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An amazing new vaccine, developed by The Scripps Research Institute, is being called a “breakthrough” in the global battle against obesity.  The Institute says this may mark a “turning point” in the treatment of obesity by confirming the effectiveness of immunopharmacotherapy. 

Immunopharmacotherapy is a method of therapy that “engages” the immune system’s antibodies to bind to selected targets.  This approach may also be an effective method of dealing with drug addiction, especially addiction to cocaine and nicotine.  Complete Article

Scientists from UCLA say that by modifying the typical Western diet to include more fish and less red meat could reduce the prostate cancer growth rate.  The diet requires eating more omega-3 and less omega-6 fatty acids.  This is the first study to show the impact of diet on lowering an inflammatory response known to promote prostate cancer tumor progression.

They believe this finding may lead to a new treatment or aid in the treatment of prostate cancer.  Omega-6 acids come from corn, safflower oils and red meats which are the predominantly the source of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the Western diet.  The omega-3 acids come primarily from cold-water fish like salmon, tuna and sardines.  Complete Article

The father’s age may influence the risk of miscarriage, based on a large study of women in Jerusalem who were pregnant between 1964 and 1976.  They looked at the 1,500 women who suffered a miscarriage, and compared them to the 12,000 who did not have one. 

They took into account the mother’s age, which was already a well known risk factor for miscarriage.  The research showed that men also have a biological clock.  Even in their 30’s, men had a higher risk of miscarriage.  The rate of miscarriage was three times higher in fathers between the ages of 35 and 39, as compared to men younger than 25.  Complete article

Researchers from Pennsylvania say that a meal size has a lot to do with psychology.  The size may depend on the size of the plate or package or what is served.  This may help explain how culture has a lot to do with obesity. 

For instance, in France the food package size of yogurt is a little over half-the-size of the American counterparts.  The researchers say that the French don’t eat two packages of food; they just accept the one package as the size of a meal. 

The researchers used environmental cues to manipulate people’s ideas of how big a food unit is.  They put a bowl of M&Ms on a table of an upscale apartment building with a sign that read “Eat Your Fill. Please use the spoon to serve yourself."  They varied the size of the spoon from a quarter cup to a tablespoon.   Complete Article

Australian researchers say that men who have had blood clots have a 50% higher risk of getting more of them compared to women after finishing their anti-clotting treatments.  There is no difference in risk for men and women getting a blood clot for the first time, but the research may help in determining how long patients should be treated for deep venous thrombosis. 

Researchers are still not sure why men are more likely to suffer multiple blood clots.  They speculated that hormonal or genetic factors may be involved.  This research was published in The Lancet.  Complete Article

New research from Australia shows that daily doses of Omega-3 fatty acids can help obese people lose weight.  The study included 68 participants divided into four groups.  One group was given fish oil with another was given sunflower oil.  There was no change in diet but both were asked to exercise for 45 minutes, three times per week.  The other two groups were given the same oils, but did not exercise. 

Reuters reported that those who took the fish oil and exercised lost an average of 2 kg over a three month period.  The other three groups did not lose any weight. The researchers believe it has something to do with the Omega-3 fatty acids found in the fish.  The sunflower oil did not have these fatty acids.   Complete Article

New research shows that HIV is able to avoid the powerful antiretroviral therapy (ARV) drugs by hiding it the guts of AIDS patients.  This discovery may lead to reducing the virus’s presence in the blood, according to a report in the TimesOnline by Sam Lister. This may also explain why the virus continues to replicate and suppress the immune system even when blood samples show the drugs are working.

In the report, Professor Satya Dandekar said “The real battle between the virus and exposed individuals is happening in the gut immediately after viral infection. We need to be focusing our efforts on improving treatment of gut mucosa, where massive destruction of immune cells is occurring.”   Dandekar led the study and is head of the university’s department of medical microbiology and immunology at the University of California, Davis.  Complete Article

Scientists at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute in Los Angeles say that a key ingredient found in the Giant Yellow Israeli scorpion, TM-601, can transport radioactive iodine to cancerous glioma cells in the brain.   A Phase I study has been concluded using a synthetic version of the peptide which is found in this scorpion’s venom.

Glioma is an extremely aggressive and deadly form of brain cancer. TM-601 binds to glioma cells and has the unusual ability to pass through the blood-brain barrier that blocks most substances from reaching brain tissue from the bloodstream.  Complete Article

Contrary to what the Atkins Diet would recommend, new research shows that people with type 2 diabetes do best with a low-fat vegetarian diet.  Originally Atkins designed his diet to help people with diabetes, but later noticed all of his patients also lost weight.

