Combating chronic kidney disease with exercise
Study finds that specially designed program improves blood vessel health
A research team is combating chronic kidney disease (CKD) with exercise. The team had patients engage in a specially designed exercise program and found that it improved their blood vessel health and exercise capacity.
A University of Delaware research team in the College of Health Sciences is combating chronic kidney disease (CKD) with exercise.
Dave Edwards, professor in UD’s Department of Kinesiology and Applied Physiology, received a National Institutes of Health grant to investigate whether exercise training could improve the health of the blood vessels.
Edwards and postdoctoral researcher Danielle Kirkman invited early stage CKD patients to take part in a specially designed exercise program, all completed under the expert supervision of UD researchers.
The study showed the exercise program improved blood vessel health and exercise capacity. Equally as important, patients reported improvements in their everyday quality of life as a result of becoming more active.
More than 26 million American adults have CKD and, because of difficult-to-see warning signs, late detection is common. The leading cause of death in patients with CKD is cardiovascular disease.
The end of the study turned out to be just the beginning for participants. They wanted to continue exercising, but lacked a safe, supervised environment.
To meet the demand, Edwards’ lab started a renal rehab exercise program for CKD patients in the community. The program is open to non-dialysis CKD, dialysis patients and those that have received a kidney transplant.
“There are two groups of patients that fall through the cracks — those who have exercised with us and want to continue and those who didn’t qualify for our studies, but wanted to start exercising,” Edwards said.
The team works individually with each patient to reach their goals, whether it’s controlling blood pressure or losing weight for a transplant.
“If you look at other areas like cardiac or pulmonary rehab, exercise training is well-integrated as part of routine care; that’s not the case with kidney disease,” Kirkman said. “Exercise may have an array of health benefits to these patients ranging from keeping their diabetes under control, maintaining healthy muscles and blood vessels to controlling weight gains after a transplant that are associated with prescribed medications.”
Once word got out that UD was offering the program, the research team fielded a mini-explosion of interest. Transplant doctors and dialysis clinics began sending patients to the renal rehab program to work on their health and fitness. Soon groups of kidney disease patients were exercising together — sometimes eight people per session in the friendly confines of the Kinesiology and Applied Physiology (KAAP) Exercise Intervention Lab.
Source: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170628144841.htm
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Coming Soon: New flu patch could provide alternative to needle
Scientists have developed vaccine patches that could allow people to painlessly immunise themselves.
People with a fear of needles could be about to get a pain-free alternative to the traditional flu jab.
Scientists in the US have developed a patch with microneedles containing a vaccine which would allow patients to immunise themselves.
The tiny needles in the patch are painlessly embedded into the skin and are dissolved by the body’s moisture.The patches, which do not need refrigeration, can then be peeled away after 20 minutes, the researchers say.
The lead author of the study, Nadine Rouphael, associate professor of medicine at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, says: “Dissolvable microneedle patches could potentially simplify the delivery of influenza vaccines.
“The patch could be safely applied by participants themselves, meaning we could envisage vaccination at home, in the work place, or even via mail distribution.”
Production of the new medicine is expected to cost the same as manufacturing pre-filled syringes – but the ability to distribute patches in the mail and have patients self-administer means wider costs will be minimised providing a cheaper alternative, according to the study.
Results of the preliminary trial, carried out in collaboration with researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology, were published in The Lancet.
The researchers say the findings now need to be confirmed in a larger trial.
Professor Mark Prausnitz, from the Georgia Institute of Technology, said: “We compared the immune response of a regular injection to that associated with the microneedle patch and they were similar to each other – the microneedle patch may even be a little bit better.”
Source: http://news.sky.com/story/new-flu-patch-could-provide-alternative-to-needle-10929573
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Ayurveda Explains Why You Should not Stand and Drink Water
More than two thirds of the weight of the human body is made up of water. It is essential to keep the body hydrated, and enable waste to move out of the body and improve blood circulation.
It maintains spinal and cognitive health. Every day, our body loses significant amount of water. Water must be consumed in such a manner that our body is able to absorb every ounce of it. By chugging water down, we disallow our body to absorb the maximum benefits required for replenishing the system. The way one drinks water is a science that must be practiced to allow the body to thrive. The way you drink water is imperative to the way you feel throughout the day.
The world of food never fails to amuse anyone. What you eat, when you eat and how you eat are the three phrases that must be embedded deep into your mind and must be raised as questions from time to time.
