“Hang on, pops! You'll be returning to work – if you know what's good for you.” (Photo Credit: CC BY-SA/Sean Fornelli/Flickr)

Some people look forward to retirement at 65 as the time when they’ll finally be able to focus entirely upon the things they want to do. However, retiring at age 65 may be a thing of the past, suggests the Los Angeles Times. According to geriatrician Dr. Katherine Schlaerth of the USC School of Medicine, the U.S. retirement age may even be unhealthy.

Working longer for your health

Intellectually and physically, Schlaerth has found that her retirement-age patients who worked later into life were more healthy. Retirees who had suffered from high blood pressure, memory lapses and other ailments improved dramatically upon returning to work. They lost weight, experienced much less hypertension and avoided the kinds of depression that prey on idle minds. And considering the current U.S. economic landscape, returning to work was also a welcome financial boost for many of her patients.

Research suggests that the decline in physical and mental activity that often comes after retirement place great burdens upon a retiree’s health. A 2007 study of British civil servants corroborates this, as the risk for cognitive decline increased after for subjects after retirement. A more recent study by the Rand Corp. and the University of Michigan found that “men and women in countries where people worked longer did better on a test of cognitive skill involving memory than those in countries where early retirement was the norm,” writes Schlaerth.

Similarly, an Israeli study of septuagenarian workers found that the activity involved in the completion of daily work duties kept people healthy and increased individual feelings of independence and satisfaction.

The troubles with Social Security have paved the way

As Social Security slides toward complete collapse – and more people are taking it early – younger workers are looking toward a future where the retirement age will be significantly higher. Those who receive Social Security today grew up in a time when families averaged four children, while post-1960s families have averaged two. This means that there will be fewer worker contributions to the pool over time, which in turn will contribute to Social Security’s decline.

Where the septuagenarians are

According to RetirementJobs.com, employees 50 and older tend to cluster in the following industries:

1. Airlines (American Airlines is the top employer)
2. Utilities
3. Insurance
4. Retail
5. Chemicals
6. Aerospace
7. Packaging and containers
8. Forest and paper products
9. Food production
10. Beverages

Sources

Los Angeles Times

RetirementJobs.com

Retirees: Back to work, back to school

Will that umbrella still be there if he has a heart attack? (Photo Credit: CC BY-ND/Affordable Life Insurance Policy)

Which health conditions are most likely to send your life insurance premiums skyrocketing? Bankrate.com asked New York Life’s chief underwriter Stephen Bloom and chief medical officer Dr. Jacki Goldstein for some of the top health hazards as they would apply to life insurance for a 40-year-old man. Here is their tale of the unhealthy red tape.

High blood pressure

High blood pressure can lead to a host of organ diseases, said Goldstein. Coronary artery disease, stroke and kidney damage are just a few. While life insurance industry underwriters show the most favor to those who control their blood pressure, people with high blood pressure may still qualify for a preferred policy, as long as they’re taking steps to manage it.

“Different carriers have different categories of preferred, but yes, high blood pressure that is well-managed, most carriers would have that qualified for preferred,” said Goldstein.

Type 2 diabetes

Adult onset diabetes (Type 2) takes a toll on the body’s vascular system, with coronary artery disease, renal failure and blindness being some of the potential risks. If a Type 2 diabetes sufferer is younger, the potential for higher life insurance premiums increases because the condition generally does not improve with time.

“If I get diabetes at age 70, I might already have coronary artery disease or a stroke anyway, so the impact of the diabetes might not affect my life expectancy in the way it might a 40-year-old. A 40-year-old is unlikely to qualify for preferred in my experience,” Goldstein told Bankrate.

Heart disease

A massive heart attack relates to a host of heart conditions that can be difficult to document, which makes a life insurance underwriter’s job more difficult. If the situation is indeed severe, the person may not be insurable, says Bloom.

“We do consider family history in our underwriting assessments,” Bloom said. “Generally, this is associated with immediate family members — father, mother, sister, brother — who may have developed heart disease or had a stroke.

Asthma

The chronic respiratory condition asthma can, while rare, lead to death if not carefully controlled. If it is carefully controlled, a preferred life insurance rate class is not out of the question.

“For the most part, asthma will be extremely favorably underwritten,” said Goldstein.

Cancer

Depending upon the type and severity of the cancer involved, life insurance premiums can be affected to a negligible degree or quite severely. According to Bloom, if New York Life were to underwrite a policy for a cancer patient, the company would want to monitor the patient for six months to a year before making a policy decision.

“Cancer conditions may require a longer period of time depending on the location of the cancer, the staging and type of treatment involved,” he said.

More of the top health risks for life insurance are cataloged at Bankrate.com.

Source

Bankrate.com

Billy Mays on health insurance

Unreported health care costs, such as ambulance services and non-approved treatments, add up to more than $300 billion a year in health care costs. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Health care costs that aren’t reported in many surveys and studies add up to billions. Costs beyond co-payments and deductibles add up, and those costs have hardly diminished since the passage of health care reform laws last year. As the baby boomers are crossing the threshold into retirement, these costs could increase.

