Just Do It: Recent months have brought a new batch of studies touting the benefits of exercise. In one report, published in the June issue of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Johns Hopkins University researchers found that people over 55 who start an exercise program can expect to lose a significant amount of fat in six months, but not bone mass. These results contradict long-held concerns that losing fat might also mean losing bone. Even if fat protects bone, the study suggests that exercise can help bone and "offset the potential negative effects" of losing fat.

Another study, reported in the May 25 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, found that even a small amount of exercise - as little as three hours of walking a week - significantly extends survival among breast cancer patients. Moderate exercise may also reduce the risk of ovarian cancer, according to research published in the May issue of The International Journal of Cancer.

Meanwhile, a Dutch study, reported in the May issue of The Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, provides more evidence that staying active helps keep older adults mobile. The report found that people over 70 who aren't active are more likely to develop problems walking or climbing stairs, and suggest that "physical activity in old age is as important as taking your medications," according to the researchers. The study found that brisk walking and other regular exercise helps improve stamina, increase muscle mass and strength, and maintain balance and coordination.

Along similar lines, doctors from the Mayo Clinic advised older men and women to stay active, even if they can't perform the same exercises as easily or comfortably as they did in their younger days. In a letter which appeared in the March issue of the Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource, the doctors point out that, while the aging process is accompanied by many physiological changes, including decreased muscle mass and bone density, "by being physically active, you can help minimize nearly all of these aging effects." The authors suggest that older adults may need to modify exercise routines if they are limited by pain or discomfort, and that people should never consider themselves too old to start to begin exercising.

Exercisers Need Zinc: Active people who get too little zinc in their diets may run out of energy sooner than they should, according to a study published in the May issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Zinc is an essential mineral that stimulates activity in many of the body's enzymes, which act as catalysts for the biochemical processes that make the body run. Among participants in the study who followed a low-zinc diet, the enzymes in red blood cells that help the body expel carbon dioxide were less active. The result was that, during exercise, their bodies were "less efficient at getting rid of carbon dioxide," explained a researcher with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Human Nutrition Research Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The best way to get enough zinc is through foods such as red meat, fortified cereals and beans, according to the study.

The Wonders of Soy: Foods made from soy are the focus of several studies published this spring. One study has found that, when given in adequate doses to postmenopausal women, soy containing isoflavone can improve menopausal symptoms and related quality of life. "This is important because a lot of women are looking for a natural alternative to estrogen replacement therapy and our results suggest that soy is an option," said Dr. Kendall Dupree of Johns Hopkins University, who discussed the study's results at the Endocrine Society's 87th annual meeting in early June. Compared with placebo therapy, soy therapy led to a 40 percent reduction in psychosocial complaints involving mood and depression, a 36 percent reduction in hot flashes and night sweats, and a 30 percent reduction in low energy and other physical symptoms, Dupree reported. Another study, reported in the June issue of The Journal of the American College of Nutrition, found that eating soy-based foods can help lower cholesterol and blood sugar.

Vegetarian Diet Good for the Heart: A diet rich in vegetables, grains and legumes might be healthier for your heart than a conventional meat-based low-fat diet. In a study by Stanford University researchers, reported in the May 3 issue of The Annals of Internal Medicine, participants who followed a vegetarian diet full of whole grains and nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables lowered their LDL (or "bad") cholesterol by more than twice as much as those who ate a more conventional low-fat diet that avoided saturated fat and cholesterol-rich foods.

Vitamin E Fails to Stop Alzheimer's: Despite widespread belief in its usefulness, vitamin E supplements are no more effective than sugar pills in delaying the onset of Alzheimer's disease in people with mild memory changes, according to a study reported in April in The New England Journal of Medicine. The research also suggests that, for certain patients, the drug Aricept, which has been shown to moderate Alzheimer's symptoms after diagnosis of the disease, may also work to delay its onset. The research wsa funded in part by Pfizer and Eisai, the companies that manufacture and market Aricept.

Hold That Shot: Oral supplements of vitamin B12 appear to correct vitamin B12 deficiencies as well as B12 injections, according to Dutch study reported in the May 23 issue of The Archives of Internal Medicine. However, the researchers found that, in order to correct a deficiency, oral doses need to contain more than 200 times the recommended daily allowance of vitamin B12. Most people develop vitamin B12 deficiencies as a result of "malabsorption," in which their bodies become unable to extract vitamin B12 from food. A vitamin B12 deficiency is typically treated by monthly, often painful, shots. Despite the massive doses needed, oral medicine has the advantage of being easy to administer and painless, and no side effects have been reported.

New Technology Sniffs Lung Cancer: Researchers have developed an "electronic nose" that can identify patients with lung cancer by detecting specific compounds in their breath, according to a study reported in the June issue of The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. An electronic nose is a device that uses chemical vapor sensors to detect subtle differences in odorant molecules. In the study by researchers from the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, the nose correctly identified 71 percent of the people with lung cancer and 92 percent of those that did not have the disease.

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