A study from the UK and Canada followed more than 2500 patients with Barrett’s Esophagus for an average of 9 years, and divided them into two groups: Nexium 20 mg a day and Nexium 40 mg twice a day. The high dose group had fewer numbers of esophageal cancer or High Grade Dysplasia (a precursor
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VITAMIN D SUPPLEMENTS DO NOT PREVENT CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE OR CANCER
Harvard Medical Center randomized more than 25,000 men and women to take either Vitamin D supplementation or placebo for more than 5 years. There were no differences in the chance of strokes, heart attacks, or cancer and this finding was true for both those who started with normal Vitamin D levels, or with low levels.
Read MorePROBIOTIC DOES NOT HELP IN GASTROENTERITIS IN CHILDREN
In a US study, 971 children with severe gastroenteritis were randomized to a probiotic (Culturelle) or placebo. There was no difference in length of illness, spread to family members, or days missed from Daycare/Preschool. This is a high quality, low risk of bias, which is unusual in the probiotic literature. New England Journal of Medicine,
Read MoreBEST TREATMENT FOR MICROSCOPIC/LYMPHOCYTIC COLITIS.
Patients with microscopic/lymphocytic colitis were randomized to treatment with mesalamine, budesonide, or placebo. The mesalamine group did no better than placebo, but the budesonide patients improved nicely. Gastroenterology, December 2018.
Read MoreFAMILY HISTORY OF COLON CANCER
It is well established that the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) is increased if a first degree relative (parent, brother, sister) has had CRC. What is the risk if CRC was found in a second degree relative (grandparent, aunt, uncle)? A huge study in Sweden looked at 16 million individuals over more than 50 years.
Read MoreFISH OIL SUPPLEMENTS DO NOT PREVENT CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE OR CANCER
Fish oil (also called N-3 or omega-3 fatty acids) have been recommended in the past to decrease the chance of heart attacks and strokes. Harvard Medical Center sponsored a huge study involving more than 25,000 adults. The study included men and women, and all racial groups. These were individuals who did not have risk factors
Read MoreDOES FECAL MICROBIOTA TRANSPLANT (FMT) HELP ILLNESSES OTHER THAN RECURRENT INFECTION WITH CLOSTRIDIA DIFICILE?
It is well established that FMT is highly effective in recurrent C diff infections. FMT has been tried in many other illnesses, including obesity, autism, schizophrenia, irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’ Disease, and many others. British investigators surveyed all the relevant studies that looked at other illnesses, and there was no compelling evidence that
Read MorePROBIOTIC DOES NOT HELP GASTROENTERITIS IN CHILDREN IN CANADA EITHER
866 Canadian children with severe gastroenteritis were randomized to a different probiotic than the one used in the US study, brand name Lacidophil Strong, or placebo. As in the US study, there was no difference in time to illness resolution or spread to family members. Again, this was a high quality, low risk of bias
Read MoreDEVELOPMENT OF IBS FOLLOWING GIARDIA INFECTION.
It is well established that Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) can develop following a gastrointestinal infection. In Bergen, Norway, in 2004, there was an outbreak of Giardia from a contaminated water source. Researchers followed 1252 laboratory confirmed cases of Giardia for 6 years and also 2500 age-matched individuals from Bergen who did not contract Giardia. Of
Read MoreEFFECTIVENESS OF FECAL OCCULT BLOOD TESTING
A meta-analysis of 31 studies involving more than 120,000 subjects showed that fecal immunochemical testing (FIT test) was accurate in screening for colon cancer, but not in finding advanced pre-malignant polyps. If your goal is to find the pre-cancerous polyp before it transforms into a malignancy, than colonoscopy is still the best choice. Annals of
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