Caring for family and friends can cost workers

A recent study by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions found that unreported costs of health care add up to an estimated $363 billion per year for Americans, according to CNN. The “hidden costs” include alternative therapies and treatments, ambulance services and prescription drugs not covered by health insurance plans, among other things. However, one of the biggest costs is providing care and supervision to loved ones, such as the elderly and the disabled. The study estimates that the cost of providing unpaid home care came with a price tag of nearly $200 billion, as the average person who took time off from work to care for a loved one lost $12.60 an hour, on average. Additional health care expenses are estimated at $1,355 per year.

Elderly facing greater burden

Compounding the rise of health care expenditures and costs above the rate of inflation is the growing population of the elderly. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, projects that the number of people 65 or older will rise in the next decade, increasing from a projected 40.8 million in 2011 to 50 million by 2018. The elderly pay a steep price for increasingly expensive health care; bankruptcies among people 65 to 74 rose by 178 percent between 1991 and 2007, according to Fox News. Health care expenses have risen by 56 percent since 2002 for retirees, with an average $535 per month expenditure on health care. The only thing that the elderly are estimated to spend more money on than health care is food.

Here come the Baby Boomers

Life expectancy in the United States, according to the Wall Street Journal, has risen to an average 78.2 years — 75.7 years for men and 80.6 years for women. Because the baby boomers are set to start entering retirement, more people will retire and live longer after they do. More people are going to have to provide at home care for their parents and grandparents, spend more out of pocket and miss more work opportunities to do so. The cost of health care is likely to keep rising.

Sources

CNN

Fox News

Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (PDF – requires Adobe Reader)

Wall Street Journal

Customers in California with Blue Shield insurance are facing almost 60 percent rate hikes. Image: Flickr / houseofsims / CC-BY

Blue Shield of California insures several hundred thousand customers. In October, the insurer announced three gradual rate increases that add up to 59 percent. The state is investigating the increases, but an outside auditor is calling the increases “reasonable.”

Stepped rate increases in California

Blue Shield of California, in October 2010, announced they would be increasing insurance rates. The claim of the insurer is that these increases are in response to the rising cost of health care. The insurer also says that more people are dropping health insurance, so prices need to be increased. The first of the three increases hit on Oct. 1, with additional increases on Jan. 1 and March 1. For more than 100,000 customers, these three increases added up to a 59 percent increase in premiums.

Rate increases called ‘reasonable’

After the State of California and ratepayers raised serious concerns about the rate increases, Blue Shield of California hired an auditor. The auditor recently released his report to both the state auditors and the general public. The audit calls the 59 percent rate increases “reasonable” in the face of the increasing cost of health care, especially in California. The auditor indicates that the health insurer should be able to meet the requirement that 80 percent of premiums be spent on customers’ health care. The state auditors have raised concerns that this audit does not include all the information they had requested from the company.

State regulators have no recourse

Though the State of California does review and approve insurance rate changes, the regulators do not actually have any legal recourse. Even if the state does not approve of the insurance rate hikes, the hikes can still stick. The legislature is considering passing emergency legislation that would allow them to block the rate hikes, but the political will is likely not there. Some customers are blaming the new health insurance bill for these rate increases. The reality is, however, that Blue Shield of California is claiming that customers leaving the system — which will likely not happen once health insurance reforms are fully in effect — is the cause of the increasing costs.

Source

LA Times

Manufacturing prescription medication in developing economies can save money but can also lead to recalls. Image: Flickr / swimboy1 / CC-BY

In an unusual move, the FDA has recalled 500 medicines intended to treat coughs and colds. The FDA cites untested safety and effectiveness in this recall. As this recall highlights, the cost savings from manufacturing drugs in emerging markets may not be worth the safety trade-off.

Cold and allergy medicines targeted

The FDA targets more than 500 prescription cold, allergy and cough medications in its latest recall. These drugs are from a variety of suppliers and use untested combinations of cough suppressants and decongestants. Some of these prescription medications were old enough that manufacturing companies did not have to provide information to the FDA. Other medications were simply marketed and sold without FDA approval. Some of the drugs are marketed for babies and children; the FDA does not recommend cold medication for anyone younger than 2.

The cost savings of manufactured medication

Manufacturing prescription medications can be an expensive and global proposition. In some cases, a compound is created in one country and shipped to another before it’s turned into pills. In other cases, a company will send chemical information to a manufacturing plant in another country. Emerging markets, such as India and China, have plants that report to cut costs of a drug by 20 percent to 50 percent. Especially for generic drugs, this helps cut the cost to consumers by even more. Drugs manufactured in these emerging markets, however, show a failure rate between 4 percent and 10 percent. For a $287 billion market in the United States, that translates to billions of dollars worth of drugs that do not work as advertised.

The health care investment in prescription drugs

As of Jan. 1 this year, the federal government is starting up programs that help cover even more of senior citizen’s prescription drug cost. With the government spending millions on covering prescription drugs, drug companies spending hundreds of millions on lobbying and the high cost of incorrectly manufactured medication, some wonder if prescription drugs are a smart investment. One study released in 1999, however, found that $1 spent on prescription medications saves about $4 in hospital care, on average. So despite the many problems, prescription drugs may prove to be one of the better health-care investments made, as long as the drugs taken are truly safe and effective.

