Re: Jobs Linked to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's

[Guest guest]

--- " NewsMax.com " wrote:

---------------------------------

To view this email as a web page, go here.

Health Alert from NewsMax.com

Headlines (Scroll down for complete stories):

Study Doubts Melanoma is Epidemic

Job Occupations Linked to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's

Researchers Looking at Alzheimer's Vaccine

Study Links Painkillers, High Blood Pressure

'Healthy' Vegetable Oils Are Usually Dangerous

1. Study Doubts Melanoma is Epidemic

Belief that there is an epidemic of deadly melanoma,

now being diagnosed at twice the rate it was in 1986

and increasing faster than any other form of cancer,

has been challenged by a study published in the

current issue of The British Medical Journal.

According to the New York Times, Dr. H. Gilbert Welch

of the Department of Veterans Affairs in White River

Junction, Vt., and Dartmouth Medical School and his

two colleagues, Dr. Woloshin and Dr. M.

Schwartz, analyzed melanoma's changing incidence and

death rate over time. Using Medicare data to track the

swift rise in melanoma cases since 1986 and data

compiled by the National Cancer Institute to track the

death rate and the number of people with early and

late-stage disease the researchers learned that since

1986, skin biopsies have risen by 250 percent, a

figure nearly the same as the rise in the incidence of

early stage melanoma.

They discovered, however, that there was no change in

the death rate from the lethal form of skin cancer.

They also discovered that the incidence of advanced

melanoma disease also did not change.

Dr. Welch and his colleagues insist that if there was

really an epidemic of melanoma - if for example,

something in the environment was causing people to get

the skin cancer, scientists should see increases in

cancers at all stages. According to the Times, this is

what happened with lung cancer caused by smoking, and

with other cancers caused by toxic substances.

The fact, however, that the increase was seen only in

very early stage disease was a tip-off that the

epidemic might be less than it appears to be, Dr.

Welch explained.

This, he says, leads to a difficult question. The

point of screening for melanoma is to reduce the death

toll from the cancer, yet if screening has not altered

the number of patients with advanced disease or

lowered the death rate, what is its benefit?

" That's the million dollar question, " Dr. Welch said.

" It certainly raises questions about whether we're

doing any good. "

He and his colleagues added, however, that people who

notice suspicious moles or spots should not hesitate

to see a doctor. But skin cancer screening, they said,

is directed at healthy people who have no reason to

suspect that anything is wrong.

While admitting that more and more people are having

skin biopsies, Dr. Darrell Rigel, a dermatologist in

New York, said he questioned Dr. Welch's conclusion

that the biopsies were leading to excessive diagnoses

of melanoma. " I would say the inverse is more likely, "

Dr. Rigel said. " There are more melanomas and

therefore more biopsies. "

At the American Cancer Society, Dr. Len Lichtenfeld,

an oncologist, told the Times his group reviewed the

same data as Dr. Welch and came to a different

conclusion.

Screening, he said, appears to be saving lives. He

cited a trend in the data indicating that the death

rate from the disease rose slightly year by year until

about a decade ago.

That, he told the Times, is consistent with an

increase in serious cases of melanoma.

Now, he said, " there has been a suggestion in the data

that the death rates in the Medicare age group are

going down, " an effect that would be expected if

screening was working, adding that " We agree that some

of the melanomas are biologically indolent, but we

also feel that when we look at the trend in the data

and the suggestion of decreased mortality that there

has been a benefit from increased surveillance for the

disease. "

The cancer society, countered Dr. Welch, was " taking

tiny, tiny differences " in death rates from year to

year and " putting a huge microscope on it. " In fact,

he said, the death rate has been basically flat since

1986, although it bounces around slightly from year to

year as a result of statistical fluctuations.

" We don't disagree about the data, " Dr. Welch added.

" We disagree about the interpretation. We are not

arguing that there is zero change in disease burden.

We are arguing that most of the newly diagnosed cases

are the result of increased screening. "

The Times recalled that two dermatologists, Dr.

Swerlick and Dr. Suephy Chen of Emory University and

the Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center, wrote in

a 1997 article that while some people might be saved

by screening, there also are risks from a melanoma

diagnosis.

" After a patient has received the diagnosis of

melanoma, obtaining insurance can be extremely

difficult, " they wrote.

" The diagnosis of melanoma also results in heightened

scrutiny of all first-degree relatives and family

members of the patient, and if increased surveillance

leads to increased diagnosis, this process may also

put them at risk for the diagnosis of melanoma. "

For his part, Dr. Welch says that early detection " is

a double-edged sword and people need to remember

that. "

A few people might be saved because a cancer is found

early, he said, but many, many more will be thrown

into the medical mill when there is nothing wrong with

them.

