HEALTHY LIVING THE LATEST RESEARCH
Blood Pressure Drugs Cut Alzheimer’s Risk
D
rugs commonly used to control high blood pressure
could slash in half the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, according to research published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease. “Current Alzheimer’s drugs
are unable to stop the underlying mechanisms,” said British scientist Dr. Patrick Kehoe. In a study of almost 60,000 people over the age of 60, patients taking blood pressure- lowering drugs called angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) cut their Alzheimer’s risk by 50 percent when compared to patients on other types of anti-hypertensive medications. They were also 25 percent less likely to develop vascular dementia. The study found that although
other forms of blood pressure drugs, such as ACE inhibitors (lisinopril), also lower the risk of Alzheimer’s,
50 IS THE NEW 20 I
t’s possible for 50-year-olds to be as fit as people 30 years
younger, says a Norwegian study, but they have to be active. Researchers found that by increasing activity levels, people in their 50s can ward off metabolic syndrome — risk factors that can lead to cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes — and be as fit as twentysomethings. “Physical conditioning is the most important factor in describing an individual’s overall health,” says Dr. Stian Thoresen Aspenes of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. To turn back time, exercise sessions consisting of short bursts of very high activity followed by equal periods of lower-intensity exercise lasting about four minutes each (typically done in sets of four) three times a week were recommended by researchers.
86 NEWSMAX MAXLIFE | FEBRUARY 2012
they were only half as eff ective as ARBs. High blood pressure is
a known risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s, so simply lowering blood pressure could be the reason for the reduction in risk. But
researchers believe the ARB drugs cause biochemical changes
in the brain that attack the causes of Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia.
DEFEATING DEMENTIA
A new scanning technique promises to give doctors the first accurate test for Alzheimer’s disease in living patients. The technique combines PET scans with flutemetamol, a new compound developed by GE Healthcare that highlights parts of the brain when they are aff ected by Alzheimer’s plaques. Clinical trials are now under way and the scan could be in use later this year.
MENOPAUSE: CUT HOT FLASHES A daily pill of licorice extract cuts hot
flashes by 80 percent, according to a study at the University of Southern California. Researchers gave menopausal women a 50 mg or a 100 mg capsule of licogen — licorice root extract — for a year. Hot flashes dropped from an average of 10 a day to only two, and overnight flashes dropped by half. Benefits were the same for both dosages.
INSOMNIA: TRY CHERRY JUICE
If you’re struggling with insomnia, try skipping the chamomile tea and drink a glass of cherry juice. Scientists at Great Britain’s Northumbria University found that tart cherry juice increased levels of melatonin, the hormone that helps control sleep. Volunteers who drank cherry juice before bedtime saw their sleep time increase by 25 minutes.
LONGEVITY: BE HAPPY
Are you worried that you weren’t blessed with “longevity genes?” Take Bobby McFerrin’s advice: Don’t worry, be happy. British researchers found that older people who reported they were happy and content reduced their chances of dying by 35 percent during a five-year study when compared to those who said they were anxious, worried, and fearful. Scientists at University College, London found that those who were the happiest lowered their chances of dying by more than a third — even after considering factors including physical health, wealth, and depression.
SKIN CARE: AVOIDING SUN DAMAGE
If you must expose your skin to the sun’s damaging UV rays, do it in the morning. The skin’s ability to repair DNA damage from the sun waxes and wanes throughout the 24-hour day, so sun exposure does the least damage when the skin’s repair mechanism works best. Researchers at the University of North Carolina found that mice, whose circadian clocks run exactly opposite to humans, increased their risk of skin cancer by 500 percent when they were exposed to morning sun. In addition, skin tumors developed much faster. Conversely, humans, whose repair mechanism works better in the morning, could cut their risk of skin cancer by limiting sun exposure to morning hours, say scientists.
ISTOCKPHOTO
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