Sources

National Center for Policy Analysis
CNN.com
Heartland.org
FDA.gov

A study has linked consumption of sugary drinks, such as colas and fruit juices, to higher blood pressure. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

A recently published study has found a possible link between sugary drinks and an increase in blood pressure. The study found that patients who consumed large amounts of sugared beverages such as fruit juice and soft drinks had higher blood pressure. However, the study doesn’t rule out other dietary factors playing a part.

One sugary drink per day can increase blood pressure

A study conducted by English researchers has found that any sugary drink can boost a person’s systolic blood pressure from 0.8 to 1.6 points, according to ABC. Blood pressure is a ratio of the highest pressure recorded in blood vessels to lowest blood pressure, or systolic to diastolic. Higher blood pressure or hypertension, can lead to heart problems, which makes sugary drinks that much more of a worry in that systolic is the high reading of pressure. The study is being published in the medical journal Hypertension and was carried out by Dr. Ian J. Brown of the Imperial College London, in coordination with other colleagues.

Objections

In the study, patients kept records of what they ate and drank, and those patients who regularly consumed sugar-heavy beverages such as soda and fruit juices were found to have higher blood pressure than those who did not. However, Dr. Brown and his colleagues did not assert that the data indicated there was a clear link between sugary drinks and blood pressure. Dr. Brown admitted, according to WebMD, that the correlation was only observed, and a causal link couldn’t be established. A spokesperson for the American Beverage Association, a trade group for soft drink companies, said that the study was “seriously flawed,” and the changes in blood pressure were “inconsequential.” The authors noted as much in the study.

Cut back on the soda

The study found that people who drank even one soda per day took in 400 more calories per day than others, though this doesn’t mean anyone who drinks soda has higher blood pressure. However, drinks that are sweetened with sugars are one of the biggest contributors of empty calories in the American diet, and even artificial sweeteners such as Splenda are known to pose health risks.

Sources

ABC

WebMD

Mother Jones claims drinking Jamba Juice is not unlike eating a cupcake or two. (Photo Credit: CC BY-SA/Kim Navarre/Flickr)

Fans of Jamba Juice may not find the Feb. 28 Mother Jones report on the fast-food smoothie chain to their taste. Writer Ashley Bates dared to look behind the curtain and see that “all natural” may not be the best way to describe the tantalizingly blended fruit smoothies. According to Mother Jones, Jamba Juice smoothies aren’t even low-calorie.

First McDonald’s oatmeal, now Jamba Juice smoothies

Oh, how the false nutrition idols have fallen before the ax of consumable convenience. First, McDonald’s oatmeal was analyzed and found to be less-nutritious-than-advertised; now Jamba Juice smoothies are in question. If the bulk of Jamba Juice’s creations were simply fruit, ice and skim milk, there would be no problem, but all is not as it seems, writes Bates. The “simple, honest ingredients” Jamba Juice is committed to serving its customers are optimized for high-speed service. According to Jillian Shamoon, a Jamba Juice store general manager, real milk can’t be used with fruit because they “don’t taste good together.” Thus, frozen yogurt and sherbert are the standards in classic smoothies. If a customer wants to go “light,”a “dairy base” containing the artificial sweetener Splenda is used.

Ramping up the calories

Bates says a typical, medium-sized Jamba Juice smoothie like the Mango-a-go-go Classic contains 400 calories. Most other smoothies at Jamba Juice range from 250 to 600 calories. Compare that with the 540 calories of a McDonald’s Big Mac and you quickly discover that you’re in a fast food danger zone. While a smoothie may be a better choice than a Big Mac, says Dr. Alison Field of Harvard Medical School, the fact that most people drink smoothies as snacks or with a meal translates into a high calorie load.

Jamba Juice website remains neutral

As a company, Jamba Juice doesn’t appear to take a stand on whether smoothies should be considered meals. However, there are enough questions about the artificial sweetener Splenda to give any health-conscious person pause. Fields pointed to numerous studies that show people who consume diet sodas with Splenda tend to gain weight anyway.

That’s not all, says Dr. Janet Hull, author of “Splenda Exposed.” Hull says that while more conclusive testing is still needed, there is reason to believe that Splenda and its variants may also lead to disruption of sleep, sexual dysfunction, increased instances of cancer, MS, Lupus, diabetes and other degenerative diseases.

Sources

Mother Jones

Splenda Exposed

When you must Jamba, which juice is on the loose?

Pediatric and dermatology groups say melanoma is the most common skin cancer in children. Image: wrestlingentropy/Flickr

Tanning teenagers are especially vulnerable to skin cancer, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Numerous studies have linked an increased risk of skin cancer with tanning bed use at a young age. U.S. pediatric and dermatology groups are calling for legislation banning teenagers from using indoor tanning devices.

Tanning teenagers and skin cancer

In a policy statement on ultraviolet radiation, the American Academy of Pediatrics said indoor tanning should be off limits to teenagers because of increased skin cancer risk. The statement, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, called for pediatricians to push for legislation banning access to indoor tanning for those 18 and younger. An advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration on tanning bed risks has also recommended either banning the use of tanning beds by minors outright or requiring parental consent. The AAP implored parents to educate their kids about UV protection, especially those who freckle or sunburn easily or have descendants with a history of melanoma.

