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New herb for the millenium is hodia.
The hoodia gordonii plant extract has become a popular for its use as an appetite suppressant and natural weight loss stimulant.
What is it used for?
As an appetite and thirst suppressant. Native South Africans, notably the Khoi-San herders, have used this plant for centuries in order to endure extended periods of time without food or water. This quality may render this plant useful as a treatment for obesity, but more controlled research in humans is needed. The active compound responsible for the plant’s appetite suppressant action is a pregnane glycoside (similar in structure to a cardiac glycoside), which has been isolated and patented as P57, although it is possible that more than one compound is responsible for this action. Hoodia gordonii also contains saponins. This compound acts on the central nervous system (CNS), but may also be active peripherally on appetite regulation, via the vagal afferent nerves, as well as on potentially anorectic peripheral hormones such as cholecystokynin (CKK), for example. Limited data involving a clinical trial with 18 obese men report a favorable effects related to appetite suppression and weight loss. In this trial, the plant was well tolerated by the participants and no significant adverse effects were reported.
Appetite Suppressant
Hoodia is primarily sold as an active ingredient in herbal blends designed to suppress the appetite. According to the Mayo Clinic, there have been no valid clinical trials that have established its effectiveness for this purpose. The herb’s reputation has been largely fueled by news reports about the way it is used by tribal hunters in the region where it grows naturally. The book “Indigenous Peoples, Consent and Benefit Sharing: Lessons from the San-Hoodia Case” by Rachel Wynberg, Doris Schroeder and Roger Chennells, explains that hoodia stems are chewed by hunters from the San tribe of South Africa when they are on long hunts, helping them avoid the distractions of hunger in areas with few sources of nutrition. However, according to Holly Phaneuf’s “Herbs Demystified,” there have been studies into the herb’s effectiveness that have produced intriguing results. The book explains that studies conducted in the 1960s by South African scientists found that hoodia dramatically reduced the appetite of lab rats, and more recent studies found similar effects in humans, but the results were not published. According to MedicineNet, Phytopharm, the British company holding a patent application for what is believed to be the active molecule in hoodia, claims that hoodia works by sending a false signal to the brain that you are full.
Depressed women ‘have increased risk of stroke’
Women with depression may also be at increased risk of having a stroke, US researchers suggest.
The research, in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, said doctors should be aware people with depression may neglect their general health.
UK stroke experts said depression alone was unlikely to increase stroke risk.
Indicator
The women, all aged 54-79, who were all taking part in the long-running Nurses’ Health Study which has been following women across the US since the mid 1970s.
In this study, the researchers looked at data from 2000 to 2006.
Smoking increases heart risk more in women than men
Women who start smoking increase their risk of a 
by more than men who take up the habit, according to a review of more than 30 years of research.
A study of 2.4 million people, published in the Lancet, showed a 25% difference in increased risk.
The reasons are unclear, say researchers.
The British Heart Foundation said the findings were “alarming” especially as women tended to smoke fewer cigarettes.
The World Health Organization lists heart disease as the world’s biggest killer, affecting more than seven million people each year.
The illness is largely down to lifestyle choice and smoking is one of the main causes. A study by the University of Minnesota showed women are at greater risk from smoking than men.
It analysed 75 sets of data produced by studies between 1966 and 2010.
More smokers in England are trying to quit
The number of smokers turning to the NHS for help to kick the habit has trebled in the last decade, data shows.
But despite nearly 788,000 using the services in England this year, less than half succeed, figures from the NHS Information Centre reveal.
And many of those who do quit – 384,000 in 2010/11 – later relapse.
This means a fifth of adults in England are smokers, even though more are using quit smoking services at a cost of £84.3m in 2010/11.
This is nearly half a million pounds more than in the previous year and almost £60m more than t10 years ago.
Little Insects, Big Allergic Reactions
Little Insects, Big Allergic Reactions
June 16, 2011 — Insect stings are little more than painful nuisances for most people. But for others, the venom from insects can cause severe allergic reactions and even death. That’s according to a joint task force of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, and the Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, which has updated practice guidelines for diagnosing and treating stinging insect allergies.
Serious allergic reactions to insect stings cause at least 40 deaths each year in the U.S. Experts estimate that life-threatening reactions to insect stings occur in 3% of adults and up to 0.8% of children.
Patient Disparities Seen in Lung Cancer Drug Trials
WEDNESDAY, July 6 (HealthDay News) — Women, older people and minorities are under-represented in lung cancer drug trials in the United States, according to a new study.
Researchers say that this could have a significant impact on the efficacy and safety of new treatments among these groups, particularly the elderly.
“Our results suggest that the trial population used for approval of drugs do not represent well the U.S. population who may receive the marketed agent,” the study’s principal investigator, Dr. Shakun Malik, a medical officer at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in Silver Spring, Md., said in a news release.
“This fact is concerning particularly for older patients who may experience greater toxicity when given the same dose and combination of drugs based on testing in a younger population,” Malik explained in the release from the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.
In conducting the study, which was slated for presentation Wednesday at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Amsterdam, researchers reviewed 10 years of trial data for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Woman is free of rice diet after 12 years of allergies
Woman is free of rice diet after 12 years of allergies
A former caterer who survived on meals of rice after developing acute food allergies 12 years ago said her diet was finally changing for the better.
Micaela Stafford, from Normanton-on-Soar in Leicestershire, said the pain caused by her intolerances had left her desperate and “wanting to die”.
With help from a nutritionist the 53-year-old is now gradually widening her diet, and already feeling the benefits.
“I just feel like [she] has given me my life back,” she said.
Ms Stafford said doctors had been unable to understand what was causing her migraines and sickness.
“I just felt that anything else made me feel so poorly and in a desperate, desperate struggle to try and have any quality of life whatsoever I lived on rice,” she said.
Will Allergy Shots Work for Me?
(HealthDay News) — Allergy shots can provide much-needed relief from watery eyes, runny nose and other allergy symptoms.
But the shots aren’t for everyone. The American Academy of Asthma, Allergy and Immunology says they’re not appropriate for food allergies.
Paper Puts Forward Recommendations To Prevent Sudden Unexpected Death In Epilepsy
As compared to the general population, people suffering from epilepsy are more than 20 times more likely to die suddenly from unexplained causes. No specific intervention has been able to clearly demonstrate its benefits in preventing sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP).
Some recommendations from a Seminar to prevent SUDEP have recently been published Online First in The Lancet. It states that reducing the occurrence of tonic-clonic seizures, less frequent or gradual changes to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs), night-time surveillance of high-risk patients, close supervision immediately after a seizure, and counselling patients about the risks and prevention strategies could help protect against SUDEP.
Allergy/Allergies
Allergy facts
- Allergy involves an exaggerated response of the immune system.
- The immune system is the body’s organized defense mechanism against foreign invaders, particularly infections.
- Allergens are substances that are foreign to the body and can cause an allergic reaction.
- IgE is the allergy antibody.
- Allergies can develop at any age.
- Your risk of developing allergies is related to your parents’ allergy history.
Allergy facts
What does an allergy mean?
What causes allergies?
Who is at risk and why?
What are common allergic conditions, and what are allergy symptoms and signs?
Hay Fever
Asthma
Allergic Eyes
Allergic Eczema
Hives
Allergic Shock
Where are allergens? Everywhere
In the air we breathe
In what we ingest
Touching our skin
Injected into our body
Patient Discussions: Allergy – Symptoms
Patient Discussions: Allergies – Describe Your Experience
Find a local Asthma & Allergy Specialist in your town
