Health Tips ... from UPI

FOLIC ACID MAY HELP CUT HYPERTENSION

Boston researchers find higher folate intake is associated with decreased risk of hypertension in women. Dr. John P. Forman, of Brigham and Women's Hospital, analyzed data from two studies of 93,803 women ages 27 to 44 years in the Nurses' Health Study II -- 1991-1999 -- and 62,260 women ages 43 to 70 years in the Nurses' Health Study I -- 1990-1998. The study, in the Journal of the American Medical Association, finds younger women who consumed at least 1,000 micrograms a day of total folate -- dietary plus supplemental -- had a 46 percent decreased risk of hypertension, compared to those who consumed less than 200 micrograms a day of total folate, also known as folic acid. High amounts of folic acid are non-toxic, however, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta recommends women consume no more than 1,000 micrograms of synthetic folic acid a day.

PREGNANCY VITAMIN C INTAKE LINKED TO WHEEZE

U.S. researchers showed total maternal vitamin C intake was positively associated with wheeze in certain infants. Some 1,300 women answered a 145-item food frequency questionnaire used to characterize diet during pregnancy, were tested for allergic reactions, had blood antioxidant levels measured, and completed follow-up health questionnaires about their children until age 2. The investigators find in the second year of life, 77 children were reported to have wheezed in the absence of a cold. The study appears in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

SOME BITTEN MORE BY MOSQUITOES

British researchers believe they have determined why some people get bitten by mosquitoes more than others. The findings, published in Business, the quarterly magazine of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, could lead to new types of insect repellent. James Logan, a research student at the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council-sponsored institute Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire, England, says some people give off "masking" odors -- or chemical signals -- that prevent mosquitoes from finding them. Logan, along with Jenny Mordue at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, say the findings suggest this is from compounds that switch off attraction either by acting as repellents or by masking the attractant components of human odor.

SENIORS AT GREATER RISK FOR HYPOTHERMIA

Every year hypothermia kills about 600 U.S. adults, and those over age 65 are at highest risk, says the National Institute on Aging. Hypothermia, when normal body temperature drops from 98.6 degrees F. to 95 degrees F., is a greater risk for older people because their body's response to cold is diminished by certain illnesses, such as arthritis, as well as medications. Changes in a person's behavior may indicate the cold is affecting how well their muscles and nerves work. If someone's body temperature is 96 degrees F. or lower, call 911 for emergency help. Wrap the person in blankets, towels and coats, the NIA advises.

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(EDITORS: For more information on FOLIC ACID, contact Amy Dayton Smith at (617) 534-1603. For WHEEZE, Cathy Carlomagno at (212) 315-6442 or ccarlomagno@thoracic.org. For HYPOTHERMIA, call the National Institute on Aging at (800) 222-2225)