August 2010

Vitamin E Protects Brain, Reduces Alzheimer's

Filling your plate with foods high in vitamin E may help reduce your risk for Alzheimer's disease, a new study shows.

For the study, researchers sized up dietary information provided by 5,395 participants (all of whom were 55 years or older and did not have dementia between 1990 and 1993). Over the course of about 9.6 years, 465 study members developed dementia. Among the participants with dementia, 365 were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. In analyzing their data, the researchers found that study members whose diets were highest in vitamin E were 25 percent less likely to develop dementia. Dietary intake of vitamin C and beta-carotene, however, was not associated with a reduction in dementia risk.

In the study, the major food sources of vitamin E were margarine, sunflower oil, butter, cooking fat, soybean oil, and mayonnaise. The study's authors suggest that vitamin E (considered an antioxidant) may help protect against dementia and Alzheimer's by fighting off free radicals.

source: about
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Seafoods hepls in development of babies brain

Americans eat too little seafood and should eat more for better brain development in babies and heart health in adults, according to the final report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.

Made up of the country's top nutrition experts, the committee spent two years reviewing the latest science and crafting recommended changes to the government's nutrition advice. The advice is updated every five years and each time something stands out.

This year, that is the new advice about eating seafood. Here's what the final report says:

* Eating two servings of seafood each week was shown to reduce the risk of dying from heart disease (whether you have heart disease or not).

* Eating at least two servings of seafood each week during pregnancy and breastfeeding was shown to raise omega-3 levels and help improve babies' eyesight and brain development.

* The health benefits of eating a variety of cooked seafood outweigh concerns with mercury, even among pregnant and nursing women and young children.

"Any questions about the safety and healthfulness of seafood are silenced by a report of this caliber," says registered dietitian Jennifer McGuire, manager of nutrition communication for the National Fisheries Institute. "We're at the point where people can replace emotion-based misinformation with science-based advice that will help reverse the health problems associated with a typical low-seafood American diet."

This encouraging advice is also reflected in a 2009 Food and Drug Administration draft report. The report says the FDA concluded that the greatest benefits to pregnant women and women of childbearing age would come from eating more fish.

Two of the world's top experts on brain health, Dr. Thomas Brenna of Cornell University and Michael Crawford of London Metropolitan University, are urging the FDA to finalize their report and update the 2004 advice about eating fish during pregnancy. In an open letter to the FDA they wrote; "A consistent stream of new publications and international scientific evaluations has persuaded us that this advice has become outdated and that it may be inadvertently causing harm, inconsistent with your public health mission. Mothers and children worldwide deserve your best efforts to provide advice consistent with the best science available." To date, 129 research scientists and physicians have signed on to the open letter.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Angelina Jolie thinks Vegan diet can kill

London, After staying as a vegan for a long time and maintaining her stunning looks, Angelina Jolie now thinks that vegan diet nearly killed her. Hollywood superstar has blamed her vegan diet for "nearly killing" her, stating that she loves to eat red meat.

The Salt star says that when she limited her diet to vegan and not included any animal products, it had negative effects on her health. "I joke that a big juicy steak is my beauty secret. But seriously, I love red meat. I was a vegan for a long time, and it nearly killed me. I found I was not getting enough nutrition," said Jolie.

Angelina Jolie also think that she is enjoying seeing her hands "grow older" as it is a sign that she has grown up and matured as a mother to her six children. She said "Happiness is when I look down at my hands and they are washing a baby. I can sort of see my hands grow older and I love it".

According to the research people who ate more meat, gained more weight over 5 years than those who ate less meat, but the same amount of calories.

The healthy diet is a balanced diet, contain foods from all the food groups, low in saturated fat and refined sugar, and moderate in protein. Vegetables and fruit, component of vegan diet in particular, are essential for efficient metabolism and a healthy body weight.

SOURCE: obesitycampaign

Sunscreens made of natural agents prevent skin cancer

Scientists are exploring natural, plant-based agents that could be used in manufacturing skin cancer-preventing sunscreens.

Scientists at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio report that certain plant substances, which occur naturally in grapes, berries, walnuts and a number of other plant-based foods, were tested on mice.

These mice had been genetically manipulated to be sensitive to skin cancer initiation and promotion/progression. Given in combination, even at low doses, the plant agents proved protective.

"On the basis of our research, supplements and creams or sunscreens may be developed, tested in humans and then used to prevent skin cancer," said Zbigniew Walaszek.

These agents include resveratrol (found in the skin of red grapes and grape seeds), calcium D-glucarate (present in many fruits and vegetables) and ellagic acid, found in a host of berries and in walnuts.

The team evaluated thickness in the outer layer of the skin that indicates multiplying cancerous cells. They also monitored mutations in Ha-ras an oncogene that indicates cancer initiation, and inflammation.

"The combined inhibitory effects of different plant chemicals are expected to be particularly beneficial to, for example, smokers, former smokers or individuals with heavily tanned skin, who carry thousands of cells already initiated for malignant transformation," Margaret Hanausek said.

"Our next step is to go to an ultraviolet B light model of skin cancer initiation and confirm our results," Walaszek said.

source: TOI

Revolutionary new scan shows key to migraines is in the genes A revolutionary way of screening the entire human genome for the genetic signposts of disease has produced its latest success – the first inherited link to common migraine and a possible reason for extreme headaches.

The technique, which scans all 23 pairs of human chromosomes in a single sweep, has found the first genetic risk factor that predisposes someone to the common form of migraine, which affects one in six women and one in 12 men. The discovery has immediately led to a new possible cause of migraine by alerting scientists to DNA defects involved in the build-up of a substance in the nerves of sufferers that could be the trigger for their migraines.

Scientists believe the findings could lead both to a better understanding as well as new treatments for the chronic and debilitating condition which is estimated to be one of the most costly brain-related disorders in society, causing countless lost working days.

Scanning the entire blueprint of human DNA by genome-wide association studies (GWAS) has had a profound effect on the understanding of a range of other medical conditions over the past few years, from heart disease and obesity to bipolar disorder and testicular cancer. The study of migraine, published in the journal Nature Genetics, was an archetypal example of the new approach of medical genetics using the GWAS technique. Scientists analysed the genomes of some 5,000 people with migraine and compared their DNA to that of unaffected people to see if there were any significant differences that could be linked statistically to the condition.

The GWAS test uses arrays of specially designed fragments of DNA that could identify different sets of "markers" or genetic signposts in a person's genome. By analysing thousands of genomes, the scientists are able to build up a picture of DNA markers in a patient's genome pointing to the presence of defective genes that could predispose someone to migraine or any other common illness known to have a genetic element.

"This is the first time we have been able to peer into the genomes of many thousands of people and find genetic clues to understand common migraine," said Dr Aarno Palotie, chair of the international headache genetics consortium at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge. "Studies of this kind are possible only through large-scale international collaboration so that we could pick out this genetic variant. This discovery opens new doors to understanding common human diseases."

The scientists behind the migraine study scanned the entire genomes of some 50,000 people in total, a huge undertaking that was only possible because of the availability of relatively cheap commercial GWAS kits that can be used to screen all of a person's 46 chromosomes in a single sweep.

The insight that this approach has given scientists could only be dreamed of 10 or 15 years ago. Suddenly, it is becoming possible to tease out the influences of the many different genes that may be involved in raising the risk of developing a particular condition, whether it is heart disease or Alzheimer's. A decade or two ago, this genetic component to common diseases was only known about from a person's family history of disease.

The children of parents who had both died of heart disease were known to be statistically more likely to die of the disease themselves, but the nature of the genes involved in causing this predisposition was largely a mystery until GWAS came along.

"I think it has revolutionised the way we can tackle these diseases. We've identified new pathways to disease and new possible causes that we did not know before," Dr Palotie said.

"It's like the difference between night and day, between black-and-white photographs and colour pictures," he added.

The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, which led much of the effort to decode the human genome, has been an eager pioneer of the GWAS technique and has established many initiatives over the past few years to exploit its revolutionary potential for teasing out the genetic components of common diseases – the "nature" in the nature-nurture debate.

At the Sanger Institute alone, GWAS is being used to find the genetic variants of heart disease, cholesterol levels, bipolar disease, breast and testicular cancers, high blood pressure, Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis and type 2 diabetes.

