Topic of Study: Screen time and kids’ behavior
Location of study: U.K.
Study subjects: 11,000 children born between 2000 and 2002
Results: A study published in Archives of Disease in Childhood states that five year-olds who watch TV for more than three hours a day are more likely to engage in negative antisocial behaviors, such as fighting or stealing, by the age of seven. But researchers also found that time spent playing computer or electronic games had no impact on behavior.
Significance: The report stated that the risk of TV’s influence on behavioral development was found to be very small, adding little conclusive evidence to the long waged debate on how screen time affects children’s development.

Topic of Study: Microorganisms and obesity
Location of study: U.S.
Study subjects: 792 people
Results: Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center have found that people whose breath had high concentrations of both hydrogen and methane gasses – that is, bad breath — were more likely to be overweight. The cause is an abundance of a microorganism called methanobrevibacter smithii, which helps convert food into energy.
Significance: “Usually, the microorganisms living in the digestive tract benefit us by helping convert food into energy. However, when this particular organism– M. smithii – becomes overabundant, it may alter this balance in a way that causes someone to be more likely to gain weight,” because they hold onto more calories, lead author Dr. Ruchi Mathur says.

Topic of Study: How diet influences disease
Location of study: U.S.
Study subjects: 380,000 people
Results: A 13-year study found that people who made seven lifestyle changes recommended by the American Institute for Cancer Research cut their risk of dying from many diseases – including cancer, circulatory disease and respiratory disease — by 34 percent, compared to those who did not follow the recommendations. The research, published in the “American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,” found that the greatest ways to reduce the risk of premature death was to avoid being overweight or obese (22 percent lower risk), and eat a plant-based diet (21 percent lower risk).
Significance: Researchers think that this is more evidence that diet and lifestyle greatly affect the risk of cancer and other chronic diseases.

Topic of Study: Difficulty getting pregnant linked to neuro problems
Location of study: Denmark
Study subjects: 209 two-year-olds
Results: A study of children born to parents with impaired fertility — that is, those who fail to become pregnant within 12 months of trying — found that neurological development problems in their children were more likely. Most of the children studied were born to parents who become pregnant via fertility treatment. The study, published online in the Fetal & Neonatal Edition of Archives of Disease in Childhood, concluded that longer it took for the women to get pregnant, the more likely her child was to have neurodevelopment problems.
Significance: Ironically, the data shows that efforts to increase fertility may actually be causing more harm than good. Previous studies have found that children conceived via fertility treatment also have a higher risk of premature birth and low birth weight.

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People who exercise regularly until the age of 80 had aerobic capacities comparable to untrained 40 year-old men — and maybe more time to get on that cruise!

Topic of Study: The Connection Between Sugar and Violence
Location of study: U.S.
Study subjects: Boston public high school students
Results: A recent study found that those students who drank more than five cans of sugary soft drinks per week were more likely to have carried a weapon and to have been violent with peers, family members and dates. The results held up even after accounting for other possible factors such as gender, age, race, body mass index, typical sleep patterns, tobacco use, alcohol use, and stable family environment.
Significance: Sugar has long been thought of as triggering aggressive tendencies and sugar rich soft drinks as a direct cause of violent action is perhaps due to the sugar and/or caffeine content, and quick absorption through the stomach lining.

Topic of Study: Lifelong Exercise and Geriatric Fitness
Location of study: U.S./Sweden
Study subjects: Nine 80-year-old Swedish endurance athletes and a group of healthy 80-year-old men from Indiana with no history of regimented exercise
Results: New research published in the “Journal of Applied Physiology” found that people who exercise on a regular basis until the age of 80 maintain their aerobic capacity and had much higher aerobic capacity values (nearly double) compared to the non-octogenarians. The octogenarian athletes had aerobic capacities that were comparable to untrained 40 year-old men.
Significance: The study shows the lifelong benefits of regular exercise. The researchers noted that beyond being fitter, the lifelong athletic octogenarians led happier more fulfilled lives in their old age.

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Credit: Comstock

Topic of Study: Discussing past drug use with children
Location of study: U.S.
Study subjects: 561 students in 6th-8th grades
Results: A University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign study published in the journal “Human Communication Research” found that children whose parents talked to them about alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana were more likely to be against drugs. But those whose parents who told their children about their own past drug use produced more positive views about drug use.
Significance: The findings show how much children take their cues from parental behavior.

