Wishing you angels...

Wishing you angels whenever and wherever you need them!
Happy Holidays from Colette Bouchez and RedDressDiary.com (Turn on your speakers for the heavenly sounds!) 

To send an angel to someone you love, cut and past the link below http://smilebox.com/playBlog/4d6a45314f4441344e6a673d0d0a&blogview=true

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips! Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.

Older Moms, Fertility Drugs & Breast Cancer: The Legacy of Elizabeth Edwards & The New Green Fertility Movement

No one knows why a woman gets breast cancer; but research shows late motherhood and the use of fertility drugs could increase the risk. Here's what you need to know.

By Colette Bouchez

It was back in November of 2004, when, as a nation still giddy with excitement over a presidential election, we learned Elizabeth Edwards, wife of a then- leading VP candidate John Edwards, was diagnosed with invasive ductal breast cancer, a particularly severe form of the disease.

Now, some six years later, we mourn her death, passing as she did last week at age 61, from complications arising from that original breast cancer which spread first to her bones and ultimately her liver.

While no one knows why any woman gets breast cancer, there are some factors that increase the risk. Among them is bearing children later in life, with some research suggesting the use of fertility drugs might play a role.

As such it begs the question, was Edwards – who became pregnant at age 48 and age 50 and has acknowledged the use of fertility medications - a victim of the very technology that is supposed to create life, and not end it?

"In light of what we now know about links between cancer and late-age pregnancy, and more recently, about hormone use and cancer, it's a valid question. Unfortunately, it's one that is, at best, difficult to answer," says Julia Smith, MD, director of the NYU Cancer Institute Breast Cancer Screening and Prevention Program and the director of the Lynne Cohen Cancer Screening and Prevention Clinic for High Risk Women at Bellevue Hospital Center, and Breast Cancer Preventive Care Program at the NYU Clinical Cancer Center.

What we know thus far: The risk of breast cancer naturally increase as a woman ages. Smith says it also rises in relation to the age at which a woman has her first child and her last child, beginning at age 30. “The older a woman is when she has her first baby and her last baby, the greater her risk of breast cancer in the future," says Smith.

According to news reports, Edwards was in her early 30s when her first two children were born -- a son, Wade, who passed away in an accident in 1996, and her daughter, Catherine, now 28. Edwards was approximately 48 when she became pregnant with her second daughter, Emma Claire, and about 50 when she conceived her son Jack.

While no one is certain exactly how Elizabeth Edwards conceived at such an advanced age, it has been reported her pregnancies were aided by the use of fertility drugs – hormone-based medications used to create multiple eggs and encourage the growth of a thick uterine lining necessary to sustain a pregnancy. And therein lies a second cause for cancer-risk concern.

Indeed, a growing number of doctors now worry that when you combine the intense estrogen overload associated with some fertility drugs, with the high estrogen levels that occur during pregnancy – all an age when a woman should naturally experience a decrease in these hormones - another breast cancer red flag appears.

“Right now we just don’t know if being hit with a blast of estrogen after years of decreasing levels increases the risk of breast cancer or if fertility drugs further fuel that risk. Women deserve to know, but we just don't have the answer yet, “ says Smith.

Some of what we do know, however, came to light via the massive Women’s Health Initiative study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2002. Here research on some 16,000 women taught us that a combination regimen of estrogen and progesterone commonly used to treat peri menopausal and menopausal symptoms increases the risk of breast cancer in some women.

But does that risk profile apply to women roughly in this same age group taking similar hormones not to avoid hot flashes, but instead to have a baby?

“ We don't know one way or the other if there is an increased risk of breast cancer associated with taking fertility drugs thus far, the data has been conflicting. But it's certainly a question that needs to be addressed further, and certainly needs to be answered,” said Margareta Pisarska, MD, co-director of the Fertility Program at the Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles appears to agree. “

Could GREEN FERTILTY Be The Answer?

Currently there is no definitive conclusion as to whether or not fertility drugs will increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer later in life. And while it may be some time before we know for certain, many fertility experts are not waiting around to find out.

Instead, they are moving forward with a rapidly growing movement known as “Green Fertility “ - a way of increasing a woman’s chances of conception, even women over 40, using all natural therapies. Alone or in combination with a brand new type of drug-free GREEN IVF, it could just be the safe, sane and possibly healthier alternative for the millions of women struggling with fertility issues.

Included in the green fertility treatment regimen are foods which focus on nutrients proven in studies to affect egg production and release in women and healthy sperm production in men; vitamin and nutrient therapy designed to balance hormones linked to common fertility problems; and specific types of exercise – like yoga - and a moderate weight maintenance program - all which studies have shown can boost fertility naturally.

Moreover, many “green” fertility doctors now also recommend a series of Chinese herbs, as well as acupuncture treatments to gently and safely encourage conception.

"Acupuncture works to restore the flow of Qi -- your essence, your body energy -- so with regards to infertility, treatment has a calming, restorative effect that increases a sense of well- being and ultimately helps the body to accept the creation of life," says acupuncturist Ifeoma Okoronkwo, MD, a professor of medicine at New York University School of Medicine.

While taking the “Green” approach to getting pregnant can help the tens of thousands of couples diagnosed with “unexplained infertility” doctors say there are some conception problems – like blocked fallopian tubes or uterine scar tissue in women - for which the “green” treatments are simply not enough on their own to help. When this is the case, the answer may lie in the new “GREEN IVF “ - a natural cycle fertility treatment that works without the need for fertility medications.

