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

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.

Obesity causes 100k cancer cases a year.

BLOW FOR US
Obesity causes 100k cancer cases a year
November 8 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

 
Washington: Obesity causes more than 100,000 incidents of cancer in the US every year, the American Institute for Cancer Research said in estimates published on Friday. 

The group, which funds research on the link between diet and the disease, said 49% of endrometrial cancers, which originate in the womb, and 35% of oesophageal cancers are linked to excess body fat. Its clearer than ever that obesitys impact is felt before, during and after cancer, it increases risk, makes treatment more difficult and shortens survival, said Laurence Kolonel of the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii. 

Scientists have long seen a link between obesity and certain types of cancer, but the study extrapolated from US cancer incidence data is among the first to conclude the link exists on such a scale. According to the government-backed Centers for Disease Control, 34% of American adults aged 20 and over are obese. AFP

Avoid coffee during night shifts.

Avoid coffee during night shifts:
November 6 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

Night-shift workers should avoid drinking coffee if they wish to improve their sleep, according to new research. A study led by Julie Carrier, a University of Montreal psychology professor has found the main byproduct of coffee, caffeine, interferes with sleep and this side-effect worsens as people age. The combined influence of age and caffeine makes the sleep of middle-aged subjects particularly vulnerable to the circadian waking signal.

Renting clothes may help cut CO emissions.

Renting clothes may help cut CO emissions
November 5 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

The British Governments waste watchdog has determined that large wardrobes of seldom-used clothes are no longer environmentally acceptable and people should instead rent outfits and accessories, thus helping to cut carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. According to the Times, a report by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has called for the transformation of a large part of the retail sector into a service industry specialising in renting goods, with each item used by many different people during its lifetime. WRAP has identified five categories of goods suitable for renting, namely, high-end clothing, glassware and tableware, tools and equipment for house and garden, vehicles, and telephone, audio and recreational equipment.

Antibiotics can cause birth defects.

CHOOSE WITH CARE
Antibiotics can cause birth defects
November 4 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

 
Chicago: Researchers studying antibiotics in pregnancy have found a surprising link between common drugs used to treat urinary infections with birth defects. Reassuringly , the most-used antibiotics in early pregnancy penicillins appear to be the safest. 

Bacterial infections can cause problems for the fetus if left unchecked, experts said, so pregnant women shouldnt avoid antibiotics entirely . Instead, women should discuss antibiotics choices with their doctors. The study is the first large analysis of antibiotic use in pregnancy. It found that mothers of babies with birth defects were more likely than mothers with healthy babies to report taking two types of antibiotics during pregnancy: sulfa drugs and urinary germicides called nitrofurantoins . 

It was the first time an association had been seen between urinary tract treatments and birth defects, said lead author Krista Crider, a geneticist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , which funded the research . Additional studies are going to need to be done to confirm these findings.
Used for many decades, the antibiotics in question predate the Food and Drug Administration and its requirements for rigorous safety testing. The FDA now grades all drugs for safety to the fetus based on available research , but rigorous studies are so lacking in many cases, that no antibiotics get the highest grade of A . 

Sulfa drugs are the oldest antibiotics and some animal studies have found harm during pregnancy. Nitrofurantoins previously have been viewed by doctors as safe to treat urinary tract infections during pregnancy. The study, appearing in Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, may cause doctors to change the drugs they choose to treat pregnant women with infections. 

Susan Mehnert-Kay , a family practice doctor in Tulsa , Oklahoma, said the research is very interesting and would cause her to reconsider antibiotic choices in early pregnancy.
Birth defects linked to sulfa drugs included rare brain and heart problems, and shortened limbs. Those linked to nitrofurantoins included heart problems and cleft palate. The drugs seemed to double or triple the risk, depending on the defect. AP

2-year-old could die if she cries.

2-year-old could die if she cries:
November 4 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

A two-year-old girl in the UK endures a rare condition that could lead her to death if she burst into tears. Little Tianna Lewis McHugh suffers from an extreme form of the condition where simple crying could set off a seizure and block breathing as her skin turns white, her body stiffens and her heart stops beating. Parents Ceri Lewis and Andy McHugh revealed their daily struggle to keep Tianna from shedding those tears.

