Health & WellnessS


Magnify

Portuguese Scientists Show Schistosoma Haematobium Direct Link to Tumours


PhysOrg
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:06 UTC
Schistosoma haematobium (S. haematobium) is a parasitic flatworm that infects millions of people, mostly in the developing world, and is associated with high incidence of bladder cancer although why is not clear. Now, however, two works by Portuguese researchers just out in The Journal of Experimental Pathology and the International Journal of Parasitology reveal that cells infected in laboratory with S. haematobium, acquire cancer-like characteristics and, when injected into mice develop into tumours.

The research identifies as well the host molecules linked to the carcinogenic changes, suggesting that these could be used as therapeutic targets to prevent bladder cancer. These results help to explain the link between S. haematobium and can be relevant also to other cancer-linked chronic infections, in particular to those linked to infections difficult to treat such as hepatitis C.
Read More...
Binoculars

Men Better at Distance Vision Due to Hunter-Gatherer Past


PhysOrg
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:57 UTC
Vision
© UnknownA man looks out at sea. Men are better at seeing things in the distance due to their hunter-gatherer past chasing animals, while women are better focusing on things at close range, a British study said Thursday.
Men are better at seeing things in the distance due to their hunter-gatherer past chasing animals, while women are better focusing on things at close range, a British study said Thursday.

In findings which reflect how men's and women's brains have evolved differently over thousands of years, they found that men are better at judging faraway targets.

Researchers tested their theory by asking a group of 48 men and women to use a laser pointer to mark the midpoint of lines on a piece of paper at different distances.

Men were more accurate than women when the paper was placed at a distance of 100 centimetres, while women were more accurate when the target was only 50 cms away, within arm's reach.
Read More...
Magnify

Use the Healing Properties of Helichrysum Essential Oil

Sheryl Walters
Natural News
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 07:46 UTC
Using essential oils to cleanse and heal the body, mind and soul is not a new concept. In fact using different fragrances to alter your state of mind has been used within religious ceremonies for centuries. But today Aromatherapy has become so popular that anything that has a scent is labeled as an aromatherapy product. Many of these so called essential oils are not the real thing, which leads many people to look at aromatherapy very negatively.

But the truth is that using real essential oils in many different forms of aromatherapy can be a very effective healing and relaxation tool. Helichrysum essential oil is known as the "everlasting" or "immortal" essential oil. Unlike most essential oils it can be stored and left in the cupboard for a very long time. Helichrysum essential oil is found mainly in France and Italy. Its rarity makes it one of the most expensive essential oils to buy, but it is also known as one of the best as it has a long list of healing properties.

In ancient times Helichrysum was used along with Frankincense, Myrrh, Spikenard, and Rose to help open the heart and mind to the infinite possibilities of the spiritual life. But now Helichrysum is known to help all sorts of medical ailments from ridding the body of scar tissue and stretch marks to relieving the pain of arthritis and regulating blood pressure.
Read More...
Syringe

Anesthesia in Young Kids Leads to Learning Disabilities

David Gutierrez
Natural News
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 09:44 UTC
Exposure to anesthesia more than once before the age of three appears to significantly increase a person's risk of developing learning disabilities in childhood, according to a study conducted by researchers from the Mayo Medical School and published in the journal Anesthesiology.

The researchers examined the medical records of all children born in one of five towns in Olmstead County, Minn., between the years of 1976 and 1982. They compared data on anesthesia exposure before the age of three and the diagnosis of a learning disability before the age of 19 in the 5,357 of these children who had lived in Olmstead County until at least the age of five.

Among children who had been exposed to anesthesia once before the age of three, the risk of learning abilities was the same as among children who had never been exposed. Two anesthesia exposures, however, increased the risk of learning disabilities by 59 percent, while three or more exposures increased the risk by 160 percent.
Read More...
People

Addiction therapists signing up to World of Warcraft

Claudine Beaumont
The Telegraph
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 08:14 UTC
Medical staff are creating their own 'avatars' in online fantasy games such as World of Warcraft in the hope of treating youngsters addicted to virtual worlds.

