More than 75% of patients who participated in an OTC counseling service (a self-care/OTC treatment consultation with a follow-up phone call within 1 week) in two community pharmacies found the service to be “very helpful” and believed that it contributed to greater symptom improvement. However, less than half of patients (44.9%) were willing to pay for the service, and those who would pay were willing to spend only up to $5 for up to 5 minutes of the pharmacist’s time.
A review article in the journal Obesity Reviews summarizes the evidence for positive benefits of psyllium fiber on several components of the metabolic syndrome, including body weight, body composition, satiety, glucose and insulin homeostasis, lipids and lipoproteins, blood pressure, and vascular function.
Among more than 23,000 participants in the European Prospective Investigation of Cancer–Norfolk (EPIC-Norfolk) Study, participants with the highest intake of the dietary antioxidants selenium, vitamin E, and vitamin C were 67% less likely to develop pancreatic cancer within 10 years of recruitment, compared with participants who consumed lower amounts.
In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial conducted at four U.S. medical centers, the botanical product silymarin—an extract of milk thistle—did not significantly reduce serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels more than placebo in participants with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection that had not responded to interferon-based therapy.
In a single-night study that included 270 Israeli children 1 to 5 years of age with nocturnal cough attributed to upper respiratory tract infection, a teaspoon of any of three types of honey administered 30 minutes before bedtime was associated with significant improvements in cough frequency, cough severity, bothersome nature of cough, and child and parent sleep quality.
Among 61 patients with Parkinson’s disease, 6 weeks of treatment with caffeine twice daily failed to improve excessive daytime somnolence (the primary study outcome), but it did improve motor manifestations as measured by the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS).
Among 61 patients with Parkinson’s disease, 6 weeks of treatment with caffeine twice daily failed to improve excessive daytime somnolence (the primary study outcome), but it did improve motor manifestations as measured by the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS).