Growth hormone no benefit to athletes

People who take human growth hormone in the hope of boosting athletic performance are not only breaking the law and risking their health, but are not likely to achieve their objective, US researchers reported in a recent study. While some reports show that certain illegal steroids may help athletes bulk up and train harder, human growth hormone is not one of them, the report in the Annals of Internal Medicine suggests. Researchers looked at 27 studies covering 303 people aged 13 to 45. They found that, overall, those who took growth hormone did develop more lean body mass, but this did not translate to either more strength or exercise capacity. They had swelling of their tissues and more fatigue compared to people not taking the drug, they added. “When the hormone is given to people with growth hormone deficits caused by pituitary tumors or other conditions, it can improve strength,” said the study. But it does not enhance strength in normal, healthy people. For example, people given hormone generated more lactate, a byproduct of exercise that can cause pain and muscle fatigue.

Vegan diet may help ease rheumatoid arthritis
A gluten-free vegan diet full of nuts, sunflower seeds, fruit and vegetables appears to offer protection against heart attacks and strokes for people with rheumatoid arthritis, Swedish researchers reported in a study. The diet appeared to lower cholesterol and also affect the immune system, easing some symptoms associated with the painful joint condition, they said. The study suggested diet could play an important role for people with rheumatoid arthritis who are often more prone to heart attacks, strokes and clogged arteries, said a team from Sweden’s Karolinska Institute. About 20 million people worldwide have rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease caused when the body confuses healthy tissues for foreign substances and attacks itself. It was found that people on the diet excluding animal products and gluten, found in wheat, rye and barley, had lower levels of low-density lipoprotein, or LDL, the so-called “bad cholesterol” which can lead to clogged arteries. They also lost weight while the volunteers on the other diet showed no change.

Doctors warn of superbug infection in face-lifts
A dangerous drug-resistant bacterial infection has been showing up in a small number of patients who undergo face-lifts, doctors reported in a study. When infections do occur at surgical sites following such procedures “the facial plastic surgeon should have a high suspicion” for MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), as the source, they said. As many as 1.5 per cent of Americans carry the contagious infection and may spread it to others without developing a serious infection themselves. It was blamed for an estimated 19,000 deaths in 2005 in the US. It has become the most common cause of all infections at surgical incision sites, and about 85 per cent of cases happen in hospitals where the infection can kill the weak, said the report published in the current issue of the Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery.