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Diet Pills Make Slim Difference
Diet Pills Make Slim Difference
Nov 17, 2007 11:31 AM CST

Diet Pills Make Slim Difference

Study shows meager 5% weight loss doesn't justify use of drugs, given side-effects

(Newser) - Diet pills are big business, but Canadian researchers have found that they result in only modest weight loss. In placebo-controlled trials, patients taking anti-obesity drugs orlistat, sibutramine and rimonabant lost more weight than those taking dummy pills, but barely. And the average weight loss was 5%, which experts say is...

Pill Linked to Heart Attack Risk
Pill Linked to Heart Attack Risk
Nov 7, 2007 10:57 AM CST

Pill Linked to Heart Attack Risk

Study reveals 'startling' increase in artery plaque

(Newser) - New research suggesting a link between birth control pills and heart attacks has reignited a furious debate among scientists about the risks of oral contraceptives. Researchers in Europe found women had a 20-30% increase in artery-clogging plaque for every 10 years on oral contraceptives, CBS News reports. Nearly 12 million...

As Temperature Drops, Blood Pressure Rises

Hypertension harder to control in chillier season, study finds

(Newser) - Hypertension is significantly harder to control in the winter, researchers said yesterday, and the link between season and blood pressure isn't related to climate. Sixty percent of 443,632 veterans in a VA study showed significant changes in winter blood pressure control. The likely reason? People tend to stay inside...

DIY Gene Test: Get Results in the Mail

New home exam lets users swab cheeks, send away for info

(Newser) - A new British company has developed a home DNA test that determines whether customers are genetically predisposed to ailments such as breast cancer, heart disease, obesity, and osteoporosis. Users scrape a cheek with a swab, sign a special waiver if they want to know results even for incurable diseases, such...

Strokes Could Be Cut 80%
Strokes Could Be Cut 80%
Oct 9, 2007 8:30 AM CDT

Strokes Could Be Cut 80%

Swift treatment of mini-strokes reduces major attacks, study finds

(Newser) - Patients treated within 24 hours for mini-strokes cut their chances of having a subsequent major stroke by 80%, according to new research that could change the way stroke victims are handled by the medical community. Mini-strokes are often not treated as emergencies in the US and Europe, though the new...

Discus Champ Al Oerter Is Dead
Discus Champ Al Oerter Is Dead
Oct 2, 2007 8:23 AM CDT

Discus Champ Al Oerter Is Dead

The first track athlete to win 4 straight Olympic gold medals was 71

(Newser) - Alfred Oerter, Jr., who overcame terrific odds to win the discus gold in 1956, 1960, 1964, and 1968, died yesterday in Fort Meyers, Florida, of either a heart attack or a blood clot. The 71-year-old had continued competing well into his sixth decade, despite life-long high blood pressure and later...

Study: Dark Chocolate Aids Chronic Fatigue

Treat may work by boosting brain's serotonin levels

(Newser) - A daily dose of dark chocolate noticeably improves symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome, researchers have discovered. Scientists speculate that the chocolate may boost brain serotonin levels in sufferers, who reported significantly less fatigue when they ate 45 grams a day of chocolate high in cocoa content.

Unhealthy Habits Could Hurt Your Pay Check

Employers are fining, firing based on lifestyle

(Newser) - Unhealthy living is getting more expensive, the Chicago Tribune reports, with employees facing fines or even firing for not satisfying company health requirements. Michigan's Weyco fines workers $50 per paycheck if they or their spouses smoke. Indianapolis' Clarian takes away $5 for each blood-pressure, body-mass, or other health-based benchmark you...

Lack of Sleep Doubles Risk of Heart Disease

Researchers suspect link between blood pressure, fewer Zs

(Newser) - Getting 7 hours of sleep a night is best, and people who consistently sleep less are risking their lives, a new study says. Researchers followed 10,000 civil servants for 17 years and found that those who reduced their sleep from 7 hours a night to 5 or less doubled...

Employees Go Lean for Green
Employees Go Lean for Green
Sep 11, 2007 12:48 PM CDT

Employees Go Lean for Green

Forget the vegetables: people lose weight to fatten their wallets, study finds

(Newser) - A new study shows that paying people to lose weight works, a possible boon to employers and employees beset by the high costs of obesity. Researchers separated participants, who weren’t given a specific weight loss program, into three groups—two of which would be paid either $7 or $14...

