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Ginkgo has many alleged nootropic properties, and is mainly used as memory[25] and concentration enhancer, and anti-vertigo agent. However, studies differ about its efficacy. The largest and longest independent clinical trial to assess ginkgo biloba's ability to prevent memory loss has found that the supplement does not prevent or delay dementia or Alzheimer's disease.[26] Some controversy has arisen over the conclusions drawn by some studies that were allegedly funded by a firm which marketed Ginkgo.[27] In 2002, a long-anticipated paper appeared in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) titled "Ginkgo for memory enhancement: a randomized controlled trial." This Williams College study, sponsored by the National Institute on Aging rather than Schwabe, examined the effects of ginkgo consumption on healthy volunteers older than 60. The conclusion, now cited in the National Institutes of Health's ginkgo fact sheet, said: "When taken following the manufacturer's instructions, ginkgo provides no measurable benefit in memory or related cognitive function to adults with healthy cognitive function." ... The impact of this seemingly damning assessment, however, was ameliorated by the almost simultaneous publication of a Schwabe-sponsored study in the less prestigious Human Psychopharmacology. This rival study, conducted at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University, was rejected by JAMA, and came to a very different-if not exactly sweeping-conclusion: There was ample evidence to support "the potential efficacy of Ginkgo biloba EGb 761 in enhancing certain neuropsychological/memory processes of cognitively intact older adults, 60 years of age and over." According to some studies, in a few cases, Ginkgo can significantly improve attention in healthy individuals.[28][29] Allegedly, the effect is almost immediate and reaches its peak in 2.5 hours after the intake.[30] [edit] In dementia A 2004 conference paper[31] summarizes how various trials indicate that Gi

"Wednesday, May 27, 2009 Eicosanoids and Ischemic Heart Disease, Part II Here's where it gets more complicated and more interesting. The ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 matters, but so does the total amount of each. This is a graph from a 1992 paper by Dr. Lands: In sum, this suggests that the single best way to avoid a heart attack is to reduce omega-6 consumption and ensure an adequate source of omega-3. The lower the omega-6, the less the omega-3 matters. This is a nice theory, but where's the direct evidence? In the next post, I'll discuss the controlled trial that proved this concept once and for all: the Lyon diet-heart trial.

"Study Shows Vitamin D Supplements May Be Useful in Preventing Heart Disease Nov. 16, 2009 (Orlando, Fla.) -- Some men with low levels of vitamin D in their blood are at particularly high risk of developing heart disease and weakened bones that can lead to osteoporosis, researchers report. In a study of more than 1,000 men, those with low levels of both vitamin D and the sex hormone estrogen were at significantly increased risk of having cardiovascular disease, says study head Erin Michos, MD, a cardiologist at Johns Hopkins. "They were also at dramatically increased risk of osteopenia," or bone loss that can lead to osteoporosis, she says. "Our results suggest that vitamin D supplements, which are already prescribed to treat osteoporosis, may also be useful in preventing heart disease," Michos tells WebMD. Men with low levels of vitamin D and testosterone, on the other hand, were not at heightened risk for heart disease or osteopenia."