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Eat Like a Greek to Avoid Skin Cancer

            Not only do Greeks, Turks, Israelis and others who follow the Mediterranean diet have lower rates of heart disease and cancer, but thanks to all the colorful fruits and vegetables, nuts, legumes, olive oil, yogurt and fresh fish they eat, they also have extremely low rates of melanoma. And new research from Israel suggests that the Mediterranean diet protects against this potentially deadly form of skin cancer. Investigators gave one group of study volunteers a daily drink that was high in antioxidants; a second group drank beverages such as sodas instead. After two weeks - and five to six hours per day in the sun - blood tests showed that the volunteers who drank the antioxidant mix had 50 percent fewer oxidation products in their blood than the soda drinkers. In addition, drinking the antioxidant cocktail also delayed a tell-tale skin change - one that indicates the beginning of the tissue and DNA damage that can lead to skin cancer.

My take? I've long been a proponent of the Mediterranean diet, a composite of the traditional cuisines of Spain, southern France, Italy, Greece, Crete and parts of the Middle East. My own anti-inflammatory diet incorporates many of the principles of the Mediterranean diet. We know that this way of eating is healthy, and I’m not surprised to learn that it protects against melanoma, a disease that is on the upswing in many parts of the world. Don't assume that all you have to do to protect yourself is eat the Mediterranean way - the Israeli researcher who conducted the study noted that it is still important to wear sunscreen and protective clothing and to avoid the sun during the hours when it is at its strongest. I agree.

4 Steps to a Healthy Immune System

Your immune system is your interface with the environment, and a healthy immune system is the cornerstone of good health: it allows you to interact with germs and not get infections, with allergens and avoid allergic reactions, and with carcinogens and avoid getting cancer.

Immune deficiency can be avoided with preventive measures:

■Maintain good oral hygiene (gum infections can use up a lot of the body's immune resources).

■Use antibiotics only when absolutely necessary and avoid immunosuppressive drugs unless there are no other alternatives left to consider.

■Cut back on sugar and stop eating polyunsaturated vegetable oils and artificially hardened fats - instead use extra-virgin olive oil and eat fresh fruits when craving something sweet.

■Don't forget moderate exercise - it helps keep every tissue in the body healthy and can raise levels of natural killer cells, a primary defense against cancer.

Cranberry Juice and Staph Infections

    Cranberry juice can help ward off urinary tract infections - it interferes with E. coli bacteria, the bug commonly responsible, by preventing it from adhering to bladder walls. Now, new research suggests that the juice can also block Staphylococcus aureus infections. These bacteria can cause everything from minor skin problems to serious bloodstream infections. One strain is responsible for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA, an infection that most antibiotics can’t cure. Researchers at the Worchester Polytechnic Institute recently reported that cranberry juice reduced the ability of S. aureus to cause infections. Their study involved healthy female students who drank either a cranberry juice cocktail or a placebo beverage that tasted like cranberry juice. The participants then provided urine samples that the researchers incubated in the lab with several strains of E. coli and one strain of S. aureus. The investigators found that urine samples from the young women who had consumed cranberry juice significantly reduced the ability of both types of bacteria to adhere to cell walls and then form biofilms, a prelude to infection. This was surprising, researchers said, because staph aureus "is usually very good at forming biofilms - that's what makes it such a health problem." Now researchers have to investigate how this new knowledge can be applied.

To Sleep Better, Get More Exercise

          Here's further proof that regular aerobic exercise can help middle aged and

 older adults overcome insomnia. Researchers at Northwestern University recruited 23 sedentary adults, mostly women of ages 55 and older, who had problems falling or staying asleep, to take part in a 16-week study. The participants were divided into three groups; the first group performed two 20-minute sessions of aerobic activity four times per week; the second group completed a 30 to 40 minute workout four times a week; the third group did not engage in any physical activity, but instead took cooking classes, attended lectures at museums or took part in other recreational or educational programs three to five times a week. Those who exercised reported that their sleep quality improved from "poor" to "good" and that the duration of their sleep lengthened as well. What’s more, the participants reported fewer depressive symptoms, more vitality and less daytime sleepiness than they had in the past. The study was scheduled for publication in the October, 2010, issue of Sleep Medicine.

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