Attention, chocolate lovers: You may not be able to help yourselves. Swiss and British scientists have linked the widespread love of chocolate to a chemical "signature" that may be programmed into our metabolic systems.
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Tobacco's impact on Afro-American males
DAVIS, Calif., Jun 14, 2005 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- A University of California-Davis study found tobacco is linked to 63 percent of cancer deaths among African-American men in the United States.
The study says the smoke-related cancer death burden for African-American men is highest in the South at 67 percent. The lowest burden -- 43 percent -- is in the Northeast. The percentage is 60 in the West and 63 in the Midwest, the university said in a news release.
The study by Bruce Leistikow appears online and will be published in the August issue of Preventive Medicine.
Leistikow says one explanation for regional differences could be intervention disparities. Western and Northeastern states have some of the strongest tobacco control programs in the nation.
"There is a lot of confusion about what causes the worst cancers -- those that destroy families by ending lives prematurely. This study clarifies that the best explanation for most premature cancer deaths for African-American males is tobacco smoke exposure, whether from secondhand or active smoking," he said.