Chocolate: Helps the Heart,
But Bad for Bones?
In the wake of evidence that consuming chocolate can
reduce the risk of certain heart ailments, new studies are
showing that the tasty treat may not be so good for the bones.
The findings showed that older women who ate some chocolate
every day had weaker, thinner bones than those who ate
chocolate less frequently—the relationship was independent
of other dietary factors. Although chocolates are rich in
flavonoids, they are high in oxalate, which blocks calcium
absorption, and sugar. The findings were published in the
January issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Researchers from the University of Western Australia School
of Medicine and Pharmacology in Perth studied the data on
1001 women aged 70 to 85 who were participating in a study
on calcium supplementation and fracture risk.Women who ate
chocolate every day matched those who ate less chocolate in
other daily consumptions. The chocolate eaters also weighed
less and had an overall lower average body mass index than
their peers. These women, however, had a 3.1% lower bone
density and weaker bones in the heel and shin than those who
ate less chocolate.
RA Treatment May Have Other Benefits
A team of doctors and scientists at the
University of Rochester Medical Center in
New York found that a category of medicine
used to treat patients with rheumatoid
arthritis (RA) also has a profound
positive effect on the immune system by
breaking up molecular clusters for rogue
cells that encourage autoimmune diseases
like RA. The medicines, known as
anti–tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF)
compounds, help eliminate abnormal
activity in germinal centers, which take
part in the development of many autoimmune
diseases. The findings were published
in the January 15 issue of the
Journal of Immunology.
The study was sponsored by a number
of arthritis organizations, and the researchers
found that anti-TNF drugs disrupt
structures in the lymph system
called germinal centers, which usually
appear at the onset of an illness to program
the body’s natural defense cells to
attack the illness. Normally, once the disease
has passed, the germinal centers
dissipate, but in autoimmune diseases,
they linger, causing the defense cells to
attack healthy tissue. Researchers found
that taking anti-TNF drugs inhibits the formation
of the "renegade" germinal centers,
affording the lymph system the
opportunity to recover from disease
properly.
Women Postpone
Knee Surgery
A study by the University of Delaware shows that women are
more likely to wait longer to undergo knee-replacement surgery
than men. Women tend to put the surgery off until they can no
longer tolerate the pain, but in doing so, they may be risking their
quality of life and mobility considerably. Researchers noted that
doctors sometimes give this advice to patients facing knee replacement,
which could do more harm than good.
The study, which was funded by a grant from the National
Institutes of Health, looked at 229 candidates for total knee
replacement, including 95 men and 126 women with osteoarthritis
(OA). They were compared with 44 healthy men and women who
matched them in age and body mass index. Each patient took part
in a series of physical tests (eg, stair climbing, 6-minute walk).
Although the men had more knee function than the women, the
women with OA showed a greater degree of disability and were all
found to have "painful, end-stage OA." The findings were reported
in the November 2007 issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint
Surgery.
Osteoporosis: It’s
Not Just for Women
Osteoporosis is usually proclaimed as being an afflicter of
women, but more attention is being drawn to the prevalence
of the disease among men as well. The National
Osteoporosis Foundation reports that 12 million men are at
risk and 2 million currently have osteoporosis, but it remains
greatly underdiagnosed and undertreated in men. They stated
that 1 in 5 men will develop osteoporosis and 1 in 4 will
suffer from a fracture related to the disease at some point.
Men tend to have larger, stronger bones than women,
which may explain why osteoporosis affects fewer men
than women. According to the National Institutes of
Health's Osteoporosis and Related Bone Disease National
Resource Center, the most common causes of secondary
osteoporosis in men include alcohol abuse; smoking;
chronic diseases that affect the kidneys, lungs, stomach,
intestines, and hormone levels; and lack of activity. Low levels
of testosterone and excessive loss of calcium in the
urine also can contribute to osteoporosis in men.
F A S T F A C T : According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the annual cost of arthritis to
the US economy was $128 billion in 2003.
