Best health advice? Be happy with your fat self. Desire to lose weight, not weight itself linked to unhealthy days

In a study to examine the impact of desired body weight on the number of unhealthy days subjects report over one month, researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health found that the desire to weigh less was a more accurate predictor of physically and mentally unhealthy days, than body mass index (BMI). In addition, the desire to lose weight was more predictive of unhealthy days among Whites than among African-Americans or Hispanics, and among women than among men. The paper, I Think Therefore I Am: Perceived Ideal Weight as a Determinant of Health, will be published in the March issue of the American Journal of Public Health. more  

Oral contraceptives reduce long-term risk of ovarian cancer

Since they were first licensed nearly 50 years ago, birth control pills containing estrogen have prevented some 200,000 cases of ovarian cancer world-wide, estimate the authors of a study published January 26 in The Lancet. Further, in the absence of having taken oral contraceptives, half of these women would have died of the disease. more

Sorafenib increases risk of high blood pressure

A meta-analysis published online January 24 in Lancet Oncology reports that patients receiving the standard clinical dose of sorafenib (Nexavar), an anticancer drug that targets the growth of tumor blood vessels, or angiogenesis, have a significantly increased incidence of hypertension. more  

Clinical outcomes in colon cancer linked to microRNA gene

Colon tumors that produced high expression levels of a microRNA gene called miR-21 were associated with poor survival and therapeutic outcome in two patient populations, one in the U.S. and the other in China, according to a study in the January 30 Journal of the American Medical Association. more

Protein in breast tumors does not predict chemotherapy benefit  

High levels of the protein Ki-67 in breast tumors did not predict which women in two clinical trials would benefit from chemotherapy added to endocrine (antiestrogen) therapy. Some studies have suggested that the protein, which is associated with cell proliferation, might be used to identify women with early-stage disease who may benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy after surgery and endocrine therapy. more

Study finds no link between hormones, prostate cancer 

An analysis of the original data from 18 prospective studies indicates that prostate cancer risk is not influenced by levels of certain circulating sex hormones in the blood, reports an international research team. more

A family lifestyle approach to diabetes prevention (Power to prevent)

A Family Lifestyle Approach to Diabetes Prevention (Power to Prevent) ( PDF—6.11 MB) is a curriculum developed to help educate African American communities on how to prevent and control diabetes through healthy eating and physical activity. This valuable resource provides community-based organizations, faith-based communities, diabetes educators, and other program leaders with a step-by-step resource to help lead African Americans in making healthy life-style changes for themselves and for their families. more

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Information appearing on the Vidyya Medical News Service is not intended as a substitute for professional medical care. Seek professional medical help and follow your health care provider's advice.

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