American obesity rates are the highest in the world with 64% of adults being overweight or obese – almost ¼ of those are obese (Source: North American Association for the Study of Obesity). And the costs attributable to obesity in the US is in the tens of billions. Researchers for the Centres of Disease Control and Prevention and RTI International estimate that in 2003, obesity-attributable medical expenditures reached $75 billion.

Statins, such as the generic: Atorvastatin and brand: lipitor, are used for lowering cholesterol. For this week’s product column I thought we’d take a look a these drugs. Pfizer’s Lipitor is among the largest selling drugs in the world, with 2006 sales of $12.9 billion.

Photo courtesy: HenryScow posted on Flickr

Studies

For a bit of trivia, here are a couple of recently published studies on obesity:

A study conducted by the University of Utah found that residents were at less risk of being obese or overweight if they lived in walkable neighborhoods.

A study conducted by Temple University in Philadelphia found that obesity in kids point to poor school performance.

Some Facts

Here are some interesting facts from healthgoods.com:

Healthgoods.com

What the Experts Say about Atorvastatin/Lipitor

Below are links to MDs providing information about Atorvastatin/Lipitor:

Healthline.com
MedicineNet.com
National Library of Medicine

Section of page on Atorvastatin from National Library of Medicine

HealthPricer Network of Merchants Offering Atorvastatin/Lipitor

Today there are 10 merchants offering Lipitor through HealthPricer, in four categories depending on the strength you need:

Section of page results for Lipitor on HealthPricer

With recent news that non-smokers who are married to smokers run a significant higher risk for experiencing a stroke, I think it’s time to look for good sources that provide information on how to stop smoking.

The National Institute of Ageing conducted a study on 16,000-plus participants 50+ years and married. All were categorized according to smoking habits and observed for stroke incidence between 1992 and 2006. The findings showed: non-smokers married to a current smoker were found to have a 42% increased risk for stroke, compared with those married to spouses that had never smoked. Ex-smoker married to a current smoker had a 72% increased risk for stroke. This supports the growing evidence that secondhand smoke is harmful, not only to the smoker, but also those that live with them.

The statistics on smoking in America are alarming. The American Lung Association summarizes it as follows:

Lungusa.com

There are lots of sources online that provide information on how to stop smoking. Here are some of our picks.

1. WebMD

One of the biggest concern among smokers is that when they give up smoking they’ll gain weight. Here’s an excellent article by Suzanne Wright (and reviewed by Brunilda Nazario MD) on how to “drop the habit without picking up weight”.

Photo credit: Smoke Away posted on Flickr

2. Healthline
If you don’t know how to start preparing for your smoke-free days, Healthline provides a “quit smoking plan”:

Making a quit smoking plan - Healthline

3. NetDoctor
Dr Gavin Petrie provides a great article of tips on how to stop smoking, from medicines, to relaxation techniques and diversion tactics.

NetDoctor.co.uk

Merchants offer 40 stop smoking aid products through HealthPricer.

Time for our weekly product review. With more than a few sneezes around the office, I got my inspiration – Zyrtec.

50-100 million American suffer from allergies of one form or another. How interesting that the industry cannot pin it down to a more precise number, but it does show how pervasive allergies are.

This is quite the market for Johnson & Johnson’s Over the Counter (OTC) drug Zyrtec. Johnson & Johnson bought Pfizer’s OTC business a year before their patent expired on Zyrtec (at the time a prescription medicine bringing in $1.5 bn a year). Soon after the FDA approves Zyrtec for OTC and the rest is history for Johnson & Johnson. Let’s put it this way, Pfizer’s loss of US exclusivity on Norvasc, Zyrtec and Camptosar collectively decreased revenues by approx. $500 million in this last quarter alone.

Photo courtesy of Fischchap, Flickr

Study

If you are one of the unfortunate ones that dread the onslaught of summer pollen, here’s an interesting study you may want to take a look at – the magic of probiotics not only seems to save our stomachs, but now may also help our immune systems’ reactions to grass pollen.

Some Facts (source QuickMed)

Outdoor pollen counts are at their highest level of the day between 5 am and 10 am. If you are allergic to pollen, limit your outdoor time during these peak hours.

Pollen has been found in the ocean 400 miles from shore. Pollen will find you.

A single ragweed plant can generate a million grains of pollen per day.

