A mysterious illness has killed two people and caused five more to be hospitalized in Alabama, and the respiratory infection has baffled public health officials in the state.

The mysterious illness that has killed two in Alabama began to emerge late last week, and some of the seven total sickened also presented with the flu when treated.

A fever, cough, and shortness of breath affected those infected by the mysterious illness, and samples from all seven patients are currently being tested by the Alabama Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control Respiratory Laboratory, with results expected later this week.

Alabama Department of Public Health Spokeswoman Mary McIntyre said public health officials are hoping that publicizing the outbreak would make Alabama residents aware of the mysterious illness that has killed two:

“We’re only aware of the Southeast, but we don’t know — we haven’t received reports from anywhere else … That’s why we’re trying to get the information out.”

WFSA reports that public health officials have discovered little to connect the infected individuals with one another, and add that none had recently traveled:

“So far none of those affected by the mystery illness appear to be connected to each other and there’s no indication that any had recently traveled outside the country … The ADPH and CDC are recommending that hospitals take respiratory precautions, such as breathing masks, when treating patients with respiratory symptoms.”

The station reports that all those infected with the mysterious illness lived in the”eight-county service area including Barbour, Coffee, Dale, Geneva, Henry, Houston and Pike counties.” Hospitals have been advised to implement cautionary measures including masks and increased infection control as the outbreak is investigated.

Mysterious Illness Kills 2, Hospitalizes 5 In Alabama is a post from: The Inquisitr

Co-sleeping may raise the risk of SIDS, or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, a new study suggests.

The new findings about co-sleeping and SIDS have reignited debate over the controversial sleeping practice in which parents share a bed with infants.

Advocates of co-sleeping report more workable sleeping patterns overall, as well as ease of breastfeeding, less nighttime waking, and more security for a new baby. Some experts in baby care also posit that co-sleeping can be a SIDS deterrent, due to the possible “pacemaker” effect of a mother’s heart sleeping alongside a baby.

But a recent study directly contradicts the practice of co-sleeping as a SIDS prevention method, indicating babies who co-slept were “five times more likely to die of SIDS compared with infants who slept separately in the same room,” even when controlling for SIDS risk factors such as formula use, smoking, and alcohol consumption.

After the three-month mark was passed, the study found the co-sleeping SIDS risk remained at three times higher than that of infants who slept separately from parents.

Dr. Rachel Moon is a pediatrician at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) task force on SIDS. Dr. Moon said of the research findings on co-sleeping and SIDS:

“This is a really important study, because it does what no other study has done before … Even if you do everything right, bed-sharing increases a baby’s risk.”

Moon added:

“It’s become really uncommon to encounter a baby who dies of SIDS who wasn’t bed-sharing.”

However, the study on co-sleeping and SIDS has already been criticized by UNICEF UK in a five-point rebuttal on their website.

In the response, the organization says in part:

“The stated objective of the paper is to resolve uncertainty about the risk of SIDS and bed-sharing, but this is not possible if essential data has not been collected. A more recent study (Blair et al, BMJ 2009) has demonstrated a significant interaction between co-sleeping and recent parental consumption of alcohol and drugs. None of these five case-control studies collected data on recent drug consumption and only two collected data on alcohol consumption. The over-arching argument is thus whether bed-sharing in itself poses a risk to infants or whether the risk is within the hazardous circumstances in which we bed-share. These older studies simply do not have the data to resolve this argument.”

The SIDS co-sleeping study was published in the medical journal BMJ. 

Co-Sleeping SIDS Risk Eyed In New Study is a post from: The Inquisitr

There are short and long-term negative consequences related to alcohol use. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has issued guidelines defining low-risk drinking standards for both men and women. These differ slightly between gender because women are more physiologically sensitive to the effects of alcohol. Therefore, they are urged to intake less in volume and frequency.

The current NIAAA statement recommends women limit their intake to seven or less alcoholic drinks per week and no more than three in a single day. For men, no more than 14 within a week’s time or four per day.

However, research funded by the NIAAA and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, found college-age girls frequently exceed the suggested directive on a weekly basis – more so then their male counterparts. This action puts women at an increased risk for serious health conditions.

Health risks have been linked to chronic consumption of alcohol for women, which are liver damage (alcoholic hepatitis), heart disease, a 10 percent increase of breast cancer occurrence, and possible adverse effects on fetal development if imbibed during pregnancy.

Drinking too much too fast can result in liquor/alcohol poisoning – in which one has overindulged to the point where the liver is incapable of keeping up (metabolizing). Symptoms can include nausea, vomiting, labored breathing, confusion, unconsciousness, and death.

Women who drink to the point of limited coherence or unconsciousness can put themselves at risk for unwanted physical/sexual contact.

Bettina B. Hoeppner of the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Addiction Medicine – an assistant professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School – and her colleagues asked 992 college students, 575 females and 417 males, to report their daily drinking habits on a biweekly basis, using web-based surveys throughout their first year of college.

The data revealed not only did the alcohol use appear excessive among female students, but also remained persistent. In comparison, men’s weekly drinking declined. Unfortunately, it was not determined as to why they continuously exceeded recommended limits – engaging in dangerous binge-like drinking habits. Researchers did surmise a lack of awareness to the possible long term consequences as a contributing factor, and suggested clinicians make a point to educate young patients whenever possible on the possible dangers.

The results will be published in the October 2013 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research (ACER) and are currently available at Early View. Co-authors of the ACER paper, “Sex Differences in College Student Adherence to NIAAA Drinking Guidelines,” included Anna L. Paskausky of the Center for Addiction Medicine of Harvard Medical School, and the Connell School of Nursing at Boston College; Kristina M. Jackson, and Nancy P. Barnett of the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies at Brown University.

Ultimately, the NIAAA states no one under the age of 18 should drink, nor should anyone who is pregnant or trying to conceive, and people taking medications should be aware there is a possibility of a negative interaction. If people are going to use alcohol, they should be mindful of the side effects, use common sense, and adhere to moderation.

[Image via Shutterstock]

College-Age Girls Exceed Drinking Guidelines More Frequently Than Their Male Counterparts is a post from: The Inquisitr

It’s not a rhetorical question. What would you be unable or unwilling to give up for a single week? How implacable would you be on forgoing your regular cup of caffeinated coffee or abandoning your electronic universe of social media for a while? We’re not talking Lent, just a mere seven days.

A Sachs Media Group survey conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research questioned 1,000 US participants, 18 to 65 and over, on what they’d be least willing to give up for a week: their smartphone/tablet, caffeine, alcohol, or sex. Responses were analyzed as a whole as well as subcategorized by political affiliation, age, and gender.

Interestingly the American consumers addiction to smartphones and tablets significantly rivaled the traditional cravings for caffeine, alcohol, and sex. Nationally people were least willing to sacrifice their coffee and smartphones; neck-and-neck at 29 percent versus 28 percent. Followed by alcohol, sex, and other. Respondents between 35 to 49 were most dedicated to the relationship with their devices.

Women as a whole ultimately preferred their coffee (34 percent) and devices (34 percent) over alcohol (20 percent), sex (5 percent), and other (7 percent). Caffeinated smartphone users were more willing to give up sex for a week, especially women 18 to 34.

Smartphones won out over sex by nearly fivefold in comparison to their male counterparts, but men in the same age demographic (18 to 34) were least likely to skip sex – shocking, right? And men as a whole were least apt to give up alcohol (26 percent), followed by caffeine (23 percent), smartphones (21 percent), sex (20 percent), and other (10 percent).

However, the older the individuals were, the less likely they were willing to give up the stimulating effects of caffeine, as those 65 and over held their coffee cups firm at 46 percent. It appears if the patent is permitted, women and people over 65 may be the key demographic for the “caffeinated toothbrush.”

Republicans preferred their electronics, while Democrats were statistically unwilling to give up happy hour. Independents held equal allegiances to caffeine and smartphones.

Critics are concerned the addiction to technology may continue to propel beyond our other desires, even needs. We’ve seen a growing number of studies that reflect statistics on men escaping their everyday stresses by immersing themselves into video games to the point of it being detrimental to their employment, relationships, and socialization. Texting rivals drunk driving in the vehicular death department. And recent research has address the possibility that children’s learning may be impacted by solely using screened devices.

Therefore, the pervasive influence of technology should be addressed, evaluated, studied – begging the question what type of relationship are you having with your phone when it is becoming increasingly more important than the one you have with your partner?

[Image via Shutterstock]

Sex Or The Smartphone is a post from: The Inquisitr

In what can only be described as a completely valid and unbiased study, a large candy manufacturers association has concluded that candy can’t possibly make you fat.

The new study was funded by the National Confectioners Association, a trade group representing the candy, chocolate, and gum industry.

There is really no reason to go into specifics on the study’s research process because we’re 99 percent sure its complete BS.

So what did candy company’s find out about their own products? Surprise, surprise, they won’t make you fat!

According to the study:

“Frequency of candy consumption was not associated with the risk of obesity, overweight/obesity, elevated waist circumference, elevated skinfold thickness, blood pressure, low density lipoprotein (LDL) or high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, or insulin resistance.”

The candy industry funded research also concluded:

“Increased frequency of candy consumption among adults in the United States was not associated with objective measures of adiposity or select cardiovascular risk factors, despite associated dietary differences.”

We have to question a study being run by an agency who’s main goal is “[fostering] industry growth by advancing the interests of the confectionery industry and its customers.”

Of course we can’t argue with the study unless of course there was another peer-reviewed study that completely invalidated the findings. Oh wait, that study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. 

In the meantime the National Confectioners Association released the following press statement:

“There is a place for little pleasures, such as candy, in life. A little treat in moderation can have a positive impact on mood and satisfaction, and as emerging research suggests, minimal impact on diet and health risk.”

Now if you excuse me I’m going to eat 30 Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, a pound of gummy bears, and 1000 jelly belly’s. I hear those products do nothing to the waistline.

Candy Companies Conduct Study, Say Candy Won’t Make You Fat [Totally Valid Research] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Stem cells restored the vision to a blind man who suffered from the degeneration of his retinal cells.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, not only can stem cells restore vision to the blind, they can also cook up one interesting hamburger. The cost of this hamburger was $325,000, but scientists hope over time the process can be used to generate vat-grown meat for everyone (so, instead of tasting gamey, is it vatty?).

Since 2011, Advanced Cell Technology has been conducting human trials on using human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) to reverse two common causes of blindness, including dry age-related macular degeneration and Stargardt’s macular dystrophy. These diseases cause people to gradually lose retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells, which feed and clean photoreceptors necessary to capture light and send signals to the brain.

The stem cells restored vision from 20/400, which is considered legally blind, to 20/40, which is enough to drive a car. This was done by converting human embryonic stem cells into RPE cells and then transplanting them beneath the retina.

Gary Rabin, chairman and CEO of Advanced Cell Technology, says stem cells restoring vision to the blind is just the beginning:

“”There’s a guy walking around who was blind, but now can see. With that sort of vision, you can have a driver’s licence. … We continue to be encouraged by the progress we see in our ongoing clinical investigations, though the results included in the article were confidential and not intended for publication at that time. Our plan is still to publish additional results from the clinical investigations when we have a significant aggregation of data.”

Human embryonic stem cells have been controversial in the past because culturing them results in the destruction of a fertilized human embryo. Much of the successful stem research has derived from somatic stem cells, also known as adult stem cells. But hESC are fully pluripotent, meaning they can transform to any cell type, while adult stem cells are typically multipotent, meaning they are limited to what type of cells they can differentiate into. But they are various sources of pluripotent adult stem cells, including umbilical cord blood.

What do you think about stem cells restoring vision to the blind using human embryonic stem cells?

Stem Cell Restored Vision To Blind Man Using Human Embryos is a post from: The Inquisitr

Vitamin B may slow Alzheimer’s, according to a study at the University of Oxford. While there is no medical treatment to prevent or stop the devastating disease, researchers are finding ways to slow the onset and progression.

Researchers David Smith and Gwenaëlle Douaud led the study to test whether Alzheimer’s patients may respond to high level doses of vitamins B12, B6, and folic acid. The study tracked the progress of 200 volunteers with mild cognitive impairment, or MCI.

Half the patients were given doses of B vitamins in either 200, 20, or four times the recommended daily allowance. The other half received placebos.

As reported by New Scientist, the patient’s brains were monitored, through MRI imaging, for changes. Previous researched showed that high doses of B vitamins slowed the reduction of brain matter in general. However, the new research explored specifically which parts of the brain were affected.

The hippocampus and cerebellum regions of the brain are the most adversely affected in Alzheimer’s patients. The study revealed that vitamin B slowed reduction in matter, significantly, in those particular regions.

The patients taking the placebo experienced atrophy at a rate of 5.2 percent, while those taking the vitamins only experienced a 0.6 percent reduction in brain matter.

Doctors point out that it is important to understand that MCI does not always lead to Alzheimer’s, it is merely a possible early indicator. Researchers have made the connection between vitamin B, and Alzheimer’s, as MCI is often indicated in Alzheimer’s patients.

As reported by the Alzheimer’s Association, vitamin E, in high doses, has also been shown to delay loss of cognitive function.

Despite the possible positive affects, patients and family members are warned that vitamins should only be taken with a doctor’s consent or recommendation. They can be fatal if misused. Additionally, they can interfere with prescription medications.

