Clipmarks | righthand's 'health' clips

UK patients to get free healthcare throughout EU

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 19:19:28 GMT

clipped by: righthand

NHS patients to get free healthcare throughout EU

NHS patients will be given the right to free treatment anywhere in the European Union under a new blueprint for cross-border healthcare.

The move, which covers all 27 countries in the EU, is designed to give patients greater freedom and ease congestion in health services with long waiting lists for operations.

Clip Source: www.autonomic-communication.org

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

The draft directive, approved by EU governments today, guarantees that treatment costs are covered by the national health scheme of the patient's home country.

It gives British patients the right to seek any treatment offered by the NHS, such as cancer care or heart surgery, in any other EU country that could provide it more quickly.

Clip Source: www.cartoonstock.com

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

The plans would also make it easier for patients to receive medication prescribed abroad after they return home.

Patients will have to pay upfront for their treatment but as long as the cost was lower than in the NHS, they could will be able to reclaim the amount in full.

Clip Source: stuffwhitepeoplelike.files.wordpress.com

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Wednesday July 2, 2008

Tags: uk, eu, health

Obama's fake birth certificate

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 05:49:02 GMT

clipped by: n2sooners
clipper's remarks: Why doesn't the campaign just drop the five or ten bucks it takes to get an official certification of live birth or better yet, the actual birth certificate and put this whole thing to rest? I can't imagine that at this point in his career that there is any major problem with his birth certificate, so why not just release it? Seriously, there are situations where a birth certificate is a required form of ID, you would think being president, with it's constitutional requirements, would be one of those situations.

Clip Source: web.israelinsider.com

It is now a certainty that the "birth certificate" claimed by the Barack Obama campaign as authentic is a photoshopped fake.

The image, purporting to come from the Hawaii Department of Health, has been the subject of intense skepticism in the blogosphere in the past two weeks. But now the senior spokesman of that Department has confirmed to Israel Insider what are the required features of a certified birth document -- features that Obama's purported "birth certificate" clearly lack.

Janice Okubo, Director of Communications of the State of Hawaii Department of Health, told Israel Insider: "At this time there are no circumstances in which the State of Hawaii Department of Health would issue a birth certification or certification of live birth only electronically." And, she added, "In the State of Hawaii all certified copies of certificates of live birth have the embossed seal and registrar signature on the back of the document."

Tags: obama, birth, politics

Healthy lifestyle triggers genetic changes: study

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 05:17:20 GMT

clipped by: Deepti
clipper's remarks: Freaking amazing!

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

Comprehensive lifestyle changes including a better diet and more exercise can lead not only to a better physique, but also to swift and dramatic changes at the genetic level, U.S. researchers said

the researchers tracked 30 men with low-risk prostate cancer who decided against conventional medical treatment such as surgery and radiation or hormone therapy

The men underwent three months of major lifestyle changes, including eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and soy products, moderate exercise such as walking for half an hour a day, and an hour of daily stress management methods such as meditation

they lost weight, lowered their blood pressure and saw other health improvements. But the researchers found more profound changes when they compared prostate biopsies taken before and after the lifestyle changes

After the three months, the men had changes in activity in about 500 genes -- including 48 that were turned on and 453 genes that were turned off

Tags: health, genes, genetics, changes, lifestyle, food, exercise

Missing Records: New York Times

Sun, 04 May 2008 10:33:09 GMT

clipped by: righthand

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Having repeatedly postponed this moment over the past year, the McCain camp’s excuse that the doctors are too busy to take the time to brief Americans about a potential president’s health has worn thin

Voters are entitled to know about other potential health concerns for an average 71-year-old man

The extent of a candidate’s candor is a good measure of how candid he or she will be in the White House

they lacked the benefit of Mr. McCain’s actual records and his physicians’ explanation of the extensive nature of his surgery

McCain campaign says it will make his health documents available

Why has it taken so long?

