Sunday, March 4, 2007
Echinacea for the Prevention and Treatment of Colds in Adults
Echinacea for the Prevention and Treatment of Colds in Adults
(National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine)
Lavender and Tea Tree Oils May Cause Breast Growth in Boys
Lavender and Tea Tree Oils May Cause Breast Growth in Boys
A study published in this week’s issue of the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that repeated topical use of products containing lavender oil and/or tea tree oil may cause prepubertal gynecomastia, a rare condition resulting in enlarged breast tissue in boys prior to puberty, and for which a cause is seldom identified.
Researchers at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), confirmed in laboratory studies what a pediatric endocrinologist at the University of Colorado at Denver and Health Science Center’s School of Medicine suspected after diagnosing three of his young male patients with prepubertal gynecomastia.
The researchers found an association between the use of products containing these oils and the rare disorder, but cautioned more research is needed. At this point, the findings are only applicable to young males with unexplainable enlarged breasts who are regularly using products containing these essential oils.
"We want to encourage doctors who may be seeing patients with gynecomastia to ask their patients about the products they are using. Patients with prepubertal gynecomastia may want to consider reducing the use of products that contain these oils,” said Ken Korach, Ph.D., chief, Laboratory Reproductive and Developmental Toxicology at NIEHS and author on the study.
“Although we found an association between exposure to these essential oils and gynecomastia, further research is needed to determine the prevalence of prepubertal gynecomastia in boys using products containing lavender and tea tree oils. Results of such epidemiological studies are important to tell us how strong the association is between topical application of the oils and prepubertal gynecomastia”
The three otherwise healthy Caucasian boys, ages four, seven and 10 years, had normal hormonal levels when they were diagnosed with gynecomastia by Clifford Bloch, M.D., in Colorado. All had either used lavender-scented soap and skin lotions, or shampoos or styling products that contained tea tree oil and lavender oil as ingredients. In each case, several months after the suspected products were discontinued, the gynecomastia had subsided or resolved.
After Bloch discussed the cases with Korach, the NIEHS researchers conducted experiments using human cells to determine if the oils mimic the effects of estrogen, the female hormone that stimulates breast tissue growth, or inhibited the effects of androgen, the hormone known to control masculine characteristics and inhibit the growth of breast tissue. The researchers tested the ability of the oils to modulate or inhibit gene expression.
“The results of our laboratory studies confirm that pure lavender and tea tree oils can mimic the actions of estrogens and inhibit the effects of androgens,” said Korach. “This combinatorial activity makes them somewhat unique as endocrine disruptors.”
Bloch said the laboratory studies support his hypothesis. “Since there was no identifiable cause for prepubertal gynecomastia in the three patients we reported, we speculated that environmental factors might be contributing to their condition. Together, the case histories and NIEHS in vitro studies provide support for our hypothesis that topical exposure to lavender and tea tree oils likely caused gynecomastia in the three patients.”
The oils did not alter the levels of the usual forms of circulating estrogens and androgens in the boys. “We do not anticipate any long term effects on hormonal levels,” said Derek Henley, Ph.D., the lead NIEHS author on the study. It is unknown whether the oils have similar endocrine disrupting effects in prepubertal girls, adolescents or adults.
“This study clearly demonstrates how clinical observations can be supported by basic science research,” said NIEHS Director David A. Schwartz, M.D.
These essential oils might now be considered endocrine disruptors since they appeared to have caused an imbalance in estrogen and androgen signaling. Endocrine disruptors are naturally occurring compounds or synthetic chemicals that may interfere with the production or activity of hormones of the endocrine system leading to adverse health effects.
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), a component of the National Institutes of Health, supports research to understand the effects of the environment on human health. For more information on environmental health topics, please visit our website at http://www.niehs.nih.gov/.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) — The Nation's Medical Research Agency — includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
Manipulative and Body-Based Practices: An Overview
Manipulative and Body-Based Practices: An Overview
Keywords: chiropractic, massage, osteopathic manipulation, spinal manipulation
Introduction
Scope of the Research
Summary of the Major Threads of Evidence
Definitions
References
For More Information
What Is CAM?
What Is CAM?
Keywords: integrative, CAM definitions
Introduction
What is CAM?
