Diana Butterworth, a district nurse, is robustly sceptical of complementary medicine, preferring to stick to mainstream treatments. So she did not expect much from the kinesiologist (a practitioner of the alternative therapy that studies body movement) whom her inlaws suggested she consult about her back pain.
Butterworth arrived at the home of her husband’s parents near Andover, Hampshire, three years ago “somewhat crooked” after spending three days replanting her garden. “It must have been obvious to them as I got out of the car that I was in pain,” recalls Butterworth, 36, who lives in Bedfordshire with her husband William and three young sons. “I am fairly sure that I injured my upper spine lifting a patient badly during my nursing training, and my lower back stiffness could be to do with the fact that I’m 5ft 10in. Things have got worse since I turned 30. I began to have a sharp pain that took my breath away when I made a sudden movement; for example, when I was changing nappies, or unloading the dishwasher.”
Butterworth had visited her GP, who referred her to a physiotherapist. Six sessions brought the pain under control, but within a year she was stiffening up again. “The pain kept me awake at night and my back felt sore as I put my feet on the ground in the morning.” She felt she had little to lose when her inlaws suggested a visit to the kinesiologist Katharine Graves, who lives near by.
Medical practitioners tend to regard it as among the wackier complementary therapies and rigorous clinical trials have failed to prove that it works. At the core of the therapy lies the concept of muscle testing. According to kinesiologists, the behaviour of certain muscles can reveal where a patient’s problems lie and give clues as to how he or she should be treated.
“Everybody who comes to see me says it is weird,” admits Graves. “And if they don’t say it, I do, because it needs to be said. But I see it work every day and sometimes the results seem miraculous. Just one session can be enough to resolve problems that have gone on for years.”
Having established that Butterworth was suffering from back pain, Graves used muscle testing to determine how best to treat it. Applying light pressure to her patient’s outstretched right arm with one hand, she touched the thumb of her other hand to each of her fingers in turn. When Graves’s thumb and second finger met, Butterworth’s arm involuntarily dropped down, indicating that her pain had an emotional component. “The amazing thing about kinesiology is that it tells you with complete precision where the problem is and what the body needs to treat it,” says Graves. “If you have had a bad back for a while, there may well be worries and tensions going on that are emotional.”
Allowing the energy to flow
With her patient lying on the couch fully clothed, Graves tested the 14 meridians (energy points) in Butterworth’s body, touching them to check whether energy was flowing through them freely. Where she felt blockages, she applied gentle pressure to known acupressure points.
“Different muscles relate to each meridian. With one hand, you hold the acupressure point on a meridian that lacks energy and link it via the other hand to a meridian that has energy: it’s rather like jump-starting a car. When the meridians come into synchronicity, you know the job is done. There’s usually some little sign such as a sigh, or a tummy rumble. When you check the body again, the arm will not drop.”
Butterworth admits that she found the whole process extraordinary. “My arm would suddenly drop as if I had no control over it. At the beginning of the treatment I felt quite sharp pain when Katharine asked me to put my head in certain positions. After she had worked her way around my body, the pain had gone.
“Normally after a long bout of gardening I would expect my back to go into spasm and be even more painful than usual, but seeing Katharine was like taking antiinflammatories. I had no trouble at all afterwards and the treatment was incredibly relaxing.”
Source - Times
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Deodorant 'may be linked to breast cancer'
A link has been found between aluminium in deodorants and cancer, according to British scientists.
Tests found that women who used deodorants had deposits of aluminium in their outer breasts. The samples were taken from women who had undergone a mastectomy for breast cancer.
Aluminium is not normally found in the human body and scientists are reasonably convinced the presence of the metal means it is being absorbed from anti-perspirant sprays or roll ons. Most deodorants contain aluminium salts, because the metal is effective at stopping skin sweating.
Dr Chris Exley, from Keele University, who carried out the tests, has already raised concern about the aluminium content of sun creams, fearing it could put users at increased risk of developing skin cancer and Alzheimer's.
His small study involved measuring how much metal was found in breast tissue taken from 17 breast cancer patients who had mastectomies at Wythenshaw Hospital, Manchester.
He found that the aluminium content of breast tissue was significantly higher in the outer breast.
Dr Exley's study received funding from Genesis, a UK charity dedicated to preventing breast cancer. A report into his findings is to be published in the November issue of the Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry.
Dr Exley said: "We found there was a wide variation in concentrations of aluminium. Some patients had low concentrations while others had quite high concentrations. What we found among all the women is that they all had higher concentrations in the breast tissue closest to the underarm compared to more central tissue, for example below the nipple. "
Source - Daily Mail
Tests found that women who used deodorants had deposits of aluminium in their outer breasts. The samples were taken from women who had undergone a mastectomy for breast cancer.
Aluminium is not normally found in the human body and scientists are reasonably convinced the presence of the metal means it is being absorbed from anti-perspirant sprays or roll ons. Most deodorants contain aluminium salts, because the metal is effective at stopping skin sweating.
Dr Chris Exley, from Keele University, who carried out the tests, has already raised concern about the aluminium content of sun creams, fearing it could put users at increased risk of developing skin cancer and Alzheimer's.
His small study involved measuring how much metal was found in breast tissue taken from 17 breast cancer patients who had mastectomies at Wythenshaw Hospital, Manchester.
He found that the aluminium content of breast tissue was significantly higher in the outer breast.
Dr Exley's study received funding from Genesis, a UK charity dedicated to preventing breast cancer. A report into his findings is to be published in the November issue of the Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry.
Dr Exley said: "We found there was a wide variation in concentrations of aluminium. Some patients had low concentrations while others had quite high concentrations. What we found among all the women is that they all had higher concentrations in the breast tissue closest to the underarm compared to more central tissue, for example below the nipple. "
Source - Daily Mail
Reduce the juice
Drinking smoothies instead of eating the fruit is no quick nutrition fix.
There’s nothing like a fruit juice to leave you feeling cleansed, nutrient-pumped and virtuous.
Yes, mineral water is calorie-free, but it does not have the detoxing, immune system-boosting properties that you are supposed to get from a glass or bottle of something that has been freshly squeezed, pulped or pressed. So taken are we with the concept of juicing our way to looking and feeling good that we collectively guzzled our way through 34m litres of smoothies last year.
This sounds like good news for a nation that persistently fails to meet the recommended target of five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, managing, on average, only a paltry two servings. Surely our juiceaholic tendencies are a step in the right direction? Some experts think not, claiming instead that we are being misled by the marketing practices of the soft-drinks industry into thinking the more smoothies and juices we drink, the better.
“It is a misconception to think that these drinks make up for other dietary failings,” says Catherine Collins, the chief dietician at St George’s hospital in south London. “Actually, they are nowhere near as good for you as consuming a fruit or vegetable in its whole, unaltered state.”
During the juicing process, fibre, pith and sometimes skin are removed. “These are important, nutrient-rich parts of a fruit or vegetable, and one of the reasons they are so good for us,” says Anna Denny, a nutrition scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation. “A whole apple or mango is far more beneficial than a juiced one.” It is for this reason that guidelines produced by the World Health Organisation and the Department of Health state that a smoothie or glass of juice should constitute no more than one of the recommended daily fruit and vegetable servings.
Source - Times
There’s nothing like a fruit juice to leave you feeling cleansed, nutrient-pumped and virtuous.
Yes, mineral water is calorie-free, but it does not have the detoxing, immune system-boosting properties that you are supposed to get from a glass or bottle of something that has been freshly squeezed, pulped or pressed. So taken are we with the concept of juicing our way to looking and feeling good that we collectively guzzled our way through 34m litres of smoothies last year.
This sounds like good news for a nation that persistently fails to meet the recommended target of five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, managing, on average, only a paltry two servings. Surely our juiceaholic tendencies are a step in the right direction? Some experts think not, claiming instead that we are being misled by the marketing practices of the soft-drinks industry into thinking the more smoothies and juices we drink, the better.
“It is a misconception to think that these drinks make up for other dietary failings,” says Catherine Collins, the chief dietician at St George’s hospital in south London. “Actually, they are nowhere near as good for you as consuming a fruit or vegetable in its whole, unaltered state.”
