than 15 million Americans experience either stress incontinence -- the loss of urine during such activities as coughing, sneezing, or even walking or running -- or urge incontinence -- frequent, uncontrollable urges to urinate. Both are treatable, often with minimally invasive management such as fluid management, bladder training, pelvic floor exercises and medication. If those fail, surgery is an option.
• Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (LUTS). People with benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH (enlarged prostate), often have LUTS, which can include frequent urination, the need to push or strain to initiate urination, nocturia and urgency. Elderly men with moderate or severe LUTS are at a greater risk for falls, and the risk dramatically increases as the symptoms worsen.
• Urinary tract infections (UTI). Approximately 40 percent of women and 12 percent of men will have one urinary tract infection during their lives. If left untreated, urinary tract infections can migrate and lead to life-threatening kidney infections, especially in young children. Symptoms include pain, a frequent need to urinate and burning during urination.
  Bedwetting (enuresis). Bedwetting causes include maturity, structural or anatomical problems, neurological issues and UTI. Children who wet the bed should have a full physical exam to rule out any serious urologic abnormalities. Bedwetting can be treated in several ways, so check with your doctor.
• Bladder cancer. About 53,000 men and woman are diagnosed with bladder cancer annually. Blood in the urine (hematuria) is the most common symptom; others include frequent urination and pain upon urination (dysuria). Smoking is a top risk factor for developing bladder cancer, followed by working with dyes, metal, paints, leather, textiles and organic chemicals, as well as those with chronic bladder infections. Bladder cancer is most treatable when caught early.
• Interstitial cystitis (IC). The symptoms of this chronic bladder condition are urinary urgency (the feeling that you need to urinate), frequent urination and/or pain anywhere between the navel and the inside of the thighs, front or back. The symptoms may be intermittent to constant. IC can be treated with prescription medications.

More information
The American Urological Association has more about bladder health and finding a urologist.

What is the Real Cause of Influenza Epidemics?

Influenza does not follow the predicted patterns for infectious diseases. In fact, there are several conundrums associated with influenza epidemics, such as:

1. Why is influenza both seasonal and ubiquitous -- and where is the virus between epidemics?

2. Why are influenza epidemics so explosive?

3. Why do epidemics end so abruptly?

4. What explains the frequent coincidental timing of epidemics in countries of similar latitudes?

5. Why did epidemics in previous ages spread so rapidly, despite the lack of modern transport?

A theory gaining weight in the scientific community explains influenza epidemics as a result of a dormant disease, which become active in response to vitamin D deficiency. This theory provides answers for many of the above questions. A disease that remains dormant until vitamin D-producing sunlight exposure is reduced by a winter or rainy season would explain a widespread seasonal disease with a rapid onset and decline.

There is compelling epidemiological evidence that indicates vitamin D deficiency is just such a "seasonal stimulus." Recent evidence confirms that lower respiratory tract infections are more frequent, sometimes dramatically so, in those with low levels of vitamin D. Researchers have also found that 2,000 IU of vitamin D per day abolished the seasonality of influenza, and dramatically reduced its self-reported incidence.

Sources:
Virology Journal 2008, 5: 29
CBCNews.ca October 22, 2008

Waste From Gut Bacteria Helps Control Your Weight

A single molecule in your intestinal wall, activated by the waste products from gut bacteria, plays a large role in controlling whether you are lean or fatty. When activated, the molecule slows the movement of food through the intestine, allowing you to absorb more nutrients and thus gain weight.

Bacterial byproducts are a source of nutrients, but now it appears that they can also be chemical signals used to regulate body functions.

Humans have a large and varied population of beneficial bacteria that live in their intestines. The bacteria break up large molecules that the host cannot digest, and the host in turn absorbs many of the resulting small molecules for energy and nutrients.

Researchers focused on two species of bacteria that break up dietary fibers from food into small molecules called short-chain fatty acids. They found that short-chain fatty acids can bind to and activate a receptor molecule in the gut wall called Gpr41.

When researchers disrupted communication between the bacteria and the receptor in mice, they found that their intestines passed food more quickly, and the mice weighed less and had a leaner build, even though they ate no less than other mice.

Sources:
Science Daily October 19, 2008
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences October 17, 2008 [Epub ahead of print] (Free Full-Text Article)

Bottled Water Not So Pure

Bottled water isn't necessarily any purer than the water you get from your tap -- it's just more expensive.

The Environmental Working Group tested 10 major bottled-water brands. Thirty-eight low-level contaminants turned up in the water, with each brand containing an average of eight chemicals. Disinfection products, caffeine, Tylenol, nitrate, industrial chemicals, arsenic and bacteria were all detected.

