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Adolescent girls with ADHD are at increased risk for eating disorders, study shows

Girls with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder stand a substantially greater risk of developing eating disorders in adolescence than girls without ADHD, a new study has found.

"Adolescent girls with ADHD frequently develop body-image dissatisfaction and may go through repeating cycles of binge eating and purging behaviors that are common in bulimia nervosa," said University of Virginia psychologist Amori Yee Mikami, who led the study.

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Pratchett announces Alzheimer's donation after diagnosis

The bestselling author Terry Pratchett today announced a donation of nearly £500,000 for research into Alzheimer's disease, three months after he was diagnosed with the condition.

Speaking at an Alzheimer's conference, the writer of the Discworld fantasy books condemned the "shameful" lack of funding for the disease.

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©David Levenson/Getty
Author Terry Pratchett

Heart

US, Seattle: Starbucks barista donates kidney to one of her regulars

Annamarie Ausnes had been visiting her local Starbucks for coffee and small talk with the barista for three years. During their conversations, they talked about almost everything, but Ausnes never once mentioned her failing health.

Ausnes, 55, who works at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, has known about her polycystic kidney disease for nearly 20 years. The genetic disorder causes numerous cysts in the kidney and eventual kidney failure. When her health suddenly began to decline and her kidneys were functioning at only 15 percent, she knew she needed a transplant.

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©Paul Joseph Brown / P-I
Annamarie Ausnes, left, greets barista Sandie Andersen with a rose on Andersen's arrival at Virginia Mason Medical Center for the kidney transplant surgery Tuesday. All went fine. "If you can save somebody's life, it's special," said Jeffrey Andersen, Sandie's husband.

Health

Fifteen genes link to long life discovered

The quest for an anti ageing pill is boosted today with the discovery of 15 genes linked with a long life. The find suggests that scientists may be able to target those genes to help slow down the aging process and treat age-related conditions.

Arrow Up

Your height dictates how jealousy strikes

Jealous lovers will wish they could adjust the height of their heels, for the power of the green-eyed monster depends on how tall you are.

So say researchers from the Universities of Groningen and Valencia who asked 549 men and women in the Netherlands and Spain to rate how jealous they felt and to identify the qualities in a romantic competitor that were most likely bug them.

Men, who generally felt most nervous about attractive, rich and strong rivals, were increasingly relaxed, the taller they were themselves. Women, on the other hand, were most jealous of others' beauty and charm, but least so if their own height was average.

Coffee

Chef with a fear of food has survived for 25 years by eating biscuits

Every day, Andrew Forster toiled in the restaurant kitchen to produce delicious dishes - chicken with a mango salad, skewered king prawns, handmade pasta and pizza, and all manner of tempting concoctions.

Yet the talented chef never tasted the results of his labours... because he suffered from a food phobia.

Instead, he claims that for around 25 years he survived on biscuits, mostly Blue Riband, Club and rich tea.

"I used to get through two packets of biscuits a day," 27-year-old Mr Forster said yesterday.

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©North News
Cookie monster: For the last 25 years, chef Andrew Forster has had a diet of mainly biscuits

Health

Schools in Hong Kong close over mysterious flu outbreak

All schools and kindergartens in Hong Kong have been closed following a mysterious flu outbreak that killed three children recently in the former British colony, local media reported on Thursday.

A three-year-old child is in intensive care with flu-like symptoms. Three children, aged two, three and seven, died of the mysterious virus in the past two weeks, with the most recent death of a seven-year-old boy, Law Ho-ming, reported on Tuesday.

Red Flag

Flashback Doctor Warns Consumers of Popcorn Fumes

Consumers, not just factory workers, may be in danger from fumes from buttery flavoring in microwave popcorn, according to a warning letter to federal regulators from a doctor at a leading lung research hospital.

Health

US Study: Popcorn Ingredient Causes Lung Disease

A chemical used to give butter flavor to popcorn can damage the lungs and airways of mice, U.S. government experts reported on Thursday.

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Australia: Mystery illness plagues QFRS training facility

Queensland Health is investigating the cause of a mysterious illness that has gripped staff at the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service (QFRS) training facility in Brisbane's east.