Rev. Jesse Jackson Urges HIV Awareness, Testing, More Research For A Cure At National Black AIDS Conference

The Rev. Jesse Jackson on Monday in Philadelphia at the 2007 National Conference on African-Americans and AIDS called for increased research funding to find a cure for HIV/AIDS, as well as more awareness about HIV testing, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports (McCullough, Philadelphia Inquirer, 2/13). Jackson, founder of the RainbowPUSH Coalition, gave the plenary address at the two-day conference. The conference, which ended Tuesday, featured discussions such as “Epidemiology of HIV”; “Clinical Management of HIV Infection”; “Microbicides”; “Hepatitis A, B and C”; and “HIV/AIDS Policy” (Williams, Philadelphia Daily News, 2/13). Jackson encouraged well-known blacks to receive HIV tests publicly to help address the stigma surrounding the disease. For instance, he said that if players participating in the National Basketball Association All-Star Game on Sunday took the test live on television, it could inspire others to do the same. “We must use every platform we can for mass education,” Jackson said. He also urged the hundreds of medical professionals and HIV/AIDS advocates attending the conference to buy stock in drug companies and then attend shareholder meetings to push for a cure, according to the Inquirer. The drug companies GlaxoSmithKline, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer are among major sponsors of Minority Healthcare Communications, which produces the conference, the Inquirer reports. Drug companies “may have an interest in more medicine and less cure,” Jackson said, adding, “Ultimately we don’t want the medicine. We want the cure” (Philadelphia Inquirer, 2/13).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

The Hunt For Peanut Butter Salmonella Source Continues

While US shops and consumers hunt down and throw out potentially contaminated jars of Peter Pan Peanut Butter, health officials continue to investigate exactly how some of them became contaminated with Salmonella.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned US consumers earlier this week not to eat jars of Peter Pan Peanut Butter and Great Value Peanut Butter with product codes starting “2111″ because they could be contaminated with Salmonella.

The product code is stamped on the lids of the jars.

The salmonella strain the peanut butter jars could be contaminated with is a particular strain of the food-borne bacteria known as Salmonella Tennessee.

The peanut butter with product code 2111 is made in Sylvester, Georgia by food producer ConAgra Foods Inc. Other jars of peanut butter sold by Great Value that do not carry the 2111 product prefix are not affected since they are made by other companies.

If you have Peter Pan or Great Value peanut butter with a product code starting with 2111 on the lid of the jar you should throw it away, said the FDA. The jars will have been on sale since May 2006.

The warning was issued following an investigation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other health officials into 288 reported cases of food related infections in 39 states that were traced to eating Peter Pan peanut butter.

According to the CDC, most of the people affected were residents of New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Tennessee and Missouri. No deaths were reported although 20 per cent of those affected had to be admitted to hospital for treatment.

The first consumer to be affected was probably back in August last year. Peter Pan peanut butter was identified as the likely source of the infection, and because Great Value peanut butter is made in the same plant, jars of that brand from that plant have also been recalled.

Exactly how the bacteria got into the jars of peanut butter is still a mystery. The process of making peanut butter heats it to a very high temperature to kill all such pathogens. It is possible said some of the health officials, that the bacteria got in through contaiminated jars. Or perhaps it was on equipment that came into contact with the product after it was heated and before it was sealed in the jar.

Symptoms of Salmonella include fever, stomach ache and diarrhea. Salmonella is not normally life-threatening in healthy people. But it can be very serious for anyone with a compromised immune system, such as someone who is elderly and frail, or already ill with a serious infection, or very underweight.

If you think you have eaten contaminated peanut butter from one of these jars and are feeling ill with symptoms like these you should contact your doctor straight away.

Meanwhile ConAgra, the company that owns the Georgia plant where the Salmonella was traced to, has stopped production of peanut butter, has destroyed stored jars at the plant and is recalling all jars of the product with the 2111 code prefix.

FDA officials are at the plant looking through records, collecting samples and conducting tests for Salmonella Tennessee to help locate the source.

Normal operation at the Georgia plant will not resume until the exact source of the contamination in the factory has been found and eliminated.

Every year about 40,000 Americans get sick and 600 die from being infected with foodborne Salmonella of various types.

The species of Salmonella that causes foodborne illnesses has many different serological varieties or serovars, each of which is classified according to the type of reaction that it causes in the body, or more specifically, the type of surface antigens infected cells produce to help the immune system fight the infection.

