Monthly News Archives



		Prevent Heart Disease: Take A Nap A six-year study of nearly 24,000 Greek adults found those who regularly took midday naps lowered their risk of dying from heart disease by more than a third. How Do Employees With Negative Behavior Affect Your Workplace? Look around any organization and chances are you'll be able to find at least one person whose negative behavior affects the rest of the group to varying degrees. So much so, say two University of Washington researchers, that these "bad apples" are like a virus to their teams, and can upset or spoil the whole apple cart. More Evidence Vitamin D Prevents Cancer Certain amounts of vitamin D may be able to prevent up to half of breast cancer cases and two-thirds of colorectal cancer cases in the United States, according to two studies by researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, and colleagues at other centers. Secondhand Smoke Poses Heart Disease Risk Breathing secondhand smoke appears to increase levels of two warning signs for heart disease, fibrinogen and homocysteine, British researchers report. Age Brings More Fat, Less Muscle Older adults face a "double whammy" when it comes to body fat, a new study finds. Take More Breaks To Avoid Back Injury At Work Workers who lift for a living need to take longer or more frequent breaks than they now do to avoid back injury, according to a new study at Ohio State University. Genes Could Account For 70 Percent Of Diabetes Risk Researchers said they had homed in on five areas of DNA that could account for 70 percent of the genetic risk for type-2 diabetes. Side Effects To Medication Cause Compulsive Gambling Compulsive gambling with extreme losses -- in two cases, greater than $100,000 -- by people without a prior history of gambling problems has been linked to a class of drugs commonly used to treat the neurological disorder restless legs syndrome (RLS). More Evidence That Autism Is A Growing Threat To Your Child The number of children who have an autism disorder as many as 1 in every 150 is significantly higher than previously thought, according to a new federal report being billed as the most complete assessment to date. Adaptation To Global Climate Change Is Essential To A Warming Planet Temperatures are rising on Earth, which is heating up the debate over global warming and the future of our planet, but what may be needed most to combat global warming is a greater focus on adapting to our changing planet, says a team of science policy experts writing in this week's Nature magazine. Spring Conception May Up Risk Of Preterm Birth Women who conceive in the springtime may be more likely to deliver before 37 weeks gestation than women who conceive at other times of the year, two researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center have found. Religious Beliefs and Conscience May Alter Your Doctor's Decisions A U.S. study finds religion and conscience often affect decisions physicians make in telling patients about morally controversial medical treatments. Can Finger Length Identify Heart Attack Risk? A long ring finger may be good news. The length of a young boy's finger may provide a clue as to whether he will be at risk of a heart attack in early adulthood. Breast-Feeding Enhances Kids' Eyesight Breast-fed children are significantly more likely to do well in measures of stereoscopic vision than are those who received formula during infancy, according to UK researchers. Insight On A Stress-Free Workday Tired of too much work and too little time to do it? Frustrated with the boss and stressed to the limit with no relief in sight? Before quitting the day job and heading to a remote island, a weekly science magazine suggests six steps which could lead to a stress-free career. Vitamin D For Cancer Prevention Two new vitamin D studies using a sophisticated form of analysis called meta-analysis, in which data from multiple reports is combined, have revealed new prescriptions for possibly preventing up to half of the cases of breast cancer and two-thirds of the cases of colorectal cancer in the United States. For Women, Nothing's Like The Smell Of A Man's Sweat Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley said women who sniffed a chemical found in male sweat experienced elevated levels of an important hormone, along with higher sexual arousal, faster heart rate and other effects. Aging Population Is Causing Major Increase In Cancer Burden Between 2004 and 2006, the number of new cases of cancer diagnosed each year in Europe has increased by 300,000 according to new estimates published in a report in Annals of Oncology. Marital Conflict Not a Major Culprit in Child's Behavior Parents' fighting likely doesn't cause children's behavioral problems, such as skipping school, lying, shoplifting or bullying. But parents who quarrel constantly may pass on genes for disruptive behavior to their children, a new U.S. study suggests. Video Games Are Good For The Eyes Video game addicts, rejoice: U.S. researchers have found that playing is actually good for your eyes, and despite all those dire warnings from your parents, it won't make you blind. Kids Who Get Less Sleep Weigh More Children who do not get enough sleep are more likely to be overweight than those who get more, according to a study published on Wednesday that tracked more than 2,000 U.S. kids for five years. Anaesthetic Linked To Alzheimer's A commonly used anaesthetic could cause changes in the brain linked to Alzheimer's, a US study suggests. Loneliness Linked With Alzheimer's People who are lonely are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, a large US study has suggested. Depression Linked to Early Heart Disease Depression, especially its physical signs, such as fatigue and loss of appetite, may contribute to thickening arteries, an early sign of cardiovascular disease, researchers report. No More Mars Bar Ads For Children The company that makes chocolate bars such as Mars and Snickers, is to stop targeting its advertising at under-12s. Early Weight Influences Age When Periods Start The age at which girls begin menstruation, termed menarche, is likely to be early if they were small babies but heavy as children, according to an Australian study. Science Tracks How the Brain's 'Clock' Ticks Scientists have developed a new model of how the brain tells time, which challenges the popular theory of an internal clock that generates and counts regular fixed moments. Allergy To Hair Coloring On The Rise Allergy to hair dye is soaring in numerous countries as more and more young people color their locks, according to a medical journal. Adolescents At Risk From Poor Diet, Inactivity Most adolescents do not get enough exercise each day or maintain a healthy diet, according to researchers who analyzed the diet and exercise behaviors of 878, adolescents, 11 to 15 years old, and found that nearly 80 percent had multiple physical activity and dietary risk behaviors. Get Off The Couch With Wii Some of the video game industry�s smartest minds thought that couch potatoes wanted richer graphics and more challenging virtual worlds. It turns out that a lot of potatoes simply wanted to get off the couch. Know the Signs of Eating Disorders With more than half of teenage girls and nearly a third of boys using unhealthy behaviors to control their weight, experts at the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) offer 10 tips to catch the warning signs of anorexia or bulimia. Prescription Drug Ads Leave Out Risks, Alternatives An analysis of television commercials for prescription drugs found that few mentioned risk factors or non-drug treatments for the conditions they target, scientists reported.