New aid from
aspirin
Many people take a
low daily dose of aspirin on their doctor’s advice as a guard against heart attack. They may also, it has been found, be lowering their
blood pressure. A study in the US of 109 people
with moderately raised blood pressure showed that the measure was lowered after taking
aspirin.
Drugs for high
blood pressure work best at certain times of day, and it is no exception with aspirin. The good effect only occurred when aspirin was taken at
bedtime.
Natural sleep combo
On the basis that
two may be better than one, a product that combines valerian with passiflora could be a
herbal answer to insomnia. Valerian has been used
for insomnia and nervous conditions for many centuries.
The plant was so
popular among women in the 1800s for calming insomnia, emotional hysteria and nervous
exhaustion that it is often referred to as the 'valium of the nineteenth century',
although it has been well used for over 1,000 years by ancient herbalists.
Passiflora, or passion flower, is believed to ease
anxiety due to mental worry and overwork. Hence the
happy combination. If you want to give it a try,
FSC Passiflora and Valerian Formula costs £4.99 for 30ml and is available from GNC stores
nationwide, www.gnc.co.uk or through mail order 0845
601 3248.
No thanks for the memory
That popular health
supplement, ginkgo biloba, is widely sold as a memory enhancer. Sadly, it doesn’t deliver, according to researchers
from the US. The product was tested on 230
physically and mentally healthy volunteers aged 60-plus. One
group was given ginkgo, the other a placebo or dummy pill.
Both groups
carried out a variety of learning and memory tests at the start, so performance could be
compared at the end of the trial. Results are supposed to show after about 4 weeks, so the
researchers, very fairly, did the trial for 6
weeks. Result: no ‘discernible’
difference in performance before and after in both groups.
This is just one of many tests, so presumably research will continue. There’s still the possibility that ginkgo
does something for people less healthy and ‘normal’. Meanwhile, we thought you should be informed.
Eat yourself slim
 Based on the recipes and menus that will feature in Rosemary
Conley's television series, of the same name, this book has suggestions for those who want
to enjoy fine food and control their weight, or lose some weight at the same time.
The natural beauty
& bath book
This book gives you 70 recipes for beauty and bath
products that you can make yourself, using ingredients you will find at your local grocery
and health food shops. Pamper yourself from head to toe with these natural formulas:
 6 weeks to super health
Whether you are looking to lose weight, get healthy or
get out of a rut, this eminently readable, well-designed, informative and authoritative
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 Tai Chi
This book explains: what Tai Chi is; how to use Tai Chi
for health and healing; the best way to train in Tai Chi. This book is an ideal guide for
anyone who wants to understand the fundamental ideas and practices of this ancient martial
art.
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Update on osteoporosis
1. Red meat - yes or no? Some research suggests that animal protein (ie
meat) is bad for postmenopausal women as it can promote bone loss. Now a new finding from San Diego suggests the opposite. When animal protein versus vegetable protein intake of 572 women and 388 men aged 55-92 was measured
against bone mass, the women with a high animal protein intake appeared to gain a
protective effect, while women with a high vegetable intake showed a loss in bone mass. (Men did not show this result.) So, for the present, the
advice for older women is: meat is good for you.
2. Instead
of HRT Tibolone, a drug with similar hormone
effect to oestrogen and progesterone in HRT, appears to have fewer side effects. Tested on 225 postmenopausal women over 2 years, it
increased bone mass (though not quite as much as HRT) and caused less vaginal bleeding and
less breast pain.
3. Do take a cup of tea Researchers in Taiwan, where
tea is highly popular, have linked regular tea drinking with increased bone mass. Women drinking tea over a period of 10 years had higher
bone mass than those drinking tea for 6-10 years.
And non tea-drinking was associated with lowest bone mass in the groups monitored.
4. Bone loss after stopping HRT. Former
users of HRT do not seem to be protected against hip fracture, and experts have postulated
that accelerated bone loss after stopping the treatment could be the reason. Now a
Californian report suggests that the bone loss is not accelerated. A total of 495 women on a 3-year HRT trial were studied
for a further 4 years after the trial. Rates of bone loss after
HRT did not differ significantly from rates of bone loss of non-takers of HRT - about 1% a year during the first year of the
study and about 0.5% after.
If in any doubt about any of the
information covered in healthwise articles and it's relevance for you, consult your GP.
In edition
29:-
Seaweed instead of salt
Could be useful for those prescribed a very low salt diet
Do doctors take pain seriously?
Not when their patients are suffering from Arthritis, says the UK charity
Arthritis Care
Chocolate makes you happy.
Official!
A survey from Cadbury Dairy Milk found......
AND THE FOLLOWING FROM HELEN`S SPECIAL REPORT:
1. HRT - should you or shouldn`t
you?
A new trial involving over 16,000 healthy American women revealed that.....
2. Diet - Is low-fat bad after
all?
What goes around comes around..
3. Vitamin supplements in danger
A new EU directive is threatening to make it illegal to buy vitamins and
other supplements in high doses.
Index to
all previous Healthwise editions
For books on Health visit the Amazon
Family and Health Section.
Don't forget if you buy books or videos from Amazon by linking from
laterlife, you generate money for Charity.
Maximise your
memory
This work provides detailed instructions, illustrations and sample
exercises that show the reader how to build a system of personalized frameworks for
storing and recalling information on demand.
Stop smoking
This new edition of the bestseller aims to help the reader use the "Easy way"
method to eliminate the psychological reasons for smoking, handle withdrawal symptoms,
avoid temptation situations, and stay a non-smoker! |
