Digestive Health Archive

Creative activities can relieve stress, aid communication, and help arrest cognitive decline.

 Image: © Katherine A. Gallagher Integrative Therapies Art Therapy Program at the Mass. General Cancer Center

The title of a recent documentary film, I Remember Better When I Paint, sums up the findings of a growing body of research into the cognitive effects of making art. The movie demonstrates how drawing and painting stimulated memories in people with dementia and enabled them to reconnect with the world. People with dementia aren't the only beneficiaries. Studies have shown that expressing themselves through art can help people with depression, anxiety, or cancer, too. And doing so has been linked to improved memory, reasoning, and resilience in healthy older people.

Research we're watching

Recent evidence suggests that antibiotics, which affect the makeup of intestinal bacteria, might be associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer. A team led by researchers from Harvard Medical School wanted to see if antibiotic use is also associated with adenomatous polyps, precursors of colon cancer that significantly increase the risk of developing the disease.

The team analyzed data from 16,642 women ages 60 or older participating in the Nurses' Health Study. They first looked at participants' antibiotic use from ages 20 through 59 and in the most recent four years. They also checked the results with the women's colonoscopies and found 1,195 cases of adenomatous polyps.

Research we're watching

Previous studies have suggested that being somewhat overweight or even slightly obese may not be associated with a shortened life span. Some studies have suggested that being a bit overweight might even be healthier than being at normal weight. This has been referred to as the "obesity paradox."

A recent analysis of data from the Nurses' Health Studies I and II and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study has helped bring clarity to this paradox. Researchers from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Boston University School of Public Health assessed the maximum body mass index (BMI) over 16 years for more than 190,000 postmenopausal women and 35,000 senior men. They then tracked who died over a follow-up period averaging 12 years. They found that people with a maximum BMI in the normal range (18.5 to 24.9 kg/m2) throughout life had the lowest risk of death. Those whose highest recorded BMI fell into the overweight or obese category were at elevated risk of dying from any cause, as well as dying specifically from cardiovascular disease, cancer, or respiratory disease, during the follow-up period.

Research we're watching

The FDA's medical device reporting program recently announced that as of February 1, it had received 359 reports of anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), a rare type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, in women who had received breast implants. Nine women had died of the disease. The FDA uses such reports to alert clinicians about potential significant side effects from approved drugs and devices, and as it gathers more information, the data may change. Many reports contained details of the implants, including whether the outside surface was smooth or textured and whether the filling was silicone gel or saline.

ALCL is usually found within a capsule of fibrous scar tissue that forms around an implant, not in the breast tissue itself. It appears to develop more frequently in women with textured implants, regardless of filling type.

On call

Q. I have had acid reflux for many years, but it is well controlled with a proton-pump inhibitor. However, I am concerned about long-term damage from my reflux, even though I feel fine now. Should I have an upper endoscopy to look for possible damage?

A. Long-term acid reflux can damage the esophagus and may lead to a condition known as Barrett's esophagus, which is a precursor to esophageal cancer. Barrett's affects about 3% to 10% of older men, but within this group the risk of developing esophageal cancer is only about four in every 1,000 cases. Over all, men with Barrett's are more likely to die from another cause.

This ancient practice can be used alone or with conventional therapy to help ease your pain.

 Image: © zilli/Thinkstock

Men looking for an easy and effective means to manage pain should consider acupuncture.

"There are many different types of pain — neuropathic, muscular, degenerative joint — all of which can make management complex," says Hugo Lopez, a licensed acupuncturist with Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center. "Sometimes you need to treat not just the physical components, but also the psychological ones, and that is where acupuncture can help, as it addresses both problems."