13 March 2006

Red Meat, Heart Health and Measles

Red Meat

The CO2 in your puffy meat package isn't bad for you, but it does make your meat appear more fresh than it really is, so read the expiration dates carefully.

Heart Health

In the too much of a good thing department, while both blood thinner Plavix, and a daily low dose aspirin regimen have been shown to prevent heart attacks, doing both "almost doubled the risk of death, heart attack or stroke for those with no clogged arteries but with worrisome conditions like high blood pressure and high cholesterol."

The print edition of the Denver Post in an AP story notes that filtering blood from a person's system with an IV device inserted into a vien in an arm, leg or neck is more effective than diuretics which are currently the norm to remove excess fluid from the bodies of hospitalized heart-failure patients.

It also notes a New England Journal of Medicine article (describved by the Washington Post) which shows that Vitamin B does not cut the risk for heart attacks or strokes according to two large new studies, even though there is a plausible mechanism by which one might assume that they do.

Measles

Worldwide, measles outbreaks are down by 50% from six years ago due to greater immunization rates.

No comments: