The Year In Medicine From A to Z

(6 of 11)

The fact that the diet favored by the Greeks is good for the heart seems as ancient as Greece itself. But now the Mediterranean diet--high in fruit, vegetables, cereals, fish, olive oil and topped with a glass or two of wine daily--has been linked to a lower risk for Alzheimer's, even in patients with vascular disease. When researchers from Columbia University Medical Center scored the diets of nearly 2,000 subjects on a 0-to-9 scale--depending on their adherence to a Mediterranean-style food plan--each additional point on the scale corresponded to a 19% to 24% lower risk of developing Alzheimer's. The one-third of patients with the best score reduced their risk 68%, compared with the bottom third.

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NUTRIENTS

Chocolate

Chocolate in small quantities is known to be good for the heart and blood vessels, but in a new biochemical analysis, researchers have identified a component in cocoa that reduces platelet clumping, helping blood flow smoothly.

Cinnamon and cloves

Two related studies suggest cinnamon and cloves can reduce risk factors for diabetes and heart disease up to 30% by controlling glucose levels in Type 2 diabetics and reducing inflammation and cholesterol levels.

Fruit juice

Antioxidants in the skins of fruits and vegetables seem to have reduced risk of Alzheimer's 76% among Japanese Americans who drank juice more than three times a week.

Ginger

Known to reduce inflammation and ease nausea, ginger powder was also found to kill ovarian-cancer cells in the laboratory at a rate comparable to conventional chemotherapy drugs.

Turmeric

Turmeric (a spice used in curry sauces) and phenethyl isothiocyanate (a phytochemical found in broccoli, kale and cabbage), alone or in combination, significantly reduced prostate-tumor growth in mice.

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OBESITY

The epidemic shows no sign of abatement; in fact, it's spreading. The Chinese government reports that 60 million Chinese people are overweight--in a country that never had that problem before. The culprit: prosperity, which permits Chinese people to eat more fats and junk food, fewer grains and vegetables. In short, they can now eat just as irresponsibly as Americans. High blood pressure and diabetes are also up. In the U.S., the epicenter of the problem, a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology offered the disturbing news that heart problems can be seen in obese teens, in the form of reduced pumping ability and coronary enlargement. Another study, meanwhile, in Annals of Internal Medicine, found that being overweight at age 18 correlates with a higher risk of early death in young and middle-age women.

OSTEOPOROSIS

Most women know that osteoporosis, or thinning of the bones, is a big risk after menopause. Probably most don't know that drinking cola increases the risk. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition looked at 1,125 men and 1,413 women ages 29 to 86. Among the women--but not the men--there was significant loss of bone density in cola drinkers, whether they drank diet or regular. It's not the first evidence, but it's the strongest to date linking cola to bone loss.

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PARKINSON'S