Brain cancer and cell phone use

The Finding the Link Between Ted Kennedy's Cancer and Cell Phone Use
Senator Ted Kennedy’s diagnosis of a malignant brain tumor is, once again, stirring debate over the safety of cell phones. Kennedy’s brain tumor, called a glioma, is the type critics have associated for years with the use of cell phones.

Prominent neurosurgeons have stated they do not use cell phones held next to their ears. “I use it on the speaker-phone mode,” said Dr. Vini Khurana, a prominent researcher and an associate professor of neurosurgery at the Australian National University. “I do not hold it to my ear.” Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s chief medical correspondent and a neurosurgeon at Emory University Hospital admitted that, he too, used an earpiece.

CTIA – the Wireless Association and the FDA both say that studies show cell phones are not a health risk. Other experts disagree. They point to research that indicates a link between cell phones and three types of tumors: glioma (the type Senator Kennedy has); cancer of a salivary gland near the ear called the parotid; and acoustic neuroma, which is a tumor found near the ear. An Israeli study published last year found a 58 percent increase in risk for parotid tumors among people who relied heavily on their cell phones. And a Swedish study found the risk for glioma and acoustic neuroma doubled after ten years of heavy use.

Since cell phones are relatively new, there hasn’t been a chance for long-term studies that will settle the question of whether there is truly a link between cell phone use and brain tumors. Some critics express particular concern for children who begin using cell phones as kids and continue throughout their lives. “More and more kids are using cell phones,” said Dr. Paul Rosch, clinical professor of medicine and psychiatry at New York Medical College. “They may be much more affected. Their brains are growing rapidly and their skulls are thinner.”

Dr. Khurana admits that cell phones are convenient and can save lives in an emergency, but he says that “there is a significant and increasing body of evidence for a link between mobile phone usage and certain brain tumors,” adding that malignant brain tumors are “a life-ending diagnosis.

“It is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking,” he said.

Broccoli juice for disease prevention

Broccoli is a member of the cauliflower family or a Brassica. It is a diverse super food that is delicious when steamed or can be finely chopped and sprinkled on food for added nutrition. Juicing is a great way to get the most out of this amazing food. By drinking broccoli juice daily, we can prevent disease and transform our health.

Broccoli juice contains high levels of Vitamin C, Vitamin B, fiber, zinc, folic acid, magnesium, iron and beta-carotene (an important antioxidant). It is a potent immune system booster which can help to counteract diseases such as cancer, stomach ulcers and infection.

Broccoli juice offers a whole array of amazing benefits that help us to enjoy optimum health. It contains glucoraphanin that converts into sulphoraphane, a powerful anticancer agent. It contains isothyocyanate, the chemical that activates our natural cancer inhibiting genes. The sprouted seeds and the broccoli juice help to fight prostate cancer. It contains compounds that help to detox the liver from cancer causing toxins.

With high levels of selenium and fiber, the juice of Broccoli offers protection from stomach and bowel cancer.

Broccoli juice contains compounds that protect cells from ultraviolet light. It helps to increase the production of protective enzymes that protect cells against different aspects of UV damage by working inside the cells. It helps in prevention of skin cancer.

Glucoraphanin present in the broccoli juice promotes antioxidant defenses in the body that help lower blood pressure and harmful inflammation in the heart and arteries.

The phytochemical sulforaphane helps the body defend against H. pylori, a bacteria that causes gastrointestinal problems. Thus, it helps to prevent stomach ulcers and painful bloating.

Broccoli juice contains fibers which help to maintain a healthy gastrointestinal GI tract. It reduces cholesterol levels in the blood. Calcium present in the Broccoli juice promotes healthy bones and helps to burn fat. It decreases the production of cortisol, which is a stress hormone, relating to food cravings and stomach fat.

Other Benefits of Broccoli:

*Contains folic acid that is needed for the normal growth of the tissue. This is good for pregnant woman.
*Helps to get relief from cold symptoms, since it contains Vitamin C, which is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory.
*Assists the body in absorbing iron.
*It helps to prevent osteoporosis, since it contains large amount of calcium.

By combining Broccoli juice and its various nutritional benefits with other super food juices, we can even create greater radiance and disease free health. Celery, cucumbers, ginger and kale are some of the healthiest foods for juicing. A little carrot and apple can naturally sweeten the juice, making it more palatable and enjoyable.

http://www.news-medical.net/?id=40120

Drinking Cola Causes Muscle Weakness, Bone Loss

Drinking Cola Causes Muscle Weakness, Bone Loss
People who drink more than two quarts of cola per day may induce severe and possibly fatal potassium deficiency, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Ioannina, Greece, and published in the International Journal of Clinical Practice.

