Thursday, March 15, 2012 at 7:19PM 
It's not just Hollywood claptrap: A smile really is the best makeup and hearty guffaws, while possibly not the best, are certainly very good medicine. We humbly submit today's requirement, from McSweeney's. You know, Timothy McSweeney, who purchased his bratwurst with obsolete Alaskan treasury bonds. Ha ha ha.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012 at 10:34AM from WSJ.com
For some women, mascara just doesn't cut it anymore. Women are using eyelash enhancers to create thicker, more dramatic-looking lashes. Latisse, approved to treat people with inadequate lashes, is being used mostly by women with normal eyelashes, physicians say.
Dozens of over-the-counter products are marketed with claims of enhancing eyelash prominence, but only Latisse has regulatory approval based on strong scientific evidence to say it grows lashes.
Eyelashes can become come sparser with age, chemotherapy, genetics or other medical conditions, dermatologists say. The condition of having inadequate eyelashes is called hypotrichosis. Eyelashes protect the eyes from dust and dirt, with 100 to 150 lashes on the upper lid alone. The average person has lashes about nine millimeters long—of which seven millimeters extends beyond the skin, according to scientific literature.
Eyelash enhancers have a range of ingredients that includes "peptides" and nutrients for the lashes. They are typically applied once a day—often at bedtime—at the base of the top eyelash using an applicator. A product will transfer to the bottom lash when you blink, some companies sa
Latisse, sold by Allergan Inc., Irvine, Calif., is the only product approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat hypotrichosis. Latisse, which hit the U.S. market in 2009, is identical to Allergan's glaucoma drug Lumigan, an eyedrop that was discovered to grow eyelashes. However, most Latisse users are women with normal lashes who want a cosmetic boost, physicians say.
Latisse is relatively safe to use, doctors say, though some think their patients are overdoing it. "I've seen women who can't wear sunglasses without their eyelashes brushing the lenses," says Richard Glogau, a clinical professor of dermatology at the University of California in San Francisco and a paid consultant for Allergan.
Latisse makes lashes longer and thicker by prolonging their one-to-two-month growth phase, the time in which they are actively growing, likely by several weeks, says Frederick Beddingfield, Allergan's vice president of clinical development. Lashes also become darker, which is believed due to stimulation of an enzyme that boosts production of hair pigments, says Dr. Beddingfield.
Results are visible after as little as two months of use, peaking after four months, Allergan says. You must continue to use it, or your lashes go back to normal in a few weeks or months, the company says. Latisse costs $90 to $120 for a month's supply and isn't usually covered by insurance. Latisse is undergoing tests for eyebrow growth too, and some doctors are already prescribing it for that purpose.
In an Allergan-funded 278-person, four-month trial, Latisse increased the average length of eyelashes by 1.4 millimeters, compared with about a 10th of a millimeter for a placebo, the company said. In the study, published earlier this year in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 78% of patients on Latisse saw an increase of at least one point on the four-point scale designed by Allergan to measure the prominence of eyelashes. That's compared with 18% of those on a placebo. Latisse made lashes thicker and darker based on computer photo analysis results, according to the study. To be in the study, patients had to score 1 or 2 on the scale, or minimal-to-moderate lash prominence, before treatment.
EnvyDerm Cosmetics Co., Dana Point, Calif., says on its website that its EnvyDerm Eyelash Enhancement & Conditioning Nighttime Serum "increases the length and density of lashes." The product, which contains Sympeptide 226, costs $100 for a vial that lasts up to six months. The company—which cites the Symrise test as proof of efficacy—also sells peptide-containing mascara and eyeliner.
According to Athena Cosmetics Inc. in Ventura, Calif.'s website, a clinical study found its RevitaLash Advanced product "improved appearance" of eyelashes. The company didn't respond to requests for a copy of the study or a list of ingredients. A six-month supply costs $150.
Eyelash enhancers can be sold as over-the-counter cosmetics, but companies that claim their products grow lashes could face scrutiny. In general, an eyelash-growth claim "would indicate an intent to affect the structure or function of the body, and thus, cause the product to be a drug," which would require FDA approval, says Shelly Burgess, a spokeswoman. Whether a eyelash product's enhancement claims would require approval, would be determined on a case-by-case basis, she adds.
Because they haven't been through rigorous trials, the adverse effects of using over-the-counter lash enhancers aren't known, dermatologists say. The products, which generally have reusable applicators, would likely pose similar infection risks to mascara, which can sometimes cause eye infections, says Tina S. Alster, a Washington, D.C., dermatologist. Companies say they haven't had any reports of eye infections. Ms. Marini says Marini Lash is made with preservatives to prevent bacteria growth.
Latisse uses sterile wands for each application, but carries other risks, including eye redness and itchiness, and skin darkening, which goes away after the product is no longer used. Latisse could potentially cause hair growth if it drips on the face or darken eye color, but eye-color changes weren't seen in Latisse clinical trials, Allergan says.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 at 10:51AM For decades, scientists have looked for explanations as to why certain conditions occur with age, among them memory loss, slower reaction time, insomnia and even depression. They have scrupulously investigated such suspects as high cholesterol, obesity, heart disease and an inactive lifestyle.
