Can Hormone Therapy Stave Off Alzheimer's?

Can Hormone Therapy Stave Off Alzheimer's? - Women who carry a well-known genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease showed signs of more rapid aging in their body's cells than women who didn't have it, according to a new study.

The study, by researchers at Harvard and Stanford universities, may be a "critical link in our understanding of the role that APOE-e4 plays in the development of the disease," said Elizabeth Edgerly, chief program officer for the Northern California and Northern Nevada Chapter of The Alzheimer's Association. Edgerly was not involved in the study.

About 25 to 30 percent of the population carries at least one copy of APOE-e4 (each person inherits two copies, one from each parent). Forty percent of people with Alzheimer's disease are carriers.

Over the course of two years, researchers studied 63 post-menopausal women — their average age was 58 — who had been voluntarily taking hormone replacement therapy, either estrogen alone or estrogen plus progesterone, for at least one year. All the women were deemed at risk for Alzheimer's disease due to a family history of the condition. However, only 24 of the women were APOE-e4 carriers. All but one study participant was white.

At the study's start, baseline length measurements of each woman's telomeres were taken. A telomere is a "cap" on the end of each chromosome that protects the genes on the chromosome from deterioration. Every time a cell replicates, its telomeres shorten a little bit. That shortening has been associated with a number of aging-related diseases, including Alzheimer's.

Half of the women were then randomly assigned to stop taking hormone therapy while half stayed on it. After two years, the researchers measured the length of each woman's telomeres again.

The researchers found that women who were APOE-e4 carriers were six times more likely than non-carriers to exhibit obvious telomere shortening once they stopped taking hormones. In fact, APOE-e4 carriers experienced more rapid telomere shortening than non-carriers, suggesting that their cells had aged the equivalent of seven to 14 years over the course of the two-year study. But APOE-e4 carriers who remained on hormone replacement therapy showed no evidence of telomere shortening during that time.

"Our results suggest that for women with this genetic variant, hormone replacement therapy may reduce the risk for cellular aging, which may also reduce their risk of dementia," said Heather Kenna, a doctoral student in clinical psychology at Stanford University and one of the study authors. "However, we cannot make recommendations on hormone therapy from this one study alone or suggest that it will decrease risk of dementia."

It's unclear whether the protective effect the researchers saw was due to hormone replacement therapy or some other factor. For instance, there may be something different about women who chose to initiate hormone replacement therapy: they may live a healthier lifestyle or have a higher socioeconomic status, among other factors. Thus, they may not be representative of all women, Edgerly said.

"This is a promising first step, but future studies should focus on tracking larger numbers of women over a longer period of time," she said.

The current study was not designed to examine the differences between the two hormone therapy options — estrogen or estrogen plus progesterone, according to the study authors. The Women's Health Initiative, which started in 1991 and ended in 2010, found that estrogen plus progestin therapy offered no protection against mild cognitive impairment in women over age 65. In fact, women who took the hormones had an increased risk of dementia. Results from a study examining the effects of estrogen-only therapy on cognition are not yet available. The WHI involved more than 160,000 generally healthy postmenopausal women.

While genetic testing for the APOE-e4 gene type is commercially available, neither Kenna nor Edgerly recommend it for most people. Individuals with or without a family history of Alzheimer's who want to be tested for the gene must first undergo counseling so they are informed about the risks and benefits of finding out if they carry the gene.

"Knowing you have the e4 gene is a powerful piece of information — one that may have repercussions for employment and long-term-care insurance, not to mention the psychological burden of knowing you are at a much higher risk for a disease with no known cure," Edgerly said.

Pass it on: Hormones may keep cells from aging quickly, lowering Alzheimer's risk. ( LiveScience.com )

Blog : Contents Of Human Life | Can Hormone Therapy Stave Off Alzheimer's?

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Five distinct psychiatric disorders

Five distinct psychiatric disorders—autism, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia — may share some genetic risk factors, a new study finds.

During the study, researchers found four genetic markers that may play a role in all five diseases. These  markers were more common in people with the one of the psychiatric disorders compared to healthy people.

