List Of Hazardous Chemicals In Smokeless Tobacco Is Expanded In New Study

Attention all smokeless tobacco users: It's time to banish the comforting notion that snuff and chewing tobacco are safe because they don't burn and produce inhalable smoke like cigarettes. A study that looked beyond the well-researched tobacco hazards, nitrosamines and nicotine, has discovered a single pinch –– the amount in a portion –– of smokeless tobacco exposes the user to the same amount of another group of dangerous chemicals as the smoke of five cigarettes.The research on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in smokeless tobacco was reported at the 238th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). It adds to existing evidence that smokeless contains two dozen other carcinogens that cause oral and pancreatic cancers, the scientists say.

"This study once again clearly shows us that smokeless tobacco is not safe," said Irina Stepanov, Ph.D., who led the research team. "Our finding places snuff on the same list of major sources of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as smoking cigarettes." PAHs are widespread environmental contaminants formed as a result of incomplete burning of wood, coal, fat in meat, and organic matter. PAHs form, for instance, during the grilling of burgers, steaks and other meat.

The findings come in the midst of a rise in both marketing and consumption of smokeless tobacco, which many consumers regard as less dangerous than other forms of tobacco. Estimates suggest that sales of moist snuff in the United States have doubled since the 1980s.

"The feeling of safety among some smokeless users is wrong," said Stepanov, a chemist with Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. "A total of 28 carcinogens were identified in smokeless tobacco even before our study. Continued exposure to these over a period of time can lead to cancer. Now we have found even more carcinogens in snuff." In addition to the heightened cancer risk, she noted that chronic use of snuff leads to nicotine addiction, just as it does with cigarette smoking.

Stepanov said that until recently, scientists believed that only trace amounts of PAH existed in snuff because the tobacco was not burned when used. This assumption proved to be wrong. "Even though smokeless tobacco use does not involve burning, moist snuff is getting contaminated with PAH during its manufacturing," according to Stepanov. The most likely source of this contamination with PAH is the curing process that is used to turn tobacco leaves into snuff. This process is called 'fire-curing', and it puts tobacco into direct contact with the smoke generated by smoldering hardwoods –– a rich source of various PAHs.

Looking to the next project, she said the team is working on a study that will examine a wide range of smokeless tobacco brands to compare PAH levels among them.

Funding for Stepanov's research came from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute on Drug Abuse to the Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center at the University of Minnesota. The research team working on this project includes Dr. Dorothy Hatsukami and Dr. Stephen Hecht, renowned experts in tobacco carcinogenesis and tobacco harm reduction.

Links Between Video-game Playing And Health Risks In Adults Found

While video gaming is generally perceived as a pastime for children and young adults, research shows that the average age of players in the United States is 35. Investigators from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Emory University and Andrews University analyzed survey data from over 500 adults ranging in age from 19 to 90 in the Seattle-Tacoma area on health risks; media use behaviors and perceptions, including those related to video-game playing; and demographic factors. In an article published in the October 2009 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, they found measurable correlations between video-game playing and health risks.Participants reported whether they were players or nonplayers, and weekly usage was collected. Internet usage was assessed, as was the relative importance of the Internet as a social support. The personal determinants examined in this study included self-assessments of depression, personality, health status, physical and mental health, body mass index (BMI), and poor quality of life. Immersion in media environments was evaluated using the participants' estimates of the time they spent during a typical week surfing the Internet and watching TV, including videos and DVDs. The Seattle–Tacoma area was selected because of its size (13th largest US media market) and its Internet usage level is the highest in the nation.

A total of 45.1% of respondents reported playing video games. Female video-game players reported greater depression and lower health status than female nonplayers. Male video-game players reported higher BMI and more Internet use time than male nonplayers. The only determinant common to both female and male video-game players was greater reliance on the Internet for social support.