Teenage tanning bed risks

More than 1 million people use indoor tanning salons in the U.S., according to the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery. Nearly 70 percent of tanning bed users are women and girls from 16 to 29 years old. In a news release the ASDS said that melanoma is the most common skin cancer in children, followed by basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas. Just six severe sunburns in a lifetime increases the risk of melanoma by 50 percent. The AAP said about 35 percent of 17-year-old girls use tanning beds that produce UV radiation 10 to 15 times more intense than the sun at noon. Seven different studies found an increase in the risk of melanoma from indoor tanning before age 35.

Teenage tanning bed bans

The FDA is not bound to act on the recommendations of its advisory panels about teens, tanning and cancer. But the agency forms such panels to support regulatory decisions and usually heeds their advice. Currently, more than 60 percent of states in the U.S. regulate indoor tanning use by minors. The Indoor Tanning Association insists no scientific evidence links teenage tanning to skin cancer and said banning teens from tanning is for parents, not the government to decide.

Sources

U.S. News and World Report

Med Page Today

CNN

Lap band surgery is now available to more Americans. CC by InvictusOU812/Flickr

Food and Drug Administration criteria for lap band surgery patients have been adjusted by the agency. After reviewing studies on the results of lap band surgery, the FDA has lowered the minimum body mass index to be eligible if patients have an obesity-related condition. Lap band surgery is a viable weight loss tactic for 26 million additional people in the U.S. with the FDA guideline change.

Lower BMI for lap band surgery now acceptable

The new FDA lap band surgery guidelines reduce the minimum body mass index to be eligible for the procedure from at least 40 BMI to 30 BMI. To get approved for a lap band surgery, a person has to have 26 percent body fat. In addition, they can get the surgery as long as they have an obesity related condition like high blood pressure or diabetes — if they haven’t been able to get diet to work for weight loss. The Lap-Band Adjustable Gastric Banding System is commonly known as the lap band. A band is put on the upper portion of the stomach to clinch it. The lap band restricts the amount of food a person can eat during a meal.

Facts on weight loss surgeries

Gastric bypass is a different weight loss surgery than lap band surgery. In order to reduce how much food is being taken in, a gastric bypass surgery makes the stomach smaller along with taking out a piece of intestine. More weight is lost with the gastric bypass surgery. It is riskier to do, though. Within a few days of a gastric bypass surgery, many with type 2 diabetes will see a decrease in the symptoms associated with diabetes. With lap band surgery, diabetes symptoms are not affected until the patient loses weight, which can take several months. There is another way in which the two surgeries differ: gastric bypass surgeries aren’t reversible. The lap band is easily reversible. About 220,000 weight loss surgeries were performed in 2010 in the U.S., and gastric bypass accounted for about 60 percent of them.

Articles cited

CBS News

Los Angeles Times

Web MD

The U.S. military sprayed millions of gallons of Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. (Photo Credit: CC BY-ND/Steve Guns/Daily Gun Pictures)

Following a Toronto Star investigation, Canadian officials have acknowledged that the country used the infamous chemical herbicide Agent Orange to kill roadside brush from the 1950s to the 1980s. Agent Orange was used by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War for chemical warfare. According to a wide variety of scientific studies, the chemical agent is responsible for massively high instances of genetic defects in areas where it is sprayed.

The cancerous tale of Agent Orange

The U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs indicates that the U.S. military sprayed millions of gallons of Agent Orange (chemically, a 1:1 mixture of two phenoxyl herbicides in iso-octyl ester form) on the trees and vegetation that concealed Vietcong enemy forces in what was code-named Operation Ranch Hand.

Some U.S. veterans were exposed to the sprayed herbicide and its variants, and studies indicate that rates of various forms of cancer, nerve, digestive, skin and respiratory disorders increased dramatically among those exposed. The Vietnam Red Cross reports that a host of birth defects and genetic disorders affected at least 3 million people in Vietnam, including at least 150,000 children. Many other children were stillborn as a result of parental exposure to Agent Orange.

Canadian forestry workers exposed, claims the Star

Archived documents referenced in the Toronto Star Agent Orange investigation reveal that Canada began to dump the herbicide from World War II-era planes onto birch and maple trees and shrubs that needed to be cleared. Forest workers were exposed, and the Star investigation indicates that it caused increased instances of cancer, birth defects and tainted food and water. Canada began using Agent Orange for plant removal in the 1950s, before sufficient research had been done into the dangers of the chemical agent.

Canadian Provincial Transportation Minister Kathleen Wynne has promised that there will be an official government inquiry into the nation’s use of Agent Orange, reports BBC News.

“I don’t have the specific information on how much of it was used by the ministry of transportation, but the independent panel will look at that and we’ll work closely with them,” Wynne told Canadian media.

