Harvard Health Content API

U.S. government researchers think they may have found out how a chemical in red wine appears to confer health benefits. The research looks at resveratrol. This chemical is found in red wine and some other plant products. Researchers from the National Institutes of Health traced how it acts in cells. They found that it interferes with the activity of a protein in muscle called PDE4. This protein helps to regulate cell energy. The drug rolipram is also known to interfere with PDE4. So researchers gave this drug to mice. They found that this produced the same results as resveratrol has in other studies. Mice were less likely to get fat. Their bodies were able to make better use of glucose, which can help prevent diabetes. They also were able to exercise longer. Knowing how resveratrol works may help researchers to develop drugs with the same effects.

A follow-up test for colon cancer can increase detection rates by nearly one-third, new research finds. The study looked at flexible sigmoidoscopy. This test uses a scope with a tiny camera. The scope is threaded through the lower part of the colon. Colonoscopy, the test most often recommended, uses a longer scope. It looks at the whole colon. But sigmoidoscopy requires a less extensive cleanout with laxatives ahead of time. Unlike colonoscopy, it doesn’t require sedation. Researchers wanted to see if 2 sigmoidoscopies would detect more cancers. They looked at what happened to 35,000 people who had 2 tests within 3 to 5 years. All of them were 55 to 74 years old. The first test found cancer or polyps that could turn into cancer in about 38 of every 1,000 people. That number grew to almost 50 per 1,000 after both tests. About 8 out of 10 cancers found were in early stages.

The recent stroke of U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk shows that these attacks can happen at any age. That’s the subject of an Associated Press (AP) article published January 30. Kirk’s stroke occurred after a tear in the carotid artery to his brain. Doctors still don’t know why that happened. Kirk, 52, an Illinois Republican, is fit and a devoted swimmer. But about 1 out of 4 U.S. strokes occurs in someone under age 65, AP said. The most common type of stroke is increasing among people under age 44. Hospital stays in this group for ischemic stroke have for risen by one-third in the last 10 years, AP said. An ischemic stroke is caused by a clot that blocks a blood vessel. Strokes are more common in younger people with high blood pressure and diabetes. These diseases are increasing along with the growth in obesity in the United States.