OK it's not Saturday night but check this out !

Mind blowing, Eddie. Passion: Peter Gabriel, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan & Baaba Maal

Taking a new drug is a step into the unknown -- and here's your proof !

Fast track folly

I think it’s time for an intervention.

It’s a hard decision to make. It’s even harder to get friends and family together to confront someone who’s out of control.

But we have to do it.

It’s time to sit down with the FDA and just lay it out… “You’re out of control. You’re hurting others.”

Of course, the FDA has gone so far around the bend, it might actually be too late for tough love to have any effect.

Unfortunately, the agency won’t suffer. Not at all. The U.S. public is going to get the bad end on this deal. And the damage could go on for many years.

Dragging us down the primrose pathway

A new study from Canada might give you a bit of déjà vu.

Researchers followed the history of more than 400 drugs approved in Canada over a 15-year period.

Results…

• One of every four drugs was either removed from market or serious safety warnings were added
• One of every two drugs given fast track approval required safety intervention
• Seven of every 10 drugs given fast track approval did not represent a “major therapeutic advance”

These results parallel the approval trends we’ve seen with the FDA. And it’s about to get worse. Much worse.

The Archives of Internal Medicine (AIM) published the Canadian study. In the same issue, an editorial reveals these four disturbing provisions in the FDA’s Expedited Drug Development Pathway…

1) Reduce number and size of clinical trials

2) Require less evidence of efficacy

3) Begin drug approval reviews BEFORE completion of testing

4) Set short review deadlines

So instead of reforming this process to protect consumers, the FDA is streamlining it to make it easier. And you know who benefits from that: Drug companies.

Of course, the FDA requires follow up safety trials for all of these fast-tracked drugs. That makes it SEEM like safety is still a key concern. But the British Medical Journal has blown the lid on that fantasy.

As I mentioned recently, studies in the BMJ reveal chronic “incomplete data disclosure” in clinical trials. To put it more bluntly… Drug company trials can’t be trusted.

So with zero trust, what can we do? The AIM editorial offers an interesting suggestion. Put a warning on every new drug that reads, “New Drug: Caution Indicated.”

I like the idea, but those four mild words don’t even begin to communicate the frightening reality. And that’s something EVERY patient needs to be aware of, in no uncertain terms.

Sources:

New Drug: Caution Indicated Comment on “New Drugs and Safety”

http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1377413

New Drugs and SafetyWhat Happened to New Active Substances Approved in Canada Between 1995 and 2010?

http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1377415

Just  how many new diabetic drugs are in the pipeline?

Graham

Naivety of Diabetics and the Medical Profession

In response to a comment on the post:

http://thelowcarbdiabetic.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/hands-up-all-those-who-still-believe-in.html


 You must be rather naïve if you expect read in any publication associated with the medical profession, the connection between carbohydrate intake and diabetes complications. That would be tantamount to admitting years of failure of public policy based on a belief in medication alone – oral for Type 2, insulin for Type 1.

 Previous posts on this blog have referenced the ineffectiveness of the medication and the educational courses DESMOND and DAFNE. Until the medical profession (and the diabetics themselves) realise it is extremely unlikely (if not impossible) for the majority of diabetics to eat a ‘normal’ meal and achieve ‘normal’ blood glucose levels. Individuals may protest that they can do so, but the majority?

http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/Services/NCASP/Diabetes/201011%20annual%20reports/National_Diabetes_Audit_2010_2011_Report1_Care_Processes_And_Treatment_Targets_V3.pdf

 with the following results:

http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/Services/NCASP/Diabetes/201011%20annual%20reports/2010-11%20Report%202/NDA_10_11_Report_2_Complications_and_Mortality.pdf


 In response to the attitude of the medical profession: in any other aspect of public policy, years of failure would have led to a fundamental review of the policy. And yet, new oral medications continue to be developed offering marginal improvement in HbA1c, courses are offered for advice on the use of insulin for ‘NORMAL’ meals and the appalling statistics for HbA1c and complications continue.

