Taking low dose aspirin does not protect older women against cognitive decline, finds a large study published on bmj today.
Identifying ways to prevent dementia is a public health priority. Evidence suggests that aspirin and other anti-inflammatory drugs may protect against dementia, but data from randomised studies to date have been inconclusive. So researchers in the US decided to test the effect of long term use of low dose aspirin on overall cognitive decline among a large sample of women.
Jae Hee Kang and colleagues at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts identified 6,377 women aged 65 years or more, who were taking part in the Women's health study between 1998 and 2004.
The women were randomly divided into two groups. Over a period of nearly 10 years, the first group took low dose aspirin (100 mg on alternate days) and the second group took a placebo pill. Each woman had three cognitive assessments at two year intervals to measure general cognition, verbal memory, and category fluency.
At the initial assessment (after 5.6 years of treatment) cognitive performance in the aspirin group was similar to that of the placebo group. Average performance across all tests from the first to the final assessment (after 9.6 years of treatment) was also similar in the aspirin group compared with the placebo group. The risk of substantial decline was also comparable between the groups.
There was some suggestion that women in the aspirin group performed better in the category fluency test than women in the placebo group. However, the authors stress that this result should be interpreted with caution.
They conclude: "In this study, we observed no apparent benefit of low dose aspirin in slowing cognitive decline over four years. Other methods for preserving cognitive function in older people need to be investigated."
"Low dose aspirin and cognitive function in the women's health study cognitive cohort"
BMJ Online First
www.bmj
вторник, 15 ноября 2011 г.
вторник, 8 ноября 2011 г.
Beyaz(R): One Of The World's Leading Oral Contraceptive YAZ(R) Is Approved In The US With Metafolin(R)
Bayer Schering Pharma AG has been granted US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for Beyaz®, the first oral contraceptive worldwide to contain folate, in the form of Merck & Cie's Metafolin®. Metafolin® is the pure crystalline form of the naturally occurring active folate species, L-5-Methyltetrahydrofolate. Unlike folic acid, it can directly be used by the body.
"Health authorities throughout the world encourage women of childbearing age to take folate supplements. But compliance is very low. Taking oral contraceptives (OCs) containing folates in a combination product makes perfect sense: High compliance is guaranteed", commented Prof. Klaus Pietrzik of Institute of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Bonn, Germany.
Typically women take the "pill" over an extended period. If they choose Beyaz® incorporating the premium folate Metafolin® their folate stores will be raised over time. Folate stores only deplete slowly after the discontinuation of the "pill". Since a large percentage of women become pregnant within the first three months after stopping their oral contraceptive, their folate stores have been raised prior to pregnancy. Prenatal vitamin supplements (including folate) should be started immediately after oral contraceptives are discontinued.
"Folates are very critical during early pregnancy", commented Dr. Rudolf Moser from Merck & Cie, co-innovator of Metafolin®. "The combination of YAZ® and Metafolin® is a targeted approach to provide folates to those individuals in whom they are highly recommended and so urgently needed: women of child-bearing age."
Bayer Schering Pharma AG has an exclusive worldwide commercial licence to utilize Metafolin® in oral contraceptives.
About Metafolin®
Metafolin® (L-5-Methyltetrahydrofolic acid, calcium salt or levomefolate calcium) is the pure stable crystalline form of the naturally occurring predominant folate species. Folates are essential water-soluble B vitamins, which play a key role in central metabolic pathways. They are needed, for example, for normal cell division and growth. Metafolin® is the body's preferred form of folate which is directly usable by the organism.
Source:
Merck & Cie
"Health authorities throughout the world encourage women of childbearing age to take folate supplements. But compliance is very low. Taking oral contraceptives (OCs) containing folates in a combination product makes perfect sense: High compliance is guaranteed", commented Prof. Klaus Pietrzik of Institute of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Bonn, Germany.
Typically women take the "pill" over an extended period. If they choose Beyaz® incorporating the premium folate Metafolin® their folate stores will be raised over time. Folate stores only deplete slowly after the discontinuation of the "pill". Since a large percentage of women become pregnant within the first three months after stopping their oral contraceptive, their folate stores have been raised prior to pregnancy. Prenatal vitamin supplements (including folate) should be started immediately after oral contraceptives are discontinued.
"Folates are very critical during early pregnancy", commented Dr. Rudolf Moser from Merck & Cie, co-innovator of Metafolin®. "The combination of YAZ® and Metafolin® is a targeted approach to provide folates to those individuals in whom they are highly recommended and so urgently needed: women of child-bearing age."
Bayer Schering Pharma AG has an exclusive worldwide commercial licence to utilize Metafolin® in oral contraceptives.
About Metafolin®
Metafolin® (L-5-Methyltetrahydrofolic acid, calcium salt or levomefolate calcium) is the pure stable crystalline form of the naturally occurring predominant folate species. Folates are essential water-soluble B vitamins, which play a key role in central metabolic pathways. They are needed, for example, for normal cell division and growth. Metafolin® is the body's preferred form of folate which is directly usable by the organism.
Source:
Merck & Cie
вторник, 1 ноября 2011 г.
Premenstrual Syndrome Carries High Costs for Employers
The presence of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) in female workers is associated with sharply increased costs to
employers-mainly related to the indirect costs of missed work time and reduced productivity, reports a study in the January
Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and
Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).
Led by Dr. Jeff Borenstein of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, the researchers assessed PMS symptoms in 374 working
women. The women were all 18 to 45 years old and had regular menstrual cycles. Over a 2-month period, the women recorded any
PMS symptoms in symptom diaries, along with any missed work time and estimates of lost productivity related to PMS.
Based on symptom diaries, 30 percent of the women were diagnosed with PMS. Insurance claims data showed a modest increase in
direct health costs for women with PMS: an average $59 higher per year than for women without PMS, after adjustment for other
factors.
