Fingernails: Window to Your Health

(American Health Newswire) --

42-year-old Alex Hewett is a mother of two boys, an actress and an impeccable dresser.

"I just think that you've been given this vessel, and your body, you need to take care of it, and polishing your nails is just like having your shoes polished," Hewett told American Healthl.

Hewett gets manicures and pedicures twice a month. In between, she often does her nails herself and doesn't always like what she sees.

Nails can provide valuable information about a person's health. Yellowish nails can sometimes signal lung problems. Half white, half pink nails could be a sign of kidney disease. Red nail beds? Heart disease. Pale or white nail beds? Anemia.

"You normally don't have color in your nail, but if you notice abnormal color on your nail, it can be a sign of something more serious like cancer," Dr Oanh Lauring told American Health.

While dark, long, uniform bands are common among people with darker complexions, when melanoma is present, it often shows up as a pigment change at the cuticle. If your nails separate from the nail bed, it could indicate the skin condition psoriasis

"My fingernails were brittle. No matter what I would do, they would look terrible," Karan Powell told American Health.

Powell's old dry nails and broken cuticles didn't get better until she got treated for an adrenal gland disorder.

"By taking the calcium and various vitamins, my nails are super strong," Hewett told American Health.

For the first time in years, Powell says she feels good, too.

To keep your nails their healthiest, keep them clean and dry. Avoid nail-biting or picking at the cuticles. Moisturize the cuticles and nails daily and never pull off hangnails. It's best to trim them with clippers.

Protect Your Brain by Exercising

(American Health Newswire) -- Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States, and a leading cause of serious, long-term disability, according to the American Heart Association. It's even possible to have a "silent stroke," or a small brain lesion, and not even notice it. However, a new study says that older people who exercise regularly may be less likely to develop silent strokes, which are the first sign of cerebrovascular disease.

"I tell my patients the more you exercise, the better, and the more intense it is, the better - but do it safely," Joshua Z. Willey, M.D., M.S., ofColumbia University in New York and study author, told American Health.

"These 'silent strokes' are more significant than the name implies, because they have been associated with an increased risk of falls and impaired mobility, memory problems and even dementia, as well as stroke," Dr. Willey said. He thinks it's important to encourage older people to exercise at a moderate or intense level to help keep their brain healthy.

Dr. Willey and his team studied 1,238 people around the age of 70, who had never had a stroke. According to the results, 16 percent of the participants had small brain lesions. Forty percent of the participants who engaged in moderate to intense exercise were less likely to have the silent strokes than those who didn't exercise regularly. The results remained the same after the researchers took into account other vascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and smoking.

There was no difference between those who engaged in light exercise and those who did not exercise. "Of course, light exercise has many other beneficial effects, and these results should not discourage people from doing light exercise," Dr. Willey said.

Based on the study's results, Dr. Willey plans to continue counseling patients with tailored exercises based on their health, to help lessen their chance of a silent stroke. However, he stresses that "only if the heart is healthy to do intense exercise."  

SOURCE: Neurology, published online June 8, 2011

Cutting Off Cancer That Can't be Cut Out

NEW ORLEANS, LA (American Health Newswire) -- This year, one and a half million Americans will be diagnosed with some kind of cancer. Treatment often includes chemotherapy or radiation, but in cancers where not all of the tumor can be removed, one big challenge is making sure the cancer doesn't start growing again. Now, there's a new experimental approach, a personalized treatment that's as unique as the patients themselves.

When it comes to making things grow, Andrea Suhor has plenty of patience. But no so much with her health. She's fighting a rare neuro-endocrine cancer that hasn't responded to traditional therapy.

"I'm ready to move forward. This is my life, and I feel like it's on hold right now until we can get started and get it under control," Andrea said. "I'm a fighter." 

After surgery to eliminate as much of her tumor as possible, Andrea's ready to begin an experimental treatment pioneered by LSU surgeon doctor Eugene Woltering.  The treatment targets her cancer by stopping new blood vessels that support tumor growth.

"If we can prevent that from happening, the tumor stays exactly the same size as it is today 

forever and ever," Eugene Woltering, M.D., a professor of surgery at 

LSU Health Sciences Center , said.

Tiny pieces of Andrea's tumor were tested with dozens of anti-angiogenics drugs that stop growth of new blood vessels

"All these that are real long lines, the drug didn't have any effect,." Andrea said.

A graph tells them what didn't work and what did, even if it's not a drug.

"What else we have is black raspberry syrup," Dr. Woltering said.

This experimental syrup made from black raspberry powder suppressed blood vessel growth in up to 60 percent of patients. The goal is to stop tumor growth long-term, without toxic side-effects by blocking the growth of new blood vessels.

"We can control the growth of cancer, keep the patient with a high quality of life and a long quantity of life," Dr. Woltering said.

Controlling cancer, so patients like Andrea can have a long, healthy life and plenty of time to stop and smell the roses. LSU is one of several medical centers exploring this new approach to cancer.  It's still investigational and is not considered to be appropriate for all types of cancer or all cancer patients. But it could mean some cancers could be treated more like a chronic disease, something like diabetes, where treatment involves a long-term plan of control and prevention.