ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

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• Malaria, typhoid -- not Ebola -- biggest health threat for travelers to tropics
• Slower growth of preterm infants linked to altered brain development
• Tree and human health may be linked
• Immunology research sheds new light on cell function, response
• Mindfulness meditation may relieve chronic inflammation
• Light exposure during pregnancy key to normal eye development
• First way to make large amounts of promising anti-cancer substance
• Robot allows 'remote presence' in programming brain and spine stimulators
• Scientists discover genes responsible for cornea blindness
• Research reveals exactly how the human brain adapts to injury
• Virtual heart sheds new light on heart defect
• Computational methods reveal how hospital-acquired bacteria spread
• Drugs for diabetes? Scientists test the power of plants
• Choice of partner affects health
• COPD patients at risk of dangerous bacterial infections
• Scientists seek out cancer cells hiding from treatment
• Study examines link between incarceration and psychiatric disorders
• Fast food diet linked to asthma and eczema severity in kids, large study finds
• Blood clots and artery blockage more likely during IVF pregnancies, study suggests
• Cutting down on sugar has a small but significant effect on body weight, study finds
• Migraine with aura may lead to heart attack, blood clots for women
• Stress makes exhausted women over-sensitive to sounds

Malaria, typhoid -- not Ebola -- biggest health threat for travelers to tropics Posted: 16 Jan 2013 04:53 PM PST Feeling feverish after a visit to the tropics? It may not just be a bout with this year's flu. If you're a Western traveler, malaria and typhoid fever should top the list of diseases to discuss with your doctor when you return, especially following travel to Western Africa or India.

Slower growth of preterm infants linked to altered brain development Posted: 16 Jan 2013 01:38 PM PST Preterm infants who grow more slowly as they approached what would have been their due dates also have slower development in an area of the brain called the cerebral cortex, report researchers.

Tree and human health may be linked Posted: 16 Jan 2013 01:38 PM PST Evidence is increasing from multiple scientific fields that exposure to the natural environment can improve human health. In a new study, the presence of trees was associated with human health.

Immunology research sheds new light on cell function, response Posted: 16 Jan 2013 01:36 PM PST Researchers characterized a new protein that affects how cells in the innate immune system function and protect humans against invading bacteria such as E. coli O157:H7.

Mindfulness meditation may relieve chronic inflammation Posted: 16 Jan 2013 01:35 PM PST People suffering from chronic inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and asthma — in which psychological stress plays a major role — may benefit from mindfulness meditation techniques, according to a new study.

Light exposure during pregnancy key to normal eye development Posted: 16 Jan 2013 10:14 AM PST New research concludes the eye -- which depends on light to see -- also needs light to develop normally during pregnancy. Scientists say the unexpected finding offers a new basic understanding of fetal eye development and ocular diseases caused by vascular disorders -- in particular one called retinopathy of prematurity that can blind premature infants.

First way to make large amounts of promising anti-cancer substance Posted: 16 Jan 2013 09:37 AM PST Scientists are reporting development of the first practical way to make large amounts of a promising new anti-cancer substance that kills cancer cells differently than existing medicines. A new article is on the synthesis of the substance, and tests demonstrating its effectiveness in the laboratory.

Robot allows 'remote presence' in programming brain and spine stimulators Posted: 16 Jan 2013 08:16 AM PST With the rapidly expanding use of brain and spinal cord stimulation therapy (neuromodulation), new "remote presence" technologies may help to meet the demand for experts to perform stimulator programming, reports a new study.

Scientists discover genes responsible for cornea blindness Posted: 16 Jan 2013 07:36 AM PST Scientists have succeeded in identifying genes for central corneal thickness that may cause potentially blinding eye conditions. These eye conditions include glaucoma, as well as the progressive thinning of the cornea, which may eventually lead to a need for corneal transplantation.

