What Is A Breast Self Exam? Are Breast Self Exams Useful?

While breast self-exams are not recommended as a substitute for breast screening, most experts encourage women to become familiar with the way their breasts look and feel. This familiarity makes it much more likely that any changes might be detected early on. The American Cancer Society says that BSE (breast self-exams) play a small role in detecting breast cancer, when compared to finding a lump by chance or simply being aware of what is normal.

Some women are quite happy to do a BSE after each period. It is a step-by-step approach to examining (observing) and feeling the breasts. Others, however, prefer random checks and general awareness, such as checking while in the shower, getting up in the morning or going to bed at night - a less systematic approach.

It is important that the woman does what feels best for her and does not become over-anxious about whether she has got the technique right.

The aim of a monthly breast self-exam is to report any detected changes to a health care professional immediately.

In some countries, such as Russia and China, studies concluded that BSEs cause such an increase in unnecessary biopsies that they do not recommend BSE, and advise women to attend regular breast screening.

How to do a breast self-exam

• Stand in front of the mirror with your upper body exposed
• Look carefully in the mirror for signs of swelling, redness or dimpling either on the breast, or near it
• Repeat the instruction above in different positions, with hands on hips and arms overhead
• Palpate (touch exploringly) your breasts with the pads of your fingers and seek out any lumps which may be on the surface or deeper inside. Look out for any soreness as you do this.
  
  Move the fingers up and down over the breast.Then start at the nipples and move outwards.
  
  Move the fingers around the nipples in concentric circles moving outwards.
• Some doctors or nurses advise the woman to imagine the breast is divided into four quadrants, and to check each one separately.
• Palpate the area including the part of the breast that extends to the armpit - the axillary tail. You should do this once while standing and once while lying down.
• Squeeze the nipple and check for any discharge. Do not do this if you are breastfeeding.

Pic 1 to 3 involves inspecting the breast with the arms hanging, behind head, and on hips. Pic 4 is the palpitation (touching) of the breast. Pic 5 is palpitation of the nipple. Pic 6 is a BSE while lying down.

Health care professionals say that women who menstruate (pre-menopausal) should perform their BSA at the same point in their cycle each month - hormonal variations during the cycle can cause changes in breast characteristics. Most doctors and nurses advise doing the BSE just after a period, when the breasts are most swollen and tender. Tell your doctor or nurse if you notice any of the following:

• A lump inside the breast or underarm area
• A thickening inside the breast or underarm area
• A hard knot inside the breast or underarm area
• Darkening of the breast
• Swelling anywhere on the breast
• Redness on the breast
• Any alteration in the size of the breast
• Any change in the shape of the breast
• Puckering or dimpling of the skin
• A rash on the nipple
• Scaly skin on the nipple
• Itchiness on the nipple
• Nipple discharge, especially one that starts suddenly. If the discharge is clear (not milky), occurs just on one nipple, has blood in it, or comes out without squeezing, tell your doctor or nurse.
• A pain anywhere that does not go away

In most cases, lumpiness is nothing to worry about - breast tissue has a bumpy texture anyway. If you feel any lumpiness, compare it to the lumpiness in the other breast - most likely it is nothing. If you are concerned, tell your doctor.
Written by Christian Nordqvist

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Red Meat and Diabetes

Cut back on red meat - processed and unprocessed - and you may dramatically lower your risk of type 2 diabetes. After analyzing responses to more than 442,000 questionnaires from studies over 28 years, researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health suggested that eating a daily serving of about 1.8 ounces of processed red meat such as hot dogs, sausages or bacon is linked to a 51 percent increase in the risk of type 2 diabetes. The same analysis showed that eating 3.53 ounces daily of unprocessed red meat boosts the risk by 19 percent. The research team also found that substituting a daily serving of nuts cut the risk by 21 percent, substituting low fat dairy led to a 17 percent risk reduction and eating whole grains lowered the risk by 23 percent. The study didn't find that processed and unprocessed red meat causes type 2 diabetes, but rather that increased risks of the disease are associated with the regular consumption of these meats. The study was published online August 10 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

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Link Discovered Between Smoking And Chronic Pain In Women

Kentucky women who smoke heavily may experience more chronic musculoskeletal pain, suggests a new study led by University of Kentucky researchers.
More than 6,000 Kentucky women over the age of 18 were surveyed on their smoking habits and symptoms of chronic pain. Syndromes included in the analysis were fibromyalgia, sciatica, chronic neck pain, chronic back pain, joint pain, chronic head pain, nerve problems, and pain all over the body.
Results showed that women who smoke, or who were former smokers, had a greater chance of reporting at least one chronic pain syndrome in comparison to nonsmokers. Former smokers showed a 20 percent increase, occasional smokers showed a 68 percent increase, and in daily smokers the odds more than doubled (104 percent).
In addition, daily smoking was associated more strongly with chronic pain than older age, lower educational attainment, obesity, or living in an Appalachian county.
There's a definite connection, but the direction of it is uncertain, says Dr. David Mannino, a pulmonary physician in the UK College of Public Health and co-author of the study.
"This study shows a strong relationship between heavy smoking and chronic pain in women," Mannino said. "But what is the direction of this association? Does smoking cause more chronic pain, or do more women take up smoking as a coping mechanism for experiencing chronic pain?"
Mannino describes acute pain as a "protective response" and theorizes that perhaps female smokers experience acute pain that develops into chronic pain because their normal protection and mechanisms are damaged by exposure to smoke.
From here, researchers should look into a link between smoking, smoking cessation, psychopathology, and management of chronic pain, says Dr. Leslie Crofford, director of the Center for the Advancement of Women's Health and co-author of the study.
"Our results show there is a dose-response relationship between smoking classification and chronic pain syndromes," Crofford said. "It's possible that patients experiencing chronic pain could benefit from smoking cessation treatment in addition to the treatment for their pain. Similarly, it's possible that appropriate treatment of chronic pain could increase a smoker's chances of successfully quitting. Right now, more research is needed on these interventions."