SOURCE: independent.co.uk

Handy Egg Preparation Safety Tips By FDA

With news Thursday that hundreds of Americans recently have likely become ill from tainted eggs, the FDA offered the following safety advice on its website:

• Don't eat recalled eggs or products containing recalled eggs. Recalled eggs might still be in grocery stores, restaurants and consumers' homes. Consumers who have recalled eggs should discard them or return them to their retailer for a refund. Individuals who think they might have become ill from eating recalled eggs should consult their health care providers.

• Keep shell eggs refrigerated at temperatures no higher than 45 degrees Fahrenheit (7 degrees Celsius) at all times.

• Discard cracked or dirty eggs.

• Wash hands, cooking utensils and food preparation surfaces with soap and water after contact with raw eggs.

• Eggs should be cooked until both the white and the yolk are firm, and should be eaten promptly after cooking.

• Do not keep eggs warm or at room temperature for more than two hours.

• Refrigerate unused or leftover egg-containing foods promptly.

• Avoid eating raw eggs.

• Avoid restaurant dishes made with raw or undercooked, unpasteurized eggs. Restaurants should use pasteurized eggs in any recipe (such as Hollandaise sauce or Caesar salad dressing) that calls for raw eggs.

• Consumption of raw or undercooked eggs should be avoided, especially by young children, the elderly and persons with weakened immune systems or debilitating illnesses.

Top 8 cancer signs highlighted There are eight signs, symptoms or test results that could improve early diagnosis of some cancers, British doctors say.

The researchers focused on changes that gave a one in 20 or higher chance of turning out to be cancer.

The symptoms include:

* Coughing up blood.

* Rectal blood.

* Breast lump or mass.

* Difficulty swallowing.

* Post-menopausal bleeding.

* Abnormal prostate tests.

* Anemia.

* Blood in urine.

In certain age and sex groups, the eight symptoms or findings point to the need for urgent investigation by family doctors, Dr. Mark Shapley and colleagues from Keele University (halfway between Manchester and Birmingham) said in Friday's online issue of the British Journal of General Practice.

The conclusion was based on an analysis of 25 studies from the U.K., U.S., Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, Denmark and Germany.

The age of the patient is important, said Dr. Kevin Barraclough, a GP from Stroud.

"Iron deficiency anemia in a 21-year old female is extremely unlikely to be due to colorectal cancer, whereas in a 60-year old male, cancer is likely," Barraclough wrote in a journal editorial accompanying the study.

The red flags reinforce the importance of encouraging patients to discuss worrying symptoms early with their GP, said Prof. Amanda Howe, honorary secretary of the Royal College of General Practitioners, which publishes the journal.

source: cbs.ca

New technique for Dementia, Huntington's disease diagnosis

A new technique for the development of Huntington's disease and dementia has been established by American scientists.

A team of scientists from America has developed a new method of testing for neurodegenerative brain disorders.

According to an article in the journal Comparative Neurology, this could allow doctors to diagnose conditions such as dementia, Huntington's disease and Parkinson's disease much sooner.

Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) involves applying a magnetic field to a tissue, then disturbing it with a radio frequency. Different atoms react in different ways, which allows doctors to build a picture of tissue structure.

Mice with a Huntington's disease mutation were identified 100 per cent of the time using the system.

"This technology … could potentially provide diagnostic information to distinguish different causes of dementia and other forms of neurological illness, rapidly and non-invasively," said Dr Jason Nikas from the University of Minnesota.

The advantage of early dementia diagnosis was highlighted by a recent study from the British Medical Group, which showed that people who were diagnosed early have a much better survival rate than those who discovered their condition later on.

source: barchester

Natural high-fiber foods helps in treating chronic bowel conditions

Individuals who suffer from autoimmune conditions, such as Crohn’s disease, have a substantially impaired quality of life. What is more, most of these illnesses are chronic and incurable, which makes them popular subjects of scientific research.

Sometimes, this type of work yields results that may satisfy proponents of natural remedies or alternative medicine. For example, British scientists suspect that banana plantain fibers may help treat individuals who suffer from Crohn’s disease, which manifests itself through bowel inflammation, bleeding, pain and diarrhea.

Specifically, they found that plantain soluble fibres prevented the penetration of E. coli bacteria across a special type of intestinal cells called M cells, a process that is pronounced in Crohn’s disease patients and leads to chronic inflammation.

Dr. Barry Campbell, from the University of Liverpool Institute of Translational Medicine, said doctors have long known that eating high-fiber natural foods such as plantain and broccoli produced general health benefits, but they have not entirely understood their role in preventing infection in people with Crohn’s disease.

"This research shows that different dietary components can have powerful effects on the movement of bacteria through the bowel," he added.

According to the CDC, some 1.4 million Americans suffer from inflammatory bowel conditions, of which Crohn’s is one.

source: betterhealthresearch

Doctor's recommend cholesterol testing to meliorate heart health Due to the fact that individuals are experiencing heart problems in greater numbers than ever before, many healthcare experts are recommending that more people who may have certain risk factors that contribute to heart disease seek cholesterol testing.

Cholesterol plays many roles in the body, but when it is present in excessively high levels, it can cause serious problems. Doctors often utilize cholesterol testing to measure heart health because problems can be avoided since it is a major contributor to heart disease. However, if high levels are detected early enough, problems can be avoided.

"People don't die from elevated cholesterol levels, but rather the effects, like blockage in arteries and hearts, which can lead to a stroke or heart attack," Dr Jonathan Fong of the Venice-Ocala Heart Institute in Venice, Florida told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

He added that meal proportions have grown significantly in recent years, contributing to the consumption of excess calories and higher cholesterol levels. However, experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend limiting portion sizes to avoid overeating.

source: privatemdlabs

Laura Bailey's Unveils 'Energetic' Diet

British model Laura Bailey has revealed she chooses to stick to a healthy diet in order to give her plenty of energy to pursue her passion for running.

Laura Bailey sticks to a healthy diet to give her plenty of energy.

The British model tries to control everything she eats and usually opts for healthy meals to give her plenty of energy for her main passion in life - running.

She revealed: "I try to choose foods that make me as healthy and energetic as possible. I'm a strict vegetarian but I eat everything else, and I like a glass of wine. I'm certainly not preachy or perfect!"

In order to look "chic but practical" while running, the blonde beauty - who has dated actor Richard Gere in the past - Laura wears outfits designed by her close friend Stella McCartney.

She said: "My running kit is Adidas by Stella McCartney. It's chic but practical; I love it. I've always worn Asics trainers. They're great for running."

Laura, 38, revealed after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in February, her next challenge is to embark on distance running in Burkina Faso.

The star added to The Guardian newspaper: "I climbed Kilimanjaro in February, and in the build-up to that I tried to run up a few more hills than usual. But in the end I don't think it was about fitness- it was about mental endurance and coping with the altitude. It felt amazing afterwards, but maybe not so amazing at the time!

"I'd really like to do some more running in Africa. I'm travelling to Burkina Faso in November, and I'll definitely pack my trainers. After all, many of today's greatdistance runners come from Africa."

Don’t Let Alzheimer’s and Dementia Spoil Your Retirement

Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are giant monkey wrenches that can disrupt the plans you have for enjoying your retirement years, as well as drain your retirement savings. Here’s a little something to get your attention:

Results from an informative report prepared by the Alzheimer’s Association titled 2010 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures show that:

* An estimated 5.3 million Americans currently have Alzheimer’s disease; this figure is projected to increase to 7.7 million by 2030.

* Alzheimer’s is the fifth-leading cause of death for people aged 65 and older.

* Annual medical expenditures for Alzheimer’s are now at $172 billion; the total exceeds $200 billion when you consider lost wages and lost productivity of unpaid caregivers.

* 10.9 millions Americans are currently providing unpaid care for relatives and friends with dementia or Alzheimer’s, a contribution to the nation valued by the report to be about $144 billion. And this figure doesn’t include the physical and emotional strain on caregivers.

I’m haunted by the prospect of millions of boomers contracting Alzheimer’s disease and dementia in our later years, swamping the health care system, straining our families, and bankrupting our retirement.

