Health News

Cholesterol Levels Improve Among U.S Youths

Date: Aug-07-2012
According to a study published in JAMA, there has been a reduction in mean total cholesterol levels of the past 20 years in children and adolescents. However, the study, which involved more than 16,000 children and teenagers in the United States, revealed that nearly 1 in 10 had elevated total cholesterol in 2007-2010...

Muscle-Building Dietary Supplement Creatine Can Fight Depression

Date: Aug-07-2012
According to a new study published in the August 3 edition of the online issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, women who suffer from major depression may benefit from creatine, a muscle-building dietary supplement to feel better...

Many People Not Aware Of Their Off-Label Drug Use

Date: Aug-07-2012
A Mayo Clinic analysis revealed that even though numerous people have heard of off-label drug use, i.e. a physician prescribing medications prior to their approval by the Food and Drug Administration, they might not be aware that it applies to prescriptions they currently take. Researchers have now asked and answered 10 questions about off-label drug use in an article featured in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Leading author Christopher Wittich, M.D...

Disturbing Rates Of Proper Car Seat Use Among Kids

Date: Aug-07-2012
Even though in the U.S. car accidents represent the highest cause of death for children above the age of 3 and are responsible for over 140,000 children's visits to the emergency room each year, new research published in the September issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine has revealed that only a small percentage of children in the U.S. are using age-appropriate safety restraints and many children are seated in the front seat and exposed to risk...

Obese Mothers' Babies Grow More Slowly

Date: Aug-07-2012
It is well known that pregnant overweight or obese women have a higher risk for numerous health complications. A new study published in the Journal of Pediatrics now reveals that the added weight also seems to have an impact on children's growth and development, at least during the first stage of their lives...

Why Is It So Easy For Infants To Get Sick?

Date: Aug-07-2012
A study by researchers at the University of Michigan Health System is helping settle parents' concern about why their babies get sick so often. People have been under the assumption that children will develop the ability to fight viral infections when they get older, just like walking and talking. However, this new research shows that the natural ability to fight infection is there early on. According to researchers, this study, published in Nature Immunology, shows that signals from key cells inhibit the growth of essential immune cells early in life...

What Is Radiology? What Is Nuclear Medicine?

Date: Aug-07-2012
Radiology is a specialty of medicine that uses ionizing and nonionizing radiation for the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Radiology uses imaging technologies, such as X-ray radiography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear medicine, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), and positron emission tomography (PET) to see within the human body in order to diagnose disease and abnormalities. Imaging means creating a picture of the inner configuration of a dense object, which in radiology usually means a part of the human body with the use of radiation...

First-Strike Influenza Drug Target Identified

Date: Aug-07-2012
A new study published in the August 2 issue of PLoS Pathogens could potentially lead to the development of new antiviral drugs that also avoid the problem of drug resistance. Researchers from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital discovered that compounds could block an enzyme that is universal to all influenza viruses...

New Approach For Detecting Prostate Cancer Shows Promise

Date: Aug-07-2012
Prostate cancer tests may soon be simpler and more accurate due to Casey Burton, a senior chemistry major at Missouri University of Science and Technology, who developed a new technique that detects certain metabolites in urine samples...

Tobacco Sales To Minors Reach All-Time Low

Date: Aug-07-2012
According to the latest analysis on the Synar Amendment program - a federal and state partnership geared towards ceasing illicit tobacco sales to those under 18 - all the states and the District of Columbia have continued to reach their targets of limiting sales of tobacco to minors. The analysis, conducted by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) - which sponsors the Synar program, demonstrates that the average nationwide retail store infringement rate of tobacco sales is down to 8.5%. SAMHSA Administrator Pamela S...