Auyeung TW, Lee JS, Leung J, Kwok T, Leung PC, Woo J.

Department of Medicine and Geriatrics, Tuen Mun Hospital, Tuen Mun, New Territories, Hong Kong. auyeungtw@cuhk.edu.hk

Abstract
BACKGROUND: height loss beginning in mid-life and post-menopausal period was associated with adverse health outcomes. However, height loss occurring after old age has been little studied. We examined how height loss was related to bone mineral density (BMD) change, fracture incidence and cause-specific mortality in older adults.

METHODS: the stature and BMD of 3145 community-dwelling men and women aged =65 were measured at baseline and after 4 years. All fracture and cause-specific mortality events were searched in a territory-wide clinical information database and death registry.

RESULTS: twenty-five (1.6%) men and 64 (4.0%) women lost >2 cm after 4 years. In women, the BMD decline was faster in the rapid height losers (adjusted difference = 4.18%, P < 0.001). There was no corresponding difference observed in men. Rapid height loss was associated with excess all fractures and hip fractures (adjusted HR for all fractures = 2.86, P < 0.001; adjusted HR for hip fractures = 4.74, P < 0.01) in women but only hip fractures (adjusted HR = 4.93, P < 0.05) in men. The all-cause (adjusted HR = 3.43, P < 0.01) and respiratory disease mortality (adjusted HR = 5.64, P < 0.05) were higher in men with rapid height loss, whereas those in women were insignificant.

CONCLUSIONS: modest height loss occurring after old age, >2 cm in 4 years, was associated with excess hip fracture, total and respiratory disease mortality in older men. In women, it was associated with excess BMD decline, all fractures and hip fractures but not mortality. Further research is needed to determine the usefulness of regular stature measurement as an indicator of bone health in the primary-care setting in older adults.

PMID: 20817934 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]PMCID: PMC2956531 [Available on 2011/11/1]

Crozier SJ, Preston AG, Hurst JW, Payne MJ, Mann J, Hainly L, Miller DL.

The Hershey Center for Health & Nutrition, 1025 Reese Avenue, Hershey, PA, 17033, USA. scrozier@hersheys.com.

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND: Numerous popular media sources have developed lists of “Super Foods” and, more recently, “Super Fruits”. Such distinctions often are based on the antioxidant capacity and content of naturally occurring compounds such as polyphenols within those whole fruits or juices of the fruit which may be linked to potential health benefits. Cocoa powder and chocolate are made from an extract of the seeds of the fruit of the Theobroma cacao tree. In this study, we compared cocoa powder and cocoa products to powders and juices derived from fruits commonly considered “Super Fruits”.

RESULTS: Various fruit powders and retail fruit products were obtained and analyzed for antioxidant capacity (ORAC (µM TE/g)), total polyphenol content (TP (mg/g)), and total flavanol content (TF (mg/g)). Among the various powders that were tested, cocoa powder was the most concentrated source of ORAC and TF. Similarly, dark chocolate was a significantly more concentrated source of ORAC and TF than the fruit juices.

CONCLUSIONS: Cocoa powder and dark chocolate had equivalent or significantly greater ORAC, TP, and TF values compared to the other fruit powders and juices tested, respectively. Cacao seeds thus provide nutritive value beyond that derived from their macronutrient composition and appear to meet the popular media’s definition of a “Super Fruit”.

PMID: 21299842 [PubMed - in process]PMCID: PMC3038885Free PMC Article

Eisenberg MJ, Afilalo J, Lawler PR, Abrahamowicz M, Richard H, Pilote L.

Abstract
Background Patients exposed to low-dose ionizing radiation from cardiac imaging and therapeutic procedures after acute myocardial infarction may be at increased risk of cancer.

Methods Using an administrative database, we selected a cohort of patients who had an acute myocardial infarction between April 1996 and March 2006 and no history of cancer. We documented all cardiac imaging and therapeutic procedures involving low-dose ionizing radiation. The primary outcome was risk of cancer. Statistical analyses were performed using a time-dependent Cox model adjusted for age, sex and exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation from noncardiac imaging to account for work-up of cancer.

Results Of the 82 861 patients included in the cohort, 77% underwent at least one cardiac imaging or therapeutic procedure involving low-dose ionizing radiation in the first year after acute myocardial infarction. The cumulative exposure to radiation from cardiac procedures was 5.3 milli Sieverts (mSv) per patient-year, of which 84% occurred during the first year after acute myocardial infarction. A total of 12 020 incident cancers were diagnosed during the follow-up period. There was a dose-dependent relation between exposure to radiation from cardiac procedures and subsequent risk of cancer. For every 10 mSv of low-dose ionizing radiation, there was a 3% increase in the risk of age- and sex-adjusted cancer over a mean follow-up period of five years (hazard ratio 1.003 per milliSievert, 95% confidence interval 1.002-1.004).

Interpretation Exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation from cardiac imaging and therapeutic procedures after acute myocardial infarction is associated with an increased risk of cancer.