Research reveals exactly how the human brain adapts to injury Posted: 16 Jan 2013 06:21 AM PST For the first time, scientists have used a new combination of neural imaging methods to discover exactly how the human brain adapts to injury. The research shows that when one brain area loses functionality, a "back-up" team of secondary brain areas immediately activates, replacing not only the unavailable area but also its confederates.

Virtual heart sheds new light on heart defect Posted: 16 Jan 2013 06:06 AM PST A virtual heart is revealing new information about one of the world's most common heart conditions. Researchers used cutting edge technology to build an advanced computational model of an anatomically correct sheep's heart. It was made by taking a series of very thin slices of the heart, imaging them in 2-D and then using a computer program to render them into a 3-D model.

Computational methods reveal how hospital-acquired bacteria spread Posted: 16 Jan 2013 06:06 AM PST New methods are being used to develop models of the evolution of bacteria and viruses. "Essential for the evolution of the bacteria that cause hospital-acquired infections is the horizontal gene transfer. It means that several different cell processes transfer genes between the lineages of the same and different species so that the bacterium becomes resistant to antibiotics and the virulence factor rapidly spreads in the population," explains a researcher.

Drugs for diabetes? Scientists test the power of plants Posted: 16 Jan 2013 06:01 AM PST Scientists believe they have identified potential sources of medicines derived from plants which may have fewer adverse side-effects for diabetes sufferers.

Choice of partner affects health Posted: 16 Jan 2013 06:01 AM PST Individuals tend to choose partners of equal socio-economic status. This factor may also be significant in terms of health.

COPD patients at risk of dangerous bacterial infections Posted: 16 Jan 2013 06:01 AM PST It is well known that COPD patients run a higher risk of contracting respiratory infections. However, a new thesis shows that they are also at higher risk of other bacterial infections, such as tuberculosis (TB) and pneumococcal and staphylococcal infections that can cause serious illness.

Scientists seek out cancer cells hiding from treatment Posted: 16 Jan 2013 06:01 AM PST Funding to improve leukemia treatment will investigate how cancer cells hide to avoid chemotherapy drugs.

Study examines link between incarceration and psychiatric disorders Posted: 16 Jan 2013 05:59 AM PST Psychiatric disorders are prevalent among current and former inmates of correctional institutions, but what has been less clear is whether incarceration causes these disorders or, alternatively, whether inmates have these problems before they enter prison. A new study provides answers.

Fast food diet linked to asthma and eczema severity in kids, large study finds Posted: 16 Jan 2013 05:53 AM PST Eating three or more weekly servings of fast food is linked to the severity of allergic asthma, eczema, and rhinitis among children in the developed world, indicates a large international study.

Blood clots and artery blockage more likely during IVF pregnancies, study suggests Posted: 15 Jan 2013 04:02 PM PST In vitro fertilization is associated with an increased risk of pulmonary embolism (blockage of the main artery of the lung) and venous thromboembolism (blood clots) during the first trimester of pregnancy, a new study suggests.

Cutting down on sugar has a small but significant effect on body weight, study finds Posted: 15 Jan 2013 04:02 PM PST Reducing sugar intake has a small but significant effect on body weight in adults, according to a new study. Although the effect is relatively small (an average reduction of 0.8 kg), the findings provide some support for international guidelines to cut sugar intake to less than 10% of total energy to help reduce the global obesity epidemic.

Migraine with aura may lead to heart attack, blood clots for women Posted: 15 Jan 2013 04:01 PM PST Women who have migraines with aura, which are often visual disturbances such as flashing lights, may be more likely to have problems with their heart and blood vessels, and those on newer contraceptives may be at higher risk for blood clots, according to two studies.

Stress makes exhausted women over-sensitive to sounds Posted: 15 Jan 2013 05:55 AM PST Women suffering from stress-related exhaustion exhibit hypersensitivity to sounds when exposed to stress. In some cases, a sound level corresponding to a normal conversation can be perceived as painful.

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