St John's Wort Better for Depression than Paxil
by Forbes.com – Health article

An extract of the herb St. John's wort was found to be slightly more effective than the widely prescribed antidepressant Paxil for people with moderate to severe depression, a short-term German study found.

The results fly in the face of a large-scale, carefully controlled U.S. trial, reported in 2002, that found a St. John's wort extract was no more effective than a placebo for people with moderately severe depression. The earlier study found statistically significant improvement in patients who took the antidepressant Zoloft, compared to those who took a placebo.

The German results were strikingly different. The study included 251 people with a score of 22 or higher on the Hamilton Depression Scale, a widely accepted measure of the condition. The Hamilton score decreased by 14.4 points for patients who took three daily doses of the St. John's wort extract for six weeks, compared to a reduction of 11.4 points for patients who took Paxil. There were also fewer adverse side effects in the St. John's wort group than in the Paxil group.

Dr. Grossman's Comments: These results are highly significant for the millions of people who suffer moderate to severe depression. With less money available for traditional psychotherapy, the focus has shifted to the pharmacologic treatment of depression. SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) such as Paxil are the most commonly prescribed antidepressant drugs and have been shown to help many people with depression. Yet, as with many “blockbuster” prescription drugs, they also have significant problems associated with their use: they have side effects and are often quite expensive. These side effects can often be significant and many patients discontinue therapy because of them. St. John’s wort was shown in this study to be even more effective than Paxil, one of the most commonly prescribed SSRIs. St. John’s wort is also remarkably free of significant side effects, it’s available over-the-counter without a prescription … and it’s far less expensive than Paxil.

Read more... Herbal Treatment Outdoes Paxil

Acupuncture Shown to Help Knee Arthritis in Major Study
by BMJ.com – Primary Care article

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of joint disease, and its most common location is the knee. As the population ages or the disease worsens, osteoarthritis is associated with incapacity and a deteriorating quality of life owing to increased pain, loss of mobility, and the consequent loss of functional independence. As a result, osteoarthritis is often treated by medical or surgical intervention. The general increase in life expectancy means that increasing numbers of people present with osteoarthritis of the knee and have a reduced quality of life. Pain relief treatment is therefore a fundamental aspect in dealing with this illness.

In patients in whom standard medical practice (pharmacological treatment) is ineffective and who are not candidates for surgery (or who reject it), other pain management procedures should be considered. The role of acupuncture in osteoarthritis of the knee is still a matter of controversy, and few comparative studies of acupuncture and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for its treatment have been conducted. A recent systematic review concluded that a moderate degree of evidence exists that the effect of the acupuncture treatment could be due to the placebo, and further studies are therefore necessary to determine the true role of acupuncture.

We analysed the efficacy of acupuncture as a complementary therapy to the pharmacological treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee, with respect to pain relief, reduction of stiffness, and increased physical functioning during treatment; modifications in the consumption of diclofenac during treatment; and changes in patients' quality of life.

Conclusions: Acupuncture plus diclofenac is more effective than placebo acupuncture plus diclofenac for the symptomatic treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee.

Read more... Acupuncture as a complementary therapy

Epilepsy Drugs Slow Aging in Worms
by BetterHumans.com article

Two epilepsy drugs have been found to slow aging in roundworms, but researchers say it's too soon to start prescribing them to fight aging in humans.

American researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis say that a class of anti-seizure medications slows the rate of aging in roundworms, causing them to live longer and retain youthful functions longer.

Because the drugs affect nerve signals, the researchers think they have discovered a way in which the nervous system may influence aging.

Dr. Grossman's Comments: Two commonly prescribed antiseizure medications, ethosuximide and trimethadione were shown to extend the lifespan of roundworms 18 - 47 percent respectively. Until now caloric restriction has been the only proven mechanism of extending lifespan. By affecting the nervous system of these worms, these drugs have been shown to possess a unique mechanism for promoting longevity (in worms at least). While these findings may not translate easily to humans, perhaps the most interesting aspect of this research is that it revealed that a mechanism other than caloric restriction can extend the lifespan of laboratory animals.

Read more... Epilepsy Drugs Slow Aging in Worms

Vitamin E Shown to Decrease Prostate Cancer Risk
by Journal of the National Cancer Institute – JNCI Cancer Spectrum article

"High blood levels of the major vitamin E components, alpha- and gamma-tocopherol, seem to cut the risk of prostate cancer by about 50 percent each, a study shows.

Source: Reuters Health

Dr. Grossman's Comments: The recent meta analysis that showed that vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) is associated with a slightly increased risk of cardiovascular disease slightly (about 5%) made front page headlines around the country.This study which shows that vitamin E decreases risk of prostate cancer 50% will probably get little press.

Read more... Vitamin E Shown to Decrease Prostate Cancer Risk

A Chocolate Shake That Tastes Good and Is Good For You (and your kids)

Over 60% of U.S. adults are either overweight or obese. One popular way to control calories without sacrificing nutrition is using low calorie meal replacement beverages.

The problem is that most of the products on the market are loaded with ingredients that are anything but healthy ... such as artificial sweeteners, colorings, flavorings and preservatives. Ray Kurzweil and Terry Grossman spent over a year developing Ray & Terry's Deep Chocolate Meal Replacement Shake, a product that is not only delicious ... it is blended with ingredients just the way nature gave them to us.

Ray & Terry’s Deep Chocolate Meal Replacement Shake is intended for use as a complete meal replacement, using healthy, natural, non-artificial ingredients to fill you up and inhibit your need for additional food for several hours. It also provides a high source of vitamins, minerals, fibers and proteins to create a nutritionally balanced diet as part of a weight control and maintenance program.