According to the study, Vitamin B may slow Alzheimer’s, offering patients and their families new hope. Some doctors already prescribe B vitamins to patients, in an effort to counteract some of the affects of Alzheimer’s. However, more research is needed before high doses become a regular and accepted treatment.

[Image via Flickr]

Vitamin B May Slow Alzheimer’s [Study] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Based on the findings of study published in Pediatrics and co-authored by Dr. F. Xavier Castellanos – a professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at New York University – there is a possible link between a childhood diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and the onset of obesity in adulthood.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a neurobehavioral disorder with symptoms of exaggerated levels of inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Physical indicators of ADHD include  excessive or inappropriately timed fidgeting, running or climbing, yelling and interrupting, an inability to wait his/her turn, and a difficulty remaining still and quiet for prolonged periods.

Typically a child with this disorder has at least one co-occurrence of another developmental or behavioral problem, and ADHD is more often diagnosed in boys than girls. Therefore, more men are at risk of becoming obese later in life if there is in fact an association between the two conditions.

Obesity is a medical condition defining the excessive amount of accumulated body fat, amassed to the point of potentially causing additional health problems such as heart disease and diabetes.

The linear data for the study initially came from 207 Caucasian males with ADHD and aged between 6 and 12. Another group of teenagers without ADHD were incorporated 10 years later. Participants were reviewed in adulthood and asked to report on weight and possible contributing factors.

Two groups of men in their 40s were surveyed. Of those 222 still participating in the research years later, 111 in each group, it was found men who had a childhood history of ADHD were, on average, 19 pounds heavier than their non-ADHD counterparts. The average body mass index (BMI) for the ADHD participants was 30.1, compared to 27.6 among those who never had the disorder. A BMI over 25 is considered overweight.

Men with a history of ADHD reported weighing 213 pounds and 41.4 percent of them were obese. In comparison, men without ADHD weighed in at an average of 194 pounds, and 21.6 percent qualified as obese.

Researchers did find that the men who no longer had their childhood ADHD symptoms were especially likely to be obese, not those who still had persistent attention problems. Castellanos speculates the possible cause of obesity could be due to the poor planning and choice making commonly symptomatic to ADHD.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Childhood ADHD Linked To Obesity In Adulthood is a post from: The Inquisitr

One in five children has a mental health disorder, according to a new report put out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC rounded up rates of several mental health disorders, like ADHD and substance use disorders for children aged between three and 17. The report is the first on the state of mental health among US children.

The CDC adds that the estimates appear to be increasing, along with the amount of health care costs associated with the conditions. Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the CDC, explained in a news release:

“Millions of children in the US have mental disorders that affect their overall health and present challenges for their loved ones. In addition, the financial costs of childhood mental disorders are at least an estimated $247 billion each year.”

The CDC reports showed that ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed mental illness in children, with almost seven percent of kids fitting into the category. Another 3.5 percent have behavioral issues, while three percent experience frequent anxiety. About 1.1 percent have autism.

The department also noted that addiction to drugs, alcohol, and tobacco are the most common issues for teens. While the percentages seem small, they translate into millions of children. For example, 6.8 percent of children have ADHD. That equates to about 4.18 million children. Dr. Frieden added of the statistics:

“We are working to both increase our understanding of these disorders, and help scale up programs and strategies to promote children’s mental health so that our children grow to lead productive, healthy lives.”

And it appears the numbers are only getting higher. The CDC reported in March that one in 50 US school children have an autism spectrum disorder. That number is up from one in 88 from the federal government’s estimate last year. The CDC hopes to use the data to understand how mental health disorders are impacting children, as well as work on treatment and intervention strategies.

[Image via ShutterStock]

One In Five Children Has Mental Health Illness, CDC Reports is a post from: The Inquisitr

Could an antibiotic provide an antidote against infatuation?

Researchers in Japan claim that minocycline can help men keep their wits about them when interacting with beautiful women and thereby avoid the so-called honey trap.

The study, published in the journal Nature, drew a parallel to those spy movies where a male can’t help himself from getting involved with a seductive woman, i.e., a femme fatale – even if he knows she’s working for the other side and is not trustworthy.  In real life application, the study claims, “this tendency toward resource allocation to attractive females creates ‘noise’ that complicates decisions in short-term economic exchanges, leading to the tendency to ‘honey trap’ males with this behavior.”

In the study itself, 98 male college students were shown photographs of eight females and asked to rate their attractiveness. They were also were required to play a trust game with the women involving splitting up a sum of money with them. Unbeknownst to the test subjects, the women had decided in advance to keep all the money rather than dividing it up.

Some of the test subjects took the 100 mg of minocycline twice a day for five days and others took a placebo. Minocycline is ordinarily prescribed to treat acne and other skin disorders but is sometimes used to address mental illness.

In the placebo group, men gave 50% of their money to what the study called women of low attractiveness, while they offered 65% of their money to women of high attractiveness. In other words, attractiveness and trustworthiness appeared to be correlated.  The minocycline group, however, gave their money 50-50 to the women regardless of their perceived hotness.

The premise of the research apparently seems to be that men in a business environment can get too easily distracted by good-looking women: “The hypothesis of this study was that minocycline reduces the risk of the honey trap effect and leads to more appropriate decisions in a short-term economic exchange, through a reduction in the noise triggered by physical attractiveness.”

Added the authors: “To date, the biological mechanisms that underlie the honey trap effect remain poorly understood and no drug has been conclusively proven to attenuate honey trap effects during human social decision-making. The results of the present study suggest that minocycline is the first drug to have a novel pharmacologic function in humans — inhibition of honey trap effects.”

Do you think a pill could actually protect a man (or a woman) against a potential gold digger?

[Image via Shutterstock]

Minocycline Drug Provides Male Antidote Against Hot Women [Study] is a post from: The Inquisitr

About 20 percent, or one in five children in the US, on average, have some type of mental disorder – such as ADHD, anxiety, depression, and behavioral conduct problems.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurobehavioral disorder with symptoms of exaggerated levels of inattentiveness, hyperactivity, restlessness, depression, and impulsivity. Physical manifestations of ADHD include  excessive or inappropriately timed fidgeting, running or climbing, yelling and interrupting, an inability to wait his/her turn, and a difficulty remaining still and quiet for prolonged periods. Medication is used to temporarily alleviate these disruptive behaviors.

Typically children with this disorder have at least one co-occurrence of another developmental or behavioral problem, and is more frequently diagnosed in boys than girls.

According to a comprehensive report on specific mental disorders by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ADHD is the most diagnosed disorder among kids 3 to 17 years of age. Based on the numbers, 6.8 percent of kids have been diagnosed with ADHD, 3.5 percent with behavioral problems (2.1 million) – which includes conditions like oppositional defiance disorder, 3 percent with anxiety, and 1.1 percent have autism. About two children out of 1,000 aged 6 to 17 suffer from Tourette’s. The numbers translate to millions of sufferers, as 6.8 percent equates to roughly 4.18 million kids.

Conduct and behavioral disorders were more common in boys, and depression was more frequent in girls.

The aforementioned conditions can mean a persistence of academic problems, difficultly making friends or building relationships later in life, and higher risks of developing other mental illnesses and chronic health problems in adulthood.

Researchers amalgamated the results for the “Mental Health Surveillance Among Children: United States, 2005–2011,” from several other surveys. They did admit the information regarding autism may not be as accurate as the data was not available at the time of the reported findings. As of March, the CDC did report about a million US school-aged kids have been diagnosed with some type of autism – as it’s a spectrum disorder where varying severity can be encompassed.

The definitions for all the disorders come from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV, the guide used by mental health professionals to diagnose and classify disease.

A newly revised version of the DSM-V, which comes out this month, reflects several changes including eliminating the term Asperger’s and instead reclassifying it as part of the umbrella diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.

[Image via Shutterstock]

ADHD Tops CDC List Of Mental Health Problems In US Children is a post from: The Inquisitr

A recent report by the CDC revealed that poop is extremely prevalent in public pools.

The Centers for Disease Control conducted a test of indoor and outdoor pools during the summer of 2012. The data tells a very dirty tale: 58 percent of the tested locations came back positive for E. coli. This bacteria is commonly found in human waste.

How does this much poop find its way into public pools? The CDC theorizes that feces finds its way into the water from people who have not properly cleaned themselves before going for a swim. The tests show that people “frequently” introduce fecal matter into public pools.

No matter how much you wipe after using the bathroom, the average person has approximately 0.14 grams of feces in their perianal area. This can ultimately find its way into the water while swimming. The CDC suggests grabbing a shower if you plan to pay a visit to a public pool this summer.

However, some of the poop is introduced by people who defecate in the pools. Officials believe that parents should give their kids a bathroom break every 30 minutes. Diapers, which should be checked every 30 to 60 minutes, are to be changed in designated areas.

Michele Hlavsa, chief of the Healthy Swimming Program for the CDC, offered up some common sense tips for adults as well. Sine chlorine doesn’t kill germs instantly, swimmers should definitely shower before taking a dip. Hlavsa also advised those suffering from diarrhea to steer clear of public pools.

As scary as this may sound, other countries are also struggling to control the level of urine and feces that are introduced into public pools. According to Rocket News 24, taking a swim in Chinese public pools could be extremely hazardous to your health.

In 2008, one man died and approximately 3,000 were poisoned when they swallowed water containing high volumes of human waste. China’s Health Ministry revealed in 2011 that roughly 10 percent of its public pools contained extremely unsafe levels of urine. Judging from the pictures at Amusing Planet, overcrowding may play a hand in the contamination.

What do you think about the CDC report detailing the amount of poop in public pools?

[Image via Shutterstock]

CDC: Poop Prevalent In Public Pools is a post from: The Inquisitr

No, that’s not a Baby Ruth. According to the CDC, poop in pools is far more common than you may think.

The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention said that more than half of public pools may have some fecal mater in them.

The new report found that that 58% of public pools contained Escherichia coli, a bacteria that is found in the human digestive system. The CDC said that the presence of E. coli was a good indicator that there was poop in the pool.

The study was conducted at more than 160 pools int he Atlanta area and researchers emphasized that the results did not indicate that public pools across the country had the same amount of fecal matter in them. They did, however, say that recreational water illness has been rising in the United States.

The CDC writes: “Swimmers frequently introduce fecal material and pathogens into recreational water throughout the country.”

Live Science notes that average person has about .14 grams of fecal material on them during a normal day and that it can easily wash off in the pool if a person does not shower before swimming. The CDC urged people around the country to practice good hygiene before swimming in a public pool.

The report reads: “Swimmers have the power and responsibility to decrease the risk for RWIs by practicing good hygiene.”

The CDC also suggested that parents should check diapers every 30 to 60 minutes and make sure that children take bathroom breaks.

[Image Via OlegD / Shutterstock.com]

CDC: Poop In Pools More Common Than You Think is a post from: The Inquisitr

Marijuana helps self esteem says a study which focused on the negative psychological effects of social exclusion.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, studies not only show marijuana helps self esteem, it makes you skinnier and helps your blood sugar regulation (I wonder if there’s many pot head diabetics?). Researchers found that participants who smoke pot have significantly smaller waist circumference than participants who have never smoked marijuana.

Tommy Chang argues legalizing marijuana could help the self esteem of the entire United States by creating a cash flow to the Federal government:

“Look at the situation we’re in now. Sequesters. Cuts. Everything cut across the board. Now, the government is tapped into the biggest cash crop in the world … There’s little manufacturing cost. You don’t have to do anything except watch it grow and get a couple of hippies to cut it and then put it in a bag.”

Timothy Deckman of the University of Kentucky says marijuana helps self esteem in his study:

“Prior work has shown that the analgesic acetaminophen [found in Tylenol], which acts indirectly through CB1 receptors [in the brain], reduces the pain of social exclusion. The current research provides the first evidence that marijuana also dampens the negative emotional consequences of social exclusion on negative emotional outcomes.”

Out of the 7,040 participants, marijuana users reported higher levels of self worth compared to non-marijuana users. The marijuana study worked in four phases to study different results based upon life circumstances. In general, marijuana users suffered from less instances of depression even when lonely.

Since marijuana helps self esteem, the researchers used this conclusion to explain the stereotypical pot head:

“Marijuana has been used to treat physical pain, and the current findings suggest that it may also reduce emotional pain. This may reflect a poor way of coping with social pain, but it may also explain some of the widespread appeal of marijuana.”

What do you think about this study claiming marijuana helps self esteem?

Marijuana Helps Self Esteem For The Lonely Skinny People, Says Study is a post from: The Inquisitr

Experts have been practically begging food manufacturers to cut back on the amount of salt they put in their products. Despite those requests, processed food manufacturers and restaurants continue to push high levels of sodium onto their customers.

A recent study finds that sodium content in processed foods declined by 3.5 percent; however, fast food sodium levels increased by 2.6 percent. Researchers at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine note that the changes are so small they may have occurred by chance.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the average American has a salt intake level of 2,300 milligrams per day. The CDC recommends that salt intake should be cut by 50 percent in order to ensure proper health.

While many Americans may believe that simply throwing out the salt shaker is good enough, the truth of the matter is that most of our salt arrives by way of processed and fast foods.