Two of these markers are found in genes thought to be involved in balancing the level of calcium in brain cells, the researchers said. (Calcium plays a role in many different cell functions, including communication between cells.) Of these two markers, one has been previously linked to bipolar disorder and depression, and the other to schizophrenia.

Although these five psychiatric disorders are thought of as separate conditions, they share some symptoms. For instance, mood and thinking problems can occur with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression. And children with ADHD often have symptoms of other developmental disorders, such as autism. In fact, a 2011 study detected genetic changes that were common to both ADHD and autism.

Because these psychiatric disorders share symptoms, researchers have not always agreed on how to classify them. The new findings might one day help researchers reclassify psychiatric conditions in a way that incorporates genetics, the researchers said.

The new study will be published online Feb. 28 in the journal The Lancet.

To find the shared genetic markers, Dr. Jordan Smoller from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and colleagues analyzed information from 33,332 people who each had one of the psychiatric disorders and 27,888 people who did not.

Because the study involved only people of European ancestry, it's not clear whether the results apply to other populations as well. In addition, the study only found an association between the four genetic markers and these conditions, but cannot prove that the markers play a role in causing the disorders. (That is, just because a person has one of these markers, does not mean that he or she will develop a psychiatric disorder.)

The findings confirm what many researchers already thought — that genetic risk factors aren't necessarily specific to one disease, said Dr. Joachim Hallmayer, an associate professor of psychiatry at Stanford University who was not involved with the study.

Some psychiatric disorders already share some treatments, such as medications aimed at easing symptoms. But genetic studies like these may reveal new targets for drugs "that go more to the root of the condition and prevent the condition," Hallmayer said.

However, more research is needed to determine how these genetic markers cause problems that might lead to disease, Hallmayer said. Future studies might investigate whether environmental factors could interact with these genetic markers to trigger disease, he said.

Ellen Quillen, a geneticist at Texas Biomedical Research Institute in San Antonio, said genetic studies that analyze several disorders at the same time are important to identify the genetic risk factors these various disorders share. Previously, evidence has shown that multiple disorders run in the same family.

"I hope these results will encourage more researchers to look for shared variants underlying clinically distinct disorders, as well as focusing on particular shared symptoms," Quillen said.

Pass it on: Autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia may share genetic risk factors. ( LiveScience.com )

Blog : Contents Of Human Life | Depression, Autism &  ADHD May Share Genes

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Four signs of aging may be linked with heart disease risk

Four signs of aging may be linked with heart disease risk - A bald patch on the top of your head or a small vertical crease in your earlobe may seem like relatively harmless signs of aging, but a new study says signs like these may signal an increased risk of heart disease.

Danish researchers found that people were 39 percent more likely to have heart disease, and 57 percent more likely to have a heart attack, if they had at least three of these four signs: baldness on top of the head, receded hairline, a crease in the earlobe, and fatty deposits on the eyelids known as xanthelasmata.

The researchers accounted for people's ages in their results.

Therefore, the study shows "looking old for your age, by [having] these aging signs, marks poor cardiovascular health," said study researcher Dr. Anne Tybjaerg-Hansen, a professor and chief physician in the department of clinical biochemistry at Copenhagen University Hospital.

While the exact reason for the links between these signs and heart disease risk remains unclear, the study "validates the common clinical practice that the clinician examines the patient, and often looks at whether a person looks older or younger for her age," Tybjaerg-Hansen said.

The researchers used data from the Copenhagen Heart Study, which included10,885 people who were over the age of 40. Over the 35-year study, 3,401 participants developed heart disease, and 1,708 had a heart attack. Researchers examined six physical features associated with aging, but found that two — gray hair and wrinkles — did not appear to be linked with increased risk of heart problems.

The study included 5,828 men and 5,057 women. When the researchers considered the genders separately, they found that hair loss in women was not linked with an increased risk of heart disease. However, among the 737 men who had a receding hairline, 82 suffered a heart attack, meaning there a 40 percent higher risk in men with hair loss than those without.

Previous research has looked at whether hair loss may be a warning sign of heart disease, but results have been conflicting. Some studies have linked the severity and type of baldness with the risks of heart disease or heart attacks to varying degrees, but others have found no connection. Because the risk of both heart disease and baldness rise with age, it can be difficult for researchers to separate the two in studies.