We often think less before quenching our thirst, all that matters is the temperature of the water. We pay no heed to the time when the elders in our family constantly remind us to avoid drinking water while standing. It is often intriguing. Why must our posture come into play?
We Find Out
Practitioner’s of Ayurveda often propagate a lifestyle that is in harmony with nature. They more often than not aim to cure one of ones problems in a holistic manner and that is where the posture comes into effect. When you stand and drink water, your nerves are in a state of tension. This then activates the sympathetic system, or the fight system. Your body is under the impression of fighting against danger.
According to Dr Dhanvantree, Ayurvedic expert, he suggests that the notion of standing up and drinking water is closely related to the speed at which water is drunk. The two are interrelated and the speed of drinking the water is extremely essential.
It is often said that standing up and drinking water accelerates the speed of drinking that water, according to Dr Dhanvantree and this is when problems like arthritis and joint damage comes into play. According to him, the Rig Vedas do mention postures, however, it is ambiguous. In the science of Ayurveda, “this particular clause is not explicitly mentioned. It is more to do with the fact that any food item must be eaten slowly. Eating slowly facilitates the digestion process and the same is true for water.”
“Water must be taken like air, slowly and steadily. Drinking at a fast rate may lead to lack of oxygen in the wind and food pipe, this could potentially give rise to heart problems and lung issues.”
Dr. Dhanvantree also goes on to say that “air goes inside the esophagus and creates pressure when water is drunk rapidly. It will lead to bone and joint degeneration, joint weakness and joint pain.” Thus, while it may seem like a mere myth, there are consequences that effect the health negatively when water is had while standing. The same consequences may recur while sitting and having water at a fast rate. Therefore, what is to be kept in mind is the speed at which water gushes down in the stomach. Since the speed is faster while standing, we are warned against it.
Believers of old tales often blindly follow such notions and now we know why. While it may depend from person to person and is subjective, to be in the best of your health it is always good to stick to nature and avoid disharmony. It might just take a few extra minutes, but it’s best to sit down peacefully and then drink water.
Source: http://food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/why-you-shouldnt-stand-and-drink-water-according-to-ayurveda-1719982
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This new insulin pill could make diabetes treatment ‘painless’
Insulin has been successfully encapsulated using Cholestosomes that can be administered orally with tiny vesicles that can deliver insulin where it needs to go without injecting.
US scientists have developed an oral method of administering insulin that can be a less painful alternative to millions of people worldwide with diabetes who have to inject themselves with the drug to manage their blood-sugar levels.
The team has successfully encapsulated insulin using Cholestosomes – a neutral, lipid-based particle – that can be administered orally with tiny vesicles that can deliver insulin where it needs to go without injecting.
The biggest obstacle to delivering insulin orally is ushering it through the stomach intact. Proteins such as insulin are no match for the harsh, highly acidic environment of the stomach. They degrade before they get a chance to move into the intestines and then the bloodstream where they’re needed, the study said.
However, the new vesicles that are made of naturally occurring lipid molecules are normal building blocks of fats, the researchers said, adding that they are unlike other lipid-based drug carriers, called liposomes.
“Most liposomes need to be packaged in a polymer coating for protection. Here, we are just using simple lipid esters to make vesicles with the drug molecules inside,” said lead researcher Mary McCourt, Professor at Niagara University in New York, US.
Computer modelling showed that once the lipids are assembled into spheres, they form neutral particles resistant to attack from stomach acids. Drugs can be loaded inside, and the tiny packages can pass through the stomach without degrading.
When cholestosomes reach the intestines, the body recognises them as something to be absorbed. The vesicles pass through the intestines, into the bloodstream, and then cells take them in and break them apart, releasing insulin.
Studies with rats showed that certain formulations of cholestosomes loaded with insulin have high bioavailability, which means the vesicles travel into the bloodstream where the insulin needs to be, the researchers concluded.
The results were presented at the 252nd National Meeting and Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), in Philadelphia, recently.
Source: http://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/health/this-new-insulin-pill-could-make-diabetes-treatment-painless-2994333/
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‘Ovarian tissue freezing’ may provide hope for fertility treatment
Ovarian tissue freezing can be an alternative method to promote fertility, especially in women who cannot undergo egg freezing due to cancer or other medical reasons, researchers say. The procedure which is still considered experimental involves removal and freezing of ovarian tissue for later use.
