What could be worse?

The flu is bad this year, really bad.

The Hong Kong government on Thursday closed all elementary schools and preschools in the territory a week early for Easter holidays after three children died amid an influenza outbreak, but insisted there was no sign that SARS or bird flu were involved

Schools and businesses through-out the world have been effected - an outcome of globalization.

Forget Garlic

You know those garlic pills, supplements and aromatic additions to your cooking that you've used to lower your choesterol? Well, a new study has concluded that garlic does not lower LDL, the bad-boy of cholesterol. Although garlic and garlic supplements are widely promoted as cholesterol-lowering agents, a randomized study published Monday has found no evidence that garlic works any better than a placebo in reducing blood lipid concentrations.

Research contradict widely held research

A new study suggests that exercise plus diet is not the most effective means to loose weight. 

Dieting and exercising can help weight loss.   But dieting alone can be as effective, according to a new study published in a recent issue of Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Weight loss occurs in a person who reduces intake of calories in his diet and or increases energy expenditure through physical exercise.

"What we found was that it did not matter whether a reduction in calories was achieved through diet or burned everyday through exercise," Dr. Leanne Redman of the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

In the 6-month study of thirty-five overweight but otherwise healthy adults, 12 were assigned to reduce their calorie intake by 25 percent.   12 were assigned to diet plus exercise, reducing calorie intake by 12.5 percent and increasing their exercise by 12.5 percent.   The remaining 11 were not asked to change any thing in terms of diet and physical activity.

Yes, dieting alone can be effective for weight loss.  However, numerous prior studies have shown the benefits, both in terms of weight reduction and health, of exercise.

 

Treating Sleep Apnea Lowers Glucose Levels

Individuals with Type 2 diabetes who also suffer from sleep apnea can better manage their diabetes by receiving the most common sleep apnea treatements.

Obstructive sleep apnea is a disorder in which a person's breathing actually stops during sleep when their airway collapses. This interferes with healthy sleep and leads to a number both subtle and profound health related effects.

Previous research has found sleep apnea sufferers are nine times more likely to have diabetes than those without the sleep disorder.

The most common treatment option for obstructive sleep apnea involves wearing a mask that delivers air through their nose. The airflow keeps the nasal passages open sufficiently to prevent airway collapse.

Approximately 18 million Americans suffer from obstructive sleep apnea and approximately 90 percent have not been diagnosed.

Source: Diabetes In Control.com: Archives of Internal Medicine, Feb 28. 2005, Drs. James Herdegen, Ambika Babu and Leon Fogelfeld.

Dairy Good for Diabetes

Health benefits from dairy products are getting more attention. Two new studies show that those who incorporate lowfat dairy products into their diets can lower blood pressure and reduce type 2 diabetes.

New research reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows that a diet including lowfat dairy products helped lower blood pressure more than a typical lowfat diet. The diet included increased physical activity and resulted in weight loss.

The diet, known as dietary approaches to stop hypertension, or DASH, diet, includes three daily servings of lowfat dairy foods, plus eight to 10 servings of fruits and vegetables daily.

Another study reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine showed that men who drank 2 to 3 cups of lowfat or nonfat milk each day were 20 percent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes during a 12-year study.

Researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital and the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston analyzed data from more than 41,000 male study participants�most in their 50s�with no history of diabetes, heart disease or cancer at the start of the study.

They found that each per-day serving increase in lowfat dairy intake was associated with a 9-percent lower risk for type 2 diabetes. However, the reduction was seen only in participants who consumed lowfat or nonfat dairy products, and not in those who drank whole milk.