The new study suggests that the food industry doesn’t want to change, and, therefore, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should take steps to reduce sodium levels on behalf of consumers.

So what foods are the worst offenders? Researchers point to smoked bacon (1,803mg of sodium per 100-grams) and Caesar salad dressing, which offers 1,079mg. Hot dogs are also packed full of salt with 927mg of sodium per hot dog.

If you think you are doing yourself any favors by eating chicken strips instead of a burger, the study finds that fast food meals with chicken and fries can still push out 1,239mg of salt.

Fast food diners may also want to choose certain chains to eat at. For example, Burger King french fries (medium size) have 670mg while a medium McDonald’s fries features just 270mg per 100 grams served.

Consumers can help reduce their sodium intake by looking for salt-free and low-sodium labels on food products.

While sodium levels remain high in our processed and fast foods, a new study suggests that cutting back salt might have no effects on our health.

Are you careful with your own sodium levels?

[Image via JJ Harrison / Wikipedia]

Americans Are Eating Too Much Salt, Processed Foods And Restaurants Are Blamed is a post from: The Inquisitr

Pots smokers might get the munchies, but that hasn’t affected their waistline, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Medicine. 

The study finds a reduced prevalence of obesity in the marijuana smoking community despite the average pot smoker eating an extra 600 calories per day.

Researchers at the University of Nebraska, the Harvard School of Public Health, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center examined the statistics for more than 4,600 adults located around the United States. Twelve percent of participants self-identified as pot users, and 42 percent admitted to smoking marijuana in the past.

Each participant in the study had their blood sugar levels tested for various factors which included their fasting insulin and glucose levels, insulin resistance, cholesterol levels, and waist circumference.

Researchers found that participants who smoke pot have significantly smaller waist circumference than participants who have never smoked marijuana.  Researchers also had higher levels of HDL, also known as good cholesterol. Pot smokers also had a 16 percent decrease in insulin levels. Marijuana smokers had increased insulin resistance by 17 percent.

Researchers adjusted the study to account for changes in age, sex, tobacco and alcohol use, and physical activity levels.

Even participants who had used marijuana but failed to smoke in the last thirty days showed similar outcomes but to a lessened degree.

Researchers are not prepared to claim that pot smoking provides the benefits observed, only that those marijuana smokers in the survey showed improved statistics.

You can read the full study titled ”The Impact of Marijuana Use on Glucose, Insulin, and Insulin Resistance among US Adults“ via the The American Journal of Medicine.

Do you think pot smokers have an advantage over non-pot smokers? Looking back to my college days, my own observations do seem to verify that pot smokers are skinner than non-pot smokers.

Pot Smokers Are Skinnier And Have Better Blood Sugar Regulation, Study Finds is a post from: The Inquisitr

When people say, “This job is killing me,” in the case of a young advertising agency employee it may very well be true.

According to several sources, 24-year-old Li Yuan suffered a heart attack due to the overwhelming number of hours and stress he endured with his job. Leading up to his death, Yuan had been working a significant amount of overtime each day at the Ogilvy & Mather China offices in Beijing, reports MSN.

On Monday, 5 pm local time, witnesses’ state Yuan suddenly cried out and collapsed while at work. His colleagues called for emergency services and he was rushed to Peking Union Medical College for treatment. Unfortunately, Yuan died, having suffered from cardiac arrest.

Several people suspect Yuan’s unexpected, premature death was due to work exhaustion, causing the myocardial infarction. Which, based on a report mentioned in the China Youth Daily, is not uncommon given nearly 600,000 employees in China die on average from being overworked – suffering strokes and heart attacks that stem from copious amounts of anxiety.

The Inquisitr previously reported on a study, which indicated there was strong evidence to suggest that occupational burnout can contribute to coronary heart disease, or at the very least negatively impact overall cardiovascular health. Cardiovascular disease refers to any disease that affects the cardiovascular system, and is the leading cause of deaths worldwide.

Cardiac, vascular, and peripheral arterial diseases are types of cardiovascular diseases. Atherosclerosis (thickening of the arteries typically from accumulated cholesterol) and hypertension (high blood pressure) are the most common causes – either of which can be attributed to stress, diet, and genetics.

Heart attacks results from the partial interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart muscle. This is most commonly due to an occlusion of a coronary artery following the accumulation of atherosclerotic plaque. The resulting ischemia (restriction in blood supply) and ensuing oxygen shortage, if left untreated for a sufficient period of time, can cause damage or death of heart muscle tissue.

Heart attacks are rare but not impossible among younger individuals. Risk factors can include smoking and tobacco use, a comorbidity of other diseases, use of oral birth control, obesity, lack of physical activity, excessive alcohol use, abnormal lipoproteins present in the blood, genetics, and stress.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Overworked 24-Year-Old Died From Heart Attack is a post from: The Inquisitr

The adoptive parents of a young child are suing a South Carolina hospital and the state’s child welfare agency for performing sex assignment surgery when it wasn’t necessary.

The child, only named as M.C., was born eight years ago with male and female genitals. Doctors determined at that time that the child had an intersex condition.

When M.C. was 16 months old and in the care of the South Carolina Department of Social Services, doctors and officials with the department decided the toddler should undergo sex assignment surgery. They made M.C. a girl, removing all male genitalia from the child’s body.

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) filed a lawsuit against the hospital and social services on Tuesday, saying that they violated the child’s constitutional rights when they chose to make M.C. a girl instead of a boy. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of M.C.’s parents, Mark and Pam Crawford.

The child, now eight, identifies as a boy. He wears boy clothes and has a boy haircut. He has also told his school and his religious community that he has always been a boy. And, technically, this is true.

The SPLC lawsuit states that the defendants’ violated M.C.’s substantive and procedural due process rights, which are outlined in the 14th Amendment, because they subjected the child to unnecessary surgery. They allege the surgery was done “without notice or a hearing to determine whether the procedure was in M.C.’s best interest.

The lawsuit also alleges that the doctors committed malpractice by performing the surgery, because they failed to obtain correct consent. The suit filed over a child’s sex assignment surgery is the first of its kind in the United States. Alesdair H. Ittelson, SPLC staff attorney, stated:

“This case is about ensuring the safety of all children who do not have a voice. No one advocated for M.C.’s right to be free from unnecessary medical intervention at a time when the state was entrusted with his safety and well-being.”

Doctors have been performing sex assignment surgeries since the 1950s on infants with intersex conditions. Long-term outcomes of today’s genital surgeries have not been studied. However, many doctors and advocates do not recommend the surgery until the child chooses to identify with a gender.

Some risks of sex-assignment surgery include chronic pain, sexual dysfunction, sterility, loss of the important health benefits of hormones.

Do you think the parents of M.C. have the right to sue over her sex assignment surgery? Was the child’s surgery a violation of his constitutional rights?

[Image via ShutterStock]

Parents Sue Hospital For Toddler’s Sex Assignment Surgery is a post from: The Inquisitr

Research published recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) of Psychiatry states prenatal exposure to influenza may influence an onset of bipolar disorder along with a potential overlap of schizophrenia, as both conditions share similar suspected causes.

The  study, funded by the NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), was co-authored by Dr. Alan Brown – a professor of clinical psychiatry and epidemiology at Columbia University College of Physicians.

Using child health and development study databases, Brown and his colleagues at Columbia University and Kaiser Permanente identified data on mothers who gave birth between 1959 and 1966 and their offspring. Researchers found 92 cases of bipolar disorder and compared them with 722 people who matched in terms of occurrence of maternal influenza during pregnancy.

The risk of bipolar disorder was seen to quadruple with exposure to flu anytime during the pregnancy but especially so in the second and third trimesters. An even higher potential for acquiring a subtype of bipolar disorder with psychotic features was also assessed by researchers.

While the study found an association of prenatal exposure to influenza and a higher risk of bipolar disorder, it did not establish a cause-and-effect relationship.

Regardless, the researchers urge prospective mothers to take preventative measures such as getting flu shots prior to or during the earliest stage of pregnancy and practice avoidance with those who are symptomatically sick.

Bipolar disorder, previously referred to as manic depression, is a mood disorder characterized by vacillating emotional extremes with low bouts of clinical depression and frenzied periods of mania. Often people with bipolar disorder exhibiting psychotic symptoms can be misdiagnosed as having schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by an interruption of thought processes and by a deficit of appropriate emotional responses.

Common complex symptoms of the disorder include auditory hallucinations, paranoid delusions, and disorganized thinking. The onset of symptoms typically occurs in young adulthood and can significantly contribute to social and occupational dysfunction. However, the symptoms of the disorder can appear in infancy and childhood.

Social problems such as long-term unemployment, poverty, and homelessness as well as substance abuse are common among schizophrenics. The average life expectancy of people with the disorder is 12 to 15 years less than those without, typically due to a higher suicide rate.

Although the causes can vary by situation, both conditions can develop due to genetic and environmental factors. A family history of schizophrenia means a person has a 20 to 40 percent likelihood of being diagnosed, and a child of two parents with the condition has a 46 percent chance of developing schizophrenia. Environmental influences, such as drug use and prenatal stressors, have been linked to the disorder.

Children of those who suffer from manic depression are predisposed to have the same condition, as some genetic studies have associated chromosomal abnormalities and bipolar disorder. There is fairly consistent evidence that traumatic or abusive childhood life events can contribute to the onset – triggering recurrences of erratic hyperactivity and depression. Bipolar disorder can co-occur with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a type of anxiety disorder.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Flu Acquired During Pregnancy May Increase Risk For Bipolar Disorder In Offspring is a post from: The Inquisitr

An experiment reveals children would rather not be friends with the “fat kid.”

Researchers from the University of Leeds (England) used a storybook model, featuring character prototypes with different body types and handicaps – drawn as overweight, normal weight, or disabled – to test the subconscious feelings and responses of children.

The study, led by Professor Andrew Hill from the Leeds Institute of Health Sciences, examined how young children rated the presented options.

Participants, 150 primary school (early elementary school aged) students in the UK, were given storybooks covering the same plotline – three separate children dealing with their cat being stuck in a tree – using color illustrations and a simple text narrative. The only difference between each book was the primary character.

After reading the story, the kids were asked to rate the characters Alfie (overweight) and Thomas (normal weight) based on several attributes and behaviors, and again, this time incorporating a normal weight Alfie in a wheelchair.

As we’ve seen children can, at times, seem tactlessly cruel or blatantly honest when expressing their opinion. So when investigators asked which character the kids most identified with as someone they’d likely befriend, it was evident the overweight figure was seen as the least popular of the three.

The children projected a clear bias, voicing negative views about the fictionally fat character. Additionally, children favored Thomas, the average kid, over both the overweight and normal-weight wheelchair-bound incarnations of Alfie. Only one of 43 children opted to befriend ample Alfie over typical Thomas.

The participants expressed their assumptions. Fat Alfie was considered less likely to win a race, do well in school, be less confident with his appearance, or get invited to parties, and instead was more likely to be a troublemaker. Wheelchair Alfie was also rated less likely to do well in school academically and would be rejected from parties.

When a second group of children were presented with a female version of the same story, with Holly (normal) and Alfina (heavy), only two of the 30 kids chose to befriend Alfina. Regardless of the character’s gender, the heavier child was universally seen as least accepted when compared to the average and disabled examples. The child’s own gender made no difference on their choices, according to the researchers.

Although there were some negative discrepancies in reference to the disabled child, the disparity was not as notably significant.

According to Professor Hill, “This research confirms young children’s awareness of the huge societal interest in body size,” as kids have taken on a negative association with fatness and characterizing its penalties in terms of appearance, academics, and popularity – being socially ostracized.

These results may explain why, as children age, they audaciously victimize their heavier peers more and more.

The results of the study were presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Liverpool.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Children Don’t Want To Be Friends With The Fat Kid, Study Reveals is a post from: The Inquisitr

Colin Fiedler, dead for 40 minutes after experiencing cardiac arrest last year, serves as living proof that technology can apparently produce amazingly miraculous results. The 39-year-old Australian man appears to have escaped death with the aid of two revolutionary medical devices that brought him back to the land of the living.

When Fiedler suffered a heart attack last June, he asked emergency responders to transport him to The Alfred, an Australian medical facility — a request that ultimately saved his life. The hospital was conducting trial usage of a two-part mechanical resuscitation technique, which became instrumental in Fiedler’s survival.

Considered clinically dead for an astonishing 40 minutes, the 39-year-old is now alive and extremely grateful that he picked The Alfred when given a choice of transport between two hospitals.

“For some reason, I said The Alfred, which is pretty lucky because they are the only one that has it,” Fiedler explained.

The facility reportedly used a mechanical CPR machine in tandem with a portable heart-lung device to successfully bring its patient back from the brink of death.

The CPR machine, known as AutoPulse, is employed to deliver continuous chest compressions. In Fiedler’s case it was combined with the heart-lung apparatus, which serves to maintain blood and oxygen flow to the brain and other vital organs in the body.

The life-saving technique has reportedly undergone exclusive testing at The Alfred, located in Melbourne, during the previous two years.

Technically referred to as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, the system is apparently unique in its ability to reduce the likelihood of permanent damage to the patient’s body while providing physicians valuable time to correctly identify and treat the cause of the cardiac arrest.