During the juicing process, fibre, pith and sometimes skin are removed. “These are important, nutrient-rich parts of a fruit or vegetable, and one of the reasons they are so good for us,” says Anna Denny, a nutrition scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation. “A whole apple or mango is far more beneficial than a juiced one.” It is for this reason that guidelines produced by the World Health Organisation and the Department of Health state that a smoothie or glass of juice should constitute no more than one of the recommended daily fruit and vegetable servings.
Source - Times
Cutting down on sleep 'a recipe for heart disease'
People who deprive themselves of sleep may be more likely to die of heart disease, researchers have found.
A new study has identified a link between lack of sleep, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.
An analysis of more than 6,500 people also found that women getting less than five hours' sleep were twice as likely to have hypertension as men. Hypertension - chronically high blood pressure - is a risk factor for heart disease, Britain's biggest killer.
Researchers said the results were "highly suggestive" that sleep deprivation may be also linked to death from cardiovascular disease.
Almost one in three people gets less than five hours' sleep a night, while half the population gets less than seven hours.
Francesco Cappuccio, professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Warwick Medical School, said: "We found lack of sleep is not only linked to a greater chance of developing high blood pressure but is also linked to increased death from cardiovascular causes. It is a stark finding but the results are highly suggestive of a causal link."
He will present his research later this month at the British Sleep Society's annual meeting in Cambridge.
Source - Daily Mail
A new study has identified a link between lack of sleep, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.
An analysis of more than 6,500 people also found that women getting less than five hours' sleep were twice as likely to have hypertension as men. Hypertension - chronically high blood pressure - is a risk factor for heart disease, Britain's biggest killer.
Researchers said the results were "highly suggestive" that sleep deprivation may be also linked to death from cardiovascular disease.
Almost one in three people gets less than five hours' sleep a night, while half the population gets less than seven hours.
Francesco Cappuccio, professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Warwick Medical School, said: "We found lack of sleep is not only linked to a greater chance of developing high blood pressure but is also linked to increased death from cardiovascular causes. It is a stark finding but the results are highly suggestive of a causal link."
He will present his research later this month at the British Sleep Society's annual meeting in Cambridge.
Source - Daily Mail
'My son's diet made him hyperactive'
Helen Buniak describes her son Lee as a "Jekyll and Hyde" character. "He'd be a lovely, good little boy most of the time, but then he would become suddenly very aggressive, with these massive tantrums."
For the first eight years of his life, she said, she had no idea of the reason behind it. Then she noticed a coincidence.
Lee had five "episodes" in close succession, and Helen, from London, realised that each one had followed the birthday of a classmate - which meant the handing out of sweets by parents at the school gate. "I realised that there was something in those sweets that was making him behave like that," she says.
Complete change
No-one had mentioned the possibility that food additives or ingredients might be to blame, and she turned to the Hyperactive Children's Support Group for health.
They recommended a diet which involved removing foods which included additives, then gradually reintroducing them.
"Lee had a normal diet, but there were so many things that had additives - meat pies and bacon as well as sweets, fizzy drinks and crisps."
The effect was immediate, she says.
Source - BBC
For the first eight years of his life, she said, she had no idea of the reason behind it. Then she noticed a coincidence.
Lee had five "episodes" in close succession, and Helen, from London, realised that each one had followed the birthday of a classmate - which meant the handing out of sweets by parents at the school gate. "I realised that there was something in those sweets that was making him behave like that," she says.
Complete change
No-one had mentioned the possibility that food additives or ingredients might be to blame, and she turned to the Hyperactive Children's Support Group for health.
They recommended a diet which involved removing foods which included additives, then gradually reintroducing them.
"Lee had a normal diet, but there were so many things that had additives - meat pies and bacon as well as sweets, fizzy drinks and crisps."
The effect was immediate, she says.
Source - BBC
Natural deodorants: Scent packing
The battle to smell fresh has raged for centuries. The ancient Egyptians shaved underarm then slapped on citrus oils and spices. The Greeks and Romans blended deodorising perfumes.
Nowadays we have a full arsenal of chemicals at our disposal - chemicals that do not just mask the smell of sweat, but block the ducts and prevent perspiration from emerging in the first place. Have we gone too far?
A recent study found high levels of aluminium - a common ingredient in modern anti-perspirants - in the breast tissue of cancer patients who had undergone mastectomies.
Cancer Research UK maintains that there is absolutely no link between deodorants and breast cancer but I cannot help regarding my chemical-packed antiperspirant with some ill-informed distrust. It could be time to get less high-tech about smelling good.
Body odour is caused not by perspiration itself but by the bacterial breakdown of it. Deodorants simply mask the pong. Antiperspirants go a step further, plugging the ducts to stop the perspiration from emerging (aluminium compounds react with the electrolytes in perspiration to form a gel plug in the duct of the sweat gland).
Source - Telegraph
Nowadays we have a full arsenal of chemicals at our disposal - chemicals that do not just mask the smell of sweat, but block the ducts and prevent perspiration from emerging in the first place. Have we gone too far?
A recent study found high levels of aluminium - a common ingredient in modern anti-perspirants - in the breast tissue of cancer patients who had undergone mastectomies.
Cancer Research UK maintains that there is absolutely no link between deodorants and breast cancer but I cannot help regarding my chemical-packed antiperspirant with some ill-informed distrust. It could be time to get less high-tech about smelling good.
Body odour is caused not by perspiration itself but by the bacterial breakdown of it. Deodorants simply mask the pong. Antiperspirants go a step further, plugging the ducts to stop the perspiration from emerging (aluminium compounds react with the electrolytes in perspiration to form a gel plug in the duct of the sweat gland).
Source - Telegraph
An hour down the salt mine is like a day at the seaside
On first impressions, Britain's first therapeutic "salt cave" – designed to alleviate a range of respiratory and skin conditions, including asthma and psoriasis, and to reduce the effects of stress – seems rather incongruous.It isn't just the location, on the ground floor of a square 1970s building in a modern part of Bath, far from any natural geological feature.
Nor is it just the touch of Disney in the appearance – it is lined with pink, white and grey translucent salt rocks lit from behind and patterned like Palaeolithic paintings, with plaster stalactites on the ceiling and a water feature to one side.
No, for me, the oddest thing was the deckchairs. They looked out of place in the sombrely lit room, so far from any sunshine. "But they were really comfortable," one customer told me later: a frazzled mother from York who booked a 45-minute session with a friend for a bit of pampering.
The chairs were nearly my nemesis. A CD of repetitively calming music came on, the lights behind the salt rock panels became more intense, and gentle snoring filled the room as my companions-in-salt dozed off, tucked up in large blankets in case we got cold in the salt-air micro-climate that would swirl around us for the next 45 minutes.
Source - Telegraph
Nor is it just the touch of Disney in the appearance – it is lined with pink, white and grey translucent salt rocks lit from behind and patterned like Palaeolithic paintings, with plaster stalactites on the ceiling and a water feature to one side.
No, for me, the oddest thing was the deckchairs. They looked out of place in the sombrely lit room, so far from any sunshine. "But they were really comfortable," one customer told me later: a frazzled mother from York who booked a 45-minute session with a friend for a bit of pampering.
The chairs were nearly my nemesis. A CD of repetitively calming music came on, the lights behind the salt rock panels became more intense, and gentle snoring filled the room as my companions-in-salt dozed off, tucked up in large blankets in case we got cold in the salt-air micro-climate that would swirl around us for the next 45 minutes.
Source - Telegraph
Subtracting the additives
Parents and experts want food without additives to protect children’s health. So what will the manufacturers do?
The lemonade bottle had been squatting at the bottom of my fridge, supposedly on hand for an emergency Pimm’s. It shivered there for about four months, only a quarter of it drunk, before I decided to tip the contents down the sink (I prefer emergency Bellinis). That’s when I noticed the sell-by date: June 2008.
Without sodium benzoate, otherwise known as E211, my lemonade would have gone off more quickly, perhaps a couple of weeks after I purchased it in early 2007. In fact, I may not have been able to buy it at all.
