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| HEALTH & FITNESS |
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Diabetes and
reproductive health Check BP,
cholesterol for healthy heart Virtual avatar may
encourage women to lose weight Health Notes
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Diabetes and reproductive health
Zahida
has been going to her gynaecologist for the past several years for infertility treatment. Despite taking all medicines regularly that were prescribed to her, she has not been able to conceive. She has also been undergoing repeated investigations like ultrasound and MRI to discover the cause. However, despite being a model patient, she has not cared to check her bulging waistline or control her blood sugar levels despite the doctor’s repeated advice. Zahida feels that ‘diabetes and obesity can be managed in due course’ after the conception. Her doctor feels otherwise; pregnancy may not occur until Zahida improves her lifestyle and eating habits. A woman can conceive a healthy child only in a healthy and fit body and not the body of ‘couch potato’. Obesity and insulin resistance are two of the most common factors that lead to infertility, especially in women. We are seeing more patients diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) which affects about 25 per cent of the population. In most instances, simple lifestyle changes like weight loss through exercise and a low-calorie but nutritious diet can help reverse the affects of infertility. Incidence Reproductive complications of diabetes are common. The prevalence of reproductive dysfunction in diabetic women and men is nearly 50 per cent. Among diabetic women, neuropathy, vascular impairment and psychological complaints have been implicated in the pathogenesis of decreased libido, low arousability, decreased vaginal lubrication, orgasmic dysfunction, and dyspareunia. Diabetes is the most common cause of erectile dysfunction in men. Poor semen quality has also been reported in diabetic men, including decreased sperm motility and concentration, abnormal morphology and increased seminal plasma abnormalities. In addition, diabetic men may have decreased serum testosterone. Other problems in men include erectile dysfunction (ED) and retrograde ejaculation. The problems will occur even if a woman becomes pregnant. The main diabetes complication, including gestational diabetes, related to pregnancy is macrosomia – or a big baby (higher than the 90th percentile in birth weight). Sometimes, these babies are not able to pass through the birth canal, so there are higher incidences of Cesarean sections, and sometimes, it’s necessary to induce early labour pains. Fetal distress can also be there at times. There is also an increased risk of birth defects. This condition is directly related to maternal diabetic problems; especially during the first few weeks when a woman may be unaware she is pregnant. For this reason, women with diabetes should plan their pregnancy and get their insulin levels under control before attempting to conceive. Treatment If you want to get pregnant, you need to be in control of your blood sugar. This means you need to watch your insulin, HgbA1c and haemoglobin levels, as well as your weight. Watching what you eat, exercising properly and ensuring adequate nutrition will improve your chances of conception. A good control and proper management of the disease and supervision of the gynaecologist is necessary. For both men and women with diabetes, the first step in treating reproductive dysfunction is to control their blood glucose levels. When the diabetes is well-controlled, there is a decreased risk for many complications, including sex-related problems. There are other treatments for sexual dysfunction that may be used to treat people with diabetes under strict medical supervision. For women with vaginal dryness, a water-soluble lubricant (such as Astro-Glide or K-Y Jelly) may be helpful. Excessive use of vitamins, calcium and other micronutrients to treat diabetes-related complications can be counter-productive. Home remedies or quack remedies may do more harm than good to fulfil your desire to bear a child. — The writer is a
Chandigarh-based gynaecologist
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Check BP, cholesterol for healthy heart
Washington: Controlling high blood pressure and high cholesterol simultaneously could decrease your risk of attaining heart disease by half or more, says a new research. Brent M. Egan, MD, lead author and a professor of medicine and pharmacology at Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, S.C, said that undertreated high blood pressure and cholesterol can pose a major public health threat. He said that the reality is that people know more than enough to prevent 75 per cent of heart disease and strokes, but they are not doing everything that they can do or even do it at a reasonable level. The findings are based on data of more than 17,000 American adults who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys during in 1988-94, 1999-2004 and 2005-10. In addition to reviewing patients’ BP and cholesterol levels, researchers considered race, age, insurance status, whether patients smoked, had diabetes, had diagnosed heart disease and/or chronic kidney disease, and if they visited a doctor every year. If patients’ cholesterol tests show a good high-density lipoprotein (HDL) level, which is the healthy, protective cholesterol, then the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) number might get overlooked. But not all HDL is equally protective and some people with a normal HDL are at high risk. Patients should make sure that LDL and non-HDL levels are under control at the same time. The research has been published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation. — ANI |
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Virtual avatar may encourage women to lose weight