Indeed, instead of bombarding her body with fertility drugs and hormones to increase egg production and release, the new Green IVF relies on vitamins, nutrients, diet and exercise to encourage fertility and then uses traditional IVF techniques to harvest a single, naturally produced egg. The remainder of the IVF treatment remains the same.

“ According to John Zhang,M.D., Ph.D., director of the New Hope Fertility Clinic in New York City, the new natural cycle IVF is “ Ideal for women who choose to live a drug-free and chemical-free lifestyle, or for those women who, because of age or fertility problems, are less likely to produce multiple eggs, even if heavy IVF drugs are administered.”

But does it work? A number of studies show that it does! In research published recently in the journal Fertility and Sterility, doctors from Rome, Italy found that in women who previously did not respond well to IVF medications, were able to have a healthy “green fertility” implantation at a rate three times that of women who took traditional fertility medications.

The bottom line: Whether you have a family history of breast cancer, or simply want to avoid the use of fertility medications and encourage a faster, healthier pregnancy naturally, then the Green Fertility movement may be your answer.

To  learn more about Green Fertility including the new GREEN IVF visit http://www.greenfertility.com

Colette Bouchez is the author of the new book : Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets for Making Babies” ( Ivy League Press, NY, 2010).

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips! Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements. The owners and creator of this blog may or may not benefit financially from the content of this presentation.

Keeping An Eye On Cataract Surgery

A new way of performing cataract surgery promises to revolutionize this common operation. Here's what you need to know.

By Colette Bouchez 

I remember the first time I suspected my Mom might have  a cataract – a clouding of the lens of the eye that  can begin to appear as early as age 45.   We were in the dry cleaners,  being waited on by a pleasant young woman,  when my Mom decided to pay her a compliment. 

 “You look so lovely in that pink sweater”, she told the young woman, “ it really perks up your complexion.” 

The young woman looked at my mother – not sure she heard right -  and then to me.   I just shrugged my shoulders indicating I wasn’t sure what was going on.  You see the woman wasn’t wearing pink -  her sweater was in fact, bright gold! 

 Indeed, one of the earliest signs of cataracts is  a change in the way colors appear. Since pink and gold are already close on the color wheel,  a vision problem that blocks even a tiny part of that spectrum can turn yellow to pink in a heart beat.  Other symptoms of cataracts include blurry vision, sensitivity to light, and problems with night vision - all of which my Mom was also beginning to experience.

 Ultimately she was diagnosed with cataracts – a problem which affects millions of people every year -  some as young as age 45.   Eventually, she had them removed via what was, at the time, a fairly complicated surgery.

 Today, that same surgery is much faster and easier, thanks to a variety of surgical advances including sophisticated lasers to do all the cutting.  

 Unfortunately, however,  there remains one area of cataract surgery – the releasing of the clouded lens itself from the capsule surrounding it - that still requires manual surgery,  and a precise one at that. In fact, it requires such precision that doctors liken it to cutting a perfect circle freehand - about the third of a size of penny! 

 Now, however, a brand new “marriage” of  precision  laser cutting and 3 D imaging reported today in the  journal  Science Translation Medicine promises to finally update this stage of cataract removal and in the process revolutionize the entire surgical experience – for both patient and doctor!  

 How does it work?

Using a new type of 3D optical “tomography”, doctors can use scattered light streaming from the cornea to form a three dimensional  image of the live tissue of the eye.  This in turn allows the surgeon to clearly and accurately “mark” the boundaries of the clouded lens, ( that tiny circle that needs to be cut)  and with those markings in place, let the laser do cutting – without risk of damaging any of the surrounding eye tissue.
Moreover, by combining this new 3D tomography, with a  femtosecond  laser - (the same kind used in vision correction surgery) the accuracy of cataract removal increases by a dramatic margin.

“"Until this, we had no way to quantify the precision, no way to measure the size and shape of the capsular opening," says Daniel Palanker, PhD, associate professor of ophthalmology at Stamford University who, along with William Culbertson, MD, professor of ophthalmology at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami, was a  lead author on the paper. 

 Indeed,  the researchers say the ultra control and precision of the new system allows surgeons to cut circles in the lens capsule that are 12 times more precise.  It also leaves the cut edges twice allowing doctors to create a kind of bio-pocket  into which they can easily slip the new plastic replacement lens.

 "The results were much better in a number of ways — increasing safety, improving precision and reproducibility, and standardizing the procedure," said Palanker.

 He adds that the  new approach also makes the operation  less dependent on the surgical skills of the  doctor, which in turn allows for greater consistency of the procedure overall. For those having the operation, it means more predictable results - no matter who is doing your surgery- as well as a better, tighter fit of the new replacement lens.  This helps reduce the chances of shifting and improves the overall alignment between the new lens and the pupil.  This can be particularly important for those of us who  will later require multi-focal lenses, such as "computer glasses". 

 Currently the system  described in the study has been tested for precision in pig eyes and human eyes from an eye bank with excellent results.  It was also tested for safety on rabbits and in human patients, with a clinical trial of 50 patients yielding  good results. Researchers report an  accuracy and precision rating  10 times that of current cataract procedures. 

Currently the new surgical approach is expected to be available in a large clinical testing situation nationwide in the very near future. 

