Health knowledge made personal
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Dana E. King, Eric Matheson, Svetlana Chirina, Anoop Shankar, Jordan Broman-Fulks. ”The Status of Baby Boomers' Health in the United States: The Healthiest Generation? “ JAMA Intern Med. , February 4, 2013
Vitamin D3 and omega-3 fatty acids may enhance the immune system's ability to clear the brain of the amyloid plaques characteristic of Alzheimer’s Disease.
US Baby Boomers are experiencing higher rates of chronic disease and lower self-rated health than members of the previous generation at the same age.
People who maintain cardiorespiratory fitness in mid-life may be less likely to develop dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease, as they age.
Potential new anti-cancer therapy aims to halt cancer cell growth by knocking out a key mitochondrial protein.
Exposure to sunlight associates with a decreased incidence of rheumatoid arthritis, among women.
An eight-week long program involving the consumption of 40 g of soybean protein a day improved biomarkers of inflammation and adipocytokines.
Indulging in a small food treat yields as much psychological satisfaction as a larger portion.
By modulating the biological pathways involved in inflammation, humulones and bittering acids found in beer may beneficially impact diabetes and other diseases.
Older adults may improve their decision making and working memory simply by maintaining a positive mood.
Silibinin, the extract of milk thistle, kills skin cells mutated by UVA radiation - which makes up about 95% of the sun’s radiation that reaches Earth.
The number of obese adults, related disease rates and health care costs, are on course to increase dramatically in the United States over the next 20 years.
Rush University (US) researcher reports that nearly 500,000 deaths in 2007 are attributable to the condition, factoring in chronic coexisting conditions.
Experts project that the incidence of diabetes is set to soar by 64% by 2025, meaning that a staggering 53.1 million citizens will be affected by the disease.
Much of the cancer burden in the US could be reduced via reduced tobacco use, improved diet, more exercise, weight loss, and screening tests.
More than 6% of Americans ages 70 to 89 develop mild cognitive impairment (MCI) every year, and the condition appears to affect men more than women.
Life expectancy for patients with Parkinson's disease is poorer than some previous studies have suggested, with barely one-third of patients surviving six years
A study examining the changes in cancer survival over the past 40 years has revealed that the difference in mortality between the married and never married, par
Researchers estimate that the number of cancer survivors aged 65 and over will increase by approximately 42% by 2020.
If the current "obesity epidemic" continues unchecked, 50% of the US adult population will be obese -- with body mass index values of 30 or higher -- by 2030.
Senior Californians living in rural areas are more often overweight than their urban counterparts, putting them at greater risk for heart disease and diabetes
Tip #127 - Delay Death with Vitamin D
The therapeutic role of vitamin D, "the sunshine vitamin," for bone health, has become well established. A number of recent studies now link vitamin D deficiency to adverse health consequences such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and some infectious diseases.
Johns Hopkins University (Maryland, USA) researchers reported that low blood levels of Vitamin D are associated with a 26% increased risk of death from any cause. The team analyzed data collected on 13,331 adults during a 6-year period after which the subjects were followed for 9 years. People with Vitamin D levels of less than 17.8 ng/mL had a 26% increased rate of death from any cause, compared to people with the highest Vitamin D levels (more than 32.1 ng/mL). Researchers from Harvard School of Public Health (Massachusetts, USA) reported that those individuals taking vitamin D supplements are at a 7% lower risk of death, as compared to those who did not supplement. As well, Vitamin D inhibits the body’s inflammatory response and thus reduces the turnover of leukocytes (a type of white blood cell). The length of the leukocyte telomere (the endcap of the chromosome) is a predictor of aging-related disease, whereby it shortens as a result of increased inflammation. A team from King's College, London School of Medicine (United Kingdom) found that people with longer telomeres have higher levels of Vitamin D stored in their bodies. The team reports that: “The difference … was … equivalent to five years of telomeric aging,” suggesting that people who have higher levels of vitamin D may age more slowly than people with lower levels. |
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Baby Boomers in America – men and women born between 1946 and 1964 – are enjoying longer life expectancies of than previous generations. Yet, they are doing so with higher rates of chronic disease, more disability, and lower self-rated health, as compared to people of earlier generations at the same age. Dana King, from West Virginia University (West Virginia, USA), and colleagues compared two generations at ages 46 to 64 years, enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The team observed that individuals born during the post-war boom from 1946 to 1964 had 46% more diabetes, 38% more hypertension, and 5to 9-fold more hypercholesterolemia. Obesity was significantly more common among all the baby boomers as well, noting that the previous generation engaged in more exercise. The study authors submit that their findings: “provide a vitally important context for health workforce and policy planning in the coming years.”