Harvard Health Letter articles from January 2005

Harvard Health Letter archives from January 2005

Atrial fibrillation: When the heart loses its rhythm.
January 1, 2005... You may not even feel it happening, but if the atria of the heart don't beat correctly you could be in danger of a stroke. Your heart has four compartments. The upper two are the atria; the larger two below are the ventricles. The atria are...

Winter's a wonderland, but dangerous, too.
January 1, 2005... Mortality rates go up during the winter months. To stay healthy, stay warm and vaccinated -- and install carbon monoxide detectors. April may be a cruel month with its mix of memory and desire, but winter -- it's the deadliest of seasons....

Stepping into the Vioxx void.
January 1, 2005... Answers to four questions after the popular pain reliever was yanked off the market. In September 2004, Merck announced that it was pulling rofecoxib (Vioxx) off the market. The decision came after an interim analysis of a colon polyp...

In brief; Say nuts to gallstones.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Your gallbladder is a little sack that holds extra bile made by the liver before it gets pumped down the common bile duct and into the small intestine. Bile, a greenish yellow juice, helps break down fat. If it contains too much cholesterol,...

In brief; Believe good things can -- and will -- happen.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The 2004 baseball season brightened the outlook of many fatalistic New England residents. We received one e-mail from a Red Sox fan that captured the collective consciousness in these parts in late October: "We suffer no more. Free at last....

In brief; Latin American foods lower estrogen levels, maybe breast cancer risk.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Latina women have significantly lower breast cancer rates than women in other ethnic groups. No one is sure why, but researchers at the University of Southern California think it may be the fiber in traditional Latin American foods like beans...

By the way, doctor; What can I do to lower my CRP level?
January 1, 2005... Q My CRP was 4 in April and rose to 5 in June. I've taken niacin to lower my LDL. It didn't work for that, but did increase my HDL and lower my triglycerides. My question: besides taking a statin, what can I do to lower my CRP? A In the...

By the way, doctor; Should I take something to increase my HDL?(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Q I take 20 mg of Lipitor and 10 mg of Zetia. My total cholesterol has declined from 177 to 145, my LDL from 133 to 93, but my "good" HDL cholesterol also went down from 46 to 41. Would you consider my low HDL level a large risk factor? If so,...