Number with Alzheimer's likely twice estimates, study finds:

"The number of Americans with Alzheimer's disease is probably two to three times more than current estimates, according to a new study. And as the population ages, Alzheimer's could become the most expensive disease in the country. In the new study, brain autopsies of elderly people who had had no symptoms of Alzheimer's showed that more than a third had lesions in their brains that met the criteria for the disease. Dr. David A. Bennett, director of the Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, led the study, which will appear Tuesday in the journal Neurology.
About 4 million people in the United States are now thought to have Alzheimer's. The cost of caring for people with the brain disease tops $100 billion a year, according to the Lasker Foundation."

Doctors can use the 'Viagra visit' to screen men for heart: "By Tara Parker-Pope, The Wall Street Journal

If you're thinking about trying Viagra or another erectile-dysfunction drug to boost your sex life, chances are you should be talking to your doctor about your heart health as well.
There's a growing push in the medical community to use the 'Viagra visit' -- the time when a man asks his doctor for an erectile-dysfunction drug -- as a way to better screen men for heart disease. That's because studies increasingly show that an unhealthy vascular system is one of the main reasons men develop problems achieving and maintaining erections. And many doctors now believe that just as they check a man's cholesterol and blood pressure during the annual physical, they should also be asking detailed questions about a man's erectile function to better gauge his overall cardiovascular health and risk for heart attack.
While erectile dysfunction has long been treated as a lifestyle issue, erection problems appear to be a very early warning sign of looming heart troubles. An Italian study showed that in two-thirds of patients who had known coronary-artery disease as well as erectile dysfunction, the erection problems showed up, on average, three years before other symptoms, such as the chest pain caused by angina.
'It looks like erectile function is one of the first things to go long before someone has a heart attack or stroke,' says Steven A. Grover, professor of medicine at McGill University in Montreal. 'It's one of the first early warnings that something is wrong with the vascular system.'
While this may sound ominous, it also means men with erectile dysfunction are warned soon enough that they still have time to reverse heart disease by exercising, losing weight, and lowering cholesterol and high blood pressure. Doctors say men often are more motivated to make lifestyle changes once ED sets in. And studies show that in addition to lowering heart-attack risk, exercise and weight loss also can improve a man's erectile function.
'It's hard to catch a man's interest when you say 10 years from now you'll have a heart attack,' says Richard Sadovsky, associate professor of family medicine at the State University of New York-Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. 'But it's a very good teachable moment -- men are a little more willing to listen to lifestyle changes and clinical recommendation when it has to do with erections......'"

A Plateful of Eating Advice:
"Yet another new set of dietary guidelines emerged last week. This one was dished out by the American Heart Association (AHA), which updated recommendations it issued in 2000. Add that to the 2005 U.S. Dietary Guidelines, the revised Food Guide Pyramid and food recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences, among others, and it all piles up to a heaping platter of advice to eat right.While the number of dietary guidelines is increasing, the recommendations remain remarkably consistent, with a few exceptions....."

A Plateful of Eating Advice:
"Yet another new set of dietary guidelines emerged last week. This one was dished out by the American Heart Association (AHA), which updated recommendations it issued in 2000. Add that to the 2005 U.S. Dietary Guidelines, the revised Food Guide Pyramid and food recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences, among others, and it all piles up to a heaping platter of advice to eat right.While the number of dietary guidelines is increasing, the recommendations remain remarkably consistent, with a few exceptions....."

New Test Yields Clues Into Alzheimer's Onset : "A new test may help scientists answer a perplexing 'which came first' question about the development of Alzheimer's disease, possibly pointing the way to earlier diagnosis or even treatment. Brain deposits of a small protein known as amyloid beta long have been associated with Alzheimer's. But scientists have been unable to determine whether the body begins producing too much of the protein or loses the ability to clear it away...... Now, a research team led by Dr. Randall J. Bateman at Washington University in St. Louis is poised to find that answer with a test that for the first time can monitor the protein....."

VIDEO: Treatments For Rheumatoid Arthritis: "(CBS)
NEW YORK
Rheumatoid arthritis is a disease in which the body's immune system turn on itself.'It's called an immune reaction where our own cells are attacking our own tissue, and it's destructive,' says Beth Israel Medical Center's Dr. Robert Gotlin. And it especially targets the joints.'It feels like my hip's gonna come out of place,' says Mona Lisa Moore. She's only 42 years old, yet she has rheumatoid arthritis in her hip and knee. She's done well with traditional treatments like anti-inflammatory pills and steroids. But they don't work for everyone. Some patients need newer, stronger medications called TNF blockers. Steroids work kind of like a bomb, effecting all the elements of the immune system. these new medications are more like a bullet, directed toward the specific chemicals involved in rheumatoid arthritis.TNF attacks the joints directly and destroys them. Drugs like Remicade keep TNF from doing damage.'By surpressing that chemical, we can control the inflammatory response in rheumatoid arthritis and help preserve the joints,' says Dr. Gotlin. On the other hand, the newly-approved drug Rituxan helps in a different way. It's a cancer drug that kills off immune cells involved in causing rheumatoid arthritis.But with stronger medications comes more serious side effects. These drugs affect the liver and other organs, suppress the immune system, and may increase the risk of cancer. Dr. Gotlin says treating rheumatoid arthritis is a matter of weighing potential risks and benefits.'The choice becomes it it worth the risk... to control your inflammation, give you mobility back, and get you healthier and living your lifestyle.'..."

ABC News: Some 'Senior Moments' Could Be Alzheimer's
: "A study found that in a disturbing number of cases, embarrassing 'senior moments' such as forgetting a recent conversation or drawing a blank on someone's name may really be a sign of Alzheimer's after all.

Chicago scientists reached that conclusion after autopsies on the brains of 134 older people who had appeared to be mentally normal, apart from some subtle forgetfulness.

Occasional forgetfulness is often written off as a normal part of growing old and nothing to get alarmed about. And in most cases, that is probably true.

But the scientists found to their surprise that the brains of more than one-third of the participants were riddled with waxy protein clumps and other signs of degeneration that are hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease...."