Weight gain, against the math..

In the span of a few days, I've gained 2 pounds (that have been reaffirmed each day on the scale--not budging..) but I didn't have an overall surplus of calories to cause it.

Over the past week, I did have one day that went a little over budget (curse Mexican food!), but then days with a deficit to follow, so in the end, I had a net deficit.

So why did I gain 2 pounds? With a net deficit just to be safe but really intending to maintain, my measurements and weight are up.

I've been at this higher weight for a few days now, so I don't think it's just fluctuation or water weight from extra sodium. (I don't even consume that much sodium..)

Any answers would be appreciated!

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Omega-3s No Help Against Age-Linked Eye Trouble: Study

Adding nutrient to standard antioxidant supplement didn't help ward off macular degeneration

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

SUNDAY, May 5 (HealthDay News) -- Adding omega-3 fatty acids and other nutrients to standard antioxidant vitamins doesn't give older people any added protection against a leading cause of blindness, a new study finds.

The study looked at age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which afflicts millions of older people in the United States, according to background information outlined by the researchers.

The condition is "the leading cause of blindness in the developed world, [and] accounts for more than 50 percent of all blindness in United States," the study authors said.

"Without more effective ways of slowing progression, the number of persons with advanced AMD is expected to double over the next 20 years, resulting in increasing socioeconomic burden," wrote Dr. Emily Chew, of the U.S. National Eye Institute, and colleagues.

Prior research has shown that a blend of the antioxidant vitamins C, E, and beta carotene and zinc could reduce the risk of progression to advanced AMD.

Could adding in more antioxidants boost that protection even higher? To find out, this five-year study of more than 4,000 patients, aged 50 to 85, examined whether adding the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin, and the omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA to the antioxidant vitamin mixture would further reduce the risk.

It did not, according to the findings published online Sunday in the Journal of the American Medical Association and presented simultaneously at the annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, in Seattle.

The researchers caution that the findings may be due to a true lack of effectiveness, or they might also be the result of insufficient doses, too short a treatment time, or both.

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Muhammad Ali's Daughter Champions Fight Against Parkinson's Disease

By Barbara Bronson Gray
HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, May 3 (HealthDay News) -- At 71, boxing legend Muhammad Ali -- the only three-time World Heavyweight Champion -- continues to fight his most challenging opponent ever: Parkinson's disease. And according to his daughter, he's still facing life straight on.

"This is the man who when he was fighting would say 'I'm going to knock the other guy out in five,'" said Maryum (May May) Ali. "That personality translates to how he deals with Parkinson's. No one's really been that confident as an athlete, and that's how he is with the disease."

May May is Ali's first child. Married four times, the former champion has six other daughters and two sons.

Thinking back, May May believes Ali was showing signs of Parkinson's in his second-to-last fight, a few years before his 1984 diagnosis. "You lose your [sense of] smell, get constipation issues," she said. "Most people have those non-motor symptoms first. But no one knew that back then."

Initially, in 1981, Ali was told he had a form of the condition that would not progress, May May said. But it did. As time went by, Ali learned how to manage the symptoms of his disease. He took his medications a couple of hours before working out, and he saw a neurologist who specialized in movement disorders, she explained.

Parkinson's disease belongs to a group of conditions called motor system disorders, which result from the loss of dopamine-producing brain cells, according to the U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. The four primary symptoms of Parkinson's are trembling in the hands, arms, legs, jaw, and face; stiffness of the limbs and trunk; slowness of movement; and impaired balance and coordination. As the disease progresses, patients may have difficulty walking, talking or completing other simple tasks. In the United States, about 500,000 people have the disease.

"Don't wait until you can't walk down the hallway to get the right advice. You may be able to slow the progression of the disease," May May advised. "Make it your business to know everything you can about what it is that's affecting your life." She also encourages people with Parkinson's to work with a neurologist who specializes in movement disorders.

Committed to raising people's understanding of the disease, May May, 44, has supported the Parkinson Alliance as a spokesperson since 2002. This includes helping publicize its annual Unity Walk, which was held Saturday in New York's Central Park. She also works as a program manager in Los Angeles' gang reduction and youth development program. Divorced, with no children, she said she's committed to helping others and is also studying organizational management at Antioch University.

