Grey hair may give protection against cancer

Good morning friends. Do you believe that grey hair may give protection against cancer? I read one article about this and you will just believe it.

Experiments on mice suggest that having grey hair may tender protection against cancer, say researchers.

Emi Nishimura, of Tokyo Medical and Dental University in Japan, points out that melanocytes are the cells that produce the pigments that colour hair, and that their numbers are kept topped up by stem cells.

According to Nishimura, hair goes grey when the number of stem cells in hair follicles declines.
The researcher says that a new study conducted at the university has now revealed what causes this decline in mice.

During the study, the researchers exposed mice to radiation and chemicals that harm DNA, and found that damaged stem cells transformed permanently into melanocytes.

Nishimura and colleagues say that that eventually led to fewer melanocytes, meaning that there were fewer stem cells capable of topping up the melanocyte pool.

Writing about their findings in the journal Cell, the researchers have revealed that the mice also went grey.

They believe that the same process leads to the reduction in stem cells in the follicles of older people, especially as DNA damage accumulates with the as they age.

David Fisher, a cancer researcher at Harvard Medical School, thinks that such processes may discourage the proliferation of stem cells with damaged DNA, which could pass on mutations, and thereby protect people against cancer.

"One likely beneficial effect is the removal of potentially dangerous cells that may contain pre-cancerous capabilities," New Scientist magazine quoted him as saying. (ANI)

Little sleep could make kids hyperactive

Good morning friends. We know almost all kids don’t want to sleep but instead they want to play the whole day as possible. Maybe some don’t know that little sleep could make our kids hyperactive.

Children's short sleep duration even without sleeping difficulties increases the risk for behavioural symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), says a new study.

Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), says a new study.

The study, led by researchers at the University of Helsinki and National Institute of Health and Welfare, Finland, examined whether decreased sleep leads to behavioral problems similar to those exhibited by children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

280 healthy children (146 girls and 134 boys) participated in the study. The researchers tracked the children's sleep using parental reporting as well as actigraphs, or devices worn on the wrist to monitor sleep.

The children whose average sleep duration as measured by actigraphs was shorter than 7.7 hours had a higher hyperactivity and impulsivity score and a higher ADHD total score, but similar inattention score than those sleeping for a longer time.

In multivariate statistical models, short sleep duration remained a statistically significant predictor of hyperactivity and impulsivity, and sleeping difficulties were associated with hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention. There were no significant interactions between short sleep and sleeping difficulties.

"We were able to show that short sleep duration and sleeping difficulties are related to behavioral symptoms of ADHD, and we also showed that short sleep, per se, increases behavioral symptoms, regardless of the presence of sleeping difficulties", says researcher Juulia Paavonen, MD, PhD.

"The findings suggest that maintaining adequate sleep schedules among children is likely to be important in preventing behavioral symptoms. However, even though inadequate sleep seems to owe potential to impair behaviour and performance, intervention studies are needed to confirm the causality," Paavonen added. – IST,ANI

Apples, avocados and a glass of red wine 'can ease arthritis'

Good morning friends. It’s a good thing to know that there are some fruits that can ease arthritis. One of my favorite fruit which can ease your arthritis is the apples, there is also the avocado. And the other thing is that a glass of red wine can also ease arthritis.

Suffering from arthritis? Make sure you eat apples, avocados, oily fish and drink a goblet of red wine everyday, for a new study has revealed that these could ease the painful joint condition.

Researchers have carried out the study and found a definite link between the food people eat and the severity of the symptoms -- in fact, apples, avocados and red wine contain anti-oxidants which reduce the rate at which cartilage breaks down, helping to slow the process of osteoarthritis.

Likewise, oily fish like salmon are a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids that oil the joints and thereby damp down inflammation. Omega-3 could also reduce the long-term need for painkillers in those with joint problems.

The study has also suggested that drinking plenty of fluids, two to three litres a day, to maintain good hydration and a steady flow of nutrients to your joints, leading British newspaper the 'Daily Mail' reported.

And, the foods most commonly found to worsen arthritis are wheat, corn, rye, sugar, caffeine, yeast, dairy products, oranges, grapefruit, lemons and tomatoes. Meats most likely to provoke symptoms are bacon, pork, beef and lamb. According to researchers, these foods trigger joint pain in those with arthritis. But when these are avoided about 70 per cent of sufferers have been seen to be reporting less pain and improved mobility.

The researchers have based their findings on an analysis of 82 people with osteoarthritis. The study also found that pain intensity reduced during the six-week period they had weekly Reiki sessions. – The Times of India

Skin cancer cream clears wrinkles

Good morning friends. There’s a research which is good for those people who have wrinkles. As we grow old, we can’t possible remove all that wrinkles. But you can at least prevent it. There are a lot f creams that were used by many just to prevent wrinkles and some fine lines. I came across with one article about our skin. Do you believe that skin cancer cream can clear wrinkles. Do you think it’s a fact or fallacy. Let me share it with you.

