Here are some significant medical developments, which recently made it to the headline news. Read on to promote or protect your health.
Study: Low-Carb Diet More Effective Overall
A low-carb diet and a Mediterranean-style regimen helped people lose slightly more weight than a traditional low-fat diet in one of the longest and largest studies to compare the dueling weight-loss techniques. A bigger surprise: The low-carb diet improved cholesterol more than the other two. Some critics had predicted the opposite.
The study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, followed 322 dieters, 277 men, and 45 women. The dieters were assigned to follow one of three types of diets — a diet with about 30-percent fat, based on American Heart Association guidelines; a Mediterranean diet; and a low-carbohydrate diet based on the Atkins diet plan.
The research was done in a controlled environment — an isolated nuclear-research facility in Israel. The dieters consistently ate lunch, the largest meal of the day, in the company cafeteria where food was color-coded to help them comply with their eating plan. The biggest weight loss happened in the first five months of the diet — low-fat and Mediterranean dieters lost about 10 pounds, and low-carbohydrate dieters lost 14 pounds. By the end of two years, all dieters had regained some, but not all, of the lost weight. The low-fat dieters showed a net loss of six pounds, and the Mediterranean and low-carbohydrate dieters both lost about 10 pounds.
Researchers said the weight-loss results sound modest, but they had resulted in improvements in the ratios of good to bad cholesterol and other health markers. Critics have long acknowledged that an Atkins-style diet could help people lose weight but feared that over the long term, it may drive up cholesterol because it allows more fat. But the low-carb approach seemed to trigger the most improvement in several cholesterol measures, including the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL, the “good” cholesterol.
Psychologists Warn Against Therapy That Tries To Make Gays Straight
The American Psychological Association recently cautioned mental-health professionals that they should not tell gay clients they can become straight through therapy or other treatments. Instead, the group urged therapists to consider multiple options — that could range from celibacy to switching churches — for helping clients whose sexual orientation and religious faith conflict.
In a resolution adopted on a 125-to-4 vote by the group’s governing council and in a report based on two years of research, the 150,000-member association put itself on record as opposing “reparative therapy,” which seeks to change sexual orientation. No evidence exists that such a change is likely, says the report, and some research suggests efforts to produce change could be harmful, inducing depression and suicidal tendencies.
The group had criticized reparative therapy in the past, but a six-member task force added weight to this position by examining 83 studies on sexual-orientation change conducted since 1960. Its report was endorsed by the governing council. The report breaks new ground in its detailed and nuanced assessment of how therapists should deal with gay clients struggling to remain loyal to a religious faith that disapproves of homosexuality. In dealing with gay clients from conservative faiths, says the report, therapists should be “very cautious” about suggesting treatments aimed at altering their same-sex attractions.
One of the largest organizations promoting the possibility of changing sexual orientation is Exodus International, a network of ministries whose core message is “Freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ.” Its president, Alan Chambers, describes himself as someone who “overcame unwanted same-sex attraction.” He expressed satisfaction with parts of the report that emerged. “It’s a positive step; simply respecting someone’s faith is a huge leap in the right direction,” Chambers said. “But I’d go further. Don’t deny the possibility that someone’s feelings might change.”
Texting Drivers More Dangerous Than Drunks
Sending text messages from your mobile phone while driving is more dangerous than climbing behind the wheel under the influence of drink or drugs, a study by Britain’s Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) has found.
The reaction times of people texting as they drive fell by 35 percent, while those who had consumed the legal limit of alcohol, or taken cannabis, fell by 21 percent and 12 percent respectively. The study, which was commissioned by motoring group RAC Foundation, also found that the ability to stay in lanes or maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front was worse than drivers under the influence of cannabis.
“This research demonstrates how dangerous it is to drive and text,” TRL senior human factors researcher Nick Reed said in a statement. He said drivers who texted were distracted by taking their hand off the wheel to use their phone, by trying to read small text on the phone display, and by thinking about how to write their message. “This combination of factors resulted in the impairments to reaction times and vehicle control that place the driver at greater risk than having consumed alcohol to the legal limit for driving,” Reed said.
FDA Warns Against Using 28 Weight-Loss Products
If you’re looking for a little help shedding extra pounds, the US FDA is warning you to stay away from nearly 30 weight-loss products that contain unlimited and possibly dangerous ingredients, including high doses of a powerful anti-obesity drug with dangerous side effects as well as a suspected carcinogen.
The pills are advertised as “natural” fat busters and have intriguing names such as Imelda Perfect Slim and Zhen de Shou. Some are touted as new versions of “ancient remedies” from Asia, and many are mainly sold on the Internet.
The products include: Fatloss Slimming, 2 Day Diet, 3X Slimming Power, 5X Imelda Perfect Slimming, 3 Day Diet, Japan Lingzhi, 24 Hour Diet, 7 Diet Day/Night Formula, 7 Day Herbal Slim, 8 Factor Diet, 999 Fitness Essence, Extreme Plus, GMPm, and others.
Gamers Make Good Surgeons
Parents, don’t put away those videogames just yet. Today’s gamer may be tomorrow’s top surgeon.
Researchers in Boston detailed studies suggesting video games can be powerful learning tools — from increasing children’s problem-solving potential to improving the suturing skills of laparoscopic surgeons. One study even looked at whether playing “World of Warcraft,” the world’s biggest multiplayer online game, can improve scientific thinking. The conclusion? Certain types of video games can have benefits beyond the virtual thrills of blowing up demons.
Studies by Iowa State University psychologist Douglas Gentile and Dr. James Rosser, head of minimally invasive surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, compared surgeons who play video games to those who don’t. The edge went to gamer surgeons even after taking into account differences in age, years of medical training, and the number of laparoscopic surgeries performed. One study of 33 laparoscopic surgeons found that those who played video games were 27-percent faster at advanced surgical procedures and made 37-percent fewer errors than those who didn’t. Advanced video-game skills also were a good way to predict suturing abilities.
But the news wasn’t all good.
Other studies confirmed earlier research that found students who played violent games tended to be more hostile and less forgiving, and believed violence to be normal compared with those who played non-violent games. And those who played more entertainment games did poorer in school and were at greater risk of obesity.
And for those who want to know more about video games and its health problems in children, don’t miss next week’s column. It carries good advice on what parents should do.