Tybjaerg-Hansen said the four signs identified in the new study should give clinicians greater incentive to treat patients who have them. "The suggestion is that lifestyle changes and lipid-lowering therapies should be intensified, because their risk is higher," she said.

However, the area needs more research, because "it would be nice to know why these [varying factors] would be associated with increased risk," she said.

Tybjaerg-Hansen said, for example, that hair loss is linked with levels of testosterone in the blood, so the new study suggests the hormone also plays a role in heart disease, but there's "no hard data there at all, [it's] only speculative."

She said the group for whom the new results would raise the greatest concern is men between ages 70 and 79. In this group, 45 percent of those with all four aging signs developed heart disease, versus 31 percent of those with none of the four.

"This study underscores the importance of doing a good physical exam, in addition to any testing we're going to do for risk for heart disease," said Dr. Nieca Goldberg, director of the NYU Center for Women's Health and American Heart Association spokesperson, in a statement in response to the study.

While the researchers adjusted their results to account for other risk factors for heart disease, Goldberg noted that, for example, xanthelasmata is a sign of high cholesterol levels, a traditional risk factor for heart disease.

Goldberg concluded that while the length of the study made the results compelling, doctors "need to continue to monitor our standard testing for heart disease risk, such as measuring cholesterol, blood pressure, glucose for diabetes."

The researchers are presenting their findings today (Nov. 6) at an American Heart Association research conference. The findings have not been published in a scientific journal. ( LiveScience.com )

Blog : Contents Of Human Life | 4 Aging Signs May Reveal Heart Disease Risk

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Bills seek end to farm animal abuse videos

Bills seek end to farm animal abuse videos — An undercover video that showed California cows struggling to stand as they were prodded to slaughter by forklifts led to the largest meat recall in U.S. history. In Vermont, a video of veal calves skinned alive and tossed like sacks of potatoes ended with the plant's closure and criminal convictions.

Now in a pushback led by the meat and poultry industries, state legislators across the country are introducing laws making it harder for animal welfare advocates to investigate cruelty and food safety cases.

 

Associated Press/Humane Society of the United States, file - FILE - In this April 22, 2010 image from video provided by the United States Humane Society, a Hallmark Meat Packing slaughter plant worker is shown attempting to force a "downed" cow onto its feet by ramming it with the blades of a forklift in Chino, Calif. State legislators across the country are introducing laws making it harder for animal welfare advocates to investigate cruelty and food safety cases. Bills pending in California, Nebraska and Tennessee require that anyone collecting evidence of abuse turn it over to law enforcement within 24 to 48 hours - which advocates say does not allow enough time to document illegal activity under federal humane handling and food safety laws. Critics say the bills are an effort to deny consumers the ability to know how their food is produced. (AP Photo/Humane Society of the United States, file)

Some bills make it illegal to take photographs at a farming operation. Others make it a crime for someone such as an animal welfare advocate to lie on an application to get a job at a plant.

Bills pending in California, Nebraska and Tennessee require that anyone collecting evidence of abuse turn it over to law enforcement within 24 to 48 hours — which advocates say does not allow enough time to document illegal activity under federal humane handling and food safety laws.

"We believe that folks in the agriculture community and folks from some of the humane organizations share the same concerns about animal cruelty," said Mike Zimmerman, chief of staff for Assembly Member Jim Patterson, R-Fresno, whose bill was unveiled this week. "If there's abuse taking place, there is no sense in letting it continue so you can make a video."

Patterson's bill, sponsored by the California Cattlemen's Association, would make failing to turn over video of abuse to law enforcement within 48 hours an infraction punishable by a fine.

Critics say the bills are an effort to deny consumers the ability to know how their food is produced.

"The meat industry's mantra is always that these are isolated cases, but the purpose of these bills is to prevent any pattern of abuse from being documented," said Paul Shapiro, vice president of farm animal protection for the Humane Society of the United States, which conducted the California and Vermont investigations.

In Indiana, Arkansas and Pennsylvania it would be a crime to make videos at agricultural operations.