While some promising new approaches to treating Parkinson's loom on the horizon, researchers say the condition is still poorly understood.

"We have no solid theory of what causes Parkinson's disease," said James Beck, director of research for the Parkinson's Disease Foundation. "We still know so little about the disease. A lot of basic science needs to be funded."

Beck said the drugs available now are designed to help reduce disease symptoms but don't attack their cause. Late-stage clinical trials are looking at what role so-called "A2A receptor antagonists" might play in reducing movement problems. Scientists are also testing possible gene therapy and stem cell applications, and looking at mutations in cell proteins associated with Parkinson's to understand what part they might play. They're also looking at what role, if any, the immune system might have in fighting development of the disease, he explained.

"There's a lot of hope for people with Parkinson's disease -- and progress is being made -- but it needs to be measured hope," Beck said.

Ali, now in the later stages of Parkinson's, has 24-hour care. His personality hasn't changed and "there's no doom and gloom with him," said May May. "He'll look at you, nod his head, and sometimes he can talk a bit, depending on the time of day and when he last took his medications."

Ali flies to his homes in Arizona, Kentucky and Michigan, and loves going to baseball games, May May said. "He's still enjoying life."

"As for spending time with my Dad, I enjoy his company still," she added.

Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved. SOURCES: Maryum (May May) Ali, Los Angeles, Calif.; James C. Beck, Ph.D., director of research, Parkinson's Disease Foundation, New York City, and adjunct assistant professor, department of physiology and neuroscience, New York University

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Clinical Trials Helped One Woman's Fight Against Cancer

By Barbara Bronson Gray
HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Monica Barlow, a 35-year-old from Maryland, was training for a half-marathon when she noticed she couldn't shake a bad cough and ongoing fatigue. After a couple of rounds of antibiotics from an urgent care clinic didn't work, she sought another opinion.

A CT scan brought wrenching news: There was a tumor in her left lung.

"I never smoked, I eat well, exercise and had never had any medical problems prior to this," Barlow said. "To say it was a shock doesn't even begin to describe it."

Four years later, Barlow has been through a series of ups and downs. After learning the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes and liver, she started chemotherapy, which only shrunk the tumors temporarily. She then joined two consecutive clinical trials, each offering to help control her cancer with novel drugs.

Barlow, who is director of public relations for the Baltimore Orioles baseball team, credits her participation in those clinical trials with prolonging her life.

Clinical trials test potentially promising treatments for a wide range of challenging diseases. But it can be difficult to find a good match for your particular situation and tough to know where to start looking. Even when you join a suitable trial, the outcomes are far from a sure thing.

Such has been the case for Barlow.

After she found out the lung cancer had spread to her lymph nodes and liver, she started an 18-week course of intravenous chemotherapy -- carboplatin, pemetrexed (Alimta) and bevacizumab (Avastin). Then there was some good news: The treatment had stabilized or shrunk all of the tumors.

A year later, her doctor found that the liver tumors were back. Because he discovered Barlow carried the ALK gene mutation, he suggested she join a clinical trial for a medication called crizotinib (Xalkori).

Initially, she didn't know if she was taking the real drug or a placebo. "That was a concern," she said. "It wasn't great to hear; it was stressful." Later in the trial, all patients were able to get the actual drug and placebos were no longer given to anyone, she said.

Barlow took Xalkori for two years, but last year the cancer returned yet again, requiring three ablations (localized methods to destroy a tumor without removing it) and two chemoembolizations (which deliver chemotherapy directly to the liver tumor while minimizing exposure to healthy tissues). Those procedures were not effective, and the next step was surgery to remove almost half of her liver.

Then, when tumor growth appeared in the new liver tissue that had grown back after the surgery, her doctors suggested she try a second clinical trial for a drug called LDK 378, which is being developed by Novartis.

The treatment continues to be tough. "This drug is a lot more difficult for me to take [than the drugs in the first clinical trial]," she said. "There are a lot of side effects, like nausea and vomiting."

