Health Tips and News Updates

Women With Migraine May Face Higher Threat of Heart Disease, Stroke Women With Migraine  Women who suffer from migraine headaches may have a slightly increased risk of heart disease or stroke, a new study suggests. "Migraine should be considered a marker for increased risk of cardiovascular disease, at least in women," said lead researcher Dr. Tobias Kurth, director of the Institute of Public Health at Charite-Universitatsmedizin in Berlin, Germany. But, Kurth cautioned that this study can't prove that migraines cause heart attack or stroke, only that they may make these events more likely. Also, men may be similarly affected. "We have no reason to believe that this is limited to women," Kurth said. Migraines are headaches marked by intense throbbing or pulsing, often accompanied by nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light and sound. They had previously been linked to an increased risk for stroke, but this new study also ties them to poss...

First baby born with Zika-linked microcephaly in New York tri-state area. The unidentified baby was born Tuesday at Hackensack University Medical Center where doctors confirmed she is suffering from Zika-linked microcephaly. Doctors at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey confirmed Tuesday the birth of a child suffering from Zika-linked microcephaly, a condition wherein the child's brain and head are partially developed. The mother, who is 31 but whose name was not disclosed, contracted the Zika virus while in Honduras and was admitted to the emergency room at Hackensack on Friday while vacationing in the United States. Tuesday, doctors delivered her baby girl, who was born also with intestinal and visual issues. Reports indicate she is the first child born with Zika-linked complications in the New York tri-state area. The child’s mother, who developed a rash for two days in Honduras but had no other symptoms until arriving in the U.S., was under the...

Concussions in Children May Be Vastly Underreported, Study Finds K. Brooke Pengel MD examines 17 year old Brady Bender of Steamboat Springs, Colo.  Children who have suffered a concussion are more likely to be diagnosed in their pediatrician's office than the emergency room, according to a new study that suggests current concussion statistics may be vastly underreported, since only children diagnosed in the ER are included in counts by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In the study, published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics, researchers from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the CDC used CHOP's regional pediatric network to figure out when and where children were diagnosed with a concussion. They found approximately 82 percent had their first concussion visit at a primary care site like a pediatrician's office, 12 percent were diagnosed in an emergency department, 5 percent were diag...

How Zika Virus Hides To Move From Mother To Baby. Zika virus particles (red) under a microscope While the Zika virus often causes disease without symptoms in adults, it has become notorious for its link to microcephaly — a birth defect where infants have an abnormally small head. Women infected with Zika can transmit it to their unborn child during pregnancy, but precisely how this happens has remained a mystery. Scientists have now revealed one potential route. Among flaviviruses — a group that includes Zika, yellow fever and West Nile virus — it’s rare for a virus to be transmitted from one generation to the next. Scientists believe that’s because the organ connecting mother and fetus — the placenta — forms a barrier between the two individuals, separating their circulatory systems. So how does Zika virus cross the placental barrier? One possibility is that viruses slip through gaps created by damage or inflammation. Another is that Zika has a unique ability: it...

Beware: For the umpteenth time, smoking kills! World No Tobacco Day What's in a cigarette? Smoke for sure, maybe nicotine and tar, say many smokers Khaleej Times spoke to. They admit to knowing the risks of smoking but continue to do so despite efforts by authorities to deter them by putting up strong warning messages each year on World No Tobacco Day on May 31. Smokers Percentage In UAE Between 20 to 22 per cent of the men smoke in the UAE, a number considered on the higher side when compared to average figures worldwide. Also, on average, men and women in Dubai consume 12 cigarettes a day, as per a survey carried out by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA). Data also shows that one-third of the nearly two million people living in Dubai are exposed to tobacco smoke, either directly or as passive smokers, with each resident being exposed to passive smoking for about five hours daily. Passive smoking in public places. About 67 per cent of them are exposed t...

