Statins side effects 'have been overstated,' says study
Conclusion
This is a complex study that provides a plausible explanation for the difference in reports of adverse effects of statins in RCTs and observational studies, some of which have suggested as many as 1 in 5 people get side effects from statins.
However, we need to be aware of some limitations and unanswered questions:
When people knew they were taking statins, they were more likely to report muscle pain than those not taking statins. But they were less likely to report muscle pain than in the first phase of the study, when they didn't know whether they were taking statins or placebo. We don't know why this is. ...
Source: NHS News Feed - May 3, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medication Heart/lungs Source Type: news
Alternate-day fasting diets 'no better' than traditional dieting
Conclusion
This study finds no difference between alternating-day fasting diets and daily calorie restriction diets in terms of weight loss and cardiovascular disease indicators.
So this does not show that fasting diets don't work – people in this group did lose weight compared to the control group, just that they are no different to a calorie restriction diet.
While this seems good evidence that one is not better than the other, there are some important things to consider before taking the findings at face value.
Sample size and drop-out
The drop-out rate was high. Ideally in a trial you would hope to see at least 80% ...
Source: NHS News Feed - May 2, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Source Type: news
Weak link between grandmums' smoking and autistic grandkids
Conclusion
This study aimed to see whether smoking in pregnancy is linked with some traits of ASD in the smoker's grandchildren.
Although this was based on a large cohort of children, the results give quite a confusing and inconclusive picture. To be frank, the study raised more questions than it answered.
Maternal grandmother smoking was linked with ASD traits only in girls (in whom ASD is less common in any case) – and then only if their own mother did not smoke. When looking at actual diagnosed cases of autism, the link was only found in boys.
The study had some important limitations to consider:
Most of the data w...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 28, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy/child Neurology Mental health Genetics/stem cells Source Type: news
Binge drinking could trigger abnormal heart rhythms
Conclusion
This cross-sectional study found binge drinking is associated with an increased risk of having an irregular heartbeat.
However, the type of irregular heartbeat found was mainly sinus tachycardia, which isn't life threatening but involves the heart beating at an abnormally fast rate of over 100 heartbeats a minute.
This research also has some notable limitations:
The ECG recordings from the acute alcohol group were taken using a smartphone application operated outside the manufacturer's recommended environment. The lively atmosphere within the beer tent may have caused inaccurate recordings.
The populati...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 27, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Heart/lungs Lifestyle/exercise Source Type: news
New glaucoma test could save millions from blindness
Conclusion
Glaucoma is responsible for about 10 in 100 people registered blind in the UK. About 2 in 100 people over 40 in the UK have glaucoma, and around 10 in 100 of those aged over 75. Because there is no cure, but early treatment can often help slow or prevent damage, early diagnosis is important.
Regular eye tests may pick up glaucoma, but often there's no sign of the disease until people have already begun to lose vision. That's why this test is interesting. If it can be shown to work well and safely, it could be a quick and efficient way to diagnose glaucoma before people have started to lose their sight. However, ...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 27, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medical practice Older people Source Type: news
Regular exercise for the over-50s 'sharpens the mind'
Conclusion
It's no surprise to hear that exercise has health benefits – but not everyone knows that it's good for your brain as well as your body.
This study provides evidence that, even for people with some signs of declining mental function, regular moderately intense exercise has a positive effect.
There are a few minor caveats, however. Although the study showed tai chi is beneficial, this was based on only four trials.
And it's not completely clear how often people need to exercise. The study found any number of weekly sessions showed a benefit, but it's reasonable to think more sessions would be more beneficial. ...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 26, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Older people Neurology Source Type: news
Four cups of coffee 'not bad for health' suggests review
Conclusion
It appears that previous recommendations from the 2003 Health Canada review into the effects of caffeine on health remain suitable. Health Canada recommended a maximum daily coffee intake of 400mg/day for healthy adults and 300mg/day for pregnant women.
Although this review looked at a large number of studies and found that the evidence overall supports these recommendations, there are some limitations to the research:
The number of studies providing evidence for each health outcome varied.
Some results were based on a large number of studies, others on a much smaller number. This means the strength of evi...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 25, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Pregnancy/child Source Type: news
Children with regular bedtimes 'less likely to become obese'
Conclusion
This study aimed to look at whether child routines and behavioural regulation are linked with child obesity aged 11. The study made use of data collected at regular home assessments for a large, nationally representative UK sample.
