Health News

Stem cells from heart disease patients offer potential for treatment

Date: Aug-26-2013
Researchers have developed a new technique that might one day be used to convert cells from heart disease patients into heart muscle cells that could act as a personalized treatment for their condition. The research is published online in the journal of the International Society of Stem Cell Research, Stem Cell Reports, published by Cell Press. The investigators previously reported the ability to convert scar-forming cells in the heart (called fibroblasts) into new, beating muscle in mice that had experienced heart attacks, thereby regenerating a heart from within...

Patients with moderate kidney disease can safely exercise

Date: Aug-26-2013
A structured exercise and lifestyle program can improve fitness, body composition, and heart function in patients with kidney disease, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN). The findings suggest that patients with kidney disease can benefit from greater physical activity and can do so safely even though they may have other medical problems. Approximately 60 million people globally have chronic kidney disease (CKD)...

Social connection sparks interest in another culture, may improve attitudes toward that cultural group

Date: Aug-26-2013
A small cue of social connection to someone from another group - such as a shared interest - can help reduce prejudice immediately and up to six months later, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. "Our research shows that even a brief opportunity to take part in another group's culture can improve intergroup attitudes even months later," says psychological scientist and lead researcher Tiffany Brannon of Stanford University...

Potential non-drug treatments for postoperative nausea: Aromatherapy and IV dextrose

Date: Aug-26-2013
Two simple, non-drug treatments - aromatherapy and intravenous administration of a simple sugar solution - may offer effective new approaches to relieving nausea and vomiting after surgery, report a pair of studies in the September issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS)...

Millions of Chinese face risk of chronic arsenic poisoning from groundwater

Date: Aug-26-2013
Since the 1960s, it has been known that groundwater resources in certain provinces of China are contaminated with arsenic. Estimates of the numbers of affected people have risen year by year. In the most recent survey - conducted by the Chinese Ministry of Health between 2001 and 2005 - more than 20,000 (5%) of the 445,000 wells tested showed arsenic concentrations higher than 50 µg/L...

Model reveals specific risk factors associated with heart attack

Date: Aug-25-2013
Researchers in India have carried out a data mining exercise to determine which are the most important risk factors in increasing the chances of an individual suffering a heart attack. Writing in the International Journal of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, they confirm that the usual suspects high blood cholesterol, intake of alcohol and passive smoking play the most crucial role in "severe", "moderate" and "mild" cardiac risks, respectively...

Red meat may raise Alzheimer's risk

Date: Aug-25-2013
Eating too much red meat, which raises brain levels of iron, may heighten the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, researchers from the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA reported in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. As background information, the authors explained that iron can accelerate the damaging reactions of free radicals. Over time, iron builds up in brain gray matter regions and appears to contribute to the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and other age-related illnesses...

BMI is inaccurate and misleading

Date: Aug-25-2013
BMI (body mass index), which is based on the height and weight of a person, is an inaccurate measure of body fat content and does not take into account muscle mass, bone density, overall body composition, and racial and sex differences, say researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. Every few months the same comment is made by experts "BMI is flawed". The news hits the headlines, everybody agrees, and then all goes quiet for a while. You are of normal weight if your BMI is between 18.5 and 25, overweight if it is between 25 and 30...

Brain scans to diagnose bipolar disorder

Date: Aug-25-2013
Scientists say new brain imaging methods that measure blood flow could help diagnose bipolar disorder in its early stages, as well as differentiate it from depression, according to a study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh analyzed 44 females for the study. Of these, 18 had bipolar-I disorder, 18 had unipolar depression and 18 served as a control group, with no form of mood disorder or depression...

Female smokers at higher risk for hemorrhagic stroke

Date: Aug-25-2013
The advice that "smoking is bad for you" may be old news, but the American Heart Association has released a new study in their journal Stroke, which reveals women are more susceptible to certain stroke-related risks that result from smoking. For the study, researchers analyzed data from over 80 studies worldwide from 1966 to 2013. In total, the studies included nearly four million individuals and over 42,000 cases of strokes. Results show that compared with non-smokers, both men and women who smoke have a 60-80% increased risk for having any type of stroke...