Study shows legumes reduce heart disease risk.

Byline: Ronald Kotulak and Jon Van

For bean eaters, the new findings by researchers at the Tulane University School of Public Health may be, well, music to their ears.

A 19-year study of 9,632 men and women found that those who consumed legumes four or more times per week had a 22 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease than people who ate legumes less than once a week.

Legume consumption has been shown to lower total cholesterol and especially low-density lipoprotein, the so-called bad cholesterol, Lydia A. Bazzano reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Legumes included in the study were dry beans and peas such as pinto beans, red beans, black-eye peas, peanuts and peanut butter.

___

Muscles that are easily fatigued can be given new strength when exposed to a protein discovered by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Reporting in the journal Science, the scientists describe how the substance they call a calcium-signaling protein rejuvenated fatigued muscles in laboratory mice. The protein converted type 2 muscles that are easily worn out into type 1 muscles that have considerable stamina.

The discovery could lead to new therapies for patients with chronic disease whose muscles are weakened.

"The muscles of individuals who are on bed rest resemble type 2 muscle fibers," said Dr. Rhonda Bassel-Duby, a co-author of the study. "They fatigue quickly and the muscles are tired. If we have a way of mimicking this protein, we can convert the muscle with a drug to a more fatigue-resistant muscle."

___

The Mayo Clinic has launched a new Web site intended to help men diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer decide what path of therapy to follow.

The site at MayoClinic.com looks at five available treatments and lists the benefits and drawbacks of each. Besides factual information, the site includes personal stories from five men who have had experience with treatment of prostate cancer.

"It's not unusual to feel alone when facing a prostate-cancer diagnosis," said Dr. Donald Novicki, a Mayo urologist. "This resource is a way to hear in detail from others in similar circumstances. It is a tool to use in conjunction with the advice of your physician."

___

(Jon Van and Ronald Kotulak cover science and medicine for the Chicago Tribune. Write to them at: the Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611.)

___

(c) 2002, Chicago Tribune.

Visit the Chicago Tribune on the Internet at http://www.chicago.tribune.com/

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.