It is one of the most common causes of sick leave and long-term disability, causing misery for millions of people.
But now, back pain could be solved by man-made spinal discs, which could be available within a decade.
The
‘living’ discs are packed with shock-absorbing cells and, in
preliminary trials, behaved just like the real thing when implanted into
bad backs.
Rabu, 03 Agustus 2011
Why comfort eating really DOES make us happy - we are soothed by fatty foods
Anyone who has reached for a chocolate bar or tub of icecream during a painful breakup know how soothing they can be.
Now scientists have found 'comfort' eating really does work at a molecular level to lift our mood, which could explain why so many people spiral into obesity when facing stressful situations.
A team of scientists led by Dr Lukas
Van Oudenhove from the University of Leuven, in Belgium, used MRI scans
to assess the emotional impact of fat when injected into the stomach.
They recruited 12 healthy-weight volunteers and scanned their brainwaves as they were shown a series of sad and neutral images as well as exposing them to sad and neutral music.
They then inserted either fatty acids or saline into their stomachs but didn't tell the volunteers which was which. This meant they could bypass the effects of sensory stimulation as well as any associations to childhood foods.
The scientists found the music and expressions caused people's moods to fall across the board. However, the levels of sadness among those who consumed fatty acids were around 50 per cent lower compared to those who received saline.
'Eating fat seems to make us less vulnerable to sad emotions, even if we don't know we're eating fat,' Dr Oudenhove told HealthDay.
The researchers said their findings could have important implications for people with obesity, eating disorders and depression.
However, they wrote in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, that a follow-up study would need to recruit a wider range of participants.
Dr Giovanni Cizza, of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases in Bethesda, who co-authored an accompanying editorial: 'We did not know if you put fat in the stomach without pleasant stimulus, it could modulate our emotions,' he says.
'There must be a way in which the gut talks to the brain.'
Now scientists have found 'comfort' eating really does work at a molecular level to lift our mood, which could explain why so many people spiral into obesity when facing stressful situations.
Comfort: A new study suggests the fat inside ice cream may help you feel less upset
They recruited 12 healthy-weight volunteers and scanned their brainwaves as they were shown a series of sad and neutral images as well as exposing them to sad and neutral music.
They then inserted either fatty acids or saline into their stomachs but didn't tell the volunteers which was which. This meant they could bypass the effects of sensory stimulation as well as any associations to childhood foods.
The scientists found the music and expressions caused people's moods to fall across the board. However, the levels of sadness among those who consumed fatty acids were around 50 per cent lower compared to those who received saline.
'Eating fat seems to make us less vulnerable to sad emotions, even if we don't know we're eating fat,' Dr Oudenhove told HealthDay.
The researchers said their findings could have important implications for people with obesity, eating disorders and depression.
However, they wrote in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, that a follow-up study would need to recruit a wider range of participants.
Dr Giovanni Cizza, of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases in Bethesda, who co-authored an accompanying editorial: 'We did not know if you put fat in the stomach without pleasant stimulus, it could modulate our emotions,' he says.
'There must be a way in which the gut talks to the brain.'
Hungry enough to eat your own arm? How dieting can give your brain the cannibal urge
As any dieter knows, there are moments when you are so hungry you could gnaw off your own arm.
Now it seems that the brain feels the same way. When starved of food, brain cells actually eat each other.
This cannibalism ramps up appetite and so could help explain who so many diets are doomed to failure.
Now it seems that the brain feels the same way. When starved of food, brain cells actually eat each other.
This cannibalism ramps up appetite and so could help explain who so many diets are doomed to failure.
rozac 'increases risk of death in over-65s': Regular users have greater chance of developing serious health problems
Older people taking drugs such as
Prozac and Seroxat to combat depression are more at risk of serious
health problems than those regularly using old-style antidepressants,
warn researchers.
The most widely prescribed antidepressants – known as SSRIs – are more likely to cause death and heart attacks, strokes, falls and seizures than the older tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), they found.
Researchers from the universities of Nottingham and East Anglia say tricyclics may be the safest class of antidepressants for older people, partly because they are prescribed in lower doses which are just as effective.
The study, published in the British Medical Journal, analysed treatment and side effects recorded for more than 60,000 people aged 65 and over who were diagnosed with depression between 1996 and 2007.
The most widely prescribed antidepressants – known as SSRIs – are more likely to cause death and heart attacks, strokes, falls and seizures than the older tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), they found.
Researchers from the universities of Nottingham and East Anglia say tricyclics may be the safest class of antidepressants for older people, partly because they are prescribed in lower doses which are just as effective.
The study, published in the British Medical Journal, analysed treatment and side effects recorded for more than 60,000 people aged 65 and over who were diagnosed with depression between 1996 and 2007.
Multi-screen generation: Health fears for children who watch TV while using iPads, phones and laptops
If you’re an adult in this hi-tech
age, you might struggle with the multi-tasking nature of receiving a
text while watching the TV.
But there’s a generation growing up which is totally at ease with juggling four interactive devices at the same time.
Researchers say ten and 11-year-olds are often ‘multi-screen viewing’ – watching the TV while simultaneously using iPads, smartphones, laptops and hand-held gaming computers.
But there’s a generation growing up which is totally at ease with juggling four interactive devices at the same time.
Researchers say ten and 11-year-olds are often ‘multi-screen viewing’ – watching the TV while simultaneously using iPads, smartphones, laptops and hand-held gaming computers.
Rise of the killer bug: Super-salmonella that cannot be treated is spreading across Europe
A super-salmonella bug that cannot be treated by any drug is on the rise in Britain, scientists warn.
They think the strain originated in Egypt and is now being spread across Europe by contaminated fruit, vegetables and spices.
So far at least 200 Britons have been infected with the bug know as Salmonella Kentucky since 2000.
They think the strain originated in Egypt and is now being spread across Europe by contaminated fruit, vegetables and spices.
So far at least 200 Britons have been infected with the bug know as Salmonella Kentucky since 2000.
Super bug: Scientists think the new strain of
Salmonella originated in Egypt and is now being spread across Europe by
contaminated fruit, vegetables and spices
Hundreds of young women given smear tests on the advice of GPs
Hundreds of young women given smear
tests on the advice of GPs are having their test samples rejected by
bureaucratic clinics - because they are under 25.
Patients and GPs are becoming increasingly frustrated at the zero tolerance approach by laboratories, which saw 712 women across England have tests ignored last year because of Government rules which say those under 25 do not need to be tested.
This was up from 244 rejections the previous year.
GPs and patients groups are increasingly calling for a return to pre-2003 rules when the minimum age for a test was 20.
Around 3,000 women in the UK each year contract cervical cancer and it accounts for more than 900 deaths.
Dr Clare Gerada, of the Royal College of GPs, told BBC Newsnight: ‘I think if a GP has made a clinical decision to give a cervical smear then that smear should be processed.
‘The decision not to process it should not be made by a lab with no details about why that smear has been done.’
The Government insist that if a woman under 25 needs a smear test they must be referred to a gynaecologist.
But one consultant told Newsnight, which compiled the data using the Freedom of Information Act, that decision was crazy.
Professor John Shepherd said: ‘I think that’s not sensible, It’s crazy. GPs are well trained doctors.
‘In most practices there will be partners who specialise in gynaecology. To send patients straight to a gynaecologist is actually a waste of man power, time and money, and not sensible.’
The age for cervical screening was raised to 25 because experts believed it caused more harm than good in younger women.
Under 25s are more likely to present falsely positive results, meaning unnecessary treatment.
Patients and GPs are becoming increasingly frustrated at the zero tolerance approach by laboratories, which saw 712 women across England have tests ignored last year because of Government rules which say those under 25 do not need to be tested.
This was up from 244 rejections the previous year.
Ignored: Hundreds of young women given smear
tests on the advice of GPs are having their test samples rejected by
bureaucratic clinics because they are under 25 (picture posed by model)
Around 3,000 women in the UK each year contract cervical cancer and it accounts for more than 900 deaths.
Dr Clare Gerada, of the Royal College of GPs, told BBC Newsnight: ‘I think if a GP has made a clinical decision to give a cervical smear then that smear should be processed.