Two brands contained disinfection byproducts at levels that exceeded California's bottled-water standards, and bottles of Wal-Mart's Sam's Choice bought in the Bay Area contained trihalomethanes, which have been linked to cancer and miscarriages.

In fact, the Wal-Mart water and a brand sold on the East Coast by the Giant supermarket chain were “chemically indistinguishable from tap water.”

Sources:
Los Angeles Times October 15, 2008
JustGetThere.us October 16, 2008
ABC News October 15, 2008

Vaginal Lichen Sclerosis Alternative Treatments??

Women's Health Forum - Page 50 - Hi baber,As you read suggestions from all of us, I will repeat this again The itching stopped for me and the cream that I used last was vagisil over t... Read more

I think I am Bipolar and I am scared - 5 - Living With Bipolar Disorder

Emotional Health Forum - Page 5 - I DONT THINK MANY PEOPLE HAVE IT,NOT UNLESS YOU TELL YOURSELF OR YOU DONT CONFIDE IN A NETWORK THAT IS POSTIVE,I THINK THE DISORDER COMES FROM PEOPLE... Read more

Skin reaction to shots? - 1 - Controlling Allergy Symptoms - Asthma and Allergies

Asthma and Allergies Forum - Page 1 - Hi,I was wondering if anyone else has ever had skin problems when they had allergy shots I rarely had skin problem... Read more

Heavy Metals Can Taint Wine

(HealthDay News) -- The cardiac benefits of wine have been touted for years, but heavy metal contamination found in some European red and white wines could turn a health benefit into a hazard, British researchers report.

Heavy metals have been linked to neurological problems such as Parkinson's disease and may also increase oxidative stress, which can lead to chronic inflammatory disease and cancer, the researchers noted.

"We used literature reports of concentrations of metals in wines originating from 16 countries to determine the Target Hazard Quotients (THQ) for these wines," said lead researcher Declan Naughton, a professor of biomolecular sciences at Kingston University in South West London. "Many of the wines gave very high THQ values, which is concerning."

Among wines from Portugal, Austria, France, Spain, Czech Republic, Hungary, Germany, Serbia, Argentina, Brazil, Italy, Jordan, Macedonia, Slovakia and Greece, only three countries had wines that posed no hazard from heavy metals.

Based on the wines analyzed, only those from Argentina, Brazil and Italy had THQ values that were below 1.0.

The report was published in the Oct. 30 online edition of Chemistry Central Journal.

For the study, Naughton and his colleague Andrea Petroczi used the THQ, a formula developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to look for seven heavy metals in wines. These included vanadium, copper, manganese, nickel, zinc, chromium and lead.

Naughton and Petroczi found that most wines had THQ values much higher than 1.0. In fact, THQ values typically ranged from 50 to 200. Red and white wines from Hungary and Slovakia reached THQ levels of 300.

"For consumption of 250 mL (8.5 oz.) daily, these wines give very high THQ values and may present detrimental health concerns through a lifetime," Naughton said.

Because heavy metals can pose a health threat, Naughton and Petroczi recommend that levels of metal ions should appear on wine labels. "This would help inform customer choice," Naughton said. "In addition, where necessary, further steps should be introduced to remove key hazardous metal ions during wine production."

No wines from the United States were included in the study, so it is not possible to tell the heavy metal content of wines produced in this country. One critic of the study does not think U.S. wines contain dangerous levels of heavy metals.

"The U.S. [Alcohol and Tobacco] Tax and Trade Bureau routinely performs market basket surveys in the U.S. to test wine and alcohol for a number of components, including heavy metals," explained Gladys Horiuchi, communications manager at the Wine Institute of California.

Joan R. Davenport, a professor of soil science in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences at Washington State University, thinks a lot more study needs to be done to figure out how these heavy metals are ending up in wine.

"Knowing what I know about not only growing wine grapes but the whole process of turning them into wine and looking at some of the countries where these wines came from, it makes me wonder what may happen in the processing," Davenport said.

A lot of the heavy metals found in the wines in the study, exist in only very small quantities in soil, Davenport said. "The likelihood of that being in the grapes isn't very likely," she said. The contamination could be coming from the metal barrels used in processing the wine, she added.

Davenport isn't worried that these metals are a health problem. "I'm not going to drink any less wine," she said. "Enjoy what you enjoy in moderation. But if you like only Hungarian wine, you might be in more trouble than if you like Argentinean wine."

More information

For more about wine and heart disease, visit the American Heart Association.