What a fascinating hormone Melatonin is turning out to be.

Over the past decade or so, Melatonin has been investigated for its role in treating cancer, as well as playing a role in its development, particularly with flight crews.

The latter is especially interesting when you consider that Melatonin has often been recommended for jet lag - I personally found it very helpful on my trips to Europe.

A recent Spanish study takes this a step further, and links low Melatonin levels to aging and inflammation. 

When I consider how many older people come to me complaining of insomnia, and the number of those who also have inflammatory conditions, and I correlate that with the fact that cancer risk rises as one ages -  a little supplementation with Melatonin begins to sound like a really good strategy.

My article on Melatonin

Melatonin Supplements

Another interesting study in the long list of reasons why Vitamin D is important, pointing out yet again that we are not generally getting enough of it.

Researchers report that among the elderly study participants, of the group taking the high dose (800 IU) vitamin D supplement, only 20% of the participants  fell, versus 44% of the placebo group.

A litle time spent in the sunshine each day enjoying life could make quite a difference, it seems!

More evidence that vitamin D may cut falls amongst the elderly

There is a great deal of advice out there about water :  from drinking an ounce for every pound of half your body weight, to nonsense!  you need no extra water.

See my motto above.

Nothing quite beats a good study, and here is a report of two which indicate that many elderly people, having lost the impulse to drink water, are dehydrated and suffering both physical and cognitive consequences.

Summary of studies here.

While it still comes as a surprise to have to think of myself as an elderly person, let me add on a personal note that I do have to REMIND myself several times a day to drink a glass of water.  I have found that filling a container with water and putting it in the fridge each day serves as an aide memoire. If it is still full at the end of the day, I have not had enough to drink.  Just a suggestion.

More about hydration

It's hard to believe that any woman would care about the appearance of her labia (latin for lips) unless somehow influenced to do so.  My own attitude to that entire area has always been if it's functional, it's fine!

Yet it would appear that fine-tuning the appearance of female private parts is burgeoning into the latest plastic surgery bonanza."

The perfect vagina - yours for the asking.

Ironic juxtaposition - carrying the appearance of female private parts to extremes.

New research on iron and Alzheimer's disease is absolutely fascinating.  If you have too high a level of iron, it exacerbates the disease; lowering iron levels in affected persons helps.  But too little iron chronically can also apparently be a factor in developing the disease ... 

Read the research here

and remember :  if you are a man check your iron levels before using supplements at any age.  If you are a woman, once you have stopped menstruating, the same advice holds good.