Glucosamine Supplements OK for Diabetics

Glucosamine is increasingly used to treat osteoarthritis. However, animal studies have shown that high glucosamine levels can raise blood glucose levels, explain the authors of an article in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

In the first clinical trial of its kind, Dr. Daren Scroggie from Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, and associates studied the effects of glucosamine supplementation on glucose control in 34 mostly elderly patients with type 2 diabetes.

Over time, glucose control changed very little, the researchers report, whether or not the subjects were taking glucosamine.

Only one patient withdrew from the study due to a possible side effect from glucosamine (excessive flatulence), the report indicates, and medical therapy did not change during the study.

The typical oral doses of glucosamine are around 20 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day, the team explains. By comparison, the equivalent doses used in animal studies were much higher, ranging from about 3000 milligrams up to 435,000 milligrams.

"Since patients with diabetes are at risk for toxic effects from some of the current treatments for osteoarthritis (NSAIDs in particular)," the authors conclude, "glucosamine may provide a safe alternative treatment for these patients."

SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine, July 13, 2003.

Eating Fish, Nuts Wards Off Alzheimer's

A seven-year study of 815 nursing home residents -- 131 of whom developed the brain-robbing disease -- found those who reported eating fish at least once a week had a 60 percent lower risk of Alzheimer's compared to those who rarely or never ate fish.

Researcher Martha Clare Morris of Rush-Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago, writing in The Archives of Neurology journal, credited polyunsaturated fatty acids found in fish, nuts and oily dressings for the protective effect. She said the fatty acids are also found in the membranes of brain cells, and may protect them from the ravages of Alzheimer's.

Previous studies have cited a healthy diet rich in antioxidants -- such as those found in red wine and various fruits and vegetables -- may stave off Alzheimer's, though the root cause of the brain-clogging plaque that afflicts an estimated 12 million people globally remains unknown.

In an accompanying editorial, Robert Friedland of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio, said a healthy diet containing fish could help ward off a host of ailments, not just Alzheimer's, though he warned of toxins such as mercury tainting some fish.

"A high antioxidant/low saturated fat diet pattern with a greater amount of fish, chicken, fruits, and vegetables and less red meat and dairy products is likely to lower the risk of Alzheimer's disease, as well as that for heart disease and stroke," Friedland wrote.

Can Vitamins Prevent Pre-Eclampsia?

More than 2,000 pregnant women at risk of pre-eclampsia, which is marked by dangerously high blood pressure, will be given supplements of vitamins C and E.

Women with pre-eclampsia have a deficiency in certain vitamins and researchers believe this could be the cause of the problem.

"Until now we have been unable to treat this condition effectively but this study gives us the opportunity to make a huge difference," Professor Lucilla Poston, who will carry out the study, said Tuesday.

Pre-eclampsia occurs in about one in 10 pregnancies and is more common in first and twin pregnancies and in women with a history of the condition.

It causes damage to the blood vessels and can lead to fits, stroke or damage to the lungs, liver or kidney in the mother and slow growth or the death of the baby. About eight million cases of pre-eclampsia occur globally each year.

"Finding a way of preventing pre-eclampsia could save many lives, both of babies and mothers, as well as dramatically reducing health costs," Poston added.

The two-year project follows an earlier pilot study which suggested that taking the supplement could halve the risk of pre-eclampsia in high risk women.

Job Demands, Long Hours Stressing Canadians

Researchers found that more than one-third (34 percent) of working Canadians cited heavy demands and long hours as the most common sources of workplace stress in 2000 -- the same percentage as in a 1994 survey.

Fifteen percent in 2000 cited poor interpersonal relations, according to the report, published in the June online edition of Perspectives on Labor and Income.

On the bright side, though, fewer employees were worried about job security.

In 2000, when the economy was expanding and jobs were plentiful, only 13 percent cited fear of job loss or layoff as the main cause of workplace stress. This was down from 22 percent in 1994, when the economy was emerging from a prolonged recession and the unemployment rate was around 10 percent.

"It's good news that people are less worried about losing their job," said Sophie Lefebvre, a Statistics Canada analyst. "And too many demands or hours as the most common source of stress isn't surprising. Life is a balancing act -- this hasn't changed."

Triggers of workplace stress also varied depending on occupation, the study shows. Managers and professionals were much more likely than workers in manufacturing, processing or trades occupations to stress over too many demands or hours.

For example, 50 percent of those in health-related occupations cited job demands and hours as a source of stress.

In addition, one-third of health workers said the risk of accident or injury was a source of workplace stress, compared with 13 percent of all workers surveyed. They were also more likely than employees in general to cite multiple sources of workplace stress (42 percent versus 26 percent).

"You always hear on the news how health workers work long hours and irregular shifts," said Lefebvre. "These numbers reinforce these ideas. But they aren't surprising, since health workers work in an environment where they deal with the risk of infection from illness and disease."

The study also shows that workers' schedules affect their source of stress. One-quarter of those working rotating shifts worried about the risk of accident or injury, compared with only 11 percent of those with regular daytime hours.

Many employers are taking steps to address the human and financial costs associated with stress by implementing employee-assistance programs, according to the report. The 1999 Workplace and Employee Survey found 26 percent of Canadian employees had access to such programs.

However, these programs have been criticized for only dealing with the symptoms of workplace stress and not addressing the causes, it notes.

"There is no one right solution, but things like yoga and massages in the workplace show that some firms are trying to stop stress before it becomes a problem," said Lefebvre. "I don't know if these are the solutions, but that one-quarter of employees have access to such programs shows that stress is becoming an important issue."

The Statistics Canada report is based on the General Social Survey, an annual telephone poll of roughly 25,000 Canadians age 15 and older.

SOURCE: Perspectives on Labor and Income 2003;4.

Researchers Pinpoint Stress-Illness Link

A study focused on 119 men and women who were taking care of spouses with dementia. The health of the caregivers was compared with that of 106 people of similar ages who were not living under the stress of constant care giving.

Blood tests showed that a chemical called Interleukin-6 sharply increased in the blood of the stressed caregivers compared with blood of the others in the test. Previous studies have associated IL-6 with several diseases, including heart disease, arthritis, osteoporosis, type-2 diabetes and certain cancers.

The study also found the increase in IL-6 can linger in caregivers for as long as three years after a caregiver had ceased that role because of the spouse's death. Of the test group, 78 spouses died during the survey.

"This really makes a link to why chronic stress can actually kill people," said Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, professor of psychology and psychiatry at Ohio State University. "We haven't had a good mechanism before."

She explained that people under stress tend to respond by doing things that can increase their levels of IL-6.

For example, they may smoke or overeat; smoking raises IL-6 levels, and the chemical is secreted by fat cells. Stressed people also may not get enough exercise or sleep, she added. Exercise reduces IL-6, she said, and normal sleep helps regulate levels of the chemical.

It clearly points to the need to control stress better, she said.

The findings by the research group, headed by Kiecolt-Glaser and her husband, Ronald Glaser, a professor of molecular virology, immunology and medical genetics at Ohio State, appear in this week's issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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