Where PMS had its greatest impact was on indirect costs for missed work time and lost productivity. Women with PMS had an
average 14 percent reduction in expected hours of work per week plus a 15 percent reduction in productivity when at work,
compared to women without PMS.
Total indirect costs related to PMS were estimated at $4,333 higher per year, compared to women without PMS. In a
hypothetical health plan including 10,000 women aged 18 to 45, PMS would increase indirect costs by nearly $13 million per
year, in addition to a $175,000 increase in direct health costs.
Previous studies have shown a high rate of PMS among women of reproductive age, with a significant impact on their personal
and work life. However, few studies have looked at the economic impact of PMS among working women. In assessing the indirect
costs of illness to employers, it is important to account not only for absenteeism, or missed work days due to illness, but
also for lost productivity. This problem, sometimes called "presenteeism," is defined as health problems that are not severe
enough to cause absence from work but still impact employees' performance while at work.
The new results show that the indirect costs of PMS are many times higher than the direct costs. Employers seeking to control
their indirect health-related costs should be aware of the potential economic impact of PMS among their female employees, as
well as the financial benefits of offering effective treatment for this condition, Dr. Borenstein and coauthors suggest. They
conclude, "[C]orporate benefits plans that support the use of clinically effective PMS therapies are likely to be a
cost-effective investment."
ACOEM, an international society of 6,000 occupational physicians and other healthcare professionals, provides leadership to
promote optimal health and safety of workers, workplaces, and environments.
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Address 530 Walnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA
Phone 215-521-8374
Fax 215-521-8495
lww
employers-mainly related to the indirect costs of missed work time and reduced productivity, reports a study in the January
Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and
Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).
Led by Dr. Jeff Borenstein of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, the researchers assessed PMS symptoms in 374 working
women. The women were all 18 to 45 years old and had regular menstrual cycles. Over a 2-month period, the women recorded any
PMS symptoms in symptom diaries, along with any missed work time and estimates of lost productivity related to PMS.
Based on symptom diaries, 30 percent of the women were diagnosed with PMS. Insurance claims data showed a modest increase in
direct health costs for women with PMS: an average $59 higher per year than for women without PMS, after adjustment for other
factors.
Where PMS had its greatest impact was on indirect costs for missed work time and lost productivity. Women with PMS had an
average 14 percent reduction in expected hours of work per week plus a 15 percent reduction in productivity when at work,
compared to women without PMS.
Total indirect costs related to PMS were estimated at $4,333 higher per year, compared to women without PMS. In a
hypothetical health plan including 10,000 women aged 18 to 45, PMS would increase indirect costs by nearly $13 million per
year, in addition to a $175,000 increase in direct health costs.
Previous studies have shown a high rate of PMS among women of reproductive age, with a significant impact on their personal
and work life. However, few studies have looked at the economic impact of PMS among working women. In assessing the indirect
costs of illness to employers, it is important to account not only for absenteeism, or missed work days due to illness, but
also for lost productivity. This problem, sometimes called "presenteeism," is defined as health problems that are not severe
enough to cause absence from work but still impact employees' performance while at work.
The new results show that the indirect costs of PMS are many times higher than the direct costs. Employers seeking to control
their indirect health-related costs should be aware of the potential economic impact of PMS among their female employees, as
well as the financial benefits of offering effective treatment for this condition, Dr. Borenstein and coauthors suggest. They
conclude, "[C]orporate benefits plans that support the use of clinically effective PMS therapies are likely to be a
cost-effective investment."
ACOEM, an international society of 6,000 occupational physicians and other healthcare professionals, provides leadership to
promote optimal health and safety of workers, workplaces, and environments.
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Address 530 Walnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA
Phone 215-521-8374
Fax 215-521-8495
lww
вторник, 25 октября 2011 г.
Women Who Have Migraines Have Lower Breast Cancer Risk
Women who suffer from migraines may take at least some comfort in a recent, first-of-its-kind study that suggests a history of such headaches is associated with a significantly lower risk of breast cancer. Christopher I. Li, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center report these findings in the November issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention.
"We found that, overall, women who had a history of migraines had a 30 percent lower risk of breast cancer compared to women who did not have a history of such headaches," said Li, a breast-cancer epidemiologist and associate member of the Hutchinson Center's Public Health Sciences Division.
In particular, migraine history appeared to reduce the risk of the most common subtypes of breast cancer: those that are estrogen-receptor and/or progesterone-receptor positive. Such tumors have estrogen and/or progesterone receptors, or docking sites, on the surface of their cells, which makes them more responsive to hormone-blocking drugs than tumors that lack such receptors.
The biological mechanism behind the association between migraines and breast cancer is not fully known, but Li and colleagues suspect that it has to do with fluctuations in levels of circulating hormones.
"Migraines seem to have a hormonal component in that they occur more frequently in women than in men, and some of their known triggers are associated with hormones," Li said. "For example, women who take oral contraceptives - three weeks of active pills and one week of inactive pills to trigger menstruation - tend to suffer more migraines during their hormone-free week," he said. Conversely, pregnancy - a high-estrogen state - is associated with a significant decrease in migraines. "By the third trimester of pregnancy, 80 percent of migraine sufferers do not have these episodes," he said. Estrogen is known to stimulate the growth of hormonally sensitive breast cancer.
While this study represents the first of its kind to look at a potential connection between migraines and breast cancer, Li and colleagues have data from two other studies that in preliminary analyses appear to confirm these findings, he said.
"While these results need to be interpreted with caution, they point to a possible new factor that may be related to breast-cancer risk. This gives us a new avenue to explore the biology behind risk reduction. Hopefully this could help stimulate other ideas and extend what we know about the biology of the disease."
For the study, the researchers combined data from two population-based, case-control studies of 3,412 Seattle-area postmenopausal women, 1,938 of whom had been diagnosed with breast cancer and 1,474 of whom had no history of breast cancer, who served as a comparison group. Information on migraine history was based on self-report and was limited to migraines that had been diagnosed by a physician or other health professional.
