Effects of folic acid supplementation on overall and site-specific cancer incidence during randomised trials: meta-analyses of data on 50,000 individuals
Source: Lancet
Area: News
Some countries fortify flour with folic acid to prevent neural tube defects but others do not, partly because of concerns about possible cancer risks. In The Lancet, researchers present new data that contribute to the debate regarding folic acid and cancer. They conducted a meta-analysis to assess any effects on site-specific cancer rates in the randomised trials of folic acid supplementation, at doses higher than those for fortification.
A search was conducted for trials completed before 2011 that compared folic acid with placebo, had scheduled treatment duration at least 1 year, incl...
Source: NeLM - News - January 25, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Nine out of 10 sunbeds have 'unsafe' UV levels
Conclusion
This well-conducted and useful study suggests that, on average, the UV exposure from tanning units throughout England is higher than the recent standard level introduced throughout the EU, and that cancer risk from the average level of radiation seen across these units is more than twice that of the midday summer Mediterranean sun.
The researchers say that there is a recent trend of increasing UV levels, and that this coincides "with the development of new high-power sunlamps".
There are some discrepancies between the reporting of this research and the methods used in the study. Some newspapers reporte...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 17, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Cancer Source Type: news