New Study Reveals 4 Ways Women Can Lower Breast Cancer Risk A patient receives chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer at the Antoine-Lacassagne Cancer Center in Nice  A new and more comprehensive study, published online in JAMA Oncology on Thursday, May 26, sheds some light and ushers new hope for women who are known to be at higher risk for breast cancer because of genetics and family history. The findings of the study showed that a lifestyle change can play a significant role in cutting the breast cancer risk among women. About 30 percent of breast cancer cases among white female Americans can be avoided by keeping a healthy weight, saying no to smoking, minimizing alcohol intake, and avoiding the use of hormone therapy after reaching the menopausal stage. "People think that their genetic risk for developing cancer is set in stone," said Nilanjan Chatterjee, PhD, the senior author of the study and a professor in the Department of Biostatistics at the Jo...

Key lifestyle factors could help reduce breast cancer cases by 30 percent A new study concludes that if white women who carry common gene variants linked to breast cancer maintained key lifestyle factors, almost 30 percent of cases could be avoided. Researchers who published the study Thursday said the majority of those cases avoided would be among women at an increased risk because of family history and gene variations. “Those genetics risks are not set in stone,” senior researcher Nilanjan Chatterjee, a professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, told UPI.com. Chatterjee and his team of researchers developed a model to predict a woman’s risk of breast cancer that compiled genetic information as well as family history of breast cancer, age menstruation began and lifestyle habit. They also estimated the effects of 68 individual gene variants which the women were not tested for. The model found that an average 30-year-old white woman has ...

What You Don't Know About Sunscreen - But Should SPF is an outdated measure, and it's not always accurate. WILMINGTON, MA - As the summer season approaches, people will be spending more time out in the sun. And for those who listen to the warnings dermatologists have been stressing for years, this means one thing: They'll be lathering themselves in gallons and gallons of sunscreen. Sunscreen, though, isn't what it used to be — nor is the advice on how to use it. “I recommend an SPF of around 30, as long as you’re reapplying it every hour, hour-and-a-half when you’re outdoors,” Lauren Ploch, a dermatologist from the Georgia Dermatology and Skin Cancer Center, said. A REPORT BY CODY FENWICK | PATCH STAFF This is pretty standard advice, echoing the American Academy of Dermatology's recommendations. SPF, which stands for “Sun Protection Factor,” measures how protective sunscreen is against ultraviolet B (UV-B) light, which is the segmen...

“It actually has me concerned, and I’m an expert”: Major cell phone radiation study reignites cancer debate New research from the National Toxicology Program links radio-frequency radiation to tumor formation in rats. Federal scientists released partial findings Friday from a $25-million animal study that tested the possibility of links between cancer and chronic exposure to the type of radiation emitted from cell phones and wireless devices. The findings, which chronicle an unprecedented number of rodents subjected to a lifetime of electromagnetic radiation starting in utero, present some of the strongest evidence to date that such exposure is associated with the formation of rare cancers in at least two cell types in the brains and hearts of rats. The results, which were posted on a prepublication Web site run by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, are poised to reignite controversy about how such everyday exposure might affect human health. Researchers at the National Toxicol...

Tourists warned to ‘think twice’ about visiting Disney World over Zika scare The southern state of Florida has the second highest number of Zika cases in the US. © Kevin Lamarque / Reuters An expert has warned that as summer heat builds visitors to Florida’s Disney World are increasing their risk of contracting the Zika virus. Professor Jimmy Whitworth of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine warned tourists to “think twice” before traveling to southern US states. With 121 confirmed cases of the virus, Florida is second only to New York with 127, according to the CDC. Speaking to the Daily Mail Professor Whitworth said at the moment visitors to the state were not at risk but as summer months approach “the situation might change.” Currently, all cases of the Zika virus in the US have been contracted abroad, according to the CDC. As the summer months bring an increase in both the tourist and mosquito population, the risk of a local mosquito biting an infe...

Study in rats reignites debate over cell phones and cancer. A study release Friday, which finds an increased risk of certain cancers in animals exposed to cell phone radiation, could reignite concerns over the safety of wireless communication. Some scientists expressed serious concerns about the study because of inconsistencies in its findings. Even officials at the agency that produced the study, the National Toxicology Program, said the report fails to provide the clear answers that many would like. Researchers found small increases in rare cancers in the brain and heart in male rats exposed to near-constant, high doses of radiation from cell phones, compared to rats who weren't exposed. There was no increase in cancer among exposed female rats, according to the study, which represent "partial findings" of a larger research project. The rats in the new study were exposed to "whole body" cell phone radiation for a total of nine hours a day f...

