Welcome to the Stars Hollow Health and Fitness News weekly diary. It will publish on Saturday afternoon and be open for discussion about health related issues including diet, exercise, health and health care issues, as well as, tips on what you can do when there is a medical emergency. Also an opportunity to share and exchange your favorite healthy recipes.
Questions are encouraged and I will answer to the best of my ability. If I can’t, I will try to steer you in the right direction. Naturally, I cannot give individual medical advice for personal health issues. I can give you information about medical conditions and the current treatments available.
You can now find past Health and Fitness News diaries here and on the right hand side of the Front Page.
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A couple of years ago in the course of touring Bob’s Red Mill, the whole-foods purveyor based in Portland, Ore., I learned a new word: spurtle. A spurtle is a wooden dowel-like implement used to stir oatmeal. They are common in Scotland, where an international porridge-making competition called the Golden Spurtle is held every year in October. There are two sections to the competition: one for plain porridge made with steel-cut oats (also known as pinhead oats) and nothing more than water and salt; and one for specialty porridges, in which the steel-cut oats are used in a dish with other ingredients, sweet or savory.
Laurie Figone’s award-winning Italian Pinhead Torta is a spin on a rice and egg torta, a sort of frittata made with eggs, oats, oregano and Parmesan.
Cornmeal and Oatmeal Polenta With Tomato Sauce and Parmesan
Oatmeal adds texture and creaminess to this simple and satisfying dish.
This lemony, herb-filled grain salad is a good tabbouleh alternative for those who can’t tolerate wheat.
Blueberry Coconut Oatmeal Pudding
Hot or cold, this pudding is hearty enough for breakfast and sweet enough for dessert
Yogurt Berry Parfait With Steel-Cut Oats
A soak in yogurt softens the oats, and a tangy berry sauce lends them sweetness.
Some Minor Strokes Lead to Disability
by Denise Mann
Sept 13, 2012 — Minor strokes and transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) are red flags for full-blown strokes in the future. But new research suggests that they can lead to disability in their own right.
A TIA, sometimes called a “mini stroke,” causes stroke-like symptoms, but they last for less than 24 hours.
Fully 15% of 499 people who had a minor stroke or TIA had some disability 90 days later. The type of disability seen in the study included being unable to perform previous activities, but still being capable of handling personal affairs on one’s own.
Tainted Tap Water Sickens 1.1 Million Each Year
by Brenda Goodman, MA
Viruses Creep Into Public Water Supplies Through Leaky Pipes
Sept. 14, 2012 — Two new studies are making waves in the tap vs. bottled water debate.
The first study shows that the pipes that ferry drinking water from public wells to home taps may let in viruses that cause more than a million cases of stomach illness every year. It’s published in Environmental Science & Technology.
The second study, in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, shows that when viruses surge in tap water, people have a 30% higher risk of getting nasty stomach bugs that cause vomiting and diarrhea.
More People Cutting Corners to Pay for Medications
by Denise Mann
Sept. 13, 2012 — Americans are scrimping to pay for their prescription medications, and some are playing dangerous games with their health as a result.
More than 80% of Americans who don’t have prescription drug coverage are not filling their prescriptions, skipping medical tests, passing on doctor’s appointments because of cost, or cutting corners elsewhere, a new Consumer Reports poll shows.
Nearly half of the adults polled did not fill a prescription because of cost in the past year, compared with 27% last year. This is the fourth year that Consumer Reports conducted the poll, and things seem to be getting worse.
Sinus Infections Linked to Nasal Washing
by Brenda Goodman, MA
Using Tap Water in Neti Pots and Other Devices Tied to Tough-to-Treat Chronic Sinus Infections
Sept. 12, 2011 — First came the FDA warnings about neti pots and brain-eating amoebas. Now doctors say neti pots and other gadgets that rinse the nasal passages could be behind a growing number of chronic sinus infections tied to tough-to-treat mycobacteria.
Many people swear by neti pots, which look a bit like space-age teapots. They’re an ancient and drug-free method for rinsing away congestion from colds and allergies, and recently they’ve experienced a resurgence because of celebrity endorsements and media reports.
Mild Asthma Patients May Do OK With Less Steroids
by Rita Ruben
Sept. 11, 2012 — People with mild to moderate asthma might fare just as well inhaling steroid medications only when they have symptoms instead of twice every day as recommended, researchers report.
