Health

Updated at: 1614 PST,  Friday, April 30, 2010  HILSINKI: Strenuous exercise for just half an hour a day can reduce a person's risk of dying from cancer, says a new study. Jogging, swimming, rowing and games like squash or football all lead to a lower risk of developing cancer and dying from it. However, the study found people must exercise for at least 30 minutes a day to gain any benefit, reports The Daily Express. The study's boffins, from the universities of Kuopio and Oulu in Finland, believe that vigorous physical activity is best for lowering the risk of cancer, and particularly of lung and gastrointestinal cancers. They say: "The intensity of leisure-time physical activity had a strong and independent association with cancer mortality. "It should be at least moderate so the beneficial effect of physical activity for reducing overall cancer mortality can be achieved." To reach the conclusion, researchers followed 2,560 men aged from 42 to 61 from eastern Finland with no history of cancer and tested them to measure the intensity of their exercise. The study has been published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Updated at: 0944 PST,  Friday, April 30, 2010  NEW YORK: Modifiable risk factors such as cigarette smoking and fructose consumption can worsen nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), scientists have claimed. With NAFLD, fat accumulates in the liver of overweight individuals despite drinking little alcohol, causing in some cases liver scarring that can lead to liver failure. Identifying modifiable factors that contribute to disease severity and progression is essential in improving patient outcomes, according to recent studies. NAFLD is the most common cause of liver disease worldwide and research suggests the number of cases will climb given an increasing trend toward higher fat diets, obesity, decreased physical activity, and a rise in diabetes.

 Updated at: 0516 PST,  Friday, April 30, 2010
 RIYADH: A team of Saudi doctors led by the country's health minister on Thursday successfully separated two baby boys from Jordan conjoined at the stomach in a seven-hour operation.

Ten-week-old Amjed and Mohammed Taim, born sharing a liver and other tissues, were separated in an operation at King Abdulaziz Medical Centre in Riyadh that was televised live back to Jordan.

"Five, four, three, two, one," Abdullah Rabeeah, the Saudi health minister, counted down after using a laser knife to divide the boy's liver and then finally separate the remaining tissue between them.

"The operation is complete, both twins are now in separate beds, both are stable," he announced.

Two paediatric surgery teams then sewed the boys up and transferred them to the intensive care ward to recover.

The boys' parents were on hand for the operation, which was paid for by Saudi King Abdullah, who has sponsored most of the 27 successful operations to separate conjoined twins carried out at the Riyadh hospital.

"To tell you the truth, I'm afraid," confided father Yusuf Taim, a grocer in Al-Zarqa, northeast of Amman, as he watched the operation on closed circuit television.

"But I put my faith in Allah to take care of it," Taim, who has four other children, told media.

Updated at: 1434 PST,  Thursday, April 29, 2010  LONDON: Pioneering heart surgery using a robot arm has been carried out for the first time in the world by a British team. The system was used to correct a "short circuit" in the heart of a patient that was beating too fast. Surgeons at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester identified a rogue piece of conducting tissue that was burned away with a wire probe. The procedure involves using an X-ray to steer a thin tube called a catheter through veins from the groin to the heart. Normally the surgeon conducting the operation stands by the patient's bed shielded from the X-rays by a heavy lead apron. The robot, which attaches to the bed, allows the whole operation to be conducted remotely from a separate room. The surgeon views the X-ray images on a screen while controlling the catheter unencumbered. Very fine movements are possible, allowing highly accurate targeting of the treated tissue. The patient, a 70-year-old man from Burton-upon-Trent, had been brought to the hospital with an atrial heart flutter. The muscle was misfiring electrical signals causing disruption to heartbeat which can raise the risk of a heart attack or stroke. Tony Blair was treated for a similar problem, carried out by hand, at Hammersmith Hospital in 2004. The disorder causes the heart's atrial chambers to contract in very rapid but weak beats, preventing blood from being pumped efficiently to vital organs. After the procedure, the condition was completely cured.

  Updated at: 1034 PST,  Wednesday, April 28, 2010
 NEW YORK: Our favourite fruits and vegetables are not necessarily the best for us, researchers said.

The most popular fruit and vegetables which people eat as part of their daily diet may not be the healthiest, doctors warn, rather than making up our five-a-day with foods we know and like, we should broaden our tastes and stock up on kale and blueberries, as well as sweet potatoes and papaya. Not only will our palates appreciate the variety, they are better for us than carrots, oranges and other favourites.

The researchers focused on phytonutrients - plant compounds believed to boost the health of the eyes, bone, heart, brain and immune system, cutting the risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

They say that although carrots are rich in beta-carotene - a building block of flu-fighting vitamin A sweet potatoes contain nearly twice as much.

Similarly, while it is easy to start the day with a glass of orange juice, a handful of papaya contains 15 times more beta-cryptoxanthin - another vitamin A building block.

Dr Keith Randolph, of U.S. vitamin pill manufacturer, said that while it was well known that many people do not eat enough fruit and vegetables, even those who ate the recommended five-a-day could do better.

Updated at: 1014 PST,  Wednesday, April 28, 2010  LONDON: British researchers claim that a sudden plummeting in the sea temperature of 16F (9C) more than 137 million years ago was the first step towards their eventual road to extinction. While studying fossils and minerals from the Arctic Svalbard, Norway, they concluded the sudden change in the Atlantic Gulf Stream during the Cretaceous period would almost certainly have wiped out the ''abundance'' of the world's dinosaurs. Some experts believe the creatures were wiped out by one cataclysmic event 65 million years ago – such as a meteor hitting the planet. But the new research suggests they were wiped out by a series of environmental changes, starting with a drop in sea temperatures. Gregory Price, from Plymouth University, who led the study, said his team's research showed the drop in temperature happened when the Earth was in a ''greenhouse'' climate, which was very similar to now. He found the drop in temperatures was so severe that numerous species of dinosaur previously living in warm, shallow seas, land and swamps would have died out. ''We believe dinosaurs were most likely to be cold-blooded creatures and would have needed the warmth to keep them alive,” he said. “If they were unable to migrate south they could have been wiped out. Climate change is now very much on the agenda in trying to determine how the dinosaurs became extinct. “We now believe that they died out gradually and it is very possible that this could have been caused by a series of climatic changes.'' The drop in temperature is thought to have occurred because high levels of CO2 were in the atmosphere which caused global temperatures to rise and polar ice to melt – a phenomenon currently predicted for Earth.

Updated at: 1010 PST,  Wednesday, April 28, 2010  LONDON: How would you feel if I told you I'd found a treatment which lessens the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, clears blemishes and minimises pores and improves skin tone and texture. The Light Masque is a gadget fit for the 21st Century and it's all done by a magic gadget which patters red light over your face for 25 minutes. It is a non-invasive procedure that delivers multiple doses of red and near-infrared light to face. The treatment is being offered by John Tsagaris, one of London's most intriguing independent health-and-beauty practitioners. His work has included placements in hospitals in Beijing, where he specialised in dermatology, gynaecology, cardiology and geriatrics.