A micron is .0000394 inch or .0001 cm. Pollen is a relative giant at approximately 30 microns in diameter, molds come in at 3 microns in diameter, and cat dander is the small kid on the block at 2 microns in diameter in size. It may take months to rid cat dander from a home even after the cats are removed because it is so easily airborne.

Click on www.pollen.com for a local pollen count.

Allergy Quiz

If you have the time to, take this allergy quiz from AOL Health – see how much you really know about allergies.

What the Experts Say about Zyrtec

Below are links to MDs providing information about Zyrtec
PersonalMD
National Library of Medicine
Healthline

Section of page on Zyrtec from Healthline.com

HealthPricer Network of Merchants Offering Zyrtec

Today there are six merchants offering Zyrtec through HealthPricer, depending on the strength and type you would like:

Section of page displaying merchants selling Zyrtec through HealthPricer

Trans fats have been in the news lately, so I thought we’d look into it a bit more and find sources online to help explain what exactly trans fats are, what foods we should avoid and the harm trans fats do to our bodies.

Recent news that California could be the first state to ban trans fats and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada announcing doughnuts and margarine should be the latest foods singled-out for having high levels of trans fats, continue to spur on the ongoing debate about trans fats.

It’s time to learn more about trans fats and what better place to start than Wikipedia. Its page on trans fats clearly explains what the fats are, its presence in foods, nutritional guidelines and the health risks associated with eating trans fats. In addition to a higher risk of coronary heart disease, the Wikipedia entry also lists the following risks:

Wikipedia - trans fats

That’s enough to make us sit up. What else do medical sources say about trans fatty acids?

Joy Bauer MS, RD, CDN provides a great guide on how to avoid trans fats in her article on Yahoo! Health:

Yahoo! Health article

Health and Age highlights an interesting study, following 200,000 women aged 20-55 and the effect their fat intake has on their health. Although the writing is a bit technical, the conclusion is clear:

Health and Age article

Still with me? Want some more? Check out this study, appearing on healthline.com, carried out by three Danish doctors who determined the trans fat content of French fries and chicken nuggets bought in 24 McDonald’s and KFC restaurants on four continents.

Healthline article

We thought we’d start a new column about health products and provide some interesting trivia about the products, the condition associated with each, some studies and what the experts say – basically an overview that may help provide further information to questions you may have about this particular product.

So, let’s get started. This week we are highlighting Propecia for the treatment of male pattern baldness.

According to Medem Medical Library's website, male pattern baldness affects roughly 40 million men in the United States. Approximately 25 percent of men begin balding by age 30; two-thirds begin balding by age 60.

Photo courtesy of Arbitrium, Flickr

Study

With that said, want to test if you are balding? The Archives of Dermatology recently published a study. You could test this at home.

According to the study, the old wives tale that we shed 100 hairs a day is not necessarily true. This assumes that the average scalp has 100,000 hairs and does not account for different rates based on age and gender.

The study itself investigated 60 healthy men, half aged 20-40 years and half aged 41-60 years, who showed no evidence of baldness. For three days the men used identical combs and same brand shampoo. On the fourth they were asked to comb their hair forward for 60 seconds over a cloth (before washing their hair) and count the number of hairs shed. This was repeated for three consecutive days and then repeated six months later. The results showed the hair count of an average loss of 10.2 hairs for the younger men and the average loss of 10.3 hairs for the older men did not change much over the six months.

Dr. Jeffrey Miller, professor of dermatology at Penn State College of Medicine (quoted in LA Times), says: “The number of hairs on your pillow matters less than that the number remains consistent. Do it three days a month, and track it for six months. It's a simple, objective home test for a condition that's fraught with emotion.

Some Facts

Male pattern baldness runs in families and is partly influenced by male sex hormones but it is also subject to environmental factors.

The idea that washing your hair frequently causes baldness or dandruff is actually a misconception.

The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study found no substantial links between patterns of baldness, or its severity, and heart attack risk.

A study of Asian men, renowned for hanging on to their hair compared with follically-challenged Europeans and Americans, found puffing on cigarettes can hasten male hair loss.

What the Experts Say about Propecia

Below are links to MDs providing information about Propecia

PersonalMD
Physician’s Desktop Reference

Section of page on Propecia from Physician's Desktop Reference

HealthPricer Network of Merchants Offering Propecia

Today there are 14 merchants offering Propecia through HealthPricer:

Propecia Results Page on HealthPricer