The National Cancer Institute funded the research, which also involved researchers from the Hutchinson Center's Human Biology Division and the University of Washington School of Medicine Department of Neurology.
At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, our interdisciplinary teams of world-renowned scientists and humanitarians work together to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer, HIV/AIDS and other diseases. Our researchers, including three Nobel laureates, bring a relentless pursuit and passion for health, knowledge and hope to their work and to the world.
At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
"We found that, overall, women who had a history of migraines had a 30 percent lower risk of breast cancer compared to women who did not have a history of such headaches," said Li, a breast-cancer epidemiologist and associate member of the Hutchinson Center's Public Health Sciences Division.
In particular, migraine history appeared to reduce the risk of the most common subtypes of breast cancer: those that are estrogen-receptor and/or progesterone-receptor positive. Such tumors have estrogen and/or progesterone receptors, or docking sites, on the surface of their cells, which makes them more responsive to hormone-blocking drugs than tumors that lack such receptors.
The biological mechanism behind the association between migraines and breast cancer is not fully known, but Li and colleagues suspect that it has to do with fluctuations in levels of circulating hormones.
"Migraines seem to have a hormonal component in that they occur more frequently in women than in men, and some of their known triggers are associated with hormones," Li said. "For example, women who take oral contraceptives - three weeks of active pills and one week of inactive pills to trigger menstruation - tend to suffer more migraines during their hormone-free week," he said. Conversely, pregnancy - a high-estrogen state - is associated with a significant decrease in migraines. "By the third trimester of pregnancy, 80 percent of migraine sufferers do not have these episodes," he said. Estrogen is known to stimulate the growth of hormonally sensitive breast cancer.
While this study represents the first of its kind to look at a potential connection between migraines and breast cancer, Li and colleagues have data from two other studies that in preliminary analyses appear to confirm these findings, he said.
"While these results need to be interpreted with caution, they point to a possible new factor that may be related to breast-cancer risk. This gives us a new avenue to explore the biology behind risk reduction. Hopefully this could help stimulate other ideas and extend what we know about the biology of the disease."
For the study, the researchers combined data from two population-based, case-control studies of 3,412 Seattle-area postmenopausal women, 1,938 of whom had been diagnosed with breast cancer and 1,474 of whom had no history of breast cancer, who served as a comparison group. Information on migraine history was based on self-report and was limited to migraines that had been diagnosed by a physician or other health professional.
The National Cancer Institute funded the research, which also involved researchers from the Hutchinson Center's Human Biology Division and the University of Washington School of Medicine Department of Neurology.
At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, our interdisciplinary teams of world-renowned scientists and humanitarians work together to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer, HIV/AIDS and other diseases. Our researchers, including three Nobel laureates, bring a relentless pursuit and passion for health, knowledge and hope to their work and to the world.
At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
вторник, 18 октября 2011 г.
Shedding New Light On The Causes Of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome And Its Effect On Brothers
Researchers have found evidence that chronic disease in either a mother or father can create unfavourable conditions in the womb that are associated with the development of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) in daughters. In another study, researchers found that brothers of women with PCOS and insulin resistance are themselves at greater risk of developing insulin resistance or diabetes, suggesting that factors associated with the condition can be passed down to sons as well as daughters.
The two studies were presented to the 25th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Amsterdam.
Associate Professor Michael Davies told a news briefing: "We already know from clinical studies of women with reproductive problems that foetal growth restriction is associated with the development of PCOS symptoms in daughters, and that problems during pregnancy and in the way the mother adapts to the metabolic challenge of pregnancy can indicate the future cardiovascular health of both the mother and the child. What we don't know is whether giving birth to a daughter who later develops PCOS is associated with increased, long term cardiovascular disease risk in the mother. Nor do we know whether conditions underlying chronic disease in the father increases the risk of PCOS in the daughter."
Prof Davies, co-director of the Research Centre for the Early Origins of Health and Disease at the University of Adelaide (Australia), looked at records for all female babies who were born and survived between 1973-1976 at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Adelaide. He and his colleagues interviewed the daughters to build up a picture of their health and any history of chronic disease in their parents. So far, 998 (63%) have responded, and Prof Davies reported preliminary data up to mid-1975 to the conference.
Sixty-two daughters (6.2% of the group) had a pre-existing diagnosis of PCOS. Mothers of these women tended to have elevated blood pressure during pregnancy. Daughters were nearly eight times as likely to have PCOS if their mothers had it, and they had a slightly higher risk if their mothers smoked during pregnancy. Mothers were 1.6 times as likely to have high blood pressure in later life if their daughters developed PCOS. If their fathers had heart disease or stroke, the daughters also had a higher risk of PCOS: double and three times the risk respectively. A history of diabetes in either parent was not significant.
Prof Davies said: "These findings suggest a new pathway for the development of PCOS. We think that factors associated with the pre-existence of cardiovascular dysfunction in the mother or the father, and which operate during pregnancy, may create adverse conditions for the foetus, which alter the metabolic profile of offspring, leading to insulin resistance and reproductive consequences, such as PCOS, for daughters. A family history of diabetes is, therefore, not essential to observe an insulin resistance-related disease in offspring."
He said it was still unclear exactly how the cardiovascular risk in the father affected the daughter. "We firstly need to consider the potential role of a common environment; for instance, that families with high levels of obesity (and therefore cardiovascular disease) will also tend to have heavy daughters who are thereby more likely to be affected by PCOS. However, the paternal effect that we saw was independent of the daughter's weight, maternal age, socioeconomic status, maternal smoking, and country of birth, which suggests either a direct genetic effect on the daughter, or an effect of paternal genetic factors that are expressed during pregnancy."
