"Ours is the first report of a positive association between dietary acrylamide intake and renal cell [kidney] cancer," said study author Janneke Hogervorst, a researcher at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.

The report is published in the May issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Studies of the chemical have been ongoing since 1994, when the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified the chemical as a probable human carcinogen. Experts thought the main exposure was environmental, through cigarette smoke and, to a lesser extent, cosmetics.

But in 2002, Swedish scientists reported the presence of the chemical in carbohydrate-rich foods produced at high temperatures, including French fries and potato chips.

Studies of the chemical's link to various cancers have yielded mixed results.

The Dutch research team took data from the Netherlands Cohort Study on diet and cancer, which includes more than 120,000 men and women, aged 55 to 69. They followed them for more than 13 years, looking at all the cases of kidney, bladder and prostate cancers. They took a random sample of 5,000 people to look at their dietary habits.

The average intake of acrylamide from the diet was 21.8 micrograms -- a little less than what is included in a 2.5-ounce serving of French fries. Those who took in the most -- averaging 40.8 micrograms a day -- had a 59 percent higher risk of kidney cancer (but not the other cancers) than those consuming the least.

For most people, coffee was the major source of the chemical. However, a popular snack, Dutch spiced cake, was the main source of the chemical for those consuming the most. The relationship was found to be stronger for smokers.

For each additional 10 micrograms ingested of the chemical, kidney cancer risk increased by 10 percent, the researchers found.

In another study published in the same issue of the journal, researchers found no association between dietary fat intake and prostate cancer risk.

One expert praised the acrylamide study but added that more research is needed. It is also difficult to know how much impact smoking has on the cancer risk, said Marji McCullough, a nutritional epidemiologist for the American Cancer Society.

"Smoking is a [known] risk factor for this [kidney] cancer," she said.

Exactly how the acrylamide boosts cancer risk isn't known, she added, "but the hypothesis is that metabolites [breakdown products] of the acrylamide cause DNA damage."

Limiting the consumption of foods containing the chemical is wise, Hogervorst said. "Also, in preparing food at home, fry potatoes at temperatures below 175 degrees Celsius and fry them to gold-yellow, not dark brown [the more brown, the more acrylamide]. The same goes for making toast and cookies."

McCullough added: "It's best not to smoke and to maintain an ideal body weight. One way to maintain a healthy body weight is a healthy diet."

And that, of course, means limiting the French fries and other snacks.

More information

To learn more about kidney cancer, visit the American Cancer Society.

Steno, short for Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, thrives in moist environments, such as around taps and shower heads, and can be transmitted to people. It is responsible for roughly 1,000 cases of Steno blood poisoning in the U.K. annually. About 30 percent of these infections prove fatal.

"This is the latest in an ever-increasing list of antibiotic-resistant hospital superbugs. The degree of resistance it shows is very worrying," study senior author Dr. Matthew Avison, of the University of Bristol, said in a prepared statement. "Strains are now emerging that are resistant to all available antibiotics, and no new drugs capable of combating these pan-resistant strains are currently in development."

Pan-resistant Steno infections are extremely hard to treat but are rarer than similarly difficult MRSA and Clostridium difficile infections and are exclusively hospital-acquired.

The paper, to be published in Genome Biology, discusses the findings when researchers recently sequenced the Steno genome. This process, they hope, will help them learn how this bacterium works, so they can discover how to best combat it.

The organism, which is also found in the lungs of many adults with cystic fibrosis, can cause pneumonia and septicemia. Steno only enters the body through devices, such as catheters or ventilation tubes, which are left in place for long periods of time. It sticks to the catheter, grows into a 'biofilm,' and enters the patient's bloodstream when the catheter is next flushed.

Steno often affects the seriously ill, whose immune systems are already weakened. Since the new research shows Steno to be largely resistant to antibiotics, these patients face an extremely difficult situation.

"The genome sequence should help us to combat these properties," lead author Dr. Lisa Crossman, of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute near Cambridge, said in a prepared statement. "For example, if we know which proteins cause it to stick to surfaces, we could try to develop biochemical compounds that interfere with this interaction. If we understand its antibiotic resistance mechanisms, we might be able to design inhibitors that block them."

Researchers also hope that since Steno causes similar types of infections to two more common organisms, they can find solutions by comparing the two.

"Genome sequences for these two also exist, and so now we can look at what they all have in common genetically that might explain why they are so resistant to antibiotics," Avison said.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control has more about drug-resistant bacteria.

Depression is more than just a case of the blues. AARP offers this list of common warning signs:

• Difficulty concentrating, problems with memory, and difficulty making decisions.
• Becoming irritable, angry, worried, agitated, anxious, pessimistic, or indifferent.
• Over an extended period, being sad or unexplained bouts of crying.
• Changes in sleep habits, as well as appetite.
• Loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed.
• Feelings of hopelessness.
• Unexplained aches and pains.

The Alzheimer's Association offers these suggestions:

• Save challenging tasks for the time of day that you feel most sharp. For example, if you tend to have more confusion and memory problems later in the day, try to get your activities done in the morning.
• Allow plenty of time for each task, and don't allow yourself to be frustrated or rushed by others.
• If you begin to feel frustrated, take a break.
• Don't be afraid to ask others for help when you need it.

The sound -- called a carotid bruit (pronounced brew-ee) -- is caused by turbulent blood flow due to buildup of fatty deposits in one of the two arteries that carry blood to the front and middle part of the brain. It is usually regarded as a possible indicator of increased risk of stroke.

Now an analysis of 22 studies finds that people with carotid bruits are more than twice as likely to have heart attacks or to die of cardiovascular disease. "The presence of a carotid bruit should heighten clinician concern for coronary heart disease," said the report by physicians at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

The studies included 17,295 people who were followed for an average of four years. "In the four studies in which direct comparison of patients with and without bruits were possible, the odds ratio for myocardial infarction [heart attack] was 2.15 and for cardiovascular death 2.27," the report said.

The findings are published in the May 10 issue of The Lancet.

Using the presence of a bruit as an indicator of cardiovascular risk could be helpful, but "there are some unresolved questions about the usefulness of carotid bruit and prognosis," said Dr. Victor Aboyans, a cardiologist at Dupuytren University Hospital in Limoges, France, and co-author of an accompanying editorial in the journal.

"First, many of the patients who were studied already had cardiovascular disease, so what is the additional value of carotid bruit in such a case?" Aboyans asked. "The second issue is that some patients who don't have carotid bruit may have other evidence of cardiovascular disease."

Several studies have shown that starting preventive measures for stroke on the basis of screening for carotid bruit aren't useful, Aboyans said. Nevertheless, presence of carotid bruit could prompt physicians to be more aggressive in recommending measures to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, such as cholesterol reduction, he said.

Dr. Deepak Bhatt, associate director of the Cleveland Clinic Cardiovascular Coordinating Center, said, "The [study authors'] recommendation that they be even more aggressive with risk modification, that is good clinical judgment."

Physicians routinely listen for possible carotid bruits when doing a physical examination of people who are middle-aged or older, Bhatt noted.

Studies have shown that there's a link between the risk of stroke and of coronary heart disease, Bhatt said. "The core knowledge already exists," he said. "This study helps put a number on how high the risk is."

But the study raises some practical issues, Bhatt added. "One is whether, if a carotid bruit is found, to go ahead and do an ultrasound examination," he said. "I would say yes, but it is controversial. The U.S. Preventive Task Force recommends against routine ultrasound in general."

More information

Learn what a carotid bruit is and what it might mean from the American Heart Association.