Fiedler is one of three such patients to be revived with the technique. Each considered clinically dead for 40 to 60 minutes, all three survived without incurring disability.

According to Professor Stephen Bernard, The Alfred’s senior intensive care physician, the system has provided remarkable and exciting results during its trial period. He reportedly holds high hopes for its eventual expansion into other area facilities.

Meanwhile, Colin Fiedler considers himself an extremely fortunate man to be alive and well after being dead for 40 minutes. His second chance at life is one he is determined not to take for granted. He’s reportedly taking a healthier approach to life and insists that he’s “so grateful, more than I could ever say.”

[Top image via Shutterstock]

Man Dead For 40 Minutes Gets Second Chance At Life is a post from: The Inquisitr

A new salt study released today from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) called into question the whole concept of trying to get your sodium consumption down to below 2,300 milligrams per day — much less below the almost impossible limit of 1,500 mg a day suggested by many doctors for certain patients.

According to the IOM, the average American is still consuming about 1-1/2 teaspoons of salt a day, about 3,500 mg.

Under current guidelines, all Americans over 50, African-Americans, and people with common diseases like diabetes, hypertension, and chronic kidney disease have been told to eat less than 1,500 mg of salt a day.

The IOM said that this advice is too strict and could even cause harm in some patients.

The American Heart Association (AHA) has already fired back. “We disagree with key components” of the new salt study, CEO Nancy Brown said in a statement. They said that they will continue to recommend that “all Americans eat no more than 1,500 mg a day of sodium.”

They come close to politely calling the IOM study bogus, saying that it focused on people who were already sick. The AHA statement argued that very low-salt diets help prevent high blood pressure and strokes.

A 2011 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine also questioned the idea that reducing salt helps prevent heart disease. Medical leaders like the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) said this earlier study was wrong because it collected data on too few people before reaching a conclusion.

“Take this study with a huge grain of salt, and then dispose of it properly,” Dr. Walter Willett, the chairman of the nutrition department at HSPH, said at the time.

In the new salt study, the IOM seemed to be advising moderation. IOM committee chairman Brian Strom told USA Today: “This is a two-sided message: We endorse public health efforts to lower excessive salt intake, but we raise questions about harm from too little salt.”

He also noted that it’s very difficult to cut salt intake below 1,500 mg a day.  Most salt is hidden on food, not sprinkled on it out of the shaker.

The most common source of hidden salt?  Often, it’s bread.

And another new salt study, released yesterday by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), said that the levels of sodium in processed foods are still too high to make it easy for people to cut way back on salt. The sodium levels have declined by only around 3.5 percent between 2005 and 2011 — so little that it could be just a random sampling error.

According to the CSPI new salt study, 90 percent of Americans get too much salt.

[salty chip photo by Silar via Wikimedia Commons]

New Salt Study Says Cutting Salt May Not Be Worth The Hassle is a post from: The Inquisitr

Marriageable age is the age at which a person is allowed by law to marry, either as a right or subject to parental forms of consent. Age and other prerequisites to marry vary between jurisdictions. Typically in the US, the age is at or around 18. Marriage under the age of 18 is permitted with parental or judicial approval in some states.

There are reasons age-limits are in place. Marriage age should not be confused with the age of consent. In many countries, the ages in which young girls are married off vary significantly and are considered controversial. Girls, literal girls and not young women, are often promised or betrothed to men who are notably older, who in this country (US) would be seen as sexual predators given the age difference.

Typically, preadolescent girls and teenagers are not married of their own free will but are bound to by antiquated customs and family obligation or pressured due to socioeconomic status.

A study, led by Anita Raj, PhD – a professor in the Department of Medicine in the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine – and Ulrike Boehmer, PhD – an associate professor in the Boston University School of Public Health – addressed the link between child bride marriage and the heightened risk of maternal and infant mortality (death).

The report’s ecological analysis, published in the journal Violence Against Women, as well as other statistical data, shows countries where girls are commonly married before the age of 18 have higher rates of premature death.

Girls married as minors are more likely to bear children before they are 18, resulting in higher risk for delivery complications, low infant birth weight, and malnutrition. There is also an increased prevalence of diseases like HIV in many of the nations where the practice of child marriage is common.

The study suggests that a 10 percent reduction in child marriage, defined as 17 or younger, could be associated with a 70 percent reduction in a country’s maternal mortality rate. The practice, though on the decline, is relatively common in regions of South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa where 70 percent of females wed as minors – especially in rural or impoverished areas with limited access to healthcare and permissible education for girls.

The United Nations estimates more than 60 million young teens and prepubescent girls are subjected to underage matrimony – which is considered a health and human rights violation. But due to regional instability many parents perceive the act of marrying off their daughters as the only way to protect them from both the economic effect and rape. However, the girls are often subjected to abuse and assaults within their own marriage.

Investigators feel the report is universally informative as, according to Raj, “These findings are meaningful because they hold true for adolescent pregnancy, regardless of marriage. Young age at childbirth increases risk for both maternal and infant mortality.”

[Image via Shutterstock]

Maternal And Infant Mortality Risks Linked To Earlier Marriage is a post from: The Inquisitr

An Australian man dead for 40 minutes after going into cardiac arrest was brought back to life thanks to a new breakthrough resuscitation method.

The miracle comeback happened at The Alfred hospital in Melbourne, which has been testing a method using both mechanical CPR machine that performs chest compressions and a portable heart-lung machine to keep oxygen and blood flowing within the body. This keeps the body from suffering permanent disabilities while doctors work to restore heart function.

The result was a man dead for 40 minutes coming back to life.

Colin Fiedler, 39, went into cardiac arrest last June, and, for 40 minutes, he was clinically dead before finally being revived.

“I’m so grateful, more than I could ever say,” he told the Herald Sun.

It was be chance that he happened to be in the right place. While in the ambulance, paramedics asked him which hospital he wanted to go to, and he picked the right one.

“For some reason, I said The Alfred, which is pretty lucky, because they are the only one that has it,” he said.

The life-saving method could soon spread. Physician Professor Stephen Bernard said two years of trials have proven how effective the method can be, and he now hopes it will spread beyond Melbourne.

The company that makes the chest compression machine has already offered to make more of them.

“We are looking to where to best implement these machines around Melbourne,” he said.

Fiedler said his life has changed since being brought back from the edge of death. He has quit smoking and said he no longer stresses over the unimportant things in life.

The man who was dead for 40 minutes hasn’t been the only lucky one. There have been a total of seven cardiac arrest patients revived at The Alfred using the two-step combination of chest compressions and oxygenation. Two others were also dead for between 40 and 60 minutes.

Man Clinically Dead For 40 Minutes Brought Back To Life is a post from: The Inquisitr

McDonald’s and Subway calories may be equally bad for teens, according to a study by UCLA. As childhood and adolescent obesity rates continue to climb, fast food chains, including Subway, may contribute to the problem.

McDonald’s and Subway are two of the most popular fast food chains. However, teens and their parents my have the idea that Subway is a healthier choice as they do not offer fried food.

As reported by UCLAHealth.org, adolescents between the ages of 12 and 21 were likely to purchase meals totaling 955 calories from Subway. The average meal purchased from McDonald’s, by adolescents in the same age group, equaled 1,038 calories.

School lunches, in comparison, are not recommended to exceed 850 calories.

The data was compiled using receipts provided by the adolescents. The majority of the meals were purchased after school, between the hours of 3 pm and 5 pm. The participants used their own money to buy the food.

Dr. Lenard Lesser, who led the study, found “no statistically significant difference between the two restaurants, and that participants ate too many calories at both.”

In particular, Subway sandwiches chosen by the teens were around 212 calories more than  sandwiches chosen from McDonald’s. High levels of sodium were found in meals from both chains.

Meals purchased at Subway contain more nutrients, but the sodium found in processed meats may negate any benefit from the nutrients.

McDonald’s and Subway calories significantly increased with the inclusion of sugary drinks.

As reported by the Huffington Post, Dr. Lesser recommends excluding fries and sugary drinks to eliminate a large portion of the unhealthy calories. He also recommends choosing 6 inch rather than foot long subs. Reducing the amount of meat and increasing the amount of vegetables can eliminate a large portion of the sodium content.

Most importantly, even meals from Subway must be consumed in moderation. McDonald’s and Subway calories are equally unhealthy if eaten in excess.

McDonald’s And Subway Calories Equally Bad For Teens is a post from: The Inquisitr

I’d love to see a US marketing ad for eating ants as part of a balanced breakfast. “Just sprinkle them on your yogurt for a quick and easy boost of protein.”

Edible insects are being promoted as a low-fat, high-protein, and fiber and mineral dense food source. Granted, for some, the mere suggestion may be off-putting, but the Rome-based UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report issued Monday, states that eating insects as a regular dietary staple can combat global hunger, lessen the occurrence of obesity, and benefit the environment.

Entomophagy, the consumption of insects as food, is common in a vast number of cultures in parts Central and South America, Africa, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. Over 1,900 species of insects are known to be eaten in 80 percent of the world’s nations.

Nearly a third of the global population, some two billion people ingest bugs regularly. Some of the more popular insects devoured are crickets, cicadas, grasshoppers, ants, locusts, various beetle grubs like mealworms, beetle larvae, various caterpillar species, and even arachnids like scorpions and tarantulas.

However, it is uncommon in places like the US where some of us dry-heave at the idea of swallowing a grasshopper in the same disgusted ilk as eating raw oysters. Pardon me while I ponder the pleasure of hot sauce on a freshly cracked mollusk. Yum.

Still, there are enthusiasts in the US who enjoy the practice of entomophagy. Likely anticipating the upcoming 17-year cicada emergence, a group from the University of Maryland have, over the years, published an online cookbook called Cicada-Licious: Cooking and Enjoying Periodical Cicadas, highlighting the delectable, edible potential of cicadas.

Give me a moment to recall the tell-tell resonance cicadas make, as the sound is indicative of steamy southern summers. At no point have I ever considered, and I quote, “Deep-frying cicadas, skewering them with bamboo picks, and arranging them on a plate with turnip greens, celery, and garlic paste to make the bugs look like they are climbing out of a mud pie into green foliage.” I can see why this would combat obesity, [staving off unpleasant gurgle, slapping hand to mouth]. But to each his/her own.

I digress, the modern principle of gobbling down grubs isn’t all that farfetched or disgusting if you consider the health benefits. An FAO subsidiary, the Forestry Department, says many insects contain the same amount of protein and minerals – such as iron, magnesium, phosphorous, selenium, and zinc – as meat, but with healthier fats.

Besides we frequently eat bug parts, we just don’t think about it.

Unbeknownst to the “ignorance is bliss” crowd who don’t read product labels or dietary regulation reports – who by the way may want to skip down a few paragraphs if they want to remain in the dark – bugs are already (intentionally) present in some food items. They are typically used as natural dye.

The cochineal, a scale insect parasitically native to parts of South America and Mexico, produces carminic acid which is used to color pills and enhance the red hue in some popular market yogurts.

There is also the unavoidable presence of what is considered by federal regulators as an “acceptable level” of insect parts in our everyday food. “The Food Defect Action Levels: Levels of Natural or Unavoidable Defects in Foods That Present No Health Hazards for Humans,” is regularly published by the FDA’s USDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, outlining permissible volumes of insect fragments, eggs, mold, and even feces.

For example, thrips, a winged parasite, are permitted in apple butter and some canned or frozen vegetables. Maggots are typically found in canned vegetables like mushrooms and tomatoes – 20 allowed for every 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of drained mushrooms, and one to five for every 500 grams (17.6 ounces) of tomato products. Up to 35 fruit fly eggs on average are eaten in a cupful of raisins. An 18-ounce-jar of peanut butter can contain upwards of 145 bug parts and several rodent hairs.

Just try see it as added protein because this type of contamination is prevalent.

As for the environmental impact – according to USA Today, sourcing the UN report – insects on average can convert 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of feed into 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of edible meat. In comparison, cattle require 8 kilograms (17.6 pounds) of feed to produce a kilogram of meat. In addition, insects raised for food produce fewer environmentally harmful greenhouse gases than livestock.

The two disadvantages to entomophagy are spoilage and toxicity, as spore forming bacteria can pose a safety risk in both cooked and raw insect protein, and harvested insects can be contaminated with pesticides, making them unsuitable for human consumption.

[Image via Wikicommons – mealworms, Feature Shutterstock – fried grasshoppers]

Eat Insects As Part Of A Low-Fat High-Protein Diet is a post from: The Inquisitr

How do you increase the number of moms who breastfeed? According to a new controversial study, you start with baby formula.

A new study published in the  journal Pediatrics suggests that giving newborns a small amount of formula actually boosts breastfeeding rates.

Researchers say the addition of formula at birth gives moms the assurance they need to continue their pursuit of breastfeeding.

As expected, many experts in the field have taken issue with the study, noting that it undermines the accepted position that there is never a good substitute for breast milk.

The study was conducted at the  University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and focused on just 40 newborn babies. The babies studied had lost an average of five percent of their birth weight by the time they reached 36 hours old. Researchers focused on babies who lost weight because other data suggests that infants who lose five percent of their body weight directly after birth are likely to lose more weight.

