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MONDAY, Feb. 1, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Women with type 2 diabetes may be more likely to develop breast cancer, but taking the diabetes drug metformin appears to reduce their risk for the most common type, new research finds.Compared to women without diabetes, risk for estrogen-positive breast cancer was 38% lower among women with type 2 diabetes who had used metformin for 10 years or more.Metformin did not protect against estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer and may increase risk for triple-negative breast cancers, the study found."Women with type 2 diabetes and their doctors should consider whether their type 2 diabetes diagnosis and treatment should influence how frequently they are screened for breast cancer," said study author Dale Sandler, chief of the epidemiology branch at...

MONDAY, Feb. 1, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Homemade juices are a popular way for health-conscious people to get their veggies. But the juicing method of choice makes a difference, a recent study suggests.Researchers found that three different techniques -- using either a blender or a low- or high-speed juicer -- produced beverages with different levels of antioxidants and various plant compounds.But anyone hoping for a simple verdict on the best buy is out of luck.The nutrient findings were mixed, and no "winner" appliance emerged, according to senior researcher Bhimanagouda Patil."We're not making any recommendations on which method is best," said Patil, who directs the Vegetable and Fruit Improvement Center at Texas A&M University.In general, the study found, both juicers beat the...

MONDAY, Feb. 1, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Expanded unemployment benefits, passed by Congress last spring to ease the economic pain of the pandemic, appear to have held hunger at bay for millions of Americans, new research shows.Called "The CARES Act" when it was put into effect nearly a year ago, the law expanded who is eligible for unemployment benefits and how long that coverage would last. A weekly federal supplement of $600 was also added to the coverage.The move ultimately cut in half the chance that a middle-class recipient would need to eat less because of financial hardship, the study authors said. And it cut by roughly one-third the risk that a recipient would face so-called "food insecurity."The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as "limited or uncertain...

MONDAY, Feb. 1, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- For some patients suffering from knee arthritis, a special procedure may reduce the need for a total knee replacement, Canadian researchers say.By getting what is known as a 'high tibial osteotomy,' younger patients with less severe joint damage who are physically active might be able to delay the need for a knee replacement by 10 years or more, though they may have to search for a doctor who performs the surgery."High tibial osteotomy is a knee surgery aimed at treating patients in earlier stages of osteoarthritis by correcting the alignment of bowed legs and shifting load to less diseased parts of the knee," explained lead researcher Trevor Birmingham, the Canada research chair of musculoskeletal rehabilitation at the University of Western...