WORLD OF MEDICINE
News From the
PHOTO: ADAM VOORHES
HYPERTENSION CONTROL AS
A GROUP EFFORT
Many attempts to treat hypertension
involve only two people: the
patient and his or her doctor. A
trial conducted in Malaysia and
Colombia asked what would happen
if more people were added to the
equation. In half of the participating
communities, busy doctors shared
some of their tasks (eg, counselling
patients, monitoring treatment) with
non-doctor health workers. The trial
also recruited ‘treatment supporters’
(friends or family members) to
accompany patients to health
appointments and encourage them
to take their medication and follow
lifestyle advice. By the end of a year,
the patients who’d received this
attention saw a much greater
reduction in their blood pressure
compared to patients getting
the usual care. And, their overall
cardiovascular risk score went
down by almost twice as much.MEAT SUBSTITUTES
HIGH IN SALT
According to a recent British
survey of meat-free burgers,
ham, sausages and othervegetarian or vegan meat substitutes,
28 per cent of the products exceeded
maximum recommended salt levels.VIEW OF GREEN SPACES
CURBS CRAVINGS
It’s well known that being in nature
confers a host of physical and mental
health benefits. A new study suggests
that simply seeing green spaces can
help reduce unhealthy cravings. Of
149 participants, those whose views
from their homes featured more than
25 per cent green space reported
fewer and less intense urges for junk
food, alcohol and cigarettes.HEALTHY FOOD MOTIVATION
Australian researchers analysed the
diet of 12,000 people to measure life
satisfaction and happiness, and
found that they both increased
within two years in people who
changed their diet to include
more fruit and vegetables –
with eight servings daily being
optimum. “Eating fruit and
vegetables apparently boosts
our happiness far more
quickly than it improves
human health,” said study
co-author Redzo Mujcic.23