Clipmarks | tabsey's 'health' clips

Mother's junk food 'harms child'

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:12:51 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: This is known by all, but now research backs that opinion.

Junk food may leave a lasting health legacy

Eating a poor diet when pregnant or breastfeeding may cause long-lasting health damage to the child, animal studies suggest.

The offspring of rats fed fatty, processed food had high levels of fat in their bloodstream and around major organs even after adolescence.

The animals had a raised diabetes risk - even if they ate healthily.

The study, by the Royal Veterinary College and London's Wellcome Trust, features in The Journal of Physiology.

Studies by the same team have already shown that rats whose mothers were fed junk food during pregnancy and breastfeeding were more likely to crave similar snacks themselves.

However, the new twist is that even when weaned off this diet themselves, the damage may already have been done, they suggest.

Dr Stephanie Bayol, one of the researchers, said: "It seems that a mother's diet whilst pregnant and breastfeeding is very important for the long-term health of her child.

Tags: parenting, starts, in, the, tummy

Coffee Drinkers Have Slightly Lower Death Rates, Study Finds

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 13:46:49 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Don't tell me that there is still something in life I can look forward to each day.

Clip Source: www.sciencedaily.com

A new study has found that both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee consumption (up to 6 cups per day) is associated with a somewhat smaller rate of death from heart disease. (Credit: iStockphoto)

ScienceDaily (Jun. 17, 2008) — A new study has good news for coffee drinkers: Regular coffee drinking (up to 6 cups per day) is not associated with increased deaths in either men or women. In fact, both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee consumption is associated with a somewhat smaller rate of death from heart disease.

"Coffee consumption has been linked to various beneficial and detrimental health effects, but data on its relation with death were lacking," says Esther Lopez-Garcia, PhD, the study's lead author. "Coffee consumption was not associated with a higher risk of mortality in middle-aged men and women. The possibility of a modest benefit of coffee consumption on heart disease, cancer, and other causes of death needs to be further investigated."

Tags: health

Tomatoes Off Menus Amid Salmonella Outbreak

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 16:52:26 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Dare say this would be all over the infotainment, but for those who missed the warnings....

Clip Source: www.npr.org

NPR.org, June 10, 2008 · McDonald's "Big N' Tasty" sandwich is a little smaller Tuesday, and the Chicken Ranch BLT has temporarily lost its "T." Tomatoes are under scrutiny as the possible culprit in a salmonella outbreak that has sickened at least 145 people in more than a dozen states.

Federal health officials are trying to pinpoint the source of the contamination, and in the meantime, several restaurant chains, including McDonald's and Chipotle Mexican Grill, have stopped using fresh tomatoes altogether as a precaution. Wal-Mart, Winn-Dixie and other supermarkets have also pulled some types of tomatoes from their produce aisles.

The Food and Drug Administration is urging consumers to avoid raw Roma, plum and red round tomatoes. So far, investigators know that cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes and tomatoes sold with the vines still attached have not been implicated by people who have gotten sick.

Tags: health

Residents riled as bungled pipes leave them with unexpectedly 'fishy' visitor

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 13:05:18 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Like the idea of a pond storing the water to put the fire out.

Clip Source: mdn.mainichi.jp

Typical loaches. (Mainichi file)

YUASA, Wakayama -- Some local residents have received an apology after their water supply was accidentally linked to a pond and a small fish called a loach poured out of a faucet used for drinking water, local officials said.

Pipes supposed to carry water to a newly built residential district in Yuasa were mistakenly connected to a local pond where water is stored for fire-fighting purposes.

The mistake continued for months and some people have complained of illness.

The mayor and other officials have apologized to residents.

City officials are still investigating the cause of the illness and have asked residents to undergo health checks.

"This was a basic miss and we're terribly sorry," a spokesman for the Yuasa Municipal Government said. "If we establish there is a link with people's deteriorated health, we want to deal with the matter sincerely."

Tags: humans, make, wonderful, mistakes-murphy

Genetic Nondiscrimination Act Becomes Law

Fri, 23 May 2008 16:02:05 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Good move.

Clip Source: www.sciam.com

President Bush yesterday signed legislation into law that will bar health insurance companies or employers from denying or canceling coverage, hiking premiums or making decisions on hiring, firing and compensation based on genetic test results.

The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) sailed through the Senate in late April, following a year of political wrangling, and a week later passed the House by a 414-to-1 margin.

Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.), a microbiologist with a master's degree in public health, introduced the first genetic antidiscrimination legislation 13 years ago. GINA supporters believe the act will encourage people to take advantage of the more than 1,000 genetic tests now available to diagnose and assess risk of diseases without fear of losing their jobs or being denied insurance coverage for doing so.

Tags: genetic, maps

Chemical used in plastic products a threat to babies

Wed, 14 May 2008 10:59:36 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Even babies bottles are made from plastic.

Clip Source: mdn.mainichi.jp

A potential hormone-damaging chemical used in plastic products could affect fetuses and newborn babies even though it meets safety standards, a study has found.

Researchers at the National Institute of Health Sciences have found the chemical substance -- bisphenol A -- could disrupt the central nerve system of fetuses and children, after they conducted experiments on rats.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is looking into consulting the Food Safety Commission of the Cabinet Office over the finding.

According to researchers at the institute, they administered different amounts of bisphenol A to five groups of mother rats every day since the sixth day of their conception until 20 days after they gave birth to baby rats.

They then compared the estradiol cycle of their offspring with their counterparts born from rats that were not administered with bisphenol A to see how the chemical substance affected baby rats through the placenta and breast milk of the mother rats.

Tags: medical, babies, are, lab, rats

Dems Rip EPA for Axing Official Who Urged Cleanup by Dow

Fri, 09 May 2008 08:43:41 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Not very "free country" behaviour. Corporation bosses in this case should be charged with attempted murder or manslaughter as people will have their lives shortened as a result.

Clip Source: www.truthout.org

Washington - Democratic senators lambasted the Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday for ousting its top administrator in the Midwest after she pressured Dow Chemical to clean up dioxin-contaminated soil in Michigan.

During a hearing of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., said the episode raised warning signs about the credibility of the EPA and the agency's commitment to "protect the environment and our health."

According to a report in Friday's Chicago Tribune, the EPA administrator for the Midwest region, Mary Gade, said she was told to quit or be fired by June 1. She resigned.

Gade had been pressuring Dow for almost a year to get the chemical company to clean up chemical contamination in Michigan.

Dioxin, produced as a byproduct of some chemical manufacturing or formed from burning wood, coal and oil, has been linked to cancer and other health problems.

Tags: politics, pollution

Doctors issue climate change health warning

Sun, 06 Apr 2008 08:30:34 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Even a non believer will be able to see some of the good side to fixing up the planet. Hospitals on hills!!!!!!! will be the solution offered by many politicians.

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

Doctors are warning that the health system needs to prepare for increased rates of climate change-related illness in the population.

The Climate Change Institute has released a report by Doctors for the Environment, which warns that floods, droughts, rising seas and higher temperatures caused by climate change will bring a raft of health problems.

Co-author Doctor Graeme Horton says that includes more cases of heat stroke, mosquito-transmitted diseases and gastroenteritis outbreaks.

He says its important for the health system and the community to be prepared to cope with the strain.

"Climate change is clearly much, much more than an economic inconvenience - it is a threat to our life support systems," he said.

He says the elderly, children and those living in coastal and rural areas will be among those worst affected.

"For Australian communities we're expecting in coming years more heat waves, more effects of heat stress and more days of high to extreme fire danger," he said.

Tags: health

The top 5 ways medical physics has changed health care

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:30:00 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Have to go to the site for details.

Clip Source: www.eurekalert.org

College Park, MD (February 28, 2008) -- Many of the greatest inventions in modern medicine were developed by physicists who imported technologies such as X rays, nuclear magnetic resonance, ultrasound, particle accelerators and radioisotope tagging and detection techniques into the medical domain. There they became magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computerized tomography (CT) scanning, nuclear medicine, positron emission tomography (PET) scanning, and various radiotherapy treatment methods. These contributions have revolutionized medical techniques for imaging the human body and treating disease.

1) USING PARTICLE ACCELERATORS TO DEFEAT CANCER

2) BETTER DETECTION OF BREAST CANCER

3) MATTER/ANTIMATTER COLLISION IMAGING

4) ENSURING THE SAFETY OF PEOPLE WHO GET CT SCANS

5) MEDICAL PHYSICS MOMENTS IN HISTORY

X rays

Magnetic Resonance

Radioimmunoassays

Computer-assisted tomography

LOOK FOR MORE TO COME

Tags: physics, medical, health care

40,000 US clinic patients in HIV syringe scare

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 00:26:57 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Nasty stuff up.