The goal of the proposed California law, industry representatives say, is to halt any abuses quickly and get video evidence to government regulators within two days, not to impede undercover investigations by animal welfare groups.

"The people doing this aren't cops so I wouldn't think it's their job to build a case. The goal for all of us is to reduce instances of animal abuse," said David Daley, a Cattlemen vice president and professor of agricultural science at California State University-Chico.

Formal opposition to the California bill comes from the ASPCA, the Teamsters, the HSUS and dozens of others. They say these attempts by the agriculture industry to stop investigations are a part of a nationwide agenda set by the American Legislative Exchange Council, a conservative think tank backed by business interests.

ALEC has labeled those who interfere with animal operations "terrorists," though a spokesman said he wishes now that the organization had called its legislation the "Freedom to Farm Act" rather than the "Animal and Ecological Terrorism Act."

"At the end of the day it's about personal property rights or the individual right to privacy," said spokesman Bill Meierling. "You wouldn't want me coming into your home with a hidden camera."

Animal welfare advocates say all of the focus on secrecy is energy misspent.

"I wish the cattlemen actually wanted to stop cruelty, not the documenting of cruelty," said HSUS California director Jennifer Fearing. "One could think of a thousand ways for them to actually stop cruelty rather than waiting for people to make videos and turn them over."

Animal welfare advocates say law enforcement agencies do not have the time or inclination to work complex animal abuse and food safety cases, and that federal USDA inspectors in slaughter plants have turned a blind eye to abuse.

When a USDA inspector at the Vermont plant was heard in 2009 coaching a plant worker on how to avoid being shut down, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack weighed in, calling the conduct "inexcusable."

In reaction to concerns, the USDA has been working to improve enforcement of its humane handling regulations over the past two years, including establishing an ombudsman position that accepts reports of violations. Last year 24 new positions in the Food Safety Inspection Service were dedicated to humane handling, said a high-ranking food safety official not authorized to speak publicly.

That hasn't slowed investigations or the bills designed to stop them. The Arkansas bill goes further than the others and would prohibit anyone other than law enforcement from investigating animal cases.

Last year Iowa, a major egg-producing state, passed a bill making it illegal to deny being a member of an animal welfare organization on a farm job application. Utah passed one that outlaws photography.

Most of the sensational videos of abuse in recent years are shot by undercover operatives who surreptitiously apply and are hired by the meat processors for jobs within the facilities. One recorded last year by Compassion over Killing at Central Valley Meats in Hanford, Calif. showed a worker standing on a downed dairy cow's nostrils to suffocate it and others repeatedly shot in the head, prompting several fast-food hamburger to cancel contracts, at least temporarily.

Animal welfare groups say investigations take weeks because the operatives nose around only when they aren't performing the duties for which they were hired.

An HSUS investigator was in the Hallmark plant in Southern California for six weeks between October and November 2007, when the nonprofit turned over to the local district attorney evidence that included fraud in the federal school lunch program because animals too sick to walk were being slaughtered. In January 2008, HSUS released the video to force the DA to act. Two employees were convicted of cruelty charges.

Late last year, nine workers at a Wyoming pork processing facility were charged with animal cruelty after an HSUS video showed them kicking and tossing piglets and failing to euthanize a sow gravely injured by a worker while giving birth.

In 2009, HSUS spent 21 days in the Vermont slaughterhouse where male calves born to dairy cows were killed for veal.

"Believe me our investigators would like to be out of there as soon as possible. They're stoic, they're courageous, but they are not enjoying their work at all," said Mary Beth Sweetland, director of investigations for HSUS. ( Associated Press )

Blog : Contents Of Human Life | Bills seek end to farm animal abuse videos

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Flesh Eating Disease Survivor Aimee Copeland Loves Life 'Even More Now'

Aimee Copeland, the young woman who lost her hands, both feet and her entire right leg to flesh-eating bacteria last spring, made her public debut today by walking -- painstakingly -- onto the set of Katie Couric's new show where she was received with a standing ovation.

Copeland beamed as she struggled slowly towards Couric with the aid of prosthetic foot and a new walker, pushing the walker forward and then hopping a step, bringing Couric near tears.

