A regular use of aspirin may help slow progression of early emphysema, a deadly lung disease, claims a news research.

Researcher Carrie Aaron of the New York-based Columbia University said that other than smoking cessation and avoidance, there were no known methods for reducing the risk of developing emphysema.

"In our large general population sample, we found that using aspirin 3 or more days per week was associated with a slower progression of percent emphysema on computed tomography (CT) scans over 10 years," she said.

The study included 4,471 individuals participating in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis Lung Study., where the percentage of lung volume with emphysematous features (percent emphysema) was assessed on up to 4 CT scans performed over approximately 10 years of follow-up. Spirometry, a measure of expiratory airflow, was performed in 81 percent of study subjects.

Aaron said the results showed that people taking aspirin regularly had a slower progression of emphysema over ten years compared to those who did not, and that this difference was not explained by many factors that we believe affect progression of emphysema.

The research was presented at the 2015 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

A diet containing walnuts may lead to genetic changes that can slow growth of colorectal tumour, the third most common type of cancer worldwide, new animal study by Harvard Medical School has found.

The study examined whether walnut consumption can cause changes to micro-ribonucleic acids (miRNA), the nucleotides that are involved in altering gene expression.

"Our research demonstrates that a walnut diet causes significant changes in the expression profile of miRNAs in localised colorectal cancer tissue, and that a walnut diet incorporates protective fatty acids in the colonic tumour either through its direct effects or through additive or synergistic effects of multiple other compounds present in walnuts," said lead researcher Christos Mantzoros.

Walnuts are the only nut that contain a significant source of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an essential fatty acid critical to various body processes and is known to reduce inflammation.

Walnuts also contain a variety of antioxidants, and numerous vitamins and minerals.

The researchers conducted the randomised study with two groups of mice. One group was fed the equivalent of two servings (56 grams) per day of walnuts for humans, while the second group received a similar control diet with no walnuts.

After 25 days, researchers found that in walnut-fed mice, key miRNA that may affect cancer cell inflammation, blood supply and proliferation were positively engaged.

The study results found that a smaller tumour size was associated with walnut-containing diet, suggesting that ALA may provide a protective benefit.

Tumour growth rate was also significantly slower in the walnut group compared to the control group.

The study was published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.

One simple way to make children eat more healthy is to help them grow vegetables in the gardens, says a new research.

The researchers found that when garden grown vegetables were slipped into school salads, kids were over four times as likely to take a salad.

"This is a small study, but it suggests gardens can help children's diets," said lead author Brian Wansink from Cornell University.

This pilot study, conducted in the US, measured the change in vegetable selection and plate waste when school grown salad greens were incorporated in the cafeteria school lunch. The researchers measured the selections and plate waste of a total of 370 enrolled high school students over three separate days.

When the salad bar contained produce grown by students, the percentage of those who selected salads with their meals increased from two percent to 10 percent and on average, students ate two-thirds of their salads.

Overall, salad consumption for the entire student body increased from approximately five to 12 servings per day. This study implies the larger potential benefits of the school garden programmes.

"We see great promise with this research. The first hurdle in increasing vegetable consumption is simply getting kids to put them on their plate," co-author Drew Hanks from Ohio State University noted.

The study was published in the journal Acta Paediatrica.

Researchers have developed a new way to test for cocaine use that only needs a fingerprint to determine results. Previous testing methods were limited to finding if cocaine had been handled, but the new technique finds whether the drug has actually been ingested.

The study, led by a team led by the University of Surrey in the UK, utilized an analytical chemistry technique, called mass spectrometry, on the fingerprints of participants who were currently attending drug treatment services. Once data was collected, they compared it to saliva samples to test its accuracy.

Dr. Melanie Bailey, lead author and lecturer in forensics at the University of Surrey, told FoxNews.com that the new test has many benefits over traditional testing, including a fast turnaround time.

"Fingerprints are so quick compared with urine or blood or even saliva. You can put a fingerprint down in a couple of seconds," she said. "And our method of analysis is so quick - it literally takes two minutes to analyze a fingerprint sample."

Bailey said in addition to being time efficient, with this technique the identity of the donor is embedded in the ridge detail of the print, which helps with traceability and makes the test impossibly to falsify.

The test works by finding traces of benzoylecgonine and methylecgonine in fingerprint residue, which are chemicals the body excretes when it metabolizes cocaine. Traditionally, these chemicals are detected in a urine test, which can be unhygienic and less accurate, as well as take more time.

Part of the development of the test included spraying a fingerprint slide with a special solvent called Desorption Electrospray Ionization (DESI) to detect benzoylecgonine and methylecgonine. This is the first time DESI has been used to prove drug use.

Bailey told FoxNews.com she thinks the test has some very exciting possibilities for widespread use by probation services, prisons, courts and other law enforcement agencies, but further research needs to be conducted.

"We would like to get funding to make this technology more portable using miniature mass spectrometers. We are also working on a quantitative method," she said.

Researchers hope this fingerprint drug test has the potential to become the norm in drug testing because of its unique benefits of speed and accuracy. Traditional testing methods like blood and urine testing need trained staff, biological hazard storage and disposal guidelines, and often require off-site analysis.

Study authors say this technology could see the introduction of portable drug tests for law enforcement agencies to use within the next decade.

"It depends on the level of funding the work attracts. It could be as quick as a couple of years if we attract enough resources," Bailey said.

Researchers from the Netherlands Forensic Institute in the Netherlands, the National Physical Laboratory, King's College London and Sheffield Hallam University in the UK were also involved in the test's development.

The findings are published in the journal Analyst.

Including 4 eggs to your diet per week could help reduce risk of developing diabetes, finds a new study.

University of Eastern Finland researchers were surprised to learn that eggs, which are high in cholesterol, could cut the risk developing Type 2 diabetes by nearly 40 per cent, the Daily Express reported.

It may be due to nutrients, that improves the way the body metabolises sugar and help to dampen down inflammation which leads to chronic illness.

After examining the eating habits of 2,332 middle-aged men, who signed up to a study in the l980s, the scientists found that men who ate roughly 4 eggs a week were 38 per cent less likely to fall ill than those who rarely or never ate eggs.

These men also had lower blood sugar levels without any steep rise in cholesterol.

However, they added that consuming over 4 eggs a week did not seem to increase the effect, and they the way an egg was cooked wasn't put in consideration.

The study is published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.