Although this new approach to cataract surgery is being worked on by a number of medical  laser companies, this particular study was funded by OpticaMedica Corporation of Santa Clara , California, with some of the researchers having a stake in the company and others being employees of the company.

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips! Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.

The New GREEN IVF - When Science & Nature Combine, Pregnancy Miracles Happen!

In our new book on how to use the science of nature to help you get pregnant naturally, we also  feature a chapter on the new GREEN IVF- a brand new advanced combination of science and nature that is defying even the most difficult pregnancy odds & helping couples get pregnant!   Here's what you need to know ...

By Colette Bouchez

If you're over 35 and especially if you are over 40  and still thinking about getting pregnant ... well you have both my congratulations and my sympathy! While the world of reproductive medicine has certainly made pregnancy after age 40 a viable possibility,  I have to hand it to any woman willing to take on  the "terrible twos" and peri menopause in the same decade! 

But for those of you who do want to take the "older mom" plunge,  I want to tell you about a very exciting advance in the world of reproductive medicine.  It's called GREEN IVF - a kinder, gentler, much more natural way of performing the traditional in vitro fertilization ( IVF) procedure that appears to be having some amazing results! 

Indeed, among the most popular of all fertility treatments worldwide involves the process known as IVF or in vitro fertilization. While there are many different varieties of  IVF and varying techniques that are used, the basic premise remains the same: To allow fertilization to take place outside the body in an environment that is medically created to optimize the chance for conception.

GREEN IVF is based on the same premise, with one very important twist -  it leaves out one step!  And that omission could be what turns your fertility odds completely around!  Intrigued?  I thought you might be ! 

GREEN IVF: What It Is & How It Works

From almost the time IVF began - the first birth took place in 1978 - one of the key factors allowing this procedure to work as well as it has, is the use of fertility drugs . These are medications designed to encourage the growth and development of multiple eggs while also allowing doctors to manipulate your hormones and in a sense “take control” of your fertility cycle.

The result: Instead of making and ovulating just one egg, a woman can make many eggs; instead of pregnancy occurring from one embryo, multiple eggs are combined with lots of sperm resulting in multiple embryos. Instead of just one fertilized embryo making it’s way to a woman’s uterus, multiple embryos are

transferred into her body. All of this increases the chance for pregnancy.

And for many couples these, and medications like them, become the deciding factor that allows conception to occur. 

That said, the use of these medications are not without problems – including not only an increase in multiple births, but also many side effects – including the potential to increase  woman's risk for certain cancers later in life.  Moreover hte use of fertility drugs can add thousands and sometimes even  tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of each IVF procedure. 

Enter: GREEN IVF!  Indeed, as all of these issues came together, a group of brilliant new fertility pioneers began to look for what might be a better way to combine science and nature – one that does not involve the use of these medications. Their thought: The less that  medicine interferes with nature, the better the outcome might be!The result of this thinking eventually led to the development of  ‘GREEN IVF’ – a natural cycle fertility treatment that relies primarily on the  workings of a woman’s own body to lay the groundwork for the IVF procedure.

So, instead of bombarding your body with medications designed to force your system to produce an abnormally large number of eggs in a given cycle, Green IVF allows your body to do what it does naturally – i.e., grow, mature, and develop just one egg, the “ right “ egg, the “best” egg for fertilization. That one egg is then harvested, combined with sperm, and the single resulting embryo is placed back into your uterus – in almost the exact same way it would be if your conception had occurred naturally inside your body.

Indeed, with natural cycle IVF we are going back to the future : One egg, one embryo and one baby at a time! 

Now if this seems as if it would not work well for women over 35 - particularly since natural egg production slows down as a woman ages -  ironically, studies show that Green IVF actually works even better on women who have not responded to the typical egg producing medications.  

Indeed, in one study published recently in the journal Fertility and Sterility, a group of reproductive experts from Rome, Italy found that in women who did  not previously respond well to fertility drugs, natural cycle “GREEN IVF” was able to help them achieve a successful implantation at a rate nearly three times higher than those who underwent traditional IVF with drug stimulation. Although younger women had the best results, older women were certainly among those for whom the GREEN IVF approach worked even after traditional IVF attempts had failed. 

Certainly, the traditional form of IVF is still among the most popular and the most widely used laboratory assisted pregnancy techniques throughout the world. But for a special group of women, the new GREEN IVF may be just what the doctor ordered!

So who is the best candidate for GREEN IVF? According to John Zhang M.D., Ph.D., director of the New Hope Fertility Clinic in New York City, and one of the true pioneers of natural cycle IVF, this procedure is  “ Ideal for women who choose to live a drug-free and chemical-free lifestyle or for women who, because of age or poor fertility health, are less likely to produce multiple eggs even if heavy IVF drugs are administered.”

To learn more about the exciting new GREEN IVF – including the success rates,  which women may actually benefit most as well as other important advances in getting pregnant naturally - at any age -  visit GreenFertility.com – or pick up a copy of my brand new book  Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets For Making Babies. 

 For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips! Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.

Vitamin News: Good & Not So Good!

If you’ve been loading up on vitamins to combat a number of  age-related conditions, this week there is both encouraging and discouraging news. Here’s what you need to know.
By Colette Bouchez

Feeling a little down in the dumps? Try increasing your intake of OJ – or any food rich in Vitamin C.  The reason? New studies show this common nutrient could be a mood booster!