Updated at: 0957 PST,  Wednesday, April 28, 2010  NEW YORK: Grape consumption can lower blood pressure, improve heart function and reduce other risk factors for heart disease and metabolic syndrome, according to a new study. The effect is thought to be due to phytochemicals -- naturally occurring antioxidants - that grapes contain, say the study''s researchers. The study will be presented today at the Experimental Biology convention in Anaheim, Calif. The research shows encouraging results of a grape-enriched diet preventing risk factors for metabolic syndrome. To reach the conclusion, researchers studied the effect of regular table grapes (a blend of green, red and black grapes) that were mixed into a powdered form and integrated into the diets of laboratory rats as part of a high-fat, American style diet. All of the rats used were from a research breed that is prone to being overweight. They performed many comparisons between the rats consuming a grape-enriched diet and the control rats receiving no grape powder. Researchers added calories and sugars to the control group to balance the extra calories and sugars gained from getting the grape powder. After three months, the rats that received the grape-enriched diet had lower blood pressure, better heart function, and reduced indicators of inflammation in the heart and the blood than rats who received no grape powder. Rats also had lower triglycerides and improved glucose tolerance. The effects were seen even though the grape-fed animals had no change in body weight. In all, researchers say the study demonstrates that a grape-enriched diet can have broad effects on the development of heart disease and metabolic syndrome and the risk factors that go along with it. "The possible reasoning behind the lessening of metabolic syndrome is that the phytochemicals were active in protecting the heart cells from the damaging effects of metabolic syndrome. In the rats, inflammation of the heart and heart function was maintained far better," says Steven Bolling, M.D., heart surgeon at the U-M Cardiovascular Center and head of the U-M Cardioprotection Research Laboratory. The researchers also looked for signs of inflammation, oxidative damage and other molecular indicators of cardiac stress. Again, the rats who consumed the grape powder had lower levels of these markers than rats who did not receive grapes. There is no well-accepted way to diagnose metabolic syndrome which is really a cluster of characteristics: excess belly fat (for men, a waist measuring 40 inches or more and for women, a waist measuring 35 inches or more); high triglycerides which can lead to plague build-up in the artery walls; high blood pressure; reduced glucose tolerance; and elevated c-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation in the body. Those with metabolic syndrome are at higher risk for cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. But the U-M study suggests that it may be possible that grape consumption can change the downhill sequence that leads to heart disease by prolonging the time between when symptoms begin to occur and a time of diagnosis. "Reducing these risk factors may delay the onset of diabetes or heart disease, or lessen the severity of the diseases," says E. Mitchell Seymour, Ph.D., lead researcher and manager of the U-M Cardioprotection Research Laboratory. "Ultimately it may lessen the health burden of these increasingly common conditions."

Updated at: 0254 PST,  Wednesday, April 28, 2010  SYDNEY: A fascinating carpet, made of 2.19 million pieces of cigarettes, was put on display in Sydney, with a view to encourage people against cigarette-inflicted diseases. The fixed number of cigarette, used in manufacturing this alluring carpet, was aimed at raising awareness in smokers that the addict may smoke within 30 years of his life if he smoked 20 cigarettes daily.

Updated at: 0935 PST,  Sunday, April 25, 2010  NEW HAVEN: Stress induces signals that cause cells to develop into tumors, Yale researchers have discovered. The research, published online in the journal Nature, describes a novel way cancer takes hold in the body and suggests new ways to attack the deadly disease. Until now, most researchers believed that more than one cancer-causing mutation needed to take place in a single cell in order for tumors to grow. The Yale team, led by Tian Xu, professor and vice chairman of genetics and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, illustrated that cancer-causing mutations can cooperate to promote tumor development even when they are located in different cells within a tissue. “The bad news is that it is much easier for a tissue to accumulate mutations in different cells than in the same cell,” said Xu, who also is a researcher with the Yale Cancer Center and the Fudan-Yale Center for Biomedical Research at Fudan University in China. The Yale team worked with fruit flies to study the activity of two genes known to be involved in development of human cancers: a gene called RAS that has been implicated in 30 percent of cancers, and a tumor-suppressing gene called scribble, which contributes to tumor development when mutated. Neither a mutated RAS nor the defective scribble alone can cause cancer. Researchers in the Xu lab previously showed that a combination of the two within the same cell could trigger malignant tumors. However, the Yale team found that these mutations did not have to co-exist in the same cell to cause tumors. A cell with only mutant RAS can develop into a malignant tumor if helped by a nearby cell with defective scribble. They also found stress conditions such as a wound could trigger cancer formation. For instance, RAS cells developed into tumors when a wound was induced in the tissue. The culprit underlying both phenomena turned out to be a signaling process called JNK, which is activated by environmental stress conditions. “A lot of different conditions can trigger stress signaling: physical stress, emotional stress, infections, inflammation – all these things. Another bad news for cancer” Xu said. While the paper shows it is easier than previously thought for cancer to take root in the body, it also identifies new targets to prevent and treat one of the deadliest diseases in the developed world. The Yale team found that the JNK stress signaling travels from one cell to the next, but that the propagation can be blocked. “Better understanding of the underlying mechanism causing cancer always offers new tools to battle the disease,” Xu said. Ming Wu and Jose Carlos Pastor-Pareja of Yale are other authors of the study, which was funded by the National Cancer Institute and HHMI.

Updated at: 1452 PST,  Sunday, April 25, 2010  WASHINGTON: An American professional has said that drinking lemon juice can help prevent kidney stones. Roger L. Sur, director of UC San Diego Comprehensive Kidney Stone Center, said that having lemonade daily is one of five methods to prevent kidney stones. Besides, drinking enough fluids can lessen your ingestion of salt, dietary calcium as well as protein. In a new research carried out by Sur, having four ounces of reconstituted lemon juice in two litres of water on a daily basis - was shown to cut the rate of stone formation from 1.00 to 0.13 stones per patient. Other fruit juices contain less citrate and are often supplemented with calcium and have oxalate, one of the main elements of kidney stones. In actual fact, the most usual kidney stone is a calcium stone, which is composed mainly of calcium oxalate. According to Sur, calcium stones can be caused by excessive intake of salt that arouses calcium excretion in the urine. Some individuals will not even be familiar with that they have a small stone in their kidney until it leaves the kidney and enter the ureter, causing severe pain. Another type of stone, called a uric acid stone is produced from uric acid, a waste matter normally passed out of the body through urine. Struvite, or infection stones take place with kidney or urinary tract infections while cystine stones make up less than 1% of kidney stones. Sur said: "There is a 50 percent chance of getting another stone within five to ten years if you’ve already had one. "The UCSD Kidney Stone Center can determine the cause of a kidney stone 97 percent of the time through a combination of tests and scans. These provide us with the pertinent information we need in order to create an individualized prevention plan that incorporates dietary changes and the necessary follow-up."

  Updated at: 1302 PST,  Sunday, April 25, 2010
 LONDON: Errors at fertility clinics almost doubled in 12 months, it has been revealed.

The number of mistakes at IVF centres in England and Wales rose from 182 in 2007/8 to 334 in 2008/9.

Blunders included embryos being lost or implanted in the wrong woman, and eggs being fertilised with another man's sperm.

The figures from Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFEA), the IVF regulatory body, were obtained by BBC Radio Five Live's Donal MacIntyre show.

The HFEA said the errors represented less than 1% of more than 50,000 IVF cycles carried out.

One couple were told by the University Hospital of Wales's IVF clinic that their last remaining embryos had been lost during treatment.

The pair, identified only as Clare and Gareth, had been trying for a baby for eight years.

Clare told the BBC: "I was sat there, gowned up, waiting to go in and have a transfer.

"They said you've got one embryo remaining, the other two embryos have gone missing.

"They said in the next sentence I can assure you they haven't gone into anyone else. Those were two potential babies."

 Updated at: 1302 PST,  Sunday, April 25, 2010
 WASHINGTON: A man who underwent the world’s first full facial transplant has had his first shave in five years, the surgeon who operated on him said.

Dr Joan Pere Barret said the patient, who is in his 30s, received a new beard from a donor as part of his new face.

In an operation at Barcelona’s Vall d’Hebron University Hospital lasting 24 hours, the patient now has a new nose, lips, tear ducts, cheekbones and jaw.

Dr Barret said the procedure had been a success and if all went well, the man could be back at work in five months after living for half a decade as a recluse.

The patient, who is believed to be a farmer who got shot in the face by an accident, has not spoken or eaten a proper meal for the last five years.

Dr Barret, 42, told The Daily Telegraph: "Many people with facial disfigurement feel very isolated, as in this case.

"He only went out when no one could see him, when there were not that many people around.

"His contact with the outside world was television and mass media, and his family.

"Now he wants to get his life back, he has plans for the future – he wants to work and have a normal life.

"I am sure he is looking forward to going to a bar and having a beer."

Dr Barret said the team of 14 consultants at the hospital worked three at a time in three hour shifts on the patient from 9pm on March 20 to 9pm the following day.

They were supported by 10 junior resident doctors.

"We had the radio on, we were chatting - it was very relaxed," he said. "At some points it felt like we had taken a weekend holiday – everyone was so excited."

Three days after the operation, the doctors had to tackle the unusual problem of the patient’s growing beard.

"We have had to shave him every three or four days. We do not use a Gilette razor in case of infection, so he has a little stubble – he looks very handsome."

The hospital only released details of the procedure on Thursday after the patient had been out of danger for a month.

Dr Barret said the man’s family were very emotional when they saw his face and started to recognise the person he was before his accident.

A week after the operation, the patient asked for a mirror to study his own reflection.

"He asked to see his face on day seven after the surgery, he is a very strong man," said Dr Barret.

"He was very calm, he wrote down on a piece of paper that he was satisfied with the operation. He was very happy, he gave the impression that he was at peace.

"It was as though everything he has been through was over, all these five years of pain were over – he was back."

The operation was publicly funded and there were four patients who were considered suitable for transplants and agreed to the risks.

Doctors had to make sure that the donor had the same skin tone and was the same weight, height and age as the patient.

After securing permission from the donor family, surgeons were able to proceed.

Under Spanish law, neither the donor family nor the patient can be identified to the other, even if they wanted to.

Dr Barret, who worked in Britain for three years, said: "They would not be allowed to know.

"The face has been completely changed, there is no resemblance at all to the donor at all. We have seen the donor and we have seen the results."

There is now the possibility that a similar procedure could take place in Britain within months.

Dr Barret said he was working at the St Andrew plastic surgery centre in Chelmsford in Essex in 2004 when the decision was made that not enough was known about the procedure at that time.

"I know that Britain is waiting to do a facial transplant," he said. "I am sure it will happen soon."

The British face transplant team have been ready to perform an operation for some months after gaining ethical approval in 2006 and preparing several candidates.

The team based at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, north London, have approval to carry out four face transplants on burns patients.

Their protocol does not involve taking muscle or bone as the Spanish team have done but is likely to involve transplanting a complete face.

Prof Peter Butler who heads the team, said: "We congratulate Dr Barret and his transplantation team in Spain on what may well be the most complex facial transplantation operation carried out so far worldwide. Secondly I would like to wish the patient well for the future.

"We must also remember the family of the donor who, we understand, has helped not only the facial transplantation patient, but others, with various forms of organ donation. To help others, not only to live but to have a good life, is a supreme act of human generosity.

"This operation once again shows how facial transplantation can help a particular group of the most severely facially injured people, for whom reconstructive surgery has not worked and for whom the quality of life is indescribably poor. These are people who live a terrible twilight life, mostly shut away and hiding from public gaze."

Dr Barret, head of the department of plastic surgery and burns at Vall d'Hebron, said the man wanted his first real meal to be lamb.

"He should be able to eat next week, but he will probably have to start with softer foods - not the meal he really wants. He can't eat lamb at the moment."

 Updated at: 1257 PST,  Sunday, April 25, 2010
 MUMBAI: A candy-like lozenge designed to satisfy a smoker's nicotine craving could prove dangerously tempting to little ones, researchers point out.

Cinnamon- and mint-flavored Camel Orbs were launched on the U.S. market last year, aimed at smokers needing a nicotine fix when they can't light up. But the Tic Tac-sized product's "candy-like appearance and added flavorings" are virtually certain to tempt children to sneak one (or a few), with potentially disastrous effects, an article published in advance of May's issue of the journal Pediatrics concludes.

The product is sold in several forms — orbs, strips and sticks — with increasing nicotine potency. The maker, R.J. Reynolds, notes that they are sold in "child resistant" packaging. But researchers believe that some adult users of the products are likely to leave them out in the open, where little ones can gain access to them.

A 4-year-old child could suffer potentially fatal poisoning with the ingestion of 13 to 21 orbs or four sticks, and a 1-year-old could succumb to the effects of as few as eight orbs or three sticks. Smaller doses could lead to nausea and vomiting.

Beyond the prospect of unintentional poisoning, researchers flagged the attraction of the flavored cigarette-replacement product to teens, who could then become addicted to nicotine.

Updated at: 1256 PST,  Sunday, April 25, 2010  WASHINGTON: Sugar and salt are damaging the health of Americans by raising blood pressure and cholesterol -- and regulation may be the only way to help, researchers agree. Two reports published here take aim at the much-loved ingredients and add to a growing body of scientific opinion that Americans won't be able to eat more healthily without help from the food industry. Americans have been eating more and more sugar and salt in recent decades and most of it is not sprinkled on food. It is in the burgers, sodas and processed foods that are hastily gobbled by adults and children alike, the reports show. Education efforts to help Americans cut down on salt have not worked and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration should start regulating the industry to help remove it from food, a panel at the Institute of Medicine said. Regulators and the food industry agree that Americans cannot give up salt cold-turkey and will have to be gradually weaned off it. Sodium adds flavor and texture to food to make it palatable and can extend its shelf life. In another study Dr. Miriam Vos of Emory School of Medicine in Georgia and colleagues found that the more sugar people ate, the worse their cholesterol levels. "Just like eating a high-fat diet can increase your levels of triglycerides and high cholesterol, eating sugar can also affect those same lipids," Vos said in a statement. Studies have shown Americans are eating and drinking far more sugar than in years past. The use of processed sugar products like high fructose corn syrup can be linked directly to diabetes rates. The food and restaurant industry has been lobbying for self-regulation, arguing that Americans need to control their own eating habits. But the science shows it is difficult to eat a typical American diet without consuming too much salt and sugar. The trend points in one direction: more regulation of food. While a move to limit sugar is not imminent, Iowa Senator Tom Harkin and Representative Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut said they would push the FDA to crack down on salt, which clearly contributes to an epidemic of high blood pressure. "What we're all hoping is this is going to be federal policy so it becomes mandatory. I think slow and steady is the right way to go," Dr. Alice Lichtenstein of the American Heart Association said in a telephone interview. "If across the board reductions in sodium in our food supply become law, then I think a gradual, stepwise approach is probably best in the long run to ensure that it actually happens and there is acceptance from the people." New York City, which has banned smoking and artificial trans-fats in restaurants, has pledged to coordinate a nationwide effort to reduce salt in restaurant and packaged foods by 25 percent over five years. As for sugar, California state Senator Dean Florez introduced legislation in February to tax sodas and other sugar-sweetened drinks and use the proceeds to bankroll programs to fight childhood obesity. California has also imposed menu-labeling rules and banned trans-fats in restaurants and on soda sales in public schools. The American Beverage Association, whose members include Coca-Cola (KO.N) and Kraft Foods (KFT.N) have strongly, and successfully, opposed efforts to tax soda. However the food industry has been more amenable to offering lower-salt foods and the FDA suggests it will work with manufacturers to make the transition painless. The Obama Administration and Congress have shown strong appetites for regulating the food and restaurant industry. Newhealthcare reform legislation requires large chain restaurants to give calorie counts on menus.

Updated at: 1544 PST,  Friday, April 23, 2010  LONDON: Not only do they taste great, but mangoes are also loaded with several qualities that are excellent for your health. They are rich in powerful antioxidants that are known to neutralise free radicals that cause damage to cells and lead to health problems like heart disease, premature aging and cancer among other things. Here's why you should consume them... - With its high iron content, mangoes are excellent for pregnant women and those who suffer from anaemia. But do consult with your doctor beforehand on how much is suitable. - Constantly complaining about clogged pores? Place mango slices on your skin and then wash off after 10 minutes. - If you suffer from indigestion problems, nothing will help you as much as a mango. They're known to give relief from acidity and aid proper digestion since they contain digestive enzymes that help break down proteins. - Rich in potassium, mangoes reduce high blood pressure. They also contain pectin, a soluble dietary fibre that is known to lower blood cholesterol levels. - Trying to put on weight? Include mangoes in your diet. Since it is rich in calories as well as carbohydrates, it could be the perfect fruit to have. - Some studies say that eating mangoes reduces the risk of kidney stone formation. - Studying for exams? This fruit is rich in glutamine acid- an important protein for concentration and memory. Instead of snacking on unhealthy chips and cookies, why not feast on slices of mangoes instead. - Though they are traditionally not considered as aphrodisiacs, mangoes contain Vitamin E which helps boost one's sex life. The vitamin works to regulate the body's sex hormones. If nothing else, eat a mango just because it won't be in season forever.