Are complementary medicine and alternative medicine different from each other?
What is integrative medicine?
What are the major types of complementary and alternative medicine?
What is NCCAM's role in the field of CAM?
Definitions
For More Information
Mind-Body Medicine: An Overview
Mind-Body Medicine: An Overview
Keywords: meditation, placebo effect, relaxation, immunity
Introduction
Definition of Scope of Field
Background
Mind-Body Interventions and Disease Outcomes
Mind-Body Influences on Immunity
Meditation and Imaging
Physiology of Expectancy (Placebo Response)
Stress and Wound Healing
Surgical Preparation
Conclusion
References
For More Information
Taking the Hype Out of Hypnotherapy
Taking the Hype Out of Hypnotherapy
It can ease pain, anxiety and addiction, but beware of false claims
Forget those movie images of Svengali-like hypnotists waving pocket watches.
Today's hypnotherapy is practiced by qualified physicians and has long been recognized by leading medical organizations -- including the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association and the U.S. National Institutes of Health -- as an adjunct therapy useful in easing a range of ailments.
"It's a tool we use in our clinical work -- regardless of whether you're a dentist or psychologist or physician," said Marc Oster, a clinical psychologist and hypnotherapist based in Arlington Heights, Ill.
Dr. David Spiegel, an expert on hypnotherapy and a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University in California, agreed.
"Hypnotherapy is just a form of highly focused attention, and there are therapeutic strategies that you employ using that highly focused attention," he explained.
For that reason, both experts stressed that patients who want to try hypnosis as a treatment tool should consult a practitioner licensed in some other form of medicine -- an M.D., a psychologist or a dentist, for example.
Their reasoning: "If you don't have clinical training, how can you work with clinical problems?" Oster said. While hypnosis can help people stop smoking, for example, a mere hypnotist may not be able to spot and treat underlying problems.
"Maybe the person is using smoking to help manage their anxiety," Oster said. "So then you're not treating the problem, just a symptom." In the case of psychiatric woes, especially, poorly guided hypnotherapy may even worsen the situation, experts say.
What is hypnotherapy? According to Oster, patients are usually "talked" into a state of highly focused, suggestible attentiveness where they are able to clear away mental "clutter" and focus on whatever problem it is that concerns them. In most cases, practitioners teach patients self-hypnosis techniques they can use at home.
Patients do not relinquish self-control, Oster said.
"Actually, from a clinical perspective, that's the opposite of what we do with people," he explained. "People come to see us to develop greater willpower and have more self-control, more confidence in themselves. You don't help that by taking it away."
Using electroencephalogram [EEG] and other methods, science is beginning to determine what happens to the hypnotized brain. "We're getting to the point where we can see that the hypnotic brain looks different from the resting or sleeping brain," Oster said. Hypnotized individuals are usually physically at ease, with lowered blood pressure and heart rates, while feeling fully awake and mentally attentive.
Studies have shown hypnosis can be a useful adjunct therapy against many ills, including:
Gastrointestinal problems. "For irritable bowel syndrome, especially, hypnosis has been demonstrated to be about 80 percent effective in reducing or eliminating symptoms. Medicine cannot do that," Oster said.
Pain. "It's been clearly helpful there for hundreds of years," Spiegel said. In many cases, patients with chronic pain use self-hypnosis techniques to "turn down" pain, like lowering the volume on a radio. Spiegel said patients can also use the technique to help get through invasive or painful medical procedures, such as dentistry or even cardiac catheterization.
Smoking and other addictions. "Half of people will typically stop smoking after a single [hypnosis] session, and half of those won't have a cigarette for two years," Spiegel said. In the world of smoking-cessation, a 25 percent long-term success rate is considered impressive, he said.
Weight loss. "There's some pretty good research that says hypnosis is helpful," Oster said. "It seems to help people stay focused on their goals."
Finding an effective, qualified hypnotherapist is easy if one consults one of two recognized associations: the practice-oriented American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, and a more research-oriented group, the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. Both groups mandate that hypnotherapists also be licensed in some form of clinical training.
Oster said consumers should be wary of claims that seem exaggerated or too good to be true. "If someone says their success rate with smoking is 90 to 95 percent, for example, I'd stay away," he said.