While Alzheimer’s and dementia affect both sexes, they are important issues for women on both sides of the spectrum. That’s because women are often caregivers for friends and family members, and are also more likely to end up contracting these diseases. The report from the Alzheimer’s Association reported that 16 percent of women aged 71 and older had Alzheimer’s, while only 11 percent of men had this condition. But that’s because there are more women than men at advanced ages; men and women of the same age have roughly equal chances of contacting Alzheimer’s or dementia.

Before we go any further, let’s make an important distinction about terms. “Dementia” is defined as a dysfunctional loss or decline of memory and other cognitive functions, and it can have a number of causes. While there are various forms of dementia, “Alzheimer’s disease” is the most prevalent. All types of dementia can result in needing some form of long-term care, with the potential of requiring an extensive stay in an expensive nursing home or assisted living facility.

At this time, there’s no cure or effective treatment for Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, but many scientists and researchers are currently working on the problem. But while there’s no cure, extensive research has shown that there are lifestyle steps you can take to significantly reduce the odds of contracting dementia.

According to the above report from the Alzheimer’s Association, these steps include:

* Managing the health of your brain — one of the body’s most vascular organs — by mitigating risk factors such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, smoking, obesity, and physical inactivity.

* Eating a low-fat diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables.

* Maintaining a robust social network and a lifetime of curiosity and intellectual stimulation.

What’s great about the above lifestyle factors is that they also reduce the odds of contracting most of the expensive, debilitating chronic conditions of our later years, including heart disease and diabetes — not just dementia.

But here’s my favorite suggested lifestyle step: The New England Journal of Medicine recently published a study that concluded that older people who participate in frequent leisure activities with high cognitive activity, such as reading, playing board games, playing musical instruments, and dancing, have a much lower frequency — up to 63 percent lower — of contracting Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.

My father had some form of dementia in his later years, so I witnessed first-hand the personal loss and the costs associated with this condition. As a result, I vowed that I’ll do everything within my power to reduce the odds of this happening to me.

While there are no guarantees in life, it’s a no-brainer for me to eat the right kinds and amounts of food, walk frequently, and get other forms of exercise, and dance as much as possible with my wife (see photo above)!

Warning: Dancing with your spouse has the potential for substantial side effects — it may enhance your marital relationship!

People with muscle-wasting diseases ‘are being let down’ PATIENTS in Wales who suffer from muscle-wasting diseases like muscular dystrophy are being let down by GPs who know “nothing” about their condition, a charity has claimed.

More than 3,000 people in Wales have some form of muscular dystrophy, a term for a group of conditions in which the muscles or the nerves which control the muscles are affected, often leading to disability.

In a survey of 2,000 muscle disease patients across the UK published by the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, 64% of patients in Wales said they felt GPs had a poor understanding of their condition and half said they had been misdiagnosed or had waited years for a diagnosis.

Other health professionals fared worse than GPs, with 74% of patients saying they felt they do not “know enough” about their condition.

The treatment available to patients in Wales was equally poor, with 91% of patients saying they had no access to hydrotherapy and a further 71% saying they could not get physiotherapy.

The Muscular Dystrophy Campaign argues these two treatments are often the only effective way of keeping patients’ muscles working for longer.

Many of the patients who responded said their condition had been passed down through generations of their family because they had not received a diagnosis in time or had not been advised that the condition could be passed on genetically.

Linda Slocombe, 53, of Pontypridd, has mitochondrial myopathy, which can cause muscle weakness, muscle cramping, fatigue, lack of endurance and poor balance.

She said: “I’ve put up with years of doctors, even at consultant level, telling me I’m putting it on or making it up. One of them even called me a lazy hypochondriac.

“I don’t even bother my doctor now because he knows nothing about my condition. Even my consultant doesn’t seem to understand what I’m living with.”

The Muscular Dystrophy Campaign’s acting chief executive Robert Meadowcroft said: “It is unacceptable that a patient should be delivered such a devastating diagnosis and then not offered the best possible care and advice straight away, or in some cases not given a definite diagnosis at all.

“We estimate that at the moment almost £4m a year is being wasted in Wales on unplanned emergency admissions to hospital for muscle disease patients.

“A significant proportion of this could be saved by investing in specialist services earlier on which could avoid patients reaching this crisis point.”

The survey highlighted the lack of specialist muscle disease care advisers in Wales – regarded as vital for anyone with a muscle-wasting condition as they provide advice and support on care, specialist equipment and grants.

In May, the Assembly Government announced it would be appointing three care advisers, a move hailed by the charity as a “huge step forward”.

An Assembly Government spokesman said: “Work is underway to improve services for people with muscular dystrophy.

“Health boards are appointing three care advisers – one for North Wales, one for South-East Wales and one for Mid and West Wales. They will be appointed in the autumn.

“They will have the knowledge of services available to provide help and support to individuals and their families.

“Better ongoing care and support at home arranged by the care advisers should reduce emergency hospital admissions.

“The work on implementing plans for adult neurosciences and the paediatric neuroscience standards will also deliver significant improvements in the health and quality of life for people with muscular dystrophy.”

source: walesonline.co.uk

Nicotine linked to breast cancer for first time

A worker holds a partially assembled electronic cigarette during testing at a factory in China. The findings that nicotine can trigger breast cancer could be a big blow to makers of nicotine-based products that help smokers to quit.

Nicotine that makes smoking addictive is one of the chemicals in cigarettes that can trigger breast cancer, says new research.

The findings could be a big blow to makers of nicotine-based products that help smokers to quit.

Normal cigarettes are known to contain at least 60 cancer-causing compounds, including carbon monoxide, tar and arsenic, but until now nicotine had not been on the list, reports the Daily Mail.

Researchers looked at both breast cancer cells and normal cells to see if nicotine spurred tumor growth at a cellular level, according to The Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Yuan-Soon Ho and his team from Taipei Medical University found that when normal cells were treated with nicotine in the lab it promoted the development of cancer characteristics.

Likewise, reducing the level of nicotine inhibited tumor growth.

The research could have a negative impact on companies that make nicotine gum, patches and electronic cigarettes that are promoted as a “healthy alternative” for smokers.

SOURCE: thehindu

Family facts: Working moms, infant eyesight and more Skip the TV

According to a study from the Center on Media and Children’s Health at Children’s Hospital Boston, for every hour of adult content kids ages 6 to 8 watch over a two-day period, their chances of becoming sexually active as young adults are increased by 33 percent.

Stop smoking

If you don’t want your child to smoke, it’s a good idea to stop smoking during pregnancy and during your child’s early years. If you smoke, it will nearly quadruple the likelihood that your kid will become a smoker, according to a study published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

44 million

There were nearly 44 million people in the United States without health insurance in 2008, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Massachusetts had the lowest percentage of uninsured people – just 3 percent. In contrast, about 25 percent of people lacked coverage in Florida and Texas.

Falling items

The number of children injured by falling objects has increased in recent years. TVs that fall onto children cause about 7,000 injuries annually, according to a study from Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio. That means that TVs are more dangerous than scissors, which are responsible for 6,000 injuries annually.

8

Eight is the not-so-lucky number for marriages, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The average length of first marriages ending in divorce is eight years. Thankfully, it doesn’t take too long to find a new love. The median time between divorce and a second marriage is three and a half years. Fifty-four percent of men and 58 percent of women have only been married once.

Asthma and vitamin D

A study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine shows that 28 percent of children ages 6 to 14 who have asthma also have insufficient levels of vitamin D. The vitamin has been linked to better lung function, and now the researchers believe there’s a link between vitamin D and asthma. If your child isn’t getting 400 international units daily, which is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, he or she may need a supplement.

Mommy brain

Stop blaming your forgetfulness on motherhood. Researchers in Australia followed women for eight years and found that pregnancy and motherhood didn’t affect their scores on logic and memory tests.

Eyesight

Most people don’t consider that infants can have poor eyesight. As many as 20 percent of children between the ages of 3 and 5 have vision problems, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Health. Get a free infant eye exam if your child is between 6 and 12 months by checking out infantsee.org.

Clean your bag

Here’s a yucky fact: Purses have about 70 times more bacteria in them than the average toilet seat, according to a study by the University of Arizona. Thirty percent of the purses have fecal bacteria, and 10 percent have bacteria that can cause staph infections.

Working moms

There were 5.3 million stay-at-home moms in 2008, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. There were also many people who decided to stay at home before the baby was even born. The agency found that 80 percent of first-time mothers worked one month or less before their baby’s birthday.