Salmonella Tennessee belongs to the serogroup C1, it is a rare strain of Salmonella and has some unexpected properties, such as its ability to ferment lactose as well as sucrose.

Nowadays Salmonella serovars are identified using DNA fingerprinting, but in earlier times detection of this strain was often missed because scientists were not expecting to find a Salmonella that could ferment lactose.

The US is the world’s largest peanut butter supplier and consumer. Alabama, Florida and Georgia grow 60 per cent of the peanuts used in peanut butter.

Pure peanut butter has high levels of monounsaturated fats, and the anti-oxidant p-coumaric acid.

Peanuts are an excellent source of protein, vitamins B3 and E, and they also contain magnesium, folate, fibre and arginine, an essential amino acid.

Click here for Questions and Answers relating to this outbreak (CDC, PDF file)

Click here to see Salmonella Taxonomy (University of British Columbia Bioinformatics Centre).

Written by: Catharine Paddock
Writer: Medical News Today

Global Partnership To Launch $10M Initiative That Aims To Bolster HIV/AIDS Care In 10 African Countries Using Cell Phones

A new public-private partnership on Tuesday at the 2007 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, announced the launch of a new $10 million campaign that will use cell phones to bolster HIV/AIDS care and treatment in 10 African countries, Reuters reports (Reuters, 2/13). The partnership includes the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, Motorola, the GSMA Development Fund, Accenture Development Partnership, MTN and Voxiva, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports (Moore, AP/Houston Chronicle, 2/13). Under the initiative, called “Phones-for-Health,” health workers in the field can access software loaded on a standard Motorola cell phone to enter HIV/AIDS and health information into a central database in real time, Reuters reports. Information will be transmitted using a standard GPRS mobile connection, and when not available, an SMS channel will be used (Reuters, 2/13). The information sent to the central database will then be analyzed by the system and made available to health officials on the Internet. The system also will allow field staff to receive text alerts and other information. According to Paul Meyer, Voxiva chair, the system will allow health workers to order medicine and access treatment guidelines and training materials (AP/Houston Chronicle, 2/13). According to GSMA, 60% of Africans live in areas with mobile phone coverage, and the figure is expected to increase to 85% by 2010. World Health Organization Assistant Director-General Howard Zucker said, “The explosive spread of mobile phone networks across the developing world has created a unique opportunity to significantly transform how countries can tackle global health challenges.” The initiative aims to expand to additional countries in Africa and to Asia and to address other diseases, including malaria and tuberculosis, the partners said Tuesday (Reuters, 2/13).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

Teamwork Improves Care For Chronic Heart Failure

Active patient involvement during treatment of chronic heart failure, coupled with partnership with healthcare team members to provide care consistent with evidence-based guidelines, dramatically improves quality of care for chronic heart failure patients.

The study by researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine, the Regenstrief Institute, Inc. and the Richard Roudebush VA Medical Center in Indianapolis, published in the January 2007 issue of the journal Medical Care, reported on chronic heart failure patients in 143 Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers nationwide.

Chronic heart failure is a serious condition caused by structural or functional cardiac problems impairing the ability of the heart to pump blood. Risk factors for chronic heart failure include previous heart attack, high blood pressure or diabetes.

“We found hospitals providing complex care like the care needed for chronic heart failure perform significantly better when members of the patient’s health-care team collectively work together to follow processes and procedures incorporated in national guidelines. Facilities with providers receptive to the guidelines, which have guideline-specific task forces to support implementation and a well-planned implementation process were those who gave the highest quality of care for patients with chronic heart failure,” said the study’s senior author, Bradley Doebbeling, M.D., M.S., professor of health services research and medicine at the IU School of Medicine and program director for health services research at the Regenstrief Institute.

“The patient is a crucial team member as well. Without patient involvement, significant goals like dietary change or adherence to medicine regimens cannot be met,” he said.

Lifestyle changes, such as exercising, reducing salt intake, managing stress, and especially losing weight are closely associated with longer chronic heart failure patient survival.

“Interdisciplinary teamwork, physician and other provider engagement, and coordination of care, combined with the involvement of patients and the VA’s integrated health care delivery system, promotes very high levels of quality and safety. Other hospital systems can learn from these effective provider – patient partnerships,” said Dr. Doebbeling, who directs the Center of Excellence in Implementing Evidence Based Practice at the Roudebush VA Hospital and the IU Center for Health Services & Outcomes Research.

