Cholesterol News and Research

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Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance made in the liver, and found in the blood and in all cells of the body. Cholesterol is important for good health and is needed for making cell walls, tissues, hormones, vitamin D, and bile acid.

Soy's cardiovascular benefits may have been overestimated

Many soy food products carry health claims stating that they reduce the risk of heart disease. A review of the evidence, however, suggests that soy's cardiovascular benefits may have been overestimated by the early studies that formed the basis for its health claim.

7 Feb 2006

38 million Americans with health conditions that put them at increased risk for cardiovascular disease

An estimated 63 million adults have low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels higher than what would be ideal as recommended by the National Institutes of Health.

7 Feb 2006

First description of female-specific Ischemia Syndrome

Although ischemic heart disease - the reduction of blood flow that can lead to heart attacks - is often considered a "man's disease," it takes the lives of more women than men each year. In fact, in 2000, about 60,000 more women than men died from cardiovascular disease.

5 Feb 2006

Can rimonabant slow atherosclerosis?

Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center has announced that they have launched a study to determine whether an experimental drug, rimonabant, can slow atherosclerosis, the fatty build-up in arteries that creates heart attack risk.

2 Feb 2006

HMRI researcher lights a path to understanding brain diseases

Neurologist Mike Harrington of Pasadena, California's Huntington Medical Research Institutes argues that soon we may be able to detect brain disease before symptoms even begin. The secret is in the cerebrospinal fluid, the clear liquid that cushions our brain and spinal cord.

2 Feb 2006

Another use for statins - treating rheumatoid arthritis

According to Japanese researchers statins, drugs widely used to treat high cholesterol, have a potential role in inflammation and other cell processes, including immune response and rheumatoid arthritis.

31 Jan 2006

Extra fruit and veggies will cut down the risk of strokes

According to British researchers by eating more than the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day people can further reduce the risk of suffering a stroke.

29 Jan 2006

Statins cut the risk of serious infection

According to scientists Cholesterol-lowering drugs, known as statins, can reduce the risk of severe infection in patients suffering from heart disease or stroke.

26 Jan 2006

Impotence may provide a warning sign of coronary heart disease

Erectile dysfunction may provide a warning sign of significant coronary heart disease researchers from the University of Chicago report in the January 23 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

23 Jan 2006

New method to find new metabolites

Ever since penicillin, a byproduct of a fungal mold, was discovered in 1929, scientists have scrutinized fungi for other breakthrough drugs. As reported Jan. 20 in the Journal of Chemistry and Biology, a team led by a University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher has developed a new method that may speed the ongoing quest for medically useful compounds in fungi.

23 Jan 2006

Workplace stress plays is an important risk factor for heart disease and diabetes

Stress at work is an important risk factor for the development of heart disease and diabetes, finds a study published online by the British Medical Journal.

23 Jan 2006

Metabolic syndrome - a new risk factor for impaired kidney function

A three-year multi-center study of kidney-pancreas transplant recipients has identified a new risk factor for impaired kidney function, which may help physicians refine their treatment strategies.

23 Jan 2006

New study gives insight into the dairy and weight loss link

A new clinical trial published today in Obesity Research (the journal of NAASO, the Obesity Society) provides more insight into why consuming dairy foods is linked to weight and fat loss.

18 Jan 2006

Bexarotene shows promise in cancer treatment.

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis now report that a compound related to vitamin A shows promise in preventing or slowing tumor growth in mice prone to lung cancer. The compound, called bexarotene, doesn't cause the severe skin irritations that have limited the use of other vitamin A derivatives in cancer therapies.

18 Jan 2006

Obesity in middle age raises heart disease and diabetes risk

Obesity in middle age - even without established cardiovascular disease risk factors such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol levels - greatly increases risk of hospitalization for and death from heart disease and diabetes in older age, according to a study in the Jan. 11 issue of the JAMA: Journal of the American Medical Association.

10 Jan 2006

Study finds short-term lifestyle changes improve health even without major weight loss

Obese and overweight individuals suffering metabolic syndrome and Type 2 diabetes showed significant health improvements after only three weeks of diet and moderate exercise even though the participants remained overweight.

10 Jan 2006

Coronary artery disease patients consistently fail to take life saving drugs

Nearly half the coronary artery disease (CAD) patients in a seven-year study admitted they don’t consistently take beta blockers, cholesterol-lowering drugs and other medications that could extend their lives, researchers report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

10 Jan 2006