“If we got rid of preservatives, we might not have the same range of products on the supermarket shelf,” says Christine Welberry, from the Food and Drink Federation, which represents manufacturers. “It might not be viable to manufacture a product and put it in the shops if it has only a few days before it goes off.
“Shelf life is a consumer convenience, as well as being part and parcel of the food chain. The consumer wants the product in her store cupboard for long enough to be useful to her. And all manufacturers make products based on consumer demand, so people obviously want to buy these products.”
Source - Times
The lemonade bottle had been squatting at the bottom of my fridge, supposedly on hand for an emergency Pimm’s. It shivered there for about four months, only a quarter of it drunk, before I decided to tip the contents down the sink (I prefer emergency Bellinis). That’s when I noticed the sell-by date: June 2008.
Without sodium benzoate, otherwise known as E211, my lemonade would have gone off more quickly, perhaps a couple of weeks after I purchased it in early 2007. In fact, I may not have been able to buy it at all.
“If we got rid of preservatives, we might not have the same range of products on the supermarket shelf,” says Christine Welberry, from the Food and Drink Federation, which represents manufacturers. “It might not be viable to manufacture a product and put it in the shops if it has only a few days before it goes off.
“Shelf life is a consumer convenience, as well as being part and parcel of the food chain. The consumer wants the product in her store cupboard for long enough to be useful to her. And all manufacturers make products based on consumer demand, so people obviously want to buy these products.”
Source - Times
Asthma risks ‘double’ during menopause
Women who go through the menopause have nearly double the risk of suffering respiratory diseases such as asthma, but could protect themselves by taking HRT, research suggests.
Rates of asthma were found to nearly double in menopausal women compared with normally menstruating women, an effect attributed to falling oestrogen levels during and after the menopause.
The studies, presented yesterday to the annual Congress of the European Respiratory Society in Stockholm, are the first to show that the hormone has an important role to play in lung protection and repair. Problems with breathing and reduced lung function were particularly pronounced for those women who were very thin or overweight.
Although the exact protective role of oestrogen is not yet known, the findings suggest that women who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may avoid some of the problems.
Francisco Gomez Real from the University of Bergen, Norway, who led the research, said: “Women who have not menstruated in more than six months have more respiratory symptoms and lower lung function.” This can be explained by the fact that although oestrogen is reduced in all women following menopause, thinner women have the lowest amounts.
Source - Times
Rates of asthma were found to nearly double in menopausal women compared with normally menstruating women, an effect attributed to falling oestrogen levels during and after the menopause.
The studies, presented yesterday to the annual Congress of the European Respiratory Society in Stockholm, are the first to show that the hormone has an important role to play in lung protection and repair. Problems with breathing and reduced lung function were particularly pronounced for those women who were very thin or overweight.
Although the exact protective role of oestrogen is not yet known, the findings suggest that women who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may avoid some of the problems.
Francisco Gomez Real from the University of Bergen, Norway, who led the research, said: “Women who have not menstruated in more than six months have more respiratory symptoms and lower lung function.” This can be explained by the fact that although oestrogen is reduced in all women following menopause, thinner women have the lowest amounts.
Source - Times
Do square meals create well-rounded pupils?
A year-long pilot study to ascertain the effect of healthy school meals on children’s behaviour and performance is starting today.
Pupils at eight primary schools are being given free, nutritious breakfasts, lunches or snacks for the rest of the academic year while researchers analyse the children’s weight, achievement, motivation, ability to concentrate and level of illness.
The results from the schools in North Tyneside will be compared with students from ten nearby schools that will not be offering free food.
A dramatic difference in behaviour and attendance was noticed when schools in Hull decided to offer free meals to all children in an attempt to remove the stigma and improve uptake of the scheme, which is normally available only to children from poor backgrounds. But the policy was scrapped this month for cost reasons and the number of pupils having a school meal has reportedly slumped.
Under the new £250,000 scheme, the schools will serve healthy food at different times, with researchers studying the children from the start of the day. Two schools each will offer breakfast, morning snacks, lunch or morning and afternoon snacks.
Leaders of North Tyneside Council intend to introduce the most successful option into all of its primary schools from next September, as obesity affects 15 per cent of under11s in the borough. For breakfast the children can have cereal, toast and spread, a piece of fruit and orange juice or milk. The mid-morning snack choices will include a cheese-topped bun, sultana bun, date whirl, fruit and orange juice. Those having two snacks a day will have fruit and milk in the morning, with the same choice as above in the afternoon. The pupils having school lunches will eat meals such as low-fat sausage in onion gravy with parsley potatoes, plus vegetables or salad and pudding or fresh fruit.
Source - Times
Pupils at eight primary schools are being given free, nutritious breakfasts, lunches or snacks for the rest of the academic year while researchers analyse the children’s weight, achievement, motivation, ability to concentrate and level of illness.
The results from the schools in North Tyneside will be compared with students from ten nearby schools that will not be offering free food.
A dramatic difference in behaviour and attendance was noticed when schools in Hull decided to offer free meals to all children in an attempt to remove the stigma and improve uptake of the scheme, which is normally available only to children from poor backgrounds. But the policy was scrapped this month for cost reasons and the number of pupils having a school meal has reportedly slumped.
Under the new £250,000 scheme, the schools will serve healthy food at different times, with researchers studying the children from the start of the day. Two schools each will offer breakfast, morning snacks, lunch or morning and afternoon snacks.
Leaders of North Tyneside Council intend to introduce the most successful option into all of its primary schools from next September, as obesity affects 15 per cent of under11s in the borough. For breakfast the children can have cereal, toast and spread, a piece of fruit and orange juice or milk. The mid-morning snack choices will include a cheese-topped bun, sultana bun, date whirl, fruit and orange juice. Those having two snacks a day will have fruit and milk in the morning, with the same choice as above in the afternoon. The pupils having school lunches will eat meals such as low-fat sausage in onion gravy with parsley potatoes, plus vegetables or salad and pudding or fresh fruit.
Source - Times
Consumers 'confused about diet'
Many Britons are unaware how to follow a healthy, balanced diet, the official food watchdog has said.
A survey by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) suggests widespread ignorance about how much starchy food like rice, bread and pasta should be eaten. And there is confusion over what can contribute towards the target "five a day" intake of fruit and vegetables.
Conflicting messages from different weight-loss diets could be responsible for the misconceptions, says the FSA.
Only 11% of people correctly said it was important to eat lots of starchy foods, the survey of 2,094 people found. The FSA has re-designed the image it uses to show what makes up a healthy diet - the newly-designed "eatwell plate" uses photos of different foods and renames some food groups.
Source - BBC
A survey by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) suggests widespread ignorance about how much starchy food like rice, bread and pasta should be eaten. And there is confusion over what can contribute towards the target "five a day" intake of fruit and vegetables.
Conflicting messages from different weight-loss diets could be responsible for the misconceptions, says the FSA.
Only 11% of people correctly said it was important to eat lots of starchy foods, the survey of 2,094 people found. The FSA has re-designed the image it uses to show what makes up a healthy diet - the newly-designed "eatwell plate" uses photos of different foods and renames some food groups.
Source - BBC
Mixing coffee and paracetamol 'could cause liver damage'
Coffee addicts are being warned against mixing the drink with paracetamol.
Caffeine can react with the painkiller to cause liver damage, say scientists. In large amounts, for susceptible people, the effects could be fatal.
Overdoses of paracetamol are well-known to cause potentiallyfatal liver damage, but now scientists have shown that combining coffee with the drug could also prove deadly. The danger from paracetamol, the world's most popular painkiller, comes from a toxic enzyme created when the drug is broken down by the liver.
In their experiments, U.S. scientists created this enzyme artificially using geneticallyengineered bacteria, then added caffeine to the mix. They found levels of the dangerous toxin tripled when caffeine was present. The toxin also causes potentially-fatal liver damage when the painkiller is taken with large amounts of alcohol.
Researcher Dr Sidney Nelson, of the University of Washington in Seattle, said: 'People should be informed about this potentially harmful interaction.
'The bottom line is that you don't have to stop taking paracetamol or caffeine products, but you do need to monitor your intake more carefully when taking them together, especially if you drink alcohol.'
