Coffee is good for you....

Coffee is good for you: Women who drink four or more cups a day are less likely to be depressed

By Sophie Borland

Last updated at 9:20 AM on 27th September 2011

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Scientists think that caffeine works like antidepressant pills

Many of us depend on a mug of freshly brewed coffee to perk us up in the mornings.
But its mood-boosting effect could well be lasting far longer than we realise, claim scientists.


They have discovered that women who drink four or more cups a day are a fifth less likely to become depressed.


And those who drink between two or three reduce their risk by 15 per cent.


Researchers at Harvard University compared the coffee intake and risk of depression amongst nearly 51,000 women over ten years.


They did not look at men – but other studies have found it has a similar effect.


The scientists, whose findings are published in the Journal of American  Medicine Association, think that caffeine works like antidepressant pills by  stopping the production of certain hormones such as serotonin.


They also say it improves our feelings of well-being and gives us more energy over long periods.


The researchers also asked the women how much tea they drank, chocolate bars they ate each day, their alcohol consumption and whether they did exercise.


They found that coffee had the strongest influence reducing depression – but the decaf variety didn’t work at all.

 

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Dr Michel Lucas, from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, said: 'Our results support a possible protective effect of caffeine, mainly from coffee consumption, on risk of depression.


'Further investigations are needed to confirm this finding and to determine  whether usual caffeinated coffee consumption may contribute to prevention or treatment of depression.' 

Scientists think that in future coffee could be used as an antidepressant or as a means of preventing depression

The scientists pointed out that caffeine had 'well-known psychostimulant  effects' including 'increased sensations of well-being and energy'.


They think that in future coffee could be used as an antidepressant or as a means of preventing depression.


Only last year a study in Finland discovered that men who drank more than four cups a day were also far less likely to become depressed.


Women are far more likely to develop depression than men and figures show that one in seven will be affected at some point in their lives.


And last month German researchers claimed that women are now twice as likely to suffer from depression compared with 40 years ago because they are trying to juggle families and careers.


It is already known that coffee can help stave off a range of illnesses  including prostate cancer, gout and Alzheimer’s and may even boost brain power.

But it isn’t entirely beneficial – and you can have too much.


Scientists have also shown that can raise the blood pressure and increase the heart rate.


And pregnant women are advised to drink no more than two cups a day to reduce  the likelihood of a miscarriage or their babies being underweight.



Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2042115/Women-drink-4-cups-coffee-day-likely-depressed.html#ixzz1ZAd0DG7N

The cancer risk in your 'healthy' glass of fruit juice....

The cancer risk in your 'healthy' glass of fruit juice which has so much sugar it could bring on tumours

By Sophie Borland

Last updated at 10:32 AM on 26th September 2011

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More harm than good? Research has found that some fruit juices contain so much sugar that they actually raise the risk of certain types of cancer

It's supposed to be the healthy way to start the day.
But a glass of juice might not be as beneficial as you think – and could even be harmful.

Scientists claim fruit juice contains so much sugar it actually increases the risk of certain cancers, rather than preventing them.

In fact, by the time the drink has been processed and packaged, many of the ingredients in fruit that protect against tumours have been lost, they say.

Australian researchers had sought to establish how effective different fruits, vegetables and juices were at preventing the development of bowel cancer.

They examined the diets of 2,200 adults, who filled in a questionnaire detailing their daily eating habits. The team then tracked the participants for two years to see how many of them developed the disease.

Unsurprisingly they found that eating apples, sprouts, cauliflower or broccoli on a daily basis all reduced the likelihood.

However, those who consumed lots of fruit juice had a higher risk.

The research, published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, found that those drinking more than three glasses a day were more likely to develop rectal cancer, a form of bowel cancer.

Scientists believe the high sugar content in juice may trigger certain tumours. 
The Perth team also said that many things found in fruit which help protect against bowel cancer – including fibre, vitamin C and chemicals known as antioxidants – are lost during the juice’s processing.

For years, Department of Health guidelines have advised the public to eat five portions of fruit and veg a day, which can include a glass of juice.

But British researchers claimed earlier this year that fruit juice contains too much sugar to be counted as one of the five. The scientists, of Bangor University, Wales, said people would be better off eating prunes or other dried fruit, as even freshly-squeezed juice contains as much as five teaspoons of sugar per glass.

However, other experts suggest that people shouldn’t shun fruit juice completely, as it is still healthier than other drinks. 

Nell Barrie, of Cancer Research UK, said of the latest research: ‘This isn’t a large study, and it doesn’t give us clear answers about whether different fruits and vegetables affect the risk of cancer in parts of the bowel.