"We are consuming more soft drinks than ever before, and a number of health issues have already been identified including tooth problems, bone demineralization and the development of metabolic syndrome and diabetes," researcher Moses Elisaf said. "Evidence is increasing to suggest that excessive cola consumption can also lead to hypokalemia, in which the blood potassium levels fall, causing an adverse effect on vital muscle functions."

Researchers reviewed the cases of several patients who had consumed between two and 10 quarts of cola per day, including two pregnant women. One of these, a 21-year-old who drank as much as three quarts per day, was admitted to the hospital for persistent vomiting, fatigue and appetite loss. The other was admitted after drinking seven quarts per day for 10 months and suffering from progressive weakening of her muscles.

Both women recovered after they stopped drinking cola and were treated with intravenous or oral potassium.

Potassium plays a critical role in the functioning of the body's nerves, muscles and heart. Critical deficiency like that experienced by the patients in the University of Ioannina study can lead to cramping, paralysis, irregular heartbeat and even death. In one of the cases studied, a man suffered lung paralysis after drinking 10 quarts per day.

The researchers believe that both caffeine and sugar contributed to the observed potassium deficiency.

In an accompanying editorial, Clifford D. Packer at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center in Cleveland warned, "There is very little doubt that tens of millions of people in industrialized countries drink at least 2-3 [quarts] of cola per day. The soft drink industry needs to promote safe and moderate use of its products for all age groups, reduce serving sizes, and pay heed to the rising call for healthier drinks."

Sources for this story include: www.upi.com; www.reuters.com; www.newsinferno.com.

Cell phone dangers

Researcher: Cell Phones 'More Dangerous Than Smoking'
Millions of deaths could result over the long term






By Mark Huffman
ConsumerAffairs.com


Cell Phones and Cancer

There have been a number of health warnings over the years about possible radiation risks associated with the use of mobile phones. In case anyone is not taking these warnings seriously, British health researcher Dr. Vini Khurana puts it in language designed to get your attention:

"Mobile phones could have health consequences far greater than asbestos and smoking," he said.

Khurana – a neurosurgeon who has published more than 30 scientific papers – reviewed more than 100 studies on the effects of mobile phones. He has written a paper based on the research, which is currently being peer-reviewed for publication in a scientific journal.

Is he exaggerating? Khurana says the numbers bear him out. He points out that three billion people around the world now use a cell phone. That's three times the number of people who smoke, and smoking amounts for some five million worldwide deaths each year.

But are cell phones really a serious risk? Khurana expresses little doubt, saying "there is a significant and increasing body of evidence for a link between mobile phone usage and certain brain tumors."

The risks, he says, will become even more apparent in the years ahead.
Action needed

Khurana believes governments should act immediately, but stops short of saying exactly what they should do. Separating people from their cell phones, at this point, might be beyond the reach of any earthly power.

Meanwhile, the cell phone industry remains unconvinced. Britain's Mobile Operators Association dismissed his study as "a selective discussion of scientific literature by one individual."

In the U.S., exploration of a possible link between mobile phones and health is moving at a slower pace. In January the National Academy of Sciences reported on its review of scientific evidence, requested by the Food and Drug Administration, by identifying areas where more research is needed.

Among the research requested by the Academy are human population studies of children and pregnant women, including childhood cancers and brain cancer; and a study of adults in the general population, comparing them with a group with medium to high exposure to mobile phones.
Salivary gland

Last month, a study in the American Journal of Epidemiology, suggests that cell phone use contributes to at least some cancers.

The study found focused on cancer of the salivary gland, looking at 500 Israeli citizens who had developed the disease and 1,300 healthy subjects.

Researchers concluded that those who had held a mobile handset against one side of their head for several hours a day were 50 percent more likely to have a tumor in the salivary gland.

Since cell phones were introduced in the 1980s, there has been speculation of a heightened risk of cancer, caused by holding an electronic device against the head. There have been a number of studies, but no conclusive evidence one way or the other.

This latest study is different because it has focused on long-term users. Also, researchers say, previous studies have looked for tumor formation exclusively in the brain, not other parts of the body.
Salivary gland

Cancer of the salivary gland, they point out, is very rare, and its location so close to where a handset is held makes the tumor-cell phone connection all the more intriguing.