The portrait of Mr. McCain’s finances is particularly skimpy because his wife, Cindy McCain, has chosen not to make her separate tax returns available

Teresa Heinz Kerry

Tags: usa, election, health, money

SEX: Nerds do it Better? 100 Tips

Fri, 02 May 2008 14:03:58 GMT

clipped by: righthand

Clip Source: www.100bestdatingsites.com

50 Resources to Spark Your Creativity in the Bedroom

How Do I Lose My Sexual Inhibitions?: Oprah’s Relationships page offers advice from Elle magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll. She recommends having a “goddess day,” using blindfolds and role playing.

Strip Her Inhibitions: Men’s Health publishes this guide to help men put their partners’ nerves at ease and help them get in the game.

Get in the Mood for Love: This interactive guide offers up tips like adding a mirror to the bedroom, taking advantage of mood lighting and more to help lovers get in the mood.

Feel in the Mood for Sex (Even When You’re Stressed) Learn tricks for getting aroused even when you’re stressed out.

Have Sex for Dessert: This clever “menu” is full of foods that act as aphrodisiacs, including red wine, shrimp cocktail, and file mignon.

Self Esteem, Hot Sex & Peace on the Planet Podcast with Dr. Judy Kuriansky: Watch this podcast to learn

Top 10 Natural Ways to Boost Libido: D

Recharge Your Sex Life!:

Tags: sex, tips, comic, health

Young Females: Real Surge in Diabetes Type2 in US

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:22:30 GMT

clipped by: righthand

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Soaring diabetes rates may bring wave of childbirth problems

The number of pregnant women with diabetes has more than doubled in six years, according to one of the largest health surveys of expectant mothers

Doctors fear the rise will lead to a greater risk of miscarriages, stillbirths and babies with serious birth defects

Children born to diabetic women are more likely to develop diabetes themselves

found significant jumps in pre-pregnancy diabetes in every age, racial and ethnic group

In the youngest group studied, aged 13 to 19, diabetes rose fivefold, while it doubled among women aged 20 to 39

Women aged 40 and older showed a 40% increase in diabetes over the same time period

Doctors believe the rise reflects the sharp increase in type 2 diabetes, which is driven by soaring rates of obesity

"In the US and worldwide, we're seeing an increase in type-2 diabetes. It used to be considered adult-onset diabetes, with diagnosis in the 40s, but we're seeing it in children as young as age 10

Tags: health, diabetes, females, obesity

Deserting the Troops

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 18:10:37 GMT

clipped by: ratilfar
clipper's remarks: And if you believe this administration cares for "the troops" you don't know your up from your down!

Clip Source: www.crooksandliars.com

As the granddaughter of an Air Force general, there are few stories that make me angrier than the treatment of the troops at the hands of the government who put them in harm’s way. A RAND study came out recently that had just horrifying statistics: 300,000 U.S. veterans are suffering serious mental health issues, including clinical depression and PTSD. CBS News revealed the results of an investigation on Wednesday that showed suicide is epidemic, with 2,200 among active-duty service since the invasion. But what Dr. Ira Katz, the VA’s head of mental health, didn’t reveal to CBS is that there are an average of 1,000 suicide attempts per month, an unthinkably high number. VetVoice is asking for your support in asking for Katz’s resignation.

Download | Play Download | Play (h/t Heather)

Tags: war, iraq, afghanistan, troops, military, veterans

UK Female Prisons are MENTAL: Self-Harm, Suicide

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 08:22:45 GMT

clipped by: righthand

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Women's wing at a prison

Sick and suicidal: plight of women in UK jails

Most women prisoners have mental health problems, and nine of out 10 were convicted of non-violent offences. Now a new study shows an alarming rise in suicides and self-harm - and behind the statistics lie ruined lives and shattered relatives. With four inquests about to open, Amelia Hill reports on the growing scandal in Britain's penal system

Kent set herself on fire in her cell

two months ago, she had already tried to hang herself twice

five weeks after her suicide attempt

lay in a medically induced coma in the intensive-care unit

third-degree burns from her thighs to her earlobes, the loss of use in her fingers and a face

she was virtually unrecognisable.

