Lifestyle

A Little Exercise Goes a Long Way for Older Adults

08.04.2015 15 minutes a day may be enough for people ages 60 and up   by Parker Brown Staff Writer, MedPage Today Even a little exercise was associated with reduced mortality for adults over 60, according to a meta-analysis of nine cohort studies. In about 122,000 patients with an average follow-up period of 9.8 years, […]

Older Smokers With Migraines May Face Added Stroke Risk

MONDAY, Aug. 3, 2015 (HealthDay News) — Older smokers who experience migraines appear to be at increased risk of stroke, a new study suggests. The findings were published online July 22 in Neurology. The study included 1,292 people, average age 68, who experienced migraine headaches with and without aura. The study participants were followed for […]

Trial of intensive acupuncture for smoking cessation: a pilot study

JULY 10, 2015 Acupuncture in Medicine McFadden DD, et al. The purpose of this trial was to determine if acupunctures is a potential smoking cessation treatment for patients looking for an alternative therapy to help quit. Results show that a majority of the participants who completed the treatment program rated it as successful and would […]

Study links smoking with worse subjective treatment outcomes for rotator cuff tears

June 8, 2015 LYON, France — Results from a prospective study of patients with symptomatic, full-thickness rotator cuff tears highlighted smoking as an independent predictor of poorer patient-reported outcomes. “We have found that smoking is an independent predictor of outcome for patients with rotator cuff tears,” Bruce S. Miller, MD, said during his presentation at […]

Desk Workers Should Stand, Walk 2 Hours During Workday

Diana Swift June 02, 2015 Employees in predominantly desk-based occupations should be swapping their seats for their feet and accumulating 2 hours a day of standing and strolling walking during working hours, and eventually that should progress to 4 hours daily, according to a consensus statementpublished online June 1 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Workers are advised […]

Smokers With Vertebral Fractures Are at Higher Risk of Thoracic Kyphosis

May 20, 2015—Denver, Colorado—Smokers with vertebral fractures are at increased risk of thoracic kyphosis. This outcome of a comparative study was reported at the International Conference of the American Thoracic Society from May 15 – 20. Elizabeth Anne Regan, MD, PhD of National Jewish Health, Denver, Colorado, explained that severe chest deformity has been associated […]

Physical inactivity is associated with narrower lumbar intervertebral discs, high fat content of paraspinal muscles and low back pain and disability

Arthritis Res Ther. 2015; 17(1): 114. Published online 2015 May 7. doi: 10.1186/s13075-015-0629-y PMCID: PMC4422596 Andrew J Teichtahl, Donna M Urquhart, Yuanyuan Wang, Anita E Wluka, Richard O’Sullivan, Graeme Jones, and Flavia M . Abstract Introduction Although physical inactivity has been associated with numerous chronic musculoskeletal complaints, few studies have examined its associations with spinal […]

Role of stress and smoking in back pain in women

Role of Stress and Smoking as Modifiable Risk Factors for Non-persistent and Persistent Back Pain in Women. Schmelzer, Amy C. DO, MS, MPH; Salt, Elizabeth PhD, APRN; Wiggins, Amanda PhD; Crofford, Leslie J. MD; Bush, Heather PhD; Mannino, David M. MD The Clinical Journal of Pain Post Acceptance: April 15, 2015 Abstract Objective: The purpose […]

Statins Linked to Diabetes and Complications in Healthy Adults

Troy Brown, RN May 22, 2015 Statin use for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease among healthy adults has been linked to an increased risk for diabetes, diabetes complications, and overweight/obesity in a new retrospective cohort study that tracked individuals in a database for an average of 6.5 years. “Whereas the increased risk of diabetes with statins is […]

Can a Daily TV Hour Put Pounds on Kids?

by Parker Brown Staff Writer, MedPage Today Children who watch at least an hour of television a day are more likely to be overweight or obese than those who watch less than an hour a day — but children are watching more than 3 hours a day on average, according to a new study presented […]