" People should realize that is the price we pay for

screening, " Dr. Welch said, and although screening is

widely promoted, " we ought to know whether it helps. "

Editor's Note:

Cancer can be prevented. Find out the simple,

nutritional steps to take. Go Here Now

2. Job Occupations Linked to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's

Reuters reported this week that a wide range of

occupations, from farming to teaching, may be

potential risk factors for degenerative brain

diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease,

research findings suggest.

In a study of more than 2.6 million U.S. death

records, researchers found that a variety of jobs were

associated with an increased risk of death from

several forms of brain degeneration, namely

Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, early-onset

dementia and motor neuron disease.

Many of the associations had been seen in earlier

research and could potentially be explained by

on-the-job exposures to the chemicals that farmers,

welders and hairdressers routinely use or inhale.

Other findings, however, such as the elevated disease

risks among teachers, clergy and bank tellers, are not

easily explained, according to the researchers, led by

M. Park of the National Institute for

Occupational Safety and Health, Cincinnati, Ohio.

In their analysis, Park and his colleagues found that

the bank tellers, clergy, aircraft mechanics and

hairdressers had highest odds of dying from

Alzheimer's disease. For Parkinson's disease, the

highest risks were among biological scientists,

teachers, clergy members and other religious workers.

The risk of death from presenile dementia - a form of

dementia that arises before the age of 65 - was

greatest among dentists, graders and sorters in

industries other than agriculture and, again, clergy.

Dr. Blaylock: You Can Prevent Brain Diseases

The connection between chemicals and brain disease is

not new for readers of The Blaylock Wellness Report,

edited by Blaylock, M.D.

Dr. Blaylock is a renowned neurosurgeon and

nutritionist, and has warned of toxic substances

causing an epidemic of brain diseases like Alzheimer's

and Parkinson's.

In a recent report, " Save Your Brain: Protect Yourself

from the Ravages of Alzheimer's and Other Diseases, "

Dr. Blaylock says when brain cells are weakened,

either by disease or a lifetime of free-radical

damage, they become much more vulnerable to injury by

toxins of various types.

It is for this reason that you must avoid further

injury by avoiding known brain toxins.

Among these toxins:

Avoid fluoride.

Avoid MSG.

Avoid pesticides.

Avoid vaccinations.

Avoid aluminum.

Avoid mercury in fillings.

For complete details on Dr. Blaylock's report Go Here

Now

3. Researchers Looking at Alzheimer's Vaccine

Researchers are experimenting with a new nasal vaccine

designed to reduce the brain plaque seen in victims of

Alzheimer's disease.

" It works in mice, " said Dr. Weiner. " I think

the significance of the experiment is we've discovered

a unique way of vaccination that may be of help for

Alzheimer's. "

Weiner, co-director of the Center for Neurologic

Diseases at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital and

Harvard Medical School, told WebMD: " We think it's

very exciting.

The next step is to see whether it's safe in humans

and then we can test to see how efficacious it is. "

The vaccine mixes an FDA-approved multiple sclerosis

drug and another substance that helps stimulate

immunity. The vaccine can be given as a nasal spray or

as drops.

It's designed to activate brain cells called

microglia, which clean up a protein known as

beta-amyloid that is found in the brain plaque seen in

Alzheimer's disease.

The researchers found that after the mice were treated

with the vaccine, total beta-amyloid levels dropped 73

percent.

Weiner added: " It's a totally unique type of vaccine

from all the other vaccines that have been tried. "

Editor's Note:

Omega-3 can protect your brain from disease -- Go

Here Now

4. Study Links Painkillers, High Blood Pressure

Women taking daily amounts of non-aspirin painkillers

- such as extra-strength Tylenol - should monitor

their blood pressure, doctors say following a new

study suggesting a link between the drugs and

hypertension.

" If you're taking these over-the-counter medications

at high dosages on a regular basis, make sure that you

report it to your doctor and you're checking your

blood pressure, " said Dr. Christie Ballantyne, a

cardiologist at the Methodist DeBakey Heart Center in

Houston who had no role in the study. While many

popular over-the-counter painkillers have been linked

before to high blood pressure, acetaminophen, sold as

Tylenol, has generally been considered relatively free

of such risk.

It is the only one that is not a non-steroidal

anti-inflammatory drug or NSAID, a class of

medications the federal government just required to

carry stricter warning labels because of the risk for

heart-related problems. Those include ibuprofen (sold

as Advil and Motrin) and naproxen (sold as Aleve).

