Health & WellnessS


Pills

A Silenced Drug Study Creates An Uproar

Shankar Vedantam
Washington Post
Wed, 18 Mar 2009 04:14 UTC
The study would come to be called "cursed," but it started out just as Study 15.

It was a long-term trial of the antipsychotic drug Seroquel. The common wisdom in psychiatric circles was that newer drugs were far better than older drugs, but Study 15's results suggested otherwise.

As a result, newly unearthed documents show, Study 15 suffered the same fate as many industry-sponsored trials that yield data drugmakers don't like: It got buried. It took eight years before a taxpayer-funded study rediscovered what Study 15 had found -- and raised serious concerns about an entire new class of expensive drugs.
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Family

Tough economy sets teeth grinding

Gabriella Boston
The Washington Times
Wed, 18 Mar 2009 02:25 UTC
As the economy is grinding to a halt, it's taking our teeth with it.

Literally.

Dentists across the nation report higher numbers of patients grinding their teeth than before the recession started in December 2007.

"We are very stressed right now, and one of the ways that stress manifests itself is we grind our teeth," said Dr. Robert Emami, a dentist in Dedham, Mass. "It's a serious problem that can lead to the movement of teeth, and ultimately to the loss of teeth."

In his practice - he has two offices just south of Boston - the number of teeth grinding cases has doubled in the past year, Dr. Emami said.
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Magnify

Your Favorite Organic Brands? Take Another Look -- They May Not Be What They Seem

Andrea Whitfill
AlterNet
Tue, 17 Mar 2009 23:19 UTC
Confident that you are buying good, socially conscious brands? Find out the real story behind all that marketing money and store visibility.

My first introduction to natural, organic and eco-friendly products stems back to the early '90s, when I stumbled upon Burt's Bees lip balm at an independently owned health food store in the heart of Westport, Kansas City, Mo.

Before the eyesore invasion of '98, when Starbucks frothed its way into the neighborhood, leading to its ultimate demise, Westport was the kind of 'hood I still yearn for. It was saturated with historically preserved, hip and funky, mom-and-pop-type establishments, delivering their goods people to people.

I was surprised more recently when I saw Burt's Bees products everywhere -- in grocery stores, drug stores, corner bodegas and big-box stores like Target and Wal-Mart. I thought to myself, fantastic; the marketplace is working, and good for Burt. He has made his mark, and the demand for his products is on the rise.
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Roses

Have Israeli scientists discovered a plant to treat cancer?

Ofri Ilani
Haaretz
Tue, 17 Mar 2009 20:46 UTC
A recent Israeli study found the pace of cancerous growth may be slowed by the ingestion of antioxidants extracted from plants.

The study, led by Dr. Fuad Fares of Haifa's Carmel Medical Center, examined two groups of mice implanted with cancerous growths, one of which was injected with antioxidants and the other used as a control. The mice given the drug experienced a dramatic deceleration in cancerous growth compared to the control.

The study remain in its preliminary stages, but Fares expressed optimism at its potential implications. "The results are surprising, and encourage us to continue further," he said. "We're seeing the future in the prevention of cancer through food additives."
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Syringe

Flashback More Evidence Published That Epidemics of Childhood Obesity, Type 2 Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome are Linked to Immunization


Classen Immunotherapies, Inc.
Tue, 26 Aug 2008 20:17 UTC
Data by Dr. Bart Classen in The Open Endocrinology Journal provides further evidence that epidemics of childhood obesity, type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome are the result of exposure to the increasing number of vaccines. Metabolic syndrome includes obesity, altered blood cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, and increased blood glucose levels.
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Family

Flashback Harming Your Child by Making Him Your Parent

Samuel López De Victoria, Ph.D.
Dr. Sam
Fri, 15 Aug 2008 18:26 UTC
child parent
© Unknown
A very subtle way to create damage in your child is to turn that child into your parent. This process is called parentification, not to be confused with parenting. Parentification can be defined as a role reversal between parent and child. A child's personal needs are sacrificed in order to take care of the needs of the parent(s). A child will often give up his/her own need for comfort, attention, and guidance in order to accommodate to the needs and care of logistical and emotional needs of the parent(s) (Chase, 1999). In parentification the parent gives up what they are supposed to do as a parent and transfers that responsibility to one or more of their children. Hence the child becomes parentified. That child is the "parental child" (Minuchin, Montalvo, Guerney, Rosman, & Schumer, 1967).
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Family

Neglect 'increases mental illness'


AAP
Tue, 17 Mar 2009 16:20 UTC
confusion
© flickr.com/Bhernandez
Neglecting your children can result in poor development of their brain and increases the risk of physical and mental illness, the NSW government warns.

Strong foundations in early childhood lead to better health, better education and better mental health later in life, NSW Community Services Minister Linda Burney said on Tuesday.
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Syringe

Research links Diabetes to Alzheimer's


AAP
Tue, 17 Mar 2009 16:57 UTC
Finger blood
© flickr.com/Bethany L King
Diabetes can hurt the heart, the eyes and the kidneys. New research indicates a more ominous link: That diabetes increases the risk of getting Alzheimer's disease and may speed dementia once it strikes.

Doctors long suspected diabetes damaged blood vessels that supply the brain. It now seems even more insidious, that the damage may start before someone is diagnosed with full-blown diabetes, back when the body is gradually losing its ability to regulate blood sugar.
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Health

Pope Says Condoms Make AIDS Problem Worse


Associated Press
Tue, 17 Mar 2009 13:25 UTC
Pope Benedict XVI said on his way to Africa Tuesday that condoms were not the answer in the continent's fight against HIV, his first explicit statement on an issue that has divided even clergy working with AIDS patients.

Benedict had never directly addressed condom use. He has said that the Roman Catholic Church is in the forefront of the battle against AIDS. The Vatican encourages sexual abstinence to fight the spread of the disease.

''You can't resolve it with the distribution of condoms,'' the pope told reporters aboard the Alitalia plane headed to Yaounde, Cameroon, where he will begin a seven-day pilgrimage on the continent. ''On the contrary, it increases the problem.''
Some priests and nuns working with those living with HIV/AIDS question the church's opposition to condoms amid the pandemic ravaging Africa
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Ambulance

Research supports toxoplasmosis link to schizophrenia


e! Science News
Wed, 11 Mar 2009 23:22 UTC
toxoplasmosis cyst
© E. PrandovszkyThis is a toxoplasma cyst outlined in red fluorescent cyst dye in mouse brain section. Hundreds of parasites are visible in the cyst as blue dots (nuclei stained blue) and in surrounding brain tissue.

Scientists have discovered how the toxoplasmosis parasite may trigger the development of schizophrenia and other bipolar disorders. The team from the University of Leeds' Faculty of Biological Sciences (UK) has shown that the parasite may play a role in the development of these disorders by affecting the production of dopamine - the chemical that relays messages in the brain controlling aspects of movement, cognition and behaviour.

Toxoplasmosis, which is transmitted via cat faeces (found on unwashed vegetables) and raw or undercooked infected meat, is relatively common, with 10-20% of the UK population and 22% of the US population estimated to carry the parasite as cysts. Most people with the parasite are healthy, but for those who are immune-suppressed - and particularly for pregnant women - there are significant health risks that can occasionally be fatal.
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