My father died at the end of 2005, just prior to the New Year. The immediate cause of his death was the inability of his diabetic leg ulcers to heal; these had become infected and gangrenous. The medical team were unable to fight the infection with intravenous antibiotics, and the family and medical team decided, upon medical and quality of life grounds, that amputation was not an option.

In the Research Updates of this issue (see page 38 under Antioxidants), K Landmark from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway has published a review of the literature regarding the relationship of vitamins C and E and the development of Alzheimer's disease. The results of this literature review (several observational studies and two controlled clinical trials) indicated that vitamins C and E from both food and supplement sources, may have beneficial effects upon the development of Alzheimer's disease.