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Higher Social Standing And Educational Attainment Breastfeed For longger

New research analyses maternal breastfeeding in Spain throughout the second half of the twentieth century. Experts believe that its development is associated with socio-demographic factors such as the advice of healthcare professionals, longer maternity leave, a woman's integration into the workplace and her level of education.

"Up until not long ago, maternal breastfeeding was vital for infant survival but things have changed in the second half of the twentieth century. This is mainly due to the arrival of artificial lactation," explains Juan Ramón Ordoñana, researcher at the University of Murcia, Spain and lead author of the study.

Published in the Journal of Human Lactation, the study analyses how maternal breastfeeding rates have evolved in the region of Murcia and, indeed, the rest of Spain, in recent decades and whether women who had children in the 1960's behaved in the same way as those who had children in the 1980's or 1990's.

The average time that a mother breastfeeds has changed over the studied period. Ordoñana confirms that "what our results show is a U-shaped graph. Women breastfed for longer periods of time in the 1960's (61.3% for longer than six months) and 1990's (29% also for longer than six months) whereas the shortest periods occurred in the 1970's and 1980's (14.4% and 19.2% respectively).

Researchers studied 666 women who had been first time mothers from a period starting in the 1960's and ending in the 1990's. As well as gathering information on the child's diet, experts collected socio-demographic data with particular focus on the mother's educational attainment.

Ordoñana outlines that "the effect of greater educational attainment on the duration of the breastfeeding period is not always the same and it very much depends on social context."

As such, women with medium and high educational attainment displayed drastically shorter breastfeeding periods at the beginning of the 1970's and the rates that correspond to this group where almost on a par with those of woman with lower education attainment in the 1970's and 1980's. However, a subsequent steady increase of 3.4% each year was experienced and this trend remained until the end of the 1990's.

Researchers attribute these results to the fact that women with higher educational attainment follow the advice of healthcare professionals with greater ease in relation to the benefits of maternal breastfeeding. They emphasise that "providing the mother wishes to breastfeed, working conditions, economic status and greater access to healthcare services probably help to maintain breastfeeding levels."

The significance of social change

The study suggests that the results are linked to the social changes of the time and the impact that they had on women. For instance, large family structures in which different generations of women live together and help one another in the "art of lactating" have given way to the nuclear family where the woman increasingly leans on her partner for emotional and instrumental support, rather than on other women.

Equally, experts associate this change with the progressive integration of woman into the workplace, the movement towards all things natural that was experienced at the end of the 1990's, the increase of maternity leaves and a large number of sociocultural factors that influence women before they even have their children.

Furthermore, with regard to the diet of newborns, the advice of healthcare professionals leaned towards artificial lactation in the 1970's and 1980's and then shifted towards encouraging breastfeeding. This change was due to the discovery of the health benefits that breastfeeding can bring as well as the advice of the World Health Organisation who recommends that breastfeeding should last for a minimum of 6 months

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Experts Point Out Signs of Dangerous Heart Rhythm

Experts Point Out Signs of Dangerous Heart Rhythm

People who experience what feels like drums pounding in their chest, shortness of breath, chest pain and dizziness may suffer from the common but potentially dangerous heart arrhythmia known as atrial fibrillation.
Atrial fibrillation is an overly rapid, abnormal heartbeat that is more common with advancing age. The condition can cause blood to pool in the heart's upper chambers (atria) and increase the risk that the heart will "throw" a clot, potentially leading to stroke.
According to the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), more than 2 million Americans are already living with the condition, which increases the risk of stroke five-fold. And as the population ages, researchers project that number to surge over the next 40 years.
Atrial fibrillation (AF) can also adversely affect people's quality of life, resulting in chronic fatigue and debilitating pain.
"AF is the most common heart arrhythmia and, unfortunately, many people know very little about AF and just how serious it can be to someone's long-term health," HRS president Dr. Bruce Wilkoff said in a news release issued by the group. "The Heart Rhythm Society has developed some tools to help and encourage all Americans to learn more about AF by becoming aware of warning signs, risks and treatment options that could potentially save lives."
Warning signs of atrial fibrillation may include:

• Feelings of pounding in your chest, like rumbling thunder, drums pounding or fish flopping.
• Frequent palpitations (the feeling that your heart has skipped a beat)
• Shortness of breath following physical exertion
• Reduced capacity for exercise
• Chest pain
• Fainting spells or dizziness

Treatments for the condition can help control these symptoms and restore normal heart rhythm, preventing blood clots and stroke, the HRS said.
Some people may be more prone to atrial fibrillation than others. According to the HRS, the most common risk factors include:

• Being older than 60 years of age
• Having diabetes
• Having other heart problems, such as high blood pressure, coronary heart disease and congestive heart failure
• Suffering from thyroid disease or chronic lung disease
• Having sleep apnea
• Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol or taking stimulants
• Having a serious illness or infection

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Health Highlights: Sept. 28, 2011

