Source: Geriatrics 57 (5):15  Ghrelin The newly discovered hormone ghrelin, made by the stomach, has been found to be tightly linked to appetite. Writing in The New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. David Cummings and colleagues at the University of Washington looked at 13 overweight patients before and after a weight loss program, and 5 patients who had gastric bypass surgery. They found that ghrelin went up sharply before meals and fell after meals. Gastric bypass, but not diet, suppressed the hormone.

The implications for all of us are obvious: a drug that blocks ghrelin might help block appetite and help an overweight nation get on a diet.

Another Winner: Grace Paul is our latest winner of 2 Hollywood Video rentals by sending in her colon cancer (guaiac) screening cards in promptly. And you can be a winner, too, in helping us stamp out this very preventable tumor.

About 10% of the American population has significant hearing loss, including 30% of those 65 or older. Almost all (95%) can correct the problem with hearing aids, but historically only 25% of those who could benefit will use one.

Taking Care of Your Hearing:

Five Day H. Pylori Rx: from Stuttgart, Germany comes a study of 243 patients with the stomach germ Helicobacter pylori (which can cause cancer) treated for only 5 days with 3 antibiotics: amoxicillin, clarithromycin (Biaxin) and metronidazole (Flagyl, others), along with Prevacid; cure rates were 89.2%. Smokers, those with ulcer and those under 55 did not do quite as well.

Statins Cut Alzheimer Risk:  In a National Institute on Aging study the cholesterol lowering statin drugs (Lescol, Lipitor, Mevacor, Pravachol, Zocor), reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by 79%. Boston University neurologist Dr. Robert Green found that protection was the same in African-American and in white families.

And Diabetes Boosts Alzheimer Risk in men according to a study at the Mayo Clinic. Risk went up 6-fold in diabetic men, compared to only 1.2 fold in women.

Coming for Erectile Dysfunction: Vardenifil and tadalafil (Cialis) have completed clinical trials and may be available soon. These are similar to Viagra.

Flu Vaccine: Stroke Preventer?  Yes, according to French researchers. Writing in Stroke, they found a 40% reduction in those who were vaccinated annually for 5 years.

For Diabetic Nerve Pain: Fidarestat showed significant improvement in a Japanese study. The drug is a new "aldose reductase" inhibitor, which blocks a poison produced in diabetics. Patients were treated for 1 year; the drug was well tolerated. No release date is in sight, however.

Co-Q 10: No Help in Heart Failure A review in Internal Medicine News points out that 2 recent US studies found "no detectable benefit" with this $60-80/month supplement.