In research just published in the journal Nutrition, doctors from McGill Univeristy in Canada found that vitamin C could improve mood , even in acutely ill hospitalized patients.

Lead researcher Dr. John Hoffer recently said, "Patients are rarely given vitamin supplements. Most physicians are simply unaware of the problem. Subclinical deficiencies of vitamin C and D have each been linked to psychological abnormalities, so we examined that aspect in our clinical trial.”

And, in fact, the trial proved that not only are many more patients than expected low on vitamins C and D, but that increasing levels of Vitamin C could make an important difference in mood.

Indeed, using an objective scale of mood determination, researchers found as much as a 34% increase in mood after supplementation of just 500 mg, twice daily with results becoming evident in just days. Vitamin D, while important for other reasons, did not appear to impact mood.

What researchers aren’t certain of, however,  is whether or not the mood boosting effects are the same in people who aren’t deficient in vitamin C – or if the effects are limited to those who are.  But either way it can’t hurt to pump up your vitamin C intake, particularly as we head into cold and flu season. Why does this matter?

First, there is good evidence to show that keeping C levels high could help your immune system ward off some colds and flu viruses.  

But more importantly, studies show that when we are ill  the body pulls vitamin C away from our tissues and redirects it into our immune cells, where it's needed to fight off infections.  While this is a good thing,  depending on our body's supply it could leave other tissues, organs and cells literally starving for this nutrient.

Making matters worse: Since blood levels of this nutrient are high (remember, it's there, it's just all concentrated in your immune cells) there is not likely to be any sign of deficiency - making it a difficult problem to diagnose. 

Bottom line: You could be short on vitamin C and not even know it!

The way to get around all of this: Take a multi vitamin for sure. But even more important is to load up on foods rich in vitamin C such as citris fruits like oranges, grapefruits and lemons, as well as strawberries. Veggies high in vitamin C include tomatoes, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, butternut squash and green peppers.  This will help keep your natural supply of vitamin C high enough that your body can use it to fight off those colds and flus - and still have enough left over for other functions.

Thanks For The Memories: B Vitamins May Not Help!

As good as the news is about Vitamin C, there is less stellar findings to report about B vitamins and their role in cognitive function, particularly protection against memory loss.

In a new study published this week in the journal Neurology, researchers from the University of Western Australia found that B vitamins appear to not  play as  significant a role in protecting your memory as once thought. This is particularly true if you have high blood pressure, a condition that has linked to memory loss.

Indeed, after a two year study of men aged 75 or older – all diagnosed with hypertension –  doctors concluded that supplementation with B  vitamins  played almost no role in reducing the risk of dementia.

“The results of this trial indicate that the use of vitamins B6, B12 and folate for two years does not change the rate of cognitive decline amongst men with hypertension aged 75 years or older,” concluded the researchers.

It’s important to note however, that this  finding is in direct conflict with another study released last week showing B vitamins may indeed help with cognitive impairment such as memory loss by reducing levels of homocysteine – an amino acid thought to play a role in cognitive function.

So who’s right?

Australian study author Dr. Andrew Ford offered this explanation: “The most economical explanation for our findings… is that elevated plasma homocysteine is not a risk factor but merely a marker that reflects underlying common processes responsible for  dementia.... and that homocysteine-lowering treatment with B-vitamins does not affect the long term cognitive function of people at risk.”

In short, if the research released this week  is correct, elevated homocysteine levels are not the cause of, but rather only the body’s response to  inflammation linked to memory loss. So, reducing levels isn’t going to make much of a difference on a long term basis.

And indeed this is what the new study found: While men who took supplements of vitamins B6, B12 and folate experienced a  temporary increase in their ability to recall information and in their attention span, the improvements were just that - temporary with no long lasting effects over time. 

Indeed, on  a long term basis these B vitamins appeared to have little benefit in terms of mortality or in protecting against the development of dementia.

What the study did not show, however, was whether or not these nutrients might help those already diagnosed with dementia. And indeed, there is research showing that once dementia has set in,  B vitamins could help slow the progress of memory loss and may even help improve temporary day to day functions, particulary if a nutrient deficiency exists.   This is particularly important since as we age we lose the ability to pull vitamin B12 from our foods, so even if we are eating a good diet we can still come up short on B12.  In this case, high potency B12 supplements, as well as supplements of B6 and folic acid may indeed help those who have already suffered clinical memory loss.

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips!

Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements. The owners and creators of this blog may or may not directly or indirectly benefit from products mentioned or advertised on this blog.

Get Into Your Skinny Jeans With Calcium - Vitamin D Supplements!

A new study says those calcium and vitamin D supplements may do more than just strengthen your bones - they could help you lose weight too! Here's the big skinny on getting into those skinny jeans! 

By Colette Bouchez

Whether you’re struggling to lose those last 10 pounds – or facing up the task of tackling a 50 pound loss or more – take heart.    Brand new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition says that boosting your intake of both calcium and vitamin D may be your ticket to skinny jeans! 

In research conducted at Ben-Gurion University in Negrev Israel doctors discovered that dieters who had a modest calcium intake of just 580 mg daily, and maintained a blood level of vitamin D around 30 nanograms per milliliter were able to naturally and easily lose more  weight over a two year period of time than those lower levels of both. 

“Our study suggests that both higher dairy calcium intake and increased serum vitamin D are related to greater diet-induced weight loss,” wrote the researchers, led by Danit Shahar from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel. 

