LIFE EXTENSION NEWS

Were You Deferred for "Low Iron"?

About 32% of blood donor rejections are due to a low hematocrit, better known as low iron. Hematocrit is the measure of red cells in the plasma. The red cells are the component in blood that carries oxygen to the various organs of the body. The normal hematocrit range for adults is 35 to 55.

Another way to measure the oxygen in blood is to measure the hemoglobin. (expressed as grams of hemoglobin per deciliter of blood) The normal hemoglobin range for adults is 12 to 18.5 grams. This may be the way your doctor would measure the oxygen carrying ability of your blood. This accounts for the different numbers you might hear from our staff and your doctor's office.

When a person donates a unit of blood (little less than a pint) it can lower the hematocrit by two to four points. For this reason, blood centers set limits on the amount of hematocrit a donor must have in order to make certain the donor is kept safe. These limits are determined by the FDA. The hematocrit limits for donating blood are 38 to 55. The upper limit can alert blood center staff to a possible problem in the donors blood.

If a donor tests enough under or over the limits, the staff will instruct the donor to seek medical attention. If a blood center staff member says a person's hematocrit is too low to donate today, this simply means that at this particular time, the donor does not have enough red cells to give up a unit of blood and still feel well.

This condition is often referred to as anemia. This is a TEMPORARY deferral for a temporary condition, and the person could be able to donate in just a day or two. Hematocrit levels can fluctuate on a daily or weekly basis. According to Dr. Allen Nissenson, Professor of Medicine at the University of California at Los Angeles, Inadequate nutrition is the most common cause of anemia.

Diet is an important factor in building hematocrit levels (iron). Red meat, poultry, fish, beans, green leafy vegetables, egg yolks, raisins, and cream of wheat are all high in iron. In addition, foods rich in vitamins B & C help the body to absorb iron. In some cases, just a few days of eating high iron foods can make a huge difference in hematocrit levels, as well as the way a person feels.

It is important to remember that when a donor is deferred, it is for the safety of the donor or the safety of the patient. Central Illinois Community Blood Center (Blood donations are an excellent way to monitor ones cholesterol levels, blood pressure and iron levels)

Acetaminophen Misuse can be Fatal

The government has issued a warning about the consequences of not following directions in taking over the counter medications like Tylenol, or any of over 600 other medications that contain acetaminophen. Misuse can lead to severe side effects, or even death.

More thn 56,000 emergency room visits a year are because of acetaminophen overdoses., and about 100 people a year die after unintentional overdose of the drug, according to Food and Drug Administration estimates.

Sometimes consumers swallow extra pills in hope of faster pain relief. Others unknowingly injest too much by taking more than one acetaminophen containing remedy.

The FDA is also targeting other painkillers such as aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen or ketoprofen called NSAIDS or nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs. These side effects include stomach bleeding and liver problems.

"We want people to take these medications seriously, and understand the consequences if they don't follow directions.

FLORIDA TODAY

Study Finds Huge Variation In Vitamin E Absorption

Doug Skrecky recently posted this on Cryonet:

A new study has found that cereal fortified with vitamin E has a very high rate of absorption into the bloodstream, whereas pills taken separately with the same food have inconsistent effects, and taking the supplements alone is largely useless. The research was just published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition by scientists from the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University.

The study points the way to more effective methods of taking this essential vitamin if people wish to supplement their diet. As an antioxidant, vitamin E is one of the most commonly taken vitamin supplements in the world and included in virtually every multivitamin pill.

The research may explain, Traber said, why many past research studies done with vitamin E have varied findings. It's quite possible, she said, that the manner in which people took vitamin E supplements and the variation in its bioavailability from person to person have yielded widely inconsistent results about the value of this nutrient in heart disease and other degenerative diseases.

It may also be time to consider routine fortification of more foods with this vitamin, Traber said.

"For good reasons, Americans are increasingly moving towards lowfat diets," Traber said. "But average lowfat diets provide only about 58 international units a day of vitamin E. The recommended dietary allowance of vitamin E is 30 I.U. and it's possible that higher amounts than that are useful for optimal health. So we have to find ways to make sure everyone is getting enough of this nutrient."

A glitch, the researchers say, is that vitamin E is an oil, and people are now being told to use oils very sparingly. It can be found in nuts, oily fish, some vegetables and oils such as safflower, olive and canola oil. The most common way that people get vitamin E is through rich desserts and cooking oils.