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Co-authors of the study, which was funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Health Services & Outcomes Research program, are Usha Subramanian, M.D., Jason Sutherland, Ph.D., Kimberly D. McCoy, M.S., Karl F. Welke, M.D. and Thomas E. Vaughn, Ph.D.

Contact: Cindy Fox Aisen
Indiana University

Pills Or Papayas? Survey Finds Americans Want Healthful Foods, Not More Medicines

If you thought Americans would rather pop a pill to treat illness than make major diet changes, think again. A new survey shows the vast majority would rather change their diets – including trying a vegetarian diet – than use medicines. According to a nationally representative survey of 1,022 adults conducted in mid-January by Opinion Research Corporation, 69 percent of Americans would prefer to try a dietary approach. Just 21 percent preferred treating diabetes with medicines.

The survey, commissioned by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), reinforces results from PCRM’s clinical research on diabetes, which has consistently found that people with diabetes adapt well to low-fat vegetarian diets and gain important health benefits.

In Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes, a new book published in January, PCRM president Neal Barnard, M.D., outlines a dietary approach to diabetes based on scientific research showing that a low-fat vegan diet can lower high blood sugar levels three times more effectively than oral medications. In the past, many clinicians have felt that patients lack the willpower to make diet changes and would rather “pop a pill.” The new results show just the opposite.

“A low-fat vegetarian diet offers a powerful way to control and even reverse diabetes,” said Dr. Barnard. “The idea that Americans would rather take pills than make diet changes is a myth. Americans clearly favor tackling serious diabetes with diet changes, including vegetarian diets.” The survey was conducted January 12 through 15, and included 515 women and 507 men, 18 years and older, living in the continental United States.

Other key survey findings:

* Women are even more likely than men to prefer food changes over pills. Women preferred diet by 73 percent versus 17 percent for medicines. For men, the split was 65 percent versus 26 percent.

* People with more education and higher incomes were especially likely to favor a diet approach.

* Americans aged 45 to 64 were more enthusiastic about diet changes, compared with older Americans; 76 percent of the middle-aged respondents preferred diet changes. Among those aged 65 and above, the figure dropped slightly, to 59 percent. The most pill-happy generation was the 18- to 24-year-olds. But even in this group, only 30 percent favored using medicines, while 63 percent favored diet changes.

* People living in Western states were especially likely to prefer diet changes: 73 percent versus only 17 percent for drugs.

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More details about Dr. Barnard’s diabetes program are available at http://www.pcrm.org/diabetes.

Founded in 1985, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a nonprofit health organization that promotes preventive medicine, especially good nutrition. PCRM also conducts clinical research studies, opposes unethical human experimentation, and promotes alternatives to animal research.

RELATED LINKS

* PCRM diabetes resources, including recipes and new cyber-support program http://www.pcrm.org/health/diabetes

* Dr. Neal Barnard’s nationwide lecture tour http://www.reversediabetestour.org/

* News release on Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes http://www.pcrm.org/news/release070109.html

* http://www.pcrm.org/health/prevmed/diabetes_book/index.html

* Dr. Barnard’s most recent clinical research on diabetes http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/full/29/8/1777

Contact: Simon Chaitowitz
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

Saliva Test To Diagnose Health And Disease

Innovative saliva-based health diagnostic tools will be developed by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin through a $6 million, multi-institutional grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Saliva – with its slimy mix of proteins, hormones and antibodies – can tell a lot about a person’s health, and it is much easier and less painful to collect than blood. But, the medical community lacks the technologies to perform large-scale salivary diagnostics.

With collaborators at three medical schools, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry John McDevitt aims to develop lab-on-a-chip sensor systems for measuring important biomarkers in saliva samples.

The lab-on-a-chip technology was previously developed in McDevitt’s laboratory and has been licensed to LabNow, Inc. Lab-on-a-chip systems are miniaturized biosensors that, coupled with portable instruments, promise to offer inexpensive, point of care medical diagnosis. The technology is being tested for use in the monitoring of HIV immune function.

“Through these efforts, we’re trying to make clinical diagnostic tests more accessible, less expensive and less painful,” said McDevitt.

The approach is consistent with the mission of the new Texas Institute for Drug and Diagnostic Development, with which McDevitt is affiliated. The development of these noninvasive oral fluid tests is also expected to provide more options for diagnosis and monitoring health issues in children, contributing to the new activities of the Dell Pediatrics Research Institute.