During the trial, researchers assigned half of the babies to receive two teaspoons of baby formula after each breastfeeding via a syringe to help avoid “nipple confusion.” Once a mother’s milk supply appeared, the women were encouraged to stop the formula feeding practice. The practice of formula feeding was observed on average from two to five days. The other group of mothers exclusively breastfed.

According to the study results, 10 percent of the formula fed group continued to use formula in some way compared to 47 percent of the group that was assigned to breastfeed while adding formula. After three months, 79 percent of the formula group was exclusively breastfeeding. Only 42 percent of the exclusive breastfeeding moms were using formula after the same time period.

Researchers believe that, by introducing formula early on and then withdrawing it, some moms feel more secure that their babies are not hungry. Moms who feel more confident with breastfeeding are therefore more likely to continue with the practice.

Mothers in the US have a large drop off in breastfeeding ratings. While most mothers will attempt to breastfeed their children, only 40 percent continue the practice after six months and only 20 percent make it to the one year point. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) suggests that all mothers breastfeed their children until they are at least one years old.

The study is openly being attached by experts including Dr. Kathleen Marinelli, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and the chair-elect of the USBreastfeeding Committee. Marinelli tells TIME:

“This study goes against everything that’s been published for several years now from very reliable clinicians and researchers about the potential hazards of supplementing exclusively breast-feeding babies with formula … They’re flying in the face of years of research here and doing so rather glibly, stating that this is the new way to look at things.”

In the meantime, lactation support groups and other experts continue to warn mothers that the best approach is a breast milk only approach.

Where do you stand when it comes to breastfeeding versus formula and formula supplementing?

[Image via ShutterStock]

Supplemental Formula Use With Breastfeeding Offers Assistance, New Study Claims is a post from: The Inquisitr

The instability of a parent’s addiction can contribute to depression in their children – which follows them into adulthood, according to a study by University of Toronto researchers. The vicious cycle can be that those same kids, who watched their mother or father get high or stumbling drunk, could themselves, become addicts or suffer clinical depression later in life.

The paper, published online in the journal Psychiatry Research, outlined how investigators examined the link between parental addiction to drugs and alcohol and adult depression in their offspring. A representative sampling of 6,268 adults, drawn from the 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey, was used.

Researchers found 312 respondents admitted to having a major depressive episode within the year prior to the survey. Another 877 reported, during their childhood, frequently witnessing at least one parent drink or use drugs to the point where it caused problems for the family.

It was then determined those whose parents engaged in the aforementioned addictive and chaotic behaviors were more likely to become clinically depressed than their peers. Lead author, Professor Esme Fuller-Thomson, also found these same individuals were twice as likely to be depressed as adults.

Fuller-Thomson further explained, “Even after adjusting for factors ranging from childhood maltreatment and parental unemployment to adult health behaviors including smoking and alcohol consumption, we found that parental addictions were associated with 69 percent higher odds of depression in adulthood.”

The study was co-authored with four graduate students at the University of Toronto, Robyn Katz, Vi Phan, Jessica Liddycoat, and Sarah Brennenstuhl. Katz suggested the possible cause of adulthood depression in the children of addicts was perhaps due to the “prolonged and inescapable strain” permanently altering the child’s reaction to stress.

The selfishness of addiction can make the home environment near unbearable. The situation can make kids feel helpless and encumbered with the sense of being responsible for their irresponsible parent – some of whom take advantage of the loved ones around them, including their own children.

Addicts will often do anything to meet their need – stealing money from relatives and friends or burglarizing businesses and homes. Turning to crime means parents frequently revolve in-and-out of jail, the recidivism adding to the instability and frustration.

Emotional, physical, and psychological abuse can be prevalent. Children can find themselves temporarily cycling through foster care only to be returned later to the so-called care of their parent.

Kids who endure constant toxic stress at home can be greatly aided by a network of stable, caring adults – grandparents, teachers, neighbors, coaches, and social workers – as kids crave consistency, structure, and love. Having some type of positive influence present can vastly improve the emotional and psychological well-being of a child dealing with an addict.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Parental Addiction Linked To Children’s Depression In Adulthood is a post from: The Inquisitr

The new coronavirus that has killed at least 18 people in the Middle East and Europe can likely pass from person to person, but only after prolonged contact.

The announcement that the virus is transmissible between humans came from World Health Organization (WHO) officials on Sunday. A virus in the same family triggered the SARS outbreak in 2003 after emerging in Asia. That virus killed 773 people.

French authorities also announced on Sunday that a second man was diagnosed with the disease after he shared a hospital room with France’s only other coronavirus patient.

Saudi Arabia has the largest cluster of infections so far. WHO Assistant Director-General Keiji Fukuda assured that there is so far no evidence that the virus can sustain “generalized transmission in communities.” Such a scenario would raise the possibility of a pandemic.

The virus first emerged in the Gulf last year. Since then, deaths from the new coronavirus have been recorded in Britain and France. Those infected had recently been in the Middle East. Blood tests have confirmed a total of 34 cases so far. Fukuda added of the new SARS-like virus:

“Of most concern … is the fact that the different clusters seen in multiple countries … increasingly support the hypothesis that when there is close contact, this novel coronavirus can transmit from person to person.”

Fukuda called for increased “levels of awareness” for countries around the world. Saudi Arabia’s Health Ministry has reported 24 confirmed cases since last summer. Of those cases, 15 have died. Three suspected cases in the country are still under investigation.

The first French patient was confirmed on Wednesday after he traveled in the Gulf. A second patient was transferred to intensive care on Sunday. The man shared a room with the first patient at a hospital in Lille. Professor Benoit Guery, head of the hospital’s infectious disease unit, explained the first many was not quarantined initially, because he presented “atypical” symptoms.

[Image via ShutterStock]

New Coronavirus Likely Passed From Person To Person, WHO Reports is a post from: The Inquisitr

According to an annual study released by the Save the Children non-governmental organization, the US ranked as the 30th best country to be a mother and have a child.

The 14th annual State of the World’s Mothers report ranked Finland as the best country in the world to be a mother and have a child, followed closely by Sweden, Norway, and Iceland.  Sierra Leone, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo were ranked the bottom three countries in the study which compared 176 countries worldwide.

The Save the Children study based its results on five different factors including per capita income, level of education, amount of women in positions of government, mortality rate for children aged 5 and under, and the lifetime risk for maternal death.

According to CEO of the Save the Children Foundation, Justin Forsyth, “Overall, the world has made unprecedented progress in reducing child and maternal deaths.  But there are two big challenges, newborn [deaths] and malnutrition.”

Notably, the US had the largest amount of first day death rates of all industrialized nations, with about 11,300 babies dying on the day that they are born on an annual basis.  Additionally, it was found that a mother in the US is 10 times a likely due die from a pregnancy related cause than a woman in Estonia, Greece, or Singapore.

Take a look at the list of the ten best and worst countries to be a mother and have a child, according to the 14th annual State of the World’s Mothers report.

Top 10 Countries To Be A Mother:

1) Finland
2) Sweden
3) Norway
4) Iceland
5) Netherlands
6) Denmark
7) Spain
8) Belgium
9) Germany
10) Australia

Worst 10 Countries To Be A Mother:

167) Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
168) Chad
169) Nigeria
170) Gambia
171) Central African Republic
172) Niger
173) Mali
174) Sierra Leone
175) Somalia
176) DR Congo

Are you surprised that the US placed only 30th on the list?  What are your thoughts about the list and the Save the Children study as a whole?

[Image via: Elitravo / Shutterstock]

US Is The 30th Best Country To Be a Mother [Study] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Speaking as a natural redhead, I don’t need a study to tell me I’m especially photosensitive to the sun. I’ve spent a lifetime smelling like sunscreen and avoiding the daylight during key hours when the UV is most intense as though I were cast as an extra in Twilight.

However, new research published in BioEssays, suggests sunscreen and avoidance may not be enough to protect the vulnerable DNA enfleshed within redheads. Scientists have posed two hypotheses on why red pigment (pheomelanin) might cause skin cells to be more susceptible to cancer.

Cells produce two types of pigment: dark brown eumelanin and red/orange pheomelanin. The production of pheomelanin has been linked to oxidative stress, which can lead to DNA damage. Additionally, researchers hypothesize that pheomelanin production could use up cells’ antioxidant reserves. Thus, the pheomelanin pigment, that creates the color red in the hair, is now thought to give us an increased risk of melanoma.

Dr. David Fisher – the study’s co-author and chief of dermatology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston – explained why this pigment makes the skin more susceptible. The pigment may be creating unbalanced molecules in the skin.

Fisher and his team first uncovered the apparent link between red hair pigment and skin cancer last fall. That study used genetically altered mice that had been given a mutant gene that increased their risk of contracting melanoma.

In the new paper, Fisher further speculated that pheomelanin could increase the risk, finding that melanoma was still possible among mice with the red pigment even after UV was completely removed.

UV radiation is part of the electromagnetic spectrum that radiates from the sun year round. Excessive exposure to UV rays damages the skin on a cellular level, mutating the DNA over time. DNA is the source of genetic information coded into each living cell.

UVB are the rays that burn you. UVA rays, which account for 95 percent of the radiation, are those that prematurely age you. They penetrate deeper than UVB rays. These rays can penetrate water, glass, clouds, and clothing. Reflective surfaces can impose UV rays into shaded areas.

UV radiation is the primary cause of skin cancer, effecting millions of people a year. Twenty years of research has assessed fair-skinned people, like redheads, are more at risk because of the decreased or inconsistent presence of melanin. However, that does not mean those with darker pigment are completely immune.

Melanin is present in skin, hair, and eyes. It determines color and is produced by melanocytes found in the basal layer of the epidermis (outermost layer of the skin). Melanoma is caused by changes in melanocytes. Melanin is considered a photochemical. When provoked by UVB rays, it reacts with a photo-protectant response, absorbing the ultraviolet light as heat. This process is meant to inhibit the damage to DNA. With prolonged exposure, the photochemical reaction creates freckling, tanning, and burning. The more often you burn, the higher the risk of damaging your DNA. When the integrity of DNA is compromised, a cancer-related mutation can result.

Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. A cancer’s degree of perniciousness and cause can depend on multiple factors and isn’t always isolated to one part of the body as it can metastasize (spread).

The findings suggest that redheads should take additional precautions to prevent melanoma, even if they are already diligent about avoiding the sun and using high SPF sunscreen. It is advised fair-haired and light skinned individuals undergo annual screenings with their dermatologists – who are skilled at identifying physical abnormalities in moles. If questionable, these moles can be excised and tested.

SPF stands for Sun Protections Factor. It’s usually seen as an abbreviation followed by a number seen on many beauty and hygiene products and some clothing items. These numbers refer to the product’s ability to screen, reflect, or absorb the sun’s UV rays; the higher the number, the higher the supposed coverage.

Unfortunately, there is a great deal of confusion surrounding the sun protection factor when trying to understand what the number truly represents. Sunblock makers have come under fire in recent years for obfuscated claims surrounding effectiveness, all day protection, and whether or not there is such a thing as waterproof or sweat proof coverage. Regardless, regular use of some type of SPF is recommended to limit the onset of melanoma.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Redheads Beware, Sunscreen May Not Be Enough is a post from: The Inquisitr

The advent of hormonal birth control measures such as the pill gave rise to generations of women more effectively able to plan their families, but a second compelling use for the medications has emerged in recent years — manipulating menstrual cycles.

Using the pill to schedule or even stop periods is not an entirely new phenomenon, and a version of the medication marketed specifically for this purpose (called “Seasonale”) has been available for some time to women using hormonal birth control.

It’s long been known that skipping the pill’s “inactive week,” which is not even a true menstrual period, will allow a user to be period free for several cycles. Forms of birth control such as Nuvaring and the patch can be used in the same way, eschewing the week in which bleeding occurs — a feature some suggest exists to assure women they are indeed not pregnant at the end of every cycle.

Over the past few years, however, the practice has become widespread — and a new study indicates that more women than previously believed to have been doing so are manipulating their menstrual periods with hormonal birth control.

A study on the practice of skipping periods was recently published in Contraception, the official journal of the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals and the Society of Family Planning, and researcher Christopher Minson of the University of Oregon says gynecologists may need to be proactive in examining a patient’s menses manipulation as many women are receiving information through friends or the internet.

Minson says:

“These findings emphasize the need for health care providers to carefully interview combined hormonal contraceptive users on how they are using their method — for example, many women may be skipping pills to extend their cycles … With a greater understanding of the issues, health care providers may be able to more effectively engage in conversations with college-aged women and educate them about available options.”

More than half the women in the study cited convenience as the main factor in skipping periods or altering menstrual cycles deliberately with hormonal contraceptives.

Women Now Regularly Manipulating Menstrual Cycles, Study Indicates is a post from: The Inquisitr

A review of childhood disability trends has revealed  rates among children have increased by 16 percent in the last decade. Physical conditions have been on the decline, while neurodevelopmental disorders have spiked considerably based on the evaluated information from 2001 to 2010.

Lead author, Dr. Amy J. Houtrow – an associate professor of physical medicine, rehabilitation, and pediatrics at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine – and her colleagues wanted to probe further into the conditions and socio-demographic factors associated with disabilities.

Data was analyzed from the National Health Interview Survey, which is conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Surveys from  2001 to 2002 and 2009 to 2010 were used.

