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Aug 04

Scientists create map of eye with vision loss

Posted on Monday, 4th August 2014

Researchers have created an up-to-date detailed molecular map of eye with vision loss disease.

Researchers from University of Iowa developed a most detailed map to date of the abundance of thousands of proteins in the choroid, a region of the human eye long associated with blinding diseases. By seeing differences in protein abundance, the researchers would begin to figure out which proteins might be the critical actors in vision loss and eye disease.

Vinit Mahajan, assistant professor in ophthalmology at the UI, said that this molecular map now gives them clues why certain areas of the choroid are more sensitive to certain diseases, as well as where to target therapies and why.

Jessica Skeie, a post-doctoral researcher in ophthalmology at the UI, said that they were able to identify thousands of proteins simultaneously and develop a map that shows the patterns of proteins that make these regions unique, furthermore this has helped them explain why certain genes are associated with macular degeneration, and helps point them to new treatment targets.

Aug 02

Watch your waistline for diabetes risk

Posted on Saturday, 2nd August 2014

A British health report has warned that adults with a large waistline are five times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.

In its report, the Public Health England (PHE), an executive agency of Britain's Department of Health, said they encourage people to monitor their waistline and assess risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

According to the report, men having a large waist circumference of over 102cm (40 inches)are five times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes. Women with a large waist circumference of over 88cm (34.6 inches) are three times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, Xinhua reported.

Currently 90 percent of the adults with type 2 diabetes are overweight or obese, and the prevalence of both obesity and diabetes are on the increase, said PHE experts.

Being overweight or obese is the main avoidable risk factor for type 2 diabetes, they added.

According to Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at PHE, type 2 diabetes is a very serious public health issue which can have significant consequences, such as limb amputations or blindness.

The key to reducing your chances of type 2 diabetes is losing weight which can be achieved through a healthy diet and being more active, she added.

The report also revealed that deprivation is closely linked to the risk of both -- obesity and diabetes in Britain, with type 2 diabetes being 40 percent more common among people in the poorest communities compared to the rich ones.

Aug 02

'Ebola could be a threat to Britain'

Posted on Saturday, 2nd August 2014

The fatal Ebola virus, which has killed hundreds of people since February, could be a threat to Britain, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said.

The disease has killed more than 600 people in West Africa, Xinhua reported.

According to Hammond, no Britons have been affected so far and the government has been viewing the outbreak very seriously.

"In terms of the UK, the issue is about the possibility of somebody who has contracted the disease in Africa getting sick here."

"It is not about the disease spreading in the UK because we have frankly different standards of infection control procedure that would make that most unlikely," Hammond said.

Public Health England (PHE) has already issued an alert to British doctors to be aware of Ebola symptoms.

Fears of global outbreak were raised last week, after a man showing signs of Ebola left Liberia on a flight to Lagos, where he later died.

Aug 01

Breastfeeding lowers risk of cardiovascular, metabolic diseases in kids

Posted on Friday, 1st August 2014

A new study has found that young adults who were breastfed for three months or more as babies have a significantly lower risk of chronic inflammation associated with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.

The research from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, shows that

birth weight and breastfeeding both have implications for children's health decades later.

The researchers used data from the US National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, including parent surveys, and blood samples providing measurements of CRP.

These findings held up in a series of sibling models, in which one sibling was breastfed and the other was not. Such models provide improved confidence in the results by implicitly controlling for genetic factors for elevated CRP.

"These findings underscore the importance of a preventive approach but not limited to prenatal health care and postnatal breastfeeding support," said Molly W Metzger, co-author of the study with Thomas W McDade, PhD, of Northwestern University.

The study was published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.

Aug 01

Teenagers active in evenings more prone to insomnia

Posted on Friday, 1st August 2014

Have you witnessed your teenage son getting more active in the evenings compared to rest of the day? He may be prone to develop insomnia in addition to depression and anxiety.

Teenagers who are more active in the evenings are more likely to have depression and insomnia, research finds.

Such people are also more likely to have obsessive-compulsive disorder, separation anxiety and social phobia.

"Our findings suggest that the 'eveningness' chronotype - being more active in the evenings - is an independent risk factor for insomnia and depression," said Pasquale Alvaro from University of Adelaide's school of psychology.

In many countries, nearly 11 percent of teenagers aged 13-16 years experience insomnia at some stage.

Having insomnia in addition to anxiety or depression can further intensify the problems being experienced with each individual disorder.

"It can lead to such problems as alcohol and drug misuse during adolescence," Alvaro added.

To reach this conclusion, Alvaro surveyed more than 300 Australian high school students aged 12

18 to better understand their sleep habits, mental health condition and the time of day they were most active.

He found that the presence of insomnia was independently linked with depression, generalised anxiety disorder and panic disorder among teenagers.

The results were published in the journal Sleep Medicine.

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