 Does anybody at NICE or even your GP review these statistics and ponder why? How many more years are thousand s of diabetics to be condemned to a lifetime of pain and suffering or even an early death? Are those spuds worth it?

 John

Barry Groves - GI Blues: What's Wrong With The Glycaemic Index

Hands Up All Those Who Still Believe in 100 - 150 g Per Day

Depressing  reading for all those forum members who prefer their readings to be coated with cuddly cats and recipes

http://www.diabetes.org.uk/Documents/Reports/Diabetes-in-the-UK-2012.pdf

John

People with diabetes 48% more likely to suffer heart attack, researchers find

National diabetes audit paints worrying picture of how condition increases risk of complications such as kidney failure.

People with diabetes are 48% more likely to suffer a heart attack than the general population, according to one of the largest research projects into the health and care of people with the disease.

The national diabetes audit, published on Monday, examined the NHS's treatment of almost 2 million people with diabetes in England and Wales in 2010-11. It paints a worrying picture of how the condition sharply increases the risk of other complications, some potentially fatal.

The audit, undertaken by the NHS's Health and Social Care Information Centre, the charity Diabetes UK and the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership, also found people with diabetes were 65% more likely to have heart failure, 144% more at risk of needing kidney dialysis or a kidney transplant, 210% more likely to have a leg amputated above or below the knee , 331% more likely to need part of a foot removed and 25% more at risk of suffering a stroke.

The findings have increased calls for the NHS to improve the care of people with diabetes, as numbers rise sharply, mainly as a result of the increase in obesity.

It found they were 48% more likely to have a heart attack, for example. In 2010-11 a total of 14,500 people with diabetes suffered a heart attack compared with the 9,800 that would be expected to occur in the general population.

In 2011 65,700 people with diabetes died, compared with the 47,000 that would have been anticipated in the general population – equivalent to an extra risk of 40%. Those with type 1 diabetes have a far greater extra risk of dying early (135%) than those with type 2 (36%).

About 90% of the UK's 3.7m cases involve type 2 diabetes, which is closely linked to people's lifestyles, especially obesity, whereas type 1 is an auto-immune condition unrelated to people's behaviour. Diabetes UK believes there are 850,000 people with undiagnosed diabetes.

Barbara Young, Diabetes UK's chief executive, said it was shocking that people with diabetes were almost 50% more likely to have a heart attack. She said many of the cases could be prevented with better education, treatment and care.

"This report is not just a wake-up call for diabetes-related heart disease. It lays bare how people with diabetes are at greatly increased risk of complications such as amputation, stroke, kidney failure and blindness. As well as the devastating effects these are having on people's quality of lives, diabetes is causing too many people to die as a result of these complications of stroke, heart disease and kidney disease," said Young.

The NHS needed to do more to ensure that many more patients received checks that all are meant to receive to help them manage their condition, such as of their cholesterol and blood pressure. Care is so variable that 80% of the £10bn a year the NHS spends treating diabetes goes on complications – "a tragic example of short-termism that barely half of people with the condition are getting the nine checks that could prevent many of these complications", added Young.

Jeremy Hunt, the health secretary, said that while care of diabetes had improved "there is still unacceptable variation and we are determined to put that right". Government-imposed changes to the GP contract for 2013-14 for England's 36,000 family doctors would mean that GPs would receive payments in return for doing more to help people with diabetes achieve better control of their glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and for sending them for a dietary review, for example.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/dec/10/diabetics-heart-attack

Serum Magnesium and Dyslipidemia in Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus !

Abstract
Hypomagnesaemia is a common feature in patients with type-2 diabetes. It may be a cause or
consequence of diabetes. This study was designed to find out the serum magnesium levels and
its influence on serum lipids, in type 2 diabetics and how it is associated with the duration &
complication of the disease. 45 known diabetic patients and 25 controls were taken for the
study in and around Puducherry. The mean length of time the patients were diagnosed as diabetics
were, 7.28 (± 2.1) years. This period was taken as the duration of disease. The serum
magnesium and HDLc were significantly lowered (p<0.001) and all other lipid profile levels
(TG, TCh, LDLc, VLDLc) were significantly higher (p<0.001) in cases. Our correlation study
revealed a significant negative association between Serum Magnesium (Mg) and fasting plasma
glucose and duration of the disease expressing its role in complication processes. Serum
Mg also depicted significant negative relation with TG and VLDLc (r= -0.519,r = -0.518) and
positive relation with serum HDLc (r =0.741), which explains associative evidence of its role in
dyslipidemia. Our study substantiates the known importance of Mg supplementation in diabetics
to prevent complications.

