Cancer Patients Want to Talk About Costs

 Although financial distress is common, even in insured patients, discussion of costs of cancer care with doctors rarely happens, according to research to be presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, held from May 31 to June 4 in Chicago. 

S. Yousuf Zafar, M.D., M.H.S., of Duke University in Durham, N.C., and colleagues performed a cross-sectional study of insured adults with solid tumors who had been receiving anticancer therapy for one month or longer. In-person interviews of consecutive patients were conducted at a referral center and three rural oncology clinics.

 

The researchers interviewed 302 participants (85 percent response rate) with a median age of 60 years and median income of $60,000 per year; most (78 percent) had incurable cancer. Even though the majority surveyed (58 percent) had private health insurance, the mean score for the group reflected moderate financial distress.

 

 The majority (52 percent) expressed any desire to talk about costs with their doctor, but only 19 percent said they had such discussions. Among 51 patients (17 percent) reporting high or overwhelming financial distress, only 13 (25 percent) had discussed financial concerns with the doctor. Overall, many (51 percent) claimed they wanted their doctors to consider costs in treatment decisions. Among those who discussed finances with their doctors, 57 percent thought that the discussion helped lower costs of care.

 

"With today‘s evolving health insurance landscape, cancer treatment-related costs to patients are more important than ever," Zafar said in a statement. "As providers, our team is convinced that cost discussions with our patients [are] important, and knowing that patients want to have these discussions should give us confidence in making this a routine practice."

Emotions in Alzheimer‘s Linked to Changes in Brain Size

 Emotional contagion, the tendency for two individuals to emotionally converge, increases as individuals progress from healthy to mild cognitive impairment to Alzheimer‘s disease, which correlates with smaller structures in the temporal lobe, according to a study published online May 28 in theProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 

 

Virginia E. Sturm, Ph.D., from the University of California San Francisco, and colleagues measured emotional contagion and depressive symptoms, and performed structural magnetic resonance imaging in 62 patients with mild cognitive impairment, 64 patients with Alzheimer‘s disease, and 111 healthy controls.

 

The researchers found that both emotional contagion and depressive symptoms significantly increased with increasing disease progression.

 

Only the higher emotional contagion significantly correlated with smaller volumes in the right inferior, middle, and superior temporal gyri, after correction for multiple comparisons. Higher emotional contagion also significantly correlated with smaller volumes in the right temporal pole, anterior hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, and left middle temporal gyrus, but the correlations did not survive correction.

 

"These findings suggest that in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer‘s disease, neurodegeneration of temporal lobe structures important for affective signal detection and emotion inhibition are associated with up-regulation of emotion-generating mechanisms," Sturm and colleagues conclude.

Men In Red

Male athletes who choose to wear the color red in competition have higher levels of the male hormone testosterone than men who pick the color blue, a British study suggests.

Men who wear red could be sending an unconscious signal about their competitiveness to their opponents, the researchers suggested in the study, which is to be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Psychological Science.

"The research shows that there is something special about the color red in competition, and that it is associated with our underlying biological systems," study leader Daniel Farrelly, a psychological scientist at the University of Sunderland, said in a news release from the Association for Psychological Science.

The researchers pointed out their findings may help explain why many high-profile athletes, such as golf great Tiger Woods, wear red clothing.

In conducting the study, the researchers told 73 men they would be completing a competitive task and their performance would be posted. The men were asked to choose between a red or blue symbol to represent themselves in the competition. They also answered questionnaires to help determine why they may have chosen one color over the other.

The researchers took saliva samples from the men at the beginning of the study and again at the end to measure their testosterone levels.

The study revealed that the men who selected red had higher testosterone levels. These men also believed red signified greater dominance and aggression than the men who chose blue.
Although the color athletes wear doesn‘t actually affect their performance, previous studies have shown it could provide an advantage by influencing how opponents perceive them, the researchers noted.

Short Shorts Workout

And America‘s Fittest City Is...

 It‘s a three-peat. For the third year in a row, the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area is the fittest in America, according to the American College of Sports Medicine‘s annual rankings released Wednesday. 

"We‘re very pleased," said Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak in an interview with HealthDay. "We get up off the couch, in every season.""Minneapolis may be under snow for three months, but they capitalize on the resources that they have," said Walter Thompson, chair of the advisory board that compiles the report, called the American Fitness Index, or AFI.

To compile the annual rankings, the AFI takes into account city policies, community resources, health care access, the local prevalence of chronic diseases and preventive health behaviors in 50 metro areas across the United States.

 

Minneapolis topped the list with 78.2 points. It was closely followed by Washington, D.C. with 77.7 points. Portland, Ore., San Francisco and Denver rounded out the top five.

 

Near the bottom were Memphis, Tenn., Louisville, Ky., San Antonio and Detroit. Once again, Oklahoma City ranked last in the nation for measures of health. It‘s fallen to the bottom of the list each year since 2008, the first year of the AFI rankings.