Dr Verena Mattle told the news briefing that her study was the first to show that brothers of women who had PCOS and insulin resistance were themselves more likely to develop insulin resistance or even diabetes or dyslipidaemia (a disruption in the levels of lipids (or fats) in the blood).
"Until now, it was not clear whether the male relatives of women with PCOS were at increased risk for the metabolic disorders associated with PCOS," said Dr Mattle, who is chief resident at the University Clinic of Gynecological Endocrinology and Reproduction Medicine in Innsbruck (Austria).
Dr Mattle and her colleagues conducted oral glucose tolerance tests on 15 brothers of sisters with PCOS and insulin resistance (group 1). They also performed a serum analysis to determine lipid levels. As a control, nine brothers of sisters with PCOS but without insulin resistance were included in the study (group 2).
The researchers found that in the first group eight brothers showed an insulin resistance, one was diagnosed with diabetes and six had a normal glucose tolerance test. All nine affected brothers had a body mass index (BMI) between 19-31 kg/m2 and had elevated cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The six unaffected brothers had a BMI between 23-29, and none had high levels of cholesterol or triglycerides. In the second group, no insulin resistance was diagnosed. BMI was between 18-27 and two brothers had elevated cholesterol levels. Although there was a trend towards higher BMI in the first group, Dr Mattle said there was no statistically significant difference in BMIs between the two groups.
Dr Mattle said: "These results mean that we should pay attention to the health not only of women with PCOS but also to their brothers as they seem to have an increased risk for the medical problems that make up the metabolic syndrome, such as insulin resistance, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Our findings are also in accordance with the hypothesis that not only is PCOS is a heritable disease, but that factors associated with it, such as insulin resistance, can be passed down to the next generation of either sex."
She said that it could not be the case that the high BMI by itself could have caused the insulin resistance and diabetes in the affected brothers. "There must be a correlation between PCOS and insulin resistance because we could only find brothers with insulin resistance in the group that had sisters with PCOS and insulin resistance, but we couldn't find brothers with insulin resistance in the group that had sisters with PCOS and no insulin resistance. It is known that about 50% of women with PCOS are insulin resistant and also that lean PCOS patients are insulin resistant. The BMI of insulin-resistant and non-resistant brothers were not statistically different."
Dr Mattle and her colleagues are continuing to test brothers of women with PCOS for insulin resistance and lipid levels to collect more data from a larger group. "At this stage we would hesitate to say that a genetic inheritance is definitely playing a role in the increased risk of insulin resistance and other, related conditions in these brothers. We need to explore the possible effect of conditions in the womb and also the role of the environment. However, we think our data strongly support the view that brothers of women with PCOS and insulin resistance may have an increased risk of insulin resistance, diabetes and other, adverse metabolic conditions," she concluded
Source:
Mary Rice
European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology
The two studies were presented to the 25th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Amsterdam.
Associate Professor Michael Davies told a news briefing: "We already know from clinical studies of women with reproductive problems that foetal growth restriction is associated with the development of PCOS symptoms in daughters, and that problems during pregnancy and in the way the mother adapts to the metabolic challenge of pregnancy can indicate the future cardiovascular health of both the mother and the child. What we don't know is whether giving birth to a daughter who later develops PCOS is associated with increased, long term cardiovascular disease risk in the mother. Nor do we know whether conditions underlying chronic disease in the father increases the risk of PCOS in the daughter."
Prof Davies, co-director of the Research Centre for the Early Origins of Health and Disease at the University of Adelaide (Australia), looked at records for all female babies who were born and survived between 1973-1976 at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Adelaide. He and his colleagues interviewed the daughters to build up a picture of their health and any history of chronic disease in their parents. So far, 998 (63%) have responded, and Prof Davies reported preliminary data up to mid-1975 to the conference.
Sixty-two daughters (6.2% of the group) had a pre-existing diagnosis of PCOS. Mothers of these women tended to have elevated blood pressure during pregnancy. Daughters were nearly eight times as likely to have PCOS if their mothers had it, and they had a slightly higher risk if their mothers smoked during pregnancy. Mothers were 1.6 times as likely to have high blood pressure in later life if their daughters developed PCOS. If their fathers had heart disease or stroke, the daughters also had a higher risk of PCOS: double and three times the risk respectively. A history of diabetes in either parent was not significant.
Prof Davies said: "These findings suggest a new pathway for the development of PCOS. We think that factors associated with the pre-existence of cardiovascular dysfunction in the mother or the father, and which operate during pregnancy, may create adverse conditions for the foetus, which alter the metabolic profile of offspring, leading to insulin resistance and reproductive consequences, such as PCOS, for daughters. A family history of diabetes is, therefore, not essential to observe an insulin resistance-related disease in offspring."
He said it was still unclear exactly how the cardiovascular risk in the father affected the daughter. "We firstly need to consider the potential role of a common environment; for instance, that families with high levels of obesity (and therefore cardiovascular disease) will also tend to have heavy daughters who are thereby more likely to be affected by PCOS. However, the paternal effect that we saw was independent of the daughter's weight, maternal age, socioeconomic status, maternal smoking, and country of birth, which suggests either a direct genetic effect on the daughter, or an effect of paternal genetic factors that are expressed during pregnancy."
Dr Verena Mattle told the news briefing that her study was the first to show that brothers of women who had PCOS and insulin resistance were themselves more likely to develop insulin resistance or even diabetes or dyslipidaemia (a disruption in the levels of lipids (or fats) in the blood).
"Until now, it was not clear whether the male relatives of women with PCOS were at increased risk for the metabolic disorders associated with PCOS," said Dr Mattle, who is chief resident at the University Clinic of Gynecological Endocrinology and Reproduction Medicine in Innsbruck (Austria).
Dr Mattle and her colleagues conducted oral glucose tolerance tests on 15 brothers of sisters with PCOS and insulin resistance (group 1). They also performed a serum analysis to determine lipid levels. As a control, nine brothers of sisters with PCOS but without insulin resistance were included in the study (group 2).
