Lifestyle changes cut heart risk without drugs
• Heart • Jan 05 05
In a new study, a 12-week program designed to change unhealthy lifestyles helped adults with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar…
Mental deficits common after very preterm birth
• Children's Health • Jan 05 05
More than three-quarters of children who were born before the 26th week of pregnancy are affected by cognitive and neurologic impairments by the time…
Herbal extract reduces migraines
• Migraine • Jan 05 05
An extract of the root of a plant called butterbur (Petasites hybridus) significantly reduces the frequency of migraine headaches, new research findings suggest.
“I’ve…
Bush launches battle to limit malpractice awards.
• Public Health • Jan 05 05
President George W. Bush charged on Wednesday that trial lawyers pursuing medical malpractice lawsuits are driving doctors out of business and driving up health…
Brain processes whistled language just as spoken
• Brain • Jan 05 05
Like Snow White’s seven dwarfs, shepherds on one of Spain’s Canary Islands whistle while they work and use the sound to communicate over long…
Secondhand smoke lowers kids’ math, reading scores
• Tobacco & Marijuana • Jan 05 05
Kids and teenagers exposed to even trace amounts of secondhand smoke score lower on tests of reading and reasoning, according to new research.
Overall,…
Antibiotics might be helpful in Lou Gehrig disease
• Neurology • Jan 05 05
Treatment with penicillin-like antibiotics called beta-lactams have been shown to protect neurons from injury in lab-dish experiments.
Moreover, the antibiotics improve movement functioning…
Experts dismiss fears of post-tsunami fish
• Public Health • Jan 05 05
Hong Kong’s government has urged residents not to eat seafood from tsunami-affected areas as it may be tainted, but experts brushed off such fears…
Sperm-sorting machine may help infertile men.
• Fertility and pregnancy • Jan 05 05
Scientists in Australia have developed a sperm-sorting machine that may help infertile men to become fathers.
The device filters out sperm with DNA damage…
Vietnam fights bird flu threat as boy dies
• Public Health • Jan 05 05
Bird flu has killed a 9-year-old boy in Vietnam, a health official said on Wednesday, marking the first reported death in 2005 from a…
Embryo loss no greater with special IVF technique
• Fertility and pregnancy • Jan 05 05
The rate of embryo losses for an in vitro fertilization (IVF) technique in which sperm is injected directly into an egg is similar to…
British school starts random drug tests
• Tobacco & Marijuana • Jan 05 05
Students at a school in southeast England returned to class on Wednesday to face a new regime of weekly random drug tests.
A sample…
Tanners have higher vitamin D levels, bone mass
• Food & Nutrition • Jan 05 05
People who try to stay bronze with the help of a tanning bed tend to have higher blood levels of vitamin D than those…
Cigarette smoke worsens RSV infection in infants
• Children's Health • Jan 05 05
Babies and young children are prone to infection with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and new research shows that the condition is worsened if they’re…
Fruits, veggies lower kids’ blood pressure
• Food & Nutrition • Jan 05 05
Preschoolers who eat the recommended four servings of fruits and vegetables - along with two servings of dairy products - each day may have…
Antidepressant useful for hot flashes
• Gender: Female • Jan 04 05
The antidepressant venlafaxine (Effexor) appears to be effective in treating postmenopausal hot flashes in otherwise healthy women, according to a report in the journal…
Light alcohol use doesn’t raise stroke risk
• Food & Nutrition • Jan 04 05
New findings from a large study suggest that drinking up to two alcoholic beverages a day does not significantly increase the risk of stroke.
…
Emergency birth control not linked to risk behavior
• Emergencies / First Aid • Jan 04 05
Readily available emergency contraception does not increase the rate of unprotected intercourse among young women or affect the spread of sexually transmitted infections, according…
Hypnosis helps kids during medical procedure
• Children's Health • Jan 04 05
Self-hypnosis can relieve distress in children undergoing an uncomfortable medical procedure known as a voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG), according to new research.
VCUG is performed…
Eye disease predicts heart failure
• Eye / Vision Problems • Jan 04 05
A common type of disease that involves the back of the eye, known as retinopathy, is a risk factor for heart failure, even in…
Test can warn of dangerous pregnancy complication
• Pregnancy • Jan 04 05
Testing for a protein in the urine of pregnant women accurately predicts whether they will develop preeclampsia, a potentially deadly condition that affects one…
Key AIDS study was deeply flawed, expert says
• AIDS/HIV • Jan 04 05
A study aimed at showing whether a single dose of an AIDS drug could prevent mothers from passing the virus to their newborns was…
German team finds new way to block HIV replication
• AIDS/HIV • Jan 04 05
German scientists have found a new way to prevent HIV from replicating, offering hope in the face of the virus’ increasing resistance to existing…
Disease emerges in wake of tsunami
• Public Health • Jan 04 05
Hungry and filthy, thousands of Indonesians queued for water on Tuesday as aid deliveries to tsunami-ravaged Aceh province hit new snags and cases of…
Statin use may slightly impair brain function
• Drug Abuse • Jan 04 05
The results of a new study suggest that treatment with a cholesterol-lowering statin called simvastatin (Zocor) may have small negative effects on brain function.
…