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McDevitt will serve as the principal investigator for the grant, awarded recently by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, a division of the NIH.

The cooperative research program brings The University of Texas at Austin together with the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville.

Contact: John McDevitt
University of Texas at Austin

Chinese Authorities Praise HIV/AIDS Advocate Gao After Preventing Her From Coming To U.S. To Accept Award

The Chinese government on Monday praised HIV/AIDS advocate and retired physician Gao Yaojie after placing her under house arrest last week to prevent her from visiting the U.S. to accept an award from the group Vital Voices Global Partnership, the AP/International Herald Tribune reports (AP/International Herald Tribune, 2/13). According to Gao’s friend and Beijing-based AIDS advocate Hu Jia, Chinese authorities from the eastern province Henan told Gao not to attend the Vital Voices awards ceremony. When Gao refused, she was put under house arrest to prevent her from traveling to Beijing to apply for a U.S. visa, Hu said. Gao’s friends and family were blocked from visiting her or were questioned before being given permission to visit, and her daughter was placed under police surveillance, Hu said. Gao in the 1990s alerted people in Henan of HIV cases that occurred through tainted blood transfusions. Gao also distributed material warning people of HIV and the risks of donating blood. In addition, Gao has distributed medicine to HIV-positive people, provided cared for AIDS orphans and hosted people living with HIV/AIDS in her home. She also has written a book about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in China. Chinese authorities in 2001 and 2003 prevented Gao from traveling abroad to accept awards for her work (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 2/6). According to the AP/ Herald Tribune, Communist Party deputy secretary for Henan Chen Quanguo visited Gao in her home and praised her “long-standing contributions” to the province’s “education, health and AIDS prevention work.” HIV/AIDS advocate Li Dan said Chen might have visited Gao to offset negative publicity abroad. Li said that Gao had told him by phone that she still plans to visit the U.S. to accept the award. Wenchi Yu Perkins, director for Vital Voices’ human rights programs, last week said the group is talking to Chinese contacts to “understand what is happening” (AP/International Herald Tribune, 2/13).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

Research Explores Chiropractic’s Effect On Diabetes

Diabetes is the fifth deadliest disease in the United States and a growing epidemic worldwide. Now, researchers are finding evidence that chiropractic adjustments might be able to make a valuable contribution to an overall program of wellness care to help diabetes sufferers.

A study published in the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research (JVSR; http://www.jvsr.com), focused on the positive response to chiropractic when used as part of an integrative treatment in the care of a patient with adult onset diabetes. The disease was diagnosed by a medical doctor.

Along with chiropractic care, the patient also received nutritional and exercise guidance.

The chiropractic care was directed toward correcting misalignments in the spine, called vertebral subluxations, which affect the relationship between the nervous system and organs.

After one month of being on the program, the patient’s glucose blood and urine levels had normalized and remained stable. His medical doctor, who monitored his progress, said the patient would not need insulin if the condition remained stable.

According to the author of the research paper, Charles Blum, DC, president of the Sacro Occipital Technique Organization-USA, “It is unclear how much impact chiropractic care might have on the primary or secondary care of patients with diabetes. Further study is necessary to determine if there is a subset of patients with diabetes that might respond to chiropractic care incorporated in a system of other integrated methods of care.”

The study was one of several recent research projects exploring the impact of vertebral subluxations on human health and well-being and the potential benefits of chiropractic. In the past, chiropractic was thought to be of help mainly to adults suffering back pain or headaches but current research is showing it has far broader applications.

“This type of study is popping up everywhere,” stated JVSR Editor Matthew McCoy, DC. “For more than 100 years, chiropractors have maintained that what they do affects organ system function and general health. Case studies like this demonstrate the urgency for more research funding from the public and private sector on chiropractic and its effects beyond neck and back pain.”

The potential for chiropractic to help people with diabetes is a particularly important line of inquiry. Between 1990 and 1999, incidence of disease increased by more than 40 percent. By the year 2000, nearly seven percent of the population was affected. Unless something changes, the future looks bleak. Roughly one out of every three men and two out of every five women born in the year 2000 will suffer from diabetes in their lifetime.

The life expectancy of men diagnosed with diabetes at age 40, is shorted, on average, by 11-13 years. For women, the figures are even more disturbing: their life expectancy is cut by 12 to 17 years of life. The disease also takes a huge financial toll, accounting for about $132 billion of the $865 billion spent in health care in 2002.