Sources

BBC News

Toronto Star

U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs

Agent Orange: Death to Weeds

A study found that the brains of 50 percent of the people diagnosed with Alzheimer's lacked the lesions associated with the disease. Image: CC Wikimedia Commons

Alzheimer’s disease is easily misdiagnosed, and that happens quite often, according to new research. Nearly half of the subjects with Alzheimer’s diagnoses examined in a study didn’t have the degree of brain lesions commonly associated with the disease. Researchers said an expected increase in Alzheimer’s cases and advances in treatment makes it critical that doctors correctly diagnose the condition.

The Alzheimer’s diagnosis study

Researchers concluded that doctors in the U.S. have a tendency to misdiagnose Alzheimer’s. The researchers performed autopsies on 426 Japanese-American men in Hawaii who lived to the average age of 87. Among those men, 211 were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in their later years. However, when doctors examined their brains, only about 50 percent of the men diagnosed with Alzheimers had the amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles expected to be seen in Alzheimer’s patients. Researchers also found that the degree of Alzheimer’s misdiagnosis increased with the age when the patient was diagnosed.

Alzheimer’s diagnosis based on symptoms

Alzheimer’s patients usually start noticing symptoms after age 60. Alzheimer’s symptoms affecting memory, thinking and behavior get worse over time. Risk factors for Alzheimer’s include age and family history. Other risk factors for Alzheimer’s may include a history of head trauma such as concussions and chronic high blood pressure. Females also have a greater tendency to develop Alzheimer’s than males. The cause of Alzheimer’s disease isn’t fully understood. An Alzheimer’s diagnosis is made by observing symptoms. But as the study has proven, the only way to know for certain if someone has Alzheimer’s is to analyze the brain tissue after death.

Bracing for a wave of Alzheimer’s

The authors of the Alzheimer’s study said a dramatic increase in cases of dementia is expected in the U.S. in the next 10 years as baby boomers grow older. As new therapies are developed to slow and reverse cognitive decline, further studies are needed to help figure out how to correctly recognize Alzheimer’s and other forms of age-related dementia.

Sources

Psychcentral

Science Daily

Medicine Net

NCBI

An example of Parry-Romberg syndrome in advanced stage (left). (Photo Credit: CC BY-ND/Plastic Surgery 2009)

Without surgery , 11-year-old Christine Honeycutt would have been resigned to a life of dramatic deformation and serious neurological trouble. Diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disorder called Parry-Romberg syndrome, the left side of Honeycutt’s face stopped growing when she was 5 years old. Yet reconstructive microvascular surgery has greatly helped, reports CNN.

The thin gray line of Parry-Romberg syndrome

When Christine Honeycutt was five, a line appeared down the middle of her forehead. Her parents thought it was a bruise; her friends thought she had ink on her face. When the mark was still there after a few weeks, Christine’s mother took her to see a doctor, who prescribed a cream to treat the “discoloration.”

After five months, the line became more pronounced. The Honeycutts moved from Charlotte, N.C., to southern California so Christine could see a specialist. Unfortunately, the specialist gave the Honeycutts the same advice — keep Christine out of the sun — that they’d heard before. By the time young Christine Honeycutt was in first grade, abnormal weight gain, fevers and violent seizures began. The right side of her face appeared normal, but the left side was swollen. A clear asymmetry had developed that a geneticist would diagnose a few years later (in 2008) as Parry-Romberg syndrome.

One in a million suffer from Parry-Romberg syndrome

The extremely rare autoimmune disorder Parry-Romberg syndrome (aka progressive facial hemiatrophy) is found in only one in 1 million people, most commonly in females. Some believe Abraham Lincoln may have had the disorder. Christine Honeycutt’s immune system was wreaking havoc on her left side, most notably in the face. The line running down Christine’s forehead – the “coup de sabre,” or “cut of a saber” – looked like a scar from a sword fight. It was similar to Parry-Romberg syndrome pictures found online.

“There were horrifying pictures,” said Vicki Honeycutt, Christine’s mother. “One side [of a patient's face] was a skeleton and the other side wasn’t.”

No cure, save reconstructive surgery and ongoing treatments

There is no cure for Parry-Romberg syndrome. Facial reconstructive surgery and immuno-supressant drugs can be beneficial, as has been the case so far for Christine Honeycutt. Extensive plastic surgery – which took about seven hours to complete – has placed her back on the path to normalcy. There is still some swelling, but not enough to keep Christine away from school.

“I like my nose better now,” she said.

Sources

CNN

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Parry-Romberg syndrome Resource

McDonald's oatmeal looks nutritious, until you read the label. (Photo Credit: CC BY-ND/Amy Rainey/Mason-Dixon Magnolia)

McDonald’s has introduced its new oatmeal to appeal to consumers seeking a healthy breakfast, and the fast food giant markets it as a “bowl full of wholesome.” But as New York Times Magazine food columnist Mark Bittman suggests, all may not be as full of healthy, all-natural goodness as advertised.

McDonald’s oatmeal: Not so healthy, not so cheap

McDonald’s, which reportedly boasts sales of more than $16.5 billion per year – nearly the GDP of Afghanistan – knows how to market its products, oatmeal included. While McDonald’s oatmeal seems healthy on the surface – it has much less grease than a Sausage McMuffin – the door is wide open for the restaurant chain to play with the descriptive verbiage in the same way food marketers have for more than 40 years, writes Bittman.