Full study
http://biomedres.info/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/295-300-Sasmitadoc.100231004.pdf

Graham

Women are more likely to enjoy food if they think it is bad for them.

One might assume a woman’s enjoyment of sweet treats like chocolate would be marred by the depressing mantra, “a minute on the lips and a lifetime on the hips.”

But according to a new study, the very guilt associated with indulging in forbidden foods can in fact enhance women’s enjoyment of them.

Researchers found that the perception of the food as somehow “sinful” meant the woman was “primed” to take more pleasure in it.

When women know the food is not bad for them, they could find it less tasty as their “expectation of pleasure” is lowered beforehand, it was suggested.

More here.

Don't try this at home !

Anecdotal evidence suggests cannabis may have beneficial effects for Type 2 diabetics, my excuse for this video!

http://dvd.sagepub.com/content/10/6/267.abstracthttp://dvd.sagepub.com/content/10/6/267.abstract

Graham

Youssou 'Ndour she doesn't need to fall. The guv.

Carlos Santana and Wayne Shorter. Two of the best musicians on the planet !

Saturday night is music night !

John

Wilson Pickett - Ninety-Nine And A Half just won't do !

When you are kicking butt, and fighting the lowcarb cause, you have gotta give it 100%,  99 and a half just won’t do ! Eddie

John Martyn - Small Hours (1978)

John Martyn another musical genius and one off, sadly passed on, like so many of the music greats, he hit the check out button and moved on. Check this vid out, one man, one guitar and a rudimentary rhythm box and echo machine. If this does not get to you, check your pulse. Eddie

Hawkwind guitarist, Huw Lloyd Langton, dies aged 61.

Dedicated to Huw Lloyd Langton, Hawkwind guitarist who sadly died this week, RIP.

Vegetarians call for a Bacon Ban !

Vegetarians based in Altrincham, Cheshire, have asked for a complete ban on bacon following the alarming news that more vegetarians have fallen off the wagon due to thinly sliced meat than for any other reason.

"It's the smell of cooking bacon," said Harry Cowes, chair of the Vegetarians. "It drives people wild."

The Vegetarians have pointed at the blanket ban on all pig products in Israel as a way forward.

"In case anybody is even tempted to make their bacon from bits of pig," said Cowes, "they've put a blanket ban in place. I can see the headline: Pigs in Blanket Ban."

The Bacon Society have hit back at the Vegetarians by putting a hot food snack bar van across the road from the Vegetarians' main headquarters in Altrincham. They cook and sell endless bacon butties at vastly reduced prices.

"We've asked the police if they can move them on," said Cowes. "But apparently, they have a licence, and are perfectly entitled to sell bacon sandwiches at that spot. I think the police like have cheap bacon baps. Cannibalism, I call it. We're trying through the courts to at least have the fans turned off that blow the smell of cooking bacon in our direction."

With two legal battles on their hands, one calling for a Bacon Ban, and the other calling for the Bacon Van Fan to be Banned, the Vegetarians' funds are rapidly dwindling.

"I'm afraid we're going to have to double the price of broccoli," said Cowes. "And maybe even carrots. There's no point increasing the price of radishes, as nobody has eaten one since 1978."

http://www.thespoof.co.uk/news/uk/110188/vegetarians-call-for-a-bacon-ban

Graham

Sid Bonkers wins Wallycorker Prize !

In an unprecedented move, the trustees of the Wallycorker foundation have awarded the highly prestigious Wallycorker medal to Sid Bonkers at diabetes.co.uk. Rarely is the award given to a member who has not been banned. And never has the award been given to a  lowcarb anti and sat fat will kill ya guru.

