Alternative Health News

Recent research has linked the thin air of higher elevations to increased rates of depression and suicide. But a new study shows there's also good news from up in the aspens and pines: The prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) decreases substantially as altitude increases. In Utah, for example, an analysis of information from two national health … [Read more...]

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. Scientists at Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida created a novel mouse that exhibits the symptoms and neurodegeneration … [Read more...]

Genetic variants that predict higher systolic blood pressure (SBP) are associated with a higher probability of taking antihypertensive medication and with decreased risk of Alzheimer disease (AD), according to a study published this week in PLOS Medicine. The study, conducted by Robert Scott of the MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, UK, Soren Ostergaard, (Aarhus … [Read more...]

The Aging Brain Care Medical Home, a novel population health management program implemented in the homes of older adults achieves significant health improvement for individuals with depression and also substantial stress reduction in family caregivers of dementia patients, according to a new study by investigators from the Regenstrief Institute, Indiana University Center for … [Read more...]

In a study published in The Journal of Experimental Medicine, researchers working at the Wihuri Research Institute and the University of Helsinki report a surprising finding that challenges current anatomy and histology textbook knowledge: Lymphatic vessels are found in the central nervous system where they were not known to exist. Aleksanteri Aspelund and colleagues discovered … [Read more...]

About 19 percent of North Americans suffer from constipation, with the digestive condition being more common among women, non-whites, people older than 60, those who are not physically active and the poor. The costs are significant. Hospital costs to treat the condition were estimated at $4.25 billion in 2010 alone. Constipation can also lead to depression, lower quality of … [Read more...]

While noninvasive alternatives are increasingly available, liver biopsy still provides essential information in some children with liver disease, according to a new position paper in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, official journal of the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (ESPGHAN) and the North American Society … [Read more...]

The thickness of the brain's cerebral cortex could be a key to unlocking answers about intellectual development in youth with Down Syndrome. It could also provide new insights to why individuals with this genetic neurodevelopmental disorder are highly susceptible to early onset Alzheimer's Disease later in life. New brain-imaging research published in the journal Cerebral … [Read more...]

Long-term administration of a drug that mimics the hunger-signaling hormone ghrelin protected Alzheimer's disease-model mice from memory deterioration, despite a high-glycemic-index (GI) diet, according to research published in the journal Scientific Reports by University of Alabama at Birmingham investigator Inga Kadish, Ph.D., and colleagues. Kadish, the senior author of … [Read more...]

An expert panel convened by the Institute of Medicine clarified the cognitive aging process by making a distinction from Alzheimer disease and related dementias, and provided recommendations to enhance cognitive health in older adults. Now a new article published in Annals of Internal Medicine highlights key points of that report and serves as a guide for health care … [Read more...]

As high doses of green tea extract supplements for weight loss become more popular, potential liver toxicity becomes a concern. In the last decade, dozens of people have been diagnosed with the condition. However, drinking green tea in the weeks before taking supplements likely reduces risk, according to researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural … [Read more...]

For 140 years, scientists' understanding of language comprehension in the brain came from individuals with stroke. Based on language impairments caused by stroke, scientists believed a single area of the brain -- a hotdog shaped section in the temporal lobe of the left hemisphere called Wernicke's region -- was the center of language comprehension. Wernicke's was thought to … [Read more...]

A digital map of the aging brain could aid the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders in older people, a study suggests. The atlas created using images from MRI scans of older people could aid diagnosis by comparing the patients' scans with a detailed map of the healthy aging brain. Most existing MRI atlases are based on the brains of young … [Read more...]

Drug-induced acute liver failure is uncommon, and over-the-counter medications and dietary and herbal supplements -- not prescription drugs -- are its most common causes, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The findings are published in the current issue of Gastroenterology. One of the most feared complications of … [Read more...]

For patients with chronic kidney disease, diets with a high acid content may increase their risk of developing kidney failure. The finding, which comes from a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN), suggests that patients may want to limit their intake of meats and increase their consumption of fruits and vegetables to … [Read more...]

People with back pain who have low expectations of acupuncture before they start a course of treatment will gain less benefit than those people who believe it will work, according to new research from the University of Southampton. Conversely, those people who have a positive view of back pain and who feel in control of their condition experience less back-related disability … [Read more...]

An updated clinical practice guideline from the American Academy of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery Foundation published in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery identifies quality improvement opportunities and explicit actionable recommendations for clinicians managing adult sinusitis, including a greater focus on patient education and patient preference. "More than … [Read more...]

Rhodiola rosea (R. rosea), or roseroot, may be a beneficial treatment option for major depressive disorder (MDD), according to results of a study in the journal Phytomedicine led by Jun J. Mao, MD, MSCE, associate professor of Family Medicine, Community Health and Epidemiology and colleagues at the Perelman School of Medicine of University of Pennsylvania. The proof of … [Read more...]

Green tea's popularity has grown quickly in recent years. Its fans can drink it, enjoy its flavor in their ice cream and slather it on their skin with lotions infused with it. Now, the tea could have a new, unexpected role -- to improve the image quality of MRIs. Scientists report in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces that they successfully used compounds from … [Read more...]

The amyloid cascade hypothesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) posits that sticky aggregations or plaques of amyloid-beta peptides accumulate over time in the brain, triggering a series of events that ultimately result in the full-blown neurodegenerative disorder. The hypothesis has been a major driver of AD research for more than 20 years. However, in a new study published this … [Read more...]

Researchers at the University of Kentucky's Sanders-Brown Center on Aging have completed a study that revealed differences in the way brain inflammation -- considered a key component of AD-- is expressed in different subsets of patients, in particular people with Down syndrome (DS) and AD. People with Down syndrome have a third copy of Chromosome 21, and that chromosome is … [Read more...]

Working towards the ultimate goal to develop therapeutics to treat diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, ALS, and BSE (Mad Cow Disease), University of Alberta scientists Michael Woodside, Hao Yu, and Derek Dee are investigating the physical principles underlying the formation of misfolded protein aggregates. The aggregates of misfolded proteins -- proteins that clump … [Read more...]

When you hear the phrase "good genes," you probably picture a supermodel like Kate Upton, or a sports superstar like Washington Nationals slugger Bryce Harper. People, in other words, who may have worked hard for their success, but were blessed with some helpful genes as well. Superstar geneticist Haydeh Payami, Ph.D., has spent the past two decades searching for a different … [Read more...]

A new study suggests that people with a genetic predisposition to high blood pressure have a lower risk for Alzheimer's disease. However, authors conclude the connection may have more to do with anti-hypertension medication than high blood pressure itself. "It's likely that this protective effect is coming from antihypertensive drugs," said co-author John Kauwe, associate … [Read more...]

A new University of Florida study shows increased immunity in people who ate a cooked shiitake mushroom every day for four weeks. Of the thousands of mushroom species globally, about 20 are used for culinary purposes. Shiitake mushrooms are native to Asia and are cultivated for their culinary and medicinal value. In a 2011 study led by UF Food Science and Human Nutrition … [Read more...]

Following up on promising results from pilot work, researchers at the VA Boston Healthcare System are testing the effects of light therapy on brain function in veterans with Gulf War Illness. Veterans in the study wear a helmet lined with light-emitting diodes that apply red and near-infrared light to the scalp. They also have diodes placed in their nostrils, to deliver photons … [Read more...]