No link between caffeine and breast cancer
Women who drink coffee or tea, should be able to enjoy it, without the worry that doing so will increase their risk for breast cancer.
A decade-long study found that there is no association between coffee (caffeinated or decaffeinated) and tea consumption and the risk of breast cancer.
Researchers at Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts in the US who assessed coffee, tea and caffeine consumption in more than 80,000 women, found no elevated risk of breast cancer among women who reported drinking four or more cups of caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee or tea per day, compared with those who drank less than one cup daily.
This result is after taking into consideration of other factors potentially associated with breast cancer risk, such as age, smoking status, body mass, physical activity, alcohol intake, family history, menopausal status, history of hormone therapy, and number of children.
They also found no apparent association between the occurrence of breast cancer and intakes of other caffeinated soft drinks and chocolate, which contribute to overall caffeine intake.
Secondhand smoke may affect immune system
Children living with people who smoke are more likely to catch a whole range of severe infections, including meningococcal disease in addition to developing asthma and respiratory infections.
Researchers look at more than 7,000 children who live with smokers between 1997 and 2005, the year they were born until they turned eight.
They found that exposure to secondhand smoke within a distance of three metres in early life was associated with a 14 per cent increased risk of being hospitalised for infectious diseases up until the age of eight.
Exposure to secondhand smoke during a baby’s first six months of life increased the likelihood of a hospitalisation by 45 per cent by the time the child was eight. Babies born prematurely were twice as likely to be hospitalised, while those born with a low birth weight were 75 per cent more likely to be hospitalised during the first eight years of life, the study found.
The researchers speculate that secondhand smoke may affect the immune system, making infants, toddlers and young children more susceptible to infections of all kinds.
Gum disease may increase cancer risk
People who have gum disease have a higher cancer risk. Gum disease causes bad breath and bleeding gums. If it goes untreated, cavities, receding gums and tooth loss can follow, as bacteria or plaque settles between teeth and under the gum line.
Researchers suspect that gum disease may lead to general inflammation in the body, which promotes tumour growth. Alternatively, it could be a sign of a weak immune system.
Smoking has long been associated with gum disease. And when smokers were taken out of the equation, to exclude the effect of tobacco, the cancer risk rose to 21 per cent.
Gum disease may affect cancer risk by causing inflammation in the body, a mechanism believed to promote heart disease.
Cocoa may help diabetics ward off heart disease
An ingredient found naturally in cocoa could help diabetics ward off the threat of heart disease, researchers say. It is thought flavanols, found in cocoa, raise the body’s production of nitric oxide. This is a chemical signal which tells arteries to relax.
The researchers studied the effect of an enriched form of the beverage — which contained higher than usual levels of the natural antioxidants — on patients with type 2 diabetes. Within one month blood flow through formerly restricted vessels improved by 30 per cent.
Malfunctioning arteries can lead to heart disease — the No 1 cause of death among diabetics.
— Agencies
A decade-long study found that there is no association between coffee (caffeinated or decaffeinated) and tea consumption and the risk of breast cancer.
Researchers at Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts in the US who assessed coffee, tea and caffeine consumption in more than 80,000 women, found no elevated risk of breast cancer among women who reported drinking four or more cups of caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee or tea per day, compared with those who drank less than one cup daily.
This result is after taking into consideration of other factors potentially associated with breast cancer risk, such as age, smoking status, body mass, physical activity, alcohol intake, family history, menopausal status, history of hormone therapy, and number of children.
They also found no apparent association between the occurrence of breast cancer and intakes of other caffeinated soft drinks and chocolate, which contribute to overall caffeine intake.
Secondhand smoke may affect immune system
Children living with people who smoke are more likely to catch a whole range of severe infections, including meningococcal disease in addition to developing asthma and respiratory infections.
Researchers look at more than 7,000 children who live with smokers between 1997 and 2005, the year they were born until they turned eight.
They found that exposure to secondhand smoke within a distance of three metres in early life was associated with a 14 per cent increased risk of being hospitalised for infectious diseases up until the age of eight.
Exposure to secondhand smoke during a baby’s first six months of life increased the likelihood of a hospitalisation by 45 per cent by the time the child was eight. Babies born prematurely were twice as likely to be hospitalised, while those born with a low birth weight were 75 per cent more likely to be hospitalised during the first eight years of life, the study found.
The researchers speculate that secondhand smoke may affect the immune system, making infants, toddlers and young children more susceptible to infections of all kinds.
Gum disease may increase cancer risk
People who have gum disease have a higher cancer risk. Gum disease causes bad breath and bleeding gums. If it goes untreated, cavities, receding gums and tooth loss can follow, as bacteria or plaque settles between teeth and under the gum line.
Researchers suspect that gum disease may lead to general inflammation in the body, which promotes tumour growth. Alternatively, it could be a sign of a weak immune system.
Smoking has long been associated with gum disease. And when smokers were taken out of the equation, to exclude the effect of tobacco, the cancer risk rose to 21 per cent.
Gum disease may affect cancer risk by causing inflammation in the body, a mechanism believed to promote heart disease.
Cocoa may help diabetics ward off heart disease
An ingredient found naturally in cocoa could help diabetics ward off the threat of heart disease, researchers say. It is thought flavanols, found in cocoa, raise the body’s production of nitric oxide. This is a chemical signal which tells arteries to relax.
The researchers studied the effect of an enriched form of the beverage — which contained higher than usual levels of the natural antioxidants — on patients with type 2 diabetes. Within one month blood flow through formerly restricted vessels improved by 30 per cent.
Malfunctioning arteries can lead to heart disease — the No 1 cause of death among diabetics.
— Agencies
MOHD ADHA MOHD ZAIN (ADHA ZAIN)
Blogger Informasi