He said a normal person would suffer adverse effects only if they drank 20 to 30 cups of strong coffee a day while taking the painkiller.
However, some people would be more susceptible, such as those taking anti-epilepsy medicines, or St John's wort, a herbal antidepressant. Both of these boost levels of the enzyme involved.
Source - Daily Mail
Caffeine can react with the painkiller to cause liver damage, say scientists. In large amounts, for susceptible people, the effects could be fatal.
Overdoses of paracetamol are well-known to cause potentiallyfatal liver damage, but now scientists have shown that combining coffee with the drug could also prove deadly. The danger from paracetamol, the world's most popular painkiller, comes from a toxic enzyme created when the drug is broken down by the liver.
In their experiments, U.S. scientists created this enzyme artificially using geneticallyengineered bacteria, then added caffeine to the mix. They found levels of the dangerous toxin tripled when caffeine was present. The toxin also causes potentially-fatal liver damage when the painkiller is taken with large amounts of alcohol.
Researcher Dr Sidney Nelson, of the University of Washington in Seattle, said: 'People should be informed about this potentially harmful interaction.
'The bottom line is that you don't have to stop taking paracetamol or caffeine products, but you do need to monitor your intake more carefully when taking them together, especially if you drink alcohol.'
He said a normal person would suffer adverse effects only if they drank 20 to 30 cups of strong coffee a day while taking the painkiller.
However, some people would be more susceptible, such as those taking anti-epilepsy medicines, or St John's wort, a herbal antidepressant. Both of these boost levels of the enzyme involved.
Source - Daily Mail
E-numbers 'can do psychological harm to children'
The food watchdog was accused yesterday of "chickening out" of tough action on additives.
In the face of unequivocal evidence of the potential harm to children, delivered in person by an eminent university researcher, the Food Standards Agency fudged a decision on what to do next.
Professor Jim Stevenson, author of a breakthrough study on additives, told the FSA board yesterday that additives used in thousands of sweets, cakes and processed foods "damage the psychological health of children".
His research at Southampton University found that healthy children become hyperactive after consuming a mix of artificial colours and preservatives. He made it clear that the evidence is strong enough to justify a ban under European law, which requires a country to show that a food product constitutes "a serious or imminent risk to human health".
Asked if the evidence shows a serious risk to human health, Professor Stevenson said: "I think in terms of psychological health it does. We know that hyperactivity in a young child is a risk factor for, for example, later difficulties in school. Certainly it is associated with difficulties in learning to read. It is also associated with wider behavioural difficulties in middle childhood, such as conduct disorder. "
"I feel that the effects we are seeing here are sufficiently great to represent a threat to health."
Source Daily Mail
In the face of unequivocal evidence of the potential harm to children, delivered in person by an eminent university researcher, the Food Standards Agency fudged a decision on what to do next.
Professor Jim Stevenson, author of a breakthrough study on additives, told the FSA board yesterday that additives used in thousands of sweets, cakes and processed foods "damage the psychological health of children".
His research at Southampton University found that healthy children become hyperactive after consuming a mix of artificial colours and preservatives. He made it clear that the evidence is strong enough to justify a ban under European law, which requires a country to show that a food product constitutes "a serious or imminent risk to human health".
Asked if the evidence shows a serious risk to human health, Professor Stevenson said: "I think in terms of psychological health it does. We know that hyperactivity in a young child is a risk factor for, for example, later difficulties in school. Certainly it is associated with difficulties in learning to read. It is also associated with wider behavioural difficulties in middle childhood, such as conduct disorder. "
"I feel that the effects we are seeing here are sufficiently great to represent a threat to health."
Source Daily Mail
Using your mobile over an hour a day 'can harm hearing'
Using a mobile phone for more than hour a day could damage hearing, experts have warned.
Research shows that those who regularly use their mobile for longer than an hour a day find it harder to hear - with words starting with the letters s, f, h, t and z proving particularly troublesome.
The study, presented to an ear, nose and throat conference in the U.S. this week, comes as mobile phone use in Britain soars to record levels.
There are 70 million handsets in use in the UK, which are used to make a third of all calls. The latest research compared the hearing of 100 mobile phone users aged between 18 and 25 with that of 50 others who did not use mobiles.
This showed a link between longterm regular usage and hearing loss, with those who used their mobile for more than an hour a day for more than four years tending to find it harder to distinguish sounds.
The problem was particularly noticeable in the right ear, to which most people hold their phone.
High-frequency sounds, such as those made by the letters s, f, h, t and z, were most likely to pose a difficulty, making it hard to distinguish between words such as hill, fill and till.
Source - Daily Mail
Research shows that those who regularly use their mobile for longer than an hour a day find it harder to hear - with words starting with the letters s, f, h, t and z proving particularly troublesome.
The study, presented to an ear, nose and throat conference in the U.S. this week, comes as mobile phone use in Britain soars to record levels.
There are 70 million handsets in use in the UK, which are used to make a third of all calls. The latest research compared the hearing of 100 mobile phone users aged between 18 and 25 with that of 50 others who did not use mobiles.
This showed a link between longterm regular usage and hearing loss, with those who used their mobile for more than an hour a day for more than four years tending to find it harder to distinguish sounds.
The problem was particularly noticeable in the right ear, to which most people hold their phone.
High-frequency sounds, such as those made by the letters s, f, h, t and z, were most likely to pose a difficulty, making it hard to distinguish between words such as hill, fill and till.
Source - Daily Mail
Starchy diet 'may damage liver'
A diet rich in potatoes, white bread and white rice may be contributing to a "silent epidemic" of a dangerous liver condition.
"High-glycaemic" foods - rapidly digested by the body - could be causing "fatty liver", increasing the risk of serious illness. Boston-based researchers, writing in the journal Obesity, found mice fed starchy foods developed the disease.
Those those fed a similar quantity of other foods did not.
One obesity expert said fatty liver in today's children was "a tragedy of the future". Fatty liver is exactly as it sounds - a build-up over time of fat deposits around the organ.
At the time, no ill-effects are felt, but it has been linked with a higher risk of potentially fatal liver failure later in life.
The study, carried out at Boston Children's Hospital, looked at the effect of diets with precisely the same calorific content, but very different ingredients when measured using the glycaemic index (GI).
Source - BBC
"High-glycaemic" foods - rapidly digested by the body - could be causing "fatty liver", increasing the risk of serious illness. Boston-based researchers, writing in the journal Obesity, found mice fed starchy foods developed the disease.
Those those fed a similar quantity of other foods did not.
One obesity expert said fatty liver in today's children was "a tragedy of the future". Fatty liver is exactly as it sounds - a build-up over time of fat deposits around the organ.
At the time, no ill-effects are felt, but it has been linked with a higher risk of potentially fatal liver failure later in life.
The study, carried out at Boston Children's Hospital, looked at the effect of diets with precisely the same calorific content, but very different ingredients when measured using the glycaemic index (GI).
Source - BBC
Avocados 'could prevent mouth cancer'
Avocados may prevent mouth cancer and reduce the rate of cancer cell growth, new research suggests.
Extracts from Hass avocados, readily available in supermarkets, were able to kill some oral cancer cells and prevented pre-cancerous cells from developing, according to scientists at Ohio State University.
They believe the fruit works because of its high level of phytochemicals - plant compounds thought to have health-protecting qualities, and often found in dark coloured fruit and vegetables.
Lead author, Steven D'Ambrosio, said their study was the first of its kind. "We think these phytochemicals either stop the growth of precancerous cells in the body or they kill the precancerous cells without affecting normal cells," he said.
Avocados are also full of beneficial antioxidants, including vitamin C, folate, vitamin E and unsaturated fats.
Mr D'Ambrosio said more research was needed into the benefits of avocados and other fruits on cancer cells.
"The future is ripe for identifying fruits and vegetables and individual phytonutrients with cancer preventing activity," he said.
The study will be published in the journal Seminars in Cancer Biology.
Source - Daily Mail
Extracts from Hass avocados, readily available in supermarkets, were able to kill some oral cancer cells and prevented pre-cancerous cells from developing, according to scientists at Ohio State University.
They believe the fruit works because of its high level of phytochemicals - plant compounds thought to have health-protecting qualities, and often found in dark coloured fruit and vegetables.
