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Tag: medical study

  • Vitamin D Supplements May Prevent Cancer Deaths

    According to a new study published in the March issue of Anticancer Research, the International Journal of Cancer Research and Treatment, higher concentrations of vitamin D could help reduce mortality rates among breast cancer patients.

    In their study, titled “Meta-analysis of Vitamin D Sufficiency for Improving Survival of Patients with Breast Cancer,” researchers analyzed five different studies whose results were already known to discover a link between the presence of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and breast cancer mortality rates. The five studies reported hazard ratios (HRs) for mortality of breast cancer by concentrations of serum 25-hydroxvyvitamin D, which the researchers could then analyze.

    Researchers used a series of statistical methods elaborated more on in their study to compare low concentrations of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and high concentrations of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D to breast cancer mortality rates. In three of the studies, the rates of mortality were much lower in the high concentrations of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D compared to the low concentrations of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D. In the other two studies, there was a trend in that direction as well.

    In the discussion section, the researchers write, “Patients with the highest concentration of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D had approximately half the fatality rate of those with the lowest concentration.”

    What does this mean for breast cancer patients and their doctors?

    Sharif B. Mohr told Medscape Medical News, “Doctors should emphasize the importance of maintaining adequate serum vitamin D levels, which would be 40 to 60 ng/mL for cancer prevention, and encourage their patients to have their vitamin D status regularly checked, especially in winter, to ensure that adequate serum levels are being maintained.”

    And how does this relate to vitamin D supplements?

    While being in the sun naturally produces vitamin D in the human body, many work indoors, in cubicles where the most natural light is fluorescent, and time in the sun can vary according to the season. Vitamin D supplements can act as a stop-gap for anyone at risk of the variety of problems caused by vitamin D deficiency.

    Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, the study noted, with 1.7 million new cases worldwide and 500,000 deaths. The study notes that more research needs to be done to solidify the relationship between concentrations of vitamin D and breast cancer mortality rates, including a clinical trial to rule out other variables.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • ADHD Risk Factors Include Acetaminophen and Aging Dads

    Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a disorder that affects around five percent of children. ADHD can cause difficulty learning and inattentiveness, among other issues. There is no known single cause of ADHD, but researchers are continually trying to pinpoint factors that increase the likelihood of a child having ADHD. This week two studies were released that say acetaminophen taken during pregnancy and the age of the father can increase the chances of a child having ADHD.

    ACETAMINOPHEN

    Acetaminophen, the active ingredient found in the pain reliever Tylenol, has long been considered one of the safer drugs for women to take during pregnancy, but pregnant women may want to think twice before taking a dose of Tylenol for a mild headache. A study published earlier this week by JAMA Pediatrics found that taking acetaminophen during pregnancy is linked to ADHD.

    Dr. Jorn Olsen, one of the study’s authors, is quick to say that acetaminophen doesn’t directly cause ADHD, but he also notes that the use of acetaminophen increased the risk of ADHD from around five percent to seven percent in the study. “It’s still a modest increase,” Olsen said. “For the women that are taking these drugs there are no special reasons for concern….for women who are pregnant and who have not taken these drugs, I think that the take-home message would be a lot of the use of these particular drugs during pregnancy is not really necessary.”

    Olsen also notes that should further studies yield similar results, he would recommend removing acetaminophen from the safe list.

    PATERNAL AGE

    Most people know that the older a woman is, the more likely she is to give birth to a child that has a chromosomal abnormality or other birth defects, but what about the dad? A study from Indiana University that was released this week shows that a father’s age is linked to “higher rates of psychiatric and academic problems in offspring.” ADHD is included in the conditions linked to aging fathers, and the study found that a child who was conceived when the father was 45 is 13 times more likely to have ADHD.

    “We were shocked by the findings,” said Brian D’Onofrio, lead author and associate professor at IU Bloomington. “The specific associations with paternal age were much, much larger than in previous studies. In fact, we found that advancing paternal age was associated with greater risk for several problems, such as ADHD, suicide attempts and substance use problems, whereas traditional research designs suggested advancing paternal age may have diminished the rate at which these problems occur.”

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