"If people are getting all the vitamin E they need through a healthy, balanced diet, that's great," Traber said. "But we really don't want to be telling people to eat more fat, and that's generally where vitamin E is found. That's why it's appealing to find an effective way of obtaining this nutrient, such as vitamin E fortification of what is essentially a lowfat food."

This controlled study was done by LPI scientists, funded by and in collaboration with the Bell Nutrition Institute of General Mills.

In it, scientists tested the results of four different types of breakfasts: a pill of 400 I.U. of vitamin E with skim milk; a serving of a wheat breakfast cereal fortified with 30 I.U. of vitamin E; a serving

of wheat breakfast cereal fortified with 400 I.U. of vitamin E; and a serving of wheat breakfast cereal with a pill of 400 I.U. vitamin E taken separately.

The pill of 400 I.U. vitamin E taken with just a glass of milk, in theory should have provided more than 13 times the RDA of this nutrient. But, in fact, it raised the level of new vitamin E in the blood by only 3 percent. By comparison, the cereal fortified with 30 I.U. vitamin E raised the blood plasma level of new vitamin E five times higher than that, and the cereal fortified with 400 I.U. raised the new blood plasma level 30 times higher.

The effect of a pill of 400 I.U. taken with a serving of plain wheat cereal was inconsistent; some participants had a significant increase in blood plasma levels of vitamin E, others almost none.

"This study clearly showed that applying vitamin E onto a grain cereal provided a huge and consistent increase in its bioavailability," said Scott Leonard, an LPI research assistant who conducted the study. "Even 30 I.U., the RDA for this vitamin, produced a large increase in new blood plasma levels."

According to Traber and Leonard, this indicates that people who are taking vitamin E supplements only with liquids on an empty stomach are accomplishing nothing and getting few if any benefits from the supplements. The vitamin clearly is absorbed better if it is part of, or closely associated with the digestion of a food that has some fat in it.

Vitamin E has been explored in recent years for its potential value in prevention of heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer's disease and other health concerns. The results of this study may explain in part why the other research has often yielded inconsistent results, Traber said.

"It's now clear that vitamin E must be taken in a certain way to be effective, either in a food containing vitamin E or in a supplement properly associated with a food," Traber said. "So anyone studying vitamin E for a clinical response must now be sure they are using it in a regimen that works."

It may also be time to consider the expansion of vitamin E as a routine food additive, she said.

"In our pursuit of lowfat diets, we increasingly are taking the fat out of foods but not putting the vitamin E back," Traber said.

According to Traber and Leonard, this indicates that people who are taking vitamin E supplements only with liquids on an empty stomach are accomplishing nothing and getting few if any benefits from the supplements.

Earth's Easiest Exercise

Walking can add years to your life, and life to your years. And it couldn't be easier.

The Conditioner Walking conditions your heart and lungs, and raises your body's ability to use oxygen more efficiently. In one study, women who walked briskly (34 miles per hour) at least three hours a week, cut their risk of heart attack and stroke by more than half.

The Protector Walking helps beat other health problems, too. I t reduces your risk of cancer and some forms of osteoporosis. It fights the battle of the bulge, taking off fat and building muscle. Walking can even help people with diabetes, reduce or eliminate their need for medication.

The Joint Saver Walking can burn as many calories per mile as jogging does. But it delivers only about a quarter of the jolt, so it's much easier on your joints and muscles.

The DeStressor Walking's easy on your mind, too, since it lessens stress and lightens depression. Beginning walkers usually report that they feel better, sleep better and that their mental outlook improves.

The Winner Best of all, walking has the lowest dropout rate of any form of exercise. So you're more likely to stick with it and get all these benefits and more, like better digestion, improved regularity and lower blood pressure.

There's Nothing To It! Just put on a sturdy, comfortable pair of shoes and go. Walk to the store for the paper,park a few blocks from work, or get of the train or bus one stop early and walk from there. Use stairs instead of elevators and escalators. On bad weather days, walk in a mall or on a treadmill.

How fast should you go? That's easy, just use the "talk test." Move at a steady clip that makes your heart beat faster and causes you to breathe more deeplybut doesn't leave you too breathless to carry on a conversation.