The researchers found that in the first group eight brothers showed an insulin resistance, one was diagnosed with diabetes and six had a normal glucose tolerance test. All nine affected brothers had a body mass index (BMI) between 19-31 kg/m2 and had elevated cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The six unaffected brothers had a BMI between 23-29, and none had high levels of cholesterol or triglycerides. In the second group, no insulin resistance was diagnosed. BMI was between 18-27 and two brothers had elevated cholesterol levels. Although there was a trend towards higher BMI in the first group, Dr Mattle said there was no statistically significant difference in BMIs between the two groups.
Dr Mattle said: "These results mean that we should pay attention to the health not only of women with PCOS but also to their brothers as they seem to have an increased risk for the medical problems that make up the metabolic syndrome, such as insulin resistance, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Our findings are also in accordance with the hypothesis that not only is PCOS is a heritable disease, but that factors associated with it, such as insulin resistance, can be passed down to the next generation of either sex."
She said that it could not be the case that the high BMI by itself could have caused the insulin resistance and diabetes in the affected brothers. "There must be a correlation between PCOS and insulin resistance because we could only find brothers with insulin resistance in the group that had sisters with PCOS and insulin resistance, but we couldn't find brothers with insulin resistance in the group that had sisters with PCOS and no insulin resistance. It is known that about 50% of women with PCOS are insulin resistant and also that lean PCOS patients are insulin resistant. The BMI of insulin-resistant and non-resistant brothers were not statistically different."
Dr Mattle and her colleagues are continuing to test brothers of women with PCOS for insulin resistance and lipid levels to collect more data from a larger group. "At this stage we would hesitate to say that a genetic inheritance is definitely playing a role in the increased risk of insulin resistance and other, related conditions in these brothers. We need to explore the possible effect of conditions in the womb and also the role of the environment. However, we think our data strongly support the view that brothers of women with PCOS and insulin resistance may have an increased risk of insulin resistance, diabetes and other, adverse metabolic conditions," she concluded
Source:
Mary Rice
European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology
вторник, 11 октября 2011 г.
U-M Study: Why Dishing Does You Good
A University of Michigan study has identified a likely reason: feeling emotionally close to a friend increases levels of the hormone progesterone, helping to boost well-being and reduce anxiety and stress.
"This study establishes progesterone as a likely part of the neuroendocrine basis of social bonding in humans," said U-M researcher Stephanie Brown, lead author of an article reporting the study findings, published in the current (June 2009) issue of the peer-reviewed journal Hormones and Behavior.
A sex hormone that fluctuates with the menstrual cycle, progesterone is also present in low levels in post-menopausal women and in men. Earlier research has shown that higher levels of progesterone increase the desire to bond with others, but the current study is the first to show that bonding with others increases levels of progesterone. The study also links these increases to a greater willingness to help other people, even at our own expense.
"It's important to find the links between biological mechanisms and human social behavior," said Brown, is a faculty associate at the U-M Institute for Social Research (ISR) and an assistant professor of internal medicine at the U-M Medical School. She is also affiliated with the Ann Arbor Veterans Affairs Hospital. "These links may help us understand why people in close relationships are happier, healthier, and live longer than those who are socially isolated."
Progesterone is much easier to measure than oxytocin, a hormone linked to trust, pair-bonding and maternal responsiveness in humans and other mammals. Oxytocin can only be measured through an invasive spinal tap or through expensive and complex brain imaging methods, such as positron emission tomography scans. Progesterone can be measured through simple saliva samples and may be related to oxytocin.
In the current study, Brown and colleagues examined the link between interpersonal closeness and salivary progesterone in 160 female college students.
At the start of the study, the researchers measured the levels of progesterone and of the stress hormone cortisol in the women's saliva, and obtained information about their menstrual cycles and whether they were using hormonal contraceptives or other hormonally active medications.
To control for daily variations in hormone levels, all the sessions were held between noon and 7 p.m.
The women were randomly assigned to partners and asked to perform either a task designed to elicit feelings of emotional closeness or a task that was emotionally neutral.
In the emotionally neutral task, the women proofread a botany manuscript together.
After completing the 20-minute tasks, the women played a computerized cooperative card game with their partners, and then had their progesterone and cortisol sampled again.
The progesterone levels of women who had engaged in the emotionally neutral tasks tended to decline, while the progesterone levels of women who engaged in the task designed to elicit closeness either remained the same or increased. The participants' cortisol levels did not change in a similar way.
Participants returned a week later, and played the computerized card game with their original partners again. Then researchers measured their progesterone and cortisol. Researchers also examined links between progesterone levels and how likely participants said they would be to risk their life for their partner.
"During the first phase of the study, we found no evidence of a relationship between progesterone and willingness to sacrifice," Brown said. "But a week later, increased progesterone predicted an increased willingness to say you would risk your life to help your partner."
According to Brown, the findings are consistent with a new evolutionary theory of altruism which argues that the hormonal basis of social bonds enables people to suppress self-interest when necessary in order to promote the well-being of another person, as when taking care of children or helping ailing family members or friends.
The results also help explain why social contact has well-documented health benefits---a relationship first identified nearly 20 years ago by U-M sociologist James House.
"Many of the hormones involved in bonding and helping behavior lead to reductions in stress and anxiety in both humans and other animals. Now we see that higher levels of progesterone may be part of the underlying physiological basis for these effects," Brown said.
Source:
Diane Swanbrow
University of Michigan
"This study establishes progesterone as a likely part of the neuroendocrine basis of social bonding in humans," said U-M researcher Stephanie Brown, lead author of an article reporting the study findings, published in the current (June 2009) issue of the peer-reviewed journal Hormones and Behavior.
