For Women Only
A large international study has found that an aromatase inhibitor, which blocks estrogen, can reduce the risk of recurrence for many breast cancer patients and may be an effective alternative to tamoxifen. Tamoxifen can only be taken for five years and increases the risk of uterine cancer and blood clots that can cause strokes. The study involved 9,366 postmenopausal women with early, estrogen-sensitive breast cancer who took either tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor (Arimidex, generically known as anastrozole). According to the results, tamoxifen reduced cancer recurrence by about 50 percent and Arimidex reduced it even further, by another 26 percent. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information on aromatase inhibitors.
For Men Only
Men who want to become fathers should move their laptops off their laps. Researchers at Stony Brook University Hospital in New York have found that the amount of heat produced by a laptop computer after only an hour of use may be enough to impair men's fertility. In the study of 29 healthy men, the 4.9-degree increase in testicular temperature exceeded the 2-degree change shown in earlier studies to disrupt sperm production. Results will be published in the journal Human Reproduction.
Healthy and Fit
Losing sleep may make you fat. Findings from a University of Chicago study showed that men who slept only four hours for two consecutive nights had lower levels of leptin, a hormone that suppresses appetite, along with increases in ghrelin, an appetite-stimulating hormone. Volunteers also reported a 24 percent increase in their hunger ratings and craved sweets, salty foods, and starches. Researchers speculate that the results may be associated with neurons in the brain that respond to both eating and sleeping.
Quote of the Month
"Yesterday is already a dream and tomorrow is only a vision, but today well-lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope."
- Sanskrit Proverb
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Q&A
Q: I hear that chocolate can be good for you. Is this too good to be true?
A: Don't feel too horribly guilty about eating all those holiday chocolates. A new Italian study found that women who love chocolate seem to have better sex lives. Earlier studies found that flavonoids and phenolics in dark chocolate may be good for your heart. Chocolate contains more than 300 substances, including caffeine, theobromine, and phenylethylamine, the latter a stimulant chemically related to amphetamines.
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Remember Sex?
Following up on our November item in this newsletter, an advisory panel for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has refused to approve Procter & Gamble's Intrinsa, a synthetic testosterone patch designed to improve female sex drive. The panel said that long-term use of the hormone could have unintended risks in women, citing results of the Women's Health Initiative study on estrogen and progestin use. Lack of sexual desire is estimated to affect one in three women who have had hysterectomies. Women with sexual dysfunction should consult their health care provider or pharmacist about the use of biologically identical testosterone, which has not been associated with negative side effects.
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