Calls: GPs and patients groups are increasingly
calling for a return to pre-2003 rules when the minimum age for a test
was 20 (picture posed by model)
The Government insist that if a woman under 25 needs a smear test they must be referred to a gynaecologist.
But one consultant told Newsnight, which compiled the data using the Freedom of Information Act, that decision was crazy.
Professor John Shepherd said: ‘I think that’s not sensible, It’s crazy. GPs are well trained doctors.
‘In most practices there will be partners who specialise in gynaecology. To send patients straight to a gynaecologist is actually a waste of man power, time and money, and not sensible.’
The age for cervical screening was raised to 25 because experts believed it caused more harm than good in younger women.
Under 25s are more likely to present falsely positive results, meaning unnecessary treatment.
Girls should have to wear sports bras during PE lessons, a scientist says
Girls should have to wear sports bras during PE lessons, a scientist says.
Dr Joanna Scurr said everyday bras do not provide enough support, which can lead to pain and even sagging.
An expert in breast movement, she said sports bras should be a compulsory part of PE kit, being as essential as mouthguards worn for hockey or rugby.
Dr Joanna Scurr said everyday bras do not provide enough support, which can lead to pain and even sagging.
An expert in breast movement, she said sports bras should be a compulsory part of PE kit, being as essential as mouthguards worn for hockey or rugby.
Bra benefits: Treadmill tests have revealed
breasts move both side to side and up and down during exercise, putting
strain on the tissue
Mediterranean diet 'lengthens life by up to FIFTEEN years', researchers claim
Those who follow a Mediterranean diet
combined with exercise, not smoking and keeping to a healthy weight
could live up to 15 years longer, researchers say.
The ten-year study by the University of Maastricht followed 120,000 men and women who were aged 55 to 69 in 1986.
A Mediterranean diet is high in vegetables, olive oil, fruit, nuts, fish and whole grains, and low in meat and alcohol.
The ten-year study by the University of Maastricht followed 120,000 men and women who were aged 55 to 69 in 1986.
A Mediterranean diet is high in vegetables, olive oil, fruit, nuts, fish and whole grains, and low in meat and alcohol.
Having a long life is 'all down to inheriting the right genes'
Smoking, drinking and eating fast food will not stop you living to a ripe old age – if you have the right genes.
A study of hundreds of centenarians revealed they were just as likely to have vices as other people – and in some cases they indulged in them more.
Some of them had smoked for 85 years, others got through more than two packets of cigarettes a day. They also exercised less than their shorter-lived counterparts but were less likely to become obese.
A study of hundreds of centenarians revealed they were just as likely to have vices as other people – and in some cases they indulged in them more.
Some of them had smoked for 85 years, others got through more than two packets of cigarettes a day. They also exercised less than their shorter-lived counterparts but were less likely to become obese.
Rise of the killer bug: Super-salmonella that cannot be treated is spreading across Europe
A super-salmonella bug that cannot be treated by any drug is on the rise in Britain, scientists warn.
They think the strain originated in Egypt and is now being spread across Europe by contaminated fruit, vegetables and spices.
So far at least 200 Britons have been infected with the bug know as Salmonella Kentucky since 2000.
They think the strain originated in Egypt and is now being spread across Europe by contaminated fruit, vegetables and spices.
So far at least 200 Britons have been infected with the bug know as Salmonella Kentucky since 2000.
Super bug: Scientists think the new strain of
Salmonella originated in Egypt and is now being spread across Europe by
contaminated fruit, vegetables and spices
Who are you? Butcher repeatedly forgets his wife and daughters after suffering five amnesia attacks out of the blue
When father-of-two Bob Watt set off for work at the local butcher's shop five months ago, he had no idea he would end up 12 miles away... with no memory of how he got there.
The 44-year-old had suffered a sudden inexplicable amnesia attack and ended up walking for hours before ending up in a restaurant.
Bob Watt has had to relearn how to work every day home appliances as well as his mobile phone
Mr Watt, from Aberdeen, said: 'The last thing I remember is leaving the house and the next thing my mobile phone was ringing.'
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