By ninemsn staff
One or two cups of coffee a day combined with regular exercise may help prevent skin cancer.
A study at Rutgers University in New Jersey revealed laboratory mice that exercised and consumed caffeine were protected against the effects of the sun's cancer-causing UVB-rays.
The research, published yesterday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggested caffeine and exercise conspired to kill off precancerous cells damaged by ultraviolet-B radiation.
Four groups of hairless mice �?whose skin is vulnerable to the sun �?were used as test subjects in the experiments.
One group drank caffeinated water �?the equivalent of two cups of coffee for humans, one exercised on a running wheel, one neither ran nor drank caffeine, and the other did both.
After placing the mice under UVB-radiation lamps, their cells were measured for apoptosis, a natural defence against illness in which damaged cells destroy themselves to prevent further infection.
Compared with the UVB-exposed control animals, caffeine drinkers showed an increase of 95 percent apoptosis, exercisers showed a 120 percent increase, and mice that both drank caffeine and exercised showed an alarming increase of nearly 400 percent.
According to the Times in Washington, earlier research has shown coffee can also fight against developing gallstones, kidney stones and colorectal cancer.
Free Forum Hosting
First 