Topic of Study: Plant-based diets
Location of study: U.S.
Study subjects: 7,447 individuals ages 55-80, at a high risk for cardiovascular disease
Results: Research from the sixth International Congress on Vegetarian Nutrition hosted by Loma Linda University Health in California states that eating a plant-based Mediterranean diet that includes nuts or virgin olive oil can slash heart disease risk by 30 percent.
Significance: “A Mediterranean diet offers a preventive efficacy that was also assessed on secondary variables, including death from all causes, and incidence of diabetes and metabolic syndrome,” says Spain’s Dr. Miguel Angel Martinez, one of the study’s lead investigators. Want to espouse the diet for yourself? Start incorporating more fresh produce, seafood, whole grains and nutritious fats, like walnuts and olive oil.

Topic of Study: Calcium Supplements and heart risks
Location of study: U.S.
Study subjects: 388,229 adults ages of 50 to 71
Results: A 12-year study found that the men in the study group who took daily calcium supplements with 1,000 milligrams or more were 20 percent more likely to die of heart-related causes than those who did not take a calcium supplement.
Significance: The researchers think an overdose of calcium could cause a build-up in the arteries and veins. The results are part of a larger study of the symbiotic relationship between magnesium and calcium during metabolism.

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An annual physical by your primary care physician is meant to provide a baseline window on what is normal for you and detect abnormal conditions or disease states that may not present any symptoms before causing you harm. Here’s what we’re looking at when you see us:

Vital signs
These are a basic dashboard measure of how hard your body is working and include:

•  Temperature (normal is 98.6˚)
•  Pulse (60-100 per minute)
•  Blood pressure (120/80)
•  Respiratory rate (10-16 breaths per minute)
•  Oxygen saturation (how much oxygen is dissolved in your blood, which should be 96-100 percent)

Fever, dehydration, anemia or disturbances in your metabolism or the circulatory or respiratory systems can influence any or all of these parameters and give an indication of your overall well-being.

CBC (complete blood count)
This is a measure of the number and type of cells in the blood. Red blood cells carry oxygen and require sufficient dietary iron for normal levels. Too few red blood cells result in anemia, causing a lack of energy and fatigue, or in severe cases, headaches, fainting or breathlessness. White blood cells help to fight infection and if elevated indicate infection or inflammation somewhere in your body. Very high WBC levels can be an indication of leukemia, a form of blood cancer. Platelets are the components of your blood that initiate normal clotting and can result in bleeding if too low, or harmful blood clots if too high.

Urine analysis
This office test looks for evidence of too much sugar, acid, protein and red or white blood cells in the urine. Abnormal findings may be a sign of diabetes, kidney stones and kidney inflammation or infection.

Thyroid hormones
The thyroid gland is the body’s master thermostat and controls your overall rate of metabolism. Too much and you may be hot, experience heart palpitations and have a tremor. Too little and you may be sluggish, gain weight and feel cold.

Cholesterol
This is needed to build healthy cell membranes in every part of the body. Too much cholesterol causes premature hardening of the arteries, which can lead to cardiovascular disease or strokes. Too little and your body will fall apart, literally!

Chest X-ray
This can find abnormal nodules which may suggest cancer, an enlarged heart or evidence of infectious disease or inflammatory conditions.

EKG (electrocardiogram)
This looks at the electrical activity of the heart and can detect abnormalities in rhythm and heart size or show evidence of strain or injury as a warning sign or evidence of a heart attack.

Breast, rectal, testicular or pelvic exams
These exams, though briefly uncomfortable, are designed to find signs of cancer and may save your life if suspicious findings are discovered early, before you have other more obvious symptoms.

Mark Melrose, DO, is a board-certified emergency physician at Urgent Care Manhattan. Email him your questions at askdrmark@metro.us.

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1. Medications should be stored in a secured area — out of sight and reach of children and teenagers — that has low humidity, a stable temperature and adequate lighting.

2. Check the date on everything in your medicine cabinet and dispose of anything that has passed the expiration date.

3. Dispose of anything you have not used n the past 12 months or that you no longer need. Do not share medications with others.

4. Dispose of medicines that are no longer in their original container, have changed color or odor, or that can no longer be identified.