Chairman of the board of trustees. Roger (keto warrior) Jenkins, who abstained from the vote by the trustees, stated today “no man is beyond redemption and Sid’s stunning Moussaka post together with an excellent photograph was arguably the best lowcarb recipe post in the history of diabetes.co.uk”

Evidently the reason Sid was put up for the award, was the fact his not lowcarb, portion control dietary regime, is now being advised by a new diabetes forum. This decision was bitterly opposed by long time lowcarb legend Monty Beantipper, who had to be physically restrained, by four security guards using a can of mace and a base ball bat. Strange times indeed.

The recipe is here.

The Sun

Cholesterol the biggest fraud in history !

The more you look into the murky world surrounding cholesterol numbers, and the $30 billion a year statin industry, the more you are amazed how a fraud of such gigantic proportions ever got off the ground. One reading of Dr. Malcolm Kendrick’s book The Cholesterol Con is enough to convince any straight thinking person, statins are the very last thing you need if you want to stay healthy. A few years ago after reading the book, my first thoughts were Kendrick is right, swiftly followed by how come he is still allowed to practice as a GP, how come he had not been struck off. The trouble is, especially in the world of medicine, if you go against the mainstream of medical opinion and especially against the monumental power of big pharma you can rapidly become a marked man. Kendrick has not been struck off, could it be many others believe he is right, could it be the MONICA study proved he was right, could it be NICE knows he is right. Here is what NICE say about cholesterol levels in relation to clinical events.

“The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) does not recommend the use of target levels of cholesterol for people taking statins for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease. This is because it found no clinical trials in primary prevention that have evaluated the relative and absolute benefits of achieving different cholesterol targets in relation to clinical events.”

So, no one has ever proved the lowering of cholesterol levels has any improvement  in health outcomes. As Kendrick said years ago, statins may change what is on your death certificate, but the date of death will probably be the same. So, if you accept statins have not been proved to improve your health, what about the side effects that almost all drugs bring. Well, there is a massive amount of evidence to support they can bring life changing side effects, and the side effects list is long. Don’t get conned, do not aide and abet the fraud.

The last word to Dr. John Briffa.

“Sometimes when talking to someone about their cholesterol, I ask them to ask me what my cholesterol is. Then I answer: “I have no idea, because I never have it checked.” That’s not because I take an ostrich-like stance on matters that relate to my health – it’s because the great likelihood is that knowing my cholesterol numbers would not lead to me having a different view on my health or have any bearing on how I live my life. End of.”


Eddie

NICE 

Dr. Briffa

Gladstone scientists discover novel mechanism by which calorie restriction influences longevity !

Breakthrough suggests way to protect cells from damage caused by chronic disease.

  

SAN FRANCISCO, CA—December 6, 2012—Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes have identified a novel mechanism by which a type of low-carb, low-calorie diet—called a "ketogenic diet"—could delay the effects of aging. This fundamental discovery reveals how such a diet could slow the aging process and may one day allow scientists to better treat or prevent age-related diseases, including heart disease, Alzheimer's disease and many forms of cancer.

As the aging population continues to grow, age-related illnesses have become increasingly common. Already in the United States, nearly one in six people are over the age of 65. Heart disease continues to be the nation's number one killer, with cancer and Alzheimer's close behind. Such diseases place tremendous strain on patients, families and our healthcare system. But today, researchers in the laboratory of Gladstone Senior Investigator Eric Verdin, MD, have identified the role that a chemical compound in the human body plays in the aging process—and which may be key to new therapies for treating or preventing a variety of age-related diseases.

In the latest issue of the journal Science, available online today, Dr. Verdin and his team examined the role of the compound β-hydroxybutyrate (βOHB), a so-called "ketone body" that is produced during a prolonged low-calorie or ketogenic diet. While ketone bodies such as βOHB can be toxic when present at very high concentrations in people with diseases such as Type I diabetes, Dr. Verdin and colleagues found that at lower concentrations, βOHB helps protect cells from "oxidative stress"—which occurs as certain molecules build to toxic levels in the body and contributes to the aging process.

