Harvard Health Content API

The link between regular exercise and prevention of falls varies by age and gender, a new analysis of research suggests. The authors looked at data from a long-term study on exercise. The study included 10,615 people, ages 20 to 87. They also took a treadmill test and a follow-up survey. The survey included questions about exercise habits and falls. About 21% of those surveyed said they had fallen in the last year. Falls were just as common in younger adults as in older ones. However, older adults were twice as likely to fall while walking. Women were more than twice as likely as men to fall while walking. Men who were the fittest or exercised the most were less likely to fall while walking than men who were least fit or exercised the least. For women, this difference was narrower and could have been caused by chance.

Heart attacks and deaths from heart disease dropped sharply in the last decade, researchers report based on one population. Better use of medicines was credited with much of the change. The study looked at hospital stays in northern California since 1999. It focused on patients of the Kaiser Permanente health system. Kaiser researchers found a 24% drop in the overall heart attack rate. The most severe type of heart attacks fell even more — 62%. The death rate in the 30 days after a heart attack also shrank, from 10.5% to 7.8%. Across the United States, heart disease is the No. 1 cause of death. But a Kaiser official said it has dropped to second place, behind cancer, as a cause of death for this patient group. Researchers said drug treatment had helped patients to control their blood pressure and cholesterol. Smoking also declined.

Some pain relievers may increase the risk of heart problems in healthy people, a large study finds. The study was done in Denmark. It included records on 1 million healthy people from a national database. Their average age was 39. The study focused on use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). One prescription NSAID was taken off the U.S. market in 2004. Rofecoxib (Vioxx) was withdrawn because users had an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. The Danish study showed a higher risk of death from heart and blood vessel disease for people who used Vioxx. The risk was 66% higher than for people who took no NSAIDs. Death risk from these causes was 91% higher with diclofenac (Voltaren, Cataflam). Stroke risk rose 29% for people who took an over-the-counter drug, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin and others).

Two drugs that take different approaches have helped patients with two types of advanced cancer, researchers say. One drug, ipilimumab, allows the body’s immune system to fight cancer better. The drug trial included 676 people with advanced melanoma. They were given ipilimumab, another immune booster or both. Half of the people who received ipilimumab lived at least 10 months. People who received only the other immune booster lived about 6.4 months. In the other study, the drug crizotinib was given to 82 people with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer. Everyone in this study had an abnormal gene that causes two proteins to combine. This fused protein leads to tumor growth. Crizotinib blocks one of the proteins. Tumors shrank for 57% of the people taking the drug. Tumors stayed the same size for 30%. Results of the two studies were reported at a cancer conference.

About 1 out of 5 high school students has taken a prescription drug that a doctor did not prescribe, a new survey finds. The government survey of risky teen behavior is conducted every two years. The 2009 survey was the first to ask about prescription drug abuse. It included 16,000 teenagers. The abused drugs included pain pills, attention deficit drugs used as study aids, and others. Use was highest among 12th graders. About 1 in 4 seniors said they had used a drug without a prescription. The Associated Press wrote about the survey.

Most kids with high blood pressure can safely play sports, a major group of children’s doctors says. But restrictions apply to those with the most serious problem, stage 2 high blood pressure. The new guidelines are from the American Academy of Pediatrics. They say that all children with above-normal blood pressure should exercise, improve their diet and lose weight, if needed. These steps may help to lower blood pressure. They should be all that is needed for kids who measure just below the level for diagnosing high blood pressure. This is called pre-hypertension. Children with stage 1 high blood pressure are eligible for any sport unless they have related damage in a major organ. Some sports could be dangerous for children with stage 2 high blood pressure, the guidelines say. Doctors are urged to refer these children to a specialist.

Just 10 minutes of brisk exercise can trigger metabolism changes that last an hour, new research finds. But people who exercise more than that — those who are fit — get the most benefit even from brief activity. The study included 70 healthy adults. They were put on a treadmill for 10 minutes. Researchers took blood samples before and right after the workouts, and one hour later. The brief exercise changed blood levels of substances involved in metabolism. The body produces these “metabolites” as it burns food for energy. Some of the changes were still apparent in the blood an hour after exercise. Thinner people had higher levels of niacinamide, which is involved in blood sugar control. A substance involved in fat burning was higher in fit people. This suggested they were burning more fat from the same amount of exercise.