Despite her ordeal, Copeland quickly rejected a question from Couric who asked whether she ever felt like just dying.

Flesh Eating Disease Survivor Aimee Copeland Loves Life 'Even More Now' (ABC News)

"I love life. It's a beautiful thing... even more so now," she replied.

"Senses are so deepened," she said. "Everything smells better. Everything is more vibrant, more beautiful."

Copeland, 24, cut open her right leg falling from a zip line near the Tallapoosa River nearly four months ago, allowing a deadly bacterium to enter her body. She said she sensed something wasn't quite right days after receiving 22 stitches to close the wound on her calf because it hurt up to her thigh.

The bacteria advanced undetected until "My entire leg was a dark purple color," Copeland said. "I wasn't able to walk. I wasn't able to speak. The only thing I was able to babble was, 'I think I'm dying.'"

After being in and out of the emergency room with the painful wound that wouldn't heal, doctors realized she had necrotizing fasciitis and amputated her leg from the hip.

Watch Josh Elliott's interview with Aimee Copeland on "Good Morning America" Wednesday at 7 am ET.

Later, when her hands turned black, doctors amputated them too.

"I think the most extreme moment was when my dad lifted up my hands for me to see, and my fingers were black and my hands were a deep, blood red," she said. "I said, 'Let's do this.' I mean, what else are you going to do? Live with some dead hands?"

Copeland, however, was bubbly as she talked about her future, her boyfriend and her upcoming thesis on wilderness therapy for amputees, waving what she refers to as her "nubs" as she spoke enthusiastically.

Copeland returned to her Snellville, Ga., home a few weeks ago after a grueling 51-day rehabilitation program at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta. She told Couric she can do 300 sit-ups at a time now.

She said she doesn't like to be called "disabled," and that she plans to use her "nubs" instead of adaptive equipment because she's learned to do so much with what she has left. During the show, Couric showed a video of Copeland texting with her nose and brushing her teeth with the brush wrapped to her arm.

She would rather not use hooks or leg prosthetics when she's able to drive again in a few weeks, Copeland said, adding that prosthetics on pedals are akin to trying to drive a car in a "giant pair of heels."

One of her biggest pleasures she said was standing up after being bedridden for so long.

"You take it for granted just to look people in the eyes," she said. She said that her boyfriend cried the first time he saw her stand and said, "I've missed you up here."

She said what she has eclipses what she lost last spring.

"There's a lot I don't have that other people have, but there's a lot I have that other people don't have," she told Couric.

Copeland's family joined her on the stage later in the show to talk about her strength and positive attitude.

Copeland, who is getting her Master's degree in psychology, said many think they can't kayak or hike, but that's not the case, and she wants to show them.

"I want to spread that knowledge to other amputees and help people get back in the woods, get back in the wilderness, into that place that can be so healing," she said.

Although Couric said she tells people her show is not about giving away cars, she said she would make an exception.

Copeland mouthed "oh my gosh" as Couric explained that Chevrolet dealer Steve Rayman whose father-in-law recently became an amputee gave Copeland a retrofitted van complete with a ribbon on top. The dealer said he just wanted Copeland to be a normal "24-year-old kid," adding, "she's going to be incredible."

"But she's not going to speed," Couric chimed in.

"Never," Copeland said, laughing. ( Good Morning America )

Blog : Contents Of Human Life | Flesh Eating Disease Survivor Aimee Copeland Loves Life 'Even More Now'

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Are insects the answer to global malnutrition?

Are insects the answer to global malnutrition? – Serge Verniau is a man with a mission: to persuade the world to swap the chicken wings and steaks on their plates for crickets, palm weevils and other insects rich in protein and vitamins.

Verniau, the Laos representative of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), is only half-joking when he says his dream is "to feed the big metropolises from Tokyo to Los Angeles, via Paris" with the small arthropods.

He plans to present the lessons drawn from a pilot project to the world at a conference on edible insects, probably in 2012.

"Most of the world's population will live in urban areas. Trying to feed the whole planet enough protein from cows won't work," Verniau told AFP.