A total of 102,468 parents of children 0 to 17 years of age participated in the surveys. They were asked if the children had physical limitations, needed special education services, and or assistance with personal care.

If yes, parents were then asked whether the limitations were due to vision/hearing problems, respiratory conditions, ambulatory issues with joints, bones, or muscle control, injury, emotional/behavioral problem, ADHD, mental retardation/intellectual deficit, a learning disability, epilepsy, birth defect, or other developmental disorder.

The conditions were subcategorized into three basic groups: physical, neurodevelopmental/mental health, and other.

Neurodevelopmental/mental health-related disabilities increased 16.3 percent – most notably doubling among children under the age of 6 – while physical conditions decreased. Dr. Houtrow specifically noted, “The survey did not break out autism, but we suspect that some of the increase in neurodevelopmental disabilities is due to the rising incidence or recognition of autism spectrum disorders.”

Interestingly, the greatest rate of increase was seen among kids from higher-income households – those at or above 300 percent of the national/federal poverty level (FPL). Children living in poverty experienced the highest number of disability, but not the highest rate of growth in comparison.

Thus, researchers were able to conclude disability in childhood is on the rise, and is occurring in both advantaged and disadvantaged families.

The study findings were presented in Washington, D.C., during the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting. The Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) are four individual pediatric organizations that co-sponsor the PAS annual meeting. They are the American Pediatric Society, the Society for Pediatric Research, the Academic Pediatric Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Members of these organizations are pediatricians and other health care providers who are practicing in the academic and clinical research.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Childhood Disability Rate Has Increased is a post from: The Inquisitr

Do you ever go out with friends or a girlfriend and they spend the time critically obsessing about their horrible workouts, their self-perceived body ugliness, or the carb-less misery of a diet they are trying to adhere to while giving you the stink-eye for ordering pizza?

Have you heard the phrase, “I’m so fat,” uttered more than once, and had to stymie an audible sigh?

Does it get bothersome, after a while, to hear about how much they hate their thighs and backside instead of talking about something more positive? Would you rather your girlfriend or gal pal express a little more confidence and degrade themselves less when splitting dessert? You are not alone.

Based on the results of a University of Notre Dame study, recently presented at the Midwestern Psychological Association’s annual conference, no one likes a fat-talker – more specifically a person who constantly, self-disparagingly remarks about their body.

Researchers led by Alexandra Corning – an associate professor of psychology and director of Notre Dame’s Body Image and Eating Disorder Lab – studied college-age women and their reactions to positive and negative body image.

Subjects, made up of 100 female undergrads, were presented with a series of noticeably thin and overweight women engaging in either fat-talk or positive talk about their bodies. They were then asked to rate the women on various dimensions, including likeability.

“The take-home message is that if women engage in fat talk in the hope of enhancing their social bonds, their attempts may have the effect of backfiring,” said Corning. But the habit to fat talk, regardless of their size and shape is pervasive, as nine out of 10 women have been guilty of doing that very thing at least once. Despite the association between fat talk and body dissatisfaction, many women believe fat talk makes them feel better about their bodies.

Self-abasing talk was not found to be a socially endearing quality. It was determined women who incessantly engaged in unflattering fat talk were least liked by their peers regardless of their size. But women rated most likeable were those considered noticeably overweight who made positive statements about themselves.

Corning commented on the results, saying, “Though it has become a regular part of everyday conversation, fat talk is far from innocuous. It is strongly associated with, and can even cause, body dissatisfaction, which is a known risk factor for the development of eating disorders.”

Sure, be concerned about your health if that’s your focus. But to have an unhealthy fixation about not being a size four just because you have this assumption being skinnier will make your life more fulfilling or happier solely based on inches can be exasperating and at times concerning to listeners.

Fat talk can articulate an objectified and largely helpless vision of oneself as part of a stigmatized group – making themselves out to be victims, rating a low self-worth when they think their stomachs are not flat enough.

If you have considered drastic measures to deal with a perceived negative body issue – such as experimenting with anorexia or bulimia, or some other type of eating disorder, you should consider seeking professional medical guidance.

[Image via Shutterstock]

No One Wants To Listen To Your Fat Talk is a post from: The Inquisitr

If you had to decide between paying more for your health insurance or pay less but had to engage in a required exercise program what would you do?

In a joint study with the University of Michigan Health System and Stanford University, one health insurer posed the challenge – requiring overweight individuals to either pay 20 percent more for their coverage or do something about their weight. For some families the increase would have been more than $2,000 a year.

Researchers evaluated a group of people insured by Blue Care Network taking part in the Healthy Blue Living program, a requirement to receive out-of-pocket cost discounts.

Enrollees were given several programs to choose from, including Weight Watchers and WalkingSpree, which uses a digital pedometer to upload walking data on a wellness tracking web site. Nearly half of the 12,102 enrollees picked the pedometer-based WalkingSpree.

For one year, the group stuck to an Internet-tracked walking program. The majority of the 6,548 enrollees, 97 percent, met or exceeded assigned fitness goals – an average of 5,000 steps per day for three months – in order to avoid the exorbitant health insurance increase.

After, the partakers submitted a survey regarding the experience. Resistant participants, made up by nearly a third, disagreed with the imposed financial incentive, finding the program negatively coercive.

Senior author Dr. Caroline R. Richardson – an assistant professor in the U-M Department of Family Medicine – addressed the ethics, saying, “There are ethical debates around the idea of forcing someone to be personally responsible for health care costs related to not exercising, but we expect to see more of these approaches to financially motivate healthier behaviors.”

The findings were published in Translational Behavioral Medicine.

Walking enthusiasts recommend investing in a pedometer to accurately track your daily trek. Choose a goal and aim for it. At or below 5,000 steps is considered sedentary, while 10,000 is considered active. Begin with a number that is comfortable to you and increase walking increments by 1,000 or 2,000 additional steps thereafter until you achieve your goal. Plan for daily walks with friends – as company and positive motivation can make the time seem to go by faster.

Do you think people who are overweight or smoke should pay more for health insurance?

[Image via Shutterstock]

Walk 5,000 Steps A Day To Avoid High Health Insurance Costs is a post from: The Inquisitr

A 7-minute workout sounds like the stuff of fantasy — in our self-flagellating thinness culture, we all know that exercise is supposed to take up at least an hour of your day, preferably within the confines of a gym that costs more than your car does monthly.

Just one look at all the lecturing pics on Pinterest feels like enough to put the idea of a 7-minute workout to rest. How can you be lapping someone on the couch or getting a perfect beach body in less time than it takes to wait on line for your daily latte?

Because as we all know, fitness isn’t about efficiency, it’s about being a martyr — and if you do a 7-minute workout, you’re getting away with something! Right?

Wrong, says science … possibly. The concept of a 7-minute workout is part of a rising body of evidence for a larger school of fitness thought, often referred to under the umbrella of “high-intensity interval training,” or HIIT.

HIIT suggests that something like a 7-minute workout not only can work — but is the optimal way to handle your fitness regime.

The 7-minute workout isn’t just a get-thin-quick scam or the refuge of lazy would-be gym bunnies that don’t want to sit through an hour of spin or Zumba. (Ain’t nobody got time for that!)

The New York Times covered the 7-minute workout in a piece today titled “The Scientific 7-Minute Workout,” and in it, the paper explains that not only do you not need an hour — you don’t even need a gym, an ab machine, or free weights. What?

In the article, the Times explains:

“In 12 exercises deploying only body weight, a chair and a wall, it fulfills the latest mandates for high-intensity effort, which essentially combines a long run and a visit to the weight room into about seven minutes of steady discomfort — all of it based on science.”

Science, you guys! (To be specific, the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health & Fitness Journal.)

Actual real life director of exercise physiology at the Human Performance Institute in Orlando, Chris Jordan, tells the paper that the 7-minute workout offers “many of the fitness benefits of prolonged endurance training but in much less time.”

Time will tell if the 7-minute workout replaces the 90-minute Pilates class, but the idea of an abbreviated fitness routine does offer some significant hope for time-strapped people who want to work up from sedentary to at least modestly fit.

Would you try the 7-minute workout?

Is A 7-Minute Workout All You Need? Science Says Yes is a post from: The Inquisitr

The fluoride mystery may finally be solved. Scientists have speculated for nearly five decades about how fluoride, added to drinking water and oral-care products, prevents tooth decay. The latest studies, published in the ACS journal Langumir, may finally explain how it works.

Karin Jacobs led the research into how fluoride prevents or reduces tooth decay. Researchers conducted the study using artificial teeth, constructed of hydroxypatite.

Previous materials were porous, unlike actual teeth. The new compound provided a smooth, hard surface, which allowed researchers more accurate results.

As reported by Phys.org, Jacobs’ study explored the possibility that fluoride effected bacterial adhesion onto the teeth. Scientists previously linked fluoride with the strengthening of the tooth’s enamel. However, newer studies have found that fluoride might actually work in two ways.

Although fluoride does penetrate the tooth, strengthening the enamel, it does not penetrate as deeply as previously thought. Although thin, the layer effected by the fluoride was shown to be stronger, confirming previous theories.

In addition to making enamel stronger, fluoride has now been shown to prevent bacteria from sticking to the teeth. Bacteria naturally exists in the mouth. However, if the bacteria sticks to the teeth, it leads to tooth decay.

Fluoride prevents the bacteria from sticking, protecting the teeth from the harmful effects. As the fluoride has been shown to strengthen the teeth, and prevent the adhesion of bacteria, much of the fluoride mystery is solved.

As discussed at Water.EPA.gov, fluoride is a salt formed by combining minerals with fluorine. The amount of fluoride allowed in drinking water is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency. However, the decision to include fluoride in drinking water is decided at the state and local level.

Minute levels of fluoride enter drinking water naturally. However, many states and localities add it to promote oral health.

Until recently, researchers were not entirely sure how fluoride protected the teeth. The fluoride mystery is now closer to being solved as studies show that it not only strengthens the teeth, it prevents bacteria from sticking to the surface.

Fluoride Mystery Solved: Fighting Tooth Decay is a post from: The Inquisitr

A spiraling esophagus, also called a nutcracker esophagus or a corkscrew esophagus, has been described in a paper released today in the New England Journal of Medicine by two doctors, Luc Biedermann and Oliver Götze. If looking at this condition doesn’t make you lose a couple of pounds today, I’d be surprised. Yikes.

The doctors observed the extremely rare condition in an 87-year-old unnamed Swiss woman. She experienced unexplained cramps after eating and, as a result, had already lost 11 pounds.

Beidermann and Götze performed an endoscopy, a somewhat controversial but very common technique to find out what was going on. It turned out that her esophagus  somehow takes on the shape of a spiral when she swallows her food, making it difficult for her to eat.

An endoscope is pretty much a tiny medical camera attached to a tube. An upper endoscopy is used to examine the esophagus in particular. The procedure has sometimes been criticized for not really providing much information about what’s going wrong in a lot of cases, but it sure led to a wild discovery this time.

It’s the second case of the rare condition reported in the medical literature, but Live Science talked to Dr. Michael Vaezi at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennessee who said that, as a specialist in disorders of the esophagus, he’s seen the so-called corkscrew esophagus many times.

I’m not sure I needed to know that, did you?

There’s a video of the so-called nutcracker esophagus at work on the New England Journal of Medicine website.

But be warned. I didn’t feel much like eating my breakfast after I viewed that one.

And there’s no cure, so that’s not good either.

Ouch. Whatever else we have going on in our lives, let’s agree we can all be grateful that we don’t have a spiraling esophagus.

[nutcracker esophagus photo and scan by Biedermann and Götze via The England Journal of Medicine

[top photo by Sebastian Kaulitzki via Shutterstock]

Spiraling Esophagus Blocks Woman From Eating is a post from: The Inquisitr

Dyslexia defines an anomalous approach to processing information. It is considered a learning disability that impairs a person’s reading comprehension. Dyslexia can manifest as a difficulty with phonological awareness and decoding, language skills, and verbal comprehension.

Dyslexia is the most common learning disability, affecting up to 80 percent of all individuals identified as learning disabled. Individual cases of dyslexia are best explained or defined by the specific underlying neuropsychological deficits and co-occurring learning disabilities such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Although it is considered to be a language-based learning disability, dyslexia also affects one’s expressive language skills. In contrast, dyslexia can increase the capacity to think multi-dimensionally and help further utilize the brain’s ability to alter and create perceptions.

There are three cognitive subtypes of dyslexia – auditory (dysphonetic), visual (dyseidetic), and attentional.

Auditory dyslexics may have an issue with connecting sounds to the corresponding symbols and letters.

A visual dyslexic usually reverses letters and numbers, due to a difficulty with recognizing and remembering how words, letters, and even numbers look. The most common examples of reversals would be “b” and “d” and “3” and “8.”

Attentional dyslexia is when letters migrate between neighboring words but are correctly identified and keep their correct relative position within the word. For example, fig tree can be read as fig free or even tie free.

Neuroscientists at Georgetown University Medical Center have found notable differences in the brain anatomy when they compared MRIs of men and women with dyslexia. This finding, published in the online journal Brain Structure and Function, suggests the learning disorder may have a different neural manifestation by gender.

Because the condition is more prevalent in males, female have been vastly overlooked in this model of research, according to the senior author, Guinevere Eden, PhD, director for the Center for the Study of Learning and past-president of the International Dyslexia Association.

