According to a new report, people who are physically inactiveand are obese around the middle have poor odds of survival aftera diagnosis of colorectal cancer.
"We have now shown that modifiable lifestyle factors that wereknown to reduce the incidence of colorectal cancer can alsoreduce the mortality in cases diagnosed with the disease," Dr.Andrew M. M. Haydon told Reuters Health. "This strengthens theargument supporting the public health message of 'healthyliving.'"
Haydon, from Monash Medical School in Melbourne, Australia,studied records from more than 40,000 patients diagnosed withcolorectal cancer between 1990 and 1994.
Patients who got regular exercise before their colorectal cancerwas found were 31 percent less likely to die from the cancerthan were non-exercisers, the investigators report in themedical journal Gut. In fact, 73 percent of exercisers survivedat least five years, compared with 61 percent of non-exercisers.
Such an improvement in survival "is at least as large as" as isusually achieved by add-on chemotherapy.
A greater percentage of body fat, bigger waist circumference,and/or greater weight were also associated with worse survival,according to the report.
Study shows short term sex life improvements in prostatecancer survivors
It is well known that many men who undergo prostate cancertreatment (surgery or radiation therapy) have sexualdysfunction. A recent study of 84 prostate cancer survivorsattempted to determine the impact of post-treatmentinterventions such as counseling sessions.
The study found that a large percentage of those who completedfour therapy sessions reported better sexual functioning 3months later. Counseling sessions focused on bettercommunication between partners, ED treatment options, andmethods of enjoying sex in spite of ED.
Both partners reported improvements in their sex life for up to3 months later. There was also an increase in the number of menusing ED treatments such as Viagra.
However, after six months the improvements began to wane. Theresearchers speculated that couples tended to revert back to oldhabits, and there also might have been greater reliance put onthe "magic pill" solution. Drugs such as Viagra tend to have alower success rate in prostate cancer survivors, so when thesedrugs stop working couples may adopt a defeatist attitude.
Vitamin D helps fight cancer, report claims
A research team from the San Diego Moores Cancer Center headedup by Dr. Cedric Garland recently concluded that Vitamin Ddeficiency is often associated with various types of cancer. Dr.Garland now advises people to increase their intake of Vitamin Dthrough diet or a vitamin supplement.
The research team reviewed 63 studies conducted between 1966 and2004 on the relationship between vitamin D and certain types ofcancer. The report concluded that Vitamin D deficiency was afactor in several thousand deaths due to colon, breast, ovarianand other cancers every year.
The report recommended increasing Vitamin D intake, either inthe form of supplements or by eating certain foods such asfortified orange juice, yogurt and cheeses. This is especiallythe case with people in northern latitudes where there is lessexposure to the sun. African Americans are also more prone to aVitamin D deficiency because the their skin pigment reduces theamount produced by the body.
Observers welcomed the University of California study but alsowarned that kidney and liver damage could result from too muchvitamin D.
The "natural" form of the vitamin, called D3, is normallyproduced in the skin after exposure to sunlight, but is alsoobtained from certain foods such as oily fish, margarine andmeat.
Resveratrol found in grapes helps fix our aching joints
Researchers at the American College of Rheumatology in SanDiego, California have found that resveratrol found in red wineappears to halt cartilage damage caused by osteoarthritis, andspeed up recovery.
It is thought that oxygen-rich particles in the blood causesevere damage to body cells similar to the way rust rots a car.Resveratrol is a powerful anti-oxidant which seems to functionas a way to prevent this kind of injury.
The research found that resveratrol resulted in a reduction ofbetween 50 and 90% of the production of chemicals that causeinflammation in the joints. It also enhanced production ofspecific proteins that are part of the connective tissue injoints.
Red wine has other beneficial effects on the body. It containspolyphenrols that reduce the amount of bad LDL cholesterol inthe arteries. It also increases the amount of good HDLcholesterol.
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