Now a fascinating body of research supports a largely unrecognized culprit: the aging of the eye.
The gradual yellowing of the lens and the narrowing of the pupil that occur with age disturb the body’s circadian rhythm, contributing to a range of health problems, these studies suggest. As the eyes age, less and less sunlight gets through the lens to reach key cells in the retina that regulate the body’s circadian rhythm, its internal clock.
“We believe the effect is huge and that it’s just beginning to be recognized as a problem,” said Dr. Patricia Turner, an ophthalmologist in Leawood, Kan., who with her husband, Dr. Martin Mainster, a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Kansas Medical School, has written extensively about the effects of the aging eye on health.
Circadian rhythms are the cyclical hormonal and physiological processes that rally the body in the morning to tackle the day’s demands and slow it down at night, allowing the body to rest and repair. This internal clock relies on light to function properly, and studies have found that people whose circadian rhythms are out of sync, like shift workers, are at greater risk for a number of ailments, including insomnia, heart disease and cancer.
“Evolution has built this beautiful timekeeping mechanism, but the clock is not absolutely perfect and needs to be nudged every day,” said Dr. David Berson, whose lab at Brown University studies how the eye communicates with the brain.
So-called photoreceptive cells in the retina absorb sunlight and transmit messages to a part of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (S.C.N.), which governs the internal clock. The S.C.N. adjusts the body to the environment by initiating the release of the hormone melatonin in the evening and cortisol in the morning.
Melatonin is thought to have many health-promoting functions, and studies have shown that people with low melatonin secretion, a marker for a dysfunctional S.C.N., have a higher incidence of many illnesses, including cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
It was not until 2002 that the eye’s role in synchronizing the circadian rhythm became clear. It was always believed that the well-known rods and cones, which provide conscious vision, were the eye’s only photoreceptors. But Dr. Berson’s team discovered that cells in the inner retina, called retinal ganglion cells, also had photoreceptors and that these cells communicated more directly with the brain.
Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 1:43PM 
We applaud the volunteers for this ground-breaking study of the pain reducing benefits of massage. It happens to be a group of men who were asked to vigorously exercise their thighs and then recieve 3 muscle biopsies--before, immediately following and 2.5 hours after a 10 minute massage (half the group received no massage...extra kudos to them!)
Inflammatory cytokines (immune system molecules that cause painful inflammation) were reduced by massage.
Was it worth it? A resounding yes, because the dogged scientists at McMasters University in Canada who conducted this rather ingenious and slightly diabolical experiment (published in the serious journal Science) were able to give the world a detailed picture of the cellular effects of massage the likes of which have never been seen nor hardly imagined.
What they found is that massage works in very much the same way that Advil, Motrin and other so-called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs do to reduce inflammation. Incredibly, just 10 minutes of massage after a workout hard enough to cause soreness (measured by changes in muscle fiber) was enough to reduce the inflammatory response to the workout 2.5 hours afterwards. Those who received the massage were less sore than those who didn't, and the researchers know exactly why.
The McMasters lab had some serious equipment that allowed the team to extract nuclear proteins, analyze DNA and compare levels of cell signalling molecues. They found that inflammatory cytokines (immune system molecules that cause painful inflammation) were reduced by massage. Even more surprising for the researchers, the cells that generate energy (called mitochondria) bounced back quicker in the muscles that were massaged.
Why should anyone go to such lengths to prove what many people already know from experience? Well, the researchers have an answer for that: "The effectiveness and mechanistic underpinnings of movement or touch-based rehabilitation medicine (physiotherapy) and its related techniques are largely unsubstantiated," the authors write in their discussion of results. "Because musculoskeletal problems have a significant impact on daily function and quality of life, it is important to validate treatments that enhance recovery, moderate inflammation, and reduce pain in skeletal muscle."
Their conclusion was that after exercise, massage achieves pain reduction and muscle recovery similar to pain-killing drugs without the sometimes serious side-effects. This is a major step forward in substantiating the benefits of massage, and will perhaps make some people feel less guilty the next time they pay the massage therapist.
Monday, February 13, 2012 at 1:35PM KNOW YOUR BREAST DENSITY. If your breasts are dense, your mammogram won't find up to half of cancers, and you should have an additional test with your mammogram each year (breast ultrasound or MRI, depending on your risk factors) if you want to be more effectively screened. Your density information is usually included in the official report from your mammogram, so ask your doctor. If it's not in the report, call the radiologist who read your films and ask. It might take some legwork, but you have the right to know this, and the information could save your life. A grass-roots legislative movement is afoot to make disclosure of breast density information mandatory when a woman has a mammogram. This would be a very good thing for women.
Read more ways to reduce breast cancer risk at theatlantic.com.