5. Do not flush unused or expired medications, and do not pour them down a sink or drain. They should be disposed of properly in the household trash or through your community’s medication disposal program, when available.

The post Make your home safer in 2012 appeared first on Metro.us.

Topic of Study: Salt or no salt?
Study subjects: 167 previously conducted low-sodium diet studies
Location of study: Denmark
Results: Low-sodium diets have been advised for conditions like hypertension and heart disease, but new research indicates that cutting back on salt can increase cholesterol, fat and hormones in one’s blood.
Significance: Confused? As with most diets, moderation is the best path to follow.

Topic of Study:  Women who attend church are happier
Study subjects: 92,539 post-menopausal women over 50
Location of study: U.S.
Results: The latest reports from the Journal of Religion and Health says women who attend services frequently are 56 percent more likely to be optimistic and 27 percent less likely to be depressed.
Significance: The results could be attributed to feeling part of a community and less disconnected. Individual support from priests or rabbis also seems a contributing factor.
 
Topic of Study:  EEG detects minimal brain function
Study subjects: Sixteen patients with either traumatic or nontraumatic brain injury
Location of study: Canada
Results: A report in The Lancet claims electroencephalography (EEG) can help doctors recognize brain function and awareness in patients deemed to be in a vegetative state. EEG monitoring found signs of functioning in three out of 16 patients otherwise meeting clinical definition of a vegetative state.
Significance: Researchers hope to use this data to better care for patients with brain trauma, including those in a coma.

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Study subjects: Committed young, unmarried couples
Location of study: U.S.
Results: MSNBC reports one study’s findings that “stayover relationships represent a general trend that young people want to delay permanent relationships because they want to finish their education and pursue other goals.”
Significance: The study concluded that there was no evidence “of any long-term consequences of stayover relationships.”

Chewing food and obesity

Study subjects: 16 obese young men and 16 young men of normal weight
Location of study: China
Results: The International Business Times reports that a new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that study participants “who chewed about 2.5 times more than the typical 15 times caused them to eat almost 12 percent less calories.”
Significance: This falls in line with the theory that satiety takes time to have impact on the brain and that eating slowly means people are less likely to overeat.

Colon cleansing

Study subjects: Adults using various colon-cleansing methods
Location of study: U.S.
Results: ABC News reports that a Georgetown University study has found colon cleansing ineffective in treating disease and concludes it might even have adverse side effects, particularly when using hydrotherapy.
Significance: Many doctors advise that colon hydrotherapy is an invasive procedure and should be used with caution. Undergoing colon cleansing or hydrotherapy is not the same as undergoing a colonoscopy, a routine medical test for middle-aged adults.

New gene linked to asthma

Study subjects: African-Americans
Location of study: U.S.
Results: Medical News
Today reports: “Geneticists in the U.S. have identified a new gene uniquely linked to asthma in African-Americans; a variant of the gene called PYHIN1 that is absent in European Americans.”
Significance: The article quoted the study results as “a significant advance in a national effort to locate the genetic roots of asthma.”

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Study subjects: 1.3 million middle-aged women
Location of study: U.K.
Results: CNN reports that, according to a new study published in the journal Lancet, “The taller a woman is, the greater her risk of developing one of 10 different cancers.” Quoting the Oxford University study, the article says “the tallest group (women 5 feet 9 or taller) were 37 percent more likely to develop cancer than the shortest group (women 5 feet and shorter) regardless of factors such as age, socioeconomic status, body-mass index and amount of physical activity.”
Significance: CNN quoted the report as concluding, “taller people have more cells, and thus a greater opportunity for mutations leading to malignant transformation.”

Simple steps to avoid Alzheimer’s

Study subjects: Various adults
Location of study: Global
Results: MSNBC reports that “Up to half of Alzheimer’s disease cases worldwide are potentially attributable to seven preventable risk factors … Alzheimer’s cases could be reduced if people quit smoking, increased their physical activity, enhanced their mental activity, controlled their blood pressure and diabetes, and managed their obesity and depression.”
Significance: “While these seven factors may contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s, none of the factors have been shown to cause the disease,” the article concluded.

Circumcision and HIV infection

Study subjects: Adult males
Location of study: Africa
Results: “A circumcision campaign in a South African township cut new HIV infections among the treated men by 76 percent,” reports The Los Angeles Times. “The simple operation provides a way to make major inroads in the HIV transmission rate in countries where the infection rate is very high.”
Significance: Circumcision could be a cheap, effective way to control HIV/AIDS in third-world countries.

