News that Vexes: 10/01/2007 - 11/01/2007

News that Vexes

It's so tiresome to read 'new studies' that reveal Smoking, Stress or Obesity are Bad for you. Yet these studies appear all the time. It's time to take back the newswire from so-called Scientists!

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Curbing Calories Works in the Long Run

One of our alert worldwide News That Vexes correspondents (yes, only one of the many, many) alerted us to this most excellent and informative story that we find just a wee bit vexing.

It seems that
Old-fashioned calorie-cutting and exercise really can keep the pounds off for the long haul, according to a review of dozens of clinical trials.

In an analysis of 80 weight-loss studies, researchers found that approaches that focused on trimming calories -- with or without exercise -- were most effective at keeping the pounds off over four years.

Wuh- huh?? DOZENS of clinical trials? Where have I been?

We actually could quote almost every line of this article, since each sentence is a pure gem of wisdom and nugget of sublime sapience.

In some stunning further research, the scientists conclude by dropping this mega bombshell:
"However," they stress, "if weight-loss interventions are discontinued entirely, weight regain is likely to occur."

Feel free to congratulate Dr. Marion Franz, a registered dietitian and health consultant with Minneapolis-based Nutrition Concepts by Franz Inc. (what a coincidence! Dr. Franz works at "Nutrition Concepts by Franz"! Maybe that's a requirement to work there: "Last name must be Franz.")

Thursday, October 04, 2007

Flu Shots? What day is it?

Here at News That Vexes, we have long contemplated a special section with a two-column format where scientists can battle it out. Will a drink a day kill you - or will it make you live longer? As we all know, coffee is good, no wait - bad, wrong! good for you. When blogging software has an easy 2-column template for a lazy editor to use, you'll be the first to see it here.

As a case in point, just today we read two stories: Flu jab cuts illness and death in elderly and Flu vaccines may not save elderly lives: experts

In one corner:
In a study of relatively healthy elderly HMO members, getting a flu shot significantly reduced the odds of being hospitalized with an influenza-related ailment and of dying. "Our study confirms that influenza vaccination is beneficial for reducing hospitalization and death among community-dwelling HMO elderly over a 10-year period," lead author Dr. Kristin L. Nichol, from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, told Reuters Health.
In the other,
Getting an annual flu vaccine may not save the lives of seniors, and health officials may want to look at other ways to protect the elderly, researchers said on Monday. No studies have conclusively proven that influenza shots prevent flu-related deaths in people over the age of 65, and some of the arguments that have been used to support this idea are based on faulty data, the researchers argue in the Lancet medical journal. [Translation: "In Your Face, Dr. Nichol!"]

I guess we should keep it simple and get the shot every other year.