Writing in the article, Dr. James B Weaver III, PhD, MPH, National Center for Health Marketing, CDC, Atlanta, states, "As hypothesized, health-risk factors – specifically, a higher BMI and a greater number of poor mental-health days – differentiated adult video-game players from nonplayers. Video-game players also reported lower extraversion, consistent with research on adolescents that linked video-game playing to a sedentary lifestyle and overweight status, and to mental-health concerns. Internet community support and time spent online distinguished adult video-game players from nonplayers, a finding consistent with prior research pointing to the willingness of adult video-game enthusiasts to sacrifice real-world social activities to play video games. The data illustrate the need for further research among adults to clarify how to use digital opportunities more effectively to promote health and prevent disease."

In a commentary in the same issue, Brian A. Primack, MD, EdM, MS, from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, applauds Weaver et al. for focusing on the current popularity of video games not only among youth, but also among adults. He suggests that many video games are different enough from original forms of play that they may be better defined as "playlike activities." He writes, "There are noteworthy differences between the oldest forms of play (e.g., chase games) and today's 'playlike activities.' These playlike activities may stimulate the right centers of the brain to be engaging ... However, the differences between today's 'playlike activities' and original forms of play may illuminate some of the observed health-related correlates discovered by Weaver, et al."

Dr. Primack observes that our greatest challenge will be maintaining the balance: "How do we simultaneously help the public steer away from imitation playlike activities, harness the potentially positive aspects of video games, and keep in perspective the overall place of video games in our society? There are massive, powerful industries promoting many playlike activities. And industry giants that can afford to will successfully tout the potential benefits of health-related products they develop. But who will be left to remind us that – for children and adults alike – Hide-And-Seek and Freeze Tag are still probably what we need most?"

The article is "Health-Risk Correlates of Video-Game Playing Among Adults" by James B Weaver III, PhD MPH; Darren Mays, MPH; Stephanie S Weaver, PhD, MPH; Wendi Kannenberg, MPH; Gary L Hopkins, MD DrPH; Dogan Eroglu, PhD; and Jay M Bernhardt, PhD MPH. The commentary is "Video Games: Play or 'Playlike Activity'?" by Brian A Primack, MD, EdM, MS. Both appear in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Volume 37, Issue 4 (October 2009) published by Elsevier.

Groundbreaking Treatment For Oxygen-deprived Newborns

Until now immediate cooling of the newborn infant was the only treatment that could possibly prevent brain damage following oxygen deprivation during delivery. New research findings from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg and Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden, in collaboration with Zhengzhou University in China, open up the possibility of a new and effective treatment that can be started as late as two days after birth.This new treatment involves newborn infants being given a two-week course of injections of erythropoietin, a hormone that stimulates the formation of red blood cells.

“For the first time we can demonstrate that it is possible to influence the brain damage occurring as a result of oxygen deprivation during delivery considerably later than the six-hour window of opportunity for treating with cooling,” says Klas Blomgren, professor of paediatrics at the Sahlgrenska Academy and specialist at Queen Silvia Children’s Hospital.

The research findings, which are presented in the latest issue of the medical journal Pediatrics, are the result of cooperation between Swedish, Austrian and Chinese researchers. The study treated just over 150 term newborn infants, half of whom were given small doses of erythropoietin every other day. Once the children reached the age of eighteen months, their neurological condition was assessed.

“Only half as many of the children treated with erythropoietin had developed a severe neurological functional disability or had died of their injuries. Thus the hormone treatment improves the prognosis considerably in the longer perspective,” says Blomgren.

The children in the study had suffered moderate or severe hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) at birth, but it was only children with moderate HIE that were helped by this hormone treatment.

“We believe that erythropoietin has a regenerative and stimulating effect on recovery and on brain development following the injury. This appears to be a safe treatment, almost without side effects, and it is also cheaper and technically simpler to administer in comparison with cooling. This means that the treatment can be given a wide distribution, and can be used even in developing countries,” says Blomgren.

H1N1 Virus: Common Symptoms & Precautions

The H1N1 virus has created a panic among people across the world, however, the deadly flu has very common symptoms to that of a normal influenza and can be prevented from by following some simple steps.