"Over the years, studies have found that restricting calories slows aging and increases longevity—however the mechanism of this effect has remained elusive" Dr. Verdin said. Dr. Verdin, the paper's senior author, directs the Center for HIV & Aging at Gladstone and is also a professor at the University of California, San Francisco, with which Gladstone is affiliated. "Here, we find that βOHB—the body's major source of energy during exercise or fasting—blocks a class of enzymes that would otherwise promote oxidative stress, thus protecting cells from aging."

Oxidative stress occurs as cells use oxygen to produce energy, but this activity also releases other potentially toxic molecules, known as free radicals. As cells age, they become less effective in clearing these free radicals—leading to cell damage, oxidative stress and the effects of aging.

However, Dr. Verdin and his team found that βOHB might actually help delay this process. In a series of laboratory experiments—first in human cells in a dish and then in tissues taken from mice—the team monitored the biochemical changes that occur when βOHB is administered during a chronic calorie-restricted diet. The researchers found that calorie restriction spurs βOHB production, which blocked the activity of a class of enzymes called histone deacetylases, or HDACs.

Normally HDACs keep a pair of genes, called Foxo3a and Mt2, switched off. But increased levels of βOHB block the HDACs from doing so, which by default activates the two genes. Once activated, these genes kick-start a process that helps cells resist oxidative stress. This discovery not only identifies a novel signaling role for βOHB, but it could also represent a way to slow the detrimental effects of aging in all cells of the body.

"This breakthrough also greatly advances our understanding of the underlying mechanism behind HDACs, which had already been known to be involved in aging and neurological disease," said Gladstone Investigator Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, an expert in neurological diseases and one of the paper's co-authors. "The findings could be relevant for a wide range of neurological conditions, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, autism and traumatic brain injury—diseases that afflict millions and for which there are few treatment options."

"Identifying βOHB as a link between caloric restriction and protection from oxidative stress opens up a variety of new avenues to researchers for combating disease," said Tadahiro Shimazu, a Gladstone postdoctoral fellow and the paper's lead author. "In the future, we will continue to explore the role of βOHB—especially how it affects the body's other organs, such as the heart or brain—to confirm whether the compound's protective effects can be applied throughout the body."

###

Matthew Hirschey, PhD; John Newman, MD, PhD; Wenjuan He, PhD; Kotaro Shirakawa, PhD; Natacha Le Moan, PhD; Carrie Grueter, PhD; Hyungwook Lim, PhD; Laura Saunders, PhD; Robert V. Farese, Jr., MD; and Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, also participated in this research at Gladstone. This research was supported by the Gladstone Institutes.

About the Gladstone Institutes

Gladstone is an independent and nonprofit biomedical-research organization dedicated to accelerating the pace of scientific discovery and innovation to prevent, treat and cure cardiovascular, viral and neurological diseases. Gladstone is affiliated with the University of California, San Francisco.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-12/gi-gsd120512.php

Graham

Expenditure on the NHS in real terms was lower in 2011-12 than it was in 2009-10

The chair of the UK Statistics Authority has refuted Government claims that it has increased spending on the NHS.

Following a complaint by shadow health secretary Andy Burnham, Andrew Dilnot said he ‘concludes that expenditure on the NHS in real terms was lower in 2011-12 than it was in 2009-10’.

He has asked health secretary Jeremy Hunt to ‘clarify’ statements on the Conservative website claiming ‘we have increased the NHS budget in real terms in each of the last two years’.

Mr Hunt himself told MPs on 23 October that ‘real-terms spending on the NHS has increased across the country’.

The scale of the reduction in NHS spending is very small, but taken alongside the expected Office for Budget Responsibility report showing borrowing rising, it shows that the Prime Minister is not meeting his promise at the start of 2010 to cut the deficit, and not the NHS.

More on this story here.

The crazy world of diabetes !

