Health & WellnessS


Rocket

Paint chemicals 'may harm sperm'

Men regularly exposed to chemicals found in paint may be more prone to fertility problems, research suggests. Men such as painters and decorators, who work with glycol solvents, are two-and-a-half times more likely to produce fewer "normal" sperm.

The UK study looked at more than 2,000 men attending 14 fertility clinics. However, the Occupational and Environment Medicine study found a wide range of other chemicals had no impact on fertility.

Hourglass

Older Brain Really May Be a Wiser Brain

When older people can no longer remember names at a cocktail party, they tend to think that their brainpower is declining. But a growing number of studies suggest that this assumption is often wrong.

Instead, the research finds, the aging brain is simply taking in more data and trying to sift through a clutter of information, often to its long-term benefit.

The studies are analyzed in a new edition of a neurology book, "Progress in Brain Research."

Sheeple

Lost boys: Are we raising a generation of Peter Pans?

I received an e-mail the other day from someone I thought was a student. He had heard of me through a friend of a friend and he wrote asking help because he wanted to get into radio. I thought, sure I'll speak to him.

In the conversation, he told me he loved music. He also loved people and, oh yes, he liked history, too. Currently, he was working in a store selling suits but he wanted to host his own radio program.

Recycle

Greece recalls imported sunflower oil in contamination scare

Greece on Tuesday said it was recalling all sunflower oil imported since January after a Ukrainian batch was found to be tainted with mineral oil, sparking a two-week food scare.

"We have decided to recall the entire supply of suspect sunflower oil from the market," Development Minister Christos Folias told reporters.

The Hellenic Food Authority (EFET), whose chairman resigned Tuesday, said that all sunflower oil imported since January 1 would be seized for tests amid concern that tainted quantities may have escaped customs inspection.

The volume of oil to be seized was not specified, but EFET has already located over 6,000 tonnes of contaminated oil.

Beer

British men show resistance to alcohol health warnings

New research from Mintel suggests that health warnings and unit labelling on alcoholic drinks, which could become statutory in the future, might not deter heavy drinking, especially among men.

Magnify

Protein Predicts Gleevec Resistance In Gastrointestinal Tumors

Excess amounts of a protein called IGF-1R in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) could indicate that the patient would be less responsive to the drug imatinib mesylate (known as Gleevec), according to Andrew K. Godwin, Ph.D., a researcher at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. Preliminary studies have shown that GIST cells, especially Gleevec-resistant cells, might respond well to agents in development for treatment-resistant breast cancer, a form of breast cancer also marked by excessive production of the IGF-1R protein. IGF-1R could also serve as a marker to identify this subset of GIST patients before therapy begins, when alternative treatments would be most effective, the researcher says.

Monkey Wrench

Tamiflu may be weak defence as bird flu virus develops resistance

Bangalore: At a time when sporadic cases of bird flu are surfacing in India, among several parts of the world, forcing countries to stockpile millions of doses of antiviral medication Tamiflu, researchers have found that this drug alone might not be sufficient in battling a bird flu pandemic.

bird flu sparying
©Reuters
Health workers spray a disinfectant after culling poultry at a village in Siliguri, West Bengal. The World Health Organization has called for more collaborative research into the bird flu virus

Pills

F.A.A. Bans Antismoking Drug, Citing Side Effects

The Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday it would no longer permit pilots or air traffic controllers to use the smoking cessation drug Chantix, citing potential side effects that could pose a threat to the safe operation of aircraft.

The Food and Drug Administration issued a public health advisory in February, saying that some Chantix users had developed a variety of serious psychiatric symptoms, and that some had committed suicide.

An F.A.A. spokeswoman, Laura Brown, said the agency had approved the use of Chantix for airline pilots and flight controllers last year, but was notifying 150 pilots and 30 air traffic controllers known to be using it that the drug was no longer acceptable and should be discontinued.

Attention

Bacteria developing resistance: Over-prescription of medication may be contributing to strengthening illnesses

Medications that clinicians have been prescribing may not be the best solution for curing bacterial infections, according to some medical researchers.

Arrow Down

The Apprentice factor 'causes firms to fail'

Budding entrepreneurs possessed with unshakeable self-confidence often see their business ventures flounder because of their arrogance, according to a new study.

Psychologists believe cocksure tycoons, such as those featured in television shows like The Apprentice, are most likely to wade into markets that cannot support newcomers.