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:
U.S. Lifts Restrictions on Imported Cantaloupes
Food-safety advocates are concerned about the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's decision to lift import restrictions on cantaloupes from a Guatemala farm linked to a widespread U.S. salmonella outbreak last spring, The New York Times reported.
The melons -- which have no connection to the current outbreak of listeria tied to Colorado cantaloupes -- were imported by Del Monte Fresh Produce. A recall was announced last March. After import restrictions were enacted, the fruit importer filed a lawsuit against the FDA.
"We would certainly hope that F.D.A. has proof that the conditions that may have led to the outbreak have been cleaned up," said Caroline Smith DeWaal, director of food safety for the Center for Science in the Public Interest. De Waal told the Times that she knows of a previous case involving a recurrence of problems after the FDA lifted restrictions.
In an email announcement, the FDA said it was lifting the "import alert" on the basis of tests showing the cantaloupes were free of pathogens, and on an independent audit that found the growers were using sound practices.
Del Monte denied accusations that it was attempting to coerce the FDA into lifting the ban and said that the FDA's action showed mutual cooperation between the two parties, the newspaper said.
Before it ended in April, the 10-state salmonella outbreak sickened at least 20 people.
-----
Jewelry Industry Will Self-Regulate Toxin in Kids' Jewelry
U.S. jewelry manufacturers have voluntarily agreed to restrict levels of the toxic metal cadmium in children's necklaces, rings and other products, the Associated Press reported.
The heavy metal has been linked to cancer and other diseases, and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which last year recalled some 300,000 pieces of costume jewelry because of high cadmium content, intends to use the voluntary limits to determine if and when product recalls are needed, the AP said.
The agency said voluntary standards, rather than mandatory rules, should be enough to regulate cadmium content in children's baubles. Most of the recalled trinkets were made in China.
The guideline "limits potential exposure to cadmium in children's jewelry in a manner that assures safety without resulting in bans on safe products," said Brent Cleaveland, who helped draft the regulations for ASTM International, a group that sets standards for various consumer goods. Cleaveland told the AP that the new limits, which may take effect in November, are "way more conservative than necessary."
Magnets, lead and other potential jewelry problems are also addressed in the new standard. Experts worry that if kids lick or bite trinkets bearing the metals that high levels might enter their bodies.
Under the new policy, 0.03% cadmium would be the content limit for jewelry intended for children 12 years and younger. Products that exceeded the limit in testing would be rejected or referred for additional examination.
-----
Obese Now Outnumber Hungry Worldwide: Report
There are now more obese people than hungry people in the world, but a growing food crisis is increasing the hardship for those who don't have enough to eat, the International Federation of the Red Cross says.
In 2010, there were 1.5 billion obese people and 925 million undernourished people worldwide, the humanitarian group noted in its annual World Disasters Report released Thursday, Agence France-Presse reported.
The figures highlight the disparity between rich and poor, as well as problems caused by recent increases in food prices, according to the Geneva-based organization.
"If the free interplay of market forces has produced an outcome where 15% of humanity are hungry while 20% are overweight, something has gone wrong somewhere," IFRC secretary general Bekele Geleta said in a news release, AFP reported.

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Omega-3s Reduce Anxiety, Inflammation

Fish oil from salmon and other cold-water species is a natural source of omega-3 fatty acids, and according to a new study, can help reduce both inflammation and anxiety. A research team from Ohio State University reported that daily doses of omega-3 supplements, providing about four to five times the amount of fish oil found in a daily serving of salmon, reduced anxiety among a group of medical students. The original aim of the study was to determine whether omega-3s would bring about a reduction in stress levels, but due to a change in the medical school curriculum, the 68 students participating weren't as stressed out during their exam period as had been expected. Earlier studies by the same investigators had shown that stress related to exams lowered students' immune status. In the new study, the team found that the 34 students who received the omega-3s were 20 percent less anxious than were the 34 who were given a placebo. The investigators also saw a 14 percent reduction in inflammation-promoting compounds called cytokines in the students who took omega-3s. Inflammation can foster diseases ranging from arthritis to cancer and heart disease. The researchers noted that if taking omega-3s brings about positive changes in young med school students, seniors and people at high risk for certain diseases might benefit even more. The study was published online on July 19, 2011 by the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity.
My take? We've known for some time that omega-3s help tone down inflammation, and may help reduce the risk and symptoms of a number of disorders influenced by inflammation. We also know that people with memory loss, depression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), may benefit from omega-3s, so it makes sense that these fats would also help reduce anxiety. To get adequate omega-3s, I recommend eating oily fleshed, wild-caught, cold water fish two to three times per week. If you use fish oil capsules, take two grams daily of a brand that contains both EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid).

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Drink Coffee, Stay Happy?

 Some coffee drinkers may have a reason to smile -- or keep smiling.

Drinking several cups a day is linked with a lower risk of depression, according to a new study that looked only at women. The benefit seems to start at two cups a day.
The study is published in the Archives of Internal Medicine .
"We found that women with the highest coffee intake -- those in the top 20% -- had a 20% lower risk of developing depression," says researcher Alberto Ascherio, MD, DrPH. "The top 20% drank about the equivalent of four cups of coffee per day." Ascherio is professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.
The link was not found for decaffeinated coffee.
Ascherio emphasizes that he found an association, not cause and effect. Depression affects twice as many women as men, he notes. About 20% of U.S. women will be affected during their lifetime.
A mental health expert cautions that the research finding should be viewed cautiously. "I wouldn't tell my patients to drink more caffeine based on this study," says Michelle Riba, MD, associate director of the University of Michigan Depression Center. She reviewed the study but was not involved in it.