It is not by chance that the dream was born in landlocked Laos, one of the world's poorest countries.

Almost one quarter of its population of six million people, and nearly 40 percent of children below the age of five years old, suffer from malnutrition, according to figures from the Laos government.

The typical rice-based diet provides insufficient nutrients for development -- a shortfall that could be filled by insects, highly rich in protein and vitamins.

Plates of fried insects,, are seen - Plates of fried insects ready to eat, including crikets and grasshopers, are seen here at a local market in Vientiane. Raising crikets for foods is seen as a solution to the malnutrition in the poor landlock country where a great number of people, especially children, suffer from it.

Eaten as snacks, grilled or fried, they are already part of Laos cuisine, but most people do not know how to breed them, said Oudom Phonekhampheng, dean of the faculty of agriculture at the National University of Laos.

"They just take them in the wild and eat them, and then it is finished and destroyed. They have to think about the future," he said.

In a modest building in the suburbs of the capital, his department's laboratory collects scientific data on this new area of breeding.

Along with house crickets -- which are already widely farmed in neighbouring Thailand -- there are experiments in breeding mealworms, palm weevils and weaver ants, which are appreciated for their larvae.

The students are trying out different foods for the insects in an attempt to reduce costs while maintaining quality, explains Yupa Hanboonsong, a Thai entomologist supervising the project for the FAO.

Up to now, the roughly 20 cricket farms operating in Laos have used chicken feed, like thousands of Thai farms, but it is expensive and must be imported.

Vegetables or waste left over from the production of the national beer, BeerLao, could be one solution, said Yupa, who hopes to "train the whole country."

Beyond the fight against malnutrition, this new economic activity can also generate revenue for farmers, added Yupa.

Phouthone Sinthiphanya, 61, seized the opportunity in 2007 to supplement his meager pension after a career in the tobacco industry.

The 27 cylindrical concrete vats, about 50 centimetres (20 inches) tall, installed in the garden of his house in Vientiane produce 67 kilos (148 pounds) of crickets every two months, he explains.

One kilo of live insects fetches 60,000 kips (7.5 dollars). The same quantity crushed sells for 50,000 kips.

"I worked for a tobacco company and then retired. My pension was not enough so I started farming insects," he said.

"Our customers are restaurants, villagers, markets," he said, adding that breeding the small creatures was "easy".

It requires little space or natural resources and only their singing might annoy the neighbours.

"Insect farming creates less damage to the environment. It is a green protein," said Yupa.

Proponents believe such nutritional and environmental advantages could be beneficial beyond Laos, particularly in other developing countries where people are used to eating cicadas and grasshoppers.

"You can make powder from crickets that is very rich in protein. It's low in fat and it can be added to biscuits in problem areas where food rations are distributed," said Verniau.

Nor has he given up hope of persuading sceptics in the West.

"When you look closely, a grey shrimp or a cricket, it has the same appeal," he joked. ( Agence France Presse )

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The vitamin and mineral

The vitamin and mineral supplement industry is worth billions of bounds, but few people are really clear about which - and how much - nutrients they should take in pill form. We put some searching questions to our resident expert, Dr John Briffa.

Is taking vitamin C necessary?

Vitamin C is one of the most beneficial substances known to man. It has myriad biological effects and plays a role in many body processes, such as immune activity, wound healing, protection from pollution and smoking, and a reduction in the risk of cataract.

Should we always stick to Recommended Daily Allowances?

Not necessarily. The RDAs, established more than 50 years ago, represent the level of nutrients needed to prevent deficiency diseases. For instance, 60mg of vitamin C (the RDA) is deemed to be the amount of this nutrient we need to consume each day to keep us from getting scurvy. In practice, RDAs are of little relevance for many reasons.

To begin with, the RDAs take no account of individual circumstances. Requirements for nutrients can vary according to genetic makeup, sex, age, levels of stress, activity levels, alcohol consumption, pollution, smoking, the use of prescription medications, pregnancy and menopause.

Generally, the levels of nutrients required to achieve these important health-giving effects are way in excess of the pitifully low RDAs.

Isn't it true that the whole supplement industry is all about money?