This new research in the journal Diabetes Care says that people with diabetes should avoid animal products such as meat and dairy.  They also say the vegan diet is superior to the diet recommended by the American Diabetes Association, WebMD reports.

Doctor Neal D. Barnard said "The diet appears remarkably effective, and all the side effects are good ones - especially weight loss and lower cholesterol.”  Barnard is chief researcher and adjunct professor of medicine at George Washington University and president of Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.  Complete Article

New research shows that when nitric oxide is given to some premature babies within the first 48 hour of life the risk for brain and lung damage is lowered.  This is the first time a large study has shown a therapy can lower these risks, according to researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

The NIH Director, Elias A Zerhouni MD said “Medical science has dramatically improved our ability to help very small and premature babies survive. But as the rate of premature births continues to rise, it is even more critical that we develop ways to prevent many of the complications related to prematurity so that these children can lead healthy, robust lives."  Complete Article

The worlds largest pharmaceutical company, US based Pfizer Inc, says they will start selling their new heart treatment drug, torcetrapib, in a stand-alone pill.  Previously the company planned to sell Torcetrapib only in combination with Lipitor. 

The New York Times reported that torcetrapib, is still being tested in clinical trials and is at least 18 months from federal approval.  So far the clinical trials have shown that the drug raises the so-called good cholesterol, a promising new approach to preventing heart attacks and strokes.

Analysts on Wall Street say that torcetrapib could be the new blockbuster medicine with sales of several billion per year.  If Pfizer had offered the drug only in combination with Lipitor, they would have forced patients that use Zocor and other statins to switch to Lipitor to get the benefits of torcetrapib.  Complete Article

Researchers in the United States say that the number of inconclusive diagnostic imaging exams over a 15 year period has doubled.  The culprit, according to the researchers, was obesity. 

They reviewed all radiology exams performed at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) between 1989 and 2003, in an effort to quantify how obesity affects diagnostic imaging quality.   Complete Article

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finally approved Anthelios SX for over the counter (OTC) sales in the United States.  The product has been sold for more than 10 years in Canada and Europe.  The L’Oreal product has protection against sunburn and for protection against ultraviolet B (UVB) and A (UVA) rays. 

The new sunscreen contains a combination of three different products.  The new active ingredient is a new molecular entity (NME) called ecamsule.  Ecamsule had not yet been marketed in the US, but has been marketed elsewhere since 1993.  Complete Article

Researchers say that four out of 10 obesity surgery patients develop complications and complications for those non-elderly obesity surgery patients with private insurance increased by 81 percent.  Amazingly 21.9 percent of these patients developed complications while they were still in the hospital and 39.6 percent developed complications by the end of the 180-day study period.

According to Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D, “Obesity surgery is helping thousands of Americans who have not succeeded at losing weight reduce their risk of diabetes and other life-threatening diseases, but this study shows how important it is for patients to consider the potential complications when they make the decision to undergo the procedure.  The study also should give clinicians information that will help them make improvements in the procedure and post-surgical care.”  Clancy is a doctor and Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).  Complete Article

A new study shows that more than 1.5 million Americans are injured every year by drug errors in hospitals, nursing homes and doctor's offices. The study, conducted by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP), estimates that at least one medicine error happens every day.

In the award-winning patient safety film, THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE ENTERING THE HOSPITAL, patients and their advocates are advised to ask the following seven important questions each time a member of the hospital staff prescribes or brings medication:  Complete Article

For the last several years, the main drug used to treat Alzheimer's disease has been Aricept, but its benefit isn't long-lasting, spanning maybe 18 months to 2 years. Yet surprisingly, a randomized study out just this week has added another clue to the mystery of this tragic disease - a drug called leuprolide (brand name Lupron) commonly used to treat prostate cancer, breast cancer, and endometriosis was found, after 12-48 weeks, to significantly slow the progression of Alzheimer's. Complete Article

Government officials say that soft lunch boxes lined with Vinyl contain lead, however do not pose an immediate danger.  This has prompted the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ask companies to look for a manufacturing technique that does not use lead.  Research has been shown that lead can cause learning disabilities and behavioral problems. 

So far there is no evidence that shows that lead from the lunch box can migrate to the food.  Since food is usually stored inside bags, potential for contamination is minimized. Mitchell Cheeseman said that if officials were able to prove that lead is contaminating the food they would step in.  Cheeseman is associate director of the FDA's Office of Food Additive Safety.  Complete Story