Updated at: 1228 PST,  Friday, April 23, 2010  NEW YORK: Young people are putting their health at risk by listening to music at the same volume as jet engine noise, an expert has warned. Playing MP3 players such as iPods at high volumes and using earphones that fit into the ear canal could lead to loss of hearing, it is claimed. Experts said some players generate volumes in the ear in excess of 120 decibels, which is 'similar in intensity to a jet engine' and louder than a pneumatic drill. Surveys have shown that more than 90 per cent of young people in Europe and the U.S. used them, often for several hours a day at maximum volume.

Updated at: 1210 PST,  Thursday, April 22, 2010  LOS ANGELES: Former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, billionaire Bill Gates and Queen Rania of Jordan will put their fame to work this week as they join a Twitter campaign to end malaria deaths. Ashton Kutcher, Ryan Seacrest and other Hollywood celebrities have also joined the Twitter campaign. Starting on Wednesday, the participants will send out "tweets" encouraging the public to donate to buy bednets which guard against the mosquitoes that spread malaria in Africa. Gates will also take part in TV charity fundraiser "Idol Gives Back" on Wednesday to promote the fight against malaria and other health causes. Organizers of the Twitter fund-raising push are working with the United Nations Special Envoy for Malaria, Ray Chambers. "It's one of the few campaigns I'm aware of where $10 (6.49 pounds) buys a bednet which can save a child's life," Chambers said. "The tangible feel of it is greater than any other campaign I've been exposed to." Malaria causes more than 1 million deaths annually worldwide, but the problem is most acute in Africa. The UN aims to reduce the deaths from malaria to near zero in Africa by 2015. So far, more than $4 billion has been raised to fight the disease, mostly from the World Bank, government agencies and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The UN expects to cover 800 million people at risk of malaria with bednets, but it is still short of funding for roughly 50 million of those nets, Chambers said. On Wednesday, singing contest "American Idol," the top-rated program on U.S. television, holds its "Idol Gives Back" show. That too will ask for public donations for malaria relief, as well as charities working with children and poverty in the United States. "Idol Gives Back" is supported by News Corp, Ford Motor Co, Exxon Mobil Corp, AT&T Inc and Coca-Cola Co. Others taking part in the Twitter campaign include basketball star Shaquille O'Neal, talk show host Larry King, singer Jordin Sparks and Sarah Brown, the wife of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, organizers said. "Awareness is the pre-requisite of action -- if people don't know about an injustice they won't fight to end it," Brown said in an e-mail to a UK-based news agency. The Twitter campaign is a way to build that awareness, because collectively, the participants have 50 million followers on social networking site Twitter. Organizers said it was unclear how much money will be raised through the campaign, which was inspired by a race a year ago between actor Kutcher and news outlet CNN to be the first to reach 1 million followers on Twitter. After Kutcher won the contest, he donated $100,000 to Malaria No More, which is one of the groups that will benefit from this latest Twitter campaign. This year, the Case Foundation will match up to $25,000 of the donations made through the campaign. "It's matched by real funding that's going to buy real nets for real people," said Biz Stone, co-founder of Twitter, who will also be one of the figures sending out tweets. "It goes all the way from one little tweet to a real physical manifestation of change," he said. This first blast of messages over Twitter will end on Sunday, which is World Malaria Day. It will be followed later in the year by more tweets from the participants.

Updated at: 0422 PST,  Thursday, April 22, 2010  CALIFORNIA: Obesity causes brains to shrink - increasing the risk of Alzheimer's disease later in life, researchers say. A study has found that people who carry a gene linked to overeating and excess body weight tend to have smaller brains than the rest of the population. The finding adds to the evidence that obesity is a cause of dementia - and raises new concerns that the obesity epidemic sweeping the West could send Alzheimer's rates soaring. The findings come from brain scans of 206 healthy pensioners. Scientists found that those carrying a gene mutation called FTO had 8 per cent fewer cells in the frontal lobes of the brain --the region involved in making complex judgments. They also had 12 per cent fewer brain cells in the occipital lobes involved in processing mental images. The fatter the volunteers, the more the damage. Shrinkage of the brain is an indicator of Alzheimer's disease. The faulty FTO gene can cause people to overeat. It is carried by almost half of white Europeans but only 16 per cent of Asians. Neurologist Paul Thompson, who led the study at the University of California, said the differences in brain size could not be directly linked to other by-products of obesity - such as cholesterol levels, diabetes or high blood pressure. However, the researchers are unsure exactly how the gene shrinks the brain - or how it makes people fat. Dr Susanne Sorensen, of the Alzheimer's Society, said: 'This is a relatively small study but the findings support the need for more research. One million people will develop dementia in the next 10 years but dementia research is desperately underfunded. With the right investment, it can be defeated.' The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal.

MIAMI: Older women at higher risk for breast cancer now have two good drug options for preventing the disease, but they will have to weigh the trade-offs, a major study shows. Tamoxifen, the longtime gold standard, is more effective and longer lasting, the results show. But a newer drug — raloxifene, sold as Evista — is safer. "I don't see a clear winner," but two good choices with different risks and benefits, said Dr. Scott Lippman, a cancer specialist at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. He is editor of Cancer Prevention Research, a journal that published long-term results from the federally funded study on Monday. They also were being presented at an American Association for Cancer Research meeting in Washington. Tamoxifen is widely used to treat cancer once it's diagnosed, and Evista is used to treat osteoporosis. But the drugs have not found wide acceptance so far as cancer preventives. Doctors hope the findings will spur more high-risk women to consider taking one of the drugs. They're not recommended for women at average risk of breast cancer. But for the millions who are at higher risk because of gene mutations, family history or other factors, they can make a dramatic difference. "Between 27 million and 30 million women in the United States might have a high enough risk to qualify for one of these drugs," including any woman over age 60, said Dr. Gabriel Hortobagyi, a breast cancer specialist at the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. Tamoxifen cut the chances of developing the most serious forms of breast cancer in half, the research shows, but with a higher risk of uterine cancer. Evista cut the cancer risk by 38 percent, with fewer uterine problems and other serious side effects. "We've now documented that it's far less toxic" than tamoxifen, said study leader Dr. D. Lawrence Wickerham. He is a cancer specialist at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh who has consulted for makers of both drugs. Tamoxifen has long been used to treat and prevent breast cancer. It blunts estrogen, which fuels the growth of most tumors that occur after menopause. Evista, sold by Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly & Co., more selectively blocks estrogen. It is only for use after menopause. Generic tamoxifen costs about 30 cents a day, versus up to $3 for Evista. Both can cause hot flashes. The study, called STAR, compared them in nearly 20,000 postmenopausal women at higher risk of breast cancer. They took one drug or the other for about five years and then stopped (longer use is not known to be safe or good). After about seven years of follow-up, there were 310 cases of invasive breast cancer among women on Evista versus 247 in those on tamoxifen. That works out to a 24 percent higher cancer rate for Evista users. Uterine cancer developed in 65 tamoxifen users but in only 37 women on Evista. Twice as many women on tamoxifen had abnormal uterine growths that led to hysterectomies. Blood clots and cataracts also were less common with Evista. Evista clearly is the safer drug, said V. Craig Jordan of Georgetown University, the scientist who led development of tamoxifen. However, Evista's breast cancer prevention benefits wane over time much more than tamoxifen's do. Lippman, the Texas cancer specialist, agreed. "It may be that with raloxifene, you need to continue to take it," he said. And even counting the additional uterine cancers that occurred with tamoxifen, its users still had 35 fewer invasive cancers overall than women on Evista. It sets up a choice, he said. For example, women might choose tamoxifen if they are at very high risk of breast cancer and have had hysterectomies so that uterine cancer is not a concern. Marty Smith, 55, an insurance agent in Grandville, Mich., has used both drugs. Her sister and mother had breast cancer and a grandfather had male breast cancer. She switched to Evista after two years on tamoxifen because of worries about side effects. "I thought, if there's something else that's going to give me equal and possibly better breast cancer prevention with less risk, then I was going to get on it," she said.