This new study tosses a bit more fuel on the fire burning around the idea that calcium-rich dairy products can help you lose weight. Indeed,  numerous studies have shown that increasing your intake of dairy based products while dieting could make weight loss easier. 

But while many dairy products, particularly full fat milk, ice cream and cheeses do indeed offer high levels of calcium, and some, like fortified milk also offer increased  vitamin D,  the high fat content can have some health concerns.  This includes not only an increased risk of heart disease, but possibly an increased risk of estrogen-sensitive cancers for women.   

And, in fact, since hormones are stored in fat, cattle which are given hormones such as estrogen (and many are) will yield a dairy product that could, for some women, increase some health risks. 
And some believe that’s too much of a trade – off for losing a few extra pounds.

But if, in fact, the weight loss was tied not to the dairy products, but the calcium and vitamin D these products provide, at least theoretically, you should  be able to gain the benefits without the risks by simply taking these nutrients in supplement form. 

And that in fact is what one study published earlier this year has found. Reporting in the journal Nutrition and Metabolism, doctors found that patients who consumed calcium supplements containing between 1,400 and 1,500 mg daily  - with or without vitamin D3 – were able to better control that dangerous “belly fat” seen in the lower trunk and develop higher muscle mass in this same area.  

That said, an earlier Canadian study found that the weight-loss benefits of calcium supplements in women may be limited to those who are calcium deficient – and that no additional weight loss benefits will be derived if you’re calcium levels are already up to speed. 

So, what’s a gal to do? As with all things in life, moderation could be key. If you’re not taking calcium supplements then certainly you should talk to your doctor about adding at least 1,000 mg per day in conjunction with Vitamin D.

As to adding dairy products to your weight loss diet,  experts say if you stick to low-fat varieties such as low fat yogurt, milk or cheese, and limit your intake to no more than 3 to 4  servings per day,  you can gain the benefits without dramatically increasing any health risks.  

Also remember you can get calcium from sardines, pink salmon, soy beverages, oatmeal,  kale and fortified beverages such as orange juice. 

FOLLOW-UP To BONIVA'S BIG OOPS!  Several weeks ago we published "Boniva's Big Oops" - wherein we pointed out that the makers of the osteoporosis drug Boniva  suggest spinach as a way to increase calcium intake naturally - even though this goes against what most nutritionists recommend.  Because spinach contains oxalic acid -which interferes with your body's ability to absorb calcium big time  - spinach is not a good choice to increase bone health. In fact, adding it to your diet may actually reduce the amount of calcium you are able absorb from other calcium-rich foods such as milk, cheese or yogurt.   Since the article appeared we heard from hundreds of you who pointed out that not only are Boniva's erroneous ads still running on TV,  but that these same ads advocating spinach as a calcium-rich food  have even appeared in the  WebMD  magazine and on their website - where we all know the docs and nutritionists on staff  know better.  

So...if the Boniva folks don't think enough of your health to make the change in their ads and give you the correct dietary information to stay healthy, maybe you should think twice before accepting a prescription for this drug- who knows what else they are wrong about?  Either way, talk to your doctor - she'll know what's best for you.  And never stop taking a prescription drug unless you check with your doctor first. 

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips!

Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements. The creators of this blog may or may not benefit from products mentioned or featured on this web page.

Don't Have A GYN Surgery Without This Fruit Juice!

New research shows a common fruit juice could help you avoid one of the most serious post-surgical complications.  Read on to discover how to protect yourself!

By Colette Bouchez

If you’re facing any kind of surgery –even a minor operation – then you probably already know the risk of acquiring a hospital-based infection can be high.  Among the most dangerous is MRSA  (S. aureus) – the "staph"  infection that is often resistant to medication and can have life threatening consequences, particularly following gynecological surgeries such as a hysterectomy.

Now, a new study says you may be able to protect yourself  via the simple addition of a  fruit juice drink to your diet. And that drink is cranberry juice!

In studies conducted at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), researchers reported that a cranberry juice cocktail was able to block a strain of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) in a way that  prevented an infection from forming.

"Most of our work with cranberry juice has been with E. coli and urinary tract infections, but we included Staphylococcus aureus in this study because it is a very serious health threat,"  said lead researcher Professor Terri Camesano.

The results, she says, were surprising – and important.

Indeed, in  the past studies have shown that  cranberry juice  may reduce the risk of urinary tract infections (UTIs) by interfering with the ability of bacteria to cling to the walls of the urinary tract. This in turn prevented the creation of a “bio film” that would otherwise act as a kind of incubator encouraging the bacteria to grow.  With no biofilm, no infection could develop.

While the protective mechanisms of cranberries  was believed to be limited to E.coli – the bacteria most responsible for UTIs -  today’s research shows that various forms of staph infection may also respond to cranberries protective effects.  This , say researchers, is key since staph not only can cause a UTI but a range of infections from minor skin rashes to the potentially deadly toxic shock syndrome.   Between 1999 and 2005 the number of deaths from the antibiotic resistant strain of staph known as MRSA ( S. Aureus) more than doubled.

While MRSA can affect both men and women and develop after any surgery,  there is some evidence that women may be more susceptible, particularly if their surgery involves open an incision in the pelvic region, such as that used during an abdominal  hysterectomy. Indeed, the US Centers for Disease Control reports  that  the rate of post operative infection following abdominal hysterectomy runs a close third, just behind open heart surgery and a colon surgery. 