Caffeine and Depression Risk

Ascherio and colleagues evaluated more than 50,000 women, average age 63. They were participating in the long-running Nurses' Health Study.
None had any depression at the start of the investigation in 1996. All answered questions about their caffeine habits through June 2006. "Women reported their consumption of coffee and other caffeine drinks, more or less every four years," Ascherio says. They noted their usual intake over the past 12 months.
The women also reported if they had clinical depression or if they began using antidepressant medication.
During the follow-up, 2,607 women developed depression.
Overall, the more coffee they drank, the less likely they were to become depressed. "We see a dose response," Ascherio tells WebMD.
Compared with women who drank one cup or less a week, those who had two to three cups a day had a 15% lower risk of depression. Those who drank four or more had a 20% lower risk.
What could explain the link? Ascherio cannot say for certain."We know for certain caffeine gets into the brain. It activates several neurotransmitters related to depression." Among them, he says, are dopamine and serotonin.
That happens short-term, he says. How that affects the risk of depression long-term is not known, he says.
Other research has found a link between coffee drinking and lower risk of Parkinson's disease and diabetes, Ascherio says.
The new findings are consistent with some earlier research. He says one study found suicide risk is lower among those who drink more coffee. A previous study by others found that men who drink coffee have lower risks of depression.

Second Opinion

Although the study was well conducted, it has built-in limitations because it is observational, says Riba, past president of the American Psychiatric Society. The researchers simply looked at behaviors and then evaluated any associations.
"They are not saying cause and effect," she says.
With a group as large as the 50,000 studied by Ascherio, she says, the associations found can often disappear when the researchers look more closely.
"If we could prevent 20% of people from having depression, that would be terrific," Riba tells WebMD. "We have to continue to watch and follow this [research]."
Meanwhile, she cautions those with mood disorders to seek medical attention.
In an editor's note, Seth A. Berkowitz, MD, of the journal, writes: "This study makes an important contribution because it is, to my knowledge, the first large-scale study of coffee consumption to evaluate a mental health outcome in women."
He notes that other studies have found modest effects of caffeine on inflammation, no overall effect on heart disease, and perhaps modest protection against some cancers.
However, he adds that ''it seems premature to recommend coffee consumption" until research that looks at cause and effect is done.
The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression.
SOURCES: Alberto Ascherio, MD, DrPH, professor of epidemiology and nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health; professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School.Lucas, M., Archives of Internal Medicine, Sept. 26. 2011, vol 171: pp 1571-1577.Michelle Riba, MD, professor of psychiatry and associate director, University of Michigan Depression Center, Ann Arbor; past president, American Psychiatric Association. ©2011 WebMD, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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Functional Challenges Develop Earlier In African-American Women

African-American women develop functional health challenges earlier than their fellow seniors, researchers say
While examining self-reported data about the lives of 8,700 older people, a Case Western Reserve University sociologist identified an accelerated rate of reported physical limitations by African American women in their mid-50s and 60s.
The finding surfaced as researchers looked generally at how the intersection of gender and race/ethnicity affect health disparities among older African-Americans, Mexican-Americans and Whites.
David Warner, assistant professor of sociology at Case Western Reserve University, found that, in general, men of all racial/ethnic groups fared better than the women. And, those with education, economic means and higher net worth reported fewer physical health issues.
"But we could not find the reason why African-American women developed limitations faster than other gender and racial/ethnic groups," he said.
Warner and his co-investigator Tyson H. Brown from Vanderbilt University set out to approach health disparities in a new way by looking at gender and race/ethnicity concurrently in order to better understand health disparities.

Overall, the researchers found that gender and race/ethnicity jointly and simultaneously define access to resources that promote health and exposure to risks that undermine the health of individuals over time.

The researchers did find that life disadvantages, such as lower incomes and lack of access to health care surfacing in midlife tend to follow individuals throughout their lives and that women are particularly at risk for such disadvantages.

Social Science & Medicine reported their research findings in the article, "Understanding how race/ethnicity and gender define age-trajectories of disability: An intersectionality approach."

The investigators of the National Institutes of Health-funded study reached their conclusions from a comparative analysis of 8,701 people between the ages of 53 and 75, who answered questions over seven biennial waves (1994-2006) in the U.S. Health and Retirement Study.

Disabilities were measured from answers to self-reported survey questions that assessed mobility, strength and upper and lower body functional limitations. They also examined information about early life experiences, adult social economic status, marriage and health-related behaviors to determine what influence these might have on disabilities.

Statistical analyses of survey responses showed emerging patterns in the functional health of these seniors.

Early life events, adult socioeconomic status, marital status and health behaviors explained disparities in the limitations men experienced, but didn't do so as clearly for women.

Aging White men overall started out with less than one disabling limitation on average, but every year slightly increased until age 75 when they had slightly more than two.

Mexican-American women, who fared the worst, reached 75 with twice as many physical limitations on average as White men - nearly five.

Mexican-American men, African-American men, White men and White women did not vary significantly in the rate at which they developed disabilities as they aged. However, African-American women gained more disabilities early on. After their mid-60s, the rate of disabilities began to decrease. By age 75, it appeared the pace of acquiring disabilities had stabilized.

Warner said new information about physical health changes with age emerged when race/ethnicity and gender were jointly examined.

According to the researchers, this study's findings demonstrate the need for health-preventions efforts aimed at eliminating functional health disparities overall, but also point to the need for further research and interventions that address the unique health experiences of African American women with age.