Obesity damages liver more than alcohol.

Cut the flab: obesity damages liver more than alcohol
November 2 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

London: Heres another reason why you should shed the flab excess weight can damage your liver more than alcohol , a leading doctor in UK has warned.
According to Christopher Hawkey, president of the British Society of Gastroenterology , obesity will overtake alcohol as the main cause of liver cirrhosis in the not too distant future . Obesity is the biggest health problem we face this century. It is almost certainly going to reverse the rise in life expectancy, so we start living shorter lives than before.
It will increase the risks of a number of cancers; hip and knee surgery requirement is going to be vast; and it is now projected to overtake alcohol as the biggest cause of liver cirrhosis within two decades, he said.
A poll of 1,959 people released on Sunday has found that while the majority understood that obesity could cause diabetes, high blood pressure and infertility, few understood its link to certain cancers or liver problems. 

 
New figures show a huge spike in the number of people under the age of 65 dying of liver disease while deaths linked to other problems, such as diabetes, cancers and stroke, have fallen for that age group.
The average age of death from liver disease is 59 compared to between 82 and 84 for heart disease and strokes. PTI

Mobile overuse may up tumour risk.

Mobile overuse may up tumour risk:
November 2 2009 | Times of India Bangalore
 

Though its not yet proved that cell phones cause brain cancer, a new study has claimed that long-term use of mobiles could up the risk of brain tumours. Researchers have based their findings on an analysis of the key 23 studies that have investigated the effects of the phone the study involved more than 12,000 patients who had developed brain tumours and 25,000 who hadnt . The study concluded mobile phone use of 10 years or longer was associated with an increased risk of tumours of up to 34 per cent, the Sunday Express reported.

Alcohol, cigarettes beat LSD in list of harmful substances.

Alcohol, cigarettes beat LSD in list of harmful substances 

October 31 2009 | Times of India Bangalore 

London: Alcohol and cigarettes are more dangerous than illegal drugs such as cannabis, LSD and ecstasy, the British governments top drugs advisor has said. 

David Nutt of Imperial College London on Thursday called for a new system of classifying drugs to enable the public to better understand the relative harm of legal and illegal substances. 

Alcohol would rank as the fifth most harmful drug after heroin, cocaine, barbiturates and methadone, he said in a briefing paper for the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies at Kings College London.
 

Tobacco would come ninth on the list and cannabis , LSD and ecstasy while harmful, are ranked lower at 11, 14 and 18 respectively . The ranking is based on physical harm, dependence and social harm. No one is suggesting that drugs are not harmful.The critical question is one of scale and degree, said Nutt,the chairman of the governments Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.
 

He added: We have to accept young people like to experiment and what we should be doing is to protect them from harm . AFP

Wearing your cellphone on hip weakens pelvic bones.

Wearing your cellphone on hip weakens pelvic bones 

October 31 2009 | Times of India Bangalore 

Accra: Are you wearing the cellphone on the waist belt If yes, think twice.
In a new research, health experts have warned that wearing a cellphone on ones belt could lead to decreased bone density in the area of the pelvis that is commonly used for bone grafts.

The report, carried out by Tolga Atay and colleagues of Suleyman Demirel University in Turkey, is one of the first to document bone-weakening effects of cellphone use.
However, the researchers said that the findings were preliminary , said GNA. Even though findings have not been conclusive, the World Health Organisation and scientists have called for precaution in the use of cellphones.
It would be better to keep mobile phones as far as possible from our body during our daily lives. With long-term exposure , electro-magnetic fields from cellphones could weaken the bone, potentially affecting the outcomes of surgical procedures using bone grafts , the report said.
The report said the researchers measured bone density at the upper rims of the pelvis in 150 male cellphone users who carried their phones on their belts. Out of the 150 men, 122 carried their phones on the right side and 28 on the left side and they had all used cell phones for an average of six years. PTI

Junk food can hook bingers like heroin.