Lead author, Steven D'Ambrosio, said their study was the first of its kind. "We think these phytochemicals either stop the growth of precancerous cells in the body or they kill the precancerous cells without affecting normal cells," he said.
Avocados are also full of beneficial antioxidants, including vitamin C, folate, vitamin E and unsaturated fats.
Mr D'Ambrosio said more research was needed into the benefits of avocados and other fruits on cancer cells.
"The future is ripe for identifying fruits and vegetables and individual phytonutrients with cancer preventing activity," he said.
The study will be published in the journal Seminars in Cancer Biology.
Source - Daily Mail
Home mould removal 'eases asthma'
Asthma sufferers who remove mould from their homes could see an improvement in their symptoms, a Cardiff University study has found.
Half of the south Wales homes used in the research were cleaned of mould and ventilation was improved, and the other half were left mouldy for 12 months.
Asthma patients in the mould-free homes used their inhalers less and symptoms like sneezing lessened, said experts.
Charity Asthma UK said it wanted more research before conclusions were drawn.
Researchers at Cardiff University's School of Medicine studied 182 people with asthma living in 164 mouldy houses in two locations in south Wales.
Michael Burr, of the department for primary care said the removal of mould in half of the houses led to improvements in asthma symptoms, including runny or blocked noses and itchy-watery eyes.
Source - BBC
Half of the south Wales homes used in the research were cleaned of mould and ventilation was improved, and the other half were left mouldy for 12 months.
Asthma patients in the mould-free homes used their inhalers less and symptoms like sneezing lessened, said experts.
Charity Asthma UK said it wanted more research before conclusions were drawn.
Researchers at Cardiff University's School of Medicine studied 182 people with asthma living in 164 mouldy houses in two locations in south Wales.
Michael Burr, of the department for primary care said the removal of mould in half of the houses led to improvements in asthma symptoms, including runny or blocked noses and itchy-watery eyes.
Source - BBC
Parents warned of additives link
Parents have been warned of the effects of food additives on their children's behaviour after new research found a possible link to hyperactivity.
A Food Standards Agency (FSA) study of 300 random children found they behaved impulsively and lost concentration after a drink containing additives. The FSA now says hyperactive children might benefit from fewer additives. But experts said drugs rather than diet changes could improve behaviour more effectively in the most severe cases.
Dr Andrew Wadge, the FSA's chief scientist, said: "We have revised our advice to consumers: if a child shows signs of hyperactivity or ADHD then eliminating the colours used in the... study from their diet might have some beneficial effects."
He did say though there were many factors associated with hyperactivity including genes, being born prematurely, environment and upbringing. The FAS has met representatives of the UK food industry to talk about the study's implications, but food safety campaigners say it has not gone far enough.
Emma Hockridge, of the Soil Association, said the FSA should be taking a leading role in addressing the issue by undertaking initiatives to prevent the development of hyperactive disorders, through new policies to limit food additives.
The Food Commission called on food manufacturers to voluntarily remove additives from their products.
A spokesman said: "These artificial colourings may brighten up processed foods and drinks but it appears they have the potential to play havoc with some children's behaviour."
Source - BBC
A Food Standards Agency (FSA) study of 300 random children found they behaved impulsively and lost concentration after a drink containing additives. The FSA now says hyperactive children might benefit from fewer additives. But experts said drugs rather than diet changes could improve behaviour more effectively in the most severe cases.
Dr Andrew Wadge, the FSA's chief scientist, said: "We have revised our advice to consumers: if a child shows signs of hyperactivity or ADHD then eliminating the colours used in the... study from their diet might have some beneficial effects."
He did say though there were many factors associated with hyperactivity including genes, being born prematurely, environment and upbringing. The FAS has met representatives of the UK food industry to talk about the study's implications, but food safety campaigners say it has not gone far enough.
Emma Hockridge, of the Soil Association, said the FSA should be taking a leading role in addressing the issue by undertaking initiatives to prevent the development of hyperactive disorders, through new policies to limit food additives.
The Food Commission called on food manufacturers to voluntarily remove additives from their products.
A spokesman said: "These artificial colourings may brighten up processed foods and drinks but it appears they have the potential to play havoc with some children's behaviour."
Source - BBC
Bad sleeping 'doubles heart risk'
Researchers say both too much and too little sleep is linked to a doubled risk of fatal cardiovascular disease.
Teams from the University of Warwick and University College London examined sleep patterns and death rates over two decades among 10,308 civil servants.
They found a doubled risk among those who cut their sleeping from seven to five hours a night compared to those who stuck to seven hours a night.
But the risk was similar for those who increased to at least eight hours.
Source BBC News
Teams from the University of Warwick and University College London examined sleep patterns and death rates over two decades among 10,308 civil servants.
They found a doubled risk among those who cut their sleeping from seven to five hours a night compared to those who stuck to seven hours a night.
But the risk was similar for those who increased to at least eight hours.
Source BBC News
Remember, remember...
My mountain of shopping had just started along the conveyor belt towards the supermarket checkout when I realised I'd forgotten my purse. Oh, the pitying looks, as I piled it all back in the trolley and muttered an excuse – "I've just returned from holiday" – but I could hardly claim jet-lag from Venice. It was more proof that my brain is crumbling to mush.
I can't remember a time when I walked purposefully into a room and headed straight for the object I wanted. Being scatty does have its advantages. The cardiovascular workout that I get running up and down stairs, forgetting what I came for, means that I am fizzingly fit.
"But it's your brain that needs a workout," muttered a still, small voice. Yes, I'm talking to myself as well.
I'm a computer-literate, working grandmother but I'm useless at sudoku and easily bored with crosswords. So how fit is my brain?
A 40-year-old friend had tested his with Nintendo's multi-million-selling Brain Training computer program. This gives a sensational instant assessment of your "brain age".
"The trouble is," he told me, "one day it told me my brain age was 85 and the next day, on a different test, it was 25."
I'd read Telegraph science editor Roger Highfield's recent article about MindFit, the "mental gym" computer program. He described a two-year clinical trial which assigned 121 volunteers, aged 50-plus, to use either MindFit or a variety of other "brain games".
MindFit users experienced a significantly greater improvement than others, and in a variety of areas, such as short-term memory (15 per cent improvement) and simple reaction time (19 per cent improvement).
That's the "science bit", as Jennifer Aniston used to say in the shampoo commercial. But for fiftysomething babyboomers like me, MindFit looks like a practical and positive way to fight off those "what was I saying?" moments, when names, places and reading glasses prove hard to locate.
Source - Telegraph
I can't remember a time when I walked purposefully into a room and headed straight for the object I wanted. Being scatty does have its advantages. The cardiovascular workout that I get running up and down stairs, forgetting what I came for, means that I am fizzingly fit.
"But it's your brain that needs a workout," muttered a still, small voice. Yes, I'm talking to myself as well.
I'm a computer-literate, working grandmother but I'm useless at sudoku and easily bored with crosswords. So how fit is my brain?
A 40-year-old friend had tested his with Nintendo's multi-million-selling Brain Training computer program. This gives a sensational instant assessment of your "brain age".
"The trouble is," he told me, "one day it told me my brain age was 85 and the next day, on a different test, it was 25."
I'd read Telegraph science editor Roger Highfield's recent article about MindFit, the "mental gym" computer program. He described a two-year clinical trial which assigned 121 volunteers, aged 50-plus, to use either MindFit or a variety of other "brain games".
MindFit users experienced a significantly greater improvement than others, and in a variety of areas, such as short-term memory (15 per cent improvement) and simple reaction time (19 per cent improvement).
That's the "science bit", as Jennifer Aniston used to say in the shampoo commercial. But for fiftysomething babyboomers like me, MindFit looks like a practical and positive way to fight off those "what was I saying?" moments, when names, places and reading glasses prove hard to locate.
Source - Telegraph
Children with dyspraxia 'falsely labelled naughty'
Thousands of children who have dyspraxia are misunderstood and unfairly labelled, according to a survey published today.
Sometimes unkindly referred to as "clumsy child" syndrome, developmental dyspraxia is an impairment of the organisation of movement which can lead to problems with coordination and simple day-to-day tasks many people take for granted.