48 per cent rise in the number of self-harm incidents in women's prisons in the past five years

530 per cent increase since 2003

harm themselves an average of 6.3 times a year

increased by two thirds in just five years

female prison population

doubled between 1997 and 2006

Tags: uk, prisoners, female, suicide, health

FREE Health care, elderly and blind flown to Venezuela.

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:11:25 GMT

clipped by: righthand

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Peruvian leaders cry foul as Chávez exports healthcare

· 400,000 Latin Americans take up free surgery offer
· Humanitarian schemes are political front, says Lima

A scheme called Misión Milagro - Mission Miracle - had flown them here from Peru for free surgery which would transform their lives

elderly visitors, all visually impaired and in some cases blind, shuffled out slowly and carefully

Mission Miracle has helped 400,000 impoverished Latin Americans see again and cast Venezuela's revolutionary leader as the region's humanitarian benefactor

Chávez is trying to export populist leftwing rebellions and further tilt the region away from US influence

allegations that Chávez is trying to destabilise one of South America's few centre-right governments

There is an unashamed political tinge to the eye-surgery visits to Caracas

Patients are greeted at the airport by officials wearing T-shirts with revolutionary slogans and ushered aboard red buses

"We're all Chavistas on this bus. Viva Humala!"

Tags: peru, venezuela, health, chavez, usa

Sexual Pleasure with Dignity.

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 18:36:39 GMT

clipped by: righthand
clipper's remarks: It's time we stand up for sexual health education, services and civil rights so everyone can have pleasure with dignity -- or without, as we choose.

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

Sexual Adventures in a Pro-Abstinence Era

"... I wouldn't mind having a conversation that does not include the words dildo, fisting, squirting, orgasm, vibrator, latex, fucking, shibari, or three-way,"

book, America Unzipped: In Search of Sex and Satisfaction

From the aspiring "next teen anal queen" to the mewling man gone fetal on a domme's lap, a cast of colorful characters, conflicts and contradictions are revealed in the award-winning journalist's hilariously randy romp through mainstream America -- a journey that seriously questions our grasp on what is deviant versus what is norma

admittedly "vanilla" Alexander writes with self-deprecating wit and a willingness to engage in America's sometimes uncomfortable sexual conversation

what make his gonzo travelogue both so entertaining and so essential to current debates surrounding sexual health services, education and civil rights

America Unzipped

from religious, societal and familial restraints by carving out formerly forbidden sexual paths

Tags: sex, education, usa

Health: Vitamin E increases Lung Cancer

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 14:49:08 GMT

clipped by: righthand
clipper's remarks: "Unsurprisingly, the doctors found that lung cancer was strongly correlated with smoking, a family history of the disease and increasing age, but were surprised to find a slight but significant rise in lung cancer linked to vitamin E. The effect was most prominent in current smokers.

People who took multivitamins, vitamin C or folate supplements had a risk of lung cancer similar to those who did not take supplements, according to the study, which appears in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine."

...Guardian

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Vitamin E supplements increase the risk of lung cancer

People who take daily supplements of vitamin E have a higher risk of developing lung cancer, according to one of the largest studies into vitamins and health ever attempted

Doctors monitored the wellbeing of more than 77,000 men and women over a four-year period and found that a range of vitamins failed to protect against lung cancer, while vitamin E slightly increased the risk of developing the disease

The study suggested that taking 400mg of vitamin E for 10 years increases the risk of lung cancer by 28%. Taking 100mg of the vitamin each day raised the risk of disease by 7%

Cancer Research UK, the lifetime risk of developing lung cancer is roughly 8% for men and 4% for women

An increase of 28% in that background risk would raise a man's risk to 10% and a woman's to 5%

A team led by Christopher Slatore at the University of Washington in Seattle looked at 77,126 people aged between 50 and 76 years old

lifestyle study called Vital

Tags: health, usa

sweet? low? maybe not...

