- ALLERGY, RESPIRATORY
- Herbal Remedy Could Halt Peanut Allergy
- Keep Asthma, Allergies at Bay for the Holidays
- Obesity May Raise Kids' Allergy Risk
- ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
- Acupuncture May Not Help Hot Flashes
- Acupuncture Cuts Dry Mouth in Cancer Patients
- 38% of U.S. Adults Use Alternative Treatments
- ANIMAL CARE
- 'Comfort Dogs' Come to Emotional Rescue
- Animals Respond to Acupuncture's Healing Touch
- Rest Easy. When It Comes to Swine Flu, Your Pet Is Safe
- BONES & JOINTS
- Barefoot Lifestyle Has Its Dangers
- Rheumatoid Arthritis Rising Among U.S. Women
- Most Kids With Type 1 Diabetes Lack Vitamin D
- CANCER
- Green Tea Compound Slowed Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
- Family History Key Player in Brain Cancer Risk
- Green Tea May Help Prevent Oral Cancer
- CAREGIVING
- With Age Comes Greater Risk of Hypothermia
- UV Lights, Fans May Curb TB Spread in Hospitals
- Falls Are Top Cause of Injury, Death Among Elderly
- CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
- A Brisk Pace May Keep Stroke at Bay
- Vitamins Do Older Women Little Good
- Migraines in Pregnancy Boost Vascular Risks
- COSMETIC
- Wrinkle Fillers Need Better Label Warnings: FDA Panel
- Health Tip: After Liposuction
- New Genetic Links to Baldness Discovered
- DENTAL, ORAL
- Gum Disease May Reactivate AIDS Virus
- Periodontal Disease Impacts Whole Health
- Study Links Osteoporosis Drugs to Jaw Trouble
- DIABETES
- Chamomile Tea May Ward Off Diabetes Damage
- Spices, Herbs Boost Health for Diabetics
- Diabetes Linked to Cognitive Problems
- DIET, NUTRITION
- Heart Disease May Be Prevented By Taking Fish Oils, Study Shows
- Functional Foods Uncovered
- Successful Weight Loss Shows Unique Brain Patterns
- DISABILITIES
- Review Finds Marijuana May Help MS Patients
- Could Your Cell Phone Help Shield You From Alzheimer's?
- ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
- Rainy Areas in U.S. Show Higher Autism Rates
- Household Insecticides May Be Linked to Autoimmune Diseases
- Pesticides on Produce Tied to ADHD in Children
- EYE CARE, VISION
- Retinal Gene Is Linked to Childhood Blindness
- Nearly 18 Million Will Have Macular Degeneration by 2050
- Impotence Drugs Don't Harm Vision: Study
- FITNESS
- Tai Chi: An Ideal Exercise for Many People with Diabetes
- As Temperature Plummets, It's Still Safe to Exercise
- Barefoot Best for Running?
- GASTROINTESTINAL PROBLEMS
- Gum Chewing May Speed Colon Surgery Recovery
- Intestinal Bacteria Trigger Immune Response
- Peppermint Oil, Fiber Can Fight Irritable Bowel
- GENERAL HEALTH
- Vinegar Might Help Keep Off Pounds
- Dry Weather Boosts Odds of Flu Outbreaks
- Why Am I So Tired? Could It Be Low Thyroid?
