Niacin, Statins And Difficulties Of Drug Discovery

John LaMattina, Contributor

Former president of Pfizer Global Research covering news in pharma.

About a dozen years ago, a team of Merck scientists met with upper management to discuss a new approach for treating cardiovascular disease. The approach was simple, but clever. The scientists had a way of turning a well known and widely used drug, niacin, into an even better and safer drug, thereby expanding its usage.

Niacin, also known as vitamin B3, is known to raise HDL (“good cholesterol”) by about 25% as well as modestly lower LDL (“bad cholesterol”) and triglycerides. It had been used for decades to help patients control their blood lipid levels based on results from a trial done in the 1960s known as the Coronary Drug Project, which looked at niacin versus placebo in men who had a previous heart attack over a period of five years. While niacin showed no difference from placebo in the death rate of the men in this study, fewer patients on niacin had a non-fatal heart attack or stroke, by 26% and 24%, respectively. This study provides the basis for the use of niacin in cardiovascular disease.

Men who drink sugary drinks daily up risk of heart disease: study

AFP Relax

A new study has found that men who drink about a can of full-calorie soda or sugar-sweetened juice a day could be increasing their risk of developing heart disease by about 20 percent.

Published in the journal Circulation, Harvard researchers followed 42,880 men over 22 years, measuring the different lipids and proteins in the participants' bloodstream.

After controlling for risk factors like smoking, physical inactivity, alcohol consumption and family medical history, scientists found that those who consumed sugary beverages on a daily basis had higher levels of triglycerides -- or bad fat -- and lower levels of good cholesterol or HDL levels compared to men who refrained from sugary drinks.

Both biomarkers are known to be associated with a higher risk of heart disease.

"This study adds to the growing evidence that sugary beverages are detrimental to cardiovascular health," said lead author Frank Hu. "Certainly, it provides strong justification for reducing sugarybeverage consumption among patients, and more importantly, in the general population."

The role of artificially sweetened beverages, meanwhile, is unclear.

Beginning in 1986, participants were asked to fill out questionnaires about their diet and health habits every two years until 2008. The men also provided a blood sample midway through the project.

It's the latest study to find an association between the consumption of sugary drinks and the increased risk of heart disease and other chronic illnesses.

Last year, the American Heart Association also warned that women who drink more than two sugar-sweetened drinks a day may also up the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Another US study estimated that imposing a soda tax could prevent 100,000 cases of heart disease, 8,000 strokes and prevent 26,000 deaths a year.

Meanwhile, in response to charges that caramel coloring in soda is an animal carcinogen, both Coca-Cola and Pepsi said last week they will lower levels of the chemical 4-MEI to comply with recently imposed California requirements.

The southwestern state has a 29-microgram benchmark for 4-MEI in products. Anything that may expose consumers to a daily level higher than that must carry a warning label.

http://ph.news.yahoo.com/men-drink-sugary-drinks-daily-risk-heart-disease-152503409.html

What Does "Zero Trans Fats" Really Mean?

By Emily Dillon 
Reviewed by QualityHealth's Medical Advisory Board

If the nutrition label reads "zero grams trans fat" it must be healthy, right? Wrong! As it turns out, federal regulations allow labels to read "zero grams trans fat" as long as a product contains less than 0.5 grams of the artery-clogging fat per serving.

Food for Thought

Unfortunately, most food packages contain more than one serving. A snack-size bag of cupcakes, for example, may contain zero grams of trans fat per serving, but when you consider that each bag contains two to three servings, that number jumps considerably. By the time you've devoured that bag of cream-filled chocolate cupcakes, you may have consumed up to two grams of trans fat.

Consumer groups and health officials have campaigned to phase out the use of trans fat completely because it contributes to heart disease by raising levels of LDL, or bad cholesterol, while lowering HDL, or good cholesterol. Despite the movement to phase it out, many food companies continue to sneak small amounts into their products.
Label Literacy

What does this mean for health-conscious consumers? According to Bonnie Taub-Dix, registered dietitian and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, it means following a few smart guidelines when filling your supermarket cart.

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