 LONDON: The average mother spends five months of her life doing the laundry, according to a new study.

As per the survey done by cleaning firm ecozone, a mother spends 26 minutes on it every time she turns on her washing machine, reports a newspaper of Britain.

"It is a staggering amount of time. Carrying out tasks like pulling tissues out of pockets, pairing up socks, looking under beds or behind doors for underwear take up a large chunk of their life," said Simeon Van Der Molen, managing director of the online portal.

"To make matters worse many mums are washing clothes that aren’t even dirty while a quarter are wasting electricity and water by not using a full load," she added.

  NEW YORK: Colon surgery patients are more likely to die if their procedure is performed at a teaching hospital, says a new study.

U.S. researchers analyzed data from 115,250 patients who underwent colon resection (removal of a part of the colon) for both cancerous and non-cancerous diseases at 1,045 hospitals in 38 states from 2001 through 2005.

The investigators found that fewer patients had their surgery at a teaching hospital (46,656) than at a non-teaching hospital (68,589). Overall, the average length of hospital stay was 10 days, and 4,371 patients (3.8 percent) died in the hospital. Patients in teaching hospitals had half-day longer length of stay and an increased risk of death than those in non-teaching hospitals (3.9 percent versus 3.7 percent, respectively).

The study is published in the April issue of the journal Archives of Surgery.

"While the volume-outcome relationship may favor colon cancer resections performed in teaching hospitals, this advantage might be lost when benign colon disease is factored into the equation," wrote the researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore and the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor.

"The inclusion of common benign disease might represent the tipping point at which both superior level of care and high volume shift away from teaching hospitals in favor of non-teaching hospital settings. Where teaching hospitals perform surgery in comparatively lower volume, they may also demonstrate comparatively poorer outcomes."

The researchers said their findings suggest that both procedure and diagnosis should be taken into account when assessing quality of care and surgical outcomes.

"As policymakers strive to establish quality measures and rationale for regionalization of surgical care, data gathered in this manner may be of great interest to patients, payers and health care providers," they concluded.

"These data might further allow the identification of a similar tipping point in other gastrointestinal surgical disease that allows a demarcation to guide the venues where individual surgical care may be most appropriately and efficiently rendered."

 LONDON: Researchers from the Christchurch Kidney Research Group of the University of Otago, Christchurch, have recently finished the world’s largest study into how to earlier detect the often fatal condition of acute kidney disease in critically ill patients.

The study could allow intensive care unit (ICU) specialists to intervene earlier with appropriate treatment and save more lives.

A key paper from the study has just been published in a leading international kidney-related publication, Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation.

It showed a new blood test given to South Island ICU patients detected potentially life-threatening kidney injuries earlier and more reliably than the current screening test.

Lead investigator Professor Zoltan Endre from Otago University’s Christchurch School of Medicine & Health Sciences says the study holds great potential for revolutionising the way patients with kidney injury are treated.

“Eventually practise in intensive care will be changed because of these studies.’’

“All over the world they are seeking early indicators of kidney injury. The earlier it is picked up the better the likelihood of survival.’’

Professor Endre is one of the world’s leaders in research and treatment of AKI.

He says the incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI) is increasing worldwide, especially in ICUs. In his research involving ICU patients about 45 per cent of subjects had the condition – or more than 3000 New Zealanders a year.

Mortality rates in the ICU for patients with AKI range from 20 per cent to 47 per cent.

Many patients arrive in intensive care after accidents or heart attacks and often have multiple injuries, including AKI, Prof Endre says.

This study involved 444 patients who entered the Christchurch or Dunedin intensive care units.

Patients’ blood was tested on admission to the units and then for the following seven days.

The blood was screened for the presence of cystatin C.

Analysis by PhD student Dr Maryam Nejat, found screening with the new cystatin C test, patients’ potentially life-threatening kidney injuries were detected earlier than by the current screening tool, creatinine, in 66 per cent of the cases.

Professor Endre says the rate of death from AKI has not really improved over the past 50 years so this study provides a real advantage to clinicians.

The cystatin C test is inexpensive and, after more tests to prove its effectiveness, will no doubt become regularly used in hospitals, he says.

The cystatin C study is part of a larger research project into the early detection and treatment of kidney problems.

The study was funded by the Health Research Council of New Zealand and the University of Otago. The paper “Rapid detection of acute kidney injury by plasma cystatin C in the intensive care unit” was authored by Maryam Nejat, John Pickering, Rob Walker, and Zoltan Endre. Dr Nejat is a recipient of a University of Otago PhD scholarship.

NEW YORK: Dallas County had the highest HIV infection rate in the state in 2008 and has held that distinction for a number of years, county health officials acknowledged Monday. The county's infection rate of 36 new HIV cases per 100,000 residents declined from 37.5 cases in the previous year, but still was higher than Harris County's infection rate of 32.5 cases in 2008. "This is not new. This is not sudden," said Dr. Wendy Chung, the chief epidemiologist who tracks reportable diseases in Dallas County. "What's important is that this trend has been recognized. And it's improving, which is something that's hard to achieve." Dallas County added 859 HIV cases in 2008 for a total caseload of 13,500 residents with HIV or AIDS. By comparison, Harris County, which includes Houston, added 1,288 cases for a total of 18,751 HIV/AIDS cases that year, according to the Houston Department of Health and Human Services. One AIDS service group, AIDS Arms Inc., cited the county's ranking in a fundraising campaign to add a new medical clinic in Oak Cliff. "The HIV epidemic in Dallas County is reaching crisis levels in terms of our city's health status, economics and quality of life," said Raeline Nobles, the group's executive director. AIDS Arms, which operates a medical clinic in South Dallas along with other services, is trying to raise $8 million for a new clinic to accommodate more HIV-infected patients. "The clinic demands of individuals living with HIV have evolved to the point where we need to expand the availability of medical services beyond our current facility," said Dr. Keith Rawlings, medical director of the group's Peabody Clinic. Zachary Thompson, executive director of Dallas County Health and Human Services, said the county and other AIDS service groups in Dallas have worked to lower the HIV rate for years. "It's why we wanted to begin distributing condoms in Dallas County," he said. "We said right upfront that we were seeing increasing numbers of HIV/AIDS." In 2008, Dallas County commissioners rescinded a 13-year ban on condom distribution, acknowledging the need to prevent not only the spread of the human immunodeficiency virus but other sexually transmitted diseases as well. The county acknowledged its HIV rate on the same day the Texas Department of State Health Services released its 2008 annual report on HIV/AIDS. It showed a steady increase in the number of Texans now living with the disease. Since 2002, the number of HIV/AIDS survivors in Texas has gone up about 6 percent annually. A total of 63,019 Texans were known to be living with the disease by the end of 2008, an increase of 42 percent in seven years, according to the new report. While the state's increasing HIV/AIDS caseload would appear to be a grim prognosis, it actually is good news, Chung said. "They're living longer, getting effective treatment and getting treatment sooner," she said. The virus is spread by having unprotected sex with an HIV-infected person, sharing drug needles and from an infected mother to a child at birth. The state report also noted that once people are infected with HIV, they typically have five to 10 years without symptoms before they progress to AIDS. "Early HIV/AIDS diagnosis allows HIV-infected people to benefit from lifesaving medication and treatment," the state report noted. Local AIDS officials said HIV appears to be spreading fastest among young black men, a group they are trying to reach with better prevention efforts.