Junk food can hook bingers like heroin 

October 29 2009 | Times of India Bangalore 

London: A diet of junk food is almost as addictive as taking a drug like heroin, warn scientists. 

Researchers found that regularly eating doughnuts, burgers and chocolate cakes can become a substitute for happiness. And as years pass, a diet rich in these junk foods can lead bingers to effectively become hooked just like a drug addict, reports the Daily Express.
 

To reach the conclusion, Paul Kenny, a neuroscientist, carried out tests on rats.
The research shows how dangerous high fat and high sugar foods can be. You lose control. Its the hallmark of addiction, he said.
The researchers believe it is one of the first studies to suggest brains may react in the same way to junk food as they do to drugs.
This is the most complete evidence to date that suggests obesity and drug addiction have common neuro-biological foundations, said Paul Johnson, Kennys colleague.
Kenny, who began his research at Guys Hospital, London , but now works at Floridas Scripps Research Institute , divided rats into three groups for his research, due to be published in the US soon.
One got normal amounts of healthy food to eat. Another lot was given restricted amounts of junk food and the third group was given unlimited amounts of junk, including cheesecake, fatty meat products, and cheap sponge cakes and chocolate snacks.
There were no adverse effects on the first two groups, but the rats who ate as much junk food as they wanted quickly became very fat and started bingeing.
When researchers electronically stimulated the part of the brain that feels pleasure , they found that the rats on unlimited junk food needed more and more stimulation to register the same level of pleasure as the animals on healthier diets. AGENCIES

One cigarette is enough to ruin your health.

One cigarette is enough to ruin your health.

October 29 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

Lighting a single cigarette can have serious adverse effects on young adults, says a new study. Stella Daskalopoulou at McGill University Health Centre found that smoking one cigarette increases the stiffness of the arteries in 18 to 30 year olds by a whopping 25%. Arteries that are stiff or rigid increase resistance in the blood vessels, making the heart work harder-the stiffer the artery, the greater the risk for heart disease or stroke. Young adults aged 20-24 years have the highest smoking rate of all age groups in Canada. Our results are significant because they suggest that smoking just a few cigarettes a day impacts the health of the arteries. This was revealed very clearly when these young people were placed under physical stress, such as exercise, she said.

Pill doubles stroke risk.

Pill doubles stroke risk:
October 28 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

Oral contraceptives nearly double stroke risk, according to a study by three Loyola University neurologists. Nearly 100 million women worldwide use birth control pills. Pills nowadays contain much lower concentrations of estrogens than older preparations. There are about 4.4 ischemic strokes for every 100,000 women of childbearing age. Birth control pills increase the risk 1.9 times, according to a meta-analysis , which combines the results of multiple studies.

Smoking can trigger back pain.

Smoking can trigger back pain: 

October 26 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

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 Canadian researchers have linked smoking to chronic lower back pain. In the study, boffins identified a higher rate of chronic lower back pain among people who smoke every day. According to Michael Cousins, the study found that smoking interferes with pain transmitters, causing osteoporosis. The condition resulted in chronic lower back pain which could also trigger a downward spiral in a persons life, he warned. Chronic pain is now regarded as a disease in its own right, said Cousins, who is a director at the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney.

Eating lots of fish causes diabetes.

Eating lots of fish causes diabetes.

October 20 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

New York: Making sure fish ends up on your dinner plate a couple of times a week may be a good way to cut your risk for developing heart disease, but it may not do the same for diabetes, new study findings hint. 

In the study, researchers found no evidence of reduced risk for diabetes among adults who ate more fish, or the essential omega-3 fatty acids obtained primarily from seafood.Rather, their findings suggest that eating 2 or more servings of fish a week may slightly increase diabetes risk. 
 

Dr Frank B Hu, at Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues examined ties between fish and omega-3 fatty acid intake and the development of diabetes among 152,700 women enrolled in the Nurses Health Study and 42,504 men enrolled in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. REUTERS  

Vitamin pills can cause cancer.

Vitamin pills can cause cancer 

October 20, 2009 | Times of India Bangalore

 

London: Vitamin supplements do nothing to stave off illness and could even lead to cancer, a leading expert has warned.

