[RESEARCH] Suicide rates in young men in England and Wales in the 21st century: time trend study
Objectives To explore trends in suicide in young people to investigate the recent observation that after year on year rises in the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s, rates in young men are now declining.
Design Time trend analysis.
Setting England and Wales, 1968-2005.
Population Men and women aged 15-34 years.
Results Since the 1990s, rates of suicide in young men have declined steadily and by 2005 they were at their lowest level for almost 30 years. This decline is partly because of a reduction in poisoning with car exhaust gas as an increased number of cars have catalytic converters; but there have been declines in suicides from all common methods, including hanging, suggesting a more pervasive effect. Other risk factors for suicide, such as unemployment and divorce, have also decreased. Possible recent reductions in alcohol use among young men and increases in prescribing of antidepressants do not seem to be temporally related to the decline in suicide.
Conclusions Suicide rates in young men have declined markedly in the past 10 years in England and Wales. Reductions in key risk factors for suicide, such as unemployment, might be contributing to lower rates.
Small change may help in a big way
Filed under: Type 1, Type 2, Research
Sometimes change can come in the form of something mammoth in size, while other times it can appear as 
something simple. Regardless of the scale, it is the totality of the effect that change that matters most. And, insofar as smaller, simpler changes go, a recent classification of infections may have a profound effect on the future of diabetes complications.
This change comes as the result of a joint effort by several research groups, hailing from as far and as wide as Texas to the Netherlands. Publishing their landmark study on the classification of diabetic foot infections has validated and tweaked the Infectious Disease Society of America's already standing system of labeling infections as mild, moderate or severe. The doctors involved in the study see this study as having a dramatic impact on predicting hospitalization and amputation. Furthermore, it will assist doctors in communicating with their patients and guiding them most effectively through therapy.
For more information on this classification system, visit: www.diabetic-foot.net
Even a little bad fat can be too much
Filed under: Diet, American Heart Association
Even one fatty feast can cause your body to stop protecting itself from cardiovascular disease, a recent study showed, at least temporarily. When study participants were given a high-fat meal -- the equivalent of a double cheeseburger, large fry, and a chocolate shake -- their HDL (or good) cholesterol lost the ability to protect their arteries from inflammation. But when participants ate the same meal, this time prepared with polyunsaturated fat, the ability of HDL to prevent inflammation actually improved.Researchers say this study points out the importance of avoiding saturated fats as much as possible. In fact, they say that a maximum of 10% of your calories should come from saturated fats, and the AHA takes that one step further and recommends no more than 7%. That means that if you typically eat 2,000 calories a day, you should eat no more than 14 to 20 grams of saturated fat.
Here's more about good fats and bad fats from the AHA.
Does your doctor take side-effects seriously?
Filed under: Drugs
A recent study has come up with some results that don't bode so well for doctors: it seems more often than not they "write off" concerns expressed by their patients regarding medication side-effects. The study included 650 adults who believed they were experiencing adverse drug reactions related to their cholesterol meds, and the majority of their doctors blew off the concerns and denied the possibility that the symptoms and the medications could be connected. This trend rings true even for the most commonly seen side-effects for the most commonly prescribed drugs -- what's up with that?The study wasn't designed to find out why this happened, just that it does. Some experts guess that it's simply because there are no laws (and no way to regulate) that doctors learn the side-effects of every medication they prescribe.
So I guess it's up to you, as the patient, to educate yourself and make sure you have a doctor who listens.
Atkins Diet - Ten Lies About Atkins Diet Revealed
Low carbohydrate diets such as Atkins have always been controversial, but with the recent wave of new research and publicity, the controversy is now raging hotter than ever.
How sweet it is
Filed under: Diet, Prevention, Research
Looking back on some recent posts, I realized that there has been too much negativity going on. While I do feel it is important to pass along research related to heart-related complications and dangers, I sometimes feel like a purveyor of doom. So, in efforts to 'add some heart' to this blog, I thought I'd mention something sweet.
Well, semi-sweet, anyway.
Yet another study -- this time conducted at Johns Hopkins Univeristy -- has found dark chocolate to be highly beneficial to circulation and overall heart health. The research, presented at a recent American Heart Association meeting, revealed a clear connection between the consumption of chocolate and the reduced risk of blood clots.
The flavonoids in chocolate affect how effectively platelets clump, thereby lowering an individual's risk of developing a clot. It also seems that the darker the chocolate, the higher the amount of flavonoids. Doctors suggest dark chocolate that contains at least 70% Cacao (it will say so on the packaging).
High association between hepatitis C and type 2
Filed under: Type 2, Childhood, Adult Onset, Research
A recent study by researchers in Taiwan revealed hepatitis C virus (HCV) raises the risk of type 2 diabetes. Hepatitis C is a blood-borne, infectious viral disease that messes with the liver -- capable of causing inflammation, scarring and even liver cancer.
