Health & WellnessS


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Chocolate 'cuts death rate' in heart attack survivors


Agence France Press
Fri, 14 Aug 2009 05:52 UTC
Heart attack survivors who eat chocolate two or more times per week cut their risk of dying from heart disease about threefold compared to those who never touch the stuff, scientists have reported.

Smaller quantities confer less protection, but are still better than none, according to the study, which appears in the September issue of the Journal of Internal Medicine.

Earlier research had established a strong link between cocoa-based confections and lowered blood pressure or improvement in blood flow.
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Study Gives Lift to Mastectomy Patients

Lauren Cox and Courtney Hutchinson
ABC News
Fri, 14 Aug 2009 05:42 UTC
Study May Overturn the Standard No-Lifting Advice for Mastectomy Patients

For decades, women who underwent a mastectomy were told they could not do much lifting or they might risk developing a painful arm swelling condition called lymphedema.

That meant no lifting of grocery bags, toddlers, heavy boxes or even buckets on the side of the mastectomy for the rest of their lives.

But according to a new study, in most cases, doctors should have said the opposite. Expert-guided weightlifting may reduce the uncomfortable leathery skin texture, heaviness, and pain symptoms of lymphedema, according to an article published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Mutation Tied to Need for Less Sleep Is Discovered

Tara Parker-Pope
New York Times
Fri, 14 Aug 2009 05:29 UTC
Researchers have found a genetic mutation in two people who need far less sleep than average, a discovery that might open the door to understanding human sleep patterns and lead to treatments for insomnia and other sleep disorders.

The finding, published in the Friday issue of the journal Science, marks the first time scientists have identified a genetic mutation that relates to sleep duration in any animal or human.

Although the mutation has been identified in only two people, the power of the research stems from the fact that the shortened sleep effect was replicated in mouse and fruit-fly studies. As a result, the research now gives scientists a clearer sense of where to look for genetic traits linked to sleep patterns.
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If You're Aggressive, Your Dog Will Be Too, Says Veterinary Study


ScienceDaily
Fri, 14 Aug 2009 05:14 UTC
In a new, year-long University of Pennsylvania survey of dog owners who use confrontational or aversive methods to train aggressive pets, veterinary researchers have found that most of these animals will continue to be aggressive unless training techniques are modified.

The study, published in the current issue of Applied Animal Behavior Science, also showed that using non-aversive or neutral training methods such as additional exercise or rewards elicited very few aggressive responses.

"Nationwide, the No. 1 reason why dog owners take their pet to a veterinary behaviorist is to manage aggressive behavior," Meghan E. Herron, lead author of the study, said. "Our study demonstrated that many confrontational training methods, whether staring down dogs, striking them or intimidating them with physical manipulation does little to correct improper behavior and can elicit aggressive responses."
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Attention

Pesticides In Your Peaches?

Monica Eng
Chicago Tribune
Wed, 12 Aug 2009 02:53 UTC
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As we munch into the fragrant core of peach season, shoppers face an array of choices for the same fuzzy fruit but little guidance on which type to pick. Expensive organic? Pricey farmers market? Cheap peaches from the grocery store?

Cost is certainly important. But there are essential numbers that go beyond the price tag of a peach, or any other item from the produce aisle.

Which contain the highest levels of pesticides?

Preliminary 2008 U.S. Department of Agriculture tests obtained by the Chicago Tribune show that more than 50 pesticide compounds showed up on domestic and imported peaches headed for U.S. stores. Five of the compounds exceeded the limits set by the Environmental Protection Agency, and six of the pesticide compounds present are not approved for use on peaches in the United States.
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Ladybug

A Debate About Soil, Organics and Nutrition

Tom Philpott
Grist
Thu, 13 Aug 2009 00:19 UTC
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Inert medium for turning agrichemichals into food, or a teeming, diverse ecosystem?
"The whole problem of health - in soil, plant, animal, and man - is one great subject."
- Albert Howard, The Soil and Health
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Blackbox

What's Really in Your Shampoo?

Bill Bunn
Salon
Thu, 13 Aug 2009 20:48 UTC
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© Salon
Sure, a couple ingredients clean your hair. But the rest are a veritable toxic dump on your head

There are two types of ingredients in shampoo. One type cleans your hair. The other type strokes your emotions. I'm holding a bottle of Pantene Pro V, one of the world's most popular shampoos. Of the 22 ingredients in this bottle of shampoo, three clean hair. The rest are in the bottle not for the hair, but for the psychology of the person using the shampoo. At least two-thirds of this bottle, by volume, was put there just to make me feel good.
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Red Flag

When BPA-Free Isn't


Science News
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 16:34 UTC
The Winnipeg Free Press reported some disturbing news today. Tests by the Canadian government, it said, have found that some plastics labeled as being free of bisphenol A - an estrogen-mimicking chemical - actually contain the potentially toxic substance.

Canwest News Service unearthed the new government data along with correspondence from government researchers through use of the Access to Information Act - the Canadian equivalent of the Freedom of Information Act.
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Heart - Black

US States Drug Foster Kids to Death

David Gutierrez
NaturalNews.com
Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:14 UTC
A shocking 31 percent of teenagers in foster care in the state of Florida have been placed on psychotropic drugs, the Miami Herald has revealed.

"It is doubtful that so many children in Florida have severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia," wrote columnist Daniel Shoer Roth. "Rather, the majority are minors removed from their homes and carted from one foster home to another, from one school to another. In addition, they must make that emotional roller-coaster ride with precious little psychological aid."

According to Florida state law, psychiatric drugs cannot be prescribed to children without either the consent of a parent or an order from a judge. But according to a report from the Department of Children and Families, consent was not given in a full 14 percent of cases. Even in cases where consent is acquired, it may not truly be informed consent -- either because parents or judges do not fully understand a child's mental health needs and the implications of pharmaceutical treatment, or because parents are intimidated or mentally incapacitated.
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Health

Older Drivers Unaware Of Risks From Medications And Driving


Science Daily
Thu, 13 Aug 2009 11:50 UTC
Most older drivers are unaware of the potential impact on driving performance associated with taking medications, according to new research from the Center for Injury Sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).

The findings, released by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, indicate that 95 percent of those age 55 and older have one or more medical conditions, 78 percent take one or more medications, and only 28 percent have an awareness of the risks those medications might have on driving ability.
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