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Couples Counseling Boosts Sex Lives After Prostate Cancer

Couples Counseling Boosts Sex Lives After Prostate Cancer

By Jenifer Goodwin

The side effects of prostate cancer treatments, including surgery and radiation, can seriously disrupt a couple's sex life.
But a new study finds that counseling helped married men and women figure out what sorts of treatments for erectile dysfunction worked for them and how to incorporate those methods during sex. In doing so, they returned some luster to their love lives.
Researchers enrolled more than 200 men who'd been treated for prostate cancer and their wives into one of three groups: one received three face-to-face counseling sessions; the other was offered Internet-based counseling; and the third was put on a wait list.
At a six-month follow-up (about three months after counseling), men who received either the face-to-face or web-based counseling reported an improvement in sexual function and satisfaction with sex. When the man reported his sexual function improved, his wife's reports of sexual function and satisfaction did as well.
Those in the wait-listed group experienced no improvements, suggesting that "time alone doesn't heal the issues," said study author Leslie Schover, a professor of behavioral science and a clinical psychologist at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
The study is published in the Sept. 26 online issue of Cancer.
Despite nerve-sparing surgery, prostate cancer treatment still causes significant erectile dysfunction, experts say. Other problems may include difficulty reaching orgasm; decreased intensity of orgasm; pain and leaking urine at orgasm.
Many men who have prostate cancer are older, and their erectile function may have already been compromised due to the cancer itself or other underlying vascular or nerve disease, explained Dr. Bruce Gilbert, director of reproductive and sexual medicine at North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System's Smith Institute for Urology.
"Before nerve-sparing prostatectomy [surgical removal of the prostate], 100% of men would have erectile dysfunction afterward," Gilbert said. "That has come down quite a bit. But you are dealing with a population of men who are generally not 30 or 40 years old. They're older and may already have an underlying problem with erectile dysfunction."
Most men have some level of erection difficulties after prostate cancer surgery, experts said.
In addition to dealing with that, "the counseling program focused on the woman's right to pleasure in sex and on fixing problems like postmenopausal vaginal dryness or loss of desire related to poor sexual communication," Schover said.
"We educated both partners about available treatments to restore erections and had them complete a 'decision aid' to figure out what treatment to try, based on mutual opinions," she said. "If that treatment did not work well for them, we encouraged them to try another choice."
After prostrate cancer, many men try pills for erectile dysfunction, experts said. But those may not be enough. Other options include penile injections, vacuum pumps and or penile implants, but Schover said she suspects many men throw in the towel when they don't get the results they want and don't pursue the other alternatives.
Men and women were given questionnaires that asked about a wide variety of measures of sexual function and sexual satisfaction, including their erectile function (for men), ability to achieve orgasm and their level of desire.
"Every subscale improved except desire, which we weren't surprised by because very few had low desire to begin with, so there wasn't that far to go on that," Schover said.
Men's ability to achieve "near-normal" erections also improved after counseling. Before counseling, about 12% to 15% of men reported few erection difficulties. That increased to between 36% and 44% for those who underwent counseling.
At one year, men who reported that they found a successful erectile dysfunction treatment had scores on the sexual function and satisfaction scale that were about the same as healthy men.
One limitation of the study is that about 34% of couples enrolled in the counseling dropped out for unknown reasons, said Dr. Bruce Gilbert, director of reproductive and sexual medicine at the Smith Institute for Urology at North Shore LIJ Health System.
Still, he added, "a study like this is very important and highlights that there is a lot that happens if you engage couples or the patient in some type of counseling," Gilbert said.
Couples and physicians should also never forget that while prostate cancer is frightening, so is the worry that even if it's cured, "they may not be the same after a procedure than before," Gilbert said. "That's a real fear for men."
Ideally, patients should start "penile rehabilitation" even prior to having the treatment, which has been shown to improve outcomes.
Urologists should be able to suggest methods of improving erectile function, experts noted. They suggested that if you're not getting all the help you need from your urologist, ask for a referral to a urologist that specializes in sexual medicine, or a mental health professional that treats issues related to cancer treatment, often found at large teaching hospitals in major cities.
Dr. Elizabeth Kavaler, a urologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, said "the idea of providing Internet-based counseling to couples experiencing sexual dysfunction after prostate surgery is excellent."
"This study proves that patients and their partners respond to instructive sex therapy. Since insurance coverage for psychotherapy is sparse, it is encouraging to know that web-based help is available to these couples," Kavaler said.

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Maggots May Help Heal Hard-to-Treat Wounds

Study Shows Maggots Heal Leg Sores in Diabetes Patients
By Charlene Laino

Maggots helped to heal the wounds of people with diabetes after multiple traditional treatments had failed, a small study shows.
Leg and foot sores in 27 of 37 people with diabetes healed after treatment with medical maggots. The wounds had been open for several months to five years.
Medical-grade maggots basically chew away dead flesh, leaving live tissue unscathed, says researcher Lawrence Eron, MD, of the University of Hawaii. They also appear to disinfect the wound and stimulate healing.
Maggots don't completely close wounds. "But there's 50% or more closure," he says.
"These little critters may allow [patients] to heal and avoid amputation or at least delay it so they can live the rest of their lives with their limbs intact," he tells WebMD.
As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. At the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy here, Eron flashed before-and-after photos showing a gangrenous foot ulcer healing after so-called maggot debridement therapy.
The doctors wanted to amputate the leg before the treatment, Eron says.