The mobile communications industry has repeatedly questioned studies suggesting a cancer link. It argues cell phones have been shown to be safe, and should be considered so until they are conclusively shown to be unsafe.

Skeptics worry that radio-frequency radiation emitted from the devices might be harmful to human tissue, and might contribute to the formation of tumors. Dr. Siegal Sadetzki, who headed up the research team, notes that cancer risks appeared to be higher among rural cell phone users, because their mobile phones put off increased radiation to compensate for weaker signals.

But Sadetzki concedes her study is inconclusive and should be followed up with ongoing research. Even so, she says "precautions should be taken" in order to reduce risk, especially for children and young adults who use mobile phones.
WiFi too
Add to that worries about wireless computer networks. Last year, the British scientist who raised one of the early warnings about potential health hazards from cell phones has a new worry -- wireless Internet, or WiFi.

Sir William Stewart, chairman of Britain's Health Protection Agency, is lobbying British authorities for an investigation into WiFi's possible health risks, according to Britain's The Independent.

Stewart is concerned because wireless Internet may become more prevalent than mobile telephones.

A few individuals are known to suffer from a heightened sensitivity to electromagnetic radiation, but in recent years more and more physicians have expressed concern that repeated and prolonged exposure might be harmful to the wider population.

A study conducted in Finland found that people who have used cell phones for ten years or more are 40 per cent more likely to get a brain tumor on the same side of the head as they hold their handset. Research done in Sweden puts the risk at almost four times greater.

Stewart is reportedly concerned because of the similarity of the radiation emitted by cell phones and WiFi systems. But whereas cell phone radiation exposes only the person using the handset, WiFi radiation could affect everyone in the general vicinity.

Much of the concern is directed at children, who are seen as more vulnerable than adults to the effects of radiation, and because they will likely be exposed to increasing levels of radiation throughout their lives.

The Austrian Medical Association is pressing the government to ban the deployment of WiFi in schools.

Concerns about WiFi health effects have also been raised in the U.S.

In 2003, parents sued an Illinois school that installed a WiFi system, claiming the radiation was causing headaches and memory problems. Last year, Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario refused to install a campus WiFi system, citing possible health concerns.

Read more: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2008/03/cells_danger.html#ixzz0J3jAahL0&C

What Chain-Food Favorites Cost in Exercise

What Chain-Food Favorites Cost in Exercise
My "two scoops won't hurt and neither will these french fries" approach to eating doesn't lend itself well to swimsuit season. Although the beach treks may have begun, there is time to make change. So, let me have it. What's that ice cream going to cost me in workout minutes? To tell us is Charles Stuart Platkin, also known as the Diet Detective. He is the author of five books and and host of WE TV's I Want To Save Your Life. Here is his report on what some of our chain-food favorites should cost us in time spent doing common exercises...

Note: Calorie content of foods are based on official website information at the time of publication. Minutes of exercise are averages based on a 155-pound person. The greater the weight of the person the more calories burned per minute.



DONUT
Dunkin Donuts Chocolate Frosted Donut (230 calories)
59 minutes of walking (3 mph).


BREAKFAST SANDWICH
McDonald's Egg McMuffin (300 calories)
32 minutes of running (5 mph).





CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE
Panera Chocolate Chipper (440 calories)
62 minutes of biking (10-11.9 mph).




PIZZA
Pizza Hut Large Hand-Tossed Style Cheese Pizza (1 slice; 320 calories)
39 minutes of swimming (slow to moderate laps).





CINNAMON ROLL
Starbucks Cinnamon Roll (500 calories, varies by location)
85 minutes of dancing.


HAMBURGER
Burger King Original Whopper With Cheese (770 calories)
94 minutes of swimming (slow to moderate laps).



BROWNIE
Au Bon Pain Chocolate Chip Brownie (380 calories).
129 minutes of yoga (Hatha style).



FRIES
Wendy's Large French Fries (540 calories)
77 minutes of biking (10-11.9 mph).




ICE CREAM
Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Ice Cream (0.5 cup; 270 calories)
29 minutes of running (5 mph).

BURRITO
Taco Bell Burrito Supreme, Beef (410 calories)
70 minutes of dancing.

Too Much Cola Can Cause Muscle Problems

>Too Much Cola Can Cause Muscle Problems

WEDNESDAY, May 27 (HealthDay News) -- Drinking too much cola can increase the risk of a muscle problem called hypokalemia, experts warn.