Researchers compared the brain structures of 118 participants – made up of men, women, boys, and girls. The adult cohort was split into 27 dyslexic and 27 non-dyslexic participants, with 14 men and 13 women in each group. The children’s cohort included 32 dyslexic students and 32 non-dyslexic students who were 9 to 10 years old, with 15 boys and 17 girls in each group.

Dyslexic males, when compared to non-dyslexic counterparts, were found to have less gray matter volume in specific areas like the left temporal gyrus, which is involved in language. In the females, less gray matter volume was found in dyslexics in areas like the right parietal lobe, involved in sensory and motor processing. There were no differences in the temporal lobe of dyslexic females.

Lead author, Tanya Evans, PhD, addressed the importance of studying the differences between the genders as, “There is sex-specific variance in brain anatomy and females tend to use both hemispheres for language tasks, while males just the left. It is also known that sex hormones are related to brain anatomy and that female sex hormones such as estrogen can be protective after brain injury, suggesting another avenue that might lead to the sex-specific findings reported in this study.”

[Image via Shutterstock]

Brain Anatomy Of Dyslexia Differs Between The Sexes is a post from: The Inquisitr

Performers like Adele and Katy Perry and celebrities and models who grace the glossy cover of magazines and appear in commercials are often seen with thick, full, lusciously feathery lashes the rest of us envy.

To achieve the same look takes more than a few coats of mascara. Unless you are genetically blessed like Elizabeth Taylor – who had been born with a congenital abnormality called ectopic cilia (distichia), which gave her double-layered eyelashes – lash extensions are required.

Eyelash extensions, or fake lashes, are any number of artificial temporary or semi-permanent cosmetic enhancements designed to add noticeable length, thickness, and fullness to natural eyelashes – a similar concept to hair extensions, but for the eyes.

The lash extensions can be manufactured from both human hair and synthetic materials and are marketed as soft and flexible, meant to replicate but enhance ones natural eyelashes.

The effect can be subtle or extreme and ornate depending upon the style used. Fake eyelashes come in various lengths, colors and thicknesses, from natural-looking to outrageous. Temporary false lashes are intended to be worn for a short period; less than 24 hours, and not designed to endure showering, sleeping, or swimming. Temporary lashes are applied with an adhesive (glue).

For semi-permanent extensions, a single lash is applied to each natural lash using a stronger adhesive than temps, building up the lash-line with as many as 50 to 70 individual pieces, which can run anywhere from $100 to 600 or more in the US depending on the quality and quantity. This process can take a couple of hours and there are additional costs for touch-ups.

When applied properly, neither the extension nor the glue should touch the eyelid. The bond is designed to last until the lashes naturally fall out, though the extensions may fall out faster if one uses oil-based eye makeup remover or rubs eyes regularly.

Natural eyelashes grow in and fall out in cycles (every 60 to 90 days). When a natural lash matures and falls out, a new lash has already been growing and quickly replaces it without a noticeable turnover. Therefore, the amount of time semi-permanent lashes last can be subjective – based on the rate of natural growth, the makeup and products you wear or wash with, and lifestyle.

As safe and easy as either method sounds, eyelash extensions may pose a health risk, according to Consumer Reports. The adhesives used to fix the lashes into place can be made from a formaldehyde-base or other biologic glues. Both the adhesives and the solvents used to remove them can cause allergic reactions. In addition, cosmetic eyelash enhancers carry a risk of bacterial and fungal infection.

Improper application of eyelash extensions and excessive adhesive use, or using the wrong type of glue can lead to lashes sticking together, eyelid pain, pulling and poking of the eyelashes and eyelids, inflammation and redness, bacterial infections of the eye, and temporary and permanent lash loss (traction alopecia).

The Association for Damage-Free Eyelash Extensions (ADFEE) defends the practice, quoted in an ABC News report saying, “Properly applied eyelash extensions are not dangerous,” and that the “adhesive should not contain formaldehyde,” and “hypoallergenic adhesives are available.”

In view of its widespread use, toxicity and volatility, exposure to formaldehyde is a significant consideration for human health. In 2011, the US National Toxicology Program described formaldehyde as “known to be a human carcinogen (cancer causing).” Yet formaldehyde still appears in consumer products. Yes, the same organic compound used as a tissue fixative and embalming agent. Ingestion of as little as 30 mL or 1 fluid ounce of a solution containing 37 percent formaldehyde has been reported to cause death in an adult human.

Be aware of the ingredients in the adhesives you are buying and patch test them on the skin of your arm to check for a possible allergic reaction before applying to the eyelid or eyelash area.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also reinforces the cosmetic safety of fake lashes and eyelash extensions, provided they are handled properly and with care. Fake eyelashes especially should never be shared, though in general eye makeup or products used on the eye should never be used by more than one person. This limits the potential of swapping harmful bacteria and developing conditions such as conjunctivitis, better known as pink eye.

According to the FDA, if any eye cosmetic, including an adhesive, causes irritation, stop using it immediately. If irritation persists, see a doctor. Avoid using and discard eye product if you have an infection or notice the skin around the eye is inflamed. The bacteria on your hands can cause infections so wash your hands before applying eye cosmetics/products. Make sure that any instrument you place near the eye area is also clean.

[Image via Shutterstock]

Eyelash Extensions Pose Health Risk is a post from: The Inquisitr

The 105-year-old bacon woman from Richard Springs, Texas has come forward to reveal the real secret of long life — bacon. And she’s right. Scientists have proved it before, but we the people keep chasing idiotic nutrition fads and forgetting about the proven classics.

As The Inquisitr previously revealed, Pearl Cantrell just celebrated a very big birthday with more than 200 guests. And she isn’t shy about the reason she reached the grand old age of 105 with all of her faculties intact:

“I love bacon, I eat it everyday. I don’t feel as old as I am, that’s all I can say.”

Texans and Southerners everywhere, give me a big shout-out to Pearl Cantrell, who has just blurted out the secret that all the rabbit-food-eating, green-tea-swilling so-called longevity experts don’t want you to know.

None of them are going to reach age 105 on a diet of carrot sticks, brown rice, and pomegranate juice. C’mon. Vegetarians don’t live longer. They just think they do because 68 years without bacon is 67 years too long.

Am I right? Of course I’m right. But let’s look at some evidence.

Japan’s population has the longest life expectancy in the world, based on United Nations World Population Prospects 2010. After decades of Americans chasing every ridiculous health food fad around, the United States is a miserable 40th in the world for life expectancy.

And who lives the longest in Japan? That’s right, the bacon-eating folks on the island of Okinawa.

The famous Okinawa Centenarian Study looked at 900 people over age 100 to learn their secret.

And, yes, there’s a genetic component. You can’t do anything about that. You’re born with the ability to live to age 100 or you’re not.

However, assuming you do have the genetic toolkit, you still have to eat the right diet. Said a report on the study:

“Elderly Okinawans were found to have impressively young, clean arteries, low cholesterol, and low homocysteine levels when compared to Westerners. These factors help reduce their risk for coronary heart disease by up to 80% and keep stroke levels low.”

They’re also at lower risk for hip fractures and dementia, among other disease of aging.

And you know what they eat? Pork! Okinawas eat 100 grams of meat a day — and most of it is described as the greasy cuts of pig like bacon.

You vegans and vegetarians are welcome to throw stones in the comments, but it looks like the 105-year-old bacon woman is onto something.

[chicken-fried bacon photo by Cara Fealy Choate via Flickr and Wikimedia Commons]

105-Year-Old Bacon Woman: Why She’s Right is a post from: The Inquisitr

The US newborn death rate is the worst of any industrialized country, according to a new report released on Tuesday by Save the Children.

The report shows that the United States is worse than 68 other countries when it comes to the death rate of newborns on their first day. Countries ranking better than the US included Egypt, Turkey, and Peru.

One million babies die each year on the same day they were born. Of those, 11,000 were born in America, according to the report. The group asserts that the majority of the newborns who die could be saved with fairly inexpensive interventions.

The report reads, in part, “A baby’s first day is the most dangerous day of life — in the United States and in countries rich and poor.” The majority of babies who die on their first day do so because they were born too early.

Thirty-five percent of newborns who die were born pre-term. Another 23 percent will die from complications at birth, while another 23 percent die from severe infections. Nine percent will pass away from birth defects. Save the Children adds:

“The United States has the highest first-day death rate in the industrialized world. An estimated 11,300 newborn babies die each year in the United States on the day they are born. This is 50 percent more first-day deaths than all other industrialized countries combined.”

The US newborn death rate is certainly alarming, especially considering the country’s place within the industrialized world. Save the Children attributes the death rate to the fact that the United States has the highest preterm birth rate of any industrialized country.

Babies who are born preterm, or before 37 weeks of pregnancy, can experience multiple complications, including loss of body heat, inability to take in proper nutrition, breathing difficulties, and infections. The report explains that politics and culture play a role.

Along with announcing the high US newborn death rate, the report also suggested four simple products costing between 13 cents and $6 each that could save one million newborns each year. Those products were: simple bag-and-mask devices to help babies breathe; the antiseptic chlorhexidine to prevent umbilical cord infections, antibiotics to treat infections; and steroid injections to delay preterm labor.

Are you alarmed by the high US newborn death rate?

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US Newborn Death Rate Worse Than Rest Of Industrialized World is a post from: The Inquisitr

China’s death toll from the H7N9 bird flu has increased to 31 after the announcement of four more deaths. The number of infections also rose two to rest at 129 confirmed cases.

Two of the deaths happened in the eastern province of Jiangsu, one happened in eastern Zhejiang, and the fourth death happened in central Anhui.

Chinese health authorities also reported that the two new infections happened in the eastern coastal province of Fujian. The virus was originally concentrated around the commercial capital of Shanghai. However, it spread to Fujian in late April.

So far, the Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) has not seen any evidence that the H7N9 bird flu strain is easily transmissible between humans. The strain was first detected in patients in China in March. It has since spread to at least one case in Taiwan.

Chinese scientists have been able to confirm that the H7N9 strain was transmitted from chickens to people, though the WHO has said that 40 percent of people infected with the new bird flu strain had no apparent contact with poultry.

The head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also stated that the current H7N9 strain of bird flu cannot spark a pandemic in its current form, because it is not easily transmissible. However, should the strain mutate, it could result in a serious pandemic.

Scientists around the world have been watching the latest influenza strain. Some virologists have already started working on a vaccine for H7N9 in the event is spreads to other countries or mutates into an easily transmissible virus. Some of the concern comes from the swine flu pandemic of 2009, which was caused by the H1N1 virus.

Since then, at least one other bird flu virus, H5N1, has caused deaths around the world. While it is not easily transmissible either, the H5N1 bird flu strain is also being watched closely.

[Image via ShutterStock]

China Bird Flu’s Death Toll Hits 3 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Willis-Ekbom Disease (WED) – first acknowledged by neurologist Dr. Thomas Willis in 1685 and later described as a syndrome by Dr. Karl Ekbom in 1944 – is a neurological condition associated with an abnormal sensation in the extremities. The disruptive condition is commonly known as Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS).

Restless legs is characterized by a persistent, irresistible urge to move one’s body in an effort to cease an uncomfortable or abnormal feeling – described as an unscratchable itch, tickling, or crawling sensation – permeating throughout the legs. Often times the disorder can also affect the arms, torso, head, and even in rare cases phantom limbs. Moving the affected body part provides temporary relief. Some suffers can have periodic limb movement disorder – where the limb involuntarily jerks or kicks.

The sensation typically begins or intensifies during points of relaxation – while sitting, reading, or trying to sleep – and is found to be most disruptive during nocturnal hours. RLS/WED affects an estimated five percent of the general population, and 10 percent of those over 65.

Several theories suggest the condition may be part of a spectrum, as people can suffer from an infrequent, minor version versus those who suffer to the point where the restlessness impairs their sleep and quality of life significantly.

In the last 20 years, a substantial amount of research has been dedicated to RLS/WED, defining its pathology in hopes of determining the cause and improving treatment options.

Johns Hopkins researchers believe they may have discovered an explanation for the sleepless nights associated with restless legs syndrome/Willis-Ekbom disease, according to their news release.

From the preexisting research, there appears to be three factors which are pertinent to the disease: concentrations of iron in the brain, dopamine concentrations, and genes.

It’s been long thought by neurologists that RLS/WED is related to a dysfunction in the way the brain uses the neurotransmitter dopamine, a neurochemical used by brain cells to communicate and produce smooth, intentional movements. Disruption of these signals results in involuntary movement. Drugs that increase dopamine levels are used to treat RLS/WED, but studies have shown they don’t significantly improve sleep.

A study – published in the May issue of the journal Neurology – led by Richard P. Allen, PhD, an associate professor of neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, suggests there is a link between glutamate and restless legs.

Using an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) to scan the brains of participants, Allen and his associates found abnormally high levels of glutamate – a neurotransmitter involved in arousal, a major mediator of excitatory signals associated with cognition, memory, and learning – in the images of those with the restless condition.

Researchers specifically measured the glutamate activity in the thalamus – the area of the brain associated with regulation of consciousness, sleep, and alertness – and reviewed the images of 28 people with moderate symptoms of RLS/WED and 20 without, taken during a two-day sleep study. It was found the higher the levels of glutamate the worse the RLS/WED suffers sleep.

