Category: News Archive

American researchers say most people struggling to lose weight don't realise how many calories they need to burn, which is why their efforts fail. Experts say the key to weight control is balancing energy in (food) with energy out (physical activity). Knowing how many calories your body needs helps prevent obesity from eating more than […]

A recent study found that jobs needing more education and mental skill give greater protection against the memory loss that comes before Alzheimer's disease. The Italian study included 458 people: 242 with Alzheimer's disease, 72 with mild cognitive impairment (memory problems that are abnormal but not severe enough to be Alzheimer's) and 144 without any […]

A US study for 2002–2004 compared how common different cancers are. Prostate cancer was the most common among Americans of all races (155.4 cases per 100,000 men), followed by lung and bronchus cancer (87.2 per 100,000) and colon and rectal cancer (60.7 per 100,000). The ten most common cancers, according to the Centers for Disease […]

A metabolic disturbance caused by a lack of three B vitamins (folate, B12 and B6) reduces the number and density of small blood vessels (capillaries) in the brain and causes problems with thinking and memory in mice, researchers at Tufts University report. "Mice fed a diet lacking these three vitamins showed a clear decline in […]

A new study shows that moderate exercise may help prevent Alzheimer's disease by slowing memory decline and delaying its early symptoms. Researchers randomly assigned older people at higher risk of dementia to a 24-week exercise programme or an education programme. The exercise group did 50 minutes of exercise three times a week, with walking recommended […]

First, I wish you all a happy and blessed Ramadan. But I want to warn you: going without food for a while is a rest for the stomach and digestive system, and breaking the fast with a heavy meal is, for your stomach, like eating a rich meal at dawn. It's like waking a worker […]

"If there is a risk of birth before 32 weeks of pregnancy, mothers and doctors should consider magnesium sulphate to prevent cerebral palsy," says Dr Rouse. The study by Dr Rouse and colleagues included 2,241 women at risk of premature birth between 24 and 31 weeks of pregnancy. Some were given magnesium sulphate and the […]

To control fever in children, ibuprofen should be tried first, and the benefits and risks of giving paracetamol and ibuprofen together for more than 24 hours should be weighed, according to a report in the British Medical Journal. The aim of these medicines is to control the temperature, ease the child's discomfort and prevent febrile […]

Infections of the amniotic fluid (the fluid around the baby in the womb) are among the most common causes of premature birth, according to a study by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine. In the United States, 12% of babies are born premature, and the rate keeps rising. The researchers analysed the amniotic fluid […]

According to a new national survey of 67,500 people, misuse of prescription painkillers rose by 12% last year, a problem the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has drawn attention to. "There is an increase in the misuse of prescription drugs for non-medical reasons, and these drugs are dangerous and life-threatening," said Dr […]

The US Food and Drug Administration's early warning system has issued a list of drugs to review. Information on possible problems with these drugs was collected from hospitals, patients, doctors and drug companies. A drug being on this list doesn't mean it is unsafe: it means it may be linked with a problem. So don't […]

The spleen, once thought to be a fairly unimportant organ, has turned out to be a key relay passing information from the nerves to the immune system. Understanding this could eventually lead to treatments that use the spleen to send the right messages when the body is invaded. Immune cells called macrophages produce tumour necrosis […]