‘It’s very tricky to tease apart the effects of a person’s diet on their risk of bowel cancer, but reliable evidence shows that eating lots of red and processed meats increases the risk, while eating plenty of high-fibre foods can reduce the risk.

‘Many fruits and vegetables are a good source of fibre, and eating a diet that’s high in fruits and vegetables could reduce the risk of other types of cancer as well – so it’s a good idea to get plenty of them in your diet.’

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Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2041829/Cancer-causes-Healthy-fruit-juice-sugar-bring-tumours.html#ixzz1Z4bMdQha

An antibiotic found in liver of sharks.......

An antibiotic found in liver of sharks 'could revolutionise human medicine'

By Ted Thornhill

Last updated at 1:55 AM on 20th September 2011

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An antibiotic found in sharks could be used as drug to treat human viruses and revolutionise medicine, new research has found.  


The compound, found in the liver of the predator, could be used as a new type of drug to treat a broad spectrum of diseases from dengue and yellow fever to hepatitis B, C and D.  


The antibiotic, squalamine, is already known to be safe for use in humans as an antiviral agent.  

Breakthrough: A compound found in sharks could protect humans from a range of diseases

Dr Michael Zasloff, from Georgetown University who led the study, said: ‘To realise that squalamine potentially has broad antiviral properties is immensely exciting, especially since we already know so much from ongoing studies about its behaviour in people.’

 

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They found that in both lab and animal experiments squalamine produced antiviral activity against the human pathogens found in the diseases such as some forms of hepatitis which cannot currently be treated.  


Along with offering medical advances this discovery may solve the mystery of how sharks with primitive immune systems can so effectively fight viruses that plague all living creatures.  


Dr Zasloff said: ‘I believe squalamine is one of a family of related compounds that protects sharks and some other “primitive” ocean vertebrates, such as the sea lamprey, from viruses.

‘Squalamine appears to protect against viruses that attack the liver and blood tissues, and other similar compounds that we know exist in the shark likely protect against respiratory viral infections, and so on.

‘We may be able to harness the shark's novel immune system to turn all of these antiviral compounds into agents that protect humans against a wide variety of viruses.

‘That would be revolutionary. While many antibacterial agents exist, doctors have few antiviral drugs to help their patients, and few of those are broadly active.’ 


Dr Zasloff discovered squalamine in 1993 and it has already been used in clinical trials to treat cancer and several eye disorders.  


‘I was interested in sharks because of their seemingly primitive but effective immune system. No one could explain why the shark was so hardy,’ he said.

Water interesting discovery: The study may solve the mystery of how sharks with primitive immune systems can so effectively fight viruses that plague all living creatures

When he started to ‘play’ with the compound he found that it inhibited the growth of rapidly growing blood vessels, such as those found in tumour growth and certain retinal diseases.  


Since 1995 it has been synthesised in the laboratory rather than taking any natural shark tissue.
 
Dr Zasloff remained interested in how the natural cholesterol type molecule, which has a net positive electrical charge, acted as an immune agent in sharks.

When it enters cells, and it can only access certain cells including those in blood vessels, capillaries and the liver, squalamine ‘kicks off’ positively-charged proteins that are bound to the negatively charged surface of the cells inner membrane. 


Some of these displaced proteins are used by viruses to replicate and without the protein a virus's life cycle is disrupted, the microbe is rendered inert and the cell containing it is destroyed.  


This means that squalamine seems to be designed to fight certain viral infections, Dr Zasloff claimed.  


He said: ‘To me, the key to squalamine is that once in the body it times its action to match the life cycle of most viruses.

‘Most viruses take hours to complete their life cycle, the same time period that squalamine renders tissues and organs viral resistant after administration.  


‘In addition, it acts fast to stop viral replication, clearing the body of these predators within hours.
‘Furthermore, because squalamine acts by making the host's tissues less receptive for infection, rather than by targeting a specific viral protein, the emergence of viral resistance would not be anticipated.’ 


In tissue culture studies squalamine was shown to inhibit the infection of human blood vessel cells by the dengue virus and human liver cells infected with hepatitis B and D, which can cause liver failure and cancer.

In animal studies, scientists from across the USA discovered that squalamine controlled infections of yellow fever, Eastern equine encephalitis virus, and murine cytomegalovirus, and in some cases cured the animals.

The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition online yesterday.

 

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2039323/An-antibiotic-liver-sharks-revolutionise-human-medicine.html#ixzz1YbhTn6Ck