Debbie Mandel's Wellness Newsletter

New research provides evidence that an old drug may provide relief for people with advanced Parkinson's according to a study presented at the American Academy of Neurology. The drug apomorphine, first produced in 1865, was first used to treat advanced Parkinson’s disease in the United States in 1950. Its use grew in the 1990s when European doctors starting using subcutaneous infusions of the drug to treat fluctuations in mobility that could not be controlled by the pills. Despite its use in many countries of the world, high-level evidence from randomized, blinded studies of its effectiveness and safety has up until now been lacking. Phase III clinical trials are looking very good.

It has been shown that both heavy and occasional drinking among the general population are linked to eating less fruits and vegetables, and eating more processed and fried meat.

A new study of Spanish-English bilingual children finds that when children learn any two languages from birth each language proceeds on its own independent course, at a rate that reflects the quality of the children’s exposure to each language.

An early round of clinical testing shows that users of Opdivo, a drug sanctioned for treatment of small-cell lung cancer, more than tripled their five-year survival rate beyond the statistical average.

Research from the University of Georgia shows that 10 minutes of walking up and down stairs was more likely to make participants feel energized than ingesting 50 milligrams of caffeine.

Taking cannabidiol may cut seizures in half for some children and adults with a severe form of epilepsy according to new information released today from a large scale controlled clinical study presented at the American Academy of Neurology.

Drinking a beetroot juice supplement before working out makes the brain of older adults perform more efficiently, mirroring the operations of a younger brain, according to a new study by scientists at Wake Forest University.

When you eat salty food, you get thirsty and drink water. Right? Maybe in the short-term -- but within 24 hours, you actually get less thirsty because your body starts to conserve and produce more water. Water conservation in response to a high-salt diet may have pathological consequences. It takes a lot of energy to conserve water in the face of salt excretion. To do it, the body either must take in more fuel or break down muscle mass. “This predisposes to overeating,” said the reports’ senior author, Jens Titze, M.D., associate professor of Medicine and of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics. Increased levels of glucocorticoids are an independent risk factor for diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, and cardiovascular disease.