Many had turned to those painkillers in the wake of

problems with prescription drugs, such as Vioxx.

However, the new study found that women taking Tylenol

were about twice as likely to develop blood pressure

problems. Risk also rose for women taking NSAIDS other

than aspirin.

The research found that aspirin still remains the

safest medicine for pain relief. It has long been

known to reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems

and was not included in the government's requirement

for stricter labels for NSAIDs.

The study involved 5,123 women participating in the

Nurses Health Study at Harvard Medical School and

Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. None had had

high blood pressure when it began.

Results were published online Monday in the American

Heart Association journal Hypertension.

" It certainly sets the basis for more studies, " said

Dr. Lawhorn, a cardiologist at St. Luke's

Mid America Heart Institute in Kansas City. " Most of

the time we think that things like acetaminophen are

fairly safe drugs. "

The study found that women ages 34-77 who took an

average daily dose of more than 500 milligrams of

acetaminophen - one extra-strength Tylenol - had about

double the risk of developing high blood pressure

within about three years.

Women 51-77 who take more than 400 mg a day of NSAIDS

- equal to say two ibuprofen - had a 78 percent

increased risk of developing high blood pressure over

those who didn't take the drug. Those ages 34-53 had a

60 percent risk increase.

" We are by no means suggesting that women with chronic

pain conditions not receive treatment for their pain, "

lead author Dr. Forman, of Harvard

Medical School and associate physician at Brigham and

Women's Hospital in Boston, said in an e-mail. " By

pointing out risks associated with these drugs, more

informed choices can be made by women and their

clinicians. "

Previous research linking these drugs to blood

pressure problems did not look at dose.

The results in this study held up even when

researchers excluded women who were taking pills for

headaches, something that could itself be a result of

very high blood pressure, said Dr. Curhan,

another study author also of Harvard Medical School.

As for why aspirin didn't raise risk, it might be

because " aspirin has a different effect on blood

vessels than NSAIDS and acetaminophen have, " said Dr.

, dean of the school of medicine at

University of Mississippi Medical Center in .

© 2005 The Associated Press

Editor's Note:

Blood pressure medications have serious side

effects. Use the natural supplement that reduces blood

pressure. Go Here Now

5. 'Healthy' Vegetable Oils Are Usually Dangerous

Atherosclerosis is the scientific name for the process

responsible for hardening of the arteries - the

condition that leads to heart attacks and strokes.

Back in the 1930s, studies indicated that elevated

levels of cholesterol might cause accumulations of

crud in arteries, thus hardening them.

Corn oil was used in these studies to dissolve the

cholesterol so that the test animals could eat it, and

today, corn oil is even promoted as a

cholesterol-lowering oil.

But the irony here is that polyunsaturated vegetable

oils such as corn oil are easily oxidized and produce

rancid oils, much like rancid milk.

When oxidized, these oils trigger inflammation and

create free radicals. Both free radicals and chronic

inflammation have been shown to cause atherosclerosis!

So remember, the chemical composition of

polyunsaturated fats found in many vegetable oils

oxidizes rapidly, causing inflammation and free

radical production.

Research today shows that these early researchers

mistakenly assumed it was the cholesterol causing the

problem when the corn oil itself was the real cause.

In fact, only when cholesterol is oxidized does it

have any relationship to atherosclerosis. When

oxidized, cholesterol becomes highly irritating to

tissues, including those making up the walls of blood

vessels.

So the " healthy " vegetable oils being touted - such as

corn, soybean, safflower, sunflower and canola - are

contributing to the oxidation of cholesterol.

Editor's Note:

Find out how to protect your heart from bad fats --

Go Here Now

Editor's Notes:

Cancer can be prevented. Find out the simple,

nutritional steps to take. Go Here Now

Omega-3 can protect your brain from disease -- Go

Here Now

Blood pressure medications have serious side

effects. Use the natural supplement that reduces blood

pressure. Go Here Now

Find out how to protect your heart from bad fats --

Go Here Now

TO ADVERTISE

For information on advertising at NewsMax.com, please

contact Corrine McNurlin via e-mail or call

.

TO SUBSCRIBE

If this News Alert has been forwarded to you and you

would like a subscription, please visit:

http://www.newsmax.com/email.shtml

Sign up for NewsMax e-mail alerts today!

To remove your e-mail address from our list or to

modify your profile, Go Here.

We respect your right to privacy. View our policy.

This email was sent to: janetcolello@...

This email was sent by: NewsMax.com

4152 West Blue Heron Blvd, Ste 1114 Riviera Beach, FL,

33404 USA

1667997

__________________________________________________