1/29/15 Health News: Measles outbreak up to 87 cases ♦ Pasture feeding improves nutritional of red meat ♦ Salt and hypertension ♦ Malignant melanoma

California measles outbreak is up to 87 cases in 7 states, Mexico

Officials have now confirmed at least 87 cases of measles in seven states and Mexico, as the outbreak centered in California continues to spread.Continue Reading

Arizona measles outbreak reaches ‘critical point’.

Two additional cases of measles were confirmed in Arizona January 27 and public health officials warned that one of the confirmed cases may have exposed as many as 195 children to the disease at the Phoenix Children’s East Valley Center. Continue Reading

Pasture feeding may improve nutritional benefits of red meat

Pasture-fed lamb meat is high in polyunsaturated fat due to the specific plant species consumed, indicating that it may be better for your health. Continue Reading

Can coffee protect against malignant melanoma?

Both epidemiological and preclinical studies have suggested that coffee consumption has a protective effect against non-melanoma skin cancers. However the protective effect for cutaneous melanoma is less clear, according to a new study. Continue Reading

Blame it on your brain: Salt and hypertension

Excessive salt intake "reprograms" the brain, interfering with a natural safety mechanism that normally prevents the body's arterial blood pressure from rising, Continue Reading

10/11/14 Health News: The food that can shorten your life ♦ OVER 100 PEOPLE SICKENED BY Y, PSEUDOTUBERCULOSIS ♦ MICROBIAL TESTING OF FRESH PRODUCE

The food that can cut years off your life

Meat lovers, this news may change your grocery list: Eating both processed and unprocessed red meat is associated with an increased mortality risk, according to new research in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Continue Reading

MORE THAN 100 PEOPLE SICKENED BY YERSINIA PSEUDOTUBERCULOSIS IN NEW ZEALAND

More than 100 people across New Zealand are sick from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, and at least 35 people have been hospitalized. Most cases have been in the Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington areas. Outbreaks of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, which are not common, have previously been associated with the consumption of contaminated food, especially raw or undercooked pork products,... Continue Reading

MICROBIAL TESTING OF FRESH PRODUCE: WHERE IS THE VALUE?

Summary Product testing is an inefficient tool for enhancing the safety of fresh fruits and vegetables. The probability of finding a contaminant is very low at the bacterial population densities likely to be found. Product testing is wasteful of resources because of the time and expense of the testing itself, but also because all tested... Continue Reading

Eating Too much Red Meat May Increases the risk of Alzheimer’s

Eating too much red meat, which raises brain levels of iron, may heighten the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, researchers from the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA reported in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

Iron can accelerate the damaging reactions of free radicals. Over time, iron builds up in the brain's gray matter and appears to contribute to the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and other age-related illnesses.

Alzheimer's disease has been an exceptionally challenging enemy. Its number 1 risk factor in aging..

Most scientists and specialists agree that Alzheimer's is caused by one of two proteins:

Tau and Beta-amyloid

As we get older, these two proteins either disrupt signaling between neurons or kill them off.

Team leader, Dr. George Bartzokis and colleagues believe there is a third likely cause of Alzheimer's is iron accumulation.

Professor Bartzokis and team compared the hippocampus and the thalamus using MRI instruments. The hippocampus is a brain region that is damaged early on in Alzheimer's, while the thalamus is only affected during the late stages.

In early stage Alzheimer's, iron has built up in the hippocampus but not the thalamus.The MRI scans showed that iron builds up over time in the hippocampus but not the thalamus. They also saw an association between iron accumulation levels in the hippocampus and tissue damage in that area.

Communication between neurons is disrupted when myelin, a fatty tissue that coats nerve fibers, is destroyed, promoting the accumulation of plaques. These plaques then destroy more myelin - a self-perpetuating cascade of destruction. The more the signaling is disrupted, the more the nerve cells die, and the classic signs of Alzheimer's appear.

Iron is vital for cell function. However, too much of it encourages oxidative damage, something to which the brain is particularly susceptible.

The buildup of iron in the brain could be the result of some modifying environmental factors, including how much red meat the person consumes, or their intake of iron dietary supplements. Another factor that can raise iron levels in the brain is having a hysterectomy before the menopause.