The fruit has already been shown to fight urinary infections, help prevent stomach ulcers, and protect against tooth decay.

Now U.S. scientists, who had suspected that antioxidant compounds called phenols in cranberries were good for the heart, say that early results from a study of pigs fed concentrated cranberry juice powder in their diets confirms their theory.

The pigs were genetically engineered to develop high cholesterol and hardened arteries and cranberry powder appeared to make their blood vessels relax and open more.

Abnormal blood vessel function is an important component of heart disease and finding ways to improve the way blood vessels perform by widening at the right time is crucial to preventing heart attacks and strokes.

Dr Kris Kruse-Elliott, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine, says that after the pigs were fed cranberry juice powder made from whole cranberries for six months, their vessels were more like normal pigs.

Dr Kruse-Elliott says the next step is to determine what specific components of cranberries are most important to the improvements in vascular function that were observed, and how they modify blood vessel relaxation, and can be most easily consumed as part of the diet, as although the pigs did not mind the intense tartness of concentrated cranberries, cranberry juice powder will need to be made more palatable to people.

The findings were presented at the American Physiological Society ™s annual meeting in San Diego.

One out of two lower-income women report that their health had deteriorated in the last five years compared to just 31 percent of middle- income and 26 percent of upper-income women.

Thirty nine percent of women earning under $20,000 a year rate their physical health poorly, compared to just 15 percent of middle-income and seven percent of upper-income women.

Ana E. Nunez MD, director of the Women's Health Education Program, Drexel University College of Medicine, in Philadelphia says the findings are important as income is strongly related to access to health care services, and many women's access is even further restricted by cultural and language barriers. According to the data, knowledge about preventative screenings and awareness of family medical history varies by race.

While 67 percent of Caucasian women and 60 percent of African-American women reported being very familiar with their family's medical history, only 51 percent of Latina and 33 percent of Asian women report that same familiarity.

African-American women reported they are most aware about a broad range of guidelines for preventative medical screenings, but Asian women are less aware of screenings, specifically those relating to their gynaecologic health.

Based on the survey findings, the NWHRC is launching an educational initiative called Take 10 to T.A.L.K. The campaign features a wallet-size card with four important questions that women should ask when visiting their health care professional.

healthywomen/