Basing treatment on symptoms could reduce the amount of drug used, minimize the risk of side effects, and may save billions of dollars in health care costs every year, researchers say.
Guidelines advise that people with mild to moderate asthma use inhaled corticosteroids twice a day to control their asthma. In addition, patients are supposed to use fast-acting “rescue” medications, such as albuterol, when needed to open up their airways and relieve symptoms.
Acupuncture Pain Relief Is Real, Researchers Say
by Matt McMillen
Sept. 10, 2012 — About 3 million Americans visit acupuncturists each year, most of them for the relief of chronic pain. Now a new study shows the relief they get may be modest — but real.
The study is a review of previous acupuncture studies that compared the ancient Chinese practice to standard pain care or to sham acupuncture. In the latter, patients are needled in a manner different from (or at spots on the body not tied to) traditional acupuncture.
Heavy Drinkers at Greater Risk for Stroke
by Denise Mann
Drinking 3 or More Alcoholic Drinks a Day Raises Stroke Risk
Sept 10, 2012 — Heavy drinkers may be at a much greater risk for a bleeding stroke, a new study suggests.
People who drank about three or more alcoholic drinks per day also had the strokes almost a decade and a half before those who didn’t drink quite as much. The findings appear in Neurology.
Common Painkillers May Be Risky After Heart Attack
by Salynn Boyles
Sept. 10, 2012 — Heart attack survivors who take commonly used pain relievers have a higher risk of dying or having another heart attack, new research shows.
The Danish study adds to the evidence linking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as celecoxib (Celebrex), diclofenac (Voltaren), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), and naproxen (Aleve) to poorer outcomes in heart patients.
Using the painkillers after a first heart attack was linked to a higher risk for a second heart attack or death from any cause. And the risk persisted over at least five years.
3 Dead in Listeria Outbreak From Ricotta Cheese
by Daniel J.DeNoon
Recalled Frescolina Ricotta Salata Linked to 14 Illnesses in 11 States, D.C.
Sept. 12, 2012 — Three people have died and 11 others are hospitalized after eating recalled Frescolina brand ricotta salata cheese contaminated with listeria bacteria.
The Sept. 10 recall by Forever Cheese Inc. included one lot of the imported Italian cheese. It was sold to restaurants and retailers in California, Colorado, Washington, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington between June 20 and Aug. 9.
The recall affects lot number T9425 and/or production code 441202. Products were sold to supermarkets, restaurants, and wholesale distributors. Ricotta salata is a crumbly, solid cheese. It is not the same as ricotta cheese, normally sold in plastic containers or tubs.
West Nile Up 35%, but CDC Says Peak Has Passed
by Daniel J. DeNoon
Sept. 12, 2012 — Illnesses in the ongoing West Nile epidemic increased 35% since last week, but the CDC says this worst-ever season probably has peaked.
“The worst part of the epidemic is behind us,” Lyle Petersen, MD, director of the CDC’s Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, said at a news teleconference. “We continue to believe this year’s outbreak is the most serious to date since West Nile virus was discovered in the U.S.”
New Vaccine Offers Some Protection Against Dengue by Brenda Goodman, MA
2 in 5 Women Don’t Use Birth Control
by Denise Mann
Many Women Mistakenly Believe They Can’t Get Pregnant
Sept. 14, 2012 — Two in five women of childbearing age in the U.S. didn’t use any birth control in the month before they took a new survey on contraception.
The main reasons why these women skip contraception is that they think they are infertile or are not currently sexually active. But some may be placing themselves at risk for unintended pregnancy.
After Breast Cancer Diagnosis, Tests Overdone?
by Charlene Laino
Routine X-Rays, Bone Scans Show Low Detection Rate for Spotting Breast Cancer Spread
Sept. 12, 2012 (San Francisco) — Tests often performed to look for cancer spread in women with early-stage breast cancer are generally unnecessary, new research suggests.
Analysis of pooled data from eight published studies involving about 1,700 women with breast cancer shows that bone scans, liver ultrasounds, and chest X-rays very rarely detect the spread of cancer in newly diagnosed patients without symptoms.
