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Hi All,

See the below three various messages.

Age and Ageing 2005 34(6):551-552

Diogenes

News and Reviews

1. Bone health: the womb and environment

Factors affecting bone health have been investigated in 171 men and 218 women

between the ages of 49 and 51 years (J Epidemiol 2005; 59: 475–80). Density

measured

by X-ray absorptiometry had a negative correlation with fetal factors such as

position in a family along with weight and social class at birth. Important

correlates in adult life were social class, alcohol intake, smoking and poor

nutrition, with positive correlates with exercise, weight and hormone

replacement in

women. Clearly, achieving maximum bone density is going to be a complex task.

2. Do elderly women fall over more often than elderly men?

Review of an emergency department in the USA established that there was an

incidence

of falls of 29.5% in men over 65 years compared with 70.5% in women (Inj Prev

2005;

11: 115–9). Women were also 2.2 times more likely to have fractures and 1.5

times

more likely to be admitted for hospital care. Much more work is required to

establish why there should be such dramatic differences between the sexes.

3. Drinking water and Alzheimer’s disease

The debate as to whether aluminium in the water causes dementia has been running

for

as long as Agatha Christie’s play, The Mousetrap. A recent contribution from

France

relates to 1,462 individuals aged 75 years or over who were kept under review

for up

to 7 years (Am J Nutr 2005; 81: 897–902). All were questioned about their intake

of

tap water or mineral water. Those estimated as having a lower intake of silica

were

more likely to develop dementia. It was proposed that silica worked by

preventing

the absorption of aluminium. If nothing else, the controversy should keep

University

Research Selectivity indices up for the foreseeable future.

Al Pater, PhD; email: old542000@...

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- PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005

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