People with diabetes are 1.6 times more likely to seek out complementary and alternative medicine than those in the general population. That’s the conclusion of a recent study from the Medical University of South Carolina based on information from a nationally representative sample of the US population.
Some adults with mild persistent asthma may be able to adequately control their asthma by taking corticosteroids only when needed, instead of taking anti-inflammatory medication daily, according to new results from the Improving Asthma Control Trial (IMPACT). Conducted by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute?s (NHLBI) Asthma Clinical Research Network, the one-year, multi-center study found that participants who were treated with corticosteroids intermittently based on symptoms had about the same rate of severe exacerbations and of asthma-related lung function decline as those treated with the standard recommendation of daily long-term control medication.
Pre-diabetes – the term, recently coined by health officials, indicates a partly elevated blood sugar level that will likely develop into full diabetes within 10 years if nothing is done to stop it.
A new rating scale can help physicians predict whether patients will feel better if their clogged heart arteries are opened non-surgically or with a major bypass operation, researchers report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.
Men with type 2 diabetes seem to be less likely to develop prostate cancer, overall, a new study indicates.
Acupuncture provides pain relief and improves function for people with osteoarthritis of the knee and serves as an effective complement to standard care. This landmark study was funded by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) and the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), both components of the National Institutes of Health. The findings of the study – the longest and largest randomized, controlled phase III clinical trial of acupuncture ever conducted – were published in the December 21, 2004, issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
About one in five Ayurvedic herbal medicine products sold in the Boston area contains toxic levels of lead, mercury or arsenic, researchers report in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are more likely to have an abnormal Pap test result than other women, according to a new report. This is important because abnormal smears can be associated with cervical cancer.
Around the world the use of condoms is seen as a trusted weapon in the prevention of HIV infection. However, these efforts are often hampered by religious beliefs.
Cholesterol is essential for human life. It builds and repairs cells, it is used to produce sex hormones like estrogen and testosterone, it is converted to bile acids to help you digest food and it is found in large amounts in brain and nerve tissue. The liver produces enough cholesterol to satisfy these functions. Concerns associated with cholesterol starts when intake from foods like meat, particularly organ meats like liver and kidney, eggs, dairy and other “animal” food sources exceed recommended levels.