PMID: 21324846 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Free Article

Mancini F, Longo MR, Kammers MP, Haggard P.

1Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London.

Abstract
Pain is a complex subjective experience that is shaped by numerous contextual factors. For example, simply viewing the body reduces the reported intensity of acute physical pain. In this study, we investigated whether this visually induced analgesia is modulated by the visual size of the stimulated body part. We measured contact heat-pain thresholds while participants viewed either their own hand or a neutral object in three size conditions: reduced, actual size, or enlarged. Vision of the body was analgesic, increasing heat-pain thresholds by an average of 3.2 °C. We further found that visual enlargement of the viewed hand enhanced analgesia, whereas visual reduction of the hand decreased analgesia. These results demonstrate that pain perception depends on multisensory representations of the body and that visual distortions of body size modulate sensory components of pain.

PMID: 21303990 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Whitchurch ER, Wilson TD, Gilbert DT.

1University of Virginia.

Abstract
This research qualifies a social psychological truism: that people like others who like them (the reciprocity principle). College women viewed the Facebook profiles of four male students who had previously seen their profiles. They were told that the men (a) liked them a lot, (b) liked them only an average amount, or (c) liked them either a lot or an average amount (uncertain condition). Comparison of the first two conditions yielded results consistent with the reciprocity principle. Participants were more attracted to men who liked them a lot than to men who liked them an average amount. Results for the uncertain condition, however, were consistent with research on the pleasures of uncertainty. Participants in the uncertain condition were most attracted to the men-even more attracted than were participants who were told that the men liked them a lot. Uncertain participants reported thinking about the men the most, and this increased their attraction toward the men.

PMID: 21169522 [PubMed - in process]

Sjölund BM, Nordberg G, Wimo A, von Strauss E.

Aging Research Center, Karolinska Institutet and Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden. britt-marie.sjolund@ki.se

Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To describe differences in morbidity and functional status according to living area.

DESIGN: Community-based survey.

SETTING: A community-based prospective cohort, the Kungsholmen-Nordanstig Project.

PARTICIPANTS: Adults aged 75 and older living in an urban area of central Stockholm (n=1,222) and in the rural community of Nordanstig in northern Sweden (n=919).

MEASUREMENTS: Physicians clinically examined all participants using the same standardized protocols in both living areas; trained nurses directly assessed disability.

RESULTS: Cardiovascular disease was the most common disorder in both living areas (39.9% in the urban area and 45.2% in the rural area). There were great area differences in the prevalence of stroke (7.4% and 14.0%), diabetes mellitus 6.3% and 16.1%), and Parkinson’s disease (1.0% and 3.7%). It was more common to have two or more diseases than no diseases in the rural area than in the urban area (odds ratio=1.9, 95% confidence interval=1.4-2.4). Significant living area differences (urban vs rural) in population attributable risk (PAR) was found for disability due to stroke (5.6 vs 32.2), diabetes mellitus (1.2 vs 6.1), fractures (1.4 vs 10.7), and hearing impairment (8.7 vs 22.0).

CONCLUSION: Differences were found in disability, morbidity, and disease patterns according to living area. The rural elderly population was more disabled and had more diseases than the urban elderly population, despite being slightly younger than the urban cohort. There were significant area differences in the PAR of how specific chronic conditions influenced the risk of disability.

© 2010, Copyright the Authors. Journal compilation © 2010, The American Geriatrics Society.
PMID: 20929463 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Sofi F, Abbate R, Gensini GF, Casini A.

Department of Medical and Surgical Critical Care, Thrombosis Centre, University of Florence, Florence, Italy. francescosofi@gmail.com

Abstract
BACKGROUND: The Mediterranean diet has long been reported to be protective against the occurrence of several different health outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to update our previous meta-analysis of published cohort prospective studies that investigated the effects of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on health status.

DESIGN: We conducted a comprehensive literature search through electronic databases up to June 2010.

RESULTS: The updated review process showed 7 prospective studies published in the past 2 y that were not included in the previous meta-analysis (1 study for overall mortality, 3 studies for cardiovascular incidence or mortality, 1 study for cancer incidence or mortality, and 2 studies for neurodegenerative diseases). These recent studies included 2 health outcomes not previously investigated (ie, mild cognitive impairment and stroke). The meta-analysis for all studies with a random-effects model that was conducted after the inclusion of these recent studies showed that a 2-point increase in adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with a significant reduction of overall mortality [relative risk (RR) = 0.92; 95% CI: 0.90, 0.94], cardiovascular incidence or mortality (RR = 0.90; 95% CI: 0.87, 0.93), cancer incidence or mortality (RR = 0.94; 95% CI: 0.92, 0.96), and neurodegenerative diseases (RR = 0.87; 95% CI: 0.81, 0.94). The meta-regression analysis showed that sample size was the most significant contributor to the model because it significantly influenced the estimate of the association for overall mortality.

