Washington -- The number of people suffering psychologically induced symptoms could far outweigh the number of actual victims in a chemical, biological or nuclear incident, according to a confidential Department of Homeland Security briefing document.
"Mass psychogenic illness" can "spread rapidly throughout a population," says the briefing, citing incidents in California in 2003 and Chechnya in 2005.
The briefing, prepared in 2006 but only leaked last week, defines mass psychogenic illness as "a phenomenon in which social trauma or anxiety combines with a suspicious event to produce psychosomatic symptoms, such as nausea, difficulty breathing, and paralysis."
Health & Wellness
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Over the past two decades, cell phones have gone from being a luxury to a necessity. Today, more and more people are relying on cell phones and a sizable group of consumers for the gadgets are the youngsters. But, the mobile phones use can adversely affect the mental health of youngsters, reveals a new study.
The study by the Swedish researchers suggests that children and teenagers are five times more likely to suffer a type of brain cancer later in life if they use cell phones. In their research, the experts found that teenagers who started using mobiles at young age were five times more likely to suffer from glioma, a type of primary central nervous system (CNS) tumor that arises from glial cells.
Long term use of cell phone has already been associated with brain tumor. Now a new study suggests that simply carrying a cell phone with talk mode on could damage sperm.
The study by researchers at Cleveland Clinic showed cell phones left on talk mode in a pocket increased oxidative stress and reduced antioxidants in the semen.
The study by researchers at Cleveland Clinic showed cell phones left on talk mode in a pocket increased oxidative stress and reduced antioxidants in the semen.
Doctors provide little in the way of empathy, even when their patients seem to ask for it, according to a study in the Sept. 22 Archives of Internal Medicine. Researchers looked at real doctor/patient encounters between 137 patients and their oncologists or thoracic surgeons from a Veterans Affairs hospital.
Doctors could respond to concrete concerns, such as that a patient was feeling physical pain, or was having trouble getting an appointment. But they largely ignored patients' emotional concerns -- even when that concern was an outcome of surgery, or how long they had left to live.
Here's a sample of an encounter reported in the study when the patient received the diagnosis:
Doctors could respond to concrete concerns, such as that a patient was feeling physical pain, or was having trouble getting an appointment. But they largely ignored patients' emotional concerns -- even when that concern was an outcome of surgery, or how long they had left to live.
Here's a sample of an encounter reported in the study when the patient received the diagnosis:
The drugs, known as "cognition enhancers" could improve brain performance in a number of ways, from sharpening short-term memory and increasing speed of thought.
The Academy of Medical Sciences has already advised ministers that the use of such drugs - commonly known as "cogs" - would be so widespread that they would need to be regulated.
Now Futurelab, an education think-tank, has taken the concept one stage further, warning that schools must be prepared to subsidise poorer children's use of such drugs to ensure they do not fall behind more affluent classmates.
The Academy of Medical Sciences has already advised ministers that the use of such drugs - commonly known as "cogs" - would be so widespread that they would need to be regulated.
Now Futurelab, an education think-tank, has taken the concept one stage further, warning that schools must be prepared to subsidise poorer children's use of such drugs to ensure they do not fall behind more affluent classmates.
The tally of children sickened by tainted milk in China jumped to nearly 53,000 as the government vowed to crack down on those responsible for the scandal, which has raised more questions about the safety of the country's food chain.
More than 80 percent of the 12,892 children hospitalized in recent weeks were 2 years old or younger, the Health Ministry said in a statement posted on its Web site late Sunday. The statement said most consumed infant formula from one company, the Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group Co., the dairy at the center of one of China's worst food safety scandals in years.
Another 39,965 children received outpatient treatment at hospitals and were considered "basically recovered," the ministry said.
More than 80 percent of the 12,892 children hospitalized in recent weeks were 2 years old or younger, the Health Ministry said in a statement posted on its Web site late Sunday. The statement said most consumed infant formula from one company, the Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group Co., the dairy at the center of one of China's worst food safety scandals in years.
Another 39,965 children received outpatient treatment at hospitals and were considered "basically recovered," the ministry said.
In a dramatic illustration of the potential for microbes to prevent disease, researchers at Yale University and the University of Chicago showed that mice exposed to common stomach bacteria were protected against the development of Type I diabetes.
Beijing - The number of children in China sickened by dairy products tainted with the banned industrial chemical melamine has doubled to nearly 12,900, the government said Sunday as it vowed to crack down on those responsible for one of China's worst food safety scandals in years.
More than 80 percent of the 12,892 children hospitalized in recent weeks were 2 years old or younger, the Health Ministry said in a statement posted on its Web site late Sunday. Four children have died.
The Health Ministry said that most of the hospitalized were sickened by powdered milk and baby formula. It said most of the sick children consumed baby formula from one company, the Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group Co. The dairy is at the center of the scandal.
"The hospitalized children basically consumed Sanlu brand infant milk powder. No cases have been found from ingesting liquid milk," said the ministry statement.
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| Chinese families with their babies rush to a hospital for checkups on possible affect from the tainted milk, in Chongqing. China said nearly 13,000 children were in hospital Sunday after drinking toxic milk powder in a dramatic escalation of Beijing's latest safety scandal. |
More than 80 percent of the 12,892 children hospitalized in recent weeks were 2 years old or younger, the Health Ministry said in a statement posted on its Web site late Sunday. Four children have died.
The Health Ministry said that most of the hospitalized were sickened by powdered milk and baby formula. It said most of the sick children consumed baby formula from one company, the Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group Co. The dairy is at the center of the scandal.
"The hospitalized children basically consumed Sanlu brand infant milk powder. No cases have been found from ingesting liquid milk," said the ministry statement.
The New York streets are filled with posters advertising the return of the hit TV show Gossip Girl: photogenic teens embrace beneath a quote proclaiming that the show is "Every parent's nightmare." While Gossip Girl may be filled with the endless sexual encounters of high school students, the fictionalized private school is not this parent's September nightmare. My real-life nightmare is that kids are once again beginning a school year that will most likely not provide them with comprehensive sex education, leaving them at the mercy of shows such as Gossip Girl and the revamped 90210.
Tanning beds have been a subject of controversy for many years with many dermatologists warning about the risk of developing skin cancer, and still, many people, especially women, are not convinced about the harmful effects of tanning. It is amazing how many of us choose a chocolate-like skin over a healthy skin although there is plenty of evidence that ultraviolet rays, no matter their source, cause skin cancer.
According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 60,000 people each year die from overexposure to ultraviolet light, mostly from malignant melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Skin cancer is the most common malignancy in the US, with 1 million new cases in 2008. Also one in five people is estimated to develop some type of skin cancer during their lifetime.
According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 60,000 people each year die from overexposure to ultraviolet light, mostly from malignant melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Skin cancer is the most common malignancy in the US, with 1 million new cases in 2008. Also one in five people is estimated to develop some type of skin cancer during their lifetime.
