Saturday, December 18, 2004

More on fruit and asthma This time it's citrus oils that are being pushed as an asthma preventative. I don't doubt that some fruits help asthma.I hate to miss my apple a day, though pineapple sometimes makes a good substitute.   12:18:08 AM | permalink | comment []

Thursday, December 16, 2004

Asthma concentrations In the San Joaquin Valley, where asthma is the number one cause of school absences; in Michigan among it's Arab population; and, possibly, around swimming pools.   11:20:40 AM | permalink | comment []

Monday, December 13, 2004

A profitable outlook for the asthma market When I run across headlines like "The World Market For Asthma/COPD Drugs, Valued At $13.3 Billion In 2003, Is Forecast To Grow To $19.0 Billion By 2009," I'm not sure what to think. I understand that Medicine helps many people with asthma Pharmacuetical companies use profits to make better medicines Asthma is a growing problem and those who suffer from it should have options At the same time, however, if these products are so great, why do asthma rates continue to rise? Is there a connection? 10:09:38 AM | permalink | comment []

Thursday, December 09, 2004

In today's sports news I don't follow sports news to closely, but a story out of Australia today drew my attention.  The story (may require registration) starts like this: The United States' top anti-drugs tsar addressed the heads of Australian sport in Sydney yesterday at a confidential meeting convened by the Australian Sports Drug Agency to examine overseas trends in the use of performance-enhancing drugs. The chief executive of the US Anti-Doping Agency, Terry Madden, who initiated the BALCO inquiry into leading US athletes, such as Olympic gold medallist Marion Jones and baseballer Barry Bonds, refused to speak publicly. Later in the story, some policies were discussed: The issue of glucocortico-steroids is the most contentious, with professional sports arguing the use of these substances is more rehabilitative than performance-enhancing. An NRL spokesman said: "The therapeutic exemption allowed by WADA for use of cortico-steroids and probenecid is not practical." Asthma sprays, now back on the prohibited list, are also a problem, given many athletes are not aware they now require permission to use them. Athletes will need permission to use cortico-steroids? Many athletes have asthma, and many asthmatics depend on such drugs to manage symptoms. The medicines are recognized as a generally safe and effective preventative. I don't think safety should be sacraficed to anti-drug hysteria. 9:55:58 AM | permalink | comment []

Wednesday, December 08, 2004

Best new asthma drug name ASM8   10:07:47 PM | permalink | comment []

Tuesday, December 07, 2004

DNA treatment for asthma This week's wonder drug in development: immunostimulatory sequences of DNA. The structural changes including airway scarring and inflammation that contribute to severe breathing problems associated with asthma were significantly reversed in mice treated with immunostimulatory sequences of DNA (ISS), a novel therapy developed by researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine. Interesting, but the DNA part makes it sound like science fiction, which always makes me quesy about unintended consequences. 11:45:33 PM | permalink | comment []

Monday, December 06, 2004

Another story about stress and asthma This time the idea has filtered all the way up to the New York Times. The story, Childhood Ailments: Stress and Asthma, Hand in Hand (registration required) says: The children were found to be four times as likely to suffer attacks within two days of stressful events. And six weeks later, for reasons the researchers said were unclear, they were again at higher risk for attacks. I think it's because there's sort of a cascading effect, where the asthma attack itself provokes more stress. 11:57:31 PM | permalink | comment []

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