Sweetening the competition

Quaker Strawberries and Cream Instant Oatmeal is a classic example. It contains no strawberries or cream but a boatload of sugar and artificial flavors. Unfortunately, McDonald’s oatmeal falls into the same boat when the ingredients are scrutinized; “cream” that includes nothing dairy and “natural flavor” are just the beginning. Sugar is a main ingredient because McDonald’s oatmeal must be sweet enough to compete with rival Starbuck’s “Perfect Oatmeal.”

It also doesn’t hurt McDonald’s bottom line that it charges roughly $2.30 for the 9.2-ounce oatmeal cup. That much oatmeal and a tiny sampling of dried fruit costs one-tenth as much when you make it yourself.

Mental trigger of convenience

A common justification for enjoying McDonald’s oatmeal is convenience, but even that doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. To get McDonald’s oatmeal, you have to go there, wait in line, order, wait, pay and leave. In as much time, you could make instant oatmeal with fruit at home and have time for juice and the morning paper.

McDonald’s assertion that its FMO (“fruit and maple oatmeal”) can be made healthier simply by giving customers the choice to opt out of cream and brown sugar ignores the fact that the oatmeal contains a whopping 21 ingredients, many of them chemical and unnecessary. Leeway for minor customization doesn’t change that. As Bittman suggests, it’s all about getting McDonald’s customers to come back for more.

Sources

McDonald’s oatmeal ingredients

New York Times

Starbucks

Don’t oatmeal and drive

Targeting cancer drugs is difficult -- but the LOXL2 enzyme may offer a clue. Image: Flickr / anolobb / CC-BY

LOXL2 is an amino acid creation enzyme in the body that helps create collagen and elastin. Researchers in the U.K. found that blocking the enzyme cut cancer spread dramatically. About 90 percent of cancer deaths are caused by cancer spreading from one part of the body to another.

Breast cancer spread affected by blocking enzyme

In medical journal Cancer Research, researchers at the Institute of Cancer Research in the U.K. published their recent findings. The researchers subjected breast cancer cells to chemicals that blocked the LOXL2 enzyme. When subjected to enzyme blockers, the cancer cells did not spread to other parts of the body nearly as often. A high level of LOXL2 enzymes and presence of the LOXL2 gene is connected with fast-spreading cancer that travels from breast tissue to the bloodstream. When cancer spreads from tissue to the blood, it can reappear just about anywhere in the body — often leading to death.

Presence of LOXL2 enzymes

The LOXL2 gene uses copper to synthesize collagen and elastin. The gene helps the body create and rebuild. The enzyme also helps cancer cells move from muscle and fat tissue into the blood. LOXL2 enzymes are usually present in very high levels in individuals who have fast-spreading cancer. The research showing that blocking the enzyme cut cancer spread has, thus far, only been done on mice in the lab. The use of LOXL2 as a predictor is also not commonly used in humans yet.

Creating targeted cancer drugs

In the quest to cure cancer, researchers have identified multiple avenues of promising research, all of which seek to target specific cancers. Creating targeted cancer drugs can be especially difficult because individual cancers carry different genetic signatures and indicators. Creating a human-usable drug that will target the LOXL2 enzyme could take up to three years, and FDA approval could take up to two additional years.

Source

HC2D.co.uk

Balancing the rights of health care workers and the rights of patients is key to Obama's conscience clause update. (Photo Credit: CC BY-ND/Liz/The Misanthropes Club)

In parts of the U.S., conscience clauses exist within health care laws that permit health care workers to decline performing procedures that violate their religious beliefs. Some critics claim that following such conscience laws leads some health care workers to violate the Hippocratic Oath that they must treat patients fairly and ethically. Now may of those workers will no longer be able to site the conscience clause, reports the Washington Post. The Obama administration moved to rescind most of such federal regulations on Friday.

Conscience clause was instituted by George W. Bush

During President George W. Bush’s final days in office, a conscience clause was inserted into laws pertaining to health care workers. Concerns over providing emergency contraception, treating homosexual patients and prescribing birth control to single women were cited as reasons for the conscience clause by the Bush administration.

The Obama administration considered such rules “unclear and potentially over-broad in scope.” The new version of the conscience clause, which goes into effect in 30 days, removes the above exceptions but maintains long-standing federal protection for those health care workers who refuse on conscience/religious grounds to perform abortions and sterilizations. The process through which health care workers can file complaints was also retained.

Regulating the use of federal funds

Under the Bush regulations, federal funds to state and local governments, hospitals, health plans and clinics were cut off if the organizations did not accommodate health care workers who exercised religious conscience in declining to perform procedures.

Under the Obama administration’s overhaul, definitions within the conscience clause are more clearly focused. Procedurally, matters of women’s health have received greater attention. Under the new regulation, roadblocks to obtaining abortion, contraceptive and fertility treatments will be lessened significantly.

A statement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services speaks to the balance the Obama compromise has strucke :

“The administration strongly supports provider conscience laws that protect and support the rights of health care providers, and also recognizes and supports the rights of patients. … The rule being issued today builds on these laws by providing a clear enforcement process.”

