Limit the number of embryos transferred in IVF, essay says

This should go without saying...

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Limit the number of embryos transferred in IVF, essay says: "

The United States should adopt a law similar to what is practiced in Sweden allowing, in most cases, only single-embryo transfers during in vitro fertilization treatment, according to an essay published Thursday in the Hastings Center Report.

Infertility doctors have been urged for several years to voluntarily limit the number of embryos transferred during IVF in order to avoid multiple births, such as the famous eight babies born last year to Los Angeles resident Nadya Suleman after IVF treatment.

Studies show that success rates are still good in healthy women when only one embryo is transferred instead of two or three. But the informal policy, while reducing the rate of high-order multiples, hasn't had as much success in lowering the rate of twin births. Any birth of multiples increases the risks of complications to both the babies and mothers and significantly increases healthcare costs. Many couples would rather have twins or triplets than pay out-of-pocket for multiple single-embryo transfers to build their families, notes the author of the opinion, David Orentlicher, of the Indiana University School of Law.

That's why he suggests that the United States enact legal limits to transfer only one embryo. Double-embryo transfer could be permitted for women at low risk of multiple births or because of a woman's age or medical history. Such a law reduced multiple births in Sweden from 35% to 5%, he said in his report.

"If the outcomes were similar to those in Sweden, and if transfer restrictions were coupled with insurance coverage of IVF, the restrictions would not limit reproductive rights," Orentlicher wrote.

— Shari Roan

Photo: One of the Suleman octuplets born in January 2009. Credit: Associated Press.

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Shift workers knew it, researchers confirm it: Caffeine helps

Caffeine = good!---

Shift workers knew it, researchers confirm it: Caffeine helps: "

Coffee, tea, soda, Red Bull, those little something-extra mints ... whatever your caffeine-delivery system of choice, maybe you should stick with it -- especially if you work nights or odd shifts.

In a review of 13 previously published studies on caffeine's effect on shift workers' performance, researchers found that, compared with a placebo or even naps, the stimulant appeared to be more effective at reducing errors. It also boosted performance on memory, attention, perception and reasoning tests.

Not bad for something available from a vending machine.

Here's the short version of the caffeine study, published Wednesday in the Cochrane Library.

And here's how caffeine affects the brain, courtesy eHow, and a look at caffeine chemistry, courtesy About.com.

But good luck choosing a drink or food based on the caffeine content listed on the label. It doesn't have to be there.

Consumers can do their own research on caffeine content over at Energy Fiend. They can even calculate how much of their favorite product they could consume before it would likely prove fatal. (In the case of Cherry Coke, at least, this is a considerable amount.)

-- Tami Dennis

Photo credit: Los Angeles Times

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Inland Empire had nation's largest influx of Latinos in last decade, study finds

Si se puede
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Inland Empire had nation's largest influx of Latinos in last decade, study finds: "

A new study has found that the Inland Empire had the largest increase in Latino population of any metropolitan region in the nation during the last decade.

The Brookings Institute study is the latest to underscore the dramatic demographic trends occurring in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, which saw significant growth in the last decade.

An examination of census data last year found that the construction boom of the early 2000s helped fuel the increase in Latino population. As hundreds of thousands of immigrants chased construction and service jobs and the chance to own a home in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the region's Latino population soared. Latinos were one-quarter of Riverside County's population in the 1990 census, for example, and 43% by 2007.

The Brookings study found that between 2000 to 2008, more than 630,000 new Latino residents were added to the two counties. The region also saw a significant loss of white residents during the same period, the study found.

Alan Berube, research director of Brookings' Metropolitan Policy Program told the Riverside Press-Enterprise, which first reported the study, that the demographic shift was creating a "cultural generation gap."

From 2000 to 2007, the number of immigrants in San Bernardino and Riverside counties grew 55%, from 490,946 to 761,629, a Public Policy Institute study found. Despite being far larger at 3.5 million, the immigrant population in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area grew by just 161,000, or 4.6%, in the same period.

The studies didn't fully consider the more recent economic downturn in the region.

-- Shelby Grad

Photo: A subdivision in San Bernardino. Credit: Los Angeles Times

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New Vision Required to Stave Off Dramatic Biodiversity Loss, Says UN Report

New Vision Required to Stave Off Dramatic Biodiversity Loss, Says UN Report: "Natural systems that support economies, lives and livelihoods across the planet are at risk of rapid degradation and collapse unless there is swift, radical and creative action to conserve and sustainably use the variety of life on Earth."

Buckets of coffee, sweetened drinks don't boost colon cancer

Buckets of coffee, sweetened drinks don't boost colon cancer: "

The shifting tides of medical research on coffee has given java -- and those who drink it -- an all-clear. This week, at least.

A study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute concludes that people who coffee daily -- even four or more cups -- are no more likely to develop colon cancer than those who do not drink coffee.

Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health also concluded there's no higher risk of colon cancer among those who drink sweetened beverages daily. They did, however, find a small increase in risk of colon cancer among those who drank a lot of tea -- 32 oz or more a day. It was a weak signal worthy of further research, they said.

The study pooled data on more than 730,000 people scattered across the globe, and subjects were followed for anywhere between six and 20 years. Given the size and scope of the population studies, subjects' beverage choices and volumes ran the gamut. There weren't a lot of adult subjects who drank three or more sweetened beverages a day, which prompted editorialists at the journal to suggest that this study won't be the final word on cancer risk and sweetened beverages. But for coffee and tea, at least, this seems to be a study whose results you can take to the bank.

This comes on the heels of actual good news about coffee consumption: that the heavenly brew appears to help protect against diabetes, liver cancer and cirrhosis and Parkinson's disease.

But the study does leave unsolved the mystery of colon cancer's links to diet. Researchers surmise that because rates of colorectal cancer vary widely from country to country, there must be some environmental factor that increases risk, and they've long suspected it's diet. But whether red meat contributes to colon cancer or not, whether fruits and vegetable consumption protect against it: Evidence has swung back and forth on these.

At least we know it's not coffee. For now.

--Melissa Healy

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