Smoking Marijuana Tied to Testicular Cancer
by Brenda Goodman, MA
Could Pot Smoking Be Behind Rising Rates of Testicular Cancer?
Sept. 10, 2012 — Smoking marijuana may affect a man’s risk for testicular cancer.
A new study found that men who had smoked marijuana were twice as likely as men who had not to get an aggressive form of the disease.
Testicular cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in men under age 45. It’s also on the rise, says Scott Eggener, MD, a cancer surgeon at the University of Chicago who has studied the trend.
“No one really knows why,” he says. “Everyone suspects an environmental exposure, but it’s difficult if not impossible to prove.”
A study released earlier this year showed marijuana use is also up, with 1 in 10 teens now smoking pot at least 20 times a month.
Missed Dose? Truvada Still Prevents HIV in Men
by Daniel J. DeNoon
For HIV-Negative Gay Men, Truvada Protects Even if Daily Dose Missed
Sept. 12, 2012 — Truvada may still protect some men against HIV infection even if they miss up to three doses in a week.
The finding comes from a new look at the study data that led the FDA to approve Truvada for HIV prevention. The drug is used as part of a strategy called pre-exposure prophylaxis (or PrEP). PrEP is extremely effective for uninfected men at greatest risk of HIV who take Truvada once each day.
Men who do this have almost total protection against HIV infection. Those who miss three doses a week still get 96% protection, say Robert M. Grant, MD, MPH, associate director of the University of California, San Francisco Center for AIDS Research, and colleagues.
Parents, Rest Easy About Infant ‘Sleep Training’
by Denise Mann
Letting Babies Cry It Out Won’t Cause Lasting Harm, Researchers Say
Sept. 10, 2012 — Researchers have reassuring news for parents struggling to get their babies to sleep.
Letting infants cry it out using two specific methods won’t cause any lasting psychological harm to your children or to your relationship with them, a new study shows.
Researchers compared the long-term effects of “controlled comforting,” “camping out,” or usual care among infants with sleep problems.
Controlled comforting involves gradually taking longer to respond to an infant’s cries.
Kids’ Strep Throat: Likely No Need to Lose Tonsils
by Salynn Boyles
New Guidelines Also Say Antibiotics Widely Overprescribed for Sore Throat
Sept. 12, 2012 — New guidelines highlight two key recommendations about strep throat: Recurring cases should not necessarily lead to having tonsils removed. And overdiagnosis of strep needs to be reined in, because it’s a major contributor to antibiotic overuse and resistance in the U.S.
In the new guidelines released this week, the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) called on doctors to be selective about who they test for strep throat, and to confirm a suspected diagnosis before prescribing antibiotics.
The doctors group also recommends against removing a child’s tonsils just because they’ve had multiple cases of strep over the course of one year.
Whooping Cough Vaccine Protection Wanes Fast
By Salynn Boyles
Sept. 12, 2012 — 2012 is shaping up to be the worst year for whooping cough in more than five decades, and a new study from California may help explain why.
When researchers studied a 2010 outbreak in that state, they found that protection among children vaccinated against whooping cough (also known as pertussis) waned dramatically during the five years after their last immunization.
Details: New Presidential Youth Fitness Program
by Jennifer Warner
Sept. 13, 2012 — Goodbye percentile scores, hello “healthy fitness zone.”
A new presidential youth fitness program is replacing the old presidential fitness test that most adults grew up with in physical education (PE) classes in school.
The updated program does away with comparing students’ performances on athletic tasks like sit-ups and push-ups and then rating them on a percentile scale vs. their peers.
Instead, the new program measures students’ health-related fitness based on what current research shows promotes good health and lowers the risk of disease.
“What is really apparent is that we have an obesity epidemic in our country, so we feel like we now need to focus on health versus athletic performance,” says Shellie Pfohl, executive director of the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition. She announced the new program this week.
Fish Oil Fizzles for Fighting Heart Attack, Stroke
by Salynn Boyles
Sept. 11, 2012 — Millions of people take over-the-counter omega-3 supplements to improve their heart health, but new evidence questions their benefit.
Researchers looked at 20 studies involving nearly 70,000 people, many of whom were heart patients. Adding omega-3 to their diet did not appear to lower the chance of having a heart attack or stroke or lower the risk of death from these and other causes.
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