Sprint Past Polyps

          A cardio workout can strengthen your colon as well as your lungs.  New research reveals that running on a treadmill may prevent colon cancer.  Scientists at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center discovered that men who followed an aerobic exercise regimen experienced a 13 percent decrease in “colon crypt proliferation height,” a marker of colon cancer risk, compared with those who kept their butts planted.  Exercise slows the rate of cell division in the colon, says lead author Anne McTiernan, M.D., Ph.D.  “When the number of dividing cells increases, as we’ve seen in sedentary individuals, it can lead to polyps.” For maximum protection, sweat 5 hours per week, the most effective amount used in the study.

What Are You Smoking

As if they weren’t evil enough, cigarettes are becoming both deadlier and more addictive.  When Massachusetts Department of Public Health researchers measured the nicotine in a typical pack of cigarettes, they found that levels were up 36 percent since 1998.  This is especially alarming in light of new finding that nicotine itself, not just the toxins it’s teamed with, may speed lung cancer growth.

Rock Out

          Kidney-stone sufferers can do more than guzzle water to avoid another bout. A rain-forest plant extract keeps kidney stones from forming, notes a 6-month study in the Journal of Urology.  When 150 former stoners took either a placebo or 2 grams of Phyllanthus niruri daily, those using the herb were 25 percent less likely to be stricken again. Phyllanthus niruri raises urinary levels of sugars that stop crystallized particles from bonding.  Ask your doctor about Nutricology’s Phyllanthus Complex (iherb.com); it contains the dose of the herb used in the study.