Although the medication seems to be shrinking her liver tumors, just recently she had problems with a lung infection and a collapsed lung after a bronchoscopy. That has forced her to take a break from the trial; she hopes to restart as soon as the infection is gone.

Barlow continues to work, traveling with the team when she can. When she's sidelined by her illness, she's frustrated. "I can't believe I had to miss opening day [for the Orioles] this year," she said.

Because she has what she calls "excellent insurance," Barlow hasn't had to face serious medical bills. There is no charge for the care associated with her clinical trial, she said. But she and her family pay for the cost of traveling to her clinical trial site in Philadelphia, including hotel and meals, which can add up when she has an occasional hospital stay there, she added.

The drug Barlow is taking now wasn't available when she was diagnosed three years ago, she said.

"There are so many new things coming out, changing how cancer is being treated, so it's really important to be your own advocate or have someone who is advocating for you," she said. "The Internet can be a huge way to help you stay on top of the latest resources."

Barlow's fight highlights the potential value of a new system to help people more easily access clinical trials, both near and far from home.

A new Internet resource, MyClinicalTrialLocator.com, has just been launched to make it easier for people to find clinical trials that fit their needs.

Dr. Bruce Moskowitz, an internist in West Palm Beach, Fla., gave $100,000 from the Bruce and Marsha Moskowitz Foundation to help support the development of the free website.

"We made this site to be easy to use and understandable to anybody: patient-centric, not doctor-centric," Moskowitz said. "Hopefully, anyone will be able to receive help if they need it."

The website is designed to help visitors search for trials available by medical condition, treatment, location, medical center or other terms. It's accurate, updated frequently and includes information from clinicaltrials.gov (sponsored by the U.S. National Institutes of Health) and academic medical centers, Moskowitz said.

The site offers information about clinical trials worldwide, provides a mapping function to pinpoint the location of a trial and will notify users when trials matching their needs become available. It also allows patients to email clinical trial researchers directly, and academic medical centers can update and correct information on the site in real time.

Despite her many challenges, Barlow thinks clinical trials will help extend her life. "I know this drug won't work forever. But there will be other drugs out there, drugs [that are now] in the early stage of development, and when I need them, I'll switch to those drugs," she said. "The answers are out there; it's just a matter of researchers finding them."

Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved. SOURCES: Monica Barlow, Ellicott City, Md.; Bruce Moskowitz, M.D., internist, West Palm Beach, Fla.; March 27, 2013, press release, Biomedical Research and Education Foundation and the Bruce and Marsha Moskowitz Foundation

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Zumba Launches Fight Against Hunger

There are things that are good for you (exercise), and things that are good for the world (charity). And there's only so many hours in a day so a girl's gotta multitask, right? Cue Zumba Fitness, the crazy party workout, and its just-launched Great Calorie Drive, that benefits Feeding America and the United Nations World Food Programme. How it goes down: for every class you take, Zumba will donate 750 calories worth of food to these charities. (This means that when you're burning off last night's French fries, you'll be giving someone a bowl of oatmeal).

Zumba is challenging the world to donate 2.6 billion calories, which will mean 3.5 million meals by the time the challenge ends in June. That's a huge amount of food, right? Consider that 870 million people worldwide are affected by hunger, so we need to all do our part -- and all you have to do is dance! Just download the app and check in when you attend a Zumba class. Before you go, snag a cute "Burn Baby Burn" racerback tank or cargo pants -- 30% of the sale of World Hunger Stopper apparel goes to Feeding America and the WFP. Sweat for charity and clothes? Sold.

RELATED LINKS:

Image Credit: Tom Rafalovich

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Clinical Trials Helped One Woman's Fight Against Cancer

And new tool for finding the right match may help others get novel treatments

By Barbara Bronson Gray

HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Monica Barlow, a 35-year-old from Maryland, was training for a half-marathon when she noticed she couldn't shake a bad cough and ongoing fatigue. After a couple of rounds of antibiotics from an urgent care clinic didn't work, she sought another opinion.

A CT scan brought wrenching news: There was a tumor in her left lung.

"I never smoked, I eat well, exercise and had never had any medical problems prior to this," Barlow said. "To say it was a shock doesn't even begin to describe it."