Maggots Have Long Medical History

Maggots have been used in medicine for thousands of years. During the Napoleonic wars, surgeons observed that wounds infested with maggots tended to heal better than others.
Medical maggot use declined with the advent of antibiotics. Now, with antibiotic-resistant infections skyrocketing, they're making a comeback.
The new study involved people with diabetes who had failed multiple treatments. About 50 to 100 maggots were placed in a mesh that resembles panty hose and applied to their wounds.
They were removed after two days, at which time the maggots appeared plump from the feeding frenzy.
New maggots were then reapplied, and the cycle was repeated for an average of about five times.
Eron admits there is a "yuck" factor. Five patients experienced discomfort, which was treated successfully with acetaminophen. One patient stopped treatment due to pain.
Other patients described a "creepy, crawling sensation," Eron says. But they welcomed it as they previously had no feelings at all in the area of their wounds.
Eron isn't sure exactly how maggots achieve their medical magic. "What we saw, and suspected, is an [antibacterial] effect," he says.
Maggots also seem to excrete substances that boost the body's immune system and stimulate the growth of new blood vessels, he says.
More study is needed, Eron says.

Cost of Treatment

About 25.8 million children and adults in the U.S. -- 8.3% of the population -- have diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. In 2006, about 65,700 lower-limb amputations were performed in people with diabetes.
Medical-grade maggots are fly larvae grown in a hygienic lab so they are germ-free, says Catherine Bennett, PhD, head of the School of Health and Social Development at the Deakin University Australia in Burwood, Australia. She moderated the session at which the findings were presented.
"It's obviously quite a process," she says.
For the study, Eron used larvae of the green bottle fly, purchased from Monarch Labs for about $100 for a two-day cycle. Total treatment cost on average for five cycles: $500.
In contrast, it costs up to $10,000 to treat an uninfected foot ulcer in a person with diabetes; up to $50,000 if amputation is needed, Eron says.
In addition to cost, the main advantage of maggot therapy is it "gets us around the problem of antibiotic resistance," Bennett tells WebMD.
While the treatment appeared safe and effective in this small study, larger, well-designed trials are needed to convince patients as well as doctors, she says.
These findings were presented at a medical conference. They should be considered preliminary as they have not yet undergone the "peer review" process, in which outside experts scrutinize the data prior to publication in a medical journal.
SOURCES: 51st Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, Chicago, Sept. 17-20, 2011.Lawrence Eron, MD, associate professor of medicine, University of Hawaii.Catherine Bennett, PhD, School of Health and Social Development, Deakin University Australia, Burwood, Australia. ©2011 WebMD, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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Does Beetroot Improve a Runner's Time?

Study Shows Runners Finish a Race More Quickly if Beetroot Is Part of Their Pre-Race Diet
By Kathleen Doheny

Runners and other exercisers hoping to improve their performance might consider a detour to the produce aisle.
Eating beetroot before a workout gave runners a modest edge in speed during a 5K run when they were close to the finish line, new research shows.
The baked beetroot won out over the cranberry relish that served as a comparison, says Margaret Murphy, RD, a Chicago dietitian who conducted the research as a graduate student at St. Louis University.
''With the beetroot, they were 41 seconds faster at the finish," and that could make the difference between a win or not among competitive amateur runners, she says.
The study was presented at the American Dietetic Association's Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo here in San Diego.

Beetroot and Exercise

For exercise performance, "there has been a lot of interest in beetroot juice for the last couple of years," Murphy tells WebMD. A study from the U.K., for instance, found that exercisers could work out longer if they drank beetroot juice.
Other research has found that beetroot juice can help reduce blood pressure.
Beetroot is rich in substances called nitrates. Nitrates are converted into nitric oxide by the body. The nitric oxide dilates blood vessels. That results in improved oxygen delivery.
"You are going to have more ability to sustain aerobic activity," Murphy says.
Murphy decided to study the whole vegetable rather than the juice.
She assigned 11 men and women, all recreationally fit athletes, to eat the beetroot or the cranberry relish, in random order, once before a 5K run. The tests were done a week apart. The average age of the exercisers was 25.
They each ate 200 grams, about 7 ounces, of beetroot. That amount has about 500 milligrams of nitrates.
After the beetroot, exercisers had overall times that were 3% faster compared to their times after eating cranberry relish, and 5% faster during the last mile, she found.

Beetroot Recipe

Beetroots can be found in the produce section of the market. They look a bit like radishes.
The beetroot recipe is simple, Murphy tells WebMD.

• Place about 7 ounces (the amount of one portion in her study) on a baking sheet.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes or so.
• Peel off the skin, then put the remaining beetroot in a food processor.
• Add a tablespoon of lemon juice, 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg. This will make it more palatable.

She gave the men and women the beetroot about 45 minutes before they jogged because they came into the study after fasting. However, for those who want to try it, she suggests eating it about two and a half hours before an event.

Beetroot Pros and Cons

The new research adds to accumulating data about the effect of beetroot on exercise performance, says Daniel Kim-Shapiro, PhD, professor of physics at Wake Forest University. He is an expert on nitric oxide and has found that drinking beet juice boosts blood flow to the brain in older people.
He reviewed the data but was not involved in the study.
''Data is just beginning to emerge that actual exercise performance is enhanced," he says.
He offers some caveats. Eating nitrate in the form of beet juice or the vegetable instead of supplements ''is probably safest," he says. He warns exercisers not to confuse nitrate from foods with nitrite salt, sold over the Internet and potentially hazardous.
Moderation is key, Kim-Shapiro says. He has heard of exercisers drinking beet juice to boost performance and then getting sick to their stomachs during exercise.
Kim-Shapiro reports being a co-author on a patent application on the use of nitrite salts for heart disease and receiving royalties from the licensing of the application.
This study was presented at a medical conference. The findings should be considered preliminary as they have not yet undergone the "peer review" process, in which outside experts scrutinize the data prior to publication in a medical journal.
SOURCES: Margaret Murphy, RD, dietitian, Chicago.Daniel Kim-Shapiro, PhD, professor of physics and Harbert Family Distinguished Chair, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, N.C. American Dietetic Association Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo, Sept. 24-27, 2011, San Diego. ©2011 WebMD, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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Colon Cancer Initial Screening For Men Should Be Earlier Than For Women, Study

