The researchers examined electronic medical records of 100 pediatric asthma patients referred to National Jewish Health. Overall, 47 percent of them had vitamin D levels considered insufficient, below 30 nanograms per milliliter of blood (ng/mL). Seventeen percent of the patients had levels below 20 ng/mL, which is considered deficient. These levels were similar to vitamin D levels found in the general population.

Patients low in vitamin D generally had higher levels of IgE, a marker of allergy, and responded positively to more allergens in a skin prick test. Allergies to the specific indoor allergens, dog and house dust mite, were higher in patients with low vitamin D levels. Low vitamin D also correlated with low FEV1, the amount of air a person can exhale in one second, and lower FEV1/FVC, another measure of lung function. Use of inhaled steroids, oral steroids and long-acting beta agonists were all higher in patients low in vitamin D.

“Our findings suggest two possible explanations,” said senior author Donald Leung, MD, PhD. “It could be that lower vitamin D levels contribute to increasing asthma severity, which requires more corticosteroid therapy. Or, it may be that vitamin D directly affects steroid activity, and that low levels of vitamin D make the steroids less effective, thus requiring more medication for the same effect.”

The researchers performed a series of laboratory experiments that indicated vitamin D enhances the action of corticosteroids. They cultured some immune cells with the corticosteroid dexamethasone alone and others with vitamin D first, then dexamethasone. The vitamin D significantly increased the effectiveness of dexamethasone. In one experiment vitamin D and dexamethasone together were more effective than 10 times as much dexamethasone alone.

The researchers also incubated immune-system cells for 72 hours with a staphylococcal toxin to induce corticosteroid resistance. Vitamin D restored the activity of dexamethasone.

“Our work suggests that vitamin D enhances the anti-inflammatory function of corticosteroids,’ said Dr. Leung. “If future studies confirm these findings vitamin D may help asthma patients achieve better control of their respiratory symptoms with less medication.”

This study comes on the heels of another paper by National Jewish Health faculty, which showed that low levels of vitamin D in adult asthma patients are associated with lower lung function and reduced responsiveness to corticosteroids.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/185816.php

Broccoli ‘could aid breast cancer fight’ – scientists

The vegetable, already hailed as a so-called “superfood”, contains a chemical capable of targeting the cells which fuel the growth of tumours.
A component of broccoli called sulforaphane targets and kills cancer stem cells as well as preventing new tumours from growing, according to researchers at the University of Michigan. Current chemotherapies do not work against cancer stem cells. Researchers believe that eliminating the cancer stem cells is key to controlling cancer.

The study, published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, charts how scientists at the university’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre tested the effects of sulforaphane in experiments involving mice and cell cultures.

Prof Duxin Sun, the author of the study, said: “Sulforaphane has been studied previously for its effects on cancer, but this study shows that its benefit is in inhibiting the breast cancer stem cells.

“This new insight suggests the potential of sulforaphane or broccoli extract to prevent or treat cancer by targeting the critical cancer stem cells.”

Researchers took mice with breast cancer and injected varying concentrations of sulforaphane from the broccoli extract.

They then used several established methods to assess the number of cancer stem cells in the tumours.

These measures showed a marked decrease in the cancer stem cell population after treatment with sulforaphane, with little effect on the normal cells.

Cancer cells from mice treated with sulforaphane were also unable to generate new tumours.

The researchers then tested sulforaphane on human breast cancer cell cultures in the lab, finding similar decreases in the cancer stem cells.

Researchers are currently developing a method to extract and preserve sulforaphane.

The tests involved higher concentrations of sulforaphane than are available by simply eating broccoli.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/7679711/Broccoli-could-aid-breast-cancer-fight-scientists.html

By smiling, you could be adding seven years to your life

The secret to a longer life could be as simple as cracking a smile.
The broader your grin and the deeper the creases around your eyes when you smile, the longer you are likely to live, a study has shown. The research adds to mounting evidence that a happy disposition can have a powerful impact on health as well as life expectancy. Broader grins and wrinkles around the eyes reflect an underlying positive outlook on life that translates into better long-term health, the researchers believe.
The conclusions emerged from a study of old photographs.
Experts at Wayne State University, Michigan, studied 230 pictures of major league baseball players printed in the 1952 Baseball Register.

The register listed each player’s statistics, such as date of birth, weight, marital status and career details.
The researchers ranked each player according to whether they had no smile at all, a partial smile, where only the muscles around the mouth were involved, or a full-blown smile that featured a toothy grin, raised cheeks and creases around the eyes.
The researchers then compared the photos with the life span of each player.

The results revealed that of the 184 players that had since died, those in the ‘no smile’ category had lived an average of 72.9 years.
Among the ‘partial smiles’ group, lifespan had averaged out at 75. But those with the biggest grins had lived for an average of 79.9 years – seven more than their straight-faced colleagues.

The study, published in the journal Psychological Science, found putting on a false grin may not give the same benefit because the extra life expectancy was only seen in players who had genuine smiles, known as Duchenne smiles.
These are smiles that engage groups of muscles around the mouth and eyes and are named after the 19th-century neurologist who defined them in detail.
‘Non-Duchenne’ smiles affect only the mouth.
The findings support another study which showed that being happy can reduce the risk of heart disease.
Scientists who studied 1,700 people over ten years found those who were most anxious and depressed were more likely to suffer clogged arteries and high blood pressure.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1265548/Smiling-add-years-life.html

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