Deodorant use and related adverse effects: A cross-sectional survey among Palestinian students.

Background: Deodorants are widely used to mask unpleasant body odors. They are reported to cause some adverse effects depending on the form and ingredients. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of deodorant use and related adverse effects among Palestinian students. Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out at An-Najah National University from Aug 2018 to Mar 2020. A questionnaire was constructed using a Google survey form. All analyses were done using SPSS 21.0, Fisher test was used for comparative analysis and the P-value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: A total of 554 students participated in the study. About 93% of the participants were using deodorants and adverse effects were reported by 25% of the participants. The reported adverse effects were itching (26%), coloration (25%), sneezing (21%), and eye redness (8%). Only 4.1% of the participants visited a physician for counselling regarding various adverse effects. Conclusion: Deodorants were widely used by Palestinian students with reported adverse effects, but these side effects rarely prompted the participants to seek medical advice.

Plants as a Source of Anticancer Agents: From Bench to Bedside.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death after cardiovascular diseases. Conventional anticancer therapies are associated with lack of selectivity and serious side effects. Cancer hallmarks are biological capabilities acquired by cancer cells during neoplastic transformation. Targeting multiple cancer hallmarks is a promising strategy to treat cancer. The diversity in chemical structure and the relatively low toxicity make plant-derived natural products a promising source for the development of new and more effective anticancer therapies that have the capacity to target multiple hallmarks in cancer. In this review, we discussed the anticancer activities of ten natural products extracted from plants. The majority of these products inhibit cancer by targeting multiple cancer hallmarks, and many of these chemicals have reached clinical applications. Studies discussed in this review provide a solid ground for researchers and physicians to design more effective combination anticancer therapies using plant-derived natural products.

Ketogenic Diet in Cancer Prevention and Therapy: Molecular Targets and Therapeutic Opportunities.

Although cancer is still one of the most significant global challenges facing public health, the world still lacks complementary approaches that would significantly enhance the efficacy of standard anticancer therapies. One of the essential strategies during cancer treatment is following a healthy diet program. The ketogenic diet (KD) has recently emerged as a metabolic therapy in cancer treatment, targeting cancer cell metabolism rather than a conventional dietary approach. The ketogenic diet (KD), a high-fat and very-low-carbohydrate with adequate amounts of protein, has shown antitumor effects by reducing energy supplies to cells. This low energy supply inhibits tumor growth, explaining the ketogenic diet's therapeutic mechanisms in cancer treatment. This review highlights the crucial mechanisms that explain the ketogenic diet's potential antitumor effects, which probably produces an unfavorable metabolic environment for cancer cells and can be used as a promising adjuvant in cancer therapy. Studies discussed in this review provide a solid background for researchers and physicians to design new combination therapies based on KD and conventional therapies.

Diabetes and Cancer: Metabolic Association, Therapeutic Challenges, and the Role of Natural Products.

Cancer is considered the second leading cause of death worldwide and in 2018 it was responsible for approximately 9.6 million deaths. Globally, about one in six deaths are caused by cancer. A strong correlation was found between diabetes mellitus and carcinogenesis with the most evident correlation was with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Research has proven that elevated blood glucose levels take part in cell proliferation and cancer cell progression. However, limited studies were conducted to evaluate the efficiency of conventional therapies in diabetic cancer patients. In this review, the correlation between cancer and diabetes will be discussed and the mechanisms by which the two diseases interact with each other, as well as the therapeutics challenges in treating patients with diabetes and cancer with possible solutions to overcome these challenges. Natural products targeting both diseases were discussed with detailed mechanisms of action. This review will provide a solid base for researchers and physicians to test natural products as adjuvant alternative therapies to treat cancer in diabetic patients.

Acute effects of thymoquinone on the pregnant rat and embryo-fetal development.

The effect of a single intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of thymoquinone (TQ) on the pregnant rat and embryo-fetal development was investigated. Pregnant female Wistar rats received 15, 35, and 50 mg/kg body weight of TQ i.p. on day 11 or 14 of gestation, and on day 18 of gestation they were sacrificed and laparotomized. Results showed that TQ induces maternal and embryonic toxicities in a dose- and time-dependent manner. With a dose of 50 mg/kg, treated rats experienced a significant decrease in maternal body weight and complete fetal resorption when the dose was given on day 11 of gestation. On the other hand, 46.2% of implants were resorbed and the viable fetuses showed no TQ-related malformations when the dose was given on day 14 of gestation. At a lower TQ dose of 35 mg/kg, maternal and embryonic toxicities were observed only when it was given on day 11 of gestation. The dose of 15 mg/kg was considered to be a dose with no observed adverse effect level for maternal and embryo-fetal toxicities when it was given day 11 or 14 of gestation. Based on the results of this study, TQ, at doses of 50 and 35 mg/kg, has a potentially disruptive effect on embryonic development during the second trimester of rat pregnancy.

User error with Diskus and Turbuhaler by asthma patients and pharmacists in Jordan and Australia.

BACKGROUND: Use of inhalers requires accurate completion of multiple steps to ensure effective medication delivery. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the most problematic steps in the use of Diskus and Turbuhaler for pharmacists and patients in Jordon and Australia. METHODS: With standardized inhaler-technique checklists, we asked community pharmacists to demonstrate the use of Diskus and Turbuhaler. We asked patients with asthma to demonstrate the inhaler (Diskus or Turbuhaler) they were currently using. RESULTS: Forty-two community pharmacists in Jordan, and 31 in Australia, participated. In Jordan, 51 asthma patients demonstrated use of Diskus, and 40 demonstrated use of Turbuhaler. In Australia, 53 asthma patients demonstrated use of Diskus, and 42 demonstrated use of Turbuhaler. RESULTS: The pharmacists in Australia had received inhaler-technique education more recently than those in Jordan (P = .03). With Diskus, few pharmacists in either country demonstrated correct technique for step 3 (exhale to residual volume) or step 4 (exhale away from the device), although there were somewhat fewer errors in Australia than Jordan (16% vs 0% in step 3, P = .007, and 20% vs 0% in step 4, P = .003 via chi-square test). With Turbuhaler there were significant differences between the pharmacists from Australia and Jordan, mainly in step 2 (hold the device upright while loading, 45% vs 2% correct, P < .001). Few of the patients had received inhaler-technique education in the previous year. The patients made errors similar to those of the pharmacists in individual steps with Diskus and Turbuhaler. The essential steps with Diskus were performed correctly more often by the Jordanian patients, and with Turbuhaler by the Australian patients. CONCLUSIONS: Despite differences in Jordan's and Australia's health systems, pharmacists from both Australia and Jordan had difficulty with the same Diskus and Turbuhaler steps. In both countries, the errors made by the asthma patients were similar to those made by the pharmacists.