According to Allen, “We may have solved the mystery of why getting rid of patients’ urge to move their legs doesn’t improve their sleep. We may have been looking at the wrong thing all along, or we may find that both dopamine and glutamate pathways play a role in RLS.”

The study was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the National Institute on Aging, and the National Center for Research Resources.

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Researchers May Have An Explanation For Restless Legs Syndrome is a post from: The Inquisitr

A perpetual runny nose turned out to be leaking brain fluid for a man in Arizona recently. What Joe Nagy assumed was allergies was actually a condition known as cerebrospinal fluid leak, caused by a small hole in the membrane surrounding his brain.

One morning in 2011, Nagy rose from his bed to find a clear, tear-like liquid leaking from his nasal passages. Soon it was happening once or twice each week. When the problem worsened into a constant runny nose, he chalked it up to allergies, began taking allergy medicine, and kept a constant supply of tissues on hand.

At times, Nagy would find nearly a teaspoon’s worth of the liquid leaking from his nose. “I was scared to death if you want to know the truth,” he confessed in regards to his nagging nasal problem.

Eventually the frustration, puzzlement, and fear of what might be behind the constant dripping prompted him to seek out medical advice from a specialist.

Once the drainage was tested, Nagy was shocked to discover that his chronic runny nose was the result of leaking brain fluid.

Peter Nakaji, a neurosurgeon with the Barrow Neurological Institute, was able to pinpoint the source as a miniscule hole in the membrane encasing Nagy’s brain.

The condition is considered rare, affecting roughly one in 100,000 to 200,000 individuals. It most often presents itself in cases involving head trauma or following surgery to the brain or spine. In some instances, no definitive cause is found.

Because the human body continually produces sufficient fluid for the brain, the actual leaking of such liquid is not particularly dangerous. However, the condition can prove fatal if the brain fluid becomes infected.

According to Dr. Alexander G. Chiu, chief of the division of otolaryngology at the University of Arizona Medical Center, “It can be fatal when there is a connection between the cleanest part of the body, the brain, and the dirtiest part, the nose.”

Such was the case with Joe Nagy, who unfortunately developed a near-fatal bout of meningitis that caused his brain fluid to become infected. He was forced to undergo treatment for the illness before he could have the hole in his brain repaired through surgery.

Luckily, Nagy responded well to treatment, allowing Dr. Nakaji to perform the procedure necessary to stop the leak. The neurosurgeon described how he utilized a small bit of cartilage from Nagy’s nose to plug the membrane hole:

“Nowadays we do quite a bit of surgery on the brain and base of brain through the nose. We never have to cut up into the brain. We’re getting a needle up into the space to check it out, and then to put a little bit of glue. This is just a bit of cartilage from the nose that we can get to repair over it and then the body will seal it up.”

According to Nagy, the surgery effectively stopped the brain fluid from leaking out his nose. “I was waiting for the dribble, this leaking cause I was so used to it every day,” he explained. “I got my hankie. Nothing. It’s never come back.”

[Top image via Shutterstock]

Runny Nose Turns Out To Be Leaking Brain Fluid is a post from: The Inquisitr

Although medical professionals are seen as models of health and wellness, they are not immune to substance abuse. Doctors are just as susceptible to alcohol, narcotic and sedative addiction as the general public.

Statistics have shown at least one in 10 physicians will develop a problem with drugs or alcohol at some time during their career – in some cases leading to a potentially fatal error given the purview of their medical expertise and occupation. Stress and depression contribute.

In an effort to intercede and prevent a serious accident from happening and improving overall safety in hospitals, patient safety advocates suggest doctors, like anyone one else in a major industry in the US – such as workers in nuclear power plants and airline employees – should be subjected to regular screenings for drugs and alcohol.

The recommendation to mandate testing for substance abuse, especially after an unexpected patient death or significant event, comes from two Johns Hopkins physicians and a rehabilitation expert in a commentary published in The Journal of the American Medical Association.

Authors Dr. Julius Cuong Pham, an emergency medicine physician at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Dr. Peter J. Pronovost, director of the Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, as well as Dr. Gregory E. Skipper, of the drug and alcohol treatment center Promises, in Santa Monica, California contributed their insights.

The authors recommend in their commentary that hospitals take a number of steps. First, if not already in place, implement a mandatory physical examination and drug screening before medical staff is appointed to a hospital. Second, orchestrate random alcohol-drug testing.  Third, require testing for all physicians involved in a sentinel event subsequently leading to a patient’s death.

The authors felt testing standards by an accredited body should be established and adhered to by all facilities.

They wrote, “Patients might be better protected from preventable harm. Physicians and employers may experience reduced absenteeism, unintentional adverse events, injuries, and turnover, and early identification of a debilitating problem.”

In cases in which a physician is found to be impaired, a hospital could suspend or revoke privileges and, in some cases, report this to the state licensing board. Impaired physicians would undergo treatment and routine monitoring as a condition for continued licensure and hospital privileges, according to the JAMA commentary.

In the event a physician is either caught or willfully acquiesces to treatment for some manner of substance abuse they receive a level of rehabilitation that supersedes the average person. According to a report published in the Journal of Addiction and Medicine, reviewing health programs, Harvard Medical School’s J. Wesley Boyd and John R. Knight compared rehabilitation accommodations for doctors versus the average addict.

The facilities available for a doctor’s rehabilitation are expensive, running nearly $40,000 or more, and many of the programs last upwards of 90-days – three times the average stay. Additionally, Boyd and Knight addressed the coercive attribute of the treatment as, “physicians have little choice but to cooperate with any and all recommendations if they wish to continue practicing medicine.”

As such, there is typically an 80 percent success rate versus the abysmal rates some facilities fail to report as the success rate immediately completing a program is vastly different that the rates of the same people seen months or a year later. But again, doctors have an incentive to cooperate or else never practice again.

Doctors also have the right to confidentiality, in that if they attend rehabilitative care – you may never know about it. An NBC News report stated back in 2007, most addiction specialists favor allowing doctors to continue practicing while in confidential treatment, as does the American Medical Association.

Would you want to know if your doctor ever underwent rehabilitation for drugs or alcohol? Would it skew you from partaking of his/her services?

[Image via Shutterstock]

Hospitals Should Require Drug And Alcohol Tests For Physicians is a post from: The Inquisitr

Sex superbug fears in the United States are still overblown, experts warn, as the rare strain of gonorrhea has yet to reach American shores and isn’t quite as bad as it’s being billed.

Several media outlets reported earlier this week that the sex superbug showed up in Hawaii, raising alarm nationwide. But now experts say the case in Hawaii wasn’t the feared drug-resistant gonorrhea but instead another strain.

“The sky is not falling — yet,” said Dr. Kimberly Workowski, a professor of infectious disease at Emory University in Atlanta.

Had the Hawaii case actually been the sex superbug, it would have been the first domestic sign of a version of gonorrhea that is resistant to ceftriaxone, an antibiotic considered the last-resort treatment for the sexually transmitted infection.

The Associated Press later withdrew its article about the sex superbug, but the false report still heightened fears. The form of gonorrhea was first found in a Japanese sex worker in 2009 and has spread to a few other cases since then.

In news articles in past days the sex superbug has been referred to as a “new AIDS virus” or even “worse than AIDS.” Dr. Kent Sepkowitz disagrees, saying the description comes from a media bent on building a story.

“I have been practicing infectious disease since Bush 41 was president, and I have never seen a person die of gonorrhea,” he wrote for The Daily Beast. “Yes, it is an extremely unpleasant and tragic infection that has led to infertility for thousands, perhaps millions of women, and yes, it occasionally though very rarely spills into the blood and can cause infection of the heart valve. But death is almost never on its menu.”

While the Hawaii case turned out to be something else, experts warn that the sex superbug is likely on its way to the United States very soon.

“We think that that could be just a matter of a year or two,” said William Smith, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors.

The good news about the sex superbug is that it’s entirely preventable, experts say. They recommend diligent condom use.

Sex Superbug Bad, But Not Worse Than AIDS, Experts Say is a post from: The Inquisitr

A new study by researchers at Cornell University showed something that many of us already know — shopping while hungry leads to more junk food purchases.

While the concept is certainly not new, Cornell’s dietary researchers discovered that the situation is actually much worse than we previously realized.

Along with out of control snacking in the grocery store parking lot — and sometimes in the checkout line, going shopping while hungry leads to an entire week’s worth of eating unhealthy.

Researchers at Cornell followed 68 shoppers as they made their way through an online grocery site, which offered both healthy and unhealthy choices. Shoppers who didn’t eat four to five hours before their virtual trip to the supermarket purchased the same number of items as those who snacked on crackers before making their decisions.

But the hungry shoppers chose more processed junk foods overall than those who had eaten. How much? About 23 percent. A follow up field test where shoppers were unknowingly followed by the researchers yielded the same results. Brian Wansink, one of the study’s lead investigators, explained:

“You don’t buy more, but you do buy more of the wrong type of calories. You buy things like cereal, snacks, chips, candy and other convenience foods that require no preparation and that you can eat right away.”

While previous studies showed that fasting for up to 18 hours can make shoppers choose less healthy items, the Cornell study was the first to show no one has to be terribly hungry for judgement at the grocery store to be affected. Also, the spur-of-the-moment, less nutritious purchases last for the rest of the week, as hungry shoppers tend to get ready-to-eat meals, or processed foods that require little preparation.

The researchers explained that their findings suggest “people should be more careful about their choices when food-deprived and possibly avoid choice situations when hungry by making choices while in less hungry states.” Translation? Have something to eat before you head to the grocery store next time.

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Hungry Shoppers Buy More Junk Food, Study Shows is a post from: The Inquisitr

A team of scientists in China created hybrid flu viruses by mixing genes from H5N1, an avian influenza, with the H1N1 strain behind the swine flu pandemic of 2009.

The results, published in Science, showed what could happen if the two viruses were to combine. The scientists showed that some of the virus hybrids were able to spread through the air between guinea pigs.

There is no evidence that the swine and bird flu strains have mixed on their own, though it has not been for lack of opportunity. Their geographic ranges have overlapped, along with the species they infect — humans. So far, the H5N1 has mainly swapped genes in its own lineage. However, the H1N1 strain has been known to change easily.

Hualan Chen, a virologist at the Harbin Veterinary Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the study’s leader, explained of the results, “If these mammalian-transmissible H5N1 viruses are generated in nature, a pandemic will be highly likely.”

Chen’s results of a hybrid flu strain will likely reignite the controversy the flu community experienced in 2012 when two groups found that the H5N1 virus could go airborne if it contained specific mutations. Following the debate, the community decided on a moratorium on research that could produce more transmissible strains for one year.

But Chen’s research was completed before the moratorium went into effect. More experiments like his are possible, because the ban has run its course. Jeremy Farrar, director of the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, stated:

“I do believe such research is critical to our understanding of influenza. But such work, anywhere in the world, needs to be tightly regulated and conducted in the most secure facilities, which are registered and certified to a common international standard.”

Chen’s team mixed and matched up every combination of the H5N1 and H1N1 flu viruses to created 127 reassortant viruses. Some of the hybrids were able to spread to guinea pigs in adjacent cages. Those viruses contained the genes PA and NS from H1N1. Two additional genes from H1N1, NA and M, also promoted airborne transmission, though not as much.

The information shows that, should the two viruses combine in nature, they could spread at a much more rapid rate than any previous bird flu or swine flu viruses seen in humans.

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China Creates Hybrid Bird-Swine Flu is a post from: The Inquisitr

A “sex superbug,” more officially known as a resistant strain of the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhea, has not been confirmed to have infected two individuals in Hawaii, despite recent reports to the contrary.

Public concern over the sex superbug has been increasing as doctors warn that a new strain known as H041 has indicated a resistance to ceftriaxone, a treatment involving an injectable antibiotic reserved for cases of gonorrhea that have failed to respond to first-line treatments.

Word that the sex superbug had definitively traveled to the states after being detected in other countries was indeed alarming, but it turns out that the fears of HO41 on American shores were overstated and reports of infected Americans inaccurate.

The Associated Press was among outlets reporting upon the sex superbug in Hawaii scare, and NBC News says that the report has since been rescinded after officials explained that the drug resistant form of gonorrhea found in those cases was in actuality a different antibiotic resistant strain:

“But the Hawaii cases, first discovered in May 2011, were actually a different strain, H11S8, resistant to a different drug, the antibiotic azithromycin, state health officials confirmed. That’s been a known problem for a while, Workowski added. The AP later withdrew the inaccurate report.”

As the report notes, public health officials are caught between not furthering inaccurate information while urging individuals to take the threat of antibiotic resistant gonorrhea seriously.

In actuality, not only has the sex superbug not spread to the U.S., the infection has not been reported worldwide since being detected in a Japanese sex worker back in 2009.

Public health officials explain that the impetus is not so much to urge caution in individuals, but to sound the alarm about using stronger than necessary antibiotics to treat gonorrhea in order to preserve the effectiveness of ceftriaxone.

According to experts, the sex superbug could prove deadly if the trend of antibiotic resistance continues.

‘Sex Superbug’ In Hawaii Reports Untrue, Public Health Officials Say is a post from: The Inquisitr