The procedure which is still considered experimental involves removal and freezing of ovarian tissue for later use. The study, published in the journal Reproductive Sciences, showed that ovarian tissue freezing helped nearly four out of 10 (37.7 per cent) women to have children later in life. Between 1999 and 2016, a total of 309 ovarian tissue freezing procedures resulted in 84 births and eight pregnancies that lasted beyond the first trimester, data showed.
“Despite the clinical progress within the past two decades, the procedure still remains in the experimental realm,” said Fernanda Pacheco from the Innovation Fertility Preservation and IVF in New York, US.
“Now, women considering this procedure to preserve fertility and postpone childbearing have more information at their disposal. Given these recent data, ovarian tissue cryopreservation should be considered as a viable option for fertility preservation,” Pacheco added.
The procedure also restored reproductive functions. It reversed menopause in nearly two out of three women (63.9 per cent). This included either a resumed menstrual cycle, ovarian follicular growth, or natural fertility. Ideally, egg freezing is done by cancer patients before beginning their treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy, which can have lasting impact on their fertility.
Kutluk Oktay, from New York Medical College, who performed the world’s first ovarian tissue cryopreservation in 1999 considers the procedure is superior to egg freezing as it can also reverse reproductive functions.
“The next frontier is to explore the procedure’s potential in delaying childbearing among healthy women, not just cancer patients,” Oktay added.
Source: http://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/health/ovarian-tissue-freezing-may-provide-hope-for-fertility-treatment-4752964/
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‘23% of heart failure patients die within a year of diagnosis’
In India, 23 per cent of heart failure patients die within one year of diagnosis, a study revealed on Tuesday, adding that the country is next to Africa where the rate stands at 34 per cent.
Of the total deaths, 46 per cent were due to cardiac issues, while non-cardiac causes led to 16 per cent deaths in patients, at one year, according to the first comprehensive study on heart failures conducted across six geographies globally.
The International Congestive Heart Failure (INTER-CHF) study said that death rate of patients due to heart failures in Southeast Asia is 15 per cent, seven per cent in China, nine per cent both in South America and West Asia, significantly lower than in Indian patients.
“In India, heart-related diseases occur a decade early than the people of west. Lack of awareness, out of pocket expenditure and lack of infrastructure are corroborating to the heart-related diseases,” said Sundeep Mishra, Professor of Cardiology at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
Stating that with increasing life expectancy of the population, incidence of heart failure is increasing in an epidemic proportion, the cardiology expert said that the marked variation in mortality in low-income countries like India can be attributed also to the quality and access to primary healthcare facilities.
The study was aimed at measuring mortality at one year in patients, due to heart failure in India, Africa, China, the Middle East, South East Asia and South America.
During the study, 5,823 patients across 108 centres in six geographies were enrolled. Patients were followed up at six months and one year from enrolment. The mean age of patients was 59 years, with a male to female ratio of 60:40.The primary outcome of the study was to record all cause mortality within one year.
A previous study by AIIMS, published in the journal of Practice of Cardiovascular Sciences, highlighted that late diagnosis results in one third of patients dying during hospital admission and one-fourth dying within three months of diagnosis.
Calling for a community based approach to resolve the issue, Mishra said a lot of Indians also do not understand the difference between heart failure and heart attack because of which they do not consult doctors.
“Heart failure refers to the condition where the blood pumping capacity of the heart is reduced. Whereas heart attack is secondary to blocked coronary circulation, where the blood supply to muscles of heart is cut or drastically reduced. Heart failure is a serious health hazard and can be life threatening if ignored,” Mishra told IANS, while speaking about the rising heart failure cases.
According to the World Health Organisation, heart failure impacts more than 60 million people worldwide.
The risk of death of heart failure patients is comparable to that of patients with advanced cancer. It currently costs the world economy $108 billion every year.
Although, heart failure may strike at any age, it is more common in people over the age of 65. It includes high blood pressure, prior heart attack, enlarged heart and diabetes.
Mishra said the major reason for low awareness of heart failure among people is the fact that patients mistake it for signs of getting older.
“Although there is no cure for heart failure, patients who are diagnosed early need to follow their treatment and make lifestyle changes to live longer, feel better and be more active. It is, therefore, vital that patients and care givers are aware of the symptoms of heart failure, leading to better recognition and earlier diagnosis,” said Mishra.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/health-news/23-of-heart-failure-patients-die-within-a-year-of-diagnosis/articleshow/59769273.cms
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