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Chocolate is good for your heart

UCSF scientists are publishing sweet results of a study examining chocolate's effects on blood vessel function in healthy people. The team reports that small daily doses of flavonoid-rich dark chocolate consumed over a two-week period improved blood vessels' ability to dilate, or expand.

1 Jun 2004

There are still benefits from hormone therapy after menopause

Despite the highly publicized closing of the Women’s Health Initiative study, the scientific community should not rule out that women may benefit from hormone therapy after menopause, say researchers at UC Davis, Duke and Harvard Universities.

31 May 2004

An insight into caring for dementia in particular 'aggressive dementia'

By the age of 65 one out of every ten persons has some form of dementia, and by the age of 85 (the fastest growing segment of the population), one out of every two. Statistically families (and many doctors who are not dementia specialists) ignore the early warning signs because they incorrectly believe that the odd behaviors are just a normal part of aging and untreatable senility.

27 May 2004

New website helps older Texans and disabled get information that may help them obtain their prescription drugs

The Texas Department on Aging has officially launching a "Texas Cares" website -- http://www.txcares.org -- to help older Texans and people with disabilities get information that may help them obtain their prescription drugs.

25 May 2004

Link between diabetes and early dementia

Understanding the link between diabetes and early dementia -- as well as how diabetes relates to other causes of memory loss -- is the focus of a new study at Columbia University Medical Center and approximately 40 other medical institutions nationwide.

25 May 2004

Writers, scientists, ethicists and medical practitioners explore our obsession with physical perfection

In the fourth edition of Griffith REVIEW: Making Perfect Bodies some of Australia’s leading writers, scientists, ethicists and medical practitioners explore our relentless obsession with physical perfection.

23 May 2004

Protein that appears to play a key role in Alzheimer's disease

A protein that allows human cancer to resist multiple anticancer drugs also appears to play a key role in Alzheimer's disease, according to research conducted at Fox Chase Cancer Center. The protein, active in brain tissue, could be a target for new drugs to treat patients with Alzheimer's.

20 May 2004

Researchers to study link between diabetes and early dementia

Understanding the link between diabetes and early dementia – as well as how diabetes relates to other causes of memory loss – is the focus of a new study at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) and approximately 40 other medical institutions nationwide.

20 May 2004

Cell division can be halted in multiple ways, with implications for cancer

Brown University researchers have found that there are multiple independent ways to stop cell division, a phenomenon that prevents the spread of genetic mutation, which can make cells cancerous. Results of this research, along with an accompanying editorial, were published in the current issue of the journal Molecular Cell.

20 May 2004

Australian government puts it on the record that prices of prescription medicines will not rise as a result of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States

The price of prescription medicines will not rise as a result of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States. The Australian Government gave this undertaking going into the negotiations and has delivered on this commitment.

20 May 2004

Dark chocolate and cocoa may help arterial stiffness

“This is the first study to investigate whether chocolate has any favorable effects on cardiovascular function in healthy subjects,” says Charalambos Vlachopoulos, MD, of the Athens Medical School, Athens, Greece. “We found dark chocolate improves endothelial function and decreases arterial stiffness in healthy young adults.”

19 May 2004

Matching method allows surgeons to successfully transplant kidneys that would otherwise be discarded

By carefully matching the estimated function of kidneys from deceased donors with the needs of potential recipients, surgeons can successfully transplant kidneys that would otherwise be discarded, according to a report from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. The center was able to double its transplant volume within a year.

18 May 2004

Speaking their language aids dementia patients

Elderly dementia patients from non-English speaking backgrounds communicate more with others and take fewer psychiatric medications when living in ethno-specific nursing homes, an Australian study at Monash University has revealed.

17 May 2004

Technology will help as world's population over 60 doubles

It's just a collection of bloody nuts and bolts." That was the damning reaction of a 69-year-old resident at a Scottish nursing home - let's call him William Brown - when asked if he would like a robotic pet as a companion to help relieve his boredom and loneliness. But once he realised that the robot could play games with him, he quickly changed his mind.

15 May 2004

Vitamin discovery offers clues for cancer chemotherapy

NH-Dartmouth Medical School cancer researchers, in a fusion of biochemistry and genetics, have discovered a new vitamin in a molecular pathway central to such vital processes as gene regulation, metabolism and aging. And, they found that milk contains this nutrient.

15 May 2004

Estrogen therapy may help bone density, muscle mass, sexual function, memory, and psychological wellbeing in postmenopausal women

Research in monkeys suggests that long-term use of estrogen therapy may reduce levels of androgens – hormones involved in maintaining bone density, muscle mass, sexual function, memory, and psychological wellbeing in postmenopausal women.

14 May 2004

Americans spend more on health care but feel worse

Americans spend twice as much on health care as their European and Canadian counterparts, yet are more likely to rate their own quality of health as poor, says a new report, “Spending more, feeling worse: medical care expenditures and self-rated health,” forthcoming in the June 2004 edition of the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

14 May 2004

Leading experts to shed light on controversial testosterone therapy treatment

The use of testosterone therapy will be the topic of a special panel briefing to be held during the 99th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Urological Association on May 11, 2004 in the Moscone Center in San Francisco.

12 May 2004

Physicians perceive overactive bladder as a normal part of aging when in fact it is a treatable medical condition

Nearly half of people with symptoms of overactive bladder had to initiate multiple conversations with their doctor before receiving a diagnosis or treatment, according to a national survey of more than 500 people with symptoms of overactive bladder. Furthermore, only 15 percent of those surveyed said their doctors had ever initiated a discussion about overactive bladder symptoms.

12 May 2004

Botox shows promise as an alternative treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia

Injections of botulinum toxin A (botox) into the prostate are a promising alternative treatment for the millions of men who have benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), a condition commonly referred to as enlarged prostate, according to a study conducted by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan.

11 May 2004