Sources

Regulation for the Enforcement of Federal Health Care Provider Conscience Protection Laws

Washington Post

Wikipedia entry for conscience clause (medical)

Lou Dobbs’ story on the conscience clause

What we have here is a failure to communicate -- the definition of personhood. (Photo Credit: CC BY-ND/Jay Cables/drive-by times)

The New York Times reports that South Dakota House speaker Val Rausch has announced that House Bill 1171 – the abortion-related bill many believe would create a legal loophole through which the assassination of abortion doctors could be considered justifiable homicide – has been indefinitely postponed. The risk the legislation could pose to abortion providers proved highly controversial.

South Dakota’s abortion bill ‘a very bad idea’

A spokesman for South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard stated that as House Bill 1171 is currently written, it is “a very bad idea,” despite having been approved by a primarily Republican House Judiciary Committee with a 9 to 3 vote. The chance that it could expand the definition of justifiable homicide to killing anyone who aids in aborting a fetus could produce more blood than South Dakota could ever scrub off its hands.

Poorly conceived language that creates a theoretical loophole through which society’s fringe element could claim legal justification for assassinating abortion doctors was shunned by all but the most staunch anti-abortion activists in the South Dakota legislature, reports the Times. Dr. Marvin Buehner of Rapid City, S.D., was shaken by proposed House Bill 1171.

“Once you get the sense that the Legislature will tolerate violence against abortion providers, even if the legislation is not enacted, it crosses the line into intimidation,” he said.

House Bill 1171 even caused anti-abortion activist Troy Newman of Operation Rescue to recoil in horror:

“The pro-life movement, by definition, is in favor of protecting human life from the moment of conception to natural death, and we reject all forms of violence,” Newman said in a statement.

Equal protection under the law

South Dakota Republicans who remain unwavering in their support for House Bill 1171 claim the bill isn’t even an anti-abortion measure but legislation that would afford equal protection to unborn children under the law. However, as key players in the debate over when a person officially becomes a person like Sarah Stoesz of Planned Parenthood have noted, the intimidation factor toward abortion doctors is glaringly obvious.

Sources

South Dakota House Bill 1171

New York Times

On being justifiable

Several studies found that zinc taken at the onset of cold symptoms helped people get well faster. Image: CC crispy_dewdrops/Flickr

Zinc may limit the duration of the common cold. Recent studies examining the effects of zinc as a cold remedy concluded that people who take zinc when they catch a cold could get well faster. The studies also suggested that taking zinc may lower the chances of catching a cold.

The zinc cold remedy studies

Taking zinc in the form of lozenges or syrups within 24 hours of coming down with a cold shortened colds by one day in the studies. The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research, also found that people who took zinc tended to have milder cold symptoms. The review of zinc as a cold remedy was drawn from 15 studies with 1,360 participants. Subjects ingested either a zinc supplement or a placebo when they started feeling cold symptoms. Colds, which commonly last about a week, were shortened by a day.

How much zinc will fight a cold?

The zinc studies did not reach a conclusion on the recommended daily dose of zinc required to prevent or shorten the common cold. Zinc lozenges and syrups found in pharmacies typically include instructions to take a dose every two to three hours while awake for five days. The standard daily dose for most zinc products used to treat colds is about 60 milligrams in lozenge form and about 30 milligrams in syrup. The Cochrane study did not examine zinc nasal sprays. In 2009 the FDA issued a warning to consumers about Zicam zinc-based nasal sprays after 130 people reported a permanent loss of smell from using them.

Why zinc may fight a cold

No one is sure why zinc could shorten the common cold. Researchers suggest that zinc either prevents cold viruses from attacking nasal cells, slows the replication of the virus or inhibits the body’s production of histamines, which trigger cold symptoms. The body uses trace amounts of zinc for different chemical reactions, including DNA synthesis and cell division. Zinc is also linked to maintaining a healthy immune system and sense of smell and taste.

Sources

Los Angeles Times

Reuters

About.com

South Dakota has some of the toughest abortion laws in the U.S. (Photo Credit: Public Domain/U.S. Air Force)

UPDATE (2/17): The South Dakota legislature has postponed House Bill 1171 indefinitely.

South Dakota is one of the toughest states in the U.S. when it comes to abortion law. No dedicated clinics have operated there since 1994, and Planned Parenthood is only allowed to fly in a single representative when absolutely necessary. Now the South Dakota legislature is considering the even tougher Republican-backed House Bill 1171. If voted into law, the legislation would expand the definition of “justifiable homicide” to include the killing of those who intend to harm a fetus, such as abortion doctors.

Justifiable death to South Dakota abortion doctors

House Bill 1171, which made it out of committee by a 9 to 3 party-line vote, is sponsored by South Dakota state Rep. Phil Jensen, a long-time opponent of abortion rights. His stated intention with the bill is to bring “consistency” to South Dakota’s criminal code, which allows prosecutors to charge people with manslaughter or murder in crimes that cause the death of unborn fetuses.

However, such crimes involve the murder of pregnant women, too, which is rather different than what House Bill 1171 proposes. By changing the definition of justifiable homicide, making it acceptable to kill so long as the act of killing is performed in order to protect a fetus, Jensen is suggesting that even if the woman wanted an abortion, any person who aided her in obtaining abortion services could end up in the cross hairs.