A recent study conducted by the University of Nottingham in England found that in particular women undergoing gynecological surgeries were at greater risk for post operative infections.

How Cranberry Juice Might Help You

The new study was conducted on urine samples taken from patients who recently consumed cranberry juice.  When the samples were incubated  in a laboratory dish with strains of either E.coli or S. Aureus (staph) bacteria,  cells were unable to form the biofilm necessary to promote proliferation of the bacteria.  The end result: The dangerous infections could not develop.

"What was surprising is that Staphylococcus aureus showed the most significant results in this study,” said Camesano.

"We saw essentially no biofilm in the staph samples, which is very surprising because Staph aureus is usually very good at forming biofilms. That's what makes it such a health problem,” she added.

Indeed, not only can staph infections quickly and easily form the biofilms necessary for bacteria to grow,  once formed they can difficult to break down - so the infections continue to proliferate and thrive.  Currently there are numerous strains of drug-resistant staph infections  threatening to become completely unresponsive to any drug therapy.

While this new study on the protective effects of cranberries  is far from conclusive, when presented recently at the national meeting for the American Chemical Society in Boston, it appeared to attract significant interest from other researchers. So, don't be surprised to see more on this  in the coming months.

In the meantime, if you are facing a surgery anytime soon - but particularly a hysterectomy,  or any type of bladder reconstruction - do  check with your doctor about whether or not adding cranberry juice, whole, fresh cranberries, or a cranberry supplement to your diet prior to and just after surgery might help reduce your risk of infection. While there is no proof at this point, if your diet permits it,  remember that cranberries are generally healthy,  brimming with vitamin C and other antioxidants which can boost your overall health and could make recovering from any surgery faster and easier.

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips!

Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.  The owners of this blog may or may not  indirectly or directly benefit from product mentions featured in the text or visual portions of this site.

Boniva's Big Oops: Osteoporosis Advice Not Sound

In a recent TV commercial for the osteoporosis drug Boniva, actress Sally Field tells us to boost bone health by eating more calcium-rich spinach.  But experts say that may be some very wrong advice. Here's what you  need to know.

By Colette Bouchez

You can hardly miss the commercials featuring award winning actress Sally Field. The product is Boniva, the once-monthly  bone enhancing  prescription drug for osteoporosis, a bone thinning disorder that affects mostly women over age 50.

But what many of you may miss – or worse still pay attention to – is the big “oops” in the commercial.

And that "oops"  is Ms. Field telling us we can also  boost our bone health by eating high calcium foods such as “cheese and spinach”.   So where’s the goof?  It’s in the spinach.
While spinach does indeed contain substantial calcium - which is good for your bones - it also contains a potent natural chemical known as "oxalic acid" .  And that interferes with calcium absorption big time!

According to the Harvard Health Letter,   “ A cup of frozen spinach contains almost as much calcium as a cup of milk, but only a tenth as much is absorbed because of the oxalic acid.”

And a number of studies seem to prove this out.  In data published in the journal Nutrition Research  as far back as 1987,  researchers  showed that when comparing calcium absorption from women eating cheese vs women eating spinach, those who ate the spinach absorbed far less of this important nutrient.

In fact, according to what is considered the gold standard of medical  nutritional information - The 50th Anniversary Edition of the text book Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease (Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins),  the authors write that “ The most potent inhibitor of calcium absorption is oxalic acid, found in high concentration in spinach, rhubarb, and to a lesser extent sweet potatoes and dried beans.”

The authors go on to write that calcium absorption from spinach is only 5% compared to compared to 27% from milk .

The other calcium inhibitor is phytic acid, which can be found in things like wheat bran cereal or dried beans.

So what does this all mean?  It means that if you are relying on foods like spinach to get your calcium you're going to come up dangerously short.

Spinach Is Good – But Not For Your Bones

Spinach is, in fact, a wonderful vegetable, loaded to the brim with folic acid, one of the single most important nutrients for women.  It also contains other B vitamins and  vitamin C and it’s a great source of fiber.  So certainly, it’s important to include spinach in your diet. And personally I love it!

But that  said, if you’re eating it for bone health – as Boniva suggests – you’re not only going to come up dangerously short, you’re probably going to need a lot more of their bone enhancing drug in order to compensate for the calcium you're not getting by eating spinach!  

Now of course  I’m not saying that Boniva intentionally wants you to be low on calcium in order to sell you more of their bone enhancing medicine.   And I certainly am savvy enough to know that the commercial in question which pushes spinach as a good source of calcium  was likely written by an advertising copy writer  and not a physician or even a staffer at Genentech,  the makers of Boniva .  

But, while  the Boniva  website does  list spinach as a “ minor”  nutritional source of calcium ...  it also places it in the same rank with broccoli and kale,  both of which are way higher in calcium and don’t contain oxalic acid.  What’s that about?

Perhaps of even greater concern is that if the powers that be at a major pharmaceutical company can’t even take the time to watch their own commercial – and spot the misinformation – it just begs the question, what else are they overlooking, in their research, in their test results, in the production of their medications?

It could be they are spending so much time and energy on giving us the perfect drug that they have no time to watch daytime TV.   I hope that's the case.  But I don't know. 