But almost three-quarters of people questioned in a nationwide poll admitted that they thought behavioural and learning problems, common to conditions such as dyspraxia, were simply an excuse for naughty or disruptive children.
The survey was published to launch Dyspraxia Awareness Week, which starts today, and was commissioned by the Dyspraxia Foundation, which this year marks its 20th anniversary.
About half of the respondents said they had heard of dyspraxia - but when questioned further, less than a third (31 per cent) said they actually knew or understood what the condition was and how the daily lives of sufferers were affected.
Familiar symptoms of dyspraxia include frequent falling over, difficulty walking up and down stairs, problems in dressing, and lack of spatial awareness.
Source - Daily Mail
Sometimes unkindly referred to as "clumsy child" syndrome, developmental dyspraxia is an impairment of the organisation of movement which can lead to problems with coordination and simple day-to-day tasks many people take for granted.
But almost three-quarters of people questioned in a nationwide poll admitted that they thought behavioural and learning problems, common to conditions such as dyspraxia, were simply an excuse for naughty or disruptive children.
The survey was published to launch Dyspraxia Awareness Week, which starts today, and was commissioned by the Dyspraxia Foundation, which this year marks its 20th anniversary.
About half of the respondents said they had heard of dyspraxia - but when questioned further, less than a third (31 per cent) said they actually knew or understood what the condition was and how the daily lives of sufferers were affected.
Familiar symptoms of dyspraxia include frequent falling over, difficulty walking up and down stairs, problems in dressing, and lack of spatial awareness.
Source - Daily Mail
Bad sleeping 'doubles heart risk'
Researchers say both too much and too little sleep is linked to a doubled risk of fatal cardiovascular disease.
Teams from the University of Warwick and University College London examined sleep patterns and death rates among 10,308 civil servants.
They found a doubled risk among those who cut their sleeping from seven to five hours a night compared to those who stuck to seven hours a night. But the risk was similar for those who increased to at least eight hours. The research, to be presented to the British Sleep Society, was based on data taken in 1985-88 and on follow up information collected in 1992-93.
The researchers took into account other possible factors such age, sex, marital status, employment grade, smoking status and physical activity. Once they had adjusted for those factors they were able to isolate the effect that changes in sleep patterns over five years had on mortality rates 11-17 years later.
Those who cut their sleeping from seven to five hours a night had twice the risk of a fatal cardiovascular problem of those who stuck to the recommended seven hours a night - and a 1.7 increased risk of death from all causes.
Source - BBC
Teams from the University of Warwick and University College London examined sleep patterns and death rates among 10,308 civil servants.
They found a doubled risk among those who cut their sleeping from seven to five hours a night compared to those who stuck to seven hours a night. But the risk was similar for those who increased to at least eight hours. The research, to be presented to the British Sleep Society, was based on data taken in 1985-88 and on follow up information collected in 1992-93.
The researchers took into account other possible factors such age, sex, marital status, employment grade, smoking status and physical activity. Once they had adjusted for those factors they were able to isolate the effect that changes in sleep patterns over five years had on mortality rates 11-17 years later.
Those who cut their sleeping from seven to five hours a night had twice the risk of a fatal cardiovascular problem of those who stuck to the recommended seven hours a night - and a 1.7 increased risk of death from all causes.
Source - BBC
Bordeaux benefits
Health-giving antioxidants exist not only in the region’s wine but also in the bark of its local pines
About 120 people will go to Château Rauzan-Ségla in Bordeaux within the next ten days to pick its grapes. Eighty per cent of the pickers will be regulars and none will be holidaymakers keen to lark around in vats while they squeeze grape juice between their feet and nibble the fruit. Vats are now glistening metallic tanks, as shiny and clean as a guardsman’s cap badge. Successful vinification, the production of the wine, and viticulture, the growing of the grapes, is now a matter of balancing nature and science. The days of including sweat and skin from holidaymakers’ feet in a grand crû classe wine have passed.
Had it not been for the marriage of science with years of experience, this year’s grape harvest could have been a disaster, without even one bottle of wine being produced on some estates. This has happened at one château where everything is so organic that nature is unfettered.
At Château Rauzan-Ségla the vineyard and the vinification has become a model of what vine-growing and wine-making should be since it was bought by Chanel in 1994. The pruning, cultivation and harvesting are carefully controlled, but chemicals are used as little as possible. This year, without any sprays, the mildew would have rotted the grapes. As it is, the château will have a reasonable harvest and although the vintage is unlikely to be exceptional it will still be drunk with pleasure in years to come.
Research reported this week at the annual science conference in York confirmed the value to health of a modest intake of wine.There are endless examples of the value of the vitamins, antioxidants and trace elements in fruit and vegetables, but doctors remain chary of recommending supplements.
Yet natural substances are important. For example, an analysis published in The Archives of Internal Medicine by scientists working in Lyons and Milan, who are studying cancer, compared the results from 57,000 people involved in 18 surveys, and concluded that those who have vitamin D supplements have a 7 per cent lower death rate than those who don’t. The supplements of the vitamin folic acid are now known to be essential for women expecting to become pregnant if they are to lower their risk of having a baby with neurological abnormalities. Recently research has shown that if the incidence of macular degeneration of the eye is to be reduced, vitamin supplements, rather than a well-balanced diet, will be needed
Source - Times
About 120 people will go to Château Rauzan-Ségla in Bordeaux within the next ten days to pick its grapes. Eighty per cent of the pickers will be regulars and none will be holidaymakers keen to lark around in vats while they squeeze grape juice between their feet and nibble the fruit. Vats are now glistening metallic tanks, as shiny and clean as a guardsman’s cap badge. Successful vinification, the production of the wine, and viticulture, the growing of the grapes, is now a matter of balancing nature and science. The days of including sweat and skin from holidaymakers’ feet in a grand crû classe wine have passed.
Had it not been for the marriage of science with years of experience, this year’s grape harvest could have been a disaster, without even one bottle of wine being produced on some estates. This has happened at one château where everything is so organic that nature is unfettered.
At Château Rauzan-Ségla the vineyard and the vinification has become a model of what vine-growing and wine-making should be since it was bought by Chanel in 1994. The pruning, cultivation and harvesting are carefully controlled, but chemicals are used as little as possible. This year, without any sprays, the mildew would have rotted the grapes. As it is, the château will have a reasonable harvest and although the vintage is unlikely to be exceptional it will still be drunk with pleasure in years to come.
Research reported this week at the annual science conference in York confirmed the value to health of a modest intake of wine.There are endless examples of the value of the vitamins, antioxidants and trace elements in fruit and vegetables, but doctors remain chary of recommending supplements.
Yet natural substances are important. For example, an analysis published in The Archives of Internal Medicine by scientists working in Lyons and Milan, who are studying cancer, compared the results from 57,000 people involved in 18 surveys, and concluded that those who have vitamin D supplements have a 7 per cent lower death rate than those who don’t. The supplements of the vitamin folic acid are now known to be essential for women expecting to become pregnant if they are to lower their risk of having a baby with neurological abnormalities. Recently research has shown that if the incidence of macular degeneration of the eye is to be reduced, vitamin supplements, rather than a well-balanced diet, will be needed
Source - Times
Pregnant women told 'eat peanuts to protect your babies from allergies'
Mothers who shield their babies from peanut products may be doing more harm than good, a major report will warn next week.
It suggests that Britain's allergy epidemic is being fuelled by Government advice which has led many mothers to stop eating peanuts during pregnancy and to avoid giving them to children at an early age.
The dramatic findings of a House of Lords committee follow a series of authoritative studies showing that allergy rates are low, or non-existent, in countries where babies are weaned on peanuts.
In contrast, Britain has witnessed a surge in childhood allergies in the last decade, with up to eight per cent of youngsters experiencing a reaction before they go to school.
The science and technology committee's allergy report is expected to call on the Department of Health to change its official advice.
Ministers have admitted that their guidelines – which state that babies may be at higher risk of developing a nut allergy if the mother or father have a history of asthma, eczema or hay fever – may be 'entirely wrong and counter-productive'.
