Researchers at South Carolina State University reported that paraffin candle smoke emits benzene, toluene and ketones, pollutants linked to cancer, asthma and birth defects. They said an occasional candle is unlikely to harm, but frequent use in unventilated rooms may cause problems.
Food Consumer
Food
Who Knew? Popcorn helps fight cancer
Joe Vinson of the University of Scranton told the American Chemical Society that popcorn carries the highest levels of polyphenol antioxidants among whole grain snacks. Antioxidants are believed to help fight cancer; researchers had previously credited whole grains' fiber.
Miscellaneous
Is Forced Experimental Vaccination On the Way?
Mercola relays claims from Info Wars and Global Research that five regional military teams could back FEMA during swine flu vaccination and impose mass quarantines. He calls much media coverage fear-mongering, doubts forced vaccination would be tolerated, and questions the vaccine's evidence base.
Miscellaneous
Legal Immunity Set for Swine Flu Vaccine Makers
Under the 2006 PREP Act, the HHS Secretary granted makers of Tamiflu, Relenza and future swine flu vaccines and adjuvants near-total immunity from liability. The writer argues this removes any financial incentive to test for safety, and notes concerns over thimerosal in the coming doses.
Vitamins
Vitamin D and schizophrenia
A reader asks Dr. Cannell whether vitamin D would help her imprisoned son's schizophrenia, and he replies that in his hospital experience it does not reduce hallucinations, paranoia or psychosis but may improve mood, reduce tremors and help prevent antipsychotic side effects.
Vitamins
How to use vitamin D to fight swine flu
John Cannell notes an Emory meta-analysis of randomized trials concluding there is enough evidence to justify further research on vitamin D for treating infections. He advises keeping 50,000 IU capsules on hand for winter, while conceding no trial shows high doses help against flu.
Letter to Editor
Reader's response: New HoMedics Product Offers Germ Free Water - Restore
A reader's letter to the site introducing HoMedics' Restore water purification system, which pairs a filter for heavy metals and chlorine with UV light to disinfect drinking water.
Vitamins
Vitamin D helps prevent HIV transmission from mother to child
In a Harvard study of 884 HIV-infected pregnant women in Tanzania, infants of mothers with low vitamin D were 1.5 times more likely to acquire HIV during birth and twice as likely through breastfeeding by six weeks. By 24 months they were 61 percent more likely to have died.
Disease
Sleep apnea increases chance of chronic disease, death
A Johns Hopkins cohort study that followed 6,441 adults aged 40 to 70 for about eight years found people with severe sleep apnea faced a 46 percent higher risk of dying early, with the risk more than doubling in men. Mild apnea carried no added risk. Published in PLoS Medicine.
Miscellaneous
Army retraining for emotional well-being
The Army will require all soldiers to take resiliency training under a $117 million program modeled on middle-school courses, after finding one in five suffers from a mental illness. An introductory class trained 1,500 sergeants at the University of Pennsylvania.
Disease
New Study Reveals Sleep Apnea Health Risk
A Johns Hopkins study that surveyed 6,400 people over eight years found those with severe sleep apnea were 43 percent more likely to die early. The piece describes CPAP as the most successful treatment and lists weight loss, avoiding alcohol, quitting smoking and side-sleeping.
Cooking
Healthy Recipes:Italian Style Tuna Pasta
Whole-wheat spirals, cannellini beans and canned light tuna cook with onion, garlic, fresh and sun-dried tomatoes and capers to make six low-calorie, fiber-rich servings. Tuna supplies omega-3 fats that have been shown to reduce inflammation.
Food
Nutrition Notes:Men Don’t Need to Fear Soy Foods
Karen Collins of the American Institute for Cancer Research writes that fears about soy feminizing men are not backed by sound research: men in their 50s and 60s who ate soy twice daily for three months showed no testosterone change but a 14 percent drop in PSA.
Drug
Warning: Swine Flu Shot Linked to Killer Nerve Disease
A leaked Health Protection Agency letter told UK neurologists to watch for a rise in Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a paralysing nerve disorder that could be triggered by the swine flu vaccine. It cites the 1976 US vaccine, withdrawn after ten weeks once a GBS link became clear.
Cancer
NUTRITION NOTES: Changing the Picture for Senior Cancer Survivors
Karen Collins of the American Institute for Cancer Research writes that senior cancer survivors face both second cancers and functional decline, and that weight control, moderate activity and healthy eating may cut risk and improve quality of life. Mailed and phone programs show early promise.
Politics
The campaign for healthier eating in America
Reprinted from responsibletechnology.org, the Campaign for Healthier Eating in America urges shoppers to avoid genetically modified ingredients, arguing that consumer pushback, as happened across the European Union in 1999, can force US food companies to drop them.
Drug
Will People Give Cholesterol Drug Vytorin A Second Chance?
Martha Rosenberg questions Merck and Schering-Plough's revival of the Vytorin 'two sources of cholesterol' campaign, less than two years after the earlier marketing drew state lawsuits, and as the companies agreed to pay $41.5 million to settle consumer and health plan claims.
Miscellaneous
NUTRITION NOTES:Weight Gain in Pregnancy: How Much, How Little?
AICR nutritionist Karen Collins explains that both too much and too little pregnancy weight gain carry risks. Gaining over 35 pounds raises a normal-weight woman's odds of cesarean delivery, a high birth weight baby and possibly preeclampsia; too little raises low birth weight risks.
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