A sex hormone that fluctuates with the menstrual cycle, progesterone is also present in low levels in post-menopausal women and in men. Earlier research has shown that higher levels of progesterone increase the desire to bond with others, but the current study is the first to show that bonding with others increases levels of progesterone. The study also links these increases to a greater willingness to help other people, even at our own expense.
"It's important to find the links between biological mechanisms and human social behavior," said Brown, is a faculty associate at the U-M Institute for Social Research (ISR) and an assistant professor of internal medicine at the U-M Medical School. She is also affiliated with the Ann Arbor Veterans Affairs Hospital. "These links may help us understand why people in close relationships are happier, healthier, and live longer than those who are socially isolated."
Progesterone is much easier to measure than oxytocin, a hormone linked to trust, pair-bonding and maternal responsiveness in humans and other mammals. Oxytocin can only be measured through an invasive spinal tap or through expensive and complex brain imaging methods, such as positron emission tomography scans. Progesterone can be measured through simple saliva samples and may be related to oxytocin.
In the current study, Brown and colleagues examined the link between interpersonal closeness and salivary progesterone in 160 female college students.
At the start of the study, the researchers measured the levels of progesterone and of the stress hormone cortisol in the women's saliva, and obtained information about their menstrual cycles and whether they were using hormonal contraceptives or other hormonally active medications.
To control for daily variations in hormone levels, all the sessions were held between noon and 7 p.m.
The women were randomly assigned to partners and asked to perform either a task designed to elicit feelings of emotional closeness or a task that was emotionally neutral.
In the emotionally neutral task, the women proofread a botany manuscript together.
After completing the 20-minute tasks, the women played a computerized cooperative card game with their partners, and then had their progesterone and cortisol sampled again.
The progesterone levels of women who had engaged in the emotionally neutral tasks tended to decline, while the progesterone levels of women who engaged in the task designed to elicit closeness either remained the same or increased. The participants' cortisol levels did not change in a similar way.
Participants returned a week later, and played the computerized card game with their original partners again. Then researchers measured their progesterone and cortisol. Researchers also examined links between progesterone levels and how likely participants said they would be to risk their life for their partner.
"During the first phase of the study, we found no evidence of a relationship between progesterone and willingness to sacrifice," Brown said. "But a week later, increased progesterone predicted an increased willingness to say you would risk your life to help your partner."
According to Brown, the findings are consistent with a new evolutionary theory of altruism which argues that the hormonal basis of social bonds enables people to suppress self-interest when necessary in order to promote the well-being of another person, as when taking care of children or helping ailing family members or friends.
The results also help explain why social contact has well-documented health benefits---a relationship first identified nearly 20 years ago by U-M sociologist James House.
"Many of the hormones involved in bonding and helping behavior lead to reductions in stress and anxiety in both humans and other animals. Now we see that higher levels of progesterone may be part of the underlying physiological basis for these effects," Brown said.
Source:
Diane Swanbrow
University of Michigan
вторник, 4 октября 2011 г.
Blogs Comment On Plan B Court Decision, Pope's Visit To Africa, Other Topics
The following summarizes selected women's health-related blog entries.
~ "Controlling the Means of Reproduction: An Interview with Michelle Goldberg," Mandy Van Deven, RH Reality Check: The blog entry includes excerpts from an interview with Michelle Goldberg, "long-time critic" of reproductive health policies under the administration of former President George W. Bush and author of a new book titled "The Means of Reproduction: Sex, Power and the Future of the World." In the book, Goldberg "illustrates how U.S. policies act as a catalyst for or an impediment to women's rights worldwide and puts forth a convincing argument that women's liberation worldwide is key to solving some of our most daunting problems," Van Deven writes. According to Goldberg, women's "intimate lives have become inextricably tied to global forces," and when writing the book, she found how U.S. movements were "branching out into global issues." She said, "In a way, the American antiabortion movement has had more of an impact abroad than at home. The Supreme Court has limited the movement's scope for action here, so Republican presidents have rewarded their base by giving them tremendous influence over international policy on women's health -- an area few Americans pay attention to." She continues that her "book is about the realm of reproductive and women's rights. ... Giving women more control over their bodies and their lives is one of the most important things you can do to fight poverty. One of the things I hope this book does is show how that works." Van Deven concludes the interview by asking Goldberg to explain how issues like female circumcision, abortion and sex education and their "societal context" affect "a woman's ability to freely make her own choice." Goldberg responds, "The problem is not that women are having too many children; it's that, in many places, they lack access to contraception and are having more children than they say they want ... One of the dilemmas I tried to bring forward in the book is that sometimes the ideal of choice, venerated by Western feminists like me, conflicts with the goals of women's rights advocates on the ground" (Van Deven, RH Reality Check, 3/23).
~ "The Morning After Pill Controversy," Cristina Page, Huffington Post blogs: A court ruling on Monday that FDA's justification for age restrictions on Plan B emergency contraception lacked credibility because it was politically based "could not have been more dismissive of the Bush administration's maneuverings," Page writes. The judge ruled that the Bush administration "had politicized a once-respected regulatory agency, the FDA, for bending the law to its right wing purposes" by imposing the age restriction on nonprescription access to EC, Page continues. She writes, "The court's condemnation was comprehensive and brutal, all but labeling the Bushies political criminals." The U.S. district court on Monday "finally got the anti-contraception genie, and some of the bullying lawless politics of the Bush era, back in the bottle, at least for now," Page adds, concluding, "As for the public's trust, that'll take a little longer to fix" (Page, Huffington Post blogs, 3/24).