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Just weeks ago, the 26-year-old from Texas didn’t have a nose or nearly any other facial feature since he was burned in a horrific accident.

But after weeks of recovery, Wiens is set to leave Brigham and Women’s Hospital with a new face and a new life.

“To me, this feels natural. It has become my own,” said Wiens who spoke today for the first time since he became the first person in the country to receive a full face transplant.

Wiens suffered burns when his head came in to contact with high voltage wires while he was working on a lift.

He lost his eye sight and since of smell after the accident. But since the transplant, his sense of smell – as well as the ability to breathe through his nose – has returned. He said the first thing he could smell after the surgery was spaghetti and pasta.

However, when a nurse brought a plant in to his room, that’s when it really hit him.

“To know that I could smell a rose … it really hit home for me,” he said.

Wiens has seen his daughter, Scarlette, since the surgery and when asked what her reaction was he said she called him “handsome.”

Wiens will soon leave the hospital and will return home where the first thing he will do is hold his daughter, he said.

The post Dallas Wiens: With new face, transplant recipient gets new life appeared first on Metro.us.

Study subjects: Women taking oral contraceptives
Location of study: U.S./U.K.
Results: Oral contraceptive users who chose Bayer’s Yasmin showed a two- to threefold higher risk of venous thromboembolism, or blood clots, than did users of older, established pills.
Significance: The data could help the 6,850 lawsuits pending in the United States naming Bayer’s Yasmin and Yaz pills or generic copies sold by Teva’s Barr Laboratories as causing users injury.

Carbohydrates and weight loss

Study subjects: 100 obese male and female Israeli police officers age 25 to 55
Location of study: Israel
Results: Researchers randomly assigned study subjects to one of two diets for six months. Both diets contained about 1,300 to 1,500 calories per day, but assigned more carbohydrates to be eaten at dinner. After six months, those who ate carb-heavy dinners had greater weight loss and body fat reduction, and also felt more satisfied.
Significance: The study throws doubt on the theory that taking in less calories at night results in greater fat burning, particularly calories from carbohydrates rather than sugar or fat.

Prenatal exposure to pesticides

Study subjects: Various children under age 7
Location of study: U.S.
Results: Organophosphates, which are used in farm and garden pesticides, as well as insect repellants, were found in significant levels in newborns’ cord blood. These pesticides are known neurotoxicants already found to harm young children.
Significance: Three separate studies showed that children with prenatal exposure to the  pesticides had a lower intelligence score at age 7.

Botox use and social interaction

Study subjects: 126 men and women
Location of study: U.S.
Results: Researchers com-paring data from two experiments determined that users of Botox, which is used in a cosmetic procedure to paralyze facial muscles and deter wrinkles, were less able to read others’ emotions.
Significance: If this is the case, Botox users’ dulled emotional perception may decrease their ability to empathize and understand people’s emotions.

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Calcium supplements and heart health

Study subjects: Postmenopausal women who took supplements over seven years
Location of study: Australia
Results: Researchers found a 24 percent increase in the risk of heart attack and a 15 percent increase in the risk of a heart attack or stroke from taking calcium, with or without vitamin D.
Significance: The results are generally held as inconclusive, but still raise questions on calcium
supplementation’s side effects.

Vegetarianism and metabolic syndrome

Study subjects: 700 adults
Location of study: U.S.
Results: Among 700 test subjects, of which 35 percent were vegetarian, vegetarians tested lower for metabolic syndrome and less likely to suffer from heart disease, diabetes or a stroke than meat-eaters.
Significance: A vegetarian diet may offer more health benefits than deficiencies.

Troubled babies and ADHD development

Study subjects: 1,935 children
Location of study: Switzerland
Results: Babies who cry excessively and have difficulty sleeping and feeding may be at increased risk for behavioral problems during childhood, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Significance: Early recognition of warning signs suggest that ADHD and other difficulties developing in childhood could be prevented.  linda clarke

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Study subjects: Men and women, all ages
Location of study: U.S.
Results: Researchers at Harvard found that people in the study group taking three or more tablets of ibuprofen each week were about 38 percent less likely to develop Parkinson’s — a brain disorder that can cause trembling and stiffness — than patients who didn’t take the drug.
Significance: Results were inconclusive, but data indicated that taking ibuprofen might ward off the illness.