Common Symptoms of the H1N1 Flu Infection:



* Fever, moderately high, but unlike seasonal flu, can be absent in some cases too
* Non productive Cough
* Runny or stuffy nose
* Sore throat
* Body ache
* Headache
* Chills
* Fatigue/tiredness that can be extreme
* Nausea/diarrhoea
* Signs of a more serious swine flu infection might include pneumonia and respiratory failure

Precautions to keep the H1N1 flu at bay -



The deadly Swine Flu has reached the Indian shores following the global outbreak and now, claimed four lives. However, Swine Flu is certainly one of those diseased where an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Here are few tips for you to keep away from the pandemic.



1. If you think you have the H1N1 virus, stay at home and avoid travelling to public places like school and offices; seek medical care IMMEDIATELY.



2. Wash your hands frequently: Use the antibacterial soaps to cleanse your hands. Wash them often, for at least 15 seconds and rinse with running water.



3. Get enough sleep: Try to get 8 hours of good sleep every night to keep your immune system in top flu-fighting shape.



4. Drink sufficient water: Drink 8 to10 glasses of water each day to flush toxins from your system and maintain good moisture and mucous production in your sinuses.



5. Always try to cover your nose and mouth with a tissue while coughing or sneezing to avoid passing on infection of any kind to others around you.



6. Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth to prevent the spread of the virus.



7. Try and maintain contact with ill persons or someone who is showing symptoms of the flu.



8. Boost your immune system: Keeping your body strong, nourished, and ready to fight infection is important in flu prevention. So stick with whole grains, colorful vegetables, and vitamin-rich fruits.



8. Keep informed: The government is taking necessary steps to prevent the pandemic and periodically release guidelines to keep the pandemic away. Please make sure to keep up to date on the information and act in a calm manner.

Regular Yoga Practice Controls Eating

Regular yoga practice is associated with mindful eating, and people who eat mindfully are less likely to be obese, according to a study led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.The study was prompted by initial findings reported four years ago by Alan Kristal, Dr.P.H., and colleagues, who found that regular yoga practice may help prevent middle-age spread in normal-weight people and may promote weight loss in those who are overweight. At the time, the researchers suspected that the weight-loss effect had more to do with increased body awareness, specifically a sensitivity to hunger and satiety than the physical activity of yoga practice itself.

The follow-up study, published in the August issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, confirms their initial hunch.

"In our earlier study, we found that middle-age people who practice yoga gained less weight over a 10-year period than those who did not. This was independent of physical activity and dietary patterns. We hypothesized that mindfulness – a skill learned either directly or indirectly through yoga – could affect eating behavior," said Kristal, associate head of the Cancer Prevention Program in the Public Health Sciences Division at the Hutchinson Center.

The researchers found that people who ate mindfully – those were aware of why they ate and stopped eating when full – weighed less than those who ate mindlessly, who ate when not hungry or in response to anxiety or depression. The researchers also found a strong association between yoga practice and mindful eating but found no association between other types of physical activity, such as walking or running, and mindful eating.

"These findings fit with our hypothesis that yoga increases mindfulness in eating and leads to less weight gain over time, independent of the physical activity aspect of yoga practice," said Kristal, who is also a professor of epidemiology at the University of Washington School of Public Health.

Kristal, a yoga enthusiast for the past 15 years, said that yoga cultivates mindfulness in a number of ways, such as being able to hold a challenging physical pose by observing the discomfort in a non-judgmental way, with an accepting, calm mind and focus on the breath. "This ability to be calm and observant during physical discomfort teaches how to maintain calm in other challenging situations, such as not eating more even when the food tastes good and not eating when you’re not hungry," he said.

To test whether yoga in fact increases mindfulness and mindful eating, Kristal and colleagues developed a Mindful Eating Questionnaire, a 28-item survey that measured a variety of factors:

* disinhibition – eating even when full;
* awareness – being aware of how food looks, tastes and smells;
* external cues – eating in response to environmental cues, such as advertising;
* emotional response – eating in response to sadness or stress; and
* distraction – focusing on other things while eating.

