Research published on-line in European Heart Journal[1] has found that the protective effect that tea has on the cardiovascular system is totally wiped out by adding milk.Tests on volunteers showed that black tea significantly improves the ability of the arteries to relax and expand, but adding milk completely blunts the effect. [click link for full article]

The old phrase ‘breakfast is the most important meal of the day’ has taken on new meaning for teenagers. A new study suggests that as teens enter adulthood, they are more likely to skip breakfast and increase their fast food consumption, and that both behaviors lead to an increased risk of weight gain. [click link for full article]

Combining synthetic chemistry techniques with a knowledge of the properties and actions of enzymes, scientists have been able to produce an exciting class of anti-cancer drugs originally isolated from blue-green algae.This accomplishment is expected to make it possible to produce enough of the promising drugs for use in clinical trials. [click link for full article]

Nutrition 21, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXXI) has announced the results of a recent placebo controlled, double-blind, randomized, single center study that demonstrated that Diachrome®, a patented combination of chromium picolinate and biotin, safely improves blood glucose levels and cholesterol metabolism in people with type 2 diabetes. [click link for full article]

A preliminary study suggests there may be hope in the offing for some sufferers of chronic fatigue syndrome with a new therapy being tested by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.José Montoya, MD, associate professor of medicine (infectious diseases), and postdoctoral scholar Andreas Kogelnik, MD, PhD, have used the drug valganciclovir - an antiviral often used in treating diseases caused by human herpes viruses - to treat a small number of CFS patients. [click link for full article]

An inexpensive tracing agent used in combination with ultrasound can pinpoint how effectively drugs targeting pancreatic cancer work, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have demonstrated for the first time.The study, involving human pancreatic tumor cells implanted in mice, opens a new avenue for real-time imaging of a patient’s response to cancer therapies. It appears in the Jan. 1 issue of the journal Clinical Cancer Research. [click link for full article]

The prevalence of congenital heart disease (CHD) has increased strikingly in adults and children in a new population study, researchers reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.Severe CHD has risen in adults by 85 percent and 22 percent in children during the 15-year study (1985-2000). Congenital heart defects are structural problems arising from abnormal formation of the heart or major blood vessels near the heart that occurs before birth. [click link for full article]

Hypertension and prehypertension in adolescents and young adults was associated with a higher risk of having an abnormally enlarged heart, researchers report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.In a study of American Indians, average age 26. [click link for full article]

The following highlights recent news of state actions on women’s health issues. Abortion Regulations Ohio: Gov. Bob Taft (R) on Thursday signed into law a bill (HB 239) that prohibits state funding from covering abortion services except for cases of rape, incest or when the pregnant women’s life is in danger, the [click link for full article]