SOURCE: mpnnow

Health benefits of eating U.S. grown rice dishes

Research Shows Eating Rice Helps Maintain a Healthy Weight and Improve
Overall Diet Quality -

According to recent research published in the October issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association (JADA), eating rice helps improve overall diet and potentially reduces the risk for many chronic diseases, including obesity, cardiovascular disease and Type II diabetes.

The data suggest that including rice as part of a healthful,
balanced diet may be linked to overall healthier eating patterns, which is one
of the most important preventive medicine strategies to help solve the
nation's healthcare crisis.

The findings, based on data from national food consumption surveys, show that
people who eat rice also eat more vegetables, meats, poultry and seafood and
fiber, which leads to higher consumption of several key nutrients, including
folic acid, potassium and iron that are contained in rice products. Rice
eaters also consume less added sugar and less total fat and saturated fat than
non-rice eaters.

"We know that rice is the foundation of a healthy diet for much of the world,
especially in Asia and the Mediterranean. This study documents for the first
time a similar pattern among rice eaters in the U.S. and that they appear to
manage their weight better than non-rice consumers," says Helen Jensen Ph.D.,
the Iowa State University researcher who conducted the study.

This is good news for Americans looking to make a change in their diet because
it suggests that adding rice to the diet may promote healthier food choices.
Through good nutrition, Americans can help reduce their risks of chronic
diseases. Data from the USA Rice Federation show that Americans are enjoying
more rice than ever -- per capita consumption of rice is currently 25 pounds
per person -- which is three times as much as in the 1970s. At only 10 cents
per serving, rice is not only an important option for improving overall health
and lowering Americans' risks for chronic diseases, but it's also a smart,
affordable choice.

A Closer Look at the Findings:
In order to obtain a representative sample of the U.S. population, the study
looked at the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and
Continuing Survey of Food Intake of Individuals (CSFII) datasets, which
included over 35,000 Americans. The data indicate that:

-- Over 40% of rice consumers ate diets containing no more than 30% of
calories from fat compared to 30% of non-rice consumers
-- Compared to non-rice eaters, rice eaters' diets had:
-- More grains
-- More vegetables
-- More fiber
-- Less added fat and saturated fat
-- Less added sugar
-- Rice consumers ate just over a half serving more of vegetables per day
and a half serving more of fruit per day

-- Rice consumers ate 4.5 grams less fat (1 tsp) per day and 3.3 grams
less
sugar. (That equals 54 calories per day which could translate to a
savings of up to 5.5 pounds that could be avoided due to excess sugar
and fat calories consumed over the course of a year.)

The USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that calories from
carbohydrates make up 45-65% of total daily calories. Including a healthy
complex carbohydrate, such as natural whole grain brown and enriched white
rice into a balanced diet, can help improve overall health. In fact, a
nutritious diet, along with being physically active and avoiding smoking can
help save almost one million lives annually in the U.S.(i) A healthy lifestyle
is the best prescription for improving our nation's health.

"In light of today's obesity epidemic, the data showing that rice eaters eat
less fat and sugar and, as a result, tend to eliminate a lot of calories that
they don't need from their diets, is good news for people who are looking to
adopt a healthier eating style and maintain a healthy weight," says Julie
Upton, MS, RD, CSSD, a registered dietitian and study co-author. "In
addition, rice is economical, at only 10 cents per serving, and partners well
with heart-healthy foods like vegetables, beans, seafood, nuts and soy foods
-- all healthful foods that we encourage individuals to enjoy."

source: reuters

Whats so good about organic foods?

Looking for a quick way to feel lousy about yourself? Then forget the idea of a healthy diet and just eat what your body wants you to eat. Your body wants meat; your body wants fat; your body wants salt and sugar. Your body will put up with fruits and vegetables if it must, but only after all the meat, fat, salt and sugar are gone. And as for the question of where your food comes from — whether it's locally grown, sustainably raised, grass-fed, free range or pesticide-free? Your body doesn't give a hoot.

But you and your body aren't the only ones with a stake in this game. Your doctor has opinions about what you should eat. So does your family. And so too do the food purists who lately seem to be everywhere, insisting that everything that crosses your lips be raised and harvested and brought to market in just the right way. If you find this tiresome — even intrusive — you're not alone. "It's food, man. It's identity," says James McWilliams, a professor of environmental history at Texas State University. "We encourage people to eat sensibly and virtuously, and then we set this incredibly high bar for how they do it."

The ideal — as we're reminded and reminded and reminded — is to go organic, to trade processed foods for fresh foods and the supermarket for the farmers' market. Organic foods of all kinds currently represent only about 3% of the total American market, according to the most recent numbers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), but it's a sector we all should be supporting more.

That sounds like a great idea, but we'll pay a price for it. Organic fruits and vegetables cost 13¢ to 36¢ per lb. more than ordinary produce, though prices fluctuate depending on the particular food and region of the country. Milk certified as hormone- and antibiotic-free costs $6 per gal. on average, compared with $3.50 for ordinary grocery-store milk.

What's more, while grass-fed beef is lower in fat, and milk without chemicals is clearly a good idea, it's less obvious that organic fruits and vegetables have a nutritional edge to speak of. A 2009 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition led to a firestorm in the food world. It found no difference between organic and conventional produce with regard to all but three of the vitamins and other food components studied, and conventional produce actually squeaked past organic for one of those three.

"We draw these bright lines between organic and conventional food," says McWilliams. "But science doesn't draw those lines. They crisscross, and you have people on both sides of the argument cherry-picking their data." For consumers trying to stay healthy and feed their families — and do both on budgets that have become tighter than ever — the ideological back-and-forth does no good at all. What's needed are not arguments but answers.

Read full article

source: time

Parkinson's disease may increase crash risk in low visibility A study by researchers at the University of Iowa and the Iowa City Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center suggests that drivers with mild to moderate Parkinson's disease may be at higher risk of crashes compared to healthy older drivers in low visibility conditions such as fog.

The study used a driving simulator to compare driving abilities of 67 people with mild to moderate Parkinson's disease and 51 healthy people under conditions of low visibility. The findings were published in the Oct. 6 issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

"In addition to causing tremors and stiffness, Parkinson's disease also affects visual skills, such as the ability to see contrast and how fast people process what they see," said lead study author Ergun Uc, M.D., associate professor of neurology in the UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine and a staff physician at the Iowa City VA Medical Center. "We wanted to know if these visual deficits are associated with unsafe driving behaviors in patients with mild to moderate disease when they are driving in low visibility conditions."

Using a driving simulator to create different driving events and manipulate lighting conditions, participants, average age 67, drove first under clear sky and high visibility conditions, and then in a foggy, low visibility situation, leading up to an intersection where another vehicle posed a crash risk.

More people with Parkinson's disease were unable to avoid the crash compared to people without the disease -- 76 percent versus 37 percent. Their reaction time was also longer -- 2.7 seconds compared to 2.1 seconds. In addition, among drivers who crashed in the simulation, those with Parkinson's disease were driving at an average speed of 49 mph at the time of the crash compared to 39 mph for those who did not have Parkinson's disease.

"Our results suggest that a large proportion of drivers with Parkinson's disease may be at risk for unsafe driving in low visibility situations such as fog or twilight," Uc said.

Even during simulation segments with high visibility ( clear sky ) conditions, study participants with Parkinson's disease had more instances where the car's wheels crossed over the centerline or the shoulder line than people who did not have the condition, and their performance worsened as driving conditions changed from good to poor.

Among those with Parkinson's disease, those who performed the worst on the driving tests were those who had the lowest scores on tests of visual processing speed, motion perception, sensitivity to visual contrast and speed of movement.

The study was supported by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the National Institute on Aging. In addition to Uc, the UI research team included Matthew Rizzo, M.D., professor of neurology, engineering and public policy; Steven Anderson, Ph.D., associate professor of neurology; Jeffrey Dawson, professor of biostatistics in the UI College of Public Health; and JonDavid Sparks and Elizabeth Dastrup graduate students in biostatistics.

STORY SOURCE: University of Iowa Health Care Media Relations, 200 Hawkins Drive, Room E110 GH, Iowa City, IA 52242-1009, media newswire.