 

Despite its dead-last position, Oklahoma City is making positive changes. Thompson pointed out that the city debuted on the list with a score of 24 points. This year, the metro area scored 31.2 on measures of health, wellness and fitness. The American College of Sports Medicine met with city leaders in 2011 to work on a plan to improve the city‘s fitness.

 

The biggest movers on the list were Portland and Denver. Portland jumped from number seven in 2012 to take the number-three slot this year. Denver leapt from number nine to number five.

 

Thompson said that most cities that make big moves on the list do so because of significant policy changes. They spend more money on parks, for example, or they enact citywide smoking bans.

 

What sets the top-tier cities apart? Thompson noted that they each have an infrastructure that supports physical activity. And they value their city parks. Minneapolis-St. Paul, for example, spends about $227 per person, per year on its city parks. Oklahoma City, by contrast, spends far less, about $60 per person, per year, according to a 2012 Trust for Public Land report.

 

More than half of the residents in the Twin Cities say they‘re at least moderately physically active. That may be because they have more playgrounds, swimming pools, tennis courts, golf courses, baseball diamonds and dog parks, per capita, than other cities. They‘re also more likely to take public transportation or to bike or walk to work, according to the report.

Mayor Rybak credits the city‘s founding fathers for its wealth of public spaces.

 

 "The founders made sure every inch of parkland was open to everyone. Unlike a lot of places where there‘s a beautiful lake and homes are built right onto the water, we have bike and walking trails in public realm dedicated along all of them," he said.

 

And they‘ve got a mayor who is constantly looking for new ways to use all that public space. Rybak started a cross-country ski festival called the City of Lakes Loppet that takes over the city streets every winter.

 

Residents who observed the mayor‘s "Ski-to-Work Day" -- they had to ski at least three miles to work -- got a free entry to the city‘s new Tri-Loppet, a summertime event that will have residents canoeing, mountain biking and running around the city.

 

And they‘re planning a new two-block park called The Yard, which will connect the city‘s new football stadium to its downtown.

 

"And this is going to be a place we envision skate parks. And maybe taking all the snow we plow in the winter and creating huge hills to snowboard. The idea isn‘t just to have a passive park, but an active place," Rybak said.

 

More information

For the full list of fittest cities, head to the American Fitness Index 2013 Report.

Health News Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Jennifer Aniston Touts ‘Yogalosophy’ for Stunning Figure

Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Living Proof(LOS ANGELES) -- Jennifer Aniston is one of the hottest stars on the red carpet, whose every haircut is documented, her easy sense of style emulated and her stunning silhouette always envied.

But now, the big secret out on how Aniston stays so beautiful, being revealed in “Yogalosophy,” a 28-day program by Aniston’s longtime friend and yoga instructor, Mandy Ingber.

“It’s yoga paired with toning exercises, so people who were bored with yoga might try it, or people that were really into yoga might get a little extra workout,” Ingber told ABC News.

Aniston and Ingber practice the exercises about three times a week, which Ingber says is “a good baseline for anything that you’re wanting to do regularly.”

The tree pose is Aniston’s favorite.

“She’s really good at it,” said Ingber. “It’s the ability to be able to find your sense of focus in the middle of a lot that’s going on. It runs right through the center of the body.”

 

 

At the core of Ingber’s fitness philosophy are five objectives:

1. Love your body.

2. Set short-term goals.

3. Make healthy choices.

4. Visualize your best.

5. Give and receive support.

“The thing about yoga is that once you start, developing that mindfulness and that sense of connection to your body, you just want to make healthier choices,” Ingber explained.

And although yoga is obviously very helpful, Ingber doesn’t consider it a replacement for cardiovascular exercise.

“I think that’s important, too,” she notes.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Quick Tips on Getting a 6-pack

Getting a 6-pack is not out of reach. In fact, you may already have one underneath a layer of fat, and you just need to get it to show. Doing all the sit ups in the world won’t get you there. You cannot just reduce one spot. It’s a combination of a proper diet, cardio fat burning, and abdominal strength training. But you can get there. Just think of it as total body health rather than how many sit ups do I need to do. 

                Start with your diet. You just can’t get shredded if you’re eating a poor diet of drive thru, all-you-can-eat wings and pizza. If you are eating a lot of processed, bleached carbohydrates, switch to whole grain bread and pastas. Bleached carbs like white bread and all other starchy treats turn into sugar in your body, and later turn into fat. Instead of thinking of it as a “diet” just think of it as eating more of the right things and less of the wrong things. Eat vegetables, fruits, lean meats, whole grain oats, fish, poultry, and eat a lot less of fried foods, saturated fats, bleached carbs, sweets, fatty burgers. Your body will thank you for it.

                Next, look at your work out. You have to burn fat over your whole body. Not just do thousands of crunches. If you have a layer of fat, your muscles can show through, it’s as simple as that. Lose the fat and the muscles will show themselves. To start, make sure you are getting the recommended 5 days a week of cardio. That means thirty minutes of cardio, five times a week. That could be running, cycling, rollerblading, or other routines like jump rope or jumping jacks.  Work out till you sweat, don’t just talk a walk in the park.