Professor Martin Wiseman, medical and scientific adviser for the World Cancer Research Fund, has pointed out that people who regularly take vitamin and mineral supplements instead of eating a balanced diet are at greater risk.

 
Many people think they can reduce their cancer risk by taking supplements, but the evidence does not support this, the Daily Express quoted Wiseman as saying. Just because a dietary pattern that provides a relatively high level of a particular nutrient might protect against cancer, it does not mean taking it in tablet form will have the same effect. 

In fact, at high doses the effect of these micronutrients is unpredictable and can be harmful to health, Wiseman added. Research suggests that vitamins A and E can actually cause illness. Wiseman said: There are studies that show high doses of some supplements can increase risk of some cancers. ANI  

Living near noisy roads raises BP.

Living near noisy roads raises BP

September 11 2009, Times of India Bangalore

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Individuals living near noisy roads are at greater risk of developing high blood pressure, says a new study. A team of researchers from Lund University Hospital, Sweden, investigated the association between living close to noisy roads and high blood pressure. We found that exposure above 60 decibels was associated with high blood pressure among the relatively young and middle-aged , an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack and stroke , lead researcher Theo Bodin said.

Painkillers can be addictive in just 3 days.

Painkillers can be addictive in just 3 days.

September 07, 2009, Times of India Bangalore 

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London: Popular painkillers, which are routinely used to ease headaches, back problems and period pain, can cause addiction in just three days, the UK governments drug watchdog has warned. 

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The drugs, which contain codeine and include brand names such as Nurofen Plus and Solpadeine Plus, are taken by millions of people. However, official figures have shown that tens of thousands of people have become dependent on the drugs, many accidentally , with women most at risk of developing an addiction. 

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Growing concern about the spread of what experts describe as a hidden addiction , has led the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to announce a series of measures to counter the problem , reports the Telegraph.
The watchdog said that from next year all packets of the painkillers would carry a prominent label that read: Can cause addiction . For three days use only .
The pills will only be available in a maximum of 32 per packet without a prescription, instead of up to 100, and warnings will be repeated on leaflets inside.
Advertising will no longer state that the drugs are remedies for ailments such as coughs and colds; only that they can relieve acute and moderate pain.
The move follows a report in July by MPs on the all-party parliamentary group on drug misuse which highlighted the danger of the drugs. Official estimates state that 32,000 people are addicted to the painkillers but the MPs said that this was just the tip of the iceberg .
The drugs are particularly easy to abuse because they are available without a prescription, said experts. All contain codeine , an opiate related to heroin and morphine. After enjoying initial relief from pain, patients can find themselves taking pills in increasing numbers to gain the same effect.
There are examples of addicts taking up to 70 pills a day, putting them at risk of seriously damaging their health with complications such as stomach bleeding, liver problems, gallstones and depression. Users of codeine have said withdrawal symptoms include sweating, irritability, and nausea. AGENCIES

Swine Flu :: What You should know...

Hello Friends...
Its hardly couple of days and India is already gripped by the infectious palm of Swine Influenza. A death in Pune, then several detected positive of this Virus. Pune, West Bengal, Mangalore and now Gujarat... The Swine Flu's Reign is expanding slowly.. 

Without taking much of your healthy time, Here i am listing out some links which would be helpful for you to understand this epidemic and also to stay away from it.. Do go through and shield yourself of the effects of this flu.

Link 1: World Health Org.: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/ 

Link 2: Wikipedia.org: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swine_influenza
Link 2.1: Wikipedia.org: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_flu_pandemic 

Link 3: Rediff.com: http://news.rediff.com/slide-show/2009/aug/07/slide-show-1-faq-on-swine-flu.htm

Link 4: SwineFluIndia: www.swinefluindia.com

Link 5: SwineFlu India: http://www.swineflu.co.in

Link 6: Google Search Results: http://www.google.co.in/search?hl=en&q=swine+flu+india&btnG=Search&meta=&aq=f&oq= 

Take Care. Take good care of Swine Flu.
- Blog Administrator.