Drinking water before meals assists in weight loss

Have you tried out every trick in the book to lose weight – crash diets, gyms, or simply starving yourself?

Now, try a simple trick – drink a glass or two of water before meals, as that’s the best way to curb appetite and shed those pounds – says a new research.

Scientists have reported that just two 8-ounce glasses of water taken before meals, can lead to weight loss.

“In this recent study, we found that over the course of 12 weeks, dieters who drank water before meals, three times per day, lost about 5 pounds more than dieters who did not increase their water intake," said Brenda Davy of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.

The simple reason is that it fills up the stomach with a substance that has zero calories. People feel fuller as a result, and eat less calorie-containing food during the meal.

And it gets even better if you replace sweetened calorie-containing beverages with it.

Although there’s no exact amount of water one should drink, experts advise that most healthy people can simply let thirst be their guide.

The general recommendations for women are about 9 cups of fluids — from all beverages including water — each day, and men at about 13 cups of fluids.

source: TOI

Great Features of Next Generation Knee Replacement Surgeries

When former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee underwent a knee replacement surgery a decade ago, India was introduced to artificial knee implants in a big way.

Vajpayee had to undergo a surgery with a big cut, not only on the skin, but also on a large chunk of his muscles and ligaments. And Vajpayee’s implants are also likely to wear out in another five years or so. But Rajshree Mohan, (55), has a different story.

Suffering from knee problems for more than three years, she could not bend her knees without wincing in pain. On Tuesday, Rajshri (name changed) got a knee-replacement with two firsts—she became the first Mumbaikar to get an implant made of a better metal alloy, and the surgery used blocks tailor-made specifically for her.

Vajpayee’s surgery was a painful affair and he had to wait a year to get the second implant. Now, thanks to a combination of technology and surgical techniques, a patient can go home the next day after getting implants in both knees in one go. Joint replacement surgeon Dr Adam Mullaji for example, speaks of the ‘quad-sparing’ technique, where the main muscles of the quadracep are completely spared. “There is a small incision on the skin and hardly any pain. Patients can bend and straighten the leg right away and walk without support the same day,’’ he says.

Here are some features of the next generation of knee replacement surgeries, where techniques or skills used in an implant have brought a revolution to painless walking, or kneeling for that matter, published by TOI.

Tailor-made for each patient

Apatient wanting a knee replacement can now get the knee cut in such a way, that the new knee (the implant) fits exactly to the bone. With the help of patient-specific cutting blocks, a patient’s joint bone is cut so it is exactly the inside shape of the implant knee and the implant fits like building blocks. With the help of the MRI, a 3 dimensional image of the joint is transferred to a computer software which marks the bone image at places where it needs to be cut. A block is then made, which when fitted at the joint during surgery, saves all measurements and the bone can be directly sawed through the gap in the block.

The drawback is that the technique to make the blocks is available only in the US, so surgeons in India have to send the images there and wait for almost a month before doing the surgery. Dr Alfred Tria, a professor and designer surgeon of the technique, said it helps eliminate around 22 steps during the surgery. “Every block has a gap through which the blade can be inserted and the bone is cut. When the implant knee is then put, it fits right in the bone,’’ he said. A knee replacement with this technique would cost an Indian patient around Rs 1.10 lakh.

Improved knee rotation flexibility

Getting a knee replacement so far meant that post-surgery, one could bend the knee only backward and forward, and slightly to the side. But it is now possible to achieve complete movement of the knee with better rotations. City doctors say while knee replacement was earlier an option of the old, the age group of those coming in for a replacement has gone down by a decade. “We now get patients around 50 to 55 years of age, who, after the replacements, want to continue with all physical activities,” said Dr Sanjeev Jain, orthopaedic surgeon, L H Hiranandani Hospital. In the conventional method, the cruciate ligament, one of the major ligaments which supports the bones in the joint, is cut to reach the bone.

“But now, we can reach the bone from another side, saving the cruciate ligament. Besides, less bone needs to be cut up,” said Dr Jain, adding the plastic in a normal implant wears out, so the implant fails after a few years. “In the rotating platform, plastic wear-out is comparatively less as there is enough contact area between the plastic and metal,” he said. As the ligament supports the bone, the new implant too gets support from the ligament which enables the patient have better joint movement,” explains Dr Jain.

Longer lasting material for implants

Earlier, most implants lasted for 15 to 20 years. Now, with patients getting younger, implants are getting better with some able to last even up to 30 years. Cobalt-chromium and titanium alloy, earlier used in the knee joint implants, are now being replaced by oxidized zirconium, a material which lasts longer. “The cobaltchromium alloy is like stainless steel. Even if we use utensils with special care, they are bound to wear out after a few years. Similarly by rubbing against each other and the ligaments, thechrome-cobalt knee joint too wears out after some years,’’ explains Dr Sanjay Agarwala, head of orthopedics in P D Hinduja Hospital.

Apart from the friction of the metal, the bone itself gets worn by the alloy implant, say doctors. The oxidized zirconium alloy on the other hand, is harder and smoother by nature, which makes it resistant to abrasions. “For patients allergic to metals, or are likely to develop allergy, the oxidized zirconium alloy is much better as the patient’s immunity system is able to tolerate the new implant,’’ said Dr Agarwala.

source: TOI

What makes a healthy well balanced diet?

In order to achieve a balanced diet, it must contain carbohydrates, protein, fats, vitamins, mineral salt and fiber. All of these are needed in the right amount or proportion.

Carbohydrates are considered the most important source of energy. This could be obtained in the form of starch which can be found in potatoes, rice, spaghetti, yams, breads and cereals. The digestive system converts the starch into glucose which are being carried into the blood being used by our tissues as a source of energy.

Proteins will be required for growth and repair of tissues. It could also be used as a source of energy. When there is a removal of excess amino acid from the body, nitrogen will be excreted in the chemical form of urea. Urea is made by the liver and the kidney places the urea into the urine.

Fats are used as a source of energy and can be stored under the skin to help insulate the body against the cold. This source must not be omitted in the diet because it contains fat soluble vitamins.

Vitamins are required in minimal amounts.

Fiber helps in proper elimination of waste and at the same time, adds bulk in the diet.

Mineral salts are also needed in small amounts such as iron, calcium, sodium and iodine.

Common acne treatments linked to bowel problems Acne is a difficult enough burden for a young person to bear. Now there's evidence that antibiotics commonly prescribed to help control severe breakouts may, in a very small number of patients, lead to inflammatory bowel disease.

Bowel disorders linked to acne treatment are "a rare outcome," cautioned Dr. David Margolis, a dermatologist and lead author of a study in the American Journal of Gastroenterology, in an interview with Reuters Health.

Nonetheless, previous studies have suggested that the acne drug isotretinoin, known commonly by the brand name Accutane, might be the cause of inflammatory bowel disease in a small number of patients being treated for severe acne.

Noting that most people given isotretinoin have already been taking antibiotics for months, if not years, Margolis and colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania wanted to know if antibiotics might play a role in triggering the bowel condition.

Up to 90 percent of teenagers and young adults battle acne at some point. Drugs from the tetracycline family are the most commonly prescribed antibiotics for the treatment of severe acne.

"They limit scarring and the outbreak of pimples. They're exceedingly effective and have been used for years," Margolis said.

The researchers looked at the medical records of more than 94,000 British teenagers and young adults diagnosed with acne between 1998 and 2006.

They found that long-term use of antibiotics appeared to double the risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease in these subjects. Of the 207 cases of inflammatory bowel disease diagnosed among the 94,487 patients in the study, 152 (0.26 percent of all subjects) were taking one of three commonly prescribed tetracycline-based antibiotics and 55 (0.14 percent) were not.

Patients taking one of the three drugs, doxycycline, appeared to be at a slightly higher risk (0.21 percent) of developing an inflammatory bowel disease compared to patients taking minocycline (0.17 percent risk) or tetracycline (0.20 percent risk).

"The association was probably most pronounced in terms of Crohn's disease, a subgroup," Margolis said.

Crohn's disease is an inflammation of the lining of the digestive tract, which can lead to abdominal pain, severe diarrhea and malnutrition. It affects an estimated 400,000 people in the U.S. Some 600,000 Americans suffer another inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis. Both are treated with anti-inflammatory drugs and some complications of the conditions can require surgery.