~ "Dish Respect: The Political Crackdown on IVF Embryo Screening," William Saletan, Slate's Human Nature: Saletan writes that the state senator who authored a proposed Georgia bill (S.B. 169) that would restrict in vitro fertilization is wrong in claiming that the revised bill simply restricts the creation of human embryos for scientific research. Saletan urges readers to "read the bill, not the spin." According to Saletan, the language of the bill "does not, as advertised, require that IVF be" used for "creating children." He says that the bill actually requires that IVF be used "for the treatment of infertility," adding that the "two phrases are not equivalent." According to Saletan, "[s]ometimes IVF is done to create children for couples who are technically or even clearly fertile" but where health conditions like kidney disease might prevent them from carrying a pregnancy. The bill, as written, "would prohibit this," and it is likely that it will be revised to allow this. However, the "more interesting question" posed by the revision is "what will happen to the use of IVF for creating children when there's no question of infertility at all." Saletan continues, "That use is the screening of embryos for unwanted genes: preimplantation genetic diagnosis." The Georgia bill is "just the beginning" of a nationwide project "to regulate the emerging industry of embryo production," Saletan writes. The bills to restrict IVF will "make exceptions for infertility but not PGD," he continues, concluding, "The battles, then, will be fought over which uses of PGD are acceptable. And these fights will be every bit as ugly as the preceding fights over abortion" (Saletan, Slate's "Human Nature," 3/20).
~ "Talkin' About the Pope and Hope," Tamar Abrams, Huffington Post blogs: Pope Benedict XVI's "recent pronouncements during his travels in Africa that condoms and abortions are morally wrong have filled me with religious indignation," Abrams writes. She continues she has witnessed the "increasing number of married women with AIDS in Kenya" and spoken with Kenyan women "who longed for access to contraceptives so they could better care for the children they already had." She writes, "Even so, I probably wouldn't take on the Pope ... except for "recent media reports that the Vatican's top bioethics official spoke out against the excommunication of the two Brazilian doctors who performed an abortion on a nine-year-old girl. Abrams continues that the official's stance is "a pro-choice stand," adding, "Abortion is not a black-and-white issue for me." She writes, "That's why the pro-choice position has always seemed to me to be the reasoned" stance, adding, "It allows individuals to make decisions and encourages each of us to define for ourselves what is reasonable and acceptable." She concludes that if Benedict "truly listens to the people of Africa and other continents and opens his eyes to their hopes for their own lives -- I have faith he may begin to understand the healing power of condoms and the life-affirming necessity for legal, safe abortions" (Abrams, Huffington Post blogs, 3/21).
~ "Time To Give a Neglected Contraceptive a Little More Love," Kathleen Reeves, RH Reality Check: A recent article published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology "takes a fresh look at the emergency contraception we often forget about -- IUDs," Reeves writes. The authors of the article report that few women surveyed knew much about IUDs, she writes, adding that she is "not surprised by their ignorance" as she was unaware IUDs could be used as EC. According to Reeves, the copper IUD, which is effective for up to 12 years, can be effective in preventing pregnancy if inserted up to five days after unprotected sex. "At that point I wondered, 'Why would you go for such a long-lasting contraceptive when you're just looking for emergency contraception?'" Reeves writes, adding, "But this makes a lot of sense. Though some women who seek emergency contraception may have had a one-time malfunction, many others may be looking for a form of contraception that works for them." The IUD "has always been an important option for women who can't tolerate birth control pills or who'd rather not use hormonal birth control because of family health history," Reeves writes, concluding, "Bravo to this report for pointing to a neglected contraceptive choice that may be, for many women, just what the doctor ordered" (Reeves, RH Reality Check, 3/23).
Antiabortion-rights Blog
~ "Americans United for Life Condemns Ruling Increasing Minors' Access to Dangerous Plan B," Matthew Eppinette, Americans United for Life blog: The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York's recent ruling to allow over-the-counter access to Plan B for 17-year-old girls is "incomprehensible" and allows "a minor to walk into any pharmacy and obtain this drug without medical oversight or parental involvement," Charmaine Yoest, president and CEO of Americans United for Life said. According to Eppinette, the court ordered the drug to be available to girls age 17 "under the same conditions it is currently available to adult women and to do so by April 21, 2009." In addition, the court's ruling "will not permit the FDA to undertake another internal review of the drug's safety record or to receive evidence on the increased need to protect minors from dangerous medications and even sexual abuse." Denise Burke, AUL vice president of legal affairs, said, "Increasingly easy access to Plan B may have severe and unintended consequences such as the continued exploitation and sexual abuse of young girls," adding, "It is all too easy for this unsafe drug to be used by sexual predators and even the victims themselves to hide the abuse from parents and the authorities" (Eppinette, Americans United for Life blog, 3/23).
Reprinted with kind permission from nationalpartnership. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.
© 2009 The Advisory Board Company. All rights reserved.
~ "Controlling the Means of Reproduction: An Interview with Michelle Goldberg," Mandy Van Deven, RH Reality Check: The blog entry includes excerpts from an interview with Michelle Goldberg, "long-time critic" of reproductive health policies under the administration of former President George W. Bush and author of a new book titled "The Means of Reproduction: Sex, Power and the Future of the World." In the book, Goldberg "illustrates how U.S. policies act as a catalyst for or an impediment to women's rights worldwide and puts forth a convincing argument that women's liberation worldwide is key to solving some of our most daunting problems," Van Deven writes. According to Goldberg, women's "intimate lives have become inextricably tied to global forces," and when writing the book, she found how U.S. movements were "branching out into global issues." She said, "In a way, the American antiabortion movement has had more of an impact abroad than at home. The Supreme Court has limited the movement's scope for action here, so Republican presidents have rewarded their base by giving them tremendous influence over international policy on women's health -- an area few Americans pay attention to." She continues that her "book is about the realm of reproductive and women's rights. ... Giving women more control over their bodies and their lives is one of the most important things you can do to fight poverty. One of the things I hope this book does is show how that works." Van Deven concludes the interview by asking Goldberg to explain how issues like female circumcision, abortion and sex education and their "societal context" affect "a woman's ability to freely make her own choice." Goldberg responds, "The problem is not that women are having too many children; it's that, in many places, they lack access to contraception and are having more children than they say they want ... One of the dilemmas I tried to bring forward in the book is that sometimes the ideal of choice, venerated by Western feminists like me, conflicts with the goals of women's rights advocates on the ground" (Van Deven, RH Reality Check, 3/23).
