Mobile phones and health
A study in the International Journal of Oncology, (Hardell, L et al 2003. Vol 22:399-407) looked at the affect of cellular and cordless phones on the development of brain tumours. Anaysing 1,600 tumour patients who had used mobile phones for up to 10 years the authors stated that "the evidence for a connection between phone use and cancer is clear and convincing" in addition they made that point that "the more you use phones the greater the greater the risk of brain tumours."
Since 1980 the number of acoustic neuromas (a tumour close to the ear) in Britain has risen from one in every 100,000 to one in 80,000 a year, a dramatic increase for what is normally quite a rare condition. Dr Richard Sullivan, head of clinical programmes at Cancer Research UK was quoted by the Sunday Times saying that the study "suggests a strong link between mobile phones and brain tumours". The advice has to be to reduce the amount of usage on both mobile and cordless phones, and restrict their use to emergency calls only. You can measure the amount of electromagnetic (EM) radiation you are exposed to using a product called an Electrosmog detector a low cost device available from a company called Sensory Perspective available here.
Selenium for knees
A study from the U.S looked at almost 1000 people with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knees over a 15 year period. Those with the highest Selenium levels had a 40% lower risk of OA than those with the lowest levels. Selenium rich foods include seeds and nuts, and seafoods. Many multivitamin tablets contain selenium, and levels of 50mcg per day have been suggested.
Tomatoes for the Prostate
Tomatoes have been shown to reduce the risk of developing prostate cancer, one of the most common causes of cancer in men. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has indicated that eating half a cup of tomato juice, sauce or tomato products may be effective. Tomatoes contain the chemical lycopene, but apparently taking this as a supplement is not as effective as simply eating cooked tomato products.
Chocoholics take note
Chocolate may be good for you after all. Research from the University of Wales has shown that chocolate contains useful mood enhancer chemicals, and studies at Cornell University in America showed that chocolate contains powerful anti aging chemicals called antioxidants. In fact, it is said to contain twice as much as red wine and four times as much as green tea!! The downside is that many popular chocolate products are also full of sugar - so, to get the benefits of chocolate without the calories of sugar, pick dark organic chocolate which contains far less sugar and additives.
Acupuncture works for knee arthritis
A major study from American confirms that Acupuncture is effective for arthritis of the knees. 570 patients were studied dividing them into two groups, one received genuine acupuncture and the other a sham treatment. After treatment the acupuncture group showed a 40% reduction in pain and a 40% improvement in function.
See the article on the BBC website at news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4111047.stm
Early warning signs of meningitis in children.
Researchers at Oxford University have identified new early warning signs for meningitis. Looking at a group of 448 cases, most displayed the classic symptoms of headache, stiff neck, sensitivity to light and drowsiness only after 13 - 24 hours of developing the disease. Over 70% of the children developed leg pain, cold hands and feet and abnormal skin colour after only 8 hours. Identifying these new symptoms could shorten the time to hospital admission.