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News From The American Chemical Society, June 24, 2009
Potential new drugs: 970 million and still counting
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Family Physician Survey In Mainz: Patients With Depression Frequently Suffer From Medically Unexplained Pain
Pain symptoms that cannot be attributed, or at least not fully attributed, to an organic origin are more frequently and more severely experienced by patients with depression than by those without. "It is the case that women are much more frequently affected by depression and also by so-called somatoform pain disorder than men," explains Dirk Frieser, psychologist at the Institute of Psychology at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. For the purposes of his doctoral dissertation, Frieser and fellow psychologist Stephanie Kç¶rber questioned 308 patients attending two practices of general practitioners in Mainz. Patients were asked about their state of health and their pain symptoms, but also about their anxieties with regard to illness, how they react when ill, what social support they receive, and what psychological stress they experience, together with many other aspects. Subsequently, the pain symptoms reported by the patients were evaluated by their doctors.
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MS Society Pleased With Government Recognition Of Crisis In Social Care
The government"s Green Paper "Shaping the Future of Care Together" has been welcomed by the MS Society as the radical step necessary to address the crisis in social care.
Public Health

Laugh A Little To Help Protect Heart, Lower Blood Pressure

Laughter is not only an effective stress-reliever, but can be heart-healthy, according to research presented at the American College of Sports Medicine"s 56th Annual Meeting in Seattle. Two separate studies examined the role of a good laugh as it relates to health. One of the studies took an inverted approach to previous research on the harmful cardiovascular tolls of stress and negative mood. A small group of healthy adults were instructed to watch either a comedy or documentary film, and were monitored for carotid artery activity during the films. Subjects who watched the comedy benefited from improved "arterial compliance," the amount of blood that moves through the arteries at a given time. Conversely, decreased arterial compliance is often associated with high blood pressure and heart disease. "Arterial compliance was improved for a full 24 hours after subjects watched a funny movie," said lead researcher Jun Sugawara. "Laughing is likely not the complete solution to a healthy heart, but it appears to contribute to positive effects." A second study found similar results in vascular function. When another group watched either a comedy or a somber documentary, blood vessels became more dilated during the comedy. Constricted blood vessels often lead to high blood pressure. Like the first study, favorable effects on vascular function were sustained for 24 hours. "Not only did comedies improve vascular dilation, but watching a documentary about a depressing subject was actually harmful to the blood vessels," said Takashi Tarumi, lead researcher on the study. "These documentaries constricted blood vessels by about 18 percent." In addition to laughter, a significant body of evidence exists that shows exercise as a preventive mechanism against both cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure. ACSM"s Exercise is Medicine program promotes these curative and protective benefits, and encourages all patients to talk with their doctor or health care provider about their physical activity programs. American College of Sports Medicine


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