Four years later, Barlow has been through a series of ups and downs. After learning the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes and liver, she started chemotherapy, which only shrunk the tumors temporarily. She then joined two consecutive clinical trials, each offering to help control her cancer with novel drugs.

Barlow, who is director of public relations for the Baltimore Orioles baseball team, credits her participation in those clinical trials with prolonging her life.

Clinical trials test potentially promising treatments for a wide range of challenging diseases. But it can be difficult to find a good match for your particular situation and tough to know where to start looking. Even when you join a suitable trial, the outcomes are far from a sure thing.

Such has been the case for Barlow.

After she found out the lung cancer had spread to her lymph nodes and liver, she started an 18-week course of intravenous chemotherapy -- carboplatin, pemetrexed (Alimta) and bevacizumab (Avastin). Then there was some good news: The treatment had stabilized or shrunk all of the tumors.

A year later, her doctor found that the liver tumors were back. Because he discovered Barlow carried the ALK gene mutation, he suggested she join a clinical trial for a medication called crizotinib (Xalkori).

Initially, she didn't know if she was taking the real drug or a placebo. "That was a concern," she said. "It wasn't great to hear; it was stressful." Later in the trial, all patients were able to get the actual drug and placebos were no longer given to anyone, she said.

Barlow took Xalkori for two years, but last year the cancer returned yet again, requiring three ablations (localized methods to destroy a tumor without removing it) and two chemoembolizations (which deliver chemotherapy directly to the liver tumor while minimizing exposure to healthy tissues). Those procedures were not effective, and the next step was surgery to remove almost half of her liver.

Then, when tumor growth appeared in the new liver tissue that had grown back after the surgery, her doctors suggested she try a second clinical trial for a drug called LDK 378, which is being developed by Novartis.

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Experimental Drug May Work Against Hepatitis C

Miravirsen greatly reduced virus in patients in small study

By Maureen Salamon

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, March 27 (HealthDay News) -- An experimental therapy for hepatitis C -- a "silent killer" linked to liver cancer and cirrhosis -- has shown promise in tamping down virus levels in early trials.

Experts caution, however, that it's too soon to know if the injectable drug will someday gain a standing among emerging oral medications against the disease.

New research suggests that the drug, miravirsen, could potentially be part of a drug "cocktail" that manages the hepatitis C virus in much the same way as similar combinations have transformed HIV/AIDS from a death sentence into a chronic, manageable condition.

Miravirsen suppresses molecules the hepatitis C virus needs to reproduce. The drug decreased viral loads by about 500-fold at the highest doses used in a small, phase 2 study by an international group of researchers. Drug resistance, a common problem with other hepatitis C medications, did not develop among patients taking miravirsen.

A phase 2 trial evaluates a drug's effectiveness while continuing to assess its safety.

"This is the first real clinical study of this approach and the results are encouraging," said Dr. Judy Lieberman, chairwoman of cellular and molecular medicine at Boston Children's Hospital. "What's exciting to me is that there doesn't seem to be any drug resistance developing. If there's a way to develop a drug cocktail that doesn't require a half a year of treatment ... that would be really exciting, but it's too early to tell."

Lieberman was not involved in the research but co-wrote an editorial accompanying the new study in the March 27 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Hepatitis C is one form of liver disease and affects about 170 million people worldwide, according to study background information. It's transmitted by shared needles or, less frequently, through sex. Often symptomless, the infection is a major cause of liver cancer and cirrhosis, or scarring of the liver.

Led by Dr. Harry Janssen, a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto and Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands, researchers split 36 patients with hepatitis C into four groups. Nine patients in each of the first three groups received a dose of either 3 milligrams (mg), 5 mg or 7 mg of miravirsen per kilogram of body weight for 29 days, while the last nine patients received a placebo. All were followed for 18 weeks.

The so-called viral load of patients receiving the highest dose decreased by about 500-fold, Lieberman said, and the hepatitis C virus was below detectable levels in four of nine patients. Meanwhile, the treatment caused no significant toxic effects in any patients, aside from mild injection-site reactions and a brief increase in liver enzyme levels.