The manufacturers of nutrient supplements are no doubt in the business of making money. However, I do not believe that the motivation for the industry as a whole is entirely financial. It is clear that the nutritional supplement industry provides products to the public which often have very significant health-giving properties. Natural remedies are generally very safe and often help where conventional medicine has failed.

Wouldn't we be better off simply eating a healthy diet?

A healthy diet is the cornerstone of any nutritional approach to health. However, intensive farming methods and processing have stripped our food of much of its vital nutrient content. Many of the foods we eat today are nutritionally lacking. Even if we eat a 'healthy diet', it is virtually impossible to get the amounts of nutrients we need for optimal health.

Another reason why supplements may be advised is when it is not practical to obtain a nutrient from the diet at the levels required to achieve a particular effect.

An example of this is vitamin E in the prevention of heart disease. Studies have shown that taking 100-200 IU of vitamin E each day reduces the risk of heart disease by about 40 pc. It is, however, virtually impossible to consume this quantity of vitamin E through diet alone.

Another example is folic acid, which is recommended by doctors at a dose of 400mcg per day for pregnant women. To get this quantity of folic acid via the diet is impractical, which is why the medical profession recommends supplementation in this instance.

I am often asked whether people need to take supplements. My answer is that no one needs to take supplements. However, if an individual is interested in preventing illness and optimising their health, supplements can have a useful role to play.

Is there any evidence that people live longer or are any healthier taking handfuls of supplements every day?

Yes. Numerous scientific studies demonstrate that nutrients can be effective in treating a wide range of conditions. It is important to remember that, while we know people do not get sick because of a lack of prescription medication, nutrient deficiencies are quite often an important factor in disease.

Don't most vitamins just pass straight through the body, in effect, money down the drain?

The body will generally dispense with what it doesn't need and nutrients are no different in this respect. Excess nutrients are removed from the body, often through the urine. Yet a significant proportion of nutrients that are consumed are retained by the body and go on to play a vital part in all bodily processes. Even the nutrients that are expelled will exert some effect as they pass through the body.

Point by point, how do you answer charges that: Too much vitamin A causes birth defects, dry skin, scaly skin, headaches, fatigue, painful bones and loss of appetite?

Vitamin A in excess may give rise to all the symptoms listed here. However, the smallest daily supplement generally considered to generate any risk of birth defects is 25,000IU per day. To be on the safe side, it is recommended that pregnant women should take no more than 10,000IU of vitamin A per day.

With regard to the other problems associated with vitamin A usage, the scientific literature shows that vitamin A is safe in adult men and postmenopausal women at a dose of 30,000 IU per day. This is about ten times the dose of vitamin A found in multivitamin and mineral supplements.

Too much vitamin D leads to high blood calcium, headache and appetite loss?

Vitamin D plays an essential role in the absorption of calcium from the gut and may therefore help prevent osteoporosis and other conditions. The toxic effects of vitamin D have been found only at doses which exceed 2,000IU per day in adults. Again, this is about ten times the dose of vitamin D found in multivitamin and mineral supplements.

Too much vitamin E can thin the blood and may be dangerous for those on certain medications?

Vitamin E is a natural blood thinner. In fact, it is this effect which probably accounts at least in part for vitamin E's beneficial effect in the treatment and prevention of heart disease. Certain medications, notably warfarin, also thin the blood and this effect may be enhanced by taking vitamin E. For this reason, it is generally advised that individuals on warfarin or other anticoagulant medication do not take vitamin E.

Too much folic acid can disguise a deficiency in B12 with potentially serious neurological consequences?

It is true that folic acid supplementation may mask the symptoms of B12 deficiency. Nerve damage can result, which may not be responsive to the B12 supplementation. It is an established part of natural health dogma that folic acid is given either with B12, or as part of a B-complex supplement containing B12. It is conventional doctors who tend to advise use of folic acid on its own. ( dailymail.co.uk )

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16 scary symptoms

16 scary symptoms . A headache, double vision, unexplained lumps, a persistent cough. When should you get to the doctor right away?

Most of us put off going to the doctor. Maybe we'll feel better tomorrow. We don't want to make a fuss. We don't want her to nag again about our smoking or our weight.

