Even though humans sleep away about one-third of their lives, sleep science is relatively new. This was one of the many revelations at the annual convention of the German Sleep Society (DGSM) in Kassel, central Germany, where 1,500 scientists had gathered to discuss factors contributing to good and healthy sleep.
“Earlier, people thought that sleeping disorders were the result of other diseases. Today, we know that it’s the opposite and many diseases get worse or exist because the patient sleeps poorly,” says Geert Mayer, head of the DGSM. “Cardiological and circulatory problems are often precipitated by unsound sleep lasting for a longer period. (more…)
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Metabolic balance sounds like a meditation programme or the latest health trend from the US. In fact, it is the name of a wellness programme developed by German nutritionist Wolfgang Funfack. “A well-balanced metabolism is the basis for the harmonic progression of all bodily functions,” says Funfack.
Few scientists dispute his statement, but the means of achieving it remains contentious. “A metabolic diet is in fact a synthetic term. Diets always have something to do with metabolism,” said nutrition scientist Achim Bub of the Max Rubner Institute in Karlsruhe, who adds it’s sufficient to gear dietary intake around simple rules.
To begin with, a diet should be varied. It also should contain as little fat as possible and what fat there is should be plant based as opposed to animal fat. In addition to following these rules, people who remain active and drink enough liquids can lose weight without a special diet, according to Bub. Funfack sees things differently. “Every person requires different basic components to bring his or her metabolism into tune. (more…)
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Persistent or recurring back pain in women may have gynaecological causes, according to the Munich-based German Association of Gynaecologists (BVF).
This is particularly true, it said, in cases of lower-back pain around the lumbar vertebrae and sacrum. The pain sometimes extends to the groin and anterior abdominal walk.
Women experiencing such symptoms should see a gynaecologist, the BVF advised. If the source of the pain lies in the reproductive organs, other problems often occur as well, including a sensation of pressure on the bladder, urinary urgency, and pain during urination, defection or sexual intercourse, BVF said.
Abdominal and back pain that occurs regularly or no the days preceding menstruation could be due to benign proliferations of tissue in the uterus.
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A melee broke out in northern Vietnam when more than 100 villagers prevented authorities from destroying chickens to stop the spread of bird flu, officials said yesterday as the country announced its second H5N1 case. About 100 villagers in Thuong Tin district just outside Hanoi overwhelmed police and health authorities on Thursdayn and stopped them from destroying about 1500 chickens.
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When you first find out you are expecting, there is the shock, the surprise and the quiet delight that you now have this little growing inside.
How wonderful this will be you think, as you imagine all the changes this little life will bring. Perhaps there will be stresses too, but you know it will be okay – there is a new life on the way!
Two weeks later, you cannot believe how bad you feel. This tiny fetus is making your life miserable with nausea, light-headedness and even vomiting. Surely, pregnancy should be better than this?
The answer is different for everyone; some may experience morning sickness which is mainly extreme exhaustion coupled with a desire to eat very little, and a strong aversion to cooking meat.
For others, it may be less severe, while a few suffer desperate illness, unable to even keep down water.
There are many ideas of what we can do to manage morning sickness. No one thing works for every woman, although some ideas work for most. (more…)
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Human beings ’sixth sense’ for danger, long dismissed by some scientists as myth, actually exists in a part of brain that also handles conflict resolution, according to a recent report in the journal Science.
The brain region – known as the anterior cingulated cortex (ACC) – actually raises the alarm about dangers that fail to penetrate the conscience mind.
The ACC is located near the top of the frontal lobes and along the walls that divide the left and right brains.
Scientist used a computer program that required healthy young people to respond to activity on the monitor, and measured their brain activity at 2.5 second intervals with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
The experiments showed that “our brains are better at picking up subtle warning signs than we previously thought.
In the past, we found activity in the ACC when people had to make a difficult decision … or after they made a mistake. But now the region can “actually learn to recognize when you might make a mistake … it learns to warn us in advance when our behavior might lead to negative outcome.
The ACC is closely associated with some serious mental problems, including schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive disorder. However, the same neurotransmitter involved in drug addiction and Parkinson’s disease – dopamine – also appears ‘to play a key role in training the ACC to recognize when to send the early warning signal.
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Newborn babies could be at risks of suffering withdrawal symptoms if their mothers are prescribed antidepressants during pregnancy, researched said recently.
The drugs known as selective re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) can cause convulsions, irritability, abnormal crying and tremors.
“Risks of neonatal convulsions and neonatal withdrawal syndrome seem to be increased with all SSRIs.” Said Professor Emilio Sanz of the University of La Laguna in Tenerife, Spain.
“If a pregnant woman is depressed and needs treatment, she should be treated,” Sanz said in interview, but he added that the lowest dose should be used.
The majority of reported cases uncovered by Sanz and his colleagues were associated with paroxetine, which is produced by drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline under the brand name Paxil or Seroxat.
“Paroxetine should not be used in pregnancy, or if used, it should be given at the lowest effective dose.” Said Sanz, a specialist in clinical pharmacology. (more…)
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Transcendental meditation in an effective alternative to blood pressure-lowering medication, according to the results of a study involving African Americans.
People may choose to try to lower their blood pressure naturally, “but it matters what you do,” study author Dr Robert H. Schneider of the Maharishi University of Management in Iowa. “Not everything has the same effect.”
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Exercise and a balanced diet are the best precautions against strokes, notes the Berlin-based German Neurological Society (DGN).
Citing a recent US study that showed vitamins to be ineffective at reducing the risk of strokes or heart attacks, it advised against regularly taking vitamins C and E to help prevent vascular disease.
The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The DGN said its recommendations applied to people who had never had a stroke as well as those already suffering from impaired cerebral blood flow.
Incorporating more exercise into one’s daily routine is easy, it said, by using the stairs instead of the lift. The DGN also pointed out that people could help avoid high cholesterol and blood sugar levels – and thereby lowering the risk of a stroke – by eating fish and vegetables more often.
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Long-term adherence to a low-fat diet may reduce the risk of ovarian cancer, according to the results of the Women’s Health Initiative Dietary Modification trial, which involved nearly 50,000 postmenopausal women.
“While other studies have examined the association between dietary fat and the incidence of cancer, including cancer of the ovary, among postmenopausal women, this is the first study to randomly assign women to a low-fat eating pattern or their usual diet and to compare cancer incidence between the two groups,” lead author Dr Ross L. Prentice said.
Prentice, from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre in Seattle, and colleagues examined the occurrence of ovarian cancer, endometrial cancer, breast cancer, and total invasive cancer in 48,835 women randomly assigned to receive the Dietary Modification intervention or a usual diet. (more…)
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