"This potential risk should be considered when prescribing this medication," the authors write, while also urging more study of the connection between acne drugs and bowel disorders. It is possible, for instance, that the risk of inflammatory bowel disease is related to the biology of severe acne itself and not to treatments for it, they note.

"This is a rare outcome, rare enough you need to be careful about making decisions to change clinical practice," Margolis said.

Inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, can be life-altering conditions that restrict social interactions and increase depression.

Severe acne is also a "bad disease," Margolis said. "These people have lots of concerns about their health, their appearance and how they function in society, and they are at an increased risk of depression," Margolis pointed out.

Margolis was prompted to conduct the study after being asked to review records by lawyers representing a generic manufacturer of isotretinoin. The legal case is still in the discovery phase.

"I'm not sure if isotretinoin (Accutane) is on or off the hook all by itself," he said. "I think this research indicates that in a careful study one should probably consider antibiotic use," as well, he added.

source: reuters

Feeling sleepy even when you exercise regularly take adequate sleep

Feeling sleepy all the time even when you exercise regularly and had a good night sleep. The reason for this could be lack of energy and dehydration. Dehydration causes a person to feel extremely sleepy or tired.

Another factor for making you feel sleepy is due to lack of energy. Lack of energy means that you must have a normal food intake that should be healthy and nutritious.

Here are some tips to overcome this:

1. Take adequate sleep 8hrs a day.

2. Drink plenty of water, eat healthy food, walk some for exercise every day (involving stretching).

3. You might want to try a different routine, alternate the things you usually do in the day especially if you just stay at home. Add more on your fun or worthwhile activities and make your scheduling so you won't get bored thinking of the daily routines. Try to make your schedule hectic.

4. Lessen wheat and other grains (except rice), and dairy products.

Take food supplements like mulch-vitamins, amino-acid, Vitamin C for alertness and iron, which is considered to be a premium energy giver to the body. Take soy protein shakes proven as energy providers and so, is green tea.

5. Wear sturdy athletic shoes with orthotics if you have flat feet - makes a huge difference in energy level, and getting into motion. More foundation for living life.

6. There may also be some unconformable stress, but if there is, you'd be better able to cope with it with these foundation in place.

7. See your dentist if you have TMG problems and teeth grinding when sleeping, causing sleep disturbance.

8. Visit a sleep clinic in your area, if there's a need to take drugs for cases like narcolepsy.

Actually, there are several things, which you can do to improve your diet and delete some of the poor lifestyle choices that you have made in the past. All these would help you to get an improved feeling through out the day, where you are bouncy both in your mind and body.

-By Dr. Dave

Great health benefits of skipping rope regularly

Rope Skipping, this activity is easy to learn.

Here are some good Advantages of skipping rope:

* It helps lose weight if done regularly.

* It helps or enhances coordination and rhythm between hands and feet movement.

* It strengthens the bones and increase stamina and endurance.

* It helps develop a sense of teamwork and social skills when doing it with friends.

* It helps you to become vigilant and alert because it increases attention skills.

* This can be done by people from any age groups and gender.

* It also enhances flexibility and athletic abilities by improving reflexes, balance and posture.

* It helps tone muscles in the arms, legs and abs amazingly.

* It also speeds up the heart rate so a lot of energy is required in order to maintain good fitness point.

* It is inexpensive.

* It turns out to be fun when doing this activity.

On the other side, the disadvantages doing this could be frustrating or boring when missing a few jumps. It also stresses the calves and Achilles tendons when skipping the same pattern.

Skim milk provide the same nutritional value as whole milk?

Does skim milk provide the same vitamins and minerals as whole milk?

Yes, skim milk has the same nutritional value as whole milk — with less fat. Since the fat portion of whole milk does not contain calcium, when you take out the fat, you do not lose calcium.

When you drink an equal amount of skim milk and whole milk, the skim milk provides more calcium than the whole milk does. And some brands of skim milk supplement with extra nutrients as well.

Skim, 1%, or 2% milk is recommended for kids after 2 years of age. These often have added vitamin A and vitamin D, since these can be lost when the fat is removed.

Reviewed by: Larissa Hirsch, MD

source: kidshealth.org

Virtual colonoscopy an important tool to detect colorectal cancer

Virtual colonoscopy catches more types of cancer

Colonoscopy is an important tool to detect colorectal cancer. In recent years, virtual colonoscopy, which involves a CT scan of the colon instead of the invasive, optical inspection of the colon, has been shown to be as effective as traditional colonoscopy. Now, a new study suggests that virtual colonoscopy may even be superior because it can identify cancers outside of the colon.

In a study of 2,277 patients who underwent virtual colonoscopy, almost half were found to have some suspicious lesions outside the colon. Further testing showed that 240 of those lesions were considered medically significant, such as being some type of cancer. After further evaluation, 19 surgeries were performed to identify six cancers (one lymphoma, three renal cell cancers and two lung cancers) and one aortic aneurysm.

Virtual colonoscopy essentially allows for an examination of the entire abdomen and pelvis, unlike traditional colonoscopy, which is limited to the interior of the colon and rectum. While virtual colonoscopy is not as accurate as a regular CT scan of the abdomen for identifying cancers in the abdomen, it's ability to pick up some types of cancers outside the colon while primarily looking for colorectal cancer make it an attractive alternative to traditional colonoscopy, the authors, from Walter Reed Army Medical Center, stated.

The obvious problem with this approach, however, is the extra cost of having to explore suspicious lesions outside the colon (that may turn out to be nothing significant) and the resulting anxiety felt by patients who have to undergo further testing. The study's authors suggest that the minimal additional cost may be worth it to identify other types of cancer.

The study was released Friday in the American Journal of Roentgenology.

-- Shari Roan / Los Angeles Times

Malaria, Dengue hits Mumbai city hard

Mumbai, the biggest business hub of India, is now in the grip of the deadly Malaria outbreak. 18 deaths have been reported in the month of July only and over 40 deaths since January, overall 9,000 malaria cases reported in Mumbai, making it a big public health concern for the state government.

However, for the family of a malaria victim, Juhi Biswas, the state government concern over the issue has come a little too late.

19-year-old, Juhi Biswas, is one of the victims of the malaria outbreak plaguing Mumbai this monsoon season. Juhi, a student at Mithibai College in Mumbai, died on July 6, 2010. Her family alleges that the doctors at a hospital did not heed her after making repeated complaints of chest pain.

"She was at the hospital under constant supervision of doctors, nurses and RMOs, how did her condition then deteriorate?" said Juhi’s mother Mita Biswas.

After repeated protests, the family has been now assured by the state government that they will take action on the case. But that's easier said than done, considering the shoddy state of the health infrastructure in the city.

Interestingly, the BMC itself has admitted that Mumbai's health facilities can cover just 80 lakh people, whereas the city's population is 1.4 crore. There are huge queues in suburban hospitals where close to 50 per cent beds are occupied by fever and malaria patients. The city has only one laboratory to check blood samples for both the malaria and swine flu patients.

Most malaria cases have been reported in suburbs of Mumbai like Andheri , Dadar, Byculla, Worli, Parel and Kurla areas where a lot of construction work is actively taking place.

Meanwhile, the BMC has now employed 700 paramedics to go door to door to collect blood samples from residents.

"We have taken some extra measures and the results would be visible in seven to ten days." Said the Health Minister of state, Suresh Shetty.

The BMC has employed around 400 employees for the cleaning operations across the city, but the question is why the necessary measures weren’t taken much earlier.

Doctors have advised people showing symptoms of dengue to immediately go for a check-up and get treatment.

Malaria: Key facts, signs, symptoms and prevention

source: ibnlive.in

Office fruit ‘can be part of a healthy diet’

Eating office fruit instead of cakes or biscuits is obviously the best way to stay healthy.

Snacks from the office fruit basket, such as grapes, can still satisfy those with a sweet tooth as they've got a high natural sugar content, which helps stimulate the brain, making you more alert at work.

TV presenter Lorraine Kelly has revealed to the Daily Mail that she tries to eat fruit as a healthy snack.

She tends to eat porridge for breakfast topped with some fruit. Then, throughout the day she likes to snack on fruit and olives.

Explaining why she eats fruit, Lorraine said: "Don’t get me wrong, like many women I’m tempted by cakes and biscuits, but I’m not whippet thin and I do have the tendency to put on weight easily."