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In people with hypokalemia, a drop in blood potassium levels results in problems with vital muscle functions. Symptoms can range from mild weakness to serious paralysis, say Greek researchers who conducted a review of people who drank between two to nine liters of cola a day.

Two of the patients were pregnant women who were admitted to hospital with low potassium levels. One was a 21-year-old woman who drank up to three liters of cola a day and complained of fatigue, appetite loss and persistent vomiting. An electrocardiogram revealed she had a heart blockage, and blood tests showed she had low potassium levels, the researchers explained in a news release.

The second pregnant patient, who'd consumed up to seven liters of cola a day for 10 months, had low potassium levels and was suffering from increasing muscular weakness, the researchers noted.

Both patients made a rapid and full recovery after they stopped drinking cola and took oral or intravenous potassium. The case studies are described in the June issue of the International Journal of Clinical Practice.

"We are consuming more soft drinks than ever before, and a number of health issues have already been identified including tooth problems, bone demineralization and the development of metabolic syndrome and diabetes," and there's increasing evidence that excessive cola consumption leads to hypokalemia, Dr. Moses Elisaf, of the University of Ioannina, said in the news release.

Elisaf said the three most common ingredients in cola -- glucose, fructose and caffeine -- can contribute to hypokalemia.

"The individual role of each of these ingredients in the pathophysiology of cola-induced hypokalemia has not been determined and may vary in different patients," Elisaf said. "However, in most of the cases we looked at for our review, caffeine intoxication was thought to play the most important role. This has been borne out by case studies that focus on other products that contain high levels of caffeine but no glucose or fructose."

However, "caffeine-free cola products can also cause hypokalemia because the fructose they contain can cause diarrhea," Elisaf said.

The Truth About Diet Soda

The Truth About Diet Soda

We talk a lot about “watching what we eat,” but if you never gave a thought to what you ate and instead watched only what you drank, you could probably cut 450 calories a day out of your life—that’s nearly a pound of fat trimmed away each week! That's what a study from the University of North Carolina found. Americans today drink about 192 gallons of liquid a year—or about 2 liters a day. To put it into perspective, this is nearly twice as many calories as we did 30 years ago.

When confronted with the growing tide of calories from sweetened beverages, the first response is, “Why not just drink diet soda?” Well, for a few reasons. Eat This, Not That! did some research and found out some hard truths behind the low-calorie (and nutrition-free) beverage. The story isn't as clear-cut as you suspect, and it might make you think twice the next time you're looking for a thirst-quencher.

Hard truth No. 1

Just because diet soda is low in calories doesn't mean it can't lead to weight gain.

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It may have only 5 or fewer calories per serving, but emerging research suggests that consuming sugary-tasting beverages—even if they're artificially sweetened—may lead to a high preference for sweetness overall. That means sweeter (and more caloric) cereal, bread, dessert—everything. Considering there are 15 calories in every teaspoon of sugar, that's not good news if you're watching your weight.

Hard truth No. 2

Guzzling these drinks all day long forces out the healthy beverages you need.

Diet soda is 100 percent nutrition-free—and it's important to remember that all that useless liquid is taking up space that could have gone to more healthy alternatives. On the positive side, it means you won’t be taking in equally non-nutritious, calorie- and sugar-packed options. But it's just as important to actively drink the good stuff as it is to avoid that bad stuff. So one diet soda a day is fine, but if you're downing five or six cans, that means you're limiting your intake of healthful beverages, particularly water and tea, which is high in antioxidants.

Plus, a recent study from Johns Hopkins found that restricting liquid caloric intake is a more effective way to lose weight than restricting calories from food. There’s no better place than by eliminating anything on our list of the 20 unhealthiest drinks in America.

Hard truth No. 3

There remain some concerns over aspartame, the low-calorie chemical used to give diet sodas their flavor.

Aspartame is 180 times sweeter than sugar, and some animal research has linked consumption of high amounts of the sweetener to brain tumors and lymphoma in rodents. The FDA maintains that the sweetener is safe, but reported side effects include dizziness, headaches, diarrhea, memory loss, and mood changes. Check out our guide to the 11 most controversial food additives to see how aspartame stacks up.

The bottom line is this: Diet soda does you no good, and it might just be doing you harm. The best way to hydrate is by drinking low-calorie, high-nutrient fluids—and choosing healthy alternatives, like the ones you'll find in our list of the 16 best drink swaps.

Now that you have a hold on your liquid assets, upgrade the rest of your grocery list by avoiding the 13 Worst "Healthy" Foods in the Supermarket.