From nutraingredients-usa.com:

Supplements of magnesium may offer small but clinically significant reductions in blood pressure, says a new meta-analysis from the UK.

Data from 22 trials with magnesium supplements revealed that the mineral may reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure by 4 and 3mmHg, respectively, researchers from the University of Hertfordshire report in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition…

Please click here to read this article in full at nutraingredients-usa.com.

From The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Itchy eyes, sneezing and nasal congestion are nothing new for allergy sufferers, except when those symptoms show up in early February.

“Patients who usually start having trouble in March are having symptoms now,” said Dr. Stanley Fineman, allergist with the Atlanta Allergy and Asthma Clinic. “We never see pollen this high in Atlanta at this time of the year.”

Pollen from hardwood trees is likely the culprit as unseasonably warm weather has set the pollination process in motion.

Pollen counts over the past week have hovered in the moderate range, but are still high enough to trigger allergy symptoms and are certainly unprecedented for February. At 88, Wednesday’s pollen count was right on the cusp of 90, which is considered high, Fineman said…

Please click here to read this article in full at ajc.com.

From dispatch.com:

Extremely obese teens who undergo weight-loss surgery gain measurable health benefits in addition to losing a significant percentage of their body fat, according to new research from Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

An analysis of 15 teenage surgery patients showed that, on average, they dropped from 396 to 231 pounds two years after surgery. They also saw improvements in markers of cardiovascular health, including the amount of fats in their bloodstream, and their risk of Type 2 diabetes was reduced significantly…

Please click here to read this article in full at dispatch.com.

From webmd.com:

People who eat more foods rich in the mineral magnesium appear to reduce their odds of having a stroke, a new study shows.

The link between magnesium in the diet and stroke risk was strongest for ischemic stroke, which is when a clot blocks a blood vessel in the brain.

Researchers found that the risk for ischemic stroke, the most common type of stroke in older people, was reduced by 9% for each additional 100 milligrams of magnesium a person consumed each day…

Please click here to read this article in full at webmd.com.

From medscape.com:

The American Society of Nephrology (ASN) faces myriad challenges, many of them from politicians and policymakers, because of the cost of caring for patients with kidney disease, but all of these and other challenges are “surmountable.” ASN president Joseph Bonventre, MD, PhD, chief of the renal division at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, described these challenges during his presidential address here at Kidney Week 2011: American Society of Nephrology 44th Annual Meeting…

One issue affecting almost all medical specialties is the shift in the management of healthcare away from the individual physician to large centralized organizational entities such as accountable care organizations, patient-centered homes or neighborhoods, and healthcare innovation zones. Dr. Bonventre said that the ASN intends to help educate its members about accountable care organizations and other entities in this new landscape…

Please click here to read this article in full at medscape.com.

MEDIA CONTACTS: Paul Maccabee or Gwen Chynoweth, 612-337-0087

St. Louis, MO – January 11, 2012 – Fleming Pharmaceuticals announced today that, effective December 22, 2011, it has sold its rights to its branded Ocean®, Nephrocaps®, Magonate® and ProBarimin QT® products to Valeant International (Barbados) SRL (“Valeant”). Valeant has appointed its affiliate, Valeant Pharmaceuticals North America LLC, to act as distributor of these products in the U.S.

Fleming also manufactures contract products for a broad customer base, including the federal government. Fleming has retained rights to manufacture and market its widely-known product ThyroShield, one of two FDA-approved potassium iodide medicines used in nuclear emergencies to block the thyroid gland from absorbing radioactive iodine to avoid thyroid cancer.  In addition, Fleming has retained its contract services business relating to the development, manufacture and testing for specialty pharmaceutical companies and its physical headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri.

Due to the excess capacity anticipated as a result of the sale of the announced four products, Fleming is now considering proposals from a number of pharma manufacturers for its Midwestern manufacturing capability. A private investment banking firm, Douglas Group, St. Louis, has been retained to facilitate consideration of potential merger or sale for the remaining Fleming operations.

For more information, visit www.valeant.com www.flemingpharma.com.

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From foodconsumer.org:

Testosterone levels decline as men age, which explains why elderly men are not as sexually active as younger ones.   A study published in late 2011 in Biological Trace Element Research suggests that both exercise and magnesium supplements may increase the free and total plasma testosterone in men.

Testosterone, which is also found in women but at lower levels, is very important for men.  Low testosterone, or testosterone deficiency, medically known as hypogonadism, can lead to a decrease in muscle mass, changes in cholesterol levels, a decrease in hemoglobin and possibly mild anemia, fragile bones and a decrease in body hair.

A study led by V. Cinar of Slcuk University in Karaman, Turkey assessed how 4 weeks of magnesium supplementation and exercise may affect the free and total plasma testosterone levels in sportsmen practicing tae kwon do.  The control group was sedentary individuals tested at rest and after exhaustion.

Please click here to read this article in full at foodconsumer.org.

From pennlive.com:

Gone are the days when weight-loss surgery was used only for the morbidly obese — people who are at least 100 pounds over their ideal weight.

That’s because even for less severely overweight people who can’t keep the pounds off through conventional means, surgery can be the most effective way to banish certain serious health conditions.

“If you are diabetic and overweight and your blood sugar is not under good control with standard treatment and medication, surgery is your best option,” said Dr. Michel Murr, director of surgery at Tampa General Hospital in Florida.

Murr said that for years, bariatric surgeons have seen Type 2 diabetes disappear practically overnight in patients who have gastric bypass surgery. “We see it in a day or two after surgery. It’s so dramatic that sometimes we don’t believe it…”

Please click here to read this article in full at pennlive.com.

From edmontonjournal.com:

The Canadian Transportation Agency’s order follows a ruling last year that some customers suffering from cat allergies are disabled and must be accommodated…

Please click here to read this article in full at edmontonjournal.com.

From medscape.com:

Dutch hay fever sufferers report worse symptoms during the first half of the yearly allergy season than during the second half, irrespective of additional allergies and medications taken, according to a new study published online December 21 in Clinical and Translational Allergy.

Seasonal allergic rhinitis generally continues for up to 3 months because sufferers can be allergic to many of the more than 10,000 species of grass, and the periods of pollination for different grass species overlap. Better understanding of the severity of hay fever throughout a season can be helpful in forecasting symptoms based on pollen conditions and may be important in clinical studies…

Please click here to read this article in full at medscape.com.