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A fibre found in most fruit and vegetables may help ward off cancer, experts believe. An ongoing study by the Institute of Food Research suggested pectin, a fibre found in everything from potato to plums, helped to fight the disease.
The human brain is surely the most sophisticated data-processing machine in the world, except when it's not. In fact, in some ways our brains can be flat-out crude--like when they're dealing with matters of race.
Like all other animals, our species emerged in a world where there was critical value in distinguishing between members of your own tribe--who nurture you and protect you--and members of other tribes, who see you as a competitor for food and mates. Your very survival can turn on making this distinction quickly and reliably; as a result, the primal wiring that makes such discrimination possible is not very easy to disconnect. And in a culture like ours, in which race is an issue we grapple with nearly every day, the impulse may have heightened over time.
Like all other animals, our species emerged in a world where there was critical value in distinguishing between members of your own tribe--who nurture you and protect you--and members of other tribes, who see you as a competitor for food and mates. Your very survival can turn on making this distinction quickly and reliably; as a result, the primal wiring that makes such discrimination possible is not very easy to disconnect. And in a culture like ours, in which race is an issue we grapple with nearly every day, the impulse may have heightened over time.
That familiar pull between the promise of victory and the dread of defeat - whether in money, love or sport - is rooted in the brain's architecture, according to a new imaging study.
Neuroscientists at the USC Brain and Creativity Institute have identified distinct brain regions with competing responses to risk.
Both regions are located in the prefrontal cortex, an area behind the forehead involved in analysis and planning.
Neuroscientists at the USC Brain and Creativity Institute have identified distinct brain regions with competing responses to risk.
Both regions are located in the prefrontal cortex, an area behind the forehead involved in analysis and planning.
Pregnancy and motherhood may make us all go a little gooey, but it's not turning mums' brains into mush, according to mental health researchers at The Australian National University.
The study - conducted by the Centre for Mental Health Research (CMHR) at ANU - suggests that despite fears mothers may have that pregnancy affects their cognitive functions, there is no evidence to suggest that is true. The findings have been released as part of Mental Health Week, which runs until tomorrow (Saturday).
The research team, lead by CMHR Director Professor Helen Christensen, analysed information from the PATH through Life Project database and found that neither pregnancy nor motherhood had a detrimental effect on cognitive capacity.
The study - conducted by the Centre for Mental Health Research (CMHR) at ANU - suggests that despite fears mothers may have that pregnancy affects their cognitive functions, there is no evidence to suggest that is true. The findings have been released as part of Mental Health Week, which runs until tomorrow (Saturday).
The research team, lead by CMHR Director Professor Helen Christensen, analysed information from the PATH through Life Project database and found that neither pregnancy nor motherhood had a detrimental effect on cognitive capacity.
© AlamyIllustration of intense headache pain and possible sources vascular temporomandibular joint TMJ syndrome and the brain itself CT scans in the background convey clinical diagnosis often involved in treatment of patients suffering from migraine type symptoms
Flash was ridiculed by the cluster headache community for his "miracle cure". But when a survey of fellow sufferers who self-medicated with hallucinogens was published in the mainstream journal Neurology, the results gave weight to his claims. The Harvard Medical School scientists who conducted the survey have now applied for a preliminary clinical trial on the subject.
The sneezing season is already upon us - but a little inside knowledge can reduce our chances of being laid low. Professor Ron Eccles explains how to fend off the winter chills.
It's often been said that men don't think with their brains and now scientists have proved what women thought all along - that a man's sperm quality turns out to be an indicator of his brain power.
Researchers have discovered that men who scored highly in a variety of intelligence tests also had high counts of healthy sperm.
But low scores in intelligence tests showed that men had fewer sperm and that they weren't so healthy.
Evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller, from the University of New Mexico, said: 'It's not necessarily that the same genes are influencing sperm quality and intelligence.
Researchers have discovered that men who scored highly in a variety of intelligence tests also had high counts of healthy sperm.
But low scores in intelligence tests showed that men had fewer sperm and that they weren't so healthy.
Evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller, from the University of New Mexico, said: 'It's not necessarily that the same genes are influencing sperm quality and intelligence.
Doctors are examining if food given to astronauts can provide long-term help to children with Crohn's disease. The food is easier to digest because it contains treated amino acids, which can normally be difficult for the body to process. It has been found to have short-term benefits for patients with the digestive system disorder, but experts want to look at whether they continue.
Feeling blue? According to Dr Klaus Linde from the Centre for Complementary Medicine in Munich, a supplement of St John's Wort should improve your mood. In his review of 29 studies on the yellow-flowering hedgerow plant, also known as hypericum perforatum, Linde has shown it to be as effective as drugs such as Prozac in treating depression.
Millions of Britons are increasing their chances of getting cancer because they do not know that alcohol, processed meat and poor diet can cause the disease. Many people are confused about what raises or reduces someone's likelihood of becoming a victim of the country's second biggest killer.
Comment: This article fails to mention the 'snake charmers', those pathological individuals in positions of power who can brainwash large numbers of population in the name of this or that ideology, and instill or encourage racism. Take Sarah Palin as a recent example.