Source - Daily Mail
It suggests that Britain's allergy epidemic is being fuelled by Government advice which has led many mothers to stop eating peanuts during pregnancy and to avoid giving them to children at an early age.
The dramatic findings of a House of Lords committee follow a series of authoritative studies showing that allergy rates are low, or non-existent, in countries where babies are weaned on peanuts.
In contrast, Britain has witnessed a surge in childhood allergies in the last decade, with up to eight per cent of youngsters experiencing a reaction before they go to school.
The science and technology committee's allergy report is expected to call on the Department of Health to change its official advice.
Ministers have admitted that their guidelines – which state that babies may be at higher risk of developing a nut allergy if the mother or father have a history of asthma, eczema or hay fever – may be 'entirely wrong and counter-productive'.
Source - Daily Mail
Diesel fumes trigger heart attacks and strokes, researchers find
Scientists have discovered how air pollution triggers heart attacks, which cause thousands of deaths each year.
Diesel exhaust fumes increase the stress on the heart during exercise and may account for the rise in heart deaths on days when pollution from traffic fumes is high, they say.
The World Health Organisation estimates that air pollution causes 800,000 premature deaths worldwide and a recent US study suggested long-term exposure to traffic fumes increases the risk of death from heart disease and stroke by 76 per cent.
Researchers from the University of Edinburgh found that inhaling diesel fumes caused a threefold increase in stress on the heart by altering its electrical activity. The risk of blood clots was also increased.
Source - Independent
Diesel exhaust fumes increase the stress on the heart during exercise and may account for the rise in heart deaths on days when pollution from traffic fumes is high, they say.
The World Health Organisation estimates that air pollution causes 800,000 premature deaths worldwide and a recent US study suggested long-term exposure to traffic fumes increases the risk of death from heart disease and stroke by 76 per cent.
Researchers from the University of Edinburgh found that inhaling diesel fumes caused a threefold increase in stress on the heart by altering its electrical activity. The risk of blood clots was also increased.
Source - Independent
100 apples a day could keep the doctor away
The adage goes that an apple a day keeps the doctor away - but it could be closer to 100 apples according to a new study.
People who overdo exercise often fall victim to illness but American researchers found that giving them quercetin, which is found in apples, could help protect them.
DARPA, the Pentagon's research arm, has been sponsoring studies into whether quercetin could be used to help protect US troops.
The latest trial saw 40 male cyclists either given one gram of the flavenoid every day - equal to eating 100 apples - or a placebo for three weeks.
According to an article in the New Scientist journal, the cyclists spent a three-day period training at maximum intensity for three hours a day. Two weeks later, nine of the cyclists in the placebo group had chest infections while only one of the quercetin group was ill.
Source - Daily Mail
People who overdo exercise often fall victim to illness but American researchers found that giving them quercetin, which is found in apples, could help protect them.
DARPA, the Pentagon's research arm, has been sponsoring studies into whether quercetin could be used to help protect US troops.
The latest trial saw 40 male cyclists either given one gram of the flavenoid every day - equal to eating 100 apples - or a placebo for three weeks.
According to an article in the New Scientist journal, the cyclists spent a three-day period training at maximum intensity for three hours a day. Two weeks later, nine of the cyclists in the placebo group had chest infections while only one of the quercetin group was ill.
Source - Daily Mail
Why loneliness may damage health
US scientists may have uncovered a genetic reason why lonely people may have poorer health.
The UCLA research, published in Genome Biology, found certain genes were more active in people who reported feelings of social isolation. Many of the genes identified have links to the immune system and tissue inflammation - which may be damaging.
Other studies have shown clear links between lack of social support and illnesses such as heart disease. The researchers said that quality, not quantity, of friendships, appeared to be important.
The link between genes and loneliness has been explored before - a recent Dutch study of 8,000 twins also pointed to the connection. The UCLA research looked in more detail at which genes might be involved.
They took 14 volunteers and assessed their level of social interaction using a scoring system.
They then looked at genetic activity in their white blood cells and tried to compare the results.
In their "lonely" volunteers, various genes tended to be "over expressed" compared with those at the opposite end of the scoring scale.
Source - BBC
The UCLA research, published in Genome Biology, found certain genes were more active in people who reported feelings of social isolation. Many of the genes identified have links to the immune system and tissue inflammation - which may be damaging.
Other studies have shown clear links between lack of social support and illnesses such as heart disease. The researchers said that quality, not quantity, of friendships, appeared to be important.
The link between genes and loneliness has been explored before - a recent Dutch study of 8,000 twins also pointed to the connection. The UCLA research looked in more detail at which genes might be involved.
They took 14 volunteers and assessed their level of social interaction using a scoring system.
They then looked at genetic activity in their white blood cells and tried to compare the results.
In their "lonely" volunteers, various genes tended to be "over expressed" compared with those at the opposite end of the scoring scale.
Source - BBC
How one household kicked the sugar habit
It rots your teeth, wrecks your heart and even causes mood swings - yet a typical family eats an astonishing FIFTY POUNDS of sugar a month. So what happened when we asked one household to end its addiction?
We are a nation of sugar junkies: sugar now makes up more than 30 per cent of the average diet, three times the recommended intake set by the World Health Organisation. Many of us scoff 150lb of pure sugar a year, that's more than 12lb of sugar in a month. The typical family might have 52lb a month - the equivalent of 26 large bags of sugar.
And the toll on our health is devastating. As well as causing dental decay. Too much sugar can lead to obesity and type 2 diabetes, raising the risk of heart attack and stroke. According to Jane Clarke, the Mail's nutritionist, sugar is the real dietary evil. "It is much worse than fat - it has so little in its favour nutritionally and it's very hard for the body to tell when it's had enough; you can just keep eating and eating it. The problem is compounded by the fact that it's 'hidden' in so many foods, including even frozen pizza, so many of us are eating more than we suspect."
And it's affecting more than just our health. As Dr Alex Richardson, a leading authority on how nutrition affects children's conduct and learning, explains:
"Although there is no definitive evidence that sugar causes bad behaviour in children, many experts have noticed a pattern that can build over time. Highly refined, sweetened foods dump sugar too quickly into the bloodstream, delivering no nutrients but causing blood sugar levels to rise very quickly.
We are a nation of sugar junkies: sugar now makes up more than 30 per cent of the average diet, three times the recommended intake set by the World Health Organisation. Many of us scoff 150lb of pure sugar a year, that's more than 12lb of sugar in a month. The typical family might have 52lb a month - the equivalent of 26 large bags of sugar.
And the toll on our health is devastating. As well as causing dental decay. Too much sugar can lead to obesity and type 2 diabetes, raising the risk of heart attack and stroke. According to Jane Clarke, the Mail's nutritionist, sugar is the real dietary evil. "It is much worse than fat - it has so little in its favour nutritionally and it's very hard for the body to tell when it's had enough; you can just keep eating and eating it. The problem is compounded by the fact that it's 'hidden' in so many foods, including even frozen pizza, so many of us are eating more than we suspect."
And it's affecting more than just our health. As Dr Alex Richardson, a leading authority on how nutrition affects children's conduct and learning, explains:
"Although there is no definitive evidence that sugar causes bad behaviour in children, many experts have noticed a pattern that can build over time. Highly refined, sweetened foods dump sugar too quickly into the bloodstream, delivering no nutrients but causing blood sugar levels to rise very quickly.
Many 'imagine' food intolerance
Millions of people in the UK have self-diagnosed a food intolerance and may be avoiding key foods as a result, a poll by a testing firm suggests.
Less than a quarter of the 12m people who claim to be food intolerant have had their condition formally diagnosed. While many of the nine million who also claim to be intolerant may well be so, it is suggested they may just be fussy.
Nearly 40% of the 1,500 people polled by Yorktest thought it trendy to be intolerant and many blamed celebrities.
Actress Rachel Weisz for instance has a well-publicised wheat intolerance, TV presenter Carol Vorderman a gluten one, and Rod Stewart's former wife, Rachel Hunter, a lactose intolerance.
Vague symptoms
The range of foods people declared themselves intolerant of was diverse, but grapefruit and sushi were declared by those polled to be key culprits.
