Research Briefs
Study Finds Record High Levels of Toxic Fire Retardants in Breast Milk
from American Mothers
In the first nationwide tests for chemical fire retardants in the breast milk
of American women, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found unexpectedly
high levels of these little-known neurotoxic chemicals in every participant
tested.
The average level of bromine-based fire retardants in the milk of 20 first-time
mothers was 75 times the average found in recent European studies. Milk from
two study participants contained the highest levels of fire retardants ever
reported in the United States, and milk from several of the mothers in EWG’s
study had among the highest levels of these chemicals yet detected worldwide.
These results confirm recently published findings from University of Texas researchers,
as well as other U.S. studies, that American babies are exposed to far higher
amounts of fire retardants than babies in Europe, where some of these chemicals
have already been banned. In the United States, only California and Maine have
acted to restrict the use of these chemicals.
Like PCBs, their long-banned chemical relatives, brominated fire retardants
are persistent in the environment and bioaccumulative, building up in people’s
bodies over a lifetime. Brominated fire retardants impair attention, learning,
memory and behavior in laboratory animals at surprisingly low levels. The most
sensitive time for toxic effects is during periods of rapid brain development.
Fire retardants in breast milk are one measure of the chemicals that a mother
passes on not only to her nursing infant, but more importantly, to the unborn
fetus, which is most vulnerable to impacts from neurotoxic chemicals.
Brominated fire retardants are in hundreds of everyday products, including furniture,
computers, TV sets and automobiles. Some manufacturers, from furniture makers
to computer companies, have achieved the same level of safety by redesigning
their products to be inherently less flammable without chemical treatments.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has set no safety standards or other
regulations for their manufacture, use or disposal. Only one state, California,
has banned some chemical fire retardants, with the phase-out to be completed
by 2008.
Use of Dietary Supplements Linked to Lifestyle Choices
While it may come as no surprise to many, a study from the Cancer Research Center
of Hawaii at the University of Hawaii reports that “supplement use tended
to increase with age, education, physical activity, fruit intake and dietary fiber
intake,” while supplement use decreased with lifestyle choices such as “obesity,
smoking and dietary fat intake.” The study, published in the American Journal
of Epidemiology, also studied supplement usage among ethnic populations.
New Research Points to Tai Chi as Beneficial for Seniors with Shingles
Researchers from the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute report that older adults
in a 15-week Tai Chi class saw immunity factors that suppress shingles soar 50
percent. In addition, participants showed significant improvement in their physical
health and ability to move through their day.
Appearing in the September edition of the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, findings
of the randomized, controlled clinical trial are the first to demonstrate a positive,
virus-specific immune response to a behavioral intervention.
The findings are particular noteworthy as Tai Chi Chih, or “meditation with
movement,” increased immunity in older adults who are at risk for herpes
zoster.
The varicella zoster virus, or shingles, can cause a painful skin rash with intermittent
pain that can last for months or years. Even when the rash subsides, skin in the
affected area can remain extremely painful to the touch.
The virus lurks in the nerves of virtually everyone who has had chicken pox, but
the immune system typically prevents outbreaks. This immunity to the virus declines
with age, leaving older adults particularly susceptible to the painful condition.
The study randomly assigned 36 men and women age 60 or older to a 15-week program
of three 45-minute Tai Chi classes a week or to a waiting list.
Research Suggests that Mediterranean Diet ‘Extends Life’
Drinking red wine and cooking with olive oil may help us to live longer, say scientists
from Harvard Medical School and Biomol research laboratory in Philadelphia.
They have found that key ingredients in both substances can significantly increase
the lifespan of yeast. Since yeast and humans share many genes, scientists have
speculated they may have the same effect in people. The findings provide more
evidence to suggest that the Mediterranean diet may increase the propensity to
living a long and healthy life.
The scientists have identified resveratrol as the key ingredient in red wine.
It gives red wine its anti-cancer and anti-heart disease properties. They have
found that this molecule can influence genes that have been linked to lifespan
in yeast.
The found that quercetin, which is abundant in olive oil, has a similar effect.
In particular, they affect those genes that have been shown to extend life as
a result of a calorie-restricted diet by enabling cells to live longer.
In the case of resveratrol it was found to extend the life of some yeast cells
by as much as 70 percent. Previous studies have suggested that severe calorie
restriction can increase the lifespan of organisms like yeast, fruit flies, worms
and rats.
Smoking Leads to Risk of Multiple Sclerosis, Says Study
According to research performed in conjunction with the University of Bergen (Norway)
and Harvard University, multiple sclerosis is more like to hit smokers than non-smokers.
The research, which surveyed 22,000 people from 1997 to 1999, found that smokers
risks of developing multiple sclerosis is between two and three times higher,
depending on gender, than those who do not smoke. Males who smoke are three times
more likely to face multiple sclerosis; females are twice as likely to face the
disease.
Study Suggests Hostility Foreshadows Poor Health
A study published in Psychosomatic Medicine, the publication of the American Psychosomatic
Society, indicates that hostility in younger life can lead to health risks as
a person ages. The study, orchestrated by Dr. Ilene Siegler, Duke University Department
of Pyschiatry and Behavorial Sciences and Behavorial Medicine Research Center,
examined the presence of hostility in college students and changes in hostility
from college to midlife to predict health risks as persons age. The research,
which used logisitic regression models to test subjects, suggests that higher
hostility levels during the college years leads to “being a current smoker,
consuming more than two drinks of alcohol, low social support, achieving less
than expected in careers and in relationships, risk for depression and appraisal
of life changing for the worse in terms of family events at midlife.” In
studying increases in hostility from college to midlife, a relationship was determined
that this increase predicted health risk indicators. For more information, see
the September/October issue of Psychosomatic Medicine, online at psychosomaticmedicine.org.
Life University Establishes Office of Sponsored Research
Life University has a rich history of conducting and publishing chiropractic research
and most of this research has been funded over the years from within the institution.
This is about to change with the establishment of the Office of Sponsored Research
and Scholarly Activities at the University. Not only will the institution be seeking
outside funding, but the scope of its research activities has been expanded with
the establishment of this office. In addition to a College of Chiropractic, the
institution consists of a College of Arts and Sciences with Departments of Nutrition,
Business, General Education, Natural Sciences and Sports Health Science.
The opportunity for collaborative projects between the College of Arts and Sciences
and the College of Chiropractic will be enhanced through the efforts of this office.
The coordination of clinical research on wellness and chiropractic is one area
of potential exploration however, all disciplines of the university will benefit
from funding through this new office.
It is estimated that chiropractic institutions have received a mere $10-12 million
from the federal government in the past 100 years to conduct research. The Office
of Sponsored Research plans on assisting Life University faculty pursue funding
from several sources including the National Institutes of Health, which has an
annual budget of more than $20 billion.
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