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 12:54:49 GMT

clipped by: Deepti

Clip Source: www.gulfnews.com

Using an artificial, no-calorie sweetener rather than sugar may make it tougher, not easier, to lose weight, US researchers said

Scientists at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, studied rats that were fed food with the artificial sweetener saccharin and rats fed food with glucose, a natural sugar

In comparison to rats given yogurt sweetened with glucose, those that ate yogurt sweetened with saccharin went on to consume more calories and put on more weight and body fat

The researchers said sweet foods may prompt the body to get ready to take in a lot of calories, but when sweetness in the form of artificial sweeteners is not followed by a large amount of calories, the body gets confused, which may lead to eating more or expending less energy than normal

Such an outcome may seem counterintuitive, if not an anathema, to human clinical researchers and health care practitioners who have long recommended the use of low- and no-calorie sweeteners as a means of weight control

Tags: sugar, sweet, low, weight loss, weight, health, fat, calories

Don't Pre-Chew Food for KIDS: Spreads AIDS

Thu, 07 Feb 2008 05:25:16 GMT

clipped by: righthand

Clip Source: ap.google.com

Moms Pre-Chewing Food Gave HIV to Kids

For the first time, health officials report that the AIDS virus can be spread by a mother pre-chewing her infant's food, a practice mainly seen in poor, developing countries

Three such cases were reported in the United States from 1993-2004, government scientists said Wednesday in a presentation in Boston at a scientific conference

It's blood, not saliva, that carried the virus because in at least two of the cases the infected mothers had bleeding gums or mouth sores, according to investigators at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

they are asking parents and caregivers with HIV not to pre-chew infants' food, and are trying to educate doctors about this kind of transmission

mothers do it because they have no access to baby food or a means of pulverizing food for toothless infants

All three children were infected with HIV at a time they would have been teething and had inflamed gums

caregiver and a child must have wounds in their mouth

Tags: health, children

10 Myths About Canadian Health Care, Busted

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 18:11:06 GMT

clipped by: dulios

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

10 Myths About Canadian Health Care, Busted

1. Canada's health care system is "socialized medicine."
False.

2. Doctors are hurt financially by single-payer health care.
True and False.

3. Wait times in Canada are horrendous.
True and False again

4. You have to wait forever to get a family doctor.
False

5. You don't get to choose your own doctor.
Scurrilously False.

6. Canada's care plan only covers the basics. You're still on your own for any extras, including prescription drugs. And you still have to pay for it.
True

7. Canadian drugs are not the same.
More preposterious bogosity.

8. Publicly-funded programs will inevitably lead to rationed health care, particularly for the elderly.
False. And bogglingly so

9. People won't be responsible for their own health if they're not being forced to pay for the consequences.
False

10. This all sounds great -- but the taxes to cover it are just unaffordable. And besides, isn't the system in bad financial shape?

Tags: canada, myths, busted

Worrying about Health makes You Sick

Mon, 21 Jan 2008 16:36:00 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: psychcentral.com

Worrying about your health is apt to make your health worse, finds a new study that reports highly anxious persons with heart disease face double the risk of heart attack or death than those with a more tranquil view of their medical condition. While a diagnosis of heart disease naturally causes anxiety and stress, individuals who learn to cope and find internal calm markedly reduced their risk while individuals whose anxiety increased over time were in greatest peril.

“I’m convinced that spending time with the patient and the family and interacting with them as a caring human being is critically important to clinical outcomes.”

“The results of this study demonstrate that we may need to consider more thoroughly evaluating patients with mood disorders such as anxiety, as treatment may very well reduce the risk of heart disease.”

“My hunch is that for the majority of patients, the greatest anxiety-reducing effect comes from having a good relationship with a doctor,”

Tags: health, cardiac disease, modd disorders