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THURSDAY, March 25, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- A drug with a 30-year track record as an effective tool for fighting cancer may significantly improve memory and thinking in patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease, new research suggests.Sargramostim (brand name: Leukine) has long been used after cancer treatment to coax a patient's bone marrow to make more disease-fighting white blood cells. It uses a protein called GM-CSF that has been linked to a significantly lower risk of Alzheimer's among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). RA patients typically have higher-than-normal levels of GM-CSF in their blood.Working with 40 Alzheimer's patients, researchers have now concluded that a three-week regimen of sargramostim can actually reverse telltale brain damage associated with...

THURSDAY, March 25, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Whether it's takeout or dining in, lives filled with lots of restaurant fare could turn out to be shorter, new research shows.The study found that dining out frequently -- two or more meals prepared away from home each day -- is tied to an increased risk of death from any cause.One nutritionist who wasn't involved in the study said the findings come as little surprise."Many meals prepared outside of the home are higher in salt, fat, refined sugars and overall energy," noted Nicole Roach, a cardiac dietitian at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. "Intake of these items can pose a risk for increased risk of obesity, diabetes and other chronic diseases."The new study was published March 25 in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and...

THURSDAY, March 25, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Medicine may have advanced by leaps and bounds over the last century, but Generation X and millennials are in worse health than their parents and grandparents were at their age.That's the conclusion of a new study that looked at markers of physical and mental health across the generations.And overall, there has been a downhill slide over time: Gen X'ers and millennials were in worse shape when it came to various physical health measures. They also reported more anxiety and depression symptoms, heavy drinking and drug use.The findings are, unfortunately, no surprise, according to Benjamin Miller, chief strategy officer for the nonprofit Well Being Trust, in Oakland, Calif."Studies like this corroborate what we've known," said Miller, who was...

THURSDAY, March 25, 2021 (American Heart Association News) -- On nearly every corner, and along the roads in between, the familiar signs comfort and tempt us: burgers and fried chicken, ice cream and doughnuts, sweets and treats galore.Welcome to the food swamp, where Americans get bogged down in a morass of cheap, convenient, alluring – and very often unhealthy – culinary choices."All these fast-food companies with all their marketing are competing for our stomach space and our dollars," said Penny Kris-Etherton, distinguished professor of nutrition at Penn State University in University Park. "It's hard to make healthy choices when there are so many odds against you."The term "food swamp" was coined about a decade ago to denote areas where fast-food chains and convenience stores...