New research from Austria finds men have a higher rate of advanced colon cancer tumors than women of the same age and suggests male sex is a risk factor for the disease. The researchers propose this means men should be screened earlier than women, but do not say whether this ought to be by delaying the age when women are initially offered screening or bringing forward the age men are offered it.
You can read how Dr Monika Ferlitsch, of the Austrian Society for Gastroenterology and Hepatology in Vienna, and colleagues, analyzed the results of more than 40,000 screening colonoscopies to reach these conclusions in a paper published in the September 28 issue of JAMA.
Their results show that men have a higher rate of advanced tumors compared to women in all the age groups they examined.
Colorectal or bowel cancer is the fourth leading cancer killer worldwide and claims 610,000 lives a year.
Even though some studies show that men are at a greater risk for advanced tumors than women, current practice is that both men and women aged 50 and over are urged to have an initial screening colonoscopy. This looks for adenomas, which are polyps or benign tumors and also detects advanced adenomas and colorectal cancer.
Ferlitsch and colleagues investigated the most appropriate age for initial screening colonoscopy in groups of male and female patients to attain a higher detection rate of advanced tumors and cancer which could result in lower death rates.
For their study, they examined data from 44,350 participants (51% women) in Austria who took part in a national colonoscopy screening between 2007 and 2010. The median age of the females was 60.7 years and of the males was 60.6 years.
They found a significantly higher rate of colorectal cancer and advanced tumors among men compared with women in all age groups, suggesting that "male sex constitutes an independent risk factor for colorectal carcinoma and indicating new sex-specific age recommendations for screening colonoscopy".
For example, they found the prevalence of colorectal cancer overall among men was double that of women (1.5% compared to 0.7%).
And among 50- to 54-year-olds, 5% of men had advanced adenomas compared to only 2.9% of women.
And they also found that men in their mid-50s had a similar rate of colorectal cancer as women ten years older (CRC rate was 1.3% in men aged 55-59 and 1.2% in women aged 65-69).
Another measure they examined was the average number needed to screen (NNS) to detect adenomas. They found this to be 5.1 for all individuals, 4.0 for men, and 6.7 for women.
However, in 50- to 54-year-old women, NNS was nearly twice as high as in men at the same age (9.3 for men compared with 5.4 for women). And among 45- to 49-year-old men, NNS was 5.9, similar to the 6.0 found for women aged 60 to 64 years.
The authors recommend that:
"... deciding whether to adjust the age at which screening begins also requires considering whether the recommended age for women should be older or the recommended age for men younger."
They also urge further prospective studies be done to establish the relative clinical effectiveness of colonoscopy screening at different ages.
Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today

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Wine & Grapes May Protect Skin

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No joke: researchers in Spain have suggested that drinking red wine or eating grapes may help defend your skin against the damaging effects of sunburn. The investigators report that antioxidant compounds found in grapes can protect skin by undermining formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). If left unchecked, these byproducts of normal metabolism set off a chemical reaction that kills off cells and as a result, damages skin exposed to the sun's ultraviolet rays. Researchers at the University of Barcelona and the Spanish National Research Council studied the chemical reaction that leads to sunburn and then looked at the effects of flavonoids on this process. They suggested that grapes could protect against both burns and skin cancer. Don't be too quick to trade your sunscreen for a bottle of Spanish red: the grapes may turn out to work best when incorporated into skin creams to guard us from sunburn. The study was published in the May 11, 2011 issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

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Smoking In Relation to Men

Men are at as much risk because of smoking as are women. This is worse in case of men because smoking is a habit that thrives more commonly among the men and causes various disorders in the body which could even be fatal. Studies have shown that smoking is the most usual cause for disorders like impotency and cancer and can leave the man's whole life impaired, apart from being the cause of a whole bunch of other respiratory and heart disorders. Discoloration of the lips and darkening of the gums, along with stains on the teeth and mouth ulcers are commonly seen effects of smoking seen in men. It also is the main reason because of which the arteries which connect to the heart and the male organs gets clogged resulting in various disorders of the heart and is also the main cause several other mental and physical problems.

In fact smoking is known to cause irreparable and irreversible damage to the body. Problems like impotency and erectile dysfunction can be traced back to excessive smoking habits. This is because smoking causes blockage of the vessels that supplies blood to the genitals. Though most of the side effects of smoking are common for both men and women there are certain side effects which affects only men. Sexual health is the most affected in case of men apart from various other psychological and physical disorders. It also increases the risk of cancer and various other heart diseases and strokes. Another attribute of smoking is the fact that it increases anxiety levels though the common myth is that smoking is a stress buster. Memory is also adversely affected due to excessive smoking as smoke gradually over time kills the brain cells. Smoking is also the primary cause for increased nervousness and reduces the sharpness levels of an individual, and makes the person forgetful and careless.

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Psychological Treatments for Panic Attacks

The panic attack and disorder treatment is quite a lengthy process and does not complete in a few days time. Therefore, it is the prime duty of a therapist to make the patient as comfortable as he/she can from the very first day of the treatment. An irritated patient who has already suffered a lot because of the ailment could discontinue the treatment anytime and for this reason the therapist has to be really professional as well as friendly with the patient. Once this is done, the patient always tends to co-operate with the therapist which helps in running the treatment process smoothly with more success. There are different treatment plans for different patients, which means, that a treatment plan for patient A might not suit the patient B. therefore, the therapist has to be well aware of this situation and devise the treatment plan and pattern accordingly.