~ "The Morning After Pill Controversy," Cristina Page, Huffington Post blogs: A court ruling on Monday that FDA's justification for age restrictions on Plan B emergency contraception lacked credibility because it was politically based "could not have been more dismissive of the Bush administration's maneuverings," Page writes. The judge ruled that the Bush administration "had politicized a once-respected regulatory agency, the FDA, for bending the law to its right wing purposes" by imposing the age restriction on nonprescription access to EC, Page continues. She writes, "The court's condemnation was comprehensive and brutal, all but labeling the Bushies political criminals." The U.S. district court on Monday "finally got the anti-contraception genie, and some of the bullying lawless politics of the Bush era, back in the bottle, at least for now," Page adds, concluding, "As for the public's trust, that'll take a little longer to fix" (Page, Huffington Post blogs, 3/24).
~ "Dish Respect: The Political Crackdown on IVF Embryo Screening," William Saletan, Slate's Human Nature: Saletan writes that the state senator who authored a proposed Georgia bill (S.B. 169) that would restrict in vitro fertilization is wrong in claiming that the revised bill simply restricts the creation of human embryos for scientific research. Saletan urges readers to "read the bill, not the spin." According to Saletan, the language of the bill "does not, as advertised, require that IVF be" used for "creating children." He says that the bill actually requires that IVF be used "for the treatment of infertility," adding that the "two phrases are not equivalent." According to Saletan, "[s]ometimes IVF is done to create children for couples who are technically or even clearly fertile" but where health conditions like kidney disease might prevent them from carrying a pregnancy. The bill, as written, "would prohibit this," and it is likely that it will be revised to allow this. However, the "more interesting question" posed by the revision is "what will happen to the use of IVF for creating children when there's no question of infertility at all." Saletan continues, "That use is the screening of embryos for unwanted genes: preimplantation genetic diagnosis." The Georgia bill is "just the beginning" of a nationwide project "to regulate the emerging industry of embryo production," Saletan writes. The bills to restrict IVF will "make exceptions for infertility but not PGD," he continues, concluding, "The battles, then, will be fought over which uses of PGD are acceptable. And these fights will be every bit as ugly as the preceding fights over abortion" (Saletan, Slate's "Human Nature," 3/20).
~ "Talkin' About the Pope and Hope," Tamar Abrams, Huffington Post blogs: Pope Benedict XVI's "recent pronouncements during his travels in Africa that condoms and abortions are morally wrong have filled me with religious indignation," Abrams writes. She continues she has witnessed the "increasing number of married women with AIDS in Kenya" and spoken with Kenyan women "who longed for access to contraceptives so they could better care for the children they already had." She writes, "Even so, I probably wouldn't take on the Pope ... except for "recent media reports that the Vatican's top bioethics official spoke out against the excommunication of the two Brazilian doctors who performed an abortion on a nine-year-old girl. Abrams continues that the official's stance is "a pro-choice stand," adding, "Abortion is not a black-and-white issue for me." She writes, "That's why the pro-choice position has always seemed to me to be the reasoned" stance, adding, "It allows individuals to make decisions and encourages each of us to define for ourselves what is reasonable and acceptable." She concludes that if Benedict "truly listens to the people of Africa and other continents and opens his eyes to their hopes for their own lives -- I have faith he may begin to understand the healing power of condoms and the life-affirming necessity for legal, safe abortions" (Abrams, Huffington Post blogs, 3/21).
~ "Time To Give a Neglected Contraceptive a Little More Love," Kathleen Reeves, RH Reality Check: A recent article published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology "takes a fresh look at the emergency contraception we often forget about -- IUDs," Reeves writes. The authors of the article report that few women surveyed knew much about IUDs, she writes, adding that she is "not surprised by their ignorance" as she was unaware IUDs could be used as EC. According to Reeves, the copper IUD, which is effective for up to 12 years, can be effective in preventing pregnancy if inserted up to five days after unprotected sex. "At that point I wondered, 'Why would you go for such a long-lasting contraceptive when you're just looking for emergency contraception?'" Reeves writes, adding, "But this makes a lot of sense. Though some women who seek emergency contraception may have had a one-time malfunction, many others may be looking for a form of contraception that works for them." The IUD "has always been an important option for women who can't tolerate birth control pills or who'd rather not use hormonal birth control because of family health history," Reeves writes, concluding, "Bravo to this report for pointing to a neglected contraceptive choice that may be, for many women, just what the doctor ordered" (Reeves, RH Reality Check, 3/23).
Antiabortion-rights Blog
~ "Americans United for Life Condemns Ruling Increasing Minors' Access to Dangerous Plan B," Matthew Eppinette, Americans United for Life blog: The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York's recent ruling to allow over-the-counter access to Plan B for 17-year-old girls is "incomprehensible" and allows "a minor to walk into any pharmacy and obtain this drug without medical oversight or parental involvement," Charmaine Yoest, president and CEO of Americans United for Life said. According to Eppinette, the court ordered the drug to be available to girls age 17 "under the same conditions it is currently available to adult women and to do so by April 21, 2009." In addition, the court's ruling "will not permit the FDA to undertake another internal review of the drug's safety record or to receive evidence on the increased need to protect minors from dangerous medications and even sexual abuse." Denise Burke, AUL vice president of legal affairs, said, "Increasingly easy access to Plan B may have severe and unintended consequences such as the continued exploitation and sexual abuse of young girls," adding, "It is all too easy for this unsafe drug to be used by sexual predators and even the victims themselves to hide the abuse from parents and the authorities" (Eppinette, Americans United for Life blog, 3/23).
Reprinted with kind permission from nationalpartnership. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.
© 2009 The Advisory Board Company. All rights reserved.
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