Calling the study "interesting," Dr. David Bernstein, chief of the division of hepatology at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y., said that as an injectable drug, miravirsen would be less desirable among patients than other new drugs for hepatitis C that can be taken orally.

"It's a novel concept, but it's only 36 patients and a phase 2 study," Bernstein said. "It's impressive that their viral loads came down, but most suffered a recurrence of the virus."

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Drug Shows Promise Against Advanced Melanoma

In preliminary trial, nivolumab shrank tumors in 30 percent of tough-to-treat patients

By Alan Mozes

HealthDay Reporter

SATURDAY, June 1 (HealthDay News) -- Nearly one-third of patients with advanced melanomas who received nivolumab, a new immune-based drug, experienced reductions in the size of their tumors, a preliminary study reveals.

Since these types of drugs have typically shrunk tumors in only 5 percent to 10 percent of patients in prior studies, the new results are a boost for immunotherapy generally, the researchers noted.

"I think nivolumab is a real breakthrough drug for patients with metastatic melanoma, and probably for other diseases, too," study author Dr. Mario Sznol, a professor of medical oncology at the Yale Cancer Center in New Haven, Conn., said in a news release.

"The high level of activity observed with this drug opens up a number of avenues for future research to understand and challenge the ways tumors evade the immune system. We're very excited that there is potential for even more activity in combination with other drugs," Sznol added.

One expert not connected to the study was also optimistic about the results.

"Nivolumab shows exciting promise for patients suffering from an otherwise fatal disease -- metastatic melanoma," said Dr. Michele Green, a dermatologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. "The fact that 30 percent of patients showed improvement from this immunotherapy drug is remarkable since these patients had some of the worse disease."

The study was funded by drugmaker Bristol-Myers Squibb and is scheduled for presentation Saturday at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago. Findings presented at medical meetings are typically considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

According to the researchers, nivolumab works by honing in on PD-1 cellular receptors located on immune system T-cells. These receptors are known to function as immune system "gatekeepers," and by working to open such gates the patient's immune system is triggered into cancer-fighting action.

The new study involved 107 patients, all of whom had been previously treated with multiple forms of standard therapies that failed to halt their disease.

Following treatment with one of five different doses of nivolumab, the team found that 31 percent of the patients went on to experience a minimum tumor shrinkage of 30 percent across the various doses.

Forty-three percent of the patients are estimated to have survived two years after treatment, the researchers said, and average survival for patients across all treatment doses is now projected to be nearly 17 months.

In an ASCO news release, melanoma expert Dr. Lynn Schuchter called the results "truly remarkable."

The findings "confirm that 'revving' up the immune system is a powerful approach in shrinking melanoma," said Schuchter, who is also a spokeswoman for ASCO. "Melanoma patients are living longer and better with these new treatments."

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Simon Cowell to testify against Cheryl Cole in court?

Simon Cowell could be forced to testify against Cheryl Cole if she appears in court to sue producers of the X Factor USA.

Continue reading...

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Experimental Drugs Show Promise Against Prostate Cancer

Tumor growth suppressed in lab tests; human trials still needed, study authors say

By Mary Elizabeth Dallas

HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, May 31 (HealthDay News) -- Researchers have identified a new class of drugs that show promise for treating advanced prostate cancer. The drugs, known as peptidomimetics, interfere with the signaling necessary for prostate cancer cells to grow, according to a new study.

Prostate cancer depends upon the actions of androgens, such as the hormone testosterone. Androgens activate androgen receptors, resulting in a signal that causes prostate cancer cells to grow.

To stop tumor growth, men with prostate cancer have been treated with drugs to block the production of androgens or block the receptor where androgens bind. However, tumors can grow despite this treatment because of mutations in androgens or receptors.

In the latest study, published online May 28 in Nature Communications, a team of researchers led by Dr. Ganesh Raj, associate professor of urology at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, found the nontoxic peptidomimetic agents could disrupt androgen-receptor signaling and prevent tumor growth.