Zika virus. Zika virus carrier Mosquito   Zika virus is “spreading explosively” in the Americas, the WHO says. It causes birth defects in babies born to pregnant women, says the CDC. That agency has issued travel warnings for pregnant women in countries where the disease has been found. The virus is mainly spread by mosquitoes, although cases of sexual transmission have been reported. Zika virus , first identified in Uganda in 1947, is transmitted by the same type of mosquito that carries dengue fever, yellow fever, and chikungunya virus. A mosquito bites an infected person and then passes those viruses to other people it bites. Outbreaks did not occur outside of Africa until 2007, when it spread to the South Pacific. CDC Director Tom Frieden, MD, told reporters that “on occasion,” Zika may be spread through sexual contact or blood transfusions. The CDC has confirmed reports of Zika being spread through sex in some cases, meaning a person traveled to an area where Zika h...

Big changes are coming to the nutritional info printed on your food. Nutritional Information  A new look is coming to Nutrition Facts labels on food packages, with more attention to calorie counts and added sugars. And no longer will a small bag of chips count as two or three servings. Michelle Obama said parents will be the beneficiaries. "You will no longer need a microscope, a calculator, or a degree in nutrition to figure out whether the food you're buying is actually good for our kids," the first lady said Friday, announcing the new rules. The changes were first proposed by the Food and Drug Administration two years ago and are the first major update to the labels since their introduction in 1994. They are now on more than 800,000 foods. The overhaul comes amid scientific advances. While fat was the focus when the labels were created, calories are of greater concern these days. The calorie listing will now be much larger than anything else...

Opioid prescriptions are declining. Will it ease the addiction epidemic? OxyContin and other opioids were prescribed less in the United States starting in 2013. Opioid prescriptions in the United States have declined by at least 12 percent since 2012, but experts worry it won't stop Americans from overdosing on heroin and fentanyl. In America's opioid epidemic, a news analysis of several sources reflects a glimmer of hope. For the first time in two decades, the number of opioid prescriptions has declined, an analysis of data by The New York Times found Friday. Spurred by increased public concerns about the dangers of opioids, the drop in the number of prescriptions reflects a shift in attitude among physicians, now more carefully weighing the drugs' effectiveness as pain medication against their high potential for addiction. Yet experts are unsure how immediate an impact that fewer prescriptions will have on the crisis. "The deaths [have still]...

Health Benefits of Falsa (Grewia Asiatica). Grewia Asiatica (Falsa,Phalsa) Phalsa or Falsa, is a fruit of the tree bush, which is a native of Bharat and alternative countries like Asian country, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Asian country. It has also been naturalized in Australia and therefore the Philippines. It is alittle tree that grows to a height of 15 to twenty feet and bears bitter sweet small empurpled fruits that correspond blueberries. The tree fruits during the peak summer months of might and June every year. The fruits are simply decayable and its juice will be ready to last the whole summer. Also, the fruits area unit eaten as they are with the addition of somewhat salt and black pepper. The fruit is consumed for its cooling effect in summer as well as for its alternative health edges. The entire tree has various alternative uses.  Uses Of The Falsa Tree. The fruits are used to treat numerous health issues.  The leaves are used as ki...

Diseases You Can Cure With Banana Banana has the ability to cure or suppress many deadly diseases and ailments without taking any pills. Banana Banana contains sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber. These nutritional contents provide sustainable, instant and substantial boost of energy. According to Research, two bananas has the capability of providing enough energy for a 90-minute workout. This makes banana the number one fruit for world’s leading athletes. Can we rely on energy provision as cure to diseases as written in the title our this article? Oh no, it can also help cure or prevent illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet. Nutrition Facts Bananas Bananas Amount Per   1 extra small (less than 6" long) (81 g) 100 grams 1 small (6" to 6-7/8" long) (101 g) 1 medium (7" to 7-7/8" long) (118 g) 1 NLEA serving (126 g) 1 large (8" to 8-7/8" long) (136 g) 1 cup, sliced (150 g) 1 ext...