Analysis confirms ED drugs OK for diabetic men
Viagra and similar drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction, often referred to as ED, work for men with diabetes and appear to be safe, according to a research review being published Wednesday.
Diabetes is one of the most common causes of ED, and experts estimate that diabetic men are about three times more likely than other men to deal with erection problems at some point.
Dietary Zinc for Diabetes Prevention Not Backed by Evidence
Despite laboratory evidence that zinc helps promote the production and action of insulin - and widespread marketing of zinc supplements for this purpose - no randomized clinical trials show that zinc supplementation prevents the onset of type 2 diabetes.
However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that zinc doesn’t have a role in diabetes prevention. Rather, eligible studies are lacking, according to authors of a new systematic review of clinical studies, led by Vania Beletate of the Federal University of Sao Paola in Brazil.
Learning slows physical progression of Alzheimer’s disease
Learning appears to slow the development of two brain lesions that are the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease, scientists at UC Irvine have discovered. The finding suggests that the elderly, by keeping their minds active, can help delay the onset of this degenerative disease.
This study with genetically modified mice is the first to show that short but repeated learning sessions can slow a process known for causing the protein beta amyloid to clump in the brain and form plaques, which disrupt communication between cells and lead to symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. Learning also was found to slow the buildup of hyperphosphorylated-tau, a protein in the brain that can lead to the development of tangles, the other signature lesion of the disease. Scientists say these findings have large implications for the understanding and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, as it is already known that highly educated individuals are less likely to develop the disease than people with less education.
Quitting Smoking May Be Harder If Mom Smoked During Pregnancy
Quitting smoking may be more difficult for individuals whose mothers smoked during pregnancy, according to animal research conducted by Duke University Medical Center researchers.
Prenatal exposure to nicotine is known to alter areas of the brain critical to learning, memory and reward. Scientists at the Duke Center for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research have discovered that these alterations may program the brain for relapse to nicotine addiction. Rodents exposed to nicotine before birth self administer more of the drug after periods of abstinence than those that had not been exposed.
Smart way of living for people with dementia
A groundbreaking home that uses the latest smart technology to give people with dementia and other serious long-term health conditions greater independence will be showcased for the first time in Bristol tomorrow.
The technology, which has been developed by the Bath Institute of Medical Engineering (BIME) in the School for Health at the University of Bath, has been designed to help people readjust to living on their own after a stay in hospital, and aims to reduce the risk of users being readmitted to hospital or going into long term care.
