Poor sleep hits women harder
Women suffer more damage to their cardiovascular health from poor sleep than men do, and researchers at Duke University Medical Center believe they know why.
They found that poor sleep is associated with greater psychological distress and higher levels of biomarkers associated with increased risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. They also found that these associations are stronger in women than in men.
“This is the first empirical evidence that supports what we have observed about the role of gender and its effects upon sleep and health,” said study author Edward Suarez, an associate professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences.
“The study suggests that poor sleep — measured by the total amount of sleep, the degree of awakening during the night, and most importantly, how long it takes to get to sleep — may have more serious health consequences for women than for men,” he said.
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Escalators taking toll on elderly
Older Americans are being injured during slips and falls on escalators at increasing rates, a new study finds, said study lead author Dr. Joseph O’Neil, an associate professor of pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine.
Reviewing records from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the research team found that nearly 40,000 adults age 65 and older were injured on escalators between 1991 and 2005. The rate rose more than twofold during that period: from 4.9 injuries per every 100,000 older Americans in 1991 to 11 injuries per 100,000 people by 2005.
The trend is likely related to lifestyle shifts, O’Neil speculated, with older people being more active.
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New warning on colonoscopy prep
One of the most common bowel-cleansing preparations used by people who are about to have a colonoscopy can trigger both acute kidney failure and long-term renal damage in otherwise healthy patients.
New research suggests the risks of oral sodium phosphate solution and tablets are rare but real, particularly for the elderly.
“People should be very cautious in the use of these agents because of their potential of causing kidney damage,” said study author Dr. Anand Khurana, of the department of nephrology with the Scott & White Clinic at Texas A&M University in Temple, Texas.
Researchers analyzed kidney function among 268 patients at their clinic who had undergone either a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy between 1998 and 2005. Most were white, with an average age of 68. None had a history of kidney disease, and all followed a standard dietary and phosphate solution prep the day before screening.
Khurana and his team found that its use was associated with a 6 percent drop in kidney function six months later; that figure rose to 8 percent one year later.
Khurana pointed out that the safety risks might ultimately be the result of patients simply not following manufacturer instructions to drink large amounts of clear liquid.