CONCLUSION: This updated meta-analysis confirms, in a larger number of subjects and studies, the significant and consistent protection provided by adherence to the Mediterranean diet in relation to the occurrence of major chronic degenerative diseases.

PMID: 20810976 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Ball K, Edwards JD, Ross LA, McGwin G Jr.

Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.

Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To test the effects of cognitive training on subsequent motor vehicle collision (MVC) involvement of older drivers.

DESIGN: Randomized, controlled, multisite, single-blind clinical trial.

SETTING: Community-dwelling seniors at four U.S. sites: Birmingham, Alabama; Baltimore, Maryland; Indianapolis, Indiana; and State College, Pennsylvania.

PARTICIPANTS: Nine hundred eight older drivers (mean age 73.1; 18.6% African American) who were randomized to one of three cognitive interventions or a control condition.

INTERVENTIONS: Up to 10 sessions of cognitive training for memory, reasoning, or speed of processing.

MEASUREMENTS: State-recorded MVC involvement up to 6 years after study enrollment.

RESULTS: Speed-of-processing and reasoning training resulted in lower rates of at-fault collision involvement over the subsequent approximately 6-year period than controls. After adjusting for age, sex, race, education, mental status, health, vision, depressive symptoms, and testing site, participants randomized to the speed-of-processing and reasoning interventions had an approximately 50% lower rate (per person-mile) of at-fault MVCs than the control group (rate ratio (RR) = 0.57, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.34-0.96 for speed of processing), and (RR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.27-0.92 for reasoning). There was no significant difference observed for the memory group.

CONCLUSION: Cognitive speed-of-processing and reasoning training resulted in a lower at-fault MVC rate in older drivers than in controls. Considering the importance of driving mobility, the costs of crashes, and the benefits of cognitive training, these interventions have great potential to sustain independence and quality of life of older adults. More research is needed to understand the effects of different types and quantities of training.

© 2010, Copyright the Authors. Journal compilation © 2010, The American Geriatrics Society.
PMID: 21054291 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Schwab P, Scalapino K.

Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.

Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Patients frequently inquire about exercise as a means to improve bone strength and reduce osteoporotic fracture. Understanding the biologic mechanisms and the available clinical evidence supporting the role of exercise in bone health is the key to an educated discussion.

RECENT FINDINGS: Exercise downregulates sclerostin expression by the osteocyte favoring osteoblastogenesis. These changes are enhanced by dynamic cyclical load with rest periods and may be promoted by low-amplitude high-frequency stimuli. In the prepubertal years, exercise results in periosteal gains, whereas exercise later in life maintains bone mass, reduces falls and probably associated fractures, and improves quality-of-life measures.

SUMMARY: Future studies should examine the effect of exercise on bone strength and determine the minimum quantity and frequency and the exercise type most effective to reduce osteoporotic fractures.

PMID: 21178629 [PubMed - in process]

Volkow ND, Tomasi D, Wang GJ, Vaska P, Fowler JS, Telang F, Alexoff D, Logan J, Wong C.

National Institute on Drug Abuse, 6001 Executive Blvd, Room 5274, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. nvolkow@nida.nih.gov

Abstract

CONTEXT: The dramatic increase in use of cellular telephones has generated concern about possible negative effects of radiofrequency signals delivered to the brain. However, whether acute cell phone exposure affects the human brain is unclear.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate if acute cell phone exposure affects brain glucose metabolism, a marker of brain activity.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Randomized crossover study conducted between January 1 and December 31, 2009, at a single US laboratory among 47 healthy participants recruited from the community. Cell phones were placed on the left and right ears and positron emission tomography with ((18)F)fluorodeoxyglucose injection was used to measure brain glucose metabolism twice, once with the right cell phone activated (sound muted) for 50 minutes (“on” condition) and once with both cell phones deactivated (“off” condition). Statistical parametric mapping was used to compare metabolism between on and off conditions using paired t tests, and Pearson linear correlations were used to verify the association of metabolism and estimated amplitude of radiofrequency-modulated electromagnetic waves emitted by the cell phone. Clusters with at least 1000 voxels (volume >8 cm(3)) and P < .05 (corrected for multiple comparisons) were considered significant.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Brain glucose metabolism computed as absolute metabolism (µmol/100 g per minute) and as normalized metabolism (region/whole brain).

RESULTS: Whole-brain metabolism did not differ between on and off conditions. In contrast, metabolism in the region closest to the antenna (orbitofrontal cortex and temporal pole) was significantly higher for on than off conditions (35.7 vs 33.3 µmol/100 g per minute; mean difference, 2.4 [95% confidence interval, 0.67-4.2]; P = .004). The increases were significantly correlated with the estimated electromagnetic field amplitudes both for absolute metabolism (R = 0.95, P < .001) and normalized metabolism (R = 0.89; P < .001).

CONCLUSIONS: In healthy participants and compared with no exposure, 50-minute cell phone exposure was associated with increased brain glucose metabolism in the region closest to the antenna. This finding is of unknown clinical significance.

PMID: 21343580 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]