Imagine my joy a few weeks ago, when I heard a new diabetes forum was starting up. Not only starting up, but wanted me as board member of a planned charity. Normally these days I would have said thank you, but forums are not my thing. My time on various forums is well documented, some say I am the most banned man in the UK. But this time I thought the new forum would be very different. This new forum was being started by a group of staunch lowcarbers, arguably the most pro lowcarb and hardest fighting team in the history of the diabetes.co.uk forum. What could possibly go wrong ?

Well a lot did go wrong, as much of the grief regarding board members, and the direction of the forum was behind closed doors, I’ll leave it that way. But I wanted no part as board member and resigned. Somewhat disappointing for me, but hey this was about helping others wasn’t it ? So, as a forum member I started posting content I thought would be of interest to other members and other diabetics looking in. Well the members seemed to be happy with my posts, the thank you’s and Karma came pouring in and things were going well, not quite. Some board members felt my posts were ‘good stuff and brilliant’ but my style wasn’t up to the required standard. I was making statements, when asking questions was maybe less confrontational. OK I let it go, and noted ‘must try harder’ in my school report book.

Well I tried, but clearly I was a marked man. I had been very critical behind the scenes, and payback was coming my way. On Sunday a new member asked for some basic advice re diet and how to use a meter etc. The member was given a link to here  I posted a link to here which I thought fitted in nicely with the welcome link. My post was immediately deleted. Via an email I was told something along the lines of, as a board member you should not be seen to be going against the general ethos of the other board members. I had resigned three days before. It was not my decision not to inform the members I had left the board. Indeed, I had to issue an ultimatum on Sunday, that if it was not announced  by midnight, I would announce my leaving the board myself. The announcement was made, I could now post as a member. I hoped to generate some debate, in an open forum. I posted up posts that I believe kept within the forum rules. I was not abusive, I have stated on the forum how anyone controls their diabetes is cool with me, but many do not control their diabetes to safe levels. Many are under the illusion that certain BG numbers are safe, when they are anything but. Misinformation, post editing and deletion was not a thing I expected to see on the new forum.

What staggers me is a group of people who fought so hard against the lowcarb antis, and their ludicrous dietary dogma on the diabetes.co.uk forum, have put in place guidelines that would meet with the antis full approval. The Sid Bonkers portion control method, that was so argued against, and dismissed as useless for so many diabetics, is now being pushed as a good start point, but a higher amount of carbs has been suggested.

As an aside, the level of post deletion that was deemed to be unacceptable at diabetes.co.uk, is already a feature at ETYM. This post was deleted twice last night. I received an email stating “Eddie, I have removed your post temporarily. Re posting it is in no ones best interest. If cleared your post will be reinstalled“. Defren.

“Clearly my position is untenable here. So I will leave the forum.

May I take this opportunity to wish all the very best of luck and good health.

Kind regards Eddie”

As of the time of writing this post (20 hours later) it has not been re-instated. Why was a post wishing people good luck and good health deemed to be worthy of deleting ? Even in the Stalinist days of Cugila, I think my post would have stood as posted. Interesting days ahead.

As always, feel free to argue your case over here.

Eddie

The eat to your meter forum !

Clearly my position is untenable here. So I will leave the forum.

May I take this opportunity to wish all the very best of luck and good health.

Kind regards Eddie

Cholesterol Myths that May Surprise You !

Life insurance companies know a surprising secret about cholesterol that most doctors never tell patients: When it comes to rating your risk for a fatal heart attack, the least important cholesterol number is your level of LDL (bad) cholesterol. In fact, life insurance actuaries don’t even look at LDL levels, because large studies show it’s the worst predictor of heart attack risk.

Instead, life insurance companies use a simple math formula to rate your heart attack risk: They divide your total cholesterol by the level of HDL (good) cholesterol.

“If the ratio is below three, and there’s no inflammation in your arteries, you’re practically bulletproof against heart attacks and strokes, even if your LDL is high,” reports Amy Doneen, MSN, ARNP, medical director of the Heart Attack & Stroke Prevention Center in Spokane, Washington.

Here’s a look at eight common cholesterol myths.

Myth: Cholesterol is inherently evil.

