Alcoholics might be upset...
Grape juice good for the heart: study
By Patricia Reaney Wed Jan 31, 12:06 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Grape juice seems to have the same protective effect against heart disease as red wine, French scientists said on Wednesday.
Researchers at the Universite Louis Pasteur de Strasbourg were examining the effect on the heart of Concord grape juice.
"Grape juice can have a similar effect (against heart disease) as red wine but without the alcohol. That is a very important message," said Dr Valerie Schini-Kerth, lead author of the study published in the journal Cardiovascular Research.
Red wine and certain types of grape juice have high levels of polyphenols, which block the production of a protein linked to cardiovascular disease -- the number one killer in many Western countries.
Heart and vascular problems develop when endothelial cells that make up blood vessels do not work properly.
Schini-Kerth and her team found that polyphenols in Concord grape juice activate endothelial cells to produce nitric oxide which helps to protect against cardiovascular disease and to maintain healthy blood vessels and blood pressure.
Polyphenols work the same way in red wine and in grape juice.
"But not every grape juice has the beneficial effect. It has to have a high level of polyphenols," Schini-Kerth said.
The amount of polyphenols in grape juice, as in red wine, depends on the type of grape used and how it is processed.
"We have information on more than 100 different kinds of wine and the amount of polyphenols. What we know is that the most protective ones have the highest levels of polyphenols. That is established," she said.
But Schini-Kerth, whose research was partly funded by Welch Foods Inc which is a leading producer of grape juice, said little information is available on the levels of polyphenols in grape juice.
The scientists were studying cells from pigs, which provide a good model for studying human cells.
They were looking at healthy blood vessels and are planning a further study to see whether grape juice has a similar impact on blood vessels that show signs of cardiovascular disease.
Cancer Deaths Decreasing
Cancer deaths finally on decline in U.S.
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor 28 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - About 3,000 fewer people died from cancer in the United States from 2003 to 2004, the
American Cancer Society
It said the big decrease shows that not only has the death rate from cancer been reversed -- but it has been reversed so much that fewer people are dying, even though the population of elderly people, who are most susceptible to cancer, is growing.
The American Cancer Society projected there will be 559,650 deaths from cancer in 2007. "The Society also predicts there will be 1,444,920 new cases of cancer in 2007; 766,860 among men and 678,060 among women," it said in a statement.
The society uses a different method to project and calculate deaths now, so the 2007 numbers cannot be compared directly with the 2004 numbers.
"Cancer death rates have been declining for a long time. The declines have now outpaced the growth and aging of the population," Elizabeth Ward, director of surveillance research for the American Cancer Society, said in a telephone interview.
She said a small decline seen in the previous report had grown considerably, showing the trend was real.
Decreases in smoking may be a major factor, Ward said.
"I think tobacco control has had a real impact. There is also the influence of early detection and screening and thirdly the influence of improvements in treatment," Ward said.
The biggest fall in deaths was seen in colorectal cancer, the second-leading cause of U.S. cancer deaths, which will affect 112,000 people in 2007 and kill 52,000.
"Colorectal cancer really stands out," Ward said.
"There was a drop in both men and women, both a drop in mortality rates and in cancer incidence." The death rate from colon cancer fell by 5.7 percent in 2003-2004 from the previous year.
GET THAT COLONOSCOPY
The often-dreaded colonoscopy, recommended for everyone when they reach 50, may be making a difference, Ward said. "Early detection and screening probably do make a contribution," she said, adding that better treatments also were a factor.
Yet only 50 percent of Americans over 50 get the recommended screening.
"We need to continue to encourage colorectal cancer screening because if we are seeing this much progress at the current rate, we certainly could achieve more," Ward said.
The organization makes a yearly compilation of cancer deaths based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the
National Cancer Institute' name=c1> SEARCH
News News Photos Images Web' name=c3>
National Cancer Institute, the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, the U.S.
Census Bureau' name=c1> SEARCH
News News Photos Images Web' name=c3>
Census Bureau, state and local health agencies, and thousands of cancer registries.
In 2004, 553,888 people died from cancer, compared to 556,902 in 2003. Fewer people died from the four leading cancers -- lung, breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer -- with the exception of lung cancer in women.
The five-year survival rate for all cancer patients between 1996 and 2002 was 66 percent, the group said. That compares to 51 percent between 1975 and 1977.
The four leading causes of cancer in the United States are:
-- Lung cancer, which will be detected in 213,000 people in 2007 and kill 160,000
-- Prostate cancer, which will be diagnosed in 218,000 men and kill 27,000
-- Breast cancer, which will be found in 180,510 men and women and kill 40,900
-- Colon cancer, which will be diagnosed in 112,000 people and kill 52,000.
The statistics do not include skin cancers known as squamous and basal cell carcinoma, which affect a million people a year.
The full report is available on the Internet at http://www.cancer.org/statistics.