“Given the devastating effects of diabetes on people’s health and the economic implications it is well worth investigating other treatments like chiropractic for diabetes,” Dr. Blum pointed out. “We need to examine if chiropractic can help with improving a patient’s sugar handling difficulties or even just help a patient under medication improve their quality of life and only further research and investigations will uncover these answers.”

JVSR, a peer reviewed scientific journal devoted to subluxation-based chiropractic research, is affiliated with the World Chiropractic Alliance (WCA), an international organization representing doctors of chiropractic. The WCA promotes traditional, drug-free and non-invasive chiropractic as a means of correcting vertebral subluxations that cause nerve interference. An abstract of the research report is available at http://www.jvsr.com.

World Chiropractic Alliance (WCA)
Chandler, AZ 85224
United States
http://www.worldchiropracticalliance.org

Chromium Picolinate Shows Greater Benefits In Diabetes Care Than Other Forms Of Chromium

Nutrition 21, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXXI) has reported that a peer reviewed analysis on chromium picolinate was published in the current edition of Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics. The analysis confirms that chromium picolinate is effective in improving glycemic control and normalizing lipid levels in people with type 2 diabetes.(1) The review, which analyzed research on chromium picolinate, supports the consistent beneficial effects of chromium picolinate and refutes a previous review that analyzed efficacy after combining results from all types of supplemental chromium.(2)

“The main messages are that all forms of chromium are not equivalent, and that higher doses of chromium picolinate are required for people with type 2 diabetes,” said C. Leigh Broadhurst, PhD, Research Chemist, the lead author of the publication. “Previous chromium reviews examined all types of chromium at widely varying doses. But separating out chromium picolinate, which yields highly consistent results in research studies, compared to other chromium supplements shows that at doses between 200–1000 mcg it is a superior nutritional adjunct to diabetes treatments.”

The review analyzed 15 clinical studies of people with diabetes. All studies showed chromium picolinate produced benefits in one or more standard measures of diabetes management, with no adverse events reported. The studies examined people with type 2, type 1, gestational and corticosteroid-induced diabetes. Although glycemic control varied by trial, all 15 trials showed improvements in one or more measurements of glycemic control, including fasting glucose, postprandial glucose, fasting insulin, postprandial insulin, glycated hemoglobin, or insulin sensitivity. The authors concluded the greater bioavailability of chromium picolinate compared to other forms of chromium may explain its comparatively significant superior effects on glycemic and lipidemic control.

Supplemental chromium is available in several forms, including chromium picolinate, chromium chloride, and chromium nicotinate.(3) Research indicates that chromium picolinate, the most studied form of chromium, has enhanced absorption and efficacy. A human clinical study conducted by Ohio State University Department of Nutrition and presented at the 2005 Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) annual meeting showed that chromium picolinate is better absorbed than other commercially available forms of chromium.(4) Additionally, an animal study conducted at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that chromium picolinate was better absorbed by the tissues (e.g., liver and muscle) than chromium nicotinate and chromium chloride.(5) Absorption into the tissue is important because for a mineral to be beneficial, it must survive the digestive tract and reach the bloodstream. Otherwise, minerals pass through the body, leaving it void of necessary nutrients.(6)

About the Scientific Review

The studies reviewed in this paper were identified from a number of sources, such as PubMed, Science Direct, and a past review of chromium effects on glycemic control. A total of 1,690 subjects, including 1,505 receiving chromium picolinate, participated in these trials. Twelve of the 15 studies were randomized, controlled trials and three were open-label trials. Chromium picolinate dosages ranged from 200–1000 mcg chromium per day, and the duration of the supplementation ranged from one week to 10 months.

Chromium Picolinate for Diabetes

Chromium picolinate, which is sold in combination with the B-vitamin biotin under the brand name of Diachrome® for people with diabetes, is an essential trace mineral that helps to regulate insulin function. The chromium picolinate in Diachrome has been recognized as safe by many of the world’s leading government and academic research institutions, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Institute of Medicine and the UK’s Food Standards Agency. In addition, biotin has been deemed safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is also Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) for use in foods and supplements.

