Editor’s Letter

Diana Swift
Editor-in-Chief
editor@canadian-health.ca

One of the most interesting aspects of editing Canadian Health is following the big medical studies. Because we have to work so far ahead to produce a bimonthly magazine, we cannot always bring you the latest news the way TV, radio and the daily papers can. So I thought I’d use this editor’s page to talk about some of the research that caught my attention over the past couple of months. In the matter of obesity, a study from Duke University in Durham, N.C., reported that overweight workers cost their employers more in workplace injury claims. Analyzing eight years of data from almost 12,000 workers, the researchers found that the heaviest employees racked up more than 12 times the lost workdays of their fitter colleagues, and made compensation claims for those injuries that were almost seven times higher than their normal counterparts.

Photo : Susan Ashukian

Overweight staffers were more likely to make claims for damage to their backs, wrists, arms, necks, shoulders, hips and knees, showing the broad impact of obesity on the human anatomy — and the employer’s pocketbook. Perhaps studies such as these will encourage companies to invest in workplace programs promoting healthier weights, such as nutrition counselling and in-house exercise facilities. Maybe U.S. benefits packages will be expanded to cover anti-obesity drugs and bariatric surgery to reduce stomach capacity. For ways to start preventing weight problems early in life, see Andrea Kenney’s “Generation X-tra Large” (p. 56).

On the cardiovascular front, researchers at Harvard University in Boston reported that reducing salt intake — which can reduce blood pressure — produces a slight but welcome decrease in the long-term risk of cardio-vascular events. They followed up on 2,415 subjects 10 to 15 years after they had taken part in two randomized trials to prevent hypertension. Those assigned to cutting dietary sodium by at least 25% had a 25% reduction in the risk of stroke, heart attack or coronary bypass surgery and a 20% lower risk of cardiac death.

For more on salt and stroke, see Michele Sponagle’s feature on p. 22, and check out “Shaking the Salt Habit” from our May/June issue at www.canadian-health.ca.

Also interesting was a four-year study of 1,200 women at Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., which found that supplementation with calcium and vitamin D — the

so-called sunshine vitamin — cut cancer risk by 60%. This finding may shed light on why cancer rates are higher in northern countries with long dark winters, since exposing the skin to sunlight promotes the production of this vitamin. Vitamin D is important for cell growth and function and plays a central role in the immune system. It may also prompt authorities to review guidelines on sun exposure and vitamin D intake.

Again in the cancer area, the U.K.’s Million Women Study noted a slight increase of 20% in the risk of developing and dying of ovarian cancer in women on hormone replacement therapy versus those who had never taken it. Any risk increase is scary in the context of this deadly cancer, but bear in mind that it’s the actual numbers that tell the real story. Over five years, that 20% risk increase amounted to just one extra case of ovarian cancer in 2,500 women and one more death in 3,300 women. To learn more about interpreting medical statistics, have a look at Tim Johnson’s feature article, “The Persuasive Power of Percentages,” on p. 34.

Lastly, at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, N.H., researchers are proposing a two-pronged approach to depression in new moms: reducing stress and giving anti-inflammatory therapy with the long-chain marine fatty acids found in fish. Reviewing the

literature, they noted that exercise and breastfeeding — if it is going well — can lower stress and boost mood. Docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid, two essential omega-3 fatty acids in fish, can reduce inflammation, which is linked to depression. Women in the third trimester of pregnancy and after delivery have high levels of pro-inflammatory chemicals, which may predispose them to the postpartum blues.

Have a great summer, take all the vacation you’re entitled to and, as the song says, see you in September!