American Kids' Blood Pressure Creeps Up

Obesity epidemic fallout foreshadows serious health troubles

(Newser) - The ranks of US children with dangerously high blood pressure and hypertension have been growing for 20 years, reversing a decades-long trend, says a new study that tracks the effects of youth obesity. Hypertension, which usually doesn't develop until patients are in their 30s or 40s, is a leading cause...

'Herbal' Sex Aids Were Viagra
'Herbal' Sex Aids Were Viagra
Sep 6, 2007 9:04 AM CDT

'Herbal' Sex Aids Were Viagra

Vigor-25 maker scammed $24 million

(Newser) - Federal officials yesterday arrested the maker of an "herbal," non-prescription sex supplement, Vigor-25, for lacing the pills with the active ingredient in Viagra, reports Newsday. More than 4 million of the surprisingly effective pills have been sold on the internet and at health food stores, with a label...

Docs Often Miss High Blood Pressure in Kids

Hypertension is more difficult to diagnose in youngsters

(Newser) - High blood pressure in kids is increasing, but it is often missed by doctors, a new study shows. Researchers examined the electronic records of thousands of children and teens enrolled in an Ohio health plan; they found 500 with high blood pressure readings, and only a quarter had been previously...

Common Virus Linked to Obesity
Common Virus Linked
to Obesity
Aug 21, 2007 8:07 AM CDT

Common Virus Linked to Obesity

Fat cells exposed to virus grow in size and number

(Newser) - A virus that causes sore throats and eye infections may also contribute to obesity, new research suggests. leaving infected people with more and larger fat cells than uninfected people have. The discovery could lead to the development of anti-obesity vaccines and may help explain why some obese people have healthy...

10 Ways to Cut Medical Costs
10 Ways to Cut Medical Costs
Aug 17, 2007 5:38 PM CDT

10 Ways to Cut Medical Costs

Hospital and med bills don't have to cost an arm and a leg. Lower your blood pressure with these tips from MSNBC .

(Newser) - Avoid financial injury by following these ten tips from MSNBC:
  1. Shop for tests. Different labs may vary widely in costs.
  2. Negotiate. Hospitals may waive or reduce a co-pay fee if the patient can prove that it's a hardship.
  3. Question the necessity of follow-up appointments, X-rays or MRIs.

Skipping Meds Can Be Deadly
Skipping Meds Can Be Deadly
Jul 31, 2007 5:31 AM CDT

Skipping Meds Can Be Deadly

Half of patients undermine health by skipping doses, quitting medication

(Newser) - Half of all patients with chronic illnesses don't take their medication as prescribed, says a new report, undermining their health and hastening their death. Patients with illnesses like heart disease and asthma often skip doses, misunderstand prescriptions or drop medication as soon as they feel better. The result is  more...

Americans Pop Happy Pills in Record Numbers

Antidepressants are most-prescribed drug in the US

(Newser) - Antidepressants are America's most prescribed drugs, according to a new CDC report, clocking in more scripts than meds for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or asthma. Prescriptions for antidepressants rose 48% between 1995 and 2002, accounting for 118 million of the 2.4 billion drugs prescribed in 2005.

Sweet Tooth Bolsters Heart Health
Sweet Tooth Bolsters
Heart Health
Jul 4, 2007 5:06 AM CDT

Sweet Tooth Bolsters Heart Health

Even most tasty kinds of dark chocolate will lower blood pressure, study shows

(Newser) - More sweet news for chocoholics: Small doses of dark chocolate—even candy-aisle favorites like Dove or Hershey's—may reduce blood pressure by 2-3 points, new research shows. The study, published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, suggests commercial chocolate can provide some of the same benefits as...

Getting Under Obama's Skin
Getting Under Obama's Skin
Apr 30, 2007 11:04 PM CDT

Getting Under Obama's Skin

A portrait of the candidate as a uniter in the Lincoln mold

(Newser) - Larissa MacFarquhar does an apt and artful deconstruction of Barack Obama's political persona in this week's New Yorker. Observing the candidate's oddly mild stump style, compared with the overachiever affect of most Democratic candidates, she notes that he is less professor than doctor, aiming not to whip up outrage but...

Implant Tricks Brain To Lower Blood Pressure

Implant delivers shocks to lower blood pressure

(Newser) - A pacemaker-like implant that relies on small electrical shocks may cut the risk of heart attack and stroke in half for patients with drug-resistant hypertension, a new study shows. The device, which sends electrical shocks through the neck's carotid arteries, tricks the brain into thinking blood pressure is even higher...

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