Category: news-perspectives

Having high cholesterol for a long time, even in your 30s and 40s, can increase your risk of heart disease later, a new study finds. Researchers used information from a long-term study. The new study focused on 1,478 adults who had not developed heart or blood vessel disease by age 55. Researchers looked at their past cholesterol test results. They divided people into groups based on how long they were exposed to high cholesterol in middle age. They defined high cholesterol as an LDL (“bad cholesterol”) blood level of 130 milligrams per deciliter (mgdL) or more. This is a strict definition. The National Institutes of Health lists 130 as the low end of “borderline high” cholesterol. Researchers kept track of people for an average of 15 years after age 55. In that time, 16.5% of those who had been exposed to high LDL for 11 to 20 years had a heart attack or other heart problems.

A small new study of people with Parkinson’s disease underscores the power of what’s known as the “placebo effect.” And it suggests that price matters. People who think they got an expensive drug may feel better than those who think they got a cheaper one – even if both drugs are fakes (placebos). The study included 12 people with moderate to severe Parkinson’s disease. People were given an injectable “drug” (really saline), then another “drug” 4 hours later. They were given in random order. Before each one, people were told that it was an expensive drug ($1,500 per dose) or a cheaper one ($100 per dose). Before each dose, researchers did MRI brain scans and tests of people’s movement abilities. People showed improvement in movement symptoms, such as tremor and stiffness, after both doses. On average, they had more improvement after the “expensive” drug than after the “cheap” one.

At least 78 cases of measles have now been reported in an outbreak traced to Disneyland, public health officials say. The outbreak began in the third week of December. New cases directly linked to the park are no longer being reported. But other cases have occurred in people who were infected by those exposed at the park. Orange County, where the park is, and San Diego County were the hardest hit, California health officials said. In all, 68 cases have been reported in California. The cases include 5 park employees who play costumed characters, Disney confirmed. An expert interviewed by HealthDay News said the outbreak has occurred because of an increase in the number of parents who refuse to get some or all vaccinations for their children. Some states allow these refusals on personal or religious grounds. California has some of the highest rates of refusal in the country.

People who go to a hospital with chest pain, but are not having heart attacks, may not be helped by extra tests to predict their future risk, a study finds. The study was based on private insurance claims for more than 690,000 people. They all went to hospital emergency rooms because of chest pain. Researchers focused on about 422,000 people who did not have heart attacks, according to test results. Of this group, nearly 128,000 also had other tests at the hospital. For example, they may have had a treadmill stress test or a scan that shows blood flow in the heart. Researchers also looked at how many people had heart attacks later. In the next week, only 11 of every 10,000 had heart attacks. The proportion was the same whether they had follow-up tests or not. The heart attack rate in the next 6 months was 33 of every 10,000 for both groups.

It may be a mistake to urge people who are inactive to aim for 150 minutes a week of exercise, 2 new articles suggest. Rather, the authors say, the main message should be simply to sit less and move more. Health experts recommend 150 minutes of moderate activity, such as brisk walking, each week. But both new articles argue that the research shows some activity is better than none. Among older adults, only 10% to 15% get the recommended amount. And asking people to aim for 150 minutes may seem overwhelming. This may discourage people from making any changes at all, the authors say. One of the articles reviewed 6 studies on physical activity and its effects on health. It found that walking from 1 to 74 minutes a week can reduce the risk of death from any cause by 19%.

If you have epilepsy, sleeping on your stomach may increase the risk of sudden death, a new study suggests. Researchers reviewed 25 earlier studies about unexplained deaths among people with epilepsy. Such deaths are rare. The new study focused on 253 deaths with records that included the person’s position when found. The people who died had been in good health. Autopsies could not find a clear cause of death. About 73% of them died while sleeping on their stomachs. That included 86% of those under 40 and 60% of those who were older. People with epilepsy have seizures related to a disruption in the brain’s electrical activity. The study’s author told HealthDay News that it’s possible people who died had an airway obstruction and could not rouse themselves. This study was not designed to show whether sleeping chest-down actually causes sudden death.

Adults over 70 might not need to tightly restrict salt, a new study suggests. U.S. guidelines recommend no more than 2,300 milligrams (mg) of sodium daily for most adults. That’s the amount in a teaspoon of salt. But the American Heart Association says that adults over 50 should aim for less, about 1,500 a day. The average American consumes about 3,400 mg a day. The new study included 2,600 adults, ages 71 to 80. They all filled out diet questionnaires. Researchers kept track of them for the next 10 years. In that time, 881 died, 572 developed heart disease or had a stroke, and 398 developed heart failure. The death rate was lowest, 30.7%, for those who consumed 1,500 to 2.300 mg of salt a day. So people did just as well with a moderate amount of salt as with a stricter limit. With less than 1,500 mg of sodium, the death rate was 33.8%.

Kids eat a lot of pizza. And on the days when they do, chances are they take in more calories, fat and sodium than usual, a new study finds. The study looked at data from a national health and nutrition survey. The numbers used were from 4 surveys, done between 2003 and 2010. They included families of almost 14,000 children and teens. People were asked what their kids had eaten in the last 24 hours. From the first to last surveys, calories from pizza declined somewhat. But on the days children under 12 ate pizza, they took in 84 more calories than usual. They also ate 3 grams more saturated fat and 134 milligrams more sodium. For teens, with their larger size and appetite, pizza days brought 230 extra calories. Saturated fat rose by 5 grams and sodium by 484 milligrams. When kids ate pizza, it provided more than 20% of the day’s calories.

U.S. regulators have approved a device to help control appetite in very obese adults by stimulating a stomach nerve. The device is called the Maestro Rechargeable System. It is made by EnteroMedics Inc. It is implanted in the chest, usually in an outpatient procedure. The device has electrical wires that are placed around the vagus nerve. This nerve helps to control hunger. Signals are sent to the nerve at fixed times to decrease hunger pangs and make the person feel full. The Food and Drug Administration approved the device for use in severely obese adults. They may have a body mass index (BMI) of at least 35, plus at least one medical condition linked with obesity, or at least 40 without another condition. In a study, people with the Maestro implant lost about 8.5% more weight than those with fake implants.

Young children whose doctors vaccinate most children against rotavirus are less likely to get sick with this virus, a new study finds. The study focused on about 1,500 children under age 5. They received care in 68 doctor’s offices. About 100 had diarrhea and vomiting caused by rotavirus. About 725 had these symptoms, but with another cause. Another 670 had a respiratory virus. The offices were divided into 3 groups. In those defined as “low coverage,” less than 40% of babies got the vaccine against rotavirus. About 80% of those in high-coverage offices got the vaccine. Medium coverage was between the two numbers. Researchers also looked at the causes of vomiting and diarrhea for each office. Tests confirmed rotavirus in about 31% of children in low-coverage offices. The number was 10% in high-coverage offices. The journal Pediatrics published the study.