Health Tips ... from UPI

GREEN TEA EXTRACT MAY BE ANTI-CANCER AGENT

California researchers find green tea extract interrupts a process that is crucial in allowing bladder cancer to become invasive and spread. "In effect, the green tea extract may keep the cancer cells confined and localized, where they are easier to treat and the prognosis is better," says JianYu Rao, of the University of California at Los Angeles Jonsson Cancer Center. "Cancer cells are invasive and green tea extract interrupts the invasive process of the cancer." The study, published in Clinical Cancer, proves for the first time that it is possible to target cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone, according to Rao.

EAR PLUGS URGED FOR ROCK CONCERTS

University of Toronto researchers recommend those attending rock concerts be provided ear plugs. The researchers distributed questionnaires at four rock concerts in Toronto -- some 200 questionnaires were completed representing a 75 percent response rate. The study, published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health, finds 74 percent of attendees thought it was likely or very likely that noise levels at music concerts could damage their hearing, but 80 percent said they never wore hearing protection at such events. "More than 40 percent said they would be willing to use hearing protection if it was provided for free at the concerts," says medical student Isaac Bogoch.

QUITTING SMOKING LOWERS DEATH RATE

A U.S. study of 5,887 middle-age smokers with mild lung disease finds those who were randomly assigned to a quit-smoking group had a lower death rate. After five years, 21.7 percent of the people in the special program had completely stopped smoking compared with 5.4 percent of people in the usual care group. The death rate in the group that received the smoking cessation program was about 15 percent. Not surprisingly, the benefit with respect to survival was largest among participants who actually stopped smoking: Their death rates were 46 percent lower than those of the people who continued to smoke, according to the study in Annals of Internal Medicine.

KIDNEY COOKBOOK

U.S. actor, singer and composer Isaac Hayes has written the forward and is promoting a cookbook geared for people with chronic kidney disease. Following the death of close friend and fellow soul music legend Barry White from chronic kidney disease, Hayes said he hoped his promotion of the cookbook would give people with chronic kidney disease a good reason to revive their passions for food and life. "Kidney Friendly Comfort Foods: A Collection of Recipes for Eating Well with Chronic Kidney Disease," is a cookbook that gives a low-phosphorus spin on some old favorite dishes, according to Hayes. Diet is a key part of managing kidney disease and an associated condition known as hyperphosphatemia -- high blood phosphorus levels.

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(EDITORS: For more information on GREEN TEA contact Kim Irwin (310) 206-2805 or kirwin@mednet.ucla.edu. For EAR PLUGS, Isaac Bogoch at (416) 923-3355 or ibogoch@hotmail.com. For SMOKING, Susan Anderson at (215) 351-2653 or sanderson@acponline.org. For COOKBOOK, contact (866) 896-6152 or PhosphorusControl.com or isaachayes.com)