                Next onto the ab workouts. It is recommended that you do three strength training workouts today. Do regular crunches, oblique crunches, planks, leg lifts, and oblique planks. Get creative and try to work your abs differently every time. Check out this list of ab workouts to get you started. Remember, it’s about your whole body and your lifestyle. But you will get there.

The 30-Minute Glute-Building Bodyweight Workout

The sun is heating up, and there’s no better way to squeeze into those summer shorts than to squeeze those cheeks in a butt-building sesh. The glutes are a crucial component in running, jumping, throwing, swinging, striking, and twisting. They also stabilize the hips for anterior and posterior pelvic tilting, absorb impact of hip movement, and stabilize the spine (among other big time roles). So, the stronger your booty, the better you move. 

Ready to get your glutes in gear? This 30-minute workout from trainer, Greatist contributor, and all-around glute expert Kellie Davis can be done anywhere, any time! 

‘Nano‘ Medicine Might Someday Free Diabetics

 Researchers have developed a network of so-called "nanoparticles" that theoretically could be injected into the body and release insulin to counteract rising blood sugar levels in people with diabetes. 

Tested so far in mice, the nano-network was able to maintain normal glucose levels for more than a week with a single injection. Currently, patients have to inject themselves with insulin several times a day to control their blood sugar levels.

 

"The main aim was to mimic the activity of the pancreas. In our system, when glucose levels go up, the nanoparticles degrade to release insulin," said study author Zhen Gu, from the joint department of biomedical engineering at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University. Gu, along with Robert Langer and Daniel Anderson, developed this technology when Gu was working at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Although exciting, the research is very preliminary, one expert said.

 

"From a patient perspective, this could be incredible. It would reduce the burden of diabetes," said Sanjoy Dutta, senior director of treatment therapies at JDRF (formerly known as the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation). "But there are still lots of questions to be answered. This was a first-pass study."

 

This treatment would likely be most useful for people with type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune condition in which the pancreas no longer creates insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to properly metabolize the carbohydrates in food. Because their bodies no longer produce insulin, people with type 1 diabetes must take multiple daily injections of insulin to replace the missing insulin so blood sugar levels stay steady.

 

Dutta said this treatment could also be helpful for people with type 2 diabetes who need to take insulin injections. People with type 2 diabetes still produce insulin, but their bodies don‘t use it efficiently.

 

There are many problems with existing insulin therapy. One is that you have to give yourself multiple injections every day. Another is that it‘s hard to figure out the exact dose of insulin you might need. Currently, people on insulin test their blood sugar by drawing a drop of blood from their fingertip numerous times a day, which lets them know whether they need more or less insulin in their next shot.

 

Someone with diabetes must also figure out how many carbohydrates are in the food they plan to eat. (Carbohydrates are broken down into sugar in the body to provide fuel for the cells in the body and brain.) If any of these calculations are wrong, blood sugar levels can go either too high or too low. Both extremes can be dangerous.

 

The nano-network is designed to deal with some of these issues. Insulin would be released in response to higher glucose levels, so there wouldn‘t be a need to check blood sugar levels so often. There also would be no need to count carbohydrates, because the nano-network would release insulin to process the food someone has eaten.

 

The nano-network is made up of nanoparticles with a solid core of insulin, modified dextran and glucose oxidase enzymes. In the presence of high glucose levels, the glucose oxidase enzymes convert glucose into gluconic acid. Gluconic acid, in turn, then dissolves the modified dextran, releasing the insulin.

 

The nano-network forms in the body after injection because some nanoparticles are coated with a negative charge, while others are given a positive charge. Once inside the body, these particles are attracted to each other and join together to form the nano-network, Gu said.

 

All of the components of the nano-network -- and its byproducts -- are completely biocompatible and dissolve over time, so they shouldn‘t cause any immune system response, Gu added.

 

The current study, published online this month in the journal ACS Nano, found that when injected into mice, the nano-network was able to control blood glucose levels for up to 10 days.

 

What remains to be seen is how the researchers will ensure that the nano-networks won‘t release too much insulin (causing low blood sugar levels) or not enough insulin (causing high blood sugar levels) in humans, and how someone would know when it was time for a new injection. Also, research with animals often can‘t be replicated in humans.

 

"This study demonstrates the idea. It‘s very promising, but we need to perform more studies," Gu said. "We want to further tailor the materials, and we want to increase the response speed of the insulin. It may take some time, but I‘m quite confident in this new technology."

 

Dutta also was enthusiastic about the possibility of using glucose-responsive nano-networks. But, he cautioned, "This is going to take time. Many questions still need to be answered in animal studies, and we don‘t know what the regulatory pathway would be, although I do anticipate regulatory challenges. This is an uncharted pathway."