- HEAD & NECK
- Many Children Will Outgrow Headaches
- Zen May Thicken Brain, Thwart Pain
- Ski Helmets Encouraged for All
- HEALTH & TECHNOLOGY
- Using Light Therapy to Silence Harmful Brain Activity
- Magnet Therapy May Ease Hard-to-Treat Depression
- Imaging Sheds Light on How Acupuncture Works
- HEART & CARDIOVASCULAR
- Psychiatric Drugs Might Raise Cardiac Death Risk
- Western Diet Linked To Heart Disease, Metabolic Syndrome
- Research Shows Genetic Activity of Antioxidants
- INFECTIOUS DISEASE
- Bacterial Infections May Succumb to Honey
- Swine Flu Loves a Crowd
- Older Adults May Have Some Immunity to Swine Flu
- KID'S HEALTH
- Even Young Kids Can Learn CPR
- Gene Variation Found in Boys With Delinquent Peers
- Fussy Babys Could Be Out Of Your Control
- MEN'S HEALTH
- Physical Activity May Prolong Survival After Colon Cancer
- Strenuous Daily Workout May Keep Cancer at Bay
- Drinking Green Tea May Slow Prostate Cancer
- MENTAL HEALTH
- A Simple 'Thank You' Brings Rewards to All
- Shop 'Til You Drop: You May Feel Better
- Using the Mind to Heal the Heart
- PREGNANCY
- Pre-Pregnancy Weight Linked to Babies' Heart Problems
- Breast-Feeding May Protect a Woman's Heart
- Woman in America Are Delaying Motherhood, Study Says
- SENIORS
- Any Old Cane Won't Do
- Protein Deposits May Show Up Before Memory Problems Occur, Study Says
- Vitamin D May Help Keep Aging at Bay
Caffeine May Offer Some Skin Cancer Protection
By eHolistic.com Published: 02/26/2009
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
THURSDAY, Feb. 26 (HealthDay News) -- Past studies have suggested that caffeine might offer some protection from skin cancer, and new research may explain why.
"We have found what we believe to be the mechanism by which caffeine is associated with decreased skin cancer," said lead researcher Dr. Paul Nghiem, an associate professor of dermatology at the University of Washington in Seattle.
For the study, Nghiem's team looked at caffeine's effect on human skin cells in a laboratory that had been exposed to ultraviolet radiation. They found that in cells damaged by UV rays, caffeine interrupted a protein called ATR-Chk1, causing the damaged cells to self-destruct.
"Caffeine has no effect on undamaged cells," Nghiem said.
ATR is essential to damaged cells that are growing rapidly, Nghiem said, and caffeine specifically targets damaged cells that can become cancerous. "Caffeine more than doubles the number of damaged cells that will die normally after a given dose of UV," he said.
"This is a biological mechanism that explains what we have been seeing for many years from the oral intake of caffeine," he added.
The findings were published online Feb. 26 in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology.
But, Nghiem added, people shouldn't increase the amount of coffee or tea they drink to prevent skin cancer. "You are talking a lot of cups for a lot of years for a relatively small effect," he said. "But if you like it, it's another reason to drink it."
Nghiem has also been experimenting with applying caffeine directly to the skin. "It suppresses skin cancer development by as much as 72 percent in mice, and human studies are moving ahead slowly," he said.
It's possible that topical caffeine preparations might one day be used to help prevent skin cancer, Nghiem said. "Caffeine is both a sunscreen and it deletes damaged cells," he said. "It may well make sense to put it into a sunscreen preparation."
Dr. Robin Ashinoff, a dermatologist and clinical associate professor of dermatology at New York University's Langone Medical Center, thinks these findings need to be verified before they can have any clinical application.
"This study tells me that caffeine may be a useful ingredient topically to remove ultraviolet-genetically damaged cells from reproducing," Ashinoff said. "This may help prevent the development of skin cancer."
"It is interesting that caffeine, which is thought to have a negative connotation, has already been shown to be associated with lower incidences of non-melanoma skin cancers in several epidemiological studies," she added.
Dr. Albert Lefkovits, a spokesman for the Skin Cancer Foundation and an associate clinical professor of dermatology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, doesn't think it's been proven that caffeine reduces the risk of skin cancer.
"While this is an interesting concept that has been explored before, it will take years of extensive testing to determine whether this will be a worthwhile prevention method," Lefkovits said.
"And, the study doesn't discuss how much caffeine would be needed for any real benefit," he said. "For instance, many people drink large amounts of caffeine on a daily basis and still get skin cancer. Protecting yourself from the sun is currently the only proven way to prevent skin cancer."
More information
To learn more about skin cancer, visit the American Cancer Society.
SOURCES: Paul Nghiem, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of dermatology, University of Washington, Seattle; Robin Ashinoff, M.D., dermatologist and clinical associate professor, dermatology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York City; Albert Lefkovits, M.D., spokesman, the Skin Cancer Foundation, and associate clinical professor of dermatology, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York City; February 2009, Journal of Investigative Dermatology, online
Last Updated: Feb. 26, 2009
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