When tested in mouse and human tissue models, the drugs blocked the activity of androgens by attacking the protein in a different spot from where the androgen binds, the researchers explained. As a result, prostate cancer cells do not receive the signal to grow -- even when the androgen receptor is activated.

"We are hopeful that this novel class of drugs will shut down androgen-receptor signaling and lead to added options and increased longevity for men with advanced prostate cancer," Raj, the study's senior author, noted in a university news release.

One expert was optimistic about the new findings.

"The study represents a significant step forward in the development of a new molecular targeted therapy for advanced prostate cancer," said Dr. Manish Vira, director of the Fellowship Program in Urologic Oncology at North Shore-LIJ's Arthur Smith Institute for Urology in Lake Success, N.Y.

He said the new drug works at "preventing the [cell] receptor from promoting cancer cell growth signaling," and added that "the study is proof in principle that rationale design of peptidomimetics can lead to the development of a new class of anti-cancer therapy."

The researchers noted more testing is needed before the drugs could progress to clinical trials involving humans. Results obtained in laboratory experiments are not always replicated in humans.

"Most drugs now available to treat advanced prostate cancer improve survival rates by three or four months," Raj added. "Our new agents may offer hope for men who fail with the current drugs."

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Women May Have Natural Defense Against Common STD

'Trich' causes discomfort for some, but is symptomless in others

By Mary Elizabeth Dallas

HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, May 30 (HealthDay News) -- Women appear to have a natural defense against the world's most common sexually transmitted infection, a new study says.

This natural protective barrier consists mainly of lactic acid bacteria -- called lactobacilli.

The finding appears online May 29 in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections.

The discovery could lead to new treatments for "trich," which affects an estimated 174 million women and men around the world each year, according to a journal news release.

Trich is caused by the parasite Trichomonas vaginalis or T. vaginalis. Symptoms of the infection include pain, irritation and discharge. About 50 percent of all people who have this condition, however, don't develop symptoms and are unaware that they are infected.

Researchers Augusto Simoes-Barbosa, of the University of Auckland in New Zealand, and colleagues examined how easily three different strains of T. vaginalis bound to vaginal cells. They repeated the process when nine different types of lactobacilli were also present.

In the vast majority of instances, lactobacilli prevented the parasite from binding to the cells. Some types of lactobacilli were better at preventing the parasite from binding to the cells than others, the study authors pointed out.

"This study reinforces the important role that our microbiomes play in health, infection and disease," they wrote. "Understanding the role that Lactobacillus plays in T. vaginalis infection/disease might reveal new therapeutic approaches, which include taking advantage of the natural probiotic activity of lactobacilli."

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Gene Therapy May Protect Against Flu Pandemics

Study found coaxing cells in the nose to make super antibodies protected mice and ferrets from pandemic strains

By Brenda Goodman

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, May 29 (HealthDay News) -- Gene therapy that turns cells in the nose into factories that crank out super antibodies against the flu protected mice and ferrets against lethal doses of several pandemic strains of the virus.

If the approach works in humans, it could offer several important advantages over flu vaccines, said study author Dr. James Wilson, a professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia.

Because the therapy can be made ahead of time and fights many different strains, it might give doctors a faster way to thwart flu pandemics.

Currently, doctors race to identify dangerous new types of flu. They then have to develop a vaccine that targets the new strain. The vaccine is then grown in chicken eggs and tested for safety. It takes between three and six months to manufacture large quantities of vaccines against the flu.

"By the time we realize it's a potential pandemic, it's too late," Wilson said. "The timeliness of deploying the seasonal flu vaccine approach for pandemics is not the best way to go."

Vaccines, which prime the body to remember to attack incoming pathogens, also don't do the best job of protecting people who have diminished immune function, such as seniors and those with chronic health problems.

The new treatment, which is delivered through a nasal spray, gets around that problem because it doesn't require the body to mount an immune attack.

Instead, the nasal spray contains many copies of small, harmless viruses called adeno-associated viruses. The simple genome of these viruses can be altered in the lab to carry instructions for making special proteins called broadly neutralizing antibodies.

Broadly neutralizing antibodies are rare super antibodies that are capable of disarming many kinds of flu strains.

