CIRCUMCISION CUTS HIV RISK
Chicago researchers say circumcision can help men avoid human immunodeficiency virus -- HIV. Their study, in the September issue of the American Journal of Pathology, finds internal mucosal layers of foreskin are more susceptible to HIV infection than cervical tissue or the external layers of foreskin, explaining why uncircumcised men seem to have a two-fold to eight-fold higher risk for HIV. Researchers at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center, Children's Memorial Hospital and the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health say biological mechanisms are responsible for this protective effect. They say foreskin mucosa -- cells underneath the surface -- contain high concentrations of the cells targeted by HIV.
ANTIDEPRESSANT HELP KICK SPIT HABIT
Bupropion, an antidepressant known to help smokers quit, also could help spit tobacco users kick that habit. Study participants in the Mayo Clinic project in Rochester, Minn., were randomly assigned to take either bupropion or a placebo for 12 weeks. At the 12-week mark, 44 percent in the bupropion group were abstinent compared with 26 percent in the placebo group. Also, those who took bupropion gained less weight during the period -- an average of 1.54 pounds compared with 9.7 pounds. Researchers says the finding is important because none of the other agents that help smokers quit -- patches and gum -- have been shown to be as effective for spit tobacco users.
GIRLS LESS ACTIVE IN ADOLESCENCE
African-American and white girls show a dramatic decline in physical activity during adolescence but black girls have the greatest reduction in exercise and activity. A study supported by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, conducted by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, says by ages 16 or 17, 56 percent of black girls and 31 percent of white girls report having no regular leisure-time physical activity. The study links lower levels of parental education to activity decline in white girls of all ages and in black girls ages 13 to 17. Pregnancy was a factor among black but not white girls. Cigarette smoking was a predictor in white girls only, as relatively few black girls in the study smoked.
ALTERNATIVE THERAPY HELPS CANCER PATIENTS
More than 70 percent of some 300 adult cancer patients surveyed in western Washington state use alternative therapies and almost all report substantial improvements in well being. The survey by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center says depending on the type of therapy, 83 percent to 97 percent of patients said they used alternative medicine for general health and nearly all reported improved feeling better. Between 8 percent and 56 percent used alternative interventions to treat their cancer and those who had multiple therapies -- chemotherapy, radiation, surgery -- were twice as likely to do so as those who had surgery alone. While some used a naturopathic doctor, spiritual adviser, massage therapist, mental or energy-based therapy such as biofeedback, hypnotism, guided imagery or magnets, the most common form of alternative treatment was dietary supplements, which were taken by 65 percent.
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(EDITORS, For more information on CIRCUMCISION, contact Chris Martin at 312-942-7820 or e-mail at [email protected]. For TOBACCO, contact Shelly Plutowski at 507-284-5005 or e-mail at [email protected]. For ACTIVITY, call the NHLBI at 301-496-4236 or go to nhlbi.nih.gov, and for CANCER, contact Kristen Woodward at 206-667-5095 or e-mail at
