Lutein May Lower Heart-Disease Risk

ALHAMBRA, Calif.-- In a study in the June 19 issue of Circulation (103: 2922, 2001) (http://circ.ahajournals.org), researchers found that lutein inhibited the onset of atherosclerosis. During an 18-month period, it was found that people with the highest levels of lutein did not experience increased levels of arterial plaque, an indication of atherosclerosis. However, subjects with the lowest lutein in their blood experienced increased plaque levels. In simultaneous animal and "test tube" experiments, lutein exhibited similar beneficial behavior.

Probiotic Milk May Hold Promise

HELSINKI, Finland-- According to a study in the June 2 British Medical Journal (322: 1327-29, 2001) (www.bmj.com), children who consume probiotic milk may ward off the germs of other children in daycare.

Compared to the group drinking regular milk, children who had consumed the probiotic milk reduced both the number of days being sick and the number of days missing school. The researchers concluded that probiotic-supplemented milk may not only reduce the occurrence of these conditions, but also the severity of these illnesses.

JAMA: Herb Use May Affect Surgery

CHICAGO-- In the July 11 Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) (286:208-16, 2001), researchers found that certain herbs may interfere with surgery. According to a review conducted by researchers led by Michael Ang-Lee from the University of Chicago, echinacea, ephedra, garlic, ginkgo, ginseng, kava, St. John's wort and valerian were all found to be causes of concern during post-op recovery.

According to this review, researchers concluded that complications occur during surgery because of the anti-clotting attributes of garlic, ginkgo and ginseng; the "cardiovascular instability" of ephedra; and the onset of hypoglycemia from ginseng. Additionally, herb-drug interactions between kava and valerian may heighten the effects of anesthesia. And, as it has been stated in other studies, St. John's wort may increase the absorption rate of various prescriptive drugs.

The authors concluded that physicians should be aware of the effects of these herbs on their patients' recovery rates and be proactive by asking their patients pre-surgery if they are taking any herbs. This study can be found on the JAMA site (http://jama.ama-assn.org).

STUDY BRIEFS

Colostrum May Promote Lean Body Mass in Active Individuals

NEWARK, Del. --In the March journal of Nutrition (17: 243-7, 2001) (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov), a new study reported that bovine-colostrum supplementation may increase lean body mass in active men and women.

Pycnogenol^® May Reverse Vision Loss

L'AQUILA, Italy-- In a study published in the May Phytotherapy Research (15: 219-23, 2001) (http://www3.interscience.wiley.com), it was found that French maritime pine bark extract (Pycnogenol^®) may stymie disease-related vision deterioration.

Researchers, led by Leopoldo Spadea, M.D., concluded that the antioxidant properties in the extract (oligomeric procyanidins) cleaned up the overproduction of oxygen that is usually involved in many age-related eye diseases.

Licorice May Induce Early Labor

HELSINKI-- Research in the June American Journal of Epidemiology (153, 11:1085-8, 2001) (www.aje.oupjournals.org) reported that pregnant women consuming glycyrrhizin, a glucose of licorice, may deliver earlier babies. Women who had a high intake of licorice (more than 500 mg/week) delivered babies, on average, two days earlier. Licorice consumption did not affect birth weight or the mothers' blood pressure.

Study Shows CLA Takes Inches Off Waist

UPPSALA, Sweden-- Results from a study published in the August International Journal of Obesity (25 (8):1129-35, 2001) (www.iaso.org) concluded that overweight men with significant waists may lose some girth through CLA supplementation.

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