When researchers insert the instructions for making those antibodies into the genome of adeno-associated viruses, the viruses act like Trojan horses. They infect cells in the nose, inject the altered genetic material and turn the cells into factories that crank out many copies of the broadly neutralizing proteins.

"The way I envisioned it was sort of a bioshield," Wilson said. "I wanted to focus the production of the antibody to the site where flu enters our body."

In animal tests, researchers showed that mice, ferrets and monkeys made many copies of the super antibody after they inhaled the gene therapy treatment. And the protection seemed to last for a while. Experts note, however, that promising research in animals often does not pan out in humans.

"In mice, it persists up to a year," Wilson said. "In monkeys, we think we're going to see expression up to six months."

The treatment also appears to work pretty quickly. Wilson said the animals were fully protected about three days after their nasal passages were swabbed.

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Healthy Older Women Advised Against Taking Calcium

Title: Healthy Older Women Advised Against Taking Calcium
Category: Health News
Created: 2/25/2013 6:36:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 2/26/2013 12:00:00 AM

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Healthy Older Women Advised Against Taking Calcium

By Barbara Bronson Gray

HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, Feb. 25 (HealthDay News) -- Healthy older women should not take calcium and vitamin D supplements to prevent fractures, according to a final recommendation issued Monday by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.

In healthy adults, lower doses of calcium and vitamin D seem to be ineffective. As for higher doses, it's still up in the air, the government group said.

The new recommendations do not apply to people who are known to be vitamin D-deficient or who already have osteoporosis, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) noted.

Every year about 1.5 million fractures in the United States are attributed to osteoporosis, which is caused by a decrease in bone mass and density that makes bones fragile and more susceptible to a break. Almost half of all women older than 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in their lifetime, according to the USPSTF.

Calcium is one of the main building blocks of bone growth, and vitamin D (sourced via sunlight's action on the skin, or through diet) helps bones absorb calcium. But at issue is whether people receive enough of these nutrients in their daily diet, or if supplements would help protect them.

Dr. Virginia Moyer, chair of the USPSTF, and a professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine, said experts know that a "medium dose" of supplements -- less than 400 international units (IU) of vitamin D and less than 1,000 milligrams (mg) of calcium -- does not work.

As for higher doses? "We simply don't know. There are reasons to think they could work, but unfortunately, even though there are a bunch of studies, there are problems with them," Moyer said.

"We know these recommendations will be very frustrating to both physicians and patients, but it's a call to action to the research community," she added.

The USPSTF analyzed a wide range of studies on the effects of supplementation of vitamin D and calcium levels for bone health and the adverse effects of supplementation. The report, published online Feb. 26 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, makes these points about preventing fractures:

Don't take low doses of daily supplements: Less than 400 IU of vitamin D and less than 1,000 mg of calcium after menopause have no benefit.For higher doses: The task force doesn't have sufficient evidence to make a recommendation on daily supplements.For men and women younger than 50: The task force also doesn't have enough evidence to make a recommendation on vitamin D and calcium supplements.

The report notes a downside to low-dose supplementation: Taking 400 IU or less of vitamin D and 1,000 mg or less of calcium increases the risk of kidney stones, which can be painful and may require hospitalization.

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FDA Approves 'Bionic Eye' to Help Against Rare Vision Disorder

Title: FDA Approves 'Bionic Eye' to Help Against Rare Vision Disorder
Category: Health News
Created: 2/14/2013 6:36:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 2/15/2013 12:00:00 AM

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FDA Approves 'Bionic Eye' to Help Against Rare Vision Disorder

By Steven Reinberg

HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Feb. 14 (HealthDay News) -- An implanted, sight-enhancing device some are calling a "bionic eye" is the first to gain approval for use in the United States, officials announced Thursday.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the new Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System can help patients with a genetic eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa regain some sense of vision. About 100,000 Americans are believed to be affected by the illness, which causes a gradual deterioration of the eyes' photoreceptor cells.

The new device uses a tiny video camera attached to eyeglasses that transmits images to a sheet of electrode sensors that have been sewn into the patient's eye. These sensors then transmit those signals to the brain via the optic nerve. The device helps replace the damaged cells of the retina and helps patients see images or detect movement.