Experts have said that some massively multiplayer online games, in which players battle enemies for weapons and rewards, are as addictive as crack cocaine.

Dr Richard Graham, a consultant psychiatrist at the Tavistock Centre in London, is so concerned that he plans to provide online therapy for youngsters who are spending so much time playing these games that they have lost touch with the real world.
Read More...
Arrow Down

More propaganda: organic food has no added nutritional benefit, says Food Standards Agency

Louise Gray
The Telegraph
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 06:46 UTC
Expensive organic food is no better for you than conventionally-grown farm produce, according to the Government's food watchdog.

In the most comprehensive study ever to be carried out into the nutritional content of organic food compared to ordinary fare, scientists found no significant difference in vitamins and minerals.

A separate study found there are no extra health benefits to eating organic food rather than meat, fruits or vegetables grown on intensive farms.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA), which commissioned the research by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, concluded there was no reason to buy expensive organic food for nutritional reasons.
Read More...
Magnify

Study finds pesticide link to childhood leukemia


Agence France Press
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 06:40 UTC
Patients with childhood leukemia have elevated levels of household pesticides in their urine, according to a new study by the Georgetown University Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.

"In our study, we compared urine samples from children with ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia) and their mothers with healthy children and their moms," said study researcher Offie Soldin.

"We found elevated levels of common household pesticides more often in the mother-child pairs affected by cancer," said Soldin, an epidemiologist at the center, who led the research published in August's issue of Therapeutic Drug Monitoring.
Read More...
Attention

Study: Pregnant women more vulnerable to swine flu

Richard Halstead
San Jose Mercury News
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 06:33 UTC
Pregnant women infected with swine flu have a higher rate of hospitalization and greater risk of death than the general population due to the H1N1 virus, according to a new study published Wednesday in the online version of the British medical journal Lancet.

"The death of a pregnant woman is always heartbreaking, and unfortunately we have been hearing reports of otherwise healthy women dying from H1N1," said Dr. Denise Jamieson, the lead author of the study. "If a pregnant woman feels like she may have influenza she needs to call her health care provider right away."

Comment: The end result of the study is the justification of pushing a new, poorly studied and generally unsafe vaccine onto an already vulnerable sub-population.

Read More...
Magnify

You Cannot Rehabilitate a Psychopath

Justice Wallace Craig (retired)
Opinion250
Sun, 26 Jul 2009 22:39 UTC
psycho_mirror
© Unknown
In 1917, the Calgary Eye Opener's irrepressible editor, Bob Edwards, claimed that "A good man who goes wrong is just a bad man who has been found out."

Edwards plain truth is not accepted by Canada's penitentiary and parole system which, since the 1970s, has made rehabilitation of criminals its paramount objective - something akin to pounding a square peg into a round hole.

While all that pounding was going on Professor Robert D. Hare, of the University of British Columbia, was painstakingly doing intensive research unravelling the mystery of psychopathy. Hare's conclusion: psychopaths are "completely lacking in conscience and in feelings for others, they selfishly take what they want and do as they please, violating social norms and expectations without the slightest sense of guilt or regret."

Hare distilled his research and conclusions into plain language for the general public, and published Without Conscience - The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us.
Read More...
Magnify

Flashback Deadly Anthrax Virus Stolen from Dublin Gallery


Buzzfeed
Sun, 19 Apr 2009 21:10 UTC
A sample of the deadly Anthrax virus was stolen yesterday from the Science Gallery in Dublin. The stolen Anthrax Bacillus is the same viral agent used by bioterrorists in the US in the 2001 attacks, which caused panic around the world. It was being exhibited as part of an exhibition called "Infectious" at Dublin's Science Gallery and shockingly the public were allowed unrestricted access to the deadly spores. A spokesperson for the gallery claimed "The sample was absolutely safe. It was a microscope slide and the public are not at risk". However Anthrax spores are notoriously hard to kill and experts have expressed concern. The Science Gallery has been sealed off while the crime is investigated and people in biohazard suits have been observed entering the space.
Read More...