Each question was graded on a scale of 1 to 4, in which higher scores signified more mindful eating. The questionnaire was administered to more than 300 people at Seattle-area yoga studios, fitness facilities and weight-loss programs, among other venues. More than 80 percent of the study participants were women, well-educated and Caucasian, with an average age of 42. Participants provided self-reported information on a number of factors, including weight, height, yoga practice, walking for exercise or transportation and other forms of moderate and strenuous exercise.

More than 40 percent of the participants practiced yoga more than an hour per week, 46 percent walked for exercise or transportation for at least 90 minutes per week and more than 50 percent engaged in more than 90 minutes of moderate and/or strenuous physical activity per week.

The average weight of the study participants was within the normal range – not surprising considering that the study sample intentionally consisted of people more physically active than the U.S. population in general. Body-mass index was lower among participants who practiced yoga as compared to those who did not (an average of 23.1 vs. 25.8, respectively).

Higher scores on the mindfulness questionnaire overall (and on each of the categories within the questionnaire) was associated with a lower BMI, which suggests that mindful eating may play an important role in long-term weight maintenance, Kristal said.

"Mindful eating is a skill that augments the usual approaches to weight loss, such as dieting, counting calories and limiting portion sizes. Adding yoga practice to a standard weight-loss program may make it more effective," said Kristal, who himself scored high on the mindful-eating survey and has a BMI within the normal range.

Moving forward, Kristal and colleagues suggest that their Mindful Eating Questionnaire, the first tool of its kind to characterize and measure mindful eating, may be useful both in clinical practice and research to understand and promote healthy dietary behavior.

"Beyond calories and diets, mindful eating takes a more holistic approach that can empower individuals to build positive relationships with food and eating, said first author Celia Framson, M.P.H., R.D., C.D., a former graduate student of Kristal's – and former yoga teacher – who now works with adolescents with eating disorders at Seattle Children's Hospital. "The Mindful Eating Questionnaire offers a new and relevant dimension for masuring the effectiveness of dietary behavior interventions. It also encourages nutrition and medical practitioners to consider the broad scope of behavior involved in healthy eating," she said.

Other authors on the paper included Denise Benitez, owner of Seattle Yoga Arts; Alyson Littman, Ph.D., an epidemiologist at the UW School of Public Health and Department of Veterans Affairs; Steve Zeliadt, Ph.D., of VA Puget Sound Healthcare; and Jeanette Schenk, R.D., a research dietitian in the Hutchinson Center's Cancer Prevention Program.

Keep Swine Flu away From You

Here are eight measures that Horton thinks students and families should consider as they prepare for the opening of classes.

1. Have a physical exam before starting college. Washington and Lee requires all students to have a physical, and Dr. Horton believes it’s an important part of preparing for college.

2. Talk to your doctor about recommended immunizations for adolescents and young adults and make sure all of your vaccinations are up to date. Make plans to get a flu shot in the fall. Dr. Horton cautions that this will be the year when student health centers will be doing more outreach than ever to see that students get vaccinated against the flu — both the normal seasonal shot and the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available.

3. Have a parents-student conversation about expectations regarding alcohol, other drugs and sexual activity.

4. Check your health insurance. Families need to be aware, says Horton, of what kind of coverage the student will have on campus, including whether or not the prescription drug plan will be honored at pharmacies in the area.

5. Bring a first aid kit with common, over-the-counter medications.

6. Do what your mom always told you. Wash your hands, cover your cough, dispose of used tissues.

7. Watch your diet. Unhealthy eating habits are easy to pick up when no one is there to make sure you eat your veggies.

8. Get plenty of sleep. “For some reason, students get to college and their clock seems to shift, and they stay up too late, and they still have 8 o’clock classes,” said Horton. “They stay up talking to friends in the hall, and they don’t start their work until 11 or 12, and they’re up half the night doing their homework. Sleep deprivation among students is a very unhealthy habit.”