Both experts stressed that hypnotherapy is really directed by the patient, anyway, not the practitioner.
"It's a collaborative relationship between two people," Oster said, "you and I. It's something I do with you, not to you." A good hypnotherapist simply teaches techniques that allows a patient to fulfill his or her goals, he said.
"Patients look at it as, 'I'm doing this -- I'm learning to help myself,' " he said.
ScoutNews, LLC.
AIDS virus weakness detected
Scientists have captured an image of the AIDS virus in a biological handshake with the body's immune cells it attacks, and said on they hope this can help lead to a better vaccine against the disease.
They pinpointed a place on the outside of HIV that could be vulnerable to antibodies that could block it from infecting human cells.
U.S. National Institutes of Health researcher Peter Kwong said the study, published in the journal Nature, may reveal HIV's long-sought "site of vulnerability" that can be targeted with a vaccine aimed at preventing initial infection.
"Having that site and knowing that you can make antibodies against it means that a vaccine is possible," Kwong said in a telephone interview.
"It doesn't say we've gotten there. But it's taken it off the list from an impossible dream and converted it to something that is a (mere) technical barrier."
Experts agree that a vaccine is the only hope of stopping the pandemic of AIDS, which has killed more than 25 million people since it was first recognized in 1981. About 40 million people now live with HIV, with sub-Saharan Africa hardest hit.
But while dozens of potential vaccines are in development, only two AIDS vaccine candidates are in advanced human trials -- one made by Merck and Co. and another by Sanofi-Aventis SA.
Because the virus attacks immune system cells, it has been especially difficult to design a vaccine to fight it.
The team at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the NIH, made atomic-level images of the virus.
They revealed the structure of a protein on the surface of HIV as it looks while the protein is bound to an infection-fighting antibody. They said this protein, called gp120, seems susceptible to attack by this antibody, which is called b12 and is capable of broadly neutralizing the virus.
An antibody is a protein produced by the immune system in response to invading microorganisms, such as viruses and bacteria.
CAUTIOUS HANDSHAKE
The researchers detailed the precise interaction that occurs as the virus tries to grab and infect protective immune system cells.
"The first contact is like a cautious handshake, which then becomes a hearty bear hug," said Dr. Gary Nabel, an NIH vaccine expert and a co-author of the research.
The virus uses the protein gp120 to gain entry into the CD4 T-cells it infects. But the researchers also found that the antibody b12 can block this process.
The virus mutates quickly and continuously to beat the immune system's efforts to target it. It also is cloaked in such a way that it stops antibodies from blocking the proteins that HIV uses to bind to a cell and infect it.
So this is a critical area of vulnerability, Nabel said. "This is certainly one of the best leads to come along in recent years," he said.
NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci said the findings are of great importance, but much more work in animal and human studies is needed, and any vaccine is years away.
"I don't think there's any one particular thing that, in and of itself, is the show-stopper. But I don't think we could really make substantial, fundamentally scientifically based progress until we got this very important information," he said.
Reuters Health
The Mind as Medicine
Guided imagery can boost the body's healing powers
What if your mind's eye could take you to a place so peaceful that the experience eased your pain or sped your recovery from surgery? It's not such a far-fetched concept.
Guided imagery," a type of mind-body therapy that uses visualized images to communicate to the housekeeping systems of the body, is making its way into traditional medical settings.
"People are just now taking a very serious look at it," said David E. Bresler, co-founder of the Academy for Guided Imagery, in Malibu, Calif., and author of the book Free Yourself From Pain. "There are a handful of hospitals around the country and around the world that are starting to implement these programs," he said
In one study, researchers at Harvard Medical School found that more than 30 percent of U.S. adults have used some form of mind-body medicine, a category that includes imagery, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Bresler, a traditionally trained Ph.D. neuroscientist, first became intrigued with alternative methods of pain relief in the early 1970s, as founder and director of the University of California, Los Angeles, Pain Control Unit. Patients often used vivid images to describe their pain. It felt like an ice pick to one person, fire ants to another. One particular patient, a psychiatrist with a painful rectal carcinoma, suffered low back pain that he said "felt like a dog chewing on my spine."
