Sugar-sweetened sodas, sports drinks and fruit drinks may be associated with about 180,000 deaths around the world each year, according to a research.

The study presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology and Prevention/Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism 2013 Scientific Sessions pointed pit that sugar-sweetened beverages contribute to excess body weight, which increases the risk of developing diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and some cancers.

The data collected as part of the 2010 Global Burden of Diseases Study.

Researchers linked intake of sugar- sweetened beverages to 133,000 diabetes deaths, 44,000 deaths from cardiovascular diseases and 6,000 cancer deaths.

Seventy-eight percent of these deaths due to over-consuming sugary drinks were in low and middle-income countries, rather than high-income countries.

(more…)

According to researchers, a stressful lifestyle can lead to Alzheimer’s disease.

In a mice study, they found that chronic stress sends levels of steroids in the brain soaring. This not only accelerates the development of Alzheimer’s but also boosts levels of the toxic plaque amyloid beta, which can ravage the brain, the Daily Express reported.

Stress steroids could affect the brain’s general activity, said Sara Bengtsson, of Sweden’s Umea University.

Chronically elevated levels of one in particular, called allopregnanolone, accelerated the disease development in research involving mice, she stated.

When levels of the steroid were increased, the mice with Alzheimer’s developed impaired learning and memory. They also developed increased brain levels of amyloid beta, the proteins that form devastating plaques in Alzheimer’s disease, the researchers found.

(more…)

When looking to discover the ”secrets of a longer life” many scientists turn to the elderly inhabitants of Ikaria, the Greek island, that boast the highest rates of longevity in the world.

Now, researchers investigating cardiovascular health believe that a cup of boiled Greek coffee holds the clue to the elderly islanders” good health.

Only 0.1 percent of Europeans live to be over 90, yet on the Greek island of Ikaria, the figure is 1 percent. This is recognized as one of the highest longevity rates anywhere – and the islanders tend to live out their longer lives in good health.

Gerasimos Siasos, a medical doctor and professor at the University of Athens Medical School, Greece set out with his team to find out whether the elderly population”s coffee drinking had an effect on their health.

(more…)

The American Heart Association’s seven steps for a healthy heart– dubbed Life’s Simple 7 – can also help keep cancer at bay, a new study has claimed.

Laura Rasmussen-Torvik, a professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said that following even six of the steps can cut cancer risk in half, ABC News reported.

She said that she and her colleagues had a hunch that following healthy-heart guidelines would also decrease the risk of cancer and their findings confirmed it.

According to the study, following four of the steps in ‘Life’s Simple 7’ resulted in a 33 percent cancer risk reduction, and following six or seven of the steps led to a 51 percent cancer risk reduction.

The American Heart Association had developed the seven steps in 2010 with the goal of reducing heart attack and stroke deaths by about 20 percent by 2020.

(more…)

Dr. Siddhi Chavan is a consulting dermatologist and cosmetologist practicing in Dr. Minal’s Dermatherapie Centre, Mumbai.

She specializes in clinical dermatology which includes disorders of the skin, hair and nails, cosmetic dermatology including Botox and fillers, laser for hair reduction, pigmentation, acne scars, tattoo removal and anti aging, and dermato-surgery which includes removal of skin tags, moles and cysts.

Siddhi answered Sify readers’ queries related to the above in an exclusive chat. Read the transcript below.

I am having black spots (marks) on my face due to some infection. Now the infection is clear but mark left as such. Any cream that you suggest for this?

You can start using a retinoid based night cream and a sunscreen in the day

(more…)