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

US officials say 40,000 people may have been infected with HIV and hepatitis in a major health scare, after a Las Vegas clinic was found to have reused syringes and medicine vials.

Authorities in southern Nevada said they were notifying some 40,000 patients who received anaesthesia injections at the clinic's endoscopy centre between March 2004 and January 11, 2008 about potential exposure to hepatitis and HIV.

They recommended in a statement that the patients "contact their primary care physicians or health care providers to get tested for hepatitis C as well as hepatitis B and HIV".

The move comes after several acute cases of hepatitis C showed up in the area.

Six people have been diagnosed with the disease since January, which is three times higher than the yearly average for the Las Vegas region.

The three first cases came to light in January, and three other patients were subsequently found to have been infected with hepatitis C.

Tags: medical

Thousands of veterans lose health benefits because of paperwork errors

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:25:18 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Best to read the article as some efforts are being made to correct the situation, after several years for some.

Clip Source: www.michaelmoore.com

Christopher M. Simmance helped keep the peace as an American soldier in the Middle East, but when he returned home and later suffered a breakdown, he was turned away from the VA hospital because the government didn’t acknowledge his overseas duty.

Dana Cushing as a Marine served two tours of duty in Iraq and a third in east Africa, but when she returned home, she found herself labeled a “conscientious objector” and also was denied medical care by the government.

Simmance is one local veteran among roughly 2,000 across the country trying to get corrected incomplete or inadequate discharge papers. Cushing only recently got hers corrected after trying for a year. The result is that many now face a bureaucratic nightmare that prevents them from getting the health benefits they are entitled to receive.

Tags: bureaucracy

American Health Care

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:45:04 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Cartoon

Clip Source: www.mikhaela.net

Henry: sealion on the web

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 05:46:13 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Check on the sealion before or after the email.

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

In shades of the movie The Truman Story, a sealion dubbed Henry has been fitted with a monitoring device that will allow experts - and the wider public - track his health.

From tomorrow, his progress will be shown at www.henrythesealion.com.

South Australia's Minister for Environment and Conservation, Gail Gago, says Henry has often been at Glenelg and other Adelaide beaches.

Ms Gago says he was unwell recently and the monitoring device will allow his wellbeing to be tracked.

"For instance this morning Henry was tracked to a coastal location where we found a member of the public feeding Henry, so that tracking device will help us understand what's affecting his health," she said.

Tags: watching, nature

US orders massive recall of beef

Mon, 18 Feb 2008 11:26:33 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Official obviously not too worried because the meat wasn't to be consumed by the rich and powerful. Anyway, most has been eaten because we were so slow to react.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

It comes from a company in California, which officials said allowed meat from cattle unable to stand at the time of slaughter to enter the food chain.

But the USDA said the health hazard was minimal. Much of the meat was purchased for federal nutrition programmes.

The USDA had suspended operations there after an undercover video came to light showing crippled and sick animals being mistreated.

We don't think there is a health hazard, but we do have to take this action

Dick Raymond
USDA

The move surpasses a 1999 recall of 35m lbs of ready-to-eat meats, officials said.

We don't think there is a health hazard, but we do have to take this action

Dick Raymond
USDA

Some of the beef was destined for federal welfare assistance programmes, as well as some major fast-food chains.

But officials said most of the recalled meat has probably already been eaten.

Tags: corruption

Delay Of Report Is Blamed On Politics-Document Suggests Public Health Risks Near Great Lakes

Mon, 18 Feb 2008 11:07:12 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Bad news so we had better not tell the people.

Clip Source: www.democraticunderground.com

The lead author and peer reviewers of a government report raising the possibility of public health threats from industrial contamination throughout the Great Lakes region are charging that the report is being suppressed because of the questions it raises. The author also alleges that he was demoted because of the report.

Chris De Rosa, former director of the division of toxicology and environmental medicine at the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), charges that the report he wrote was a significant factor in his reassignment to a non-supervisory "special assistant" position last year.

The House Committee on Science and Technology is investigating De Rosa's reassignment, in light of allegations that it was related to the Great Lakes report and his push to publicize the possibility of a cancer risk from formaldehyde fumes in Federal Emergency Management Agency trailers housing victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Tags: pollution, health, more corruption