‘This is not an abstract bill’

Vicki Saporta of the National Abortion Federation argued to Mother Jones that Rep. Jensen’s House Bill 1171 is “an invitation to murder abortion providers.” It gives extremists the necessary fetal-defense statute to escape punishment for murder. As Kristin Aschenbrenner of the South Dakota Advocacy Network for Women puts it, the bill has everything to do with granting a fetus personhood.

House Bill 1171 may not be abstract, but it may be legally dubious, says law Prof. Sara Rosenbaum of George Washington University.

“It takes my breath away,” Rosenbaum said via e-mail. “Constitutionally, a state cannot make it a crime to perform a constitutionally lawful act.”

House Bill 1217 would require entrance counseling

In addition to House Bill 1171, House Bill 1217 would require that women considering abortion first undergo counseling at an anti-abortion, Christian-run Crisis Pregnancy Center (CPC). Such CPCs were the subject of a 2006 congressional investigation that found that the information disseminated was often false or misleading.

Sources

Mother Jones

South Dakota House Bill 1171

An interesting question posed to anti-abortion demonstrators

The first plastic heart was the predecessor to this Jarvick-7 artificial heart pump. Image: Wikimedia Commons

The Smithsonian Institution has millions of items in its vaults that many never get to see. On Monday, in honor of Valentine’s Day, the Smithsonian released a picture of the first plastic heart. This artificial heart beat for three days before being replaced by a human heart.

History of the plastic heart that beat for three days

The first plastic heart ever to be implanted in a human being was installed in 1969. The plastic heart was developed by Dr. Domingo Liotta and implanted by Dr. Denton A. Cooley. Dr. Cooley commandeered the plastic heart from Dr. Liotta’s lab and implanted it without approval. The patient’s plastic heart beat for three days before a human transplant heart was found. Despite the human heart, the patient died, but the plastic heart kicked off a plastic heart revolution. The plastic heart itself is in the Smithsonian Institution, which released a picture of it to celebrate St. Valentine’s Day.

Development of plastic heart transplants

Though the first “plastic” heart was implanted in 1969, it was not until 2004 that the FDA approved a plastic heart implant. The Jarvick-7 was the first viable plastic heart transplant that beat for a long period of time, and it was developed in 1982. The plastic heart that was approved in 2004 is used as a temporary replacement until a human heart can be found for transplant. In 2006, the FDA approved a permanent plastic heart transplant, the AbioCor Implantable Replacement Heart. Currently, plastic hearts can only be supported with 13-pound devices carried in a backpack and costs $18,000 a year to maintain.

Is a self-contained plastic heart possible?

The dream of a plastic heart that started in 1969 has still not come to full fruition. Though plastic hearts that keep a person alive are now available, they require maintenance and heavy equipment to be kept very close. There are researchers working on an entirely self-contained artificial heart, but with more than 30 years between the first plastic heart beating for three days and a 13-pound-backpack-supported heart, it may decades before something more self-contained is possible.

Sources

Smithsonian
New York Times
American Heart Association

A new report says energy drinks can pose health risks to kids because of the amount of caffeine the beverages contain. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

A recently published report says energy drinks could pose some serious risks for children. The report, appearing in medical journal Pediatrics, says the amount of caffeine in energy drinks may be dangerous for teens, along with other ingredients. The study suggests regulation to curb the risks.

Ingredients such as caffeine may be dangerous for teens

A recent study has concluded that energy drinks contain levels of caffeine that may be dangerous for children and teens, and other ingredients included as “energy boosters,” such as taurine and guarana, could pose risks as well, according to MSNBC. The report, titled “Health Effects of Energy Drinks on Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults” is being published in Pediatrics, a pediatric medicine journal. The report says consuming energy drinks poses a risk to children and teens because of the amount of stimulants. The amount of caffeine contained in energy drinks could lead to heart palpitations, stroke, seizure and death in some cases. The caffeine content of alcoholic energy drinks such as Four Loko, is said to pose risks to young people as well.

American energy drinks go unregulated

The report, which is available for free from Pediatrics in PDF format, says the drinks often contain more caffeine than labels disclose. Most already contain 70 to 80 milligrams of caffeine per each 8-ounce serving, which is nearly three times the amount of caffeine in a can of cola. Energy drinks also contain other ingredients, such as taurine and guarana. Guarana is a vine that produces a bean, like coffee, except guarana has three times the caffeine as coffee, according to ABC. Caffeine is a stimulant, which affects numerous bodily functions.

Possible side effects

The report highlights that poison control centers in the U.S. do not track possible energy drink overdoses. However, health care officials in Germany and New Zealand have linked energy drink overdoses to mild symptoms like nausea, vomiting and irritability and to serious side effects such as liver damage, respiratory distress, kidney failure, heart trouble and even sudden death. The American Association of Poison Control Centers started tracking health problems associated with energy drink consumption in 2010, noting 677 cases of energy drink overdose from October to December 2010. The AAPCCC also noted 331 cases since the beginning of 2011.

Sources

MSNBC

ABC

Pediatrics (PDF – Requires Adobe Reader)