The data suggests that inconsistent bedtimes are linked with increased likelihood of the child being obese at age 11. But before drawing firm conclusions about this, there are a couple of points to bear in mind.
Though the researchers have tried to adjust for sociodemographic factors, there is a high possibility that this link is being influenced by confounding factors. The most li...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 24, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Obesity Pregnancy/child Source Type: news
Reported link between diet drinks and dementia and stroke is weak
Conclusion
The researchers used data from a large ongoing cohort study to look for links between consumption of sugary and artificially sweetened drinks and risk of stroke or dementia.
This cohort study benefits from the large overall sample size, long period of data collection, careful and valid diagnostic assessments, and adjustments for a number of confounders. However, care must be taken when interpreting these results – particularly if latching on to the maximal tripled risk figures reported in the media.
There are several points to consider:
Small numbers
The new number of strokes and dementia in this study was sma...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 21, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Heart/lungs Neurology Source Type: news
Cycling commuters have lower rates of heart disease and cancer
Conclusion
This prospective cohort study has established that active methods of commuting to work, either walking or cycling, are associated with reduced risk of death, cardiovascular disease and cancer.
Overall this was a well-designed study based on a large collection of real-world data from the UK. The researchers controlled for key socioeconomic and lifestyle confounders.
Although this is an observational study, confidence in the link is improved by its consistency with existing knowledge and research on the benefits of physical activity and the graded response in the results.
Participants from the UK Biobank who were...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 21, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Cancer Heart/lungs Source Type: news
Two older drugs could be 'repurposed' to fight dementia
Conclusion
This early stage experimental research has demonstrated a beneficial neurological effect of trazodone and dibenzoylmethane on mice with diseases mimicking neurodegenerative diseases.
It is important to acknowledge that this is animal research and therefore the drugs might not have the same effect when they are trialled on humans.
That being said, trazodone is already an approved drug for depression and sleep problems and has therefore already passed safety tests. If the mechanisms of neurodegeneration in humans and mice are similar, it is possible trazodone could be used in the future in treating Alzheimer's and...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 20, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Older people Neurology Medication Source Type: news
Frog slime could protect us against future flu epidemic
Conclusion
This study has identified a substance in the mucus secreted by a south Indian frog which can kill certain types of flu virus.
Researchers often turn to natural substances with known health-giving properties to find potential new drugs for humans. For example, aspirin was developed based on a compound found in willow bark – which had been used in traditional medicine for hundreds of years.
Some other drugs – such as some chemotherapy and anticlotting drugs – have also been developed from chemicals found in plants.
By isolating the substances that have an effect the researchers can make sure they are pure a...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 19, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Heart/lungs Medication Medical practice Source Type: news
Touchscreen-using toddlers may sleep less
Conclusion
This survey aimed to assess whether touchscreen use in infants and toddlers aged between 6 and 36 months has an impact on the quality of their sleep.
Sleep is very important for young children as it has a role in development, and if environmental influences are identified that reduce the quality of sleep, they should be limited.
This UK study has strengths in its good sample size and its attempts to control for the effects of other confounding variables – however, these weren't all explicitly listed. While a link between levels of touchscreen use and daily sleep was found, this cross-sectional study is not abl...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 18, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy/child Source Type: news
Being either under or overweight may increase migraine risk
Conclusion
The study results are clear: people who are obese have a moderately increased chance of getting migraine headaches, and people who are underweight have a small increased chance. However, the results don't tell us why that is.
There are a few limitations to be aware of:
More than half the studies used people's self-reported height and weight to calculate body mass index, which may have under-estimated the proportion of people who were overweight.
Half the studies used people's self-report of migraine, rather than a medical diagnosis, which could have affected the accuracy of the results.
There were subs...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 18, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Neurology Obesity Source Type: news
Being both under and overweight may increase migraine risk
Conclusion
The study results are clear: people who are obese have a moderately increased chance of getting migraine headaches, and people who are underweight have a small increased chance. However, the results don't tell us why that is.
There are a few limitations to be aware of:
More than half the studies used people's self-reported height and weight to calculate body mass index, which may have under-estimated the proportion of people who were overweight.
Half the studies used people's self-report of migraine, rather than a medical diagnosis, which could have affected the accuracy of the results.
There were subs...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 18, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Neurology Obesity Source Type: news