Atrial Fibrillation Care: Put the Catheter (and Rx Pad) Down

John Mandrola DisclosuresApril 07, 2015 My approach to patients with atrial fibrillation has changed. Completely and fundamentally. This is a before-and-after moment in AF care. Before: We saw atrial fibrillation as a disease rather than seeing it as a result of other diseases. That explains why our treatments (drugs and ablation) have performed so poorly. It is […]

Higher Fitness Levels Linked to Lower Risk of Some Cancers and Death

Veronica Hackethal, MD March 26, 2015 Higher fitness levels among middle-aged men might be associated with a lower risk for later lung and colorectal cancer, but not prostate cancer, according to a new study. The study also linked higher fitness levels in midlife to a lower risk for later death from cancer or cardiovascular disease. The findings […]

Physical Activity May Reduce Cataract Risk

March 20, 2015 High levels of total and long-term physical activity, as well as specific types of physical activity, may decrease the risk for age-related cataract later in life, researchers report in an article published in the February issue of Ophthalmology. Of 52,660 men and women 45 to 83 years of age who completed questionnaires to assess physical activity as […]

Smoking-induced Skeletal Muscle Dysfunction

Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2015 Mar 15;191(6):620-5. doi: 10.1164/rccm.201410-1830PP. Smoking-induced Skeletal Muscle Dysfunction. From Evidence to Mechanisms. Degens H1, Gayan-Ramirez G, van Hees HW. Author information Abstract Smoking is the most important risk factor for the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Patients with COPD commonly suffer from skeletal muscle dysfunction, and […]

Current But Not Past Smoking Increases the Risk for Cardiac Events

March 3, 2015 European Heart Journal TAKE-HOME MESSAGE In this trial of patients undergoing coronary CTA, patients were grouped by smoking status and followed for major adverse cardiovascular events. Patients with a history of smoking were significantly more likely to have a higher plaque burden than never smokers. There was no difference between never smokers […]

Risk factors for heartburn: excess weight, smoking

BY JANICE NEUMANN Fri Feb 27, 2015 12:13pm EST (Reuters Health) – Excess pounds and smoking might each raise the likelihood of frequent heartburn or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), according to a large study from Norway. Other factors linked to higher odds of new GERD symptoms included getting older, being a woman, having less education, […]

Lifestyle Medicine: Digesting the Latest on Nuts & Meat

By Karl Nadolsky, DO, and Spencer Nadolsky, DO Between high patient loads in the office, pharmaceutical reps pushing the latest and greatest drugs, and patients wanting a quick-fix, lifestyle-as-medicine can sometimes be overlooked. The Nadolsky brothers have taken on a mission to change that. This monthly column will review studies in the field and offer […]

The 3-Step Healing Diverticulitis Diet & Treatment

The Need for a Diverticulitis Diet Diverticulitis is a painful and upsetting disturbance in the digestive tract, a colon disease, which can be effectively treated with the diverticulitis diet. While some individuals experience constant discomfort, others experience diverticulitis that wanes, and then flares up. Diet, and a variety of risk factors can increase your chances of […]

Lifestyle Change Program Effective for Weight Loss and Reducing Incidence of Diabetes

February 18, 2015 The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology TAKE-HOME MESSAGE The aim of this study was to investigate whether participation in lifestyle change programs has an effect on the incidence of diabetes. The researchers focused on individuals who had participated in the Veterans Health Administration MOVE! lifestyle change program. Intense and sustained participation led to […]

Diminished brain resilience syndrome

Surg Neurol Int 2014, 5:97 Diminished brain resilience syndrome: A modern day neurological pathology of increased susceptibility to mild brain trauma, concussion, and downstream neurodegeneration Wendy A Morley The number of sports-related concussions has been steadily rising in recent years. Diminished brain resilience syndrome is a term coined by the lead author to describe a […]