Boozing may lead to premature aging.

Boozing may lead to premature aging

Apr 23, 2010 | Times of India Bangalore

London: In one more reason why one should give up booze, a new study has claimed that drinking alcohol accelerates the process of aging and increases the risk of cancer.

    Researchers at the University of Milan in Italy claimed to have found that drinking damages part of the cells that are linked to premature aging and cancer.
    They discovered that it causes stress and inflammation to telomeres — the ends of DNA strands that stop them unravelling much like the ends of shoelaces.
    As people age, telomere length shortens progressively and eventually they are so damaged that the cell dies. And the study found that alcohol accelerates this process.
    “Heavy alcohol users tend to look haggard, and it is commonly thought heavy drinking leads to premature aging and earlier onset of diseases of aging,” lead researcher Andrea Baccarelli was quoted by the Daily Telegraph as saying.
    

Since telomere shortening is also believed to be increasing cancer risk, the researchers speculated that those with shorter telomeres due to heavy alcohol consumption would have an increased risk of cancer.
    For their study, the researchers looked at more than 250 volunteers some of whom drank more than four alcoholic drinks per day. All the volunteers were similar in age and other factors that might affect telomere length, such as diet, physical exercise, work-related stress and environmental exposures.
    The scientists found telomere length was dramatically shortened in those who consumed alcohol. In some heavy drinkers, telomere length was nearly half as long as telomere length in the non-abusers. The findings of the study were presented at the American Association for Cancer Research’s annual conference. PTI

Don't let malwares fool you on April 1st.

Hello All... 
Time for another web attack! Though security firms affirm that no new systems would be attacked this April 1st, but its always good to stay alarmed!


Do follow the one I wrote one year back... The written things are old.. but the dangers are still fresh..
Goto http://techdb.blogspot.com/2009/03/dont-let-malwares-fool-you-on-april-1st.html and protect your online entity..


You can also visit this link (http://www.symantec.com/norton/theme.jsp?themeid=conficker_worm) for more updates on this worm!


Wishing a happy and safe computing.

Exam today? Sleep for an extra hour, score more.

SHUT-EYE THE WAY TO SUCCESS?

Exam today? Sleep for an extra hour, score more

March 22 2010 | Times of India Bangalore

London: What’s the key to success in exams? Well, an extra hour in bed in the morning, apart from hard work, say scientists.

    An experiment, designed by three British scientists, which allows students to stay in bed for an extra hour in the same morning has boosted exam results and slashed absenteeism.

    The scientists, led by neuroscience Russell Foster of Oxford University, found that teenagers have a biological predisposition to go to bed late and get up late particularly during exam time, and may not begin to function fully until 10am, two to four hours later than adults.

    The experiment also revealed that the most difficult lessons should take place in the afternoon, when pupils will be at their most alert.

    This adolescent “time shift” persists until the age of 21, after which a person’s body clock starts to shift back again, until by the age of 50 they are likely to get out of bed as early as when they were young children.

    “Teachers will say, ‘I know my kids are at their best first thing in the morning’, but what’s really going on is that the teachers are feeling particularly awake by 9am and the kids are half asleep, making the class easier to control,” Foster said. AGENCIES

Weird: Man commits suicide over hefty power bill.

Man commits suicide over hefty power bill.

March 22 2010 | Times of India Bangalore

Frustrated over a hefty electricity bill, Mohd Shamim (45), allegedly committed suicide by setting himself afire near the deputy commissioner’s office in Jharkhand’s Dhanbad on Sunday. He had been slapped a bill of Rs 92,000 and was accused of power theft.

Contraceptive pill can trigger hair loss.

Contraceptive pill can trigger hair loss:

March 22 2010 | Times of India Bangalore
 

Hormones in the contraceptive pill are causing hair loss in a number of young women, a leading expert has said. David Salinger, director of International Association of Trichologists, said he treats one young woman for hair thinning every day, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Contraceptive pills such as Yasmin and Diane 35 ED can promote hair growth, while their older counterparts such as Loette and Levlen can trigger a genetic predisposition for hair thinning in women as young as their mid-teens, he said.