"This pilot study showed that you don't have to be a gamer to use virtual reality to learn some important skills for weight loss," Xinhua quoted Melissa Napolitano, associate professor at the George Washington University, as saying. She said the findings, published in the Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology, suggest that "virtual reality could be a promising new tool for building healthier habits". Previous research had shown that using virtual reality to reinforce behaviour could be effective, so the university experts wanted to establish whether it could be used to help people lose weight. To find out, the team first conducted a survey among 128 overweight women. Most of the women had tried to lose weight during the last year and the majority had never used a virtual reality game. Despite the fact that most of these women had no experience with the concept, the researchers found that 88 percent said they were willing to try it. Eight of the 128 women were then chosen for the study and allowed to pick "avatars" that they thought resembled their own skin colour and shape. The participants came to the university researchers' clinic once a week and watched a 15-minute video featuring an "avatar" demonstrating healthy weight loss behaviour. In one lesson, the women watched the "avatar" sitting down for dinner and learned about portion sizes. In another lesson, they watched an "avatar" walk with moderate intensity on a treadmill and learned the walking pace needed to help with weight loss goals. After four weeks of treatment, the women in the pilot study had lost an average of 1.6 kg, a fairly typical amount for traditional diet plans, Napolitano said. "This is just the first step to show that women, even those who are not gamers, are interested in an avatar-based technology to help them with a weight-loss plan," Napolitano said. "We are excited by the potential of this technology as a scalable tool to help people learn the skills to be successful at weight loss over the long run." — IANS
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Health Notes New target for therapy
found in brain tumours Researchers have found a potential target for therapy in a kind of adult brain tumour that promises to pave the way for treatment of other type of cancers as well, says a study. Glioblastomas are the most common form of brain tumour in adults - and the most aggressive. Because of the way the tumours invasively infiltrate the brain, spreading like ivy, they cannot be removed fully by surgery. There is no cure, and few patients survive more than two to three years even with aggressive treatment. The University of Virginia Cancer Center researchers, however, have identified a potential target they believe is essential to the glioblastoma cells. This vital enzyme, they believe, regulates cancer cell survival, proliferation, and tumour formation. Inhibit the enzyme, their work suggests, and the cancer cell dies, reports Science Daily. "This is an exciting new target in cancer," said UVA's Benjamin W. Purow, M. "It seems to have potential not just for brain tumours but for other cancers as well. We think it has activity on its own, but also in combination with other cancer therapies." — Agncies
Combination of two carcinogens doubles cancer risk Low doses of arsenic and estrogen together - even at levels low enough to be considered "safe" for humans if they were on their own - can cause cancer in prostate cells, a new study led by an Indian-origin researcher has revealed. According to Kamaleshwar Singh, an assistant professor at The Institute of Environmental and Human Health (TIEHH) at Texas Tech, the findings could have an impact on health regulations regarding the "safe" doses of these chemicals and others. Singh said that unlike stronger chemicals that do major damage to the DNA in a cell, such as benzene, arsenic and estrogen are not major mutagens. Instead, their presence tends to stop certain genes from expressing. The process is called DNA hypermethylation. In the experiment, human prostate cells were treated about once a week for six months with arsenic, estrogen and a combination of the two. Many of the tests involved levels of arsenic, estrogen or both at levels considered safe by the Environmental Protection Agency. Singh's doctoral student, Justin Treas, said the two chemicals stopped the MLH1 gene, which is responsible for sending the signal to start the self-destruct sequence when a cell is damaged. Because the self-destruct couldn't activate, the cells became cancerous after exposure. It was found that with the lower dose not killing the cell, it's causing damages that go under the cell's radar. The research suggested that when you have two compounds together, lower doses could be more serious problem. The study was published online in the peer-reviewed journal The Prostate. -
Agencies |
New
target for therapy found in brain tumours
Washington: Watching an "avatar", or a computer-generated image, that performs weight-loss actions in a virtual community might help women shed weight in the real world, says a new US study.
A recent study in China has found that the risk factors of pneumonia are still higher in modern cities. The report, which was a part of the China, Child, Home and Health (CCHH) project, has defied the old belief that the deadly disease is caused by the use of coal or wood as cooking fuel, especially in rural areas. This study investigated the association between childhood pneumonia and indoor environment factors in modern homes. It suggests that lack of ventilation, gas as cooking fuel, dampness, new furniture, "modern" floor and wall covering materials showed significant associations with the incidence of pneumonia. Other factors such as family allergy, childcare by non-parents, and other respiratory diseases were also reported to be associated with pneumonia. In summary, modern lifestyle and home environment play an important role in developing pneumonia infections among children in Nanjing. A total of 6,461 questionnaires were distributed and 4,014 properly filled-out questionnaires were returned, giving a response rate of 65.7 per cent. The response rate was 61.8 per cent, 68.4 per cent and 82.0 per cent for kindergartens in urban, suburban, and industrial areas, respectively.