Grey hair really is a sign of stress, say scientists. Stress really does turn your hair grey


When the going gets tough chemicals are triggered which damage DNA and leads us to look older and also increases the risk of diseases.

Mice given an adrenalin-like compound to trigger stress had reduced amounts of a protein that keeps us healthy by protecting our cells from developing abnormalities.

Professor Robert Lefkowitz, of Duke University, North Carolina, said: "This could give us a plausible explanation of how chronic stress may lead to a variety of human conditions and disorders, which range from merely cosmetic, like greying hair, to life-threatening disorders like malignancies."

In experiments the researchers whose findings are published in Nature discovered a molecular mechanism through which adrenaline acted to destroy DNA.

Over four weeks the mice were inhected with the compound which led to degradation of the protein called p53 - dubbed the "guardian of the genome" for its role in preventing cancer - which was present in lower levels over time.

Prof Lefkowitz said: "We believe this paper is the first to propose a specific mechanism through which a hallmark of chronic stress, elevated adrenaline, could eventually cause DNA damage that is detectable."

The study also showed DNA damage was prevented in mice lacking a protein known as beta-arrestin 1.

Loss of it stabilised levels of p53 both in the thymus, an organ that strongly responds to acute or chronic stress, and in the testes where paternal stress might affect an offspring's genome.

Co-researcher Dr Makoto Hara said: "The study showed chronic stress leads to prolonged lowering of p53 levels. We hypothesize this is the reason for the chromosomal irregularities we found in these chronically stressed mice."

The team is planning future studies in which mice are placed under stress by restraining them to creating their own adrenaline or stress reaction to show if their physical reactions also lead to DNA damage.

It is no secret that our habits and behavior can have a large impact on our health. Now, a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that our lifestyle behaviors can predict lifespan too.


The study looked at four healthy behaviors - not smoking, eating a healthy diet, limiting alcohol, and getting regular physical activity - and found that people who followed all four habits were 63 percent less likely to die early when compared to those who didn't follow any of these healthy habits. In fact, the most protection from dying early was exhibited in the habit of not smoking.



"If you want to lead a longer life and feel better, you should adopt healthy behaviors - not smoking, getting regular physical activity, eating healthy, and avoiding excessive alcohol use," explained CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H.



Besides all-cause mortality, the study also took into account specific causes of death. Specifically, the study found that people who practiced all four healthy behaviors "were 66 percent less likely to die early from cancer, 65 percent less likely to die early from cardiovascular disease, and 57 percent less likely to die early from other causes," when compared to those who followed none of the healthy habits studied.



The study was published today online on the American Journal of Public Health and is titled "Low Risk Behaviors and All-Cause Mortality: Findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III Mortality Study."



Data from the CDC's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III Mortality Study was analyzed by the researchers. As a follow-up to the NHANES III, survey participants ages 17 and older were recruited between 1988 to 1994 and followed through 2006. Among the study participants, "47.5 percent had never smoked, 51 percent were moderate drinkers, 39.3 percent had a healthy diet, and 40.2 percent were adequately physically active." There was no significant difference in healthy behaviors between genders; Mexican-Americans had more healthy behaviors compared to whites and African-Americans.



The bottom line is simple: the more healthy habits you follow, the more you protect your body from degradation and disease. However, the authors discussed the challenges of encouraging large numbers of the population in adopting healthy habits. Despite studies showing that only a small fraction of people practice all of the above healthy behaviors, a respectable amount of progress has been observed in the decreased rate of smokers. Without a doubt, this study is a beacon of hope for the general public and emphasizes the role of cooperation between the clinical a public health industries in promoting a larger adoption of healthy behaviors.

A new study has revealed that boys are maturing physically earlier than ever before with the age of sexual maturity decreasing by about 2.5 months each decade at least since the middle of the 18th century.

Joshua Goldstein, director of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock (MPIDR), has used mortality data to prove this trend, which until now was difficult to decipher.

What had already been established for girls now seems to also be true for boys: the time period during which young people are sexually mature but socially not yet considered adults is expanding.

"The reason for earlier maturity for boys, as with girls, is probably because nutrition and disease environments are getting more favourable for it," said demographer Goldstein.

It has long been documented by medical records that girls are experiencing their first menstruation earlier and earlier.

But comparable data analysis for boys did not exist. Goldstein resolved this gap by studying demographic data related to mortality.

When male hormone production during puberty reaches a maximum level the probability of dying jumps up. This phenomenon, called the "accident hump", exists in almost all societies and is statistically well documented.

Goldstein discovered that the maximum mortality value of the accident hump shifted to earlier age by 2.5 months for each decade since the mid-1700s, or just over two years per century.

Accordingly, the age of boys' sexual maturity decreased at the same rate.

Essentially, the data showed that the age of sexual maturity is getting younger and younger since the accident hump is occurring earlier and earlier.

In respect to the developmental stage of the body "being 18 today is like being 22 in 1800," stated Goldstein.

Doctors, students and staff members of AIIMS, Safdarjung and Lady Hardinge Medical College held candle-light marches in the Capital

Among millions of others joining the Anna Hazare-led protest is the Capital's medical fraternity. The civil society activist, who was arrested in the morning on Tuesday, has attracted a mass following in the last few weeks.

On Tuesday, doctors from various government hospitals participated in a candle-light march, to protest against the government's decision to detain Anna. The protestors included medical practitioners, students and other staff members of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Safdarjung and Lady Hardinge medical College (LHMC). A candle-light march was organised in respective campuses as well. Doctors said if Anna was not released by tomorrow, they might go on a strike.

"We have a general body meeting in our hospital tomorrow and the same will be conducted in other hospitals as well. We will join in full strength to support Anna. Initially, we will organise candle light march. If he is not released by tomorrow, all of us, including doctors from each and every hospital, might go on a strike," said Dr Anurag Mishra, president, Resident Doctors Association (RDA), Maulana Azad Medical College.

"We will go to India Gate to join the movement and gather as many doctors as possible," said Dr Nitin Rajasingh, president, RDA, LHMC. "More than 100 doctors participated in the march today. We are sure that tomorrow there will be more," said Dr Sumit Budani, president, Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA).

"We may not agree with either side entirely, but we do believe in the need for a corruption-free society. This is the first time someone has dared to raise a voice against a prevalent evil. Let's join in," said Dr Debjyoti Karmakar, president, RDA, AIIMS.

A new definition of addiction released by the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has highlighted that addiction is a chronic brain disorder and not simply a behavioural problem involving too much alcohol, drugs, gambling or sex.

This the first time ASAM has taken an official position that addiction is not solely related to problematic substance use.

When people see compulsive and damaging behaviours in friends or family members - or public figures such as celebrities or politicians - they often focus only on the substance use or behaviours as the problem.

However, these outward behaviours are actually manifestations of an underlying disease that involves various areas of the brain, according to the new definition by ASAM, the nation's largest professional society of physicians dedicated to treating and preventing addiction.

"At its core, addiction isn't just a social problem or a moral problem or a criminal problem. It's a brain problem whose behaviours manifest in all these other areas," said Dr. Michael Miller, past president of ASAM who oversaw the development of the new definition.

"Many behaviours driven by addiction are real problems and sometimes criminal acts. But the disease is about brains, not drugs. It's about underlying neurology, not outward actions," he added.

* The new definition also recognizes addiction as a chronic disease, like cardiovascular disease or diabetes, so it must be treated, managed and monitored over a lifetime.