Health News

Coronary Heart Disease More Likely Indicated By Measuring HDL Particles As Opposed To HDL Cholesterol

Date: Jul-13-2012
Until recently, it seemed well-established that high-density lipoprotein (HDL) is the "good cholesterol". However there are many unanswered questions on whether raising someone's HDL can prevent coronary heart disease, and on whether or not HDL still matters...

Brain Region Involved In Empathy May Explain Individual Differences In Altruism

Date: Jul-13-2012
What can explain extreme differences in altruism among individuals, from Ebenezer Scrooge to Mother Teresa? It may all come down to variation in the size and activity of a brain region involved in appreciating others' perspectives, according to a study published by Cell Press in the journal Neuron. The findings also provide a neural explanation for why altruistic tendencies remain stable over time. "This is the first study to link both brain anatomy and brain activation to human altruism," says senior study author Ernst Fehr of the University of Zurich...

Silver Is Toxic To Bacteria But Too Small A Dose May Enhance Microbes' Immunity

Date: Jul-13-2012
Rice University researchers have settled a long-standing controversy over the mechanism by which silver nanoparticles, the most widely used nanomaterial in the world, kill bacteria. Their work comes with a Nietzsche-esque warning: Use enough. If you don't kill them, you make them stronger. Scientists have long known that silver ions, which flow from nanoparticles when oxidized, are deadly to bacteria. Silver nanoparticles are used just about everywhere, including in cosmetics, socks, food containers, detergents, sprays and a wide range of other products to stop the spread of germs...

Keyhole Surgery Demands Operating Room Upgrades

Date: Jul-13-2012
Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is on the rise, as waiting lists lengthen and patients call for fast results, says a new report by healthcare experts GlobalData. The new report* shows that advanced surgery procedures promise patients smaller scars and faster healing, but demand state of the art technology for surgeons to perform their work, which in turn demand high levels of investment. Minimally invasive procedures have witnessed rapid growth globally, and are expected to continue to grow in the future...

Prescription Abuse Of OxyContin Reduced By Formula Change But Many Abusers Have Switched To Heroin

Date: Jul-13-2012
A change in the formula of the frequently abused prescription painkiller OxyContin has many abusers switching to a drug that is potentially more dangerous, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The formula change makes inhaling or injecting the opioid drug more difficult, so many users are switching to heroin, the scientists report in the New England Journal of Medicine. For nearly three years, the investigators have been collecting information from patients entering treatment for drug abuse...

How Memory Affects Decision Making

Date: Jul-12-2012
According to researchers at the The University of Texas at Austin, a person's memory plays a vital role in how new information is processed. The study, published in the journal Neuron, was conducted by Alison Preston, assistant professor of psychology and neurobiology, and Dagmar Zeithamova and April Dominick. The researchers found that human brains relate new information with past experiences in order to gain new knowledge, thus allowing the individual to better understand new concepts and make future decisions...

How To Treat A Cold

Date: Jul-12-2012
The common cold, usually referred to as just a cold is caused by a viral infection in the upper airways, sinuses, throat and nose. Experts say a cold affects primarily the nose. There may also be a fever. In the vast majority of cases, despite making you feel dreadful with all the sneezing, sore throat, cough, and runny nose, a cold is a self-limiting infection; this means it gets better on its own without requiring any special treatment. Most people get better within a week - in some cases, it may last a little longer...

New Blood Sugar Testing Techniques Better Than Older Ones

Date: Jul-12-2012
According to new Johns Hopkins research published online in the July 10 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, newer technologies designed to assist diabetes type 1 patients monitor blood sugar levels daily are superior to traditional methods and require less, painful pricks of a needle. The findings indicate that despite the higher cost of these diabetic control technologies, diabetic patients using an insulin pump are more satisfied with their therapy and quality of life compared with those who need to administer themselves with several insulin injections each day...

NLP - Supposed Eye Movement When Lying, Doesn't Work

Date: Jul-12-2012
NLP or Neuro-Linguistic Programming, is a behavioral science that some consider a little far-fetched. TV shows like The Mentalist have pushed NLP ideals somewhat into the realms of fiction, while popularizing the ideal that it's possible to assess whether a person is lying; even influence their behavior. A lot of research has been done to establish whether there is a link between behavior and lying, but no one has looked into the popular notion that eye movement relates to whether a person is being truthful or not...

Alcohol And Birth Control Use In Teens May Result In High Blood Pressure

Date: Jul-12-2012
Male adolescents who consume alcohol and teenage girls who are on the pill are more likely to have high blood pressure in later life, according to results from a large pregnancy follow-up study in Australia. In addition, consuming too much salt and increasing body mass index (BMI) were associated with blood pressure levels in both sexes in late adolescence...