What I do know is that Sally Fields is an awesome actress with a powerful voice. But right now, thanks to Boniva,  she’s giving us women some wrong and some potentially harmful health  information .  And that’s not good for us – or good for Sally.

They say you can’t believe everything you read about your health on the  Internet.  Apparently the same is true about you hear on TV.  Maybe we should  just spend a little more time reading books. Or how about  listening to our doctors...what you think? 

For the latest health, beauty and style commentary  for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com  for money saving beauty and style tips!

 Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.  The publishers and producers of this blog may or may not directly or indirectly benefit from any products or services that appear in or on this blog.

Eat, Pray, Love ....SHOP ???

For women over 40 the mantra of Eat, Pray, Love might represent the guts to shed your inhibitions and start life again.  Or not ....

By Colette Bouchez

DESPITE Oprah Winfrey’s endorsements, despite the fact that a zillion women bought into the premise, despite author Elizabeth Gilbert telling us ad nauseum that  Eat,Pray, Love was just a simple little story chronicling the inner struggles we all share … for me, almost from page one,  it seemed  nothing more than a well written temper tantrum of a  spoiled, selfish, over indulged, immature little whiner,  with a self absorbed axe to grind and a publishing deal on which to grind it.
  
I’m sorry I know I am probably in the minority with this feeling.   But I can’t help it.

And part of  the reason I can’t help it is that  the whole time  Ms. Gilbert was referring to herself as this sort of mixed up, confused, soul-searching not to mention BROKE soul,   I kept thinking to myself well yeah …but where I come from,  BROKE means you don’t have bus fare to  visit your sister in Altoona , let alone snag plane fare and hotel bills for a trip half way round the world.  And once you get there have the money to do pretty much anything you want. 

And Okay, I Get It – financial destitution IS all relative. I mean there’s Park Avenue and then there’s Park Row.

Still,  by anyone’s definition, being jobless, homeless and fundless and still somehow find the funds to  to  fly to Italy, stuff your face with  every delicacy on the menu and generally party your little butt off, and  when you’re done take off for India and then Bali to do pretty much  the same thing for months on end -   all the while wearing  a ton of new clothes which somehow you were able to snap out of your confused brain fog long enough to have purchased …well  I don’t know about you, but in my book that doesn’t exactly  spell BROKE , CONFUSED   or exemplify the need for soul searching.

What it does do, however, is bring to mind another poor, lost confused soul that took us all on a similar joy ride to inner peace . His name was James Frey and the book was A Million Little Pieces. Need I say more?


So that was my first impression of Eat, Pray, Love:  I wasn’t buying it.  In fact  I so wasn’t buying it I was pretty sure that anyone who decided to dig deep enough might even find that a book contract was actually place BEFORE this so-called soul-searching journey began – or at the very least a few emails confirming publishing interest.  And  I’m  not saying there was mind you, but seeing how she was, after all a travel writer with lots of publishing industry contacts,  I ‘m just saying I wouldn’t be at all surprised if there was one. That is how contrived this whole story seemed to me.

But let us now fast forward a couple years to August 2010 – and Eat, Pray, Love THE MOVIE  is here. And before I say another word let me say that I adore Julia Roberts.  I would watch Julia Roberts  read the Yellow Pages because she is that good. And if anyone could make me believe that the  mantra of Eat, Pray, Love was real and meaningful,  it would be Julia Roberts. 

Unfortunately, it didn’t happen for me. Not only did the movie NOT change my mind about the concept of Eat, Pray, Love,  it confirmed my original feelings in a way even  I did not expect :    Somehow seeing it all up there in breathtaking cinematic glory, the spoiled, the indulgence, the ME ME ME and the  premeditation of it all seemed even bigger AND MORE PREMEDITATED and more ME ME ME  than before.

Now don’t get me wrong here ….Julia Roberts was fantastic in this movie. Warm, engaging and funny and fun to watch too. And the movie was great in terms of the cinematography, the directing, the scenery …. you WILL fall in love with Bali and Italy , and the trip to India – though short as it was -  never looked more enticing. And you will want to go there.

But after the travelogue is done,   the truth remains:  No matter how Sony Pictures dresses it up,  Eat Pray Love it is still nothing more than a trite,  contrived tale   of a  spoiled, over indulged prima donna with a flair  for the dramatic and clearly enough cunning to not only find her “inner peace”,  but  in the process use her newly minted soul searching skills to  ferret out  a top drawer book contract, a movie deal and now, a tchotchke  contract with the Home Shopping Network.

Yes,  wrapping up my original conviction about the true meaning  of EPL,  last week the Home Shopping Network  began  “Eating,  Praying and Loving”  via a collection of Elizabeth Gilbert-endorsed   movie-promoting paraphernalia: Rings, bracelets, and other spiritual  tchotchke with the words  “Eat, Pray, Love” inscribed.    As if we needed one more public relations reminder to do so.

And it was selling up a storm.

Who knew finding inner peace could be so lucrative?

See the movie if you like … Julia Roberts is delightful and beautiful and fun to watch.  Just don’t expect it to change your life in any kind of meaningful way.  In the end, Eat, Pray, Love is an entertaining fantasy designed to sell books, movies, junque jewelry and fabulous spa trips  to Bali which hopefully you can one day afford to take.    But really, that’s about it.

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips!
 
Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.

New Benefits to HRT - And Some New Cautions

Research shows a new benefit to using HRT - but it's still not right for every woman. Here's what you need to know ...