In fact, going to the doctor is on many peoples' list of favourite activities - somewhere between painting the garage and banging their head hard several times on the low doorway of the outside shed.

But that doctor's visit could save your life. Early intervention in the case of a disease such as cancer, could make all the difference. It is simply better to bite the bullet and make that appointment, rather than lying awake for months and doing nothing about it.

But what are the symptoms that should make anyone sit up and take note? And more importantly, which symptoms should make you go to your GP that same day?

1. Constant coughing.

If you've recently had flu, a cough will linger for a few days or even a few weeks. But if you have a cough which has moved in lock, stock and barrel, it's time to get to the doctor. It could be one of several things, from tuberculosis, a chest infection and lung cancer, to name but a few.

2. Rectal bleeding.

If your stools are dark in colour and you become aware of the fact that you regularly bleed from the anus, make that appointment. It could be any of a number of things, from benign (bleeding piles) to serious (colon cancer), but don't take any chances.

3. Blinding headaches.

Everyone gets headaches from time to time, but if you start missing work regularly and live on painkillers, the time for action has come. It could be as simple as getting different glasses, changing your diet/lifestyle, or it could be something more worrying. Best to get to the truth as soon as possible.

4. Vision problems.

Everyone's vision deteriorates somewhat with age, but if your vision becomes blurry overnight, or changes in any other noticeable way, see an optician and a neurologist. It may be something insignificant, but then, it also may not be.

5. Fever. If your temperature fluctuates between high and normal for no discernable reason, find out what's wrong. If you run a fever for more than three days, visit your doctor.

6. Ongoing diarrhoea.

Whether the result of food poisoning or a virus, diarrhoea is dangerous. And the longer it continues, the more dangerous it becomes, as it dehydrates you. If you regularly get diarrhoea, or if it carries on for more than two or three days, see the doctor. If your baby has diarrhoea, don't waste a day before you see your doctor/nurse. Do it immediately.

7. Chest pains.

This could be as innocent as heartburn, but it could also be a signal that your heart is in trouble. If chest discomfort is accompanied by pains in your left arm, don't bother with the GP – get straight to the hospital's emergency room. You could be having a heart attack.

8. Night sweats.

Sweating at night is not normal – it is often a symptom of tuberculosis, Aids or Hodgkin's disease, which is a lymphatic cancer. Do something about it.

9. Genital sores.

These are usually a symptom of a sexually transmitted disease. They should not be ignored, as this disease can be passed on to others, regardless of what it might be doing to you.

10. New moles. Most people have moles somewhere on their bodies. If a mole changes its colour, shape or size, it could be turning nasty. Watch out for new moles. They will not go away by themselves if left untreated, and could become quite serious in the long run.

11. Sudden muscle weakness.

If you suddenly find you have difficulty standing, walking, or balancing, or that muscles that were fine the day before have become weak and useless, get it checked out. It could be, among other things, Parkinson's disease or you may even have had a mild stroke. And yes, young people can have strokes too.

12. Breathing difficulties.

Sudden onset of breathing difficulties could signify many things – from asthma, to an allergic reaction, to name but two. Breathing problems can quickly become life-threatening. Don't ignore them.

13. Constant urination.

Everyone urinates a few times per day, but when you start getting up three or four times during the night to go to the toilet, something is wrong. It could be prostate problems or the onset of type 2 diabetes, or even just a bladder infection. Best make sure.

14. Bumps and lumps.

Whether we're talking swollen glands or lumps under the skin, these should never be ignored. Better be safe than sorry. It could just be a mild infection or a pimple or boil, but then again, it may not. Check it out.

15. Chronic exhaustion.

Between working nine-to-five and keeping the family going, most people are tired, and not surprisingly. But when you suddenly feel as if getting out of bed in the morning is a major undertaking, something could be wrong. It may be depression, or the exhaustion could be a symptom of other ailments.

16. Loss of interest in life.

If you or family members suspect you may be depressed, why suffer unnecessarily? We are no longer in the fourteenth century and depression can be treated. Most people who commit suicide suffer from depression. Up those serotonin levels before you get to these levels of desperation. ( health24.com )

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