4,958 non-diabetics aged 40 or older were followed for seven years. At the start of the study, 3,486 were seronegative (no antibodies in the blood), 812 were anti-HCV+ (positive to hepatitis C virus antibodies), 116 had HBV/HCV coinfection (HBV is hepatitis B virus), and 544 were positive for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg+). The hepatitis B surface antigen is a protein antigen produced by hepatitis B, and the earliest indicator of acute hepatitis B.
474 participants developed diabetes over the next seven years. After established risk factors were adjusted for, the incidence of diabetes was 70 percent higher for participants with HCV infection. HBV/HCV coinfection and anti-HCV+ alone participants had nearly the same risk, which shows HCV increases diabetes risk while HBV does not. For younger, overweight anti-HCV+ participants, the risk was even higher. Stay away from those deep fried twinkies with chocolate syrup and powdered sugar!
Study authors note regular diabetes screenings are important for anti-HCV+ people, and should be started at a younger age, especially if overweight or with additional risk factors for the disease. Read more in Medscape. The study was published in the July 15 American Journal of Epidemiology.
Hepatitis C is the leading cause of liver transplant in the United States.
[RESEARCH] Case-control study of self reported genitourinary infections and risk of gastroschisis: findings from the national birth defects prevention study, 1997-2003
Objective To assess the association between genitourinary infections in the month before conception to the end of the first trimesterand gastroschisis.
Design Case-control study with self reported infections from a computer assisted telephone interview.
Setting National birth defects prevention study, a multisite, population based study including 10 surveillance systems for birth defects in the United States.
Participants Mothers of 505 offspring with gastroschisis and 4924 healthy liveborn infants as controls.
Main outcome measure Adjusted odds ratios for gastroschisis with 95% confidence intervals.
Results About 16% (n=81) of case mothers and 9% (n=425) of control mothers reported a genitourinary infection in the relevant time period; 4% (n=21) and 2% (n=98) reported a sexually transmitted infection and 13% (n=67) and 7% (n=338) reported a urinary tract infection, respectively. Case mothers aged <25 years reported higher rates of urinary tract infection alone and in combination with a sexually transmitted infection compared with control mothers. In women who reported both types of infection, there was a greater risk of gastroschisis in offspring (adjusted odds ratio 4.0, 95% confidence interval 1.4 to 11.6).
Conclusion There is a significant association between self reported urinary tract infection plus sexually transmitted infection just before conception and in early pregnancy and gastroschisis.
Don't avoid the flavonoid
Filed under: Diet, Prevention, Nutrition
It turns out that there's some truth to the old adage that An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away. According to a 
study published in a recent issue of American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, women who eat apples regularly have a decreased risk of dying from coronary heart disease and cardiovascular disease.
What if you don't like apples? Try pears -- or even red wine. This same study revealed that consuming either of these will have the same preventative effects as eating apples. The researchers attribute these heart-healthy benefits to compounds known as flavonoids, which help reduce bad (LDL) cholesterol (Note: Flavanoids are not to be confused with the Noid -- who in the 80s was known to ruin the occasional pizza).
Flavonoids are also known for their antioxidant activity, meaning that they protect against free radical damage. For a more comprehensive look at how flavonoids, found in such foods as apples and pears, can better your health, click HERE. As for how they measure up against this guy on the right, however, I think there is still much research to be done.
Flavonoids in orange juice reduce inflammation
Filed under: Type 1, Type 2, Childhood, Adult Onset, Diet, Research
One of my family's favorite remedies for hypoglycemia is orange juice. Quickly absorbed, it packs a glucose punch. Get this -- not only do a few ounces of orange wonder bring 'em back to the land of clarity, it also reduces inflammation in the body.
A recent study by endocrinologists at the University of Buffalo reveals orange juice is packed with flavonoids. Not only that, flavonoids suppress destructive oxygen free radicals (aka reactive oxygen species or ROS). ROS can damage cells and contributes to chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Previous research has shown 300 calories of glucose induces ROS and other proinflammatory responses. Now the researchers wanted to see how orange juice, fructose and saccharin-sweetened water impacted ROS compared to glucose. For this study, 32 healthy people between ages 20 to 40 were divided equally into four groups and given 300 calories worth of either o.j., fructose, saccharin water or glucose. Significant increases in ROS were reported in samples from the glucose group, but not the o.j., fructose or water group.
Orange juice has the same concentration of glucose as participants in the glucose group, so the researchers dug further to determine what was suppressing ROS in the juice. Turns out two flavonoids in orange juice inhibited ROS generation.
Dr. Paresh Dandona, senior author of the study, stated it is important people with diabetes are aware of non-inflammatory food choices. Gotta spread the good news to my family! Read more in Medical News Today.
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