Harvard Health Content API

Someone with schizophrenia is four times as likely to die of cancer as the average person, a new study finds. It’s the second leading cause of death, after suicide, for people with this mental illness. The study included more than 3,400 people with schizophrenia. In 11 years, 476 of them died. Cancer deaths totaled 74. Researchers said the higher rates might be caused by high rates of smoking, delays in diagnosis and less compliance with treatment. The study was published online in the journal Cancer. HealthDay News wrote about it June 23.

Small increases in blood sugar may affect memory, a study says. When blood sugar goes up, blood flow to part of the brain decreases. That part, called the dentate gyrus, is important for memory. Researchers saw this trend in older people, and then did laboratory tests to confirm it. People with uncontrolled diabetes have high blood sugar levels. And doctors already know that people with diabetes are at higher risk for dementia and other thinking and memory problems. The study was published in the December issue of the Annals of Neurology. The New York Times reported on the research January 1.

Three research groups are studying “good fat,” which helps the body generate heat. This fat, called brown fat, is found around the neck and collarbone. Researchers have found that lean people have more brown fat than overweight people do. They also learned that brown fat is more active in a cooler environment. The research could one day help with weight loss. The Associated Press reported on the studies April 10.

Beginning regular activity at 50 can extend your life, a study finds. But it takes about 10 years for this effect to appear. The Swedish study kept track of 2,205 men for more than 20 years, beginning at age 50. Researchers divided them into groups based on exercise levels. In the first five years of the study, death rates were lowest among those who exercised the most. But some men started to exercise between 50 and 60. After 10 years, their death rates were as low as those of men who had exercised all along. Exercise made as big a difference in death rates as quitting smoking, researchers said. The study appeared in the British Medical Journal. Reuters Health news service wrote about it March 6.

Common pills for depression may help older adults with anxiety, a study finds. Now, older adults usually are given sedatives for anxiety. The study included 177 adults, age 60 or older. All of them had generalized anxiety disorder. They were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group took escitalopram (Lexapro). The other group took a placebo (sugar pill) that looked the same. After 12 weeks, more than two-thirds of those taking escitalopram felt better. About half of those taking the placebo felt better. The study appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association. HealthDay News and Reuters News Service wrote about it January 20.

Long-term drug treatment doesn’t help people who don’t respond to their first treatment for chronic hepatitis C, a study has found. Many people with this disease are treated with two drugs, peginterferon and ribavirin. The study included 1,050 people who didn’t get better with this treatment. They were randomly divided into two groups. One group took low-dose peginterferon. The other group received no further treatment. After 3½ years, tests showed no difference in liver damage between the groups. Reuters Health news service wrote about the study December 5. It was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Only about half of older adults on Medicaid get recommended cancer screening tests, a study finds. Researchers looked at medical records and claims for 1,951 people. All were age 50 or older. About half of the women had a recent mammogram and a Pap test for cervical cancer. Half of the men and women had at least one test for colon cancer. The study was published October 13 in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine.

One shot looks like enough to protect adults from H1N1 (swine) flu, researchers reported September 11. The Australian company CSL Ltd. found in a study that its vaccine would protect 75% to 96% of adults from swine flu with one shot. U.S. data released this week show similar results, the Associated Press (AP) reported. The U.S. study shows that protection begins 8 to 10 days after the shot, AP said. Both studies were published online by the New England Journal of Medicine. It’s also the time for seasonal flu shots. The new research means that people now will need two shots. Public health experts had feared that they would need three, including two for swine flu. The seasonal flu vaccine is available now. Swine flu vaccine is expected to arrive in doctor’s offices in mid-October.

Brief, intense bursts of exercise may allow people to get fitter but work out less, some experts say. The Associated Press (AP) wrote February 25 about this form of exercise. It’s known as high-intensity interval training. It involves a few minutes of very strenuous exercise, followed by a few minutes of rest. Then the cycle is repeated. Experts told AP that this program could provide a week’s worth of exercise in an hour. They said intense exercise is exactly what spurs the body to build stronger muscles. Research has shown that interval training can double endurance. It also can improve oxygen use, fitness and strength, AP reported. But most research has been done on young, healthy people. Experts say people should talk to a doctor before starting a new workout program.

Smokers are known to have an increased risk of developing diabetes. But those who quit may have an even higher diabetes risk for a few years, a new study found. The increased risk was directly related to weight gain, researchers told HealthDay News. Researchers said smokers should not let this news keep them from quitting. But their doctors should pay special attention to weight counseling. The study included 11,000 middle-aged people. They were not diabetic when the study started. During the next 9 years, about 380 quit smoking. In that time, they were 70% more likely to develop diabetes than people who never smoked. The higher risk lasted for about six years after they quit. But people who kept on smoking also were more likely to develop diabetes. Their risk was 30% higher than for people who never smoked. The study appeared January 5 in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.