Fact: You couldn’t survive without cholesterol, since this waxy substance produced by the liver plays many essential roles in our body, from waterproofing cell membranes to helping produce vitamin D, bile acids that help you digest fat, and sex hormones, including testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone.

Cholesterol is ferried through your body by molecular “submarines” called lipoproteins, such as low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL).

Cholesterol: The Good, The Bad, The Essential

Myth: Low cholesterol is always a sign of good health.

Fact: Although low levels of LDL cholesterol are usually healthy, a new studyreports that people who develop cancer typically have lower LDL in the years prior to diagnosis than those who don’t get cancer.

Researchers compared 201 cancer patients to 402 control patients without cancer, matched by such factors as age, gender, smoking, blood pressure, diabetes, and body mass index. None of the patients had taken statins.

Thirteen earlier randomized clinical trials of statin therapy also found a link between low LDL and cancer, causing medical debate about whether statins raise risk. The new study suggests that an unknown biological mechanism—rather than cholesterol-lowering medication—may be the culprit. 

Myth: High LDL means you could be headed for a heart attack.

Fact: Nearly 75 percent of people hospitalized for a heart attack have LDL (bad) cholesterol levels that fall within current recommended targets, and close to half have “optimal” levels, according to a national study of about 136,000 people. The researchers also reported that levels of protective HDL (good) cholesterol have dropped in heart attack patients over the last several years, probably due to the rise in obesity, diabetes, and insulin resistance. Only 2 percent of the patients studied had ideal levels of both LDL and HDL.

Myth: All LDL particles are equally dangerous.

Fact: The size of the particles matters, says Doneen. “Think of beach balls and bullets. Some LDL particles are small and dense, making it easier for them to penetrate the arterial lining and form plaque, while others are big and fluffy, so they tend to bounce off the artery walls.”

People who mostly have small, dense LDL cholesterol are up to three times more likely to have heart attacks than those with big, fluffy particles.

Find Foods that Lower Cholesterol but Keep Flavor

Myth: Americans have the world’s highest cholesterol levels.

Fact: Contrary to the stereotype that most of us are just a few big Macs away from a heart attack, US men rank 83^rd in the world in average total cholesterol and US women 81^st, according to the World Health Organization. For both sexes, the average is 197 mg/dL, slightly below the borderline high range (200 to 239 mg/dL).

In Colombia, men average a whopping 244 mg/dL—a level that doubles heart-disease risk—while Israeli, Libyan, Norwegian, and Uruguayan women are in a four-way tie for the highest average with 232.

Myth: Triglycerides trigger heart disease.

Fact: “Triglycerides, a type of blood fat, don’t invade the artery wall and form plaque,” explains Doneen. “However, high triglycerides mark another huge problem: insulin resistance, a pre-diabetic condition that is the root cause of 70 percent of heart attacks.”

High triglycerides are also one of the warning signs of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of abnormalities that multiply risk for coronary artery disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. To be diagnosed with metabolic syndrome, you must have three or more of these disorders: high blood pressure, high blood sugar, a large waist, high triglycerides, and low HDL.

Myth: Eggs clogs up arteries.

Fact: It’s true that eggs are high in dietary cholesterol, with upwards of 200 mg, mainly in the yolk. Research shows, however, that eating three or more eggs a day boosts blood concentrations of both good and bad cholesterol. 

The LDL particles tend to be the light, fluffy ones that are least likely to enter the arterial wall, while the increased HDL helps keep the arteries clean, suggesting that most people’s bodies handle cholesterol from eggs in a way that’s unlikely to harm the heart. The researchers say that their findings add to growing evidence that eggs are not “a dietary evil.”

Read Our Guide to Cholesterol-Free Foods

Myth: There are no visible symptoms of high cholesterol.

Fact: Some people with high cholesterol develop yellowish-red bumps called xanthomas that can occur on the eyelids, joints, hands, or other parts of the body. People with diabetes or an inherited condition called familial hypercholesterolemia are more likely to have xanthomas.