These factors lead to proper band successful treatment results wherein some patients develop the signs of improvement within 8 to 10 appointments or sessions with the therapist.

Patients should always select the therapist who is both renowned as well as experienced in the field as it is the therapist who plays a vital role in devising fruitful and result-oriented improvements in the patients.

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Panic Attack and Panic Disorder Medicines

When situation becomes too difficult to handle in case of a panic disorder patient, medication comes to play a significant role. Various medications can reduce and control the panic attacks and panic disorder in patients. However, other natural ways along with usage of medicines prove truly helpful while resolving such disorders. Medication proves to be much effective if combined with various therapies and other lifestyle change techniques.

Medical professionals advise various antidepressants for treating panic disorders and panic attacks. But, this treatment is of a quite long duration as it continues for several weeks and therefore needs to be carried out continuously. In such scenarios, the patients are advised not to stop the medicine usage and continue using the prescribed ones even if there isn't any repetitive panic attack.

Doctors usually advise Benzodiazepines, which are anti-anxiety drugs and have rapid effects on the body during panic attacks and panic disorders. Consumption of these drugs provides a lot of relief from the panic attack symptoms. The only drawback of such medicines is that these are very addictive in nature and come with serious withdrawal symptoms. Therefore, they are advised and used with extra care and precaution.

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Panic Attacks and Anxiety – Some Facts

It has been researched that around 40 million US people above the age of 18 years suffer from anxiety disorders and this disorder costs a whooping 42 billion dollars to the country annually.

The Economic Burden of Anxiety and its Disorder via the commission of the ADAA and The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry published in 7 July in the year1999 reveals that 1/3rd portion of United States 148 billion dollars (which is approximately 49.33 billion dollars) has been incurred as the total bill on healthcare of this country. People who suffer from anxiety disorders and panic attacks get 3 to 5 time's higher treatment than the rest and are 6 times more at risk to be hospitalized as compared to the ones who do not suffer from these disorders.

People suffering from generalized anxiety disorders are about 6.8 million. 6 million people suffer from anxiety and panic attacks, 7.7 million suffer from post-traumatic disorder of Stress, 15 million suffer from disorder of the anxiety of society, 2.2 million from the obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and 19 million from the specific phobias. The anxiety and panic attacks both relate to emotional disorders as well as bipolar disorders.

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Panic Disorder Treatments

Panic attacks and disorders could be effectively dealt with professional health care trainings which include various exercises, nutritional details and other herbal treatments. All the treatments pertain to psychodynamics, inclusive of the cognitive behavior, interpersonal and the other types of talking therapies therefore helping the individuals to address the problems that are related to anxiety and panic disorders. Psychotherapy provides the people with the chance of identifying and learning so as to manage various factors that help in the contribution of the anxiety occurrences.

Various researches and studies have revealed that behavioral and cognitive and the therapies are truly effective and beneficial in treating the anxiety disorder and panic attacks. Behavioral therapies involve various techniques which reduce and even eliminate the unnecessary behaviors that are likely to trigger the panic attacks and anxiety disorders. The therapy of cognitive behavior people are usually advised to bring changes in their thought process in order to attain a positive frame of lifestyle as well as the thought process. This reduces the panic attacks and disorders of anxiety. The process of psychotherapy has also proven to be truly effective with various combinations of effective medications.

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Exercise and Your Heart: A Little Bit'll Do It

It doesn't take much exercise to help reduce your risk of heart disease. A new review of 33 earlier studies on the benefits of exercise found that people who get 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week reduce their risk of heart disease by 14 percent compared to inactive people (150 minutes comes out to 30 minutes a day, five days a week). Of course, more is better, and with additional physical activity (five hours of exercise per week) you can lower your risk by as much 20 percent (again, compared to inactive folks). The review found that women benefit more from exercise than men, but the researchers aren't sure why and have suggested that the difference may be due to a statistical quirk. You might also achieve an additional risk reduction of five percent if you're up for exercising 12.5 hours per week, but the researchers conceded that the extra five percent may not be worth all that added effort. The study was published online August 1 in Circulation.

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These Foods May Promote Colon Health

A new study from a California research team suggests that eating more legumes (dried beans, dried peas and lentils) at least three times a week can cut the risk of developing colon polyps (which can lead to cancer) by 33 percent. Brown rice reduces the risk, too, by 40 percent. Researchers at Loma Linda University also found that eating cooked green vegetables at least once a day, and dried fruit at least three times a week offers additional protection. The researchers analyzed data from more than 2,800 adults in the Adventist Health Study-1 performed in 1976-77, including information on participants who responded to a follow up study 26 years later. The first study asked participants how often they consumed specific foods. The investigators also considered other factors that could influence colon cancer risk, including family history of the disease, education, physical activity level, and constipation. They also checked alcohol intake, how often the participants ate sweets, used pain medication and took multivitamins. The study was published in the May 2011 issue of Nutrition and Cancer.

My take? These new findings provide welcome support for dietary strategies that aim to help prevent both colon polyps and colon cancer. In addition to eating the high fiber foods associated with lower risks of colon polyps seen in this study, we already know that avoiding red meat can reduce the risks of polyps and colon cancer. I also recommend limiting alcohol intake - research has suggested that the more alcohol you drink, the higher your risk of developing colon cancer. Another dietary tip: Make green tea your beverage of choice. Regular consumption of green tea is linked with lower incidence of many kinds of cancer.

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