She said that earlier this year she trained for the marathon and now views food as "fuel" for her body, which means she tends to try to opt for healthy things.

Wi-Worry About Wi-Fi Danger?

Scientists have told us for years that Wi-Fi is safe. But concerned parents can be tough nuts to crack.

Despite years of research and public education, some parents in Canada are blaming their children's illnesses on the wireless Internet routers installed in their schools
, and they're calling for the setups to be removed.

"Six months ago, parents started noticing their kids had chronic headaches, dizziness, insomnia, rashes and other neurological and cardiac symptoms when their kids came home from school," said Rodney Palmer, who has two children, 5 and 9 years old, in the Simcoe County school district in Ontario.

He told the Toronto Sun that symptoms started to appear last year when the school board installed wireless networking hardware throughout its schools. Palmer said concerned parents found the microwave signals in classrooms to be four times stronger than signals at the base of a cellphone tower -- though that amount was 600 times less than what the government considers a harmful limit.

And that explains why scientists worldwide continue to roll their eyes.

"As far as I'm aware, there is no evidence that any kind of radio frequency radiation (including cellphone towers, cellphones themselves,and also including Wi-Fi) cause any negative health effects," said Michael First, a professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University in New York City and editor of the DSM-IV, the diagnostic bible
for psychologists.

Noting that concerns about electromagnetic radiation
have centered on brain tumors, he said, "I believe that all of the studies done to look into this are negative."

The World Health Organization agrees, noting that the range of radiation exposure from Wi-Fi routers is between 0.002 percent and 2 percent of recommended maximum levels -- less than people receive from televisions and FM radios. (Oddly, cordless home phones, which use the same 2.4-GHz frequency, have avoided the same kind of public scrutiny.)

Schools have increasingly installed Wi-Fi networks to aid learning and boost Internet use in classrooms. But worries over microwave radiation continue to fuel a debate over the safety of regular exposure, especially in children.

Susan Clarke, a former research consultant to the Harvard School of Public Health who studies radio-frequency's bioeffects and was invited to speak to the parents in Simcoe County last week, is not as sure as her colleagues that the radiation is harmless.

"A child’s brain absorbs this radiation maximally," she told the parents, according to reports. "Children also absorb microwave radiation more readily than adults because they have thinner skulls."

Clarke reportedly told the parents she believes that such exposure can cause a slew of neurological and cardiac symptoms, including the ones Palmer described.

The Harvard School of Public Health could not confirm Palmer's findings, nor would it comment on similar findings. And the overwhelming majority of scientists say that evidence of Wi-Fi’s harmful effects remains anecdotal at best, and is often disproved.

Numerous studies over the years have supported the safety of low-level radiation from devices like cellphones -- a recent 30-year study in Sweden could not confirm that they were a hazard -- and Wi-Fi routers are even further removed from the body, lessening their impact.

Researchers have shown that those who claim to be "sensitive" to electromagnetic radiation have difficulty determining its presence. One study found that symptoms correlated with those who had been informed of radiation, whether or not radiation sources were actually active -- hinting that it could be psychological.

Robert Bradley, director of consumer and clinical radiation protection at Health Canada, noted that "if you look at the body of science, we're confident that there is no demonstrable health effect or effects from wireless technology."

The British Health Protection Authority has stated that Wi-Fi equipment emits only a fraction of the signal of common cellphones. "When we conducted measurements in schools, typical exposures from Wi-Fi are around 20 millionths of the international guideline levels of exposure to radiation. As a comparison, a child on a mobile phone receives up to 50 percent of guideline levels."

But despite mountains of strong evidence proving otherwise, questions about the safety of regular exposure to electromagnetic fields won’t go away.

Last year, British DJ Steve Miller gained notoriety for his claims of Wi-Fi allergies, saying he got severe headaches and dizziness whenever he came close to a wireless signal. Miller later admitted his claims were a publicity stunt.

Public concerns have even pushed Sweden to recognize the ailment as an official disability. But American scientists will take no such action, First said. The official bible of illness, the DSM-IV, is being updated to the DSM-V, but Wi-Fi allergies won't make the cut, he told FoxNews.com.

"Changes are made based on solid scientific evidence. Certainly there is no good scientific evidence supporting the notion of electromagmetic-radiation-induced cognitive dysfunction," First said.

Some schools are nonetheless ignoring the scientists and preemptively banning new network installations.

Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, outlawed Wi-Fi throughout its campus in 2006, when school president Fred Gilbert likened Wi-Fi radiation to second-hand smoke and asbestos.

"We’re just finding out now what some of those impacts are," he said at the time. A school policy banning wireless networking remains in place today.

John Dance, superintendent of education for the Simcoe County District School board, is taking a more measured approach. Acknowledging the benefits of wireless networking, he said he was wary of taking drastic action. "Nobody’s ever given medical documentation to say that somebody is sick because of this," he said. As of now, the board has denied requests to shut down the network.

But for Rodney Palmer, waiting isn’t an option. Tired of exposing his children to what he describes as an "experiment," the worried father says he is looking into finding alternative schools.

source: foxnews

Great Tips To Reduce High Cholesterol Quickly Diagnosed with high cholesterol, follow these effective tips to lower it quickly.

To lower cholesterol, one must:

1. Walk at least 15 min at least twice or trice a week, this helps speed up metabolism to burns calories faster.

2. Maintain a low-fat diet.

3. It is suggested to cook healthy food at home rather then eating out.

4. Consume flax seed oil vitamins or garlic table, for it lowers cholesterol.

5. Intake of saturated and trans fat should be avoided.

6. Add also cinnamon to your diet, it can also lower cholesterol.

Remember, always contact your doctor first before starting any new diet or exercise.

It's important to recognize that even though cholesterol gets a lot of attention, it's not necessarily the most important (or even an especially significant) factor in preventing heart disease. Other factors, such as exercise, treating high blood pressure and diabetes, not smoking, healthy diet, nutritional support and optimizing thyroid function, may also decrease the risk of heart attack.

-By Angelik Jerie T. Beso (mdinfo|

More Heart Health Information

Do you always sweat without doing anything

If you always sweat without doing anything, you are probably suffering from hyperhidrosis. Hyperhidrosis is an excessive perspiration or sweating of the underarms, of the palms and soles of the feet. Underarm problems usually tend to start in late adolescence, while palm and sole sweating often begins earlier. If untreated, these problems may continue throughout life.

Although neurologic, metabolic, and other systemic diseases can sometimes cause hyperhidrosis, this can also occur in healthy people. Hyperhidrosis in some people is being triggered by heat and emotions, but many people who suffer from hyperhidrosis sweat nearly all their waking hours, regardless of the weather or their mood.

Treatment for hyperhidrosis depends on the underlying cause. Some ways of treating excessive sweating are the following: OTC antiperspirants, prescription strength antiperspirants, iontophoresis, oral medications, botox and surgery.

BACKGROUND

Excessive sweating reflects instability of the part of the brain called the autonomic nervous system. It affects about 2% of the population.

If youâ€˜ve had it since childhood, it is probably genetic. If not, consider hormonal imbalances, stress, anxiety and infections.

Common Causes

Estrogen and progesterone deficiency

Estrogen and progesterone deficiency with menopause and peri-menopause. This can begin as much as 12 years before periods stop and your blood tests for menopause become abnormal. The tipoff is that the sweats/flashes are worse around and in the week before your period and/or having irregular periods.

Testosterone deficiency

(In men) Consider this if you have fatigue, low libido, difficulty with erections, high cholesterol, or depression.

Infections

Infections of many types. Sinusitis or spastic colon suggests yeast overgrowth in both men and women.

Drops in blood sugar

Caused by a low adrenal.

Acid reflux

Acid reflux being inhaled (especially at night while sleeping). Taking Pepcid or Tagamet at bedtime for a few nights to see if night sweats lessen will tell you if this is the cause.

CFS/FMS

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia.

Overactive thyroid

If racing heart, weight loss and palpitations.

TREATMENT

Treat Underlying Causes

Treat any underlying causes discussed under Background. Begin with anxiety if sweating is worse during stress.
Recommended Supplements

Black cohosh

The herb black cohosh is very helpful for sweats/hot flashes in general (use the Remifemin form).