ISLAMABAD: Fearing the re-emergence of polio disease in the federal, the city fathers and health experts Monday expressed their serious concerns over the impediments being faced by anti-polio vaccination teams while entering into the private educational institutes, high security zones as well as slums of the federal capital. They expressed their views in the maiden meeting of Polio Eradication Committee of Islamabad, constituted by Capital Development Authority (CDA) Chairman Imtiaz Inayat Elahi, on the pattern of all federating units, to bring onboard all stakeholders to ensure concerted efforts for city’s deliverance from polio. The meeting was duly participated by the Unicef Country Director Martin Mogwanja, Country Director Plan Haider Yaqoob, ICCI president, Islamabad Traffic Police SSP, representatives of WHO, health ministry, Rotary International and privates educational institutes. The meeting was held to review the arrangements of the upcoming three-day anti-polio drive scheduled to be held from April 26 to 28. Director Health Services of CDA Dr Hassan Arooj in his briefing to the committee highlighted the prevailing situation vis-a-vis polio and the problems confronting the vaccination teams while administering the anti-polio drops to the infants. The meeting was told that due to security measures, Red Zone and some other high risk areas are inaccessible during the anti-polio drive and the teams need security especially in urban slums. Over the issue of refusal in schools, the representatives of the private schools said every private school pursues its own policy and suggested that every school has its own focal person to entertain the vaccinators. He informed the committee that even a chain of private schools has put a ban on any vaccination within the school premises while on the other hand some parents also ask the school administration not to let any one vaccinate their child. Representative of WHO told the meeting that Islamabad is at high risk of polio due to importation of IDPs, people from Fata and other areas, stressing to ensure that no child is missed from vaccine. He also suggested the dissemination of the message regarding anti-polio vaccine to the students of public and private sector in the assembly time, otherwise it is feared that polio re-emerges in the federal capital. CDA chairman, in his address, said the committee would meet on regular basis; however he complained about the poor management and lack of political commitment in the efforts to eradicate polio.

  WASHINGTON: Going on a diet could increase your risk of developing potentially deadly conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer, a study has revealed.

It found that those who controlled their calorie intake produced higher levels of the harmful stress hormone cortisol.

And it claimed that exposure to the hormone actually made some dieters put on weight, which could explain why so many Britons fail to shed fat despite slashing their food intake.

The researchers also warned that far from making people feel better about themselves, dieting could actually damage their mental health. Many suffered increased psychological stress when they were constantly forced to count calories and monitor what they ate.

Doctors should think twice before putting their patients on strict diets because of the possible long-term damage to their health, they said.

LONDON: Despite the general belief, taking multivitamin supplements late in pregnancy can place expectant mothers at an increased risk of premature labor. Previous studies had pointed out the beneficial effects of the over-the-counter prenatal supplements for mums-to-be particularly those living in developing countries. According to a study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, babies born to well-nourished women who continue taking prenatal pills into their third trimester are at a tripled risk of premature birth, defined as before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Taking such multivitamins at any point during pregnancy, however, did not increase the risk of giving birth to a low birth weight baby. The possible interactions found between different vitamins and minerals may be responsible for the reduced levels of the nutrients required for the growing fetus, the study found. Scientists concluded that following a healthy diet is sufficient for expectant mothers to have a normal pregnancy.

LONDON: One of the strongest protective factors for reducing the risk of experimenting with smoking in early adolescence is how often fathers talk with their children about ''things that matter'', scientists have pointed out. Dr James White from Cardiff University's School of Medicine undertook a three-year-study, involving some 3,500 11 to 15 year-olds, as part of the British Youth Panel Survey - a self report survey of children in the British Household Panel survey. Dr White, who will present his finding to the British Psychological Society's Annual Conference today, said: "This study suggests that a greater awareness of parents'' and especially fathers'' potential impact upon their teenagers'' choices about whether to smoke is needed. Fathers should be encouraged and supported to improve the quality and frequency of communication with their children during adolescence. "The impact of teenager parenting is relatively un-researched and further research is very much needed." Only children who had never smoked at the time the study began took part. As well as their smoking, the children were also asked about the frequency of parental communication, arguments with family members and the frequency of family meals. The frequency of family arguments and family meals did not have a significant effect. After three years, the responses of children who had remained non-smokers were compared to those who said they had experimented with smoking at some point. Recognised risk factors for smoking, such as age, participant sex, household income, parental monitoring and parental smoking, were all taken into account during analysis of the study’s findings.

PARIS: A letter mistakenly sent in 1790 to the French village of Saix instead of another town called Seix will soon be delivered to its proper destination, officials have said.

The letter was discovered 10 years ago when Saix's municipal archives were being sorted out, but it was put aside and again forgotten about until recently when Mayor Henri Blanc decided it should finally be delivered.

The letter was from authorities in Paris informing the municipality that its request to make Seix the chief town of their area was being refused.

Blanc said that on June 5 local officials from Saix will drive 200 kilometres across southern France to formally deliver the letter to their counterparts in Seix.

LONDON: Most three-year-old girls are just getting to grips with felt pens, but Ruby Dickinson is taking her artistic tendencies a step further.

The toddler is set to become the world's youngest tattoo artist after learning the trade from her father, Blane, who runs a tattoo parlour in Wales.

Dickinson, 36, is importing an ink gun from the U.S. that has been specially designed to be used by small hands.

Ruby will be getting the miniature tattoo kit for her fourth birthday in October.

Dickinson told North Wales Pioneer: 'Ruby is well aware she is getting the kit, she cannot wait. She wants to be a tattoo artist when she grows up.

'The aim is to get her to tattoo my leg with a birthday message for my 40th birthday.'

The toddler currently takes tattoo lessons after nursery as well as practising with a toy kit at her father's shop.

Dickinson hopes to beat Canadian Emilie Darrigade's record of tattooing part of a butterfly on to her father's arm when she was five.

According to her father, Ruby is nearly able to draw a complete version of her favourite design - a spider.

'I'm under no illusions that she'll do a Van Gogh, after all she's only three-and-a-half,' Dickinson told The Sun.

'But I've got 70 per cent of my body covered in tattoos already and it'll only be the size of a 2p piece, so I'm not too worried she'll make a mess of it.'

Dickinson, who runs Inkaholics Anonymous at his home in Penmaenmawr, Conwy, added: 'It'll be a proud and very special moment for me and for her.

'She really loves it and I'm pleased I can teach her the skills.'

However, despite hoping Ruby will take up tattooing as a career, the toddler's father is keen to let her make her own choices.

WELLINGTON: Nearly 1,000 years after the last of the great Polynesian migration journeys across the Pacific, a group of descendants set sail in a fleet of replica canoes on Sunday to relive the voyages.

Four double-hulled canoes with crews of up to 16 people each departed from Auckland to sail 4,000 kilometres (2,500 miles) to the French Polynesian island of Raiatea.

Raiatea is believed to have been the departure point for the last great Polynesian migrations to New Zealand, Hawaii and Easter Island around 700 to 1,000 years ago.

The crews from New Zealand, Fiji, the Cook Islands and a multi-national crew from Samoa, Vanuatu, and Tonga, expect it will take 20-25 days before they reach land.

They will then be joined by a Tahitian crew for a 1,200-kilometre voyage to the Cook Islands before returning to their home ports.

"It will be the first time since the great migration that a fleet of canoes has sailed from Raiatea to Rarotonga (in the Cook Islands) on that sacred route down to New Zealand," said Te Aturangi Nepia-Clamp, acting president of the Cook Islands Voyaging Society.

With strong winds and clear skies, the captain of the New Zealand canoe Magnus Danbolt told Radio New Zealand the weather would be perfect for the next few days but the crews would have to be vigilant and look out for each other.