Bresler knew that when patients used their imagination to go to a peaceful place, it helped them to relax, so he guided the agitated psychiatrist through a relaxation exercise. When the man's pain flared up, Bresler instructed him to speak to the dog. Would it let go of his spine? Then, an astonishing thing happened -- when the dog let go to talk, the man's pain subsided.
Today, guided imagery has numerous applications. Sports psychologists use it to enhance athletes' physical performance. Cancer centers often use it to relieve patients' pain and nausea.
In a 2004 study in the journal Pain, researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center found that children who used guided-imagery tapes before and after routine surgery had significantly less pain and anxiety than a control group. More recently, researchers examined how children used these tapes, which suggested that they "go" to a park, at least in their mind. Many, though, put their own spin on the proposed image, allowing them to escape to places like a swimming pool, a lake or an amusement park.
Bresler said imagery is the language of the autonomic nervous system, the part of the nervous system that regulates many involuntary body functions, such as heart rate, blood pressure and digestion. "So, when you're working with images, it's really a set of instructions to the system," he said.
Victoria Menzies, an imagery researcher and professor at Florida International University's School of Nursing, in Miami, said the first step for a patient in any guided-imagery session is to develop a rapport with the guide who is asking you to close your eyes and relax. Once the patient is in a relaxed state, the guide will either offer an image or ask the person to come up with their own, someplace where he or she would feel calm and safe or joyful -- the mountains, the seacoast, a favorite room in their home, whatever.
Engaging the senses is the next step, she explained. The guide might ask where you are and what you see, hear, smell, feel and even taste.
Menzies led a 10-week guided imagery intervention for a small group of patients with fibromyalgia, a condition involving chronic pain and fatigue. In the study, published in January 2006 in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, one group of patients received usual care and used a set of guided-imagery audiotapes. The other group received only usual care. Compared with the controls, the patients who participated in guided imagery were better able to perform activities of daily living and had a greater sense of being able to manage their pain and other symptoms, the study showed.
What's more, Menzies found, "The pain did not change, but the ability to cope with the pain was improved."
Bresler considers it shocking that medical colleagues would reach their hands into someone's body and remove organs before allowing a patient to go through an imaging exercise.
"It only takes a few moments to do these things and to really check on the wisdom from inside, because there is tremendous wisdom that's being generated if only we'd listen to it," he said.
HealthDay
ScoutNews, LLC.
Tea as a part of a Healthy lifestyle
Nutrition Notes:
Besides raising your spirits, a cup of tea has many health benefits. Fresh brewed tea is a source of antioxidants called flavonoids. These natural compounds are released into the cup through contact with boiling water. All black, green and oolong teas contain antioxidants, including common blends such as Orange Pekoe, Earl Grey and English Breakfast. Decaffeinated tea blend also contain antioxidants. Drinking tea may also reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, and cut the risk of some cancers, including stomach, lung, colon, skin and oral cancers.
Herbal teas are not actually teas, but are tisanes or infusions. Although herbal blends are a just as tasty and relaxing as actual tea, the health research does not apply to them.
Tea is an all-natural beverage with no additives, artificial flavorings or colors. It has no calories when enjoyed without milk, sugar or honey.
Healthy Ways to Drink More Tea Everyday:
Breakfast
. Try the Irish Breakfast Smoothie with a bran muffin for a quick get-up-and-go.
Lunch
. Use tea to flavor dressings for green, fruit or pasta salads.
. Have a cup of your favorite green tea for a mid-afternoon refresher.
Dinner
.Marinate scallops or other shellfish and fish in strong-flavored tea such as Lapsang Souchong before cooking for a sophisticated taste.
. A dish of ice cream flavored with tea is a new twist on an old dessert favorite.
. For special occasions, serve shortbread flavored with tea.
. Use brewed tea as a marinade for chicken or vegetables.
. Brewed tea can be used to sauté or stir-fry vegetables.
Snacks
. A mug of herbal tea will warm you up after a brisk evening walk. And you won't have to worry about the caffeine keeping you up at night.
. Serve juicy Popsicles made with tea on hot summer days.
. A sunny glass of iced tea is a great thirst quencher.
"This information was provided by Leslie Beck, registered dietitian and nutrition consultant. Visit her website at www.lesliebeck.com."
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