Soy bean pods

For menopause symptoms, soy bean pods (called "edamame" â€” available in the freezer section in most grocery stores) 1 handful a day can be helpful, as these naturally raise estrogen levels. Alternatively, use bioidentical estrogen from a holistic physician.
Medications

If sweating in just a small area (e.g., palms or soles), rub a regular antiperspirant onto those areas. If it persists and is annoying, see a dermatologist. They have many options including:

Aluminum salts

Botox injections

source: mdinfo

Also Read: Key Facts, Prevention of Body Odour Naturally

How CT-Scans, Radiations Can Harm Kids & Adult

Radiation can certainly be harmful to adults and kids as well. Unnecessary CT scans should be reduced at all ages, but this is especially important for children because children are far more sensitive to the risks of radiation than are adults. A young baby may be 10 times more sensitive than a middle-aged adult to the same dose.

And even when kids and adults are exposed to the same strength CT beams, kids get significantly higher doses because their thinner bodies allow the beam to penetrate them with higher intensity.

Also, children who are scanned usually have many more years of their lives ahead of them, giving them longer to develop any cancer a scan might cause.

More Information

source: Dr.Greene

How healthy is donated sperm?

U.S. deaths highlight problems screening donors and finding them if something goes wrong

Over a two-year period in the early 1990s, a young and healthy San Francisco sperm donor unknowingly passed on a potentially fatal genetic heart condition to nine of the 24 offspring he fathered.

One child died at age 2 from heart failure.

Two others, now teenagers, have developed symptoms of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) – the often undetected disease that suddenly fells young athletes in mid-game – and could suffer an abrupt cardiac death. One has had a defibrillator implanted to prevent it from happening.

The remaining offspring who've tested positive, including one born to the donor's wife, are at increased risk of developing the condition. Six of the nine are boys. The unnamed donor didn't learn he had the disease himself until after the first child was diagnosed, according to a report last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

In the absence of U.S. government regulations on notification, it took a unique collaboration between the sperm bank, the donor and a genetic-testing facility to track down the recipient women and test the children.

It's a nightmare scenario, and not just for those who use sperm banks – single women, lesbian pairs, and the roughly 15 per cent of couples who have can't conceive because of male infertility.

Genetic diseases that are unwittingly transmitted raise "a largely ignored but potentially significant public health issue," say the report's authors.

But the situation occurred in the U.S., where regulations are voluntary and often ignored, and a study by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine found that the majority of the U.S.'s 110 sperm-donor clinics don't follow screening protocols.

Could it happen north of the border?

Yes, says Dr. Tamar Said, director of the sperm bank at ReproMed, the Toronto Institute for Reproductive Medicine.

"Most of the sperm available here is from the U.S.," he says. "That's why we need updated federal rules and guidelines."

The two other sperm banks operating in Canada – Outreach Health Services in Toronto and Hamilton's Can-Am Cryoservices Corp. – only use semen imported from U.S. parent firms who pay for donations. It's been estimated that 80 per cent of babies conceived here via donor insemination now have American DNA.

Said says an undetected heart condition couldn't happen with sperm provided by ReproMed because it's the only facility in the country to provide Canadian-only (actually Toronto-only) semen. And it requires donors to undergo electrocardiogram tests as part of periodic physician examinations.

"There is no genetic screening available for a condition like HCM," says Said, "but the electrocardiogram would pick up the defect itself. "

ReproMed also tests for infectious diseases, as required by federal regulations, but "pro-actively tests" for sperm motility (quality) and certain genetic diseases, neither of which are required by Ottawa.

"There is a double standard in place here," says Said. "American sperm banks only have to follow minimum regulations to be imported here. And they can pay – we can't."

Canada used to have some 24 sperm banks where donors, often university students looking for extra income, were plentiful. But since 2004, when "commercial reproduction transactions" were criminalized under the Assisted Human Reproduction Act, the donation business has collapsed.

Only ReproMed, founded in 1990, remains to collect and store locally donated sperm, and it's allowed only to reimburse donors for travel and other expenses, generally no more than $70.

Canadian donors undergo a rigorous process that starts with the evaluation of three generations of family history. Following extensive semen analysis, before and after the sperm is frozen and quarantined for six months, there is a final three-month screening before it is delivered to the recipient's physician.

The donor's blood is tested for sexually transmitted and infectious diseases, some of which, such as West Nile virus, are not conducted on imported U.S. sperm, says Said.

Genetic disorders tested include cystic fibrosis, Tay-Sachs disease (and the whole "Ashkenazi panel" of conditions which affects many Jewish people), a blood disease called thalassemia that's common among those of southern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern origin, and sickle-cell anemia/anaemia, which affects the black community.

"There isn't the technology to test for every genetic disorder," says Said. But the rate of birth defects with donor insemination is no different than from conceiving naturally, between 2 per cent and 4 per cent.

So stringent is the screening process that only five in 100 donors are accepted by ReproMed. That, coupled with lack of remuneration, is why it currently has just 65 donors on its books, an ethnically diverse group of men who donate out of altruism.

"We're fortunate to have people who are motivated," says Said, "because the time that elapses from when a donor shows up to distribution of the semen is a year to 18 months."

Canadian sperm donors are limited to three births in a population area of 100,000. When the San Francisco man was allowed to father 24 offspring, there was no restriction in the U.S. on the number of pregnancies allowed. Guidelines now try to limit a single donor to no more than 25 births per 800,000 population.

Is there a notification process in Canada if the unthinkable – an unwittingly transmitted genetic disorder – should ever happen?

Yes, though the rules overseen by Assisted Human Reproduction Canada, the regulatory agency set up in 2007, are primarily geared to infectious diseases.

The responsibilities are clearly outlined, says Said. "The sperm bank – well, us, as we're the only one collecting sperm here – would have to do a recall and everyone would be tested. The same procedure could be used for a genetic situation."

source: thestar

Rapid meningitis test can detect if child has brain disease in just ONE HOUR

Meningitis is a nightmare condition for parents because early symptoms are similar to a viral infection (posed)

Researchers have developed a groundbreaking test for meningitis and septicaemia that can tell if a child has the deadly diseases within an hour.

The speed of the new test is vital because the first symptoms of meningitis are similar to a viral infection and therefore difficult to diagnose at an early stage.

However, youngsters with the bacterial infection can rapidly deteriorate and die within hours.

The diagnostic test for meningococcal bacteria has been developed by researchers at Queen’s University Belfast and the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust.

It detects whether a patient has meningitis, which is the inflammation of the lining around the brain and spinal cord or septicaemia, which is the blood poisoning form of the disease.

The small piece of equipment resembles a portable home printer. A sample of blood or saliva produces a colour reading that determines if the patient has the condition.

Professor Mike Shields, of Queen’s University, said: 'The real advantage of the new LAMP (loop mediated isothermal amplification) test is that it has the potential to be a simple bedside test that is rapid, cheap, easy to use and doesn’t require laboratory trained staff.'

The machine is now being trialled in the A&E Department of the Royal Victoria Hospital for Sick Children in Belfast.

The scientists are very pleased with results so far and are working on a more compact version of the machine.

Professor Mike Shields, of Queen’s University said the test would be a vast improvement on current methods, that have major drawbacks.

He said: 'Parents often use the ‘tumbler test’ on their children’s bodies, but the non-blanching rash that is associated with a positive outcome of this test is a late sign and is not always present in children who have meningitis.

'Currently doctors will admit and treat with antibiotics any child that they suspect of having meningococcal disease while they await the traditional test results that take between 24 and 48 hours.

'Some children are not diagnosed in the early stages while others are admitted and treated ‘just in case’ when they don’t actually have the disease.'

The tumbler test is currently used for meningitis, however rashes may not develop until late on

Alongside saving lives, early detection can potentially improve outcomes for meningitis patients who are often left with life-altering conditions such as deafness and cerebral palsy.

Professor Shields said: 'Speedy identification of the cause of infection can enable doctors to make life-saving decisions about the treatment of patients. If we have the results within an hour we will be able to start the appropriate course of treatment right away.'

Between 2008 and 2009 in England and Wales there were just over 1,100 cases of bacterial meningitis. The condition is most common in children who are under five years old, and in particular in babies under the age of one.

The research has been supported by the Meningitis Research Foundation (MRF).

source: dailymail

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