Source - BBC
Less than a quarter of the 12m people who claim to be food intolerant have had their condition formally diagnosed. While many of the nine million who also claim to be intolerant may well be so, it is suggested they may just be fussy.
Nearly 40% of the 1,500 people polled by Yorktest thought it trendy to be intolerant and many blamed celebrities.
Actress Rachel Weisz for instance has a well-publicised wheat intolerance, TV presenter Carol Vorderman a gluten one, and Rod Stewart's former wife, Rachel Hunter, a lactose intolerance.
Vague symptoms
The range of foods people declared themselves intolerant of was diverse, but grapefruit and sushi were declared by those polled to be key culprits.
Source - BBC
Why it pays to know your onions if you want to beat brain drain
CHOPPING them may make you cry and they can leave you with pungent breath, but onions may also improve your memory, scientists said today.
Researchers at Hokkaido Tokai University in Japan have found that people suffering from memory loss who ate the vegetable, which had been lightly cooked, found it improved their recall abilities. Experts believe the findings could be important in the fight against brain diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
The researchers discovered an antioxidant in onions that binds with harmful toxins in the brain and flushes them out of the body. The compound, which contains sulphur, is found in many members of the allum family, including garlic.
Ian Marber, a health journalist and author, said: "Onions are one of the richest and most readily available sources of sulphur-containing compounds which have been shown to slow down the deterioration of memory usually associated with ageing. "Onion extract has also been shown to maintain the hippocampus, a part of the brain that is involved in processing emotions as well as memory."
But he warned that onions that are over-cooked may lose their memory-helping properties. They should instead be cooked on a low heat.
Jim Jackson, the chief executive of Alzheimer Scotland, said he was not convinced that eating onions would have an impact on the disease.
Source - Scotsman
Researchers at Hokkaido Tokai University in Japan have found that people suffering from memory loss who ate the vegetable, which had been lightly cooked, found it improved their recall abilities. Experts believe the findings could be important in the fight against brain diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
The researchers discovered an antioxidant in onions that binds with harmful toxins in the brain and flushes them out of the body. The compound, which contains sulphur, is found in many members of the allum family, including garlic.
Ian Marber, a health journalist and author, said: "Onions are one of the richest and most readily available sources of sulphur-containing compounds which have been shown to slow down the deterioration of memory usually associated with ageing. "Onion extract has also been shown to maintain the hippocampus, a part of the brain that is involved in processing emotions as well as memory."
But he warned that onions that are over-cooked may lose their memory-helping properties. They should instead be cooked on a low heat.
Jim Jackson, the chief executive of Alzheimer Scotland, said he was not convinced that eating onions would have an impact on the disease.
Source - Scotsman
Audio healing
Recently, I've been testing a series of self-improvement CDs called Paraliminals, which claim to use state-of-the-art methods to give you, among other things, "instantaneous personal magnetism". The problem with evaluating them, though, is that you can't really go around asking friends and colleagues whether they think you've been demonstrating instantaneous personal magnetism over the past few weeks.
Actually, that's not true. You can. I did. Uniformly, they gave me a slightly scared look, which made it clear that they agreed I was indeed demonstrating a new personality trait, no doubt about it. Just maybe not the one I'd intended.Paraliminals' selling point is that they're not meant to be hypnotic, but nor do you process them consciously. You can't: you're instructed to listen wearing headphones, and a syrupy-voiced American named Paul Scheele speaks two different scripts, one in each ear, at the same time. "Your conscious mind finds it difficult to process two voices simultaneously, so it shuts down," Scheele explains.
(Afterwards, I made the following transcript: "Your image of yourself and there was a special delight notice your potential has always been on occasion that image of you leaking springs and weedy patches...")
At first, it made me feel car-sick. But then further thought did become impossible, which is definitely relaxing, whether or not it instils the promised benefits .
Source - Guardian
Actually, that's not true. You can. I did. Uniformly, they gave me a slightly scared look, which made it clear that they agreed I was indeed demonstrating a new personality trait, no doubt about it. Just maybe not the one I'd intended.Paraliminals' selling point is that they're not meant to be hypnotic, but nor do you process them consciously. You can't: you're instructed to listen wearing headphones, and a syrupy-voiced American named Paul Scheele speaks two different scripts, one in each ear, at the same time. "Your conscious mind finds it difficult to process two voices simultaneously, so it shuts down," Scheele explains.
(Afterwards, I made the following transcript: "Your image of yourself and there was a special delight notice your potential has always been on occasion that image of you leaking springs and weedy patches...")
At first, it made me feel car-sick. But then further thought did become impossible, which is definitely relaxing, whether or not it instils the promised benefits .
Source - Guardian
The spray that has 'cured' my thinning hair
Theresa Smith started losing her hair following her father's death - within months it was so bad she was reduced to colouring-in her bald patches with a felt-tip.
"When my father died it was a very traumatic time for me," says Theresa, 61. "About a month after his death (in 2004) I was in the bathroom brushing my hair after my morning shower when I noticed that clumps of it were falling out. My hairbrush was covered in hair and more fell out on the floor as I ran my fingers over my scalp. I looked in the shower and there was yet more hair around the plug-hole. I was terrified there was something seriously wrong with me."
Theresa sought advice from her GP, who suspected she was suffering from a form of stress-related alopecia and prescribed a course of steroids. Such types of alopecia are caused by an auto-immune response, in which the immune system attacks the body. Steroids work by suppressing the immune system to allow the hair follicle to recover. However these had no effect and her hair continued to thin dramatically.
"I had always had strong, healthy hair," says Theresa, "so to find myself with bald patches and thin, weak hair was a nightmare. I wouldn't leave the house unless I absolutely had to. I used to colour-in the patches to try to disguise them. I lost all my self-confidence and became a bit of a recluse." After trying a variety of over-thecounter hair thickening products with no success, Theresa had given up hope of her hair ever growing back. Then she saw an ad in her local paper looking for volunteers to try a new hair loss treatment spray.
The product - Boots Expert Hair Loss Treatment Spray for Women - apparently stops hair from thinning by increasing the thickness and health of each strand of hair.
Its creators claim the ingredients, which include green coffee beans and a medicinal plant called the Indian pennywort, work by calming the immune system.
Source - Daily Mail
"When my father died it was a very traumatic time for me," says Theresa, 61. "About a month after his death (in 2004) I was in the bathroom brushing my hair after my morning shower when I noticed that clumps of it were falling out. My hairbrush was covered in hair and more fell out on the floor as I ran my fingers over my scalp. I looked in the shower and there was yet more hair around the plug-hole. I was terrified there was something seriously wrong with me."
Theresa sought advice from her GP, who suspected she was suffering from a form of stress-related alopecia and prescribed a course of steroids. Such types of alopecia are caused by an auto-immune response, in which the immune system attacks the body. Steroids work by suppressing the immune system to allow the hair follicle to recover. However these had no effect and her hair continued to thin dramatically.
"I had always had strong, healthy hair," says Theresa, "so to find myself with bald patches and thin, weak hair was a nightmare. I wouldn't leave the house unless I absolutely had to. I used to colour-in the patches to try to disguise them. I lost all my self-confidence and became a bit of a recluse." After trying a variety of over-thecounter hair thickening products with no success, Theresa had given up hope of her hair ever growing back. Then she saw an ad in her local paper looking for volunteers to try a new hair loss treatment spray.
The product - Boots Expert Hair Loss Treatment Spray for Women - apparently stops hair from thinning by increasing the thickness and health of each strand of hair.
Its creators claim the ingredients, which include green coffee beans and a medicinal plant called the Indian pennywort, work by calming the immune system.
Source - Daily Mail
Could a pillow you wear cure snoring?
A simple device to stop you sleeping on your back may be a new treatment for sleep apnoea.
New research shows that after three months, six out of ten patients who used the device had fewer symptoms.
In sleep apnoea, which affects up to a million people in the UK, the upper airway or pharynx collapses repeatedly at irregular intervals during
New research shows that after three months, six out of ten patients who used the device had fewer symptoms.
In sleep apnoea, which affects up to a million people in the UK, the upper airway or pharynx collapses repeatedly at irregular intervals during