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We all know that we should be drinking more green tea; every few days, either the media or medical journals are touting a new use for the Asian staple. Can it really cure breast cancer while preventing liver disease, simultaneously increasing knee range of motion in people suffering from osteroarthritis? The answer is "possibly, yes," but an evidence-based review refines the glowing reports with some clinical pearls, dosing specifics, and hopeful avenues of future research, as detailed below.
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A well-done meta-analysis showed that green tea, either as a beverage or as a supplement, could help lower total and LDL cholesterol levels in a statistically significant manner, but has no effect on HDL. The degree of clinical impact is debatable; what is not debatable is the poor quality of most studies on green tea and cholesterol.
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The SELECT Trial investigators report on nearly 10 years of follow-up of participants in a study of selenium and vitamin E and the risk of prostate cancer. A small but statistically significant increased risk of prostate cancer appears to be associated with taking vitamin E supplements. These results are in disagreement with others in the literature, and the authors present no plausible biological explanation for them. Nonetheless, the balance of evidence does not appear to support any recommendation that physicians advise their middle-aged and elderly patients to begin vitamin E supplementation for prostate cancer prevention.
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Thousands of Chinese used a compound called maxingshigan-yinqiaosan (MY) for treatment of flu symptoms during the 2009 H1N1 epidemic. MY is a concoction of 12 different herbs, including toasted Herba ephedra, as well as qinghao, gypsum fibrosum, and rhizoma.
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In a case-control study using a biomarker for lignan intake, women with breast cancer who had higher levels of the biomarker post-diagnosis had a reduced risk of mortality over a median follow-up period of 6 years compared to women with low levels of the biomarker.
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Data from this large observational trial with an average follow-up of over 8 years suggest that even 15 minutes a day of moderate-intensity exercise, such as taking a brisk walk, provides significant health benefits in terms of lowered mortality risks and life extension.
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Participation in Weight Watchers resulted in a greater weight loss over a year than did clinical intervention in a primary care office.
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This is the second in a three-part series about the design and conduct of clinical research.
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In postmenopausal women, constipation is associated with having major risk factors for cardiovascular disease and increased cardiovascular risk.
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This basic science paper explores the role of the tumor microenvironment in the development of tumor resistance to chemotherapy. Two distinct fatty acid molecules, endogenously produced by cancer cells in response to platinum-based chemotherapy drugs, were found to confer significant tumor chemoresistance. Remarkably, these two fatty acids also were shown to be present in several commercial fish oil products, and, of potential import to clinicians, the oral administration of small amounts of these fish oils induced tumor resistance to cisplatin in a mouse tumor model.