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About Nutrition 21

Nutrition 21 is a nutritional bioscience company and the maker of chromium picolinate-based, selenium and omega-3 fish oil-based supplements with health benefits substantiated by clinical research. Nutrition 21 holds 33 patents for nutrition products and uses. The company markets Chromax® chromium picolinate, which is the most-studied form of the essential mineral chromium. Chromax, a supplement for healthy and pre-diabetic people that promotes insulin health and helps improve blood sugar metabolism, cardiovascular disease, control cravings and fight weight gain, is now available through food, drug and mass retailers nationwide. Another chromium picolinate-based supplement developed and marketed by Nutrition 21 is Diachrome®, a proprietary, non-prescription, insulin sensitizer for people with type 2 diabetes. It is sold in select drug retailers nationwide. Nutrition 21 also markets Selenomax®, a high selenium yeast supplement that stimulates and protects the immune system by supporting antibody production and preventing free-radical damage. Selenomax is available at CVS/pharmacy in all its 6,200 retail stores across the country, including PharmaCare Specialty Pharmacy locations. The Company is the exclusive importer of Icelandic fish oils, including omega-3 fatty acids, which are manufactured to pharmaceutical standards and sold under the Iceland Health® brand.

1. Broadhurst. CL, Domenico P Clinical Studies on Chromium Picolinate Supplementation in Diabetes Mellitus — A Review. Diabetes Technol Ther. 2006 Dec; 8(6):677-87

2. Althuis MD, Jordan NE, Ludington EA, Wittes JT. Glucose and insulin responses to dietary chromium supplements: a meta-analysis. Am J Clin Nutr. 2002 Jul;76(1):148-55

3. Dietary Supplements Fact Sheet: Chromium. Accessed November 2, 2005 from http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/chromium.asp.

4. DiSilvestro, R, et al. Acute Absorption of Various Types of Chromium Supplement Complexes. Accepted for presentation at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) annual meeting, San Diego, CA, April 4, 2005.

5. Anderson, RA, et al. Lack of Toxicity of Chromium Chloride and chromium Picolinate in Rats. J Amer Coll Nut Vol. 16, No. 3 1997; 273-279. 6. Q&A. Accessed October 26, 2005 from http://www.traceminerals.com/questions.html.

Contact:
Maryrose Lombardo
Chad Hyett
Nutrition 21

Risk Of Developing Diabetes Increasingly Involved In Decisions Regarding HRT, Wall Street Journal Reports

Although doctors for years have “talked about the health effects of hormones on bones, breasts and women’s hearts,” diabetes has not been “part of the debate” until last week, when the North American Menopause Society in a revised position statement said that women taking hormone replacement therapy appear to be less likely to develop the disease, the Wall Street Journal reports (Parker-Pope, Wall Street Journal, 2/3). Along with a lower risk of diabetes, benefits of HRT include fewer hot flashes; better sleep; a lower risk of colon cancer; stronger bones; and, potentially, improved blood pressure, lowered risk of dementia and better “heart health.” Women taking HRT have a higher risk of stroke, blood clots and gall bladder disease, as well as a possible higher risk of ovarian cancer and poor bladder control. Breast cancer risk is higher for women taking HRT containing estrogen and progestin, but estrogen-only HRT might lower the risk of breast cancer. The society in the revised position statement cited data from the Women’s Health Initiative that found women who used estrogen and progestin were 21% less likely to develop diabetes, while women who took only estrogen were 12% less likely to develop the condition. The risks and benefits of HRT for prevention of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and osteoporosis still are unclear, according to the society’s statement (Kaiser Daily Women’s Health Policy Report, 1/26). In addition, the society cited another study that found a combination of estrogen and progestin reduces the chance of developing diabetes by 35%. According to the Journal, HRT use might lower women’s chances of developing diabetes because it reduces elevated insulin levels in the blood. Women enrolled in WHI using estrogen and progestin experienced a small drop in insulin levels after one year, and women taking HRT lost more weight compared with those taking a placebo. “We’ve not addressed diabetes in the past,” Wulf Utian, executive director of the society, said, adding, “But there now are a number of studies suggesting that estrogens are having a beneficial effect on sugar metabolism.” Despite the findings, many physicians argue that lowering diabetes risk is not a good enough reason to take HRT. They recommend that HRT should be prescribed only to women experiencing hot flashes, sleep problems and other menopause-related symptoms. “The evidence with regard to diabetes is just beginning,” Utian said, adding, “We didn’t see this as a sole indication for prevention of diabetes, but we do see it as a potential benefit of hormones” (Wall Street Journal, 2/3).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.