The 22 metres (72 feet) long, twin-masted canoes, were built over the past year and combine the traditional and the hi-tech, with the fibreglass hulls lashed together using wooden beams and rope.

 FORT PORTAL: The "world’s youngest king" assumed his official duties with an apparent air of reluctance on Saturday in a quiet town at the foot of Uganda’s Rwenzori mountains.

Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, 18, was crowned as head of the Kingdom of Toro in a traditional ceremony in his hilltop palace overlooking his capital of Fort Portal.

Draped in a long embroidered gown of blue and gold, the tall, lean Oyo hardly smiled through much of the ceremony, often staring straight down at the floor.

His symbolic authority covers the area known as the Mountains of the Moon straddling the borders of Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo.

The young king had officially succeeded to the throne at the age of three when his father died of a heart attack in 1995, but coronation takes place only upon reaching adulthood.

His onlooking subjects struggled to express what they expected of their new monarch.

"There was a time the king had administrative power, going right down to the local chiefs. This place was very organised", said John Mugisha, a member of the Butooro clan.

Mugisha, a clarinet player in the police band performing at the coronation, said he regretted the decline of the historic monarchy under the colonial and post-independence governments.

But he was not entirely convinced he wanted the king?s former privileges restored.

"The colonialists spoiled our heritage, although they also brought us some good things. For example, in the time of kings education was not there so much. Also healthcare. Things could even be better now", he said.

The challenge facing the Toro kingdom, which has been stripped of all its governmental duties and is required by law to behave strictly as a "cultural institution", is embodied within Oyo himself.

PARIS: A latest research indicates that people struggling with depression are more likely to smoke heavily than those who are not suffering from depression.

The key findings in the report include the fact that 43 percent of adults who had depression were smokers as opposed to 22 percent who were not suffering from depression. Adults who are suffering from depression, even if experiencing only mild symptoms, are more likely to start smoking than those who are not.

Hence, the report concluded that there is a need to create special smoking cessation programs to help smokers suffering from depression to kick the habit.

Role of excerise to loose weight, best dieting plans to loose weight, importance of exercise and dieting for weight loss are some of the information which health conscious and over weight people always try to get. However as per a new study, at Oregon Health & Science University it has been found that combination of exercise and dieting together gives best results for weight loss.

In the study conducted, it was found that weight loss through dieting alone does not have significant weight reduction. However when combines with proper exercise, it leads to significant weight loss. Judy Cameron, Senior scientist in the study stated on achieving goal of weight loss after the study, "diet and exercise must be combined to achieve the desired results.”

In the study on the role of dieting and exercise in weight loss, 18 female monkeys were selected for the study. There were given fat rich diet for couple of years. After that the monkeys were given normal monkey diet with 30 percent less calories. It was found that despite giving less calorie food for one month, there was no significant reduction in their weights. Dr. Sullivan found that "Surprisingly, there was no significant weight loss at the end of the month."

Surprisingly, calories in the food were further reduced and after second month it was found that physical activity level reduced significantly.

To analyse the role of exercise in weight loss, three monkeys were put for treadmill exercise for one hour daily and were fed normal monkey diet. It was found that these monkeys have lost weight significantly after one month.

Observing the significance of weight loss on normal diet and exercise, Dr. Cameron said, "This study demonstrates that there is a natural body mechanism which conserves energy in response to a reduction in calories. Food is not always plentiful for humans and animals and the body seems to have developed a strategy for responding to these fluctuations."

WASHINGTON: A newly identified gene connected to hair growth may inform future treatments for male pattern baldness, says a team of researchers from Rockefeller, Columbia and Stanford Universities.

The scientists found that the gene, called APCDD1, causes a type of progressive hair loss known as hereditary hypotrichosis simplex, which miniaturizes hair follicles, replacing thick hair with thinner, finer strands akin to peach fuzz. The findings were published this week in Nature.

The team made their discovery by analyzing genetic data from Pakistani and Italian families with hereditary hypotrichosis simplex. They found a common mutation in the APCDD1 gene, which is located in a specific region on chromosome 18 that has been implicated in previous studies in other forms of hair loss, including androgenetic alopecia and alopecia areata, hinting at a broader role in hair follicle biology.

The researchers, including Ali H. Brivanlou, Robert and Harriet Heilbrunn Professor and head of Rockefeller’s Laboratory of Molecular Vertebrate Embryology, and postdoc Alin Vonica, found that APCDD1 inhibits a signaling pathway that has been shown to control hair growth in mice. But, until now, the pathway, known as the Wnt signaling pathway, did not appear to be involved in human hair loss. The discovery that manipulating the Wnt pathway may have an effect on human hair follicle growth provides evidence that hair growth patterns in humans and in mice are more similar than previously believed.

“The identification of this gene underlying hereditary hypotrichosis simplex has afforded us an opportunity to gain insight into the process of hair follicle miniaturization, which is most commonly observed in male pattern hair loss or androgenetic alopecia,” says Angela M. Christiano, professor of dermatology and genetics and development at Columbia University Medical Center, and lead author of the study. “It is important to note that while these two conditions share the same physiologic process, the gene we discovered for hereditary hypotrichosis does not explain the complex process of male pattern baldness.”

“After Angela landed on a molecular component that they identified as causal to a state of disease, Alin and I determined that the appropriate biochemical test could be easily accomplished in as simple a biological system as the frog,” says Brivanlou. “It was the molecular dissection of APCDDI function in early Xenopus embryogenesis that hinted the first molecular function within the context of the Wnt pathway. The collaborative team then confirmed it.”

The discovery that manipulating the Wnt pathway may have an effect on human hair follicle growth suggests a new approach that could be more broadly applicable than therapies on the market today. “Unlike commonly available treatments for hair loss that involve blocking hormonal pathways, treatments involving the Wnt pathway would be non-hormonal, which may enable many more people suffering from hair loss to receive such therapies,” Christiano says.

The researchers are now working to understand the complex genetic causes of other forms of hair loss including alopecia areata, with the hope of eventually developing new, effective treatments for these conditions. “This work represents what molecular genetics and developmental biology in combination can contribute to the resolution of a molecular mechanism of this dramatic developmental disease,” Brivanlou says.

 LONDON: Five-year survival rates for breast, lung, prostate and colon cancer have risen, a round-up from the Office for National Statistics showed.

More patients were still alive after five years if they were diagnosed between 2003 and 2007 than if they were diagnosed between 2001 and 2006.

Survival rates increased by 1.3 per cent for women with breast cancer, 1.5 per cent for people with colon cancer and by 2.7 per cent for people with prostate cancer.

The smallest rise in survival rates was for lung cancer where only 0.4 per cent more people were alive five years after diagnosis.

Jane Hatfield, Director of Policy and Research at Breast Cancer Care, said: “It is very encouraging that breast cancer survival rates have continued to improve as a result of efforts across all sectors.

“However, separate research has shown that one-year survival rates are lower for women from disadvantaged communities compared to those from affluent groups.

“Additionally, the survival rates in UK women with breast cancer over the age of 75 are much lower compared to other European countries.

“There is an urgent need to tackle these inequalities in survival from breast cancer. Early detection plays a vital role in this, and Breast Cancer Care is working hard to encourage women of all backgrounds and ages to be breast aware and to visit their doctor if they have any signs or symptoms that they are concerned about.”

Survival rates were also higher for several other cancers monitored over the same period.

More men survived testicular cancer than any other cancer (96.2 per cent) while more women survived malignant melanoma (90.1 per cent).

The lowest five-year survival in both sexes was for pancreatic cancer: 3.1% in men and 3.3% in women.

Ciaran Devane, chief executive at Macmillan Cancer Support, said: "It's welcome news that there are more cancer survivors because of both the improvements in treatment and an ageing population, but this does not show the whole picture.

"After treatment ends, many patients feel abandoned by the NHS and struggle to cope with the long-term effects cancer, and cancer treatment, can have on their bodies, careers and families.