By Colette Bouchez

If you’re  still on the fence about hormone replacement therapy (HRT) or considering it now for hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause, there is some interesting news to consider.

New research suggests that HRT  as well as the use of oral contraceptives -  may help protect against the formation and rupture of brain aneurysms in women. 

In a first-of-its-kind study by experts from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Dr. Michael Chen and colleagues determined that the use of hormonal contraceptives, as well as the use of HRT appeared to have a neuroprotective effect that ultimately reduced the risk of brain aneurysms in  post menopausal women – a group that, in general, are at increased risk for this problem.

"By understanding the potential link between low levels of estrogen and aneurysms, we can focus our areas of study with the hope of providing women who are at risk for brain aneurysms with preventative therapies," said Chen, who also is assistant professor of neurology, neurosurgery and radiology at Rush University.

Brain Aneurysms and Women 

A brain aneurysm occurs when an artery inside the head bulges outward, forming a kind of “bubble” that pushes up through the surface of the vessel.  The bubble in and of itself is not dangerous but the risk of rupture is high. When this occurs bleeding into the brain results dramatically increasing the risk of s hemorrhagic stroke, and ultimately brain damage and even death. 

Experts say 1 in 15 people in the US will develop a brain aneurysm , with women affected far more often than men.  And in fact, the observation that post menopausal women seemed at greater risk was part of the impetus for the new study. 

 Indeed, while looking at results from the two largest brain aneurysm trials to date, Chen and colleagues noted that  brain aneurysms appeared to occur most frequently in post menopausal women. In fact, the research showed that 70 percent of these aneurysms occurred in post menopausal women around age 52 – and that the neurologic events appeared to coincide with a severe drop in estrogen  occurring at roughly the same time.

To help further elucidate a connection between aneurysms and estrogen, Rush researchers studied a group of 60 women aged 31 to 80  between the years 2008 and 2010 .  Sixty five percent of the women in the study  had unruptured aneurysms while 35% had been previously treated for ruptured aneurysms. 

During this observational study the doctors compared a variety of factors between their two groups of women and a control group of 4,682 women. These factors included gynecologic history, used of oral contraceptives and use of HRT.   Other variables included their BMI or body mass index, their  age of first menstrual period, a woman’s age at the birth of her first child, and the age during which they began to experience  menopause symptoms. 

In comparing the groups – women with aneurysms to women without – doctors noted that most of the variables seemed evenly distributed.  The only significant difference to pop from the study results was the use of oral contraceptives and/or HRT.

How HRT Reduces Aneurysm Risk

More specifically the study reported that the rate of oral contraceptive use in the control group was 77.6 percent, compared to just 60 percent in the study group.   The use of HRT was just 23.7 percent in the group with aneurysms compared to 44.8 percent in the control group.

Moreover, the length of time these medications were used also seemed  to differ. While women in the control group used hormone treatments for around 5 years, those in the study group who used them did so for less than half that time – roughly 2.6 years. 

"These differences in the usage of estrogen modifying agents qualify as statistically significant and indicate that women with brain aneurysms use oral contraceptives and hormone replacement therapy less frequently than the general population," said Chen.

Chen adds that it’s reasonable to conclude that the drops in estrogen occurring each month during the menstrual period, and more significantly, the lasting drop that occurs at menopause may be one reason why women in general, but particularly post-menopausal women are at greater risk for brain aneurysms. 

The study authors further conclude that stabilizing estrogen levels with HRT may play a protective role in women who are at risk for aneurysms, says Chen.  Study results were recently presented at the 7^th Annual Meeting of the Society of Neurointerventional Surgery. 

HRT And Your Health: What You Should Know 

As impressive and important as this new research is, it’s important to point out that the use of traditional HRT has been shown to increase the risk of a number of other significant health issues. According to the massive WHI – Women’s Health Initiative Study – HRT caused a 26% increase in invasive breast cancer,  a 20% increase in heart attacks, a 41% increase in the risk of stroke and 100% increase in the risk of blood clots in the lungs.   Other studies have shown that women who used HRT had roughly twice the risk of developing dementia. 

So, what’s the answer?    Individual care.  Indeed,  as I have detailed in my book Your Perfectly Pampered Menopause,  as new studies continue to emerge revealing  both the pros and cons of hormone use there is  only one “voice of reason” that  should  prevail.  And that voice is saying “ When it comes to HRT there is  no “One Size Fits All.”  Indeed, much like the one-size-fits-all panty hose which, quite frankly never fit anybody right,  one-size-fits-all hormone use is not the way to go. 

Certainly for some women – particularly those at risk for aneurysm ( if there is a family history, for example, or one or more aneurysms have already been detected) the benefits of hormone therapy may certainly outweigh the risks.    But for those at greater risk for a heart attack or breast cancer, for example, the neuroprotective benefits of HRT may be less than stellar. 

The key: Finding a doctor who is willing to treat you  as an individual – and what’s more willing to treat the “whole woman”  and not just your body parts.  

Only when you can take this comprehensive, whole-body approach to post menopausal health care can you really begin to determine the treatments – including the hormone treatments – that are right for you.

For more information on individual treatments for menopause check out YourMenopause.com .For the latest beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary.com  - IT'S FREE! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money-saving beauty and style tips!

Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements. The authors and/or owners of this blog may benefit either directly or indirectly from products mentioned in these posts and in the advertising on these pages.