The best way to tell if your cholesterol is too high is to have it checked every three years, starting at age 20, or more often, if advised by provider.

http://health.yahoo.net/experts/dayinhealth/cholesterol-myths-may-surprise-you

Graham

Drugmaker ties to diabetes bloggers come under fire !

Big pharmaceutical company ties to diabetes bloggers and other social media has some advocacy groups calling for better disclosure, according to a recent post on NPR's Shots blog.

There's a vibrant diabetes community online through blogs, YouTube videos and community forums, the article notes, a big audience that pharmaceutical companies increasingly are trying to tap into by sponsoring blogs and product testimonials. Jeff Chester, of the Center for Digital Democracy, says pharma companies also are using social media to promote their devices and drugs in a deceptive way, and adds that disclosure statements are not enough.

"The [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] and [the Federal Trade Commission] need to create a whole new system for disclosing when a blogger or group gets paid by pharmaceutical companies," Chester says.

Blogger Kerri Sparling, whose site carries disclosures about her ties to drugmakers, meanwhile, says it's in pharmaceutical companies' best interests to take heed of patient experiences, whether on a blog or a YouTube video, so they can improve their products.

Drugmaker Sanofi US is heavily involved in social media, according to NPR, boasting a Twitter account and a Facebook page; the company also is exploring how best to take advantage of sites like Pinterest and Instagram. "Getting involved in social media is a critical component of serving the diabetes community," Sanofi head of diabetes Dennis Urbaniak tells NPR.

Jason Bronner, a researcher at the University of California San Diego Medical Center who is studying whether social media connections actually help diabetes patients manage their disease tells NPR that, so far, there's no proof that they do.

With Americans spending more than $100 billion a year on diabetes care, it's a vast opportunity for drugmakers. The growing disease makes it one of the biggest segments of focus among app developers, as well. Providers also are experimenting with an array of technology options to increase self-management, including texting, social media and web portals. 

The monitoring functions of these methods have been shown to improve disease management. Still, it will be up to researchers such as Bronner to show that making social connections can do the same.

http://www.fiercehealthit.com/story/drugmaker-ties-diabetes-bloggers-come-under-fire/2012-12-05

Graham

Sir Ranulph Fiennes a complete nutter !

At 68 years of age, an age when most men are shuffling around in carpet slippers and sipping from a mug of cocoa, before turning in for another early night,  Sir Ranulph Fiennes is planning to schlep 2000 miles across the Antarctic in winter. With temperatures plunging as low as -92C, (average home freezer temp - 20c) that seems pretty cold to me, not to mention winds of up to a hundred miles an hour. There is no doubt about it Fiennes is a complete nutter. Remember, this is the man who four months after a heart attack and double heart bypass surgery ran seven marathons on seven continents in seven days. Back in May 2009 he became the oldest man ever to have reached the summit of Mount Everest. As I say a nutter, but a glorious nutter, over our history we have had some great nutters, Nelson, Churchill, Shackleton et al. We need more nutters but they are a dying breed. Where have all the great leaders gone ? Today we have the dynamic duo, the chinless wonders Dave and Nick. Can you see those two putting up two fingers to Hitler and the largest and most powerful Army in history.

“It is the latest feat of endurance by the explorer who is hoping to raise $10 million (£6.2 million) for Seeing is Believing, a blindness charity. Sir Ranulph will lead on foot with a skiing partner, but will be followed by two bulldozers hauling industrial sledges packed with the crew's living quarters, supplies, fuel and a science lab.

The large amount of kit is necessary because the British government demands that any Antarctic expedition is self-sufficient. Sir Ranulph was speaking as he prepared to set sail on a month-long journey from the Thames to Antarctica.”

Let’s hope he and his team completes their mission and return safe and well. It will be great tracking their progress, from the comfort of my warm armchair, sipping a mug of cocoa, admiring my usual Christmas present, yet more slippers.

Eddie

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranulph_Fiennes

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/antarctica/9726512/Fears-of-Sir-Ranulph-Fiennes-ahead-of-lung-bursting-impossible-journey-across-Antarctica.html