Topic of study: Visual triggers for smokers

Study subjects: 17 smokers and 17 nonsmokers
Location of study: U.S.
Results: Watching people in a movie smoke triggers the same brain activity involved in planning to actually smoke a cigarette.
Significance: People trying to quit smoking should remove visual triggers as much as possible.

Topic of study: Sexual activity in teens and young adults

Study subjects: Teens and young adults, 15 to 24 years old
Location of study: U.S.
Results: Compared to the last such study in 2002, when 22 percent of males and females reported they had never had sexual contact with another person, a new survey found that 27 percent of males and 29 percent of females were not sexually active.
Significance: Sexual activity is dropping among teens and young adults.

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Effect of education on blood pressure
Study subjects: 4,000 individuals over 30 years
Location of study: United States
Results: Systolic blood pressure levels of men who had gone on to study in graduate school were 2.26 mmHg lower than those of high school dropouts. For women, the differential was even higher at 3.26 mmHg. Alcohol consumption and other factors were taken into account.
Significance: Possibly due to access to better jobs, educated people might suffer less stress than those who don’t advance past high school. 

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The effect of zinc on the common cold
Study subjects: 1,360 participants of all age groups
Location of study: United Kingdom
Results: According to a report published in the  Cochrane Library, zinc administered within 24 hours of onset of symptoms reduced the duration and severity of the common cold in healthy people.
Significance: Using zinc could lessen antibiotic use and respiratory damage due to colds.

Chronic fatigue syndrome
Study subjects: 641 adults suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome
Location of study: Great Britain
Results: When coupled with standard treatment, findings showed that cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and graded exercise therapy (GET) can be effective treatments for chronic fatigue syndrome.
Significance: The study’s results could possibly disprove the general assumptions that chronic fatigue syndrome is irreversible and that symptom management is the only course of treatment.

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Study subjects: 100 children aged 4 to 8 years
Location of study: Netherlands and Belgium
Results: After five weeks, 64 percent of children on a restricted diet group showed a clinical improvement of at least 40 percent on ADHD scores.
Significance: A restricted diet may help reduce symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children and be an alternative to Ritalin or Adderall.

Benefits of sun exposure in reducing multiple sclerosis (MS)

Study subjects: Adults aged 18-59 with early MS symptoms
Location of study: Australia
Results:  People who spend more time in the sun and those with higher vitamin D levels may be less likely to develop multiple sclerosis.
Significance: Moderate sun exposure may help prevent multiple sclerosis.

Diet soda

Study subjects: 2,500 adults
Location of study: New York City
Results: Adults who drink diet soda every day have a higher risk for stroke and heart attack. Researchers took factors like lack of exercise, obesity and other risk factors like high blood pressure and smoking into account and found the trend remained.
Significance: Results were inconclusive. Experts  issued a warning against drinking diet sodas and advised water instead.

Deafness

Study subjects: Mice
Location of study: Australia
Results: Deaf mice injected with nasal stem cells showed improved hearing in comparison with those given a placebo injection.
Significance: Nasal stem cells may prevent or recover hearing loss.

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Topic of study: Connection between breast implants and rare cancer
Study subjects: Women
Location of study: USA
Results: The Food and Drug Administration is investigating a link between implants and the increased risk of anaplastic large cell lymphoma.
Significance: The study is ongoing and so far, the FDA has only issued a warning.

Topic of study: Super Bowl loss heightens fatal cardiac arrest.
Study subjects: Los Angeles Rams fans
Location of study: Los Angeles County
Results: The Clinical Cardiology journal reports that researchers found the overall death rate per day grew significantly after the Los Angeles Rams Super Bowl loss in 1980, especially for older residents.
Significance: Risk of heart attack increases with added stress.

Topic of study: Dogs detecting bowel cancer by smell
Study subjects:  Dogs/colorectal cancer patients
Location of study: Japan
Results: Dogs can detect bowel cancer even in the early stages by smelling the breath or stool of a patient.
Significance: Though the use of dogs to sniff out cancer is impractical on a large scale, the study could help identify compounds and aid early detection of colorectal cancer.

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