A cancer-busting skin cream can help banish the ageing effects of too much sun, such as wrinkles, dark spots, shadows and sallowness, say researchers.

US scientists led by Dr Dana Sachs, of the University of Michigan Medical School, have found that besides reducing potentially cancerous skin patches, Fluorouracil ointment, also known as Efudex, can mend the damage seen on sun- exposed faces.

Sachs said, "Undoubtedly, there will be patients who desire a therapy such as topical fluorouracil for cosmetic purposes given the relatively low cost."

The cream, which is used to treat actinic keratoses, a precancerous condition, appears to cause a wound-healing response that leads to an increase in collagen production, which then improves the appearance of wrinkles, reports The Daily Express.

To reach the conclusion, 21 volunteers with actinic keratoses and sun-damaged skin were made to apply the cream to their faces twice a day for two weeks. At the end of the time period, the condition was significantly reduced. In fact, clinical evaluations identified overall improvements in the volunteers' facial appearance.

During the study, a period of irritation and inflammation was followed by a healing response which effectively "rebuilt" the outer layers of skin on the face. Sachs said: "I've heard people describe it as looking like raw hamburger meat." But after the treatment patients agreed that their skin looked younger.

"People have commented for years that they look better. Not only are their pre-cancers gone but the quality of their skin seems to be improved," Sachs said.

"People's skin was much softer, the texture was improved. There are fewer wrinkles around the upper cheek and eyes," the expert added. –The times of India

Vitamin C helps stop diabetes damage

Good morning friends. Diabetes patient should not worry this time. Researchers found the Vitamin C helps stop diabetes damage.

Harold Hamm Oklahoma Diabetes Center researchers have found a link between taking vitamin C with insulin and stopping blood vessel damage caused by type 1 diabetes.

While neither therapy produced desired results when used alone, the combination of insulin to control blood sugar together with the use of Vitamin C, stopped blood vessel damage caused by the disease in patients with poor glucose control, said researchers. – The Times of India

The findings appear this week in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

"We had tested this theory on research models, but this is the first time anyone has shown the therapy's effectiveness in people," said Michael Ihnat, Ph.D., principal investigator and a pharmacologist at the OU College of Medicine Department of Cell Biology. Ihnat said they are now studying the therapy in patients with Type 2 diabetes.

The goal of the work being done by Ihnat and British scientists from the University of Warwick led by Dr. Antonio Ceriello is to find a way to stop the damage to blood vessels that is caused by diabetes. The damage, known as endothelial dysfunction, is associated with most forms of cardiovascular disease such as hypertension, coronary artery disease, chronic heart failure, peripheral artery disease, diabetes and chronic renal failure.

By reducing or stopping the damage, patients with diabetes could avoid some of the painful and fatal consequences of the disease that include heart disease, reduced circulation and amputation, kidney disease and diabetic retinopathy, which can lead to blindness.

Insulin and many other drugs have long been used to control blood sugar, but Ihnat - in an earlier project with scientists in Italy and Hungary - found that cells have a "memory" that causes damage to continue even when blood sugar is controlled. By adding antioxidants like Vitamin C, Ihnat found that cell "memory" disappeared and cell function and oxidation stress were normalized.

"We have speculated that this happens with endothelial dysfunction, but we did not know until now if it was effective in humans. We finally were able to test it and proved it to be true," Ihnat said.

"For patients with diabetes, this means simply getting their glucose under control is not enough. An antioxidant-based therapy combined with glucose control will give patients more of an advantage and lessen the chance of complications with diabetes," the expert added. While researchers do suggest diabetic patients eat foods and take multivitamins rich in antioxidants like Vitamin C, they warn that additional study is needed.

A cancer drug that won't cause hair loss

Good morning friends. I don’t say it’s a good news for all cancer patient, but I may say that cancer patient will not be worry now for that they found a new drug that won’t cause hair loss.

Researchers have developed a way to deliver cancer drugs, which they claim will not cause the usual sickness and hair loss by just using a fat-rich coating.

Until now, treatment of cancer has relied mainly on surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Though these strategies have benefited millions of cancer patients to date, the lack of tumor specificity of some of these agents make patients feel sick or result in significant hair loss.

Now, an international team, led by Queensland University, has developed the way which can specifically shut down cancer-causing genes in tumor cells while sparing normal healthy tissues.

According to lead researcher Sherry Wu, the new method which involves the use of coatings rich in fats, will hasten the application of RNA interference or gene-silencing, a technology which can inactivate individual genes.

Using this technology, the team observed a 70% reduction in tumor size in a cervical cancer mouse model.

"The traditional ways of packaging these drugs into suitable carriers are often complex and labor-intensive. The resulting products are also unstable at room temperature which is obviously not ideal for their clinical use.

"In order to deliver these gene-silencing drugs safely and efficiently into tumor tissues in the body, we have to package them in lipid-rich carriers," Wu said. Added co-researcher Nigel McMillan: "We are excited about our findings and we are currently investigating the feasibility of combining this gene-silencing technology with low dose chemotherapeutic agents in cancer treatments." –The Times of India