"The next government needs to ensure all cancer patients have the support they need to manage the long-term effects of cancer treatment.

"The current NHS follow-up service is costly and ineffective and must be replaced."

 WASHINTON: Consuming large amounts of certain high-carbohydrate foods is associated with an increased risk of heart disease in women, a new study has revealed.

The study showed an increased incidence of coronary disease in women -- but not men - whose diet is rich in foods with a 'high glycemic index,' such as white bread, sweets and some sugary breakfast cereals.

High-carbohydrate diets increase the levels of blood glucose and of harmful blood fats known as triglycerides while reducing levels of protective HDL or "good" cholesterol, thereby increasing heart disease risk, according to background information in the article. However, not all carbohydrates have the same effect on blood glucose levels.

Overall carbohydrate intake, glycemic index and glycemic load were not associated with heart disease risk in men.

  LONDON: Scottish health authorities warned people to beware of possible health problems from ash falling to the ground over northern Britain following a volcano eruption in Iceland.

The volcano fallout is unlikely to pose a major health risk, but people should watch out for symptoms including itchy eyes or a sore throat, said Health Protection Scotland.

"Updated information on weather patterns in the UK now indicates that volcanic ash associated with the current eruption in Iceland will reach ground level over the UK, starting in Scotland this evening before moving south over the course of the night," said a Health Protection Scotland statement.

"It is important to stress that the concentration of particles which does reach ground level is likely to be low and should not cause serious harm."

But it said: "if people are outside this evening and notice symptoms such as itchy or irritated eyes, runny nose, sore throat or dry cough, or if they notice a dusty haze in the air or can smell sulphur, rotten eggs ... they may wish to limit their activities outdoors or return indoors."

The British Met Office however downplayed the risk, saying any ash that did fall to the ground would be barely visible.

"There's always been a small chance of it reaching the ground. It happened over the Shetland Islands for a time this afternoon when we had some very small deposits of dust," said Met Office forecaster John Hammond.

"Over the next few days or so, with winds as they are, there is a chance we will see some small deposits but these will be quite difficult to see.

"It might be easiest to see anything that comes out of the sky on cars because the amounts will be very small."

Fallout from the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in southeast Iceland threw up a huge cloud of ash across northern Europe, prompting authorities to close the airspace in Britain and at least seven other countries.

BEIJING: Garlic might prevent cancer, a researcher from Ohio State said.

A pilot study was conducted to see if different amounts of garlic stopped the formation of cancer-causing agents, a professor of human nutrition.

Scientists have been interested in garlic for a while.

They looked at urine samples and compared the amount of garlic subjects ate against the cancer-causing agents.

By measuring compounds in urine, scientists can determine how much garlic was eaten.

The people who were given more garlic had fewer possible carcinogens in their urine, he said.

The study used vitamin C, which has been found to fight cancer, as a positive control, or comparison to garlic. Vegetables containing nitrates are not shown to cause cancer because they contain vitamin C, which blocks the process, according to the study.

NEW YORK: Preliminary research suggests that a new hormone treatment could be a weapon for doctors in the battle against a form of prostate cancer that's resistant to surgical removal of the testicles.

Only two of the three phases of research required for new drug treatments have been completed, however. At this point, it's not clear whether the treatment will go on to receive federal approval.

The hormone treatment, called MDV3100, is being tested as a treatment for a disease known as castration-resistant prostate cancer, according to a report on the research, published online April 14 in The Lancet.

Prostate tumors need testosterone to grow. One treatment involves castration, possibly with additional drug treatment, to combat the body's processing of testosterone.

Though the treatment kills some cancer cells, others remain alive but dormant, the researchers explained in a news release from the journal. And these cells can re-grow and survive without as much testosterone, thus becoming castration-resistant, they said.

DALLAS: Texans love the sun and that's a good thing because there's plenty of it. Researchers at UCLA reviewed published studies to see if vitamins really can protect us from the suns damaging rays or or even reduce the signs of sun damaged skin.

Baylor-Dallas dermatologist Christine Brown said there is mounting evidence that topical vitamins can help.

"Most of the evidence supports topical application of vitamins in the way of topical vitamin A and vitamin C in terms of addressing photo-aged skin and stimulating collagen production." Dr. Brown said.

But that's when vitamins are applied directly to the skin. So what do consumers do with the maze of cosmetics touting vitamins that help reduce wrinkles? Dr. Brown said that vitamins mixed in skin care products may greatly reduce their effectiveness.

"Keep in mind that these antioxidants, which means that they oxidize easily, they are very unstable so if they are not formulated properly they become ineffective very quickly when exposed to air." Dr. Brown said

GENEVA: The H1N1 flu pandemic is as severe as influenza pandemics in 1957 and 1968 and remains a threat, especially to healthy young adults, a leading health expert said on Wednesday.

John Mackenzie, the Australian who heads the World Health Organisation's independent but secretive Emergency Committee, also said he was not aware of any of its 15 members being approached by drug companies seeking to influence their decision-making.

"This is just as severe as we saw in 1957 and 1968, with one major difference. We are not seeing deaths in the elderly but we are seeing them in a more important group of the population, healthy young adults," Mackenzie said in a rare presentation.

"It is much more severe than people tend to talk about," he told a three-day meeting called to review the way the WHO handled the pandemic.

The official death toll so far from H1N1 is 17,700, but the WHO says it will take at least a year or two after the pandemic ends to establish the true number.

The 1957 and 1968 pandemics killed about 2 million and 1 million people respectively, according to the WHO. Seasonal flu kills up to 500,000 a year, 90 percent of them frail elderly people.

The Emergency Committee played a key role in advising the U.N. agency on progressively moving up its six-phase scale, leading to the declaration of a full pandemic last June.

Phase changes have implications for switching from production of seasonal flu vaccine to pandemic vaccine. Moving to phase 6 also triggered advance purchase agreements that some Western countries had with drug companies.

Swine flu has turned out to be less severe than feared, and critics have said the WHO created needless panic and caused Western governments to stockpile vaccines that were unused.

Mackenzie said he expected the committee to convene again in two or three weeks to advise WHO Director-General Margaret Chan on whether the world has moved to a post-peak phase. He indicated that such a decision remained premature.

KOLKATA, India — An exclusive private Indian hospital faced closure Wednesday after it allegedly denied emergency treatment to a child who later died, sparking a mini riot.

Hundreds of protesters rampaged through the hospital in eastern Kolkata on Tuesday, causing 225,000 dollars of damage, after it was accused of turning away a seven-year-old girl who had suffered head injuries in a road accident.

The child's family and bystanders said authorities at Peerless Hospital demanded 50,000 rupees (1,100 dollars) to admit the child -- a vast sum for most people in impoverished India.

"If it's proven that the injured were denied admission because they failed to deposit the required money, the government will cancel the licence of the hospital," West Bengal state health minister Surya Kanta Mishrahe said.

All hospitals are required to admit patients requiring emergency treatment.

A few years earlier, West Bengal's Communist government took similar action against a private hospital after it refused admission to a patient who could not pay.

Police in Kolkata were also investigating whether there was case of causing death through negligence.

The seven-year-old child was among 10 people injured in a crash who were allegedly denied treatment by the hospital run by a non-banking financial chain, Peerless Finance and Investment.

In Tuesday's rampage, protesters smashed furniture, windows and computers, torched the restaurant and damaged operating theatres as they stormed through the ground and first floors of the four-storey hospital.

"They also destroyed the blood bank, the outpatient department, the pathology and X-ray units and the reception," hospital employee Elora Sengupta told AFP.

Terrified patients locked themselves in bathrooms and rushed to the rooftop terrace to escape the mob.

Police, who fired shots in the air on Tuesday to disperse the mob, later arrested 13 people for causing damage to the hospital.

S.K. Roy, head of Peerless Hospital, said the facility had shut down "for an indefinite period" after equipment and property worth over 10 million rupees (225,000 dollars) in the hospital was vandalised