Each of the ingredients contained in Ray & Terry’s Deep Chocolate Meal Replacement Shake is natural -- and the formulation contains no artificial ingredients (e.g., colors, sweeteners, etc.)

One serving of the meal replacement composition provides:

• 10 g of carbohydrates of which 7 g are fiber for a net carbohydrate yield of 3 g
• 4 g of fat of which 0 g are trans fats and 1.5 g are saturated fat
• 18 g of protein
• 200 mg of sodium
• Total calories are 117 of which 35 calories (30%) are from fat

Read more... Ray & Terry's Meal Replacement Shake

RNA intereference therapy to prevent severe respiratory infections
by Nature.com – Medicine article

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and parainfluenza virus (PIV) are two respiratory pathogens of paramount medical significance that exert high mortality. At present, there is no reliable vaccine or antiviral drug against either virus. Using an RNA interference (RNAi) approach, we show that individual as well as joint infection by RSV and PIV can be specifically prevented and inhibited by short interfering RNAs (siRNAs), instilled intranasally in the mouse, with or without transfection reagents. The degree of protection matched the antiviral activity of the siRNA in cell culture, allowing an avenue for quick screening of an efficacious siRNA. When targeting both viruses in a joint infection, excess of one siRNA moderated the inhibitory effect of the other, suggesting competition for the RNAi machinery. Our results suggest that, if properly designed, low dosages of inhaled siRNA might offer a fast, potent and easily administrable antiviral regimen against respiratory viral diseases in humans.

Dr. Grossman's Comments: For the present, RNA interference therapy (RNAi) appears to be the most promising avenue for blocking the expression of (turning off) undesirable genes. Imagine you have a gene that predisposes you to a severe chronic illness. Ultimately the holy grail of genetic therapy will be to rid your body of this noxious gene and replace it with a desirable gene. It may be years before scientists are able to accomplish this task, but in the interim, many beneficial effects can result by blocking the expression of undesirable genes through RNAi. The current study shows that RNAi can also have powerful and beneficial effects in treating acute illnesses such as respiratory infections.

Read more... Inhibition of respiratory viruses by nasally administered siRNA.

Holidays, birthdays, and postponement of cancer death
by Journal of American Medical Association – JAMA.ama-assn.org article

The proportion of persons dying of cancer in the week before Christmas, Thanksgiving, and the individual's birthday was not significantly different from the proportion dying in the week after the event

Read more... Holidays, birthdays, and postponement of cancer death

Probable Person-to-Person Transmission of Avian Influenza A
by The New England Journal of Medicine – article

During 2004, a highly pathogenic avian influenza A (H5N1) virus caused poultry disease in eight Asian countries and infected at least 44 persons, killing 32; most of these persons had had close contact with poultry. No evidence of efficient person-to-person transmission has yet been reported. We investigated possible person-to-person transmission in a family cluster of the disease in Thailand.

Dr. Grossman's Comments: The implications of this short report from the New England Journal of Medicine are world-changing. Up until now “bird flu” which has killed a few dozen people in Southeast Asia was only spread from birds to humans. There had never been a case of human to human transmission … until now, as documented in this report. One of the greatest difficulties in dealing with the influenza virus is the ease with which it mutates. This new “bird flu” has proven to be almost 100 percent fatal to people who contract it. Combining its lethalness with a high degree of human-to-human contagiousness creates a nightmare scenario. It appears the “bird flu” may be mutating in this direction. The influenza pandemic of 1918-19 is estimated to have killed between 50 and 100 million people around the world. Urgent efforts are needed to try to control or contain this new lethal flu strain or the entire notion of “homeland security” has little meaning.

Read more... Probable Person-to-Person Transmission of Avian Influenza A

Marrijuana use - study shows using dope can make you nuts
by BMJ.com – "Paper" article

After adjustment for age, sex, socioeconomic status, urbanicity, childhood trauma, predisposition for psychosis at baseline, and use of other drugs, tobacco, and alcohol, cannabis use at baseline increased the cumulative incidence of psychotic symptoms at follow up four years later (adjusted odds ratio 1.67, 95% confidence interval 1.13 to 2.46). The effect of cannabis use was much stronger in those with any predisposition for psychosis at baseline (23.8% adjusted difference in risk, 95% confidence interval 7.9 to 39.7, P = 0.003) than in those without (5.6%, 0.4 to 10.8, P = 0.033). The risk difference in the "predisposition" group was significantly greater than the risk difference in the "no predisposition" group (test for interaction 18.2%, 1.6 to 34.8, P = 0.032). There was a dose-response relation with increasing frequency of cannabis use. Predisposition for psychosis at baseline did not significantly predict cannabis use four years later (adjusted odds ratio 1.42, 95% confidence interval 0.88 to 2.31).

Conclusion: Cannabis use moderately increases the risk of psychotic symptoms in young people but has a much stronger effect in those with evidence of predisposition for psychosis.

Read more... Marrijuana use - study shows using dope can make you nuts

Longevity Evaluations Available at Frontier Medical Institute

We are entering a new frontier of medicine wherein you can now take control of your health, discover your genetic tendencies, and make INDIVIDUALIZED lifestyle choices that will extend your life. Dr. Grossman, our medical director, developed our longevity program after working with thousands of patients from all over the world during the past 10 years.

By undergoing one of our Longevity Evaluations, you will join individuals who have come to visit us from all parts of the U.S. and around the world to gain the knowledge and tools to live longer, healthier, and younger lives. You will accomplish this by undergoing a comprehensive series of the latest medical tests available.

Read more... Longevity Evaluations at Frontier Medical Institute

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by Newsletter Admin

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