"It's a start, it's a beginning," said Dr. Mark Fromer, an ophthalmologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. "It's going to be exciting for people who get this device who are currently just seeing light or dark, [they] will see shapes and that will be life-altering for them."

An FDA official was similarly enthused.

"For many of the approximately 1,300 individuals who will develop the disease this year, this technology may change their lives," Dr. William Maisel, deputy director for science and chief scientist at FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in an agency blog post. "It's the difference between night and day," he added.

Maisel's post also included testimony from people who had tested the device and spoke in favor of its approval at a recent FDA hearing:

"The biggest thing to me was being able to see the crosswalk lines on the street so I can safely cross streets in Manhattan," one user said.

"The most exciting day to me was October 27th, in 2009," another testified. "It was the first time I was able to see letters on the monitor screen [during a test of visual perception]. I had not seen letters since 1994, so that was huge."

A third person said he had a 17-year-old son, "and I don't mind telling you how much -- I mean, how happy that made me, not only to see the silhouette of my son, but to hear that voice coming and saying, 'Yeah, it's me, Dad. I'm here and I love you.'"

People with retinitis pigmentosa suffer damage to the light-sensitive cells of the retina. As these cells slowly degenerate, patients lose side vision and night vision and later on, central vision. The disease can cause blindness,

The FDA's approval is a limited one, labeled a "humanitarian use device" approval, meaning the Argus II can be used only for fewer than 4,000 patients per year.

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Surgical Delivery of Drug Shows Promise Against 'Bleeding' Stroke

Title: Surgical Delivery of Drug Shows Promise Against 'Bleeding' Stroke
Category: Health News
Created: 2/7/2013 2:36:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 2/8/2013 12:00:00 AM

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Against the Wind – Weekly Weigh In

How close are you?

Well, my weigh in surprise from last week caught up to me.  Ten fold.

I didn’t go to Weight Watchers for several reasons but like always, I weighed in at home this morning.  Up 4 pounds.  Yep…4 freakin’ pounds.

So…I know that can’t possibly be “accurate” and it will even out next week.  No…I didn’t have a stellar week, however, I surely didn’t have such a “great” week that I gained 4 pounds.

I love how things happen that make me laugh and realize that this truly is a journey I am on.  I love how God places things smack dab in my path to get me to realize something.  Today was one of those days.

I had some time after school so I went to my mom’s house and we went on a walk together which we used to do quite a bit before I got a Monday afternoon tutoring student.  I have missed that time we spend together.

It has been VERY windy in Atlanta the past two days.  So much so that there has been a wind advisory.  Today, while we were walking, there were huge gusts of wind.  I mean HUGE!  You know, the kind of wind that when you are driving, you have to compensate a little bit in your car to stay in your lane?

Well…imagine that kind of wind while you are out walking.  Regardless, we were out for a nice long walk and the prettiest red bird flew in front of us.  At about that time, a huge gust of wind came and the bird was flapping his little wings like crazy but because of the wind he was just staying in the same spot.  He was  trying so hard but not going anywhere.  Eventually, the wind died down and he was able to get to his destination.

My mom and I started laughing hysterically.  We have never seen such a thing.  Poor little guy.

How many wind storms have we been caught in during our weight loss journey?  How many times have we been that little red bird flapping our arms as hard as we can to just feel defeated?   How many times have we stopped flapping because we feel the wind is too strong?

That little bird today did not stop.  He flapped as hard as he could even though he wasn’t going anywhere.  He did not give up.

No matter what storm you are going through, no matter how hard the wind is blowing, don’t give up.  Keep flapping those wings and giving it all you’ve got.  Eventually, the storm will calm and you will make it through to your destination.  Whatever you do, don’t give up!

What are your storms?  Have you reached a plateau?  Are you tired of flapping so hard and feel like you are standing still?  Keep on flappin’!

Photo Credit

Kicking and Screaming – Weekly Weigh InNegative Nelly – Weekly Weigh InNew Beginnings – Weekly Weigh InNo Excuses – Weekly Weigh InMeasure It – Weekly Weigh In

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