30 October, 2018

High-heeled shoe can cause osteoarthritis + joint problems, says All India Institute of Medical Sciences expert

Wearing stilettos or pencil heels might be fashionable but it can have an adverse affect on health, especially bones, and may lead to major health hazards like degenerative arthritis — also called osteoarthritis. According to Uma Kumar, HOD, Rheumatology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), wearing high heels every day for long hours can lead to cumulative damage of bones and emerge as a leading cause for arthritis.

Osteoarthritis, one of the most common chronic and long-lasting joint condition, is caused by joint damage where the cartilage breaks down, causing the bones within the joint to rub together. This leads to pain, stiffness and other issues. “Women, especially those who are below 40, are coming to AIIMS with such joint pain-related issues caused due to wearing of high heels. If ignored, these may lead to severe health problems which might need surgery to be cured,” Uma Kumar told IANS.

High heels cause unequal weight distribution on the foot bones, exposing those areas of joints to bear weight which are normally not designed to do so. This results in painful foot conditions like bunions and meta-tarsalgias — also known as fore-foot pain, she said.

“Wearing heels generates pressure on knees and toes and they start aching if heels are worn for too long. The calf muscle is also stressed continuously,” she added. Besides arthritis, wearing high heels also increases risk for nerve pull, back pain, waist pain and knee pain. Early symptoms of osteoarthritis include pain in joints, early morning stiffness in feet for more than 30 minutes and swelling in feet and back.

“If one is keen on wearing a heel, it is advised to go for wedges or platform shoes. The problem rises with height of the heel and the ideal height should be one and a half inches,” Uma Kumar suggested. She advised that heels should be avoided by teenage girls because it might affect their posture at an early age and develop chronic pains later.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

30.10.2018

Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today

 John Wooden

29 October, 2018

Those with sedentary lifestyle 500% more likely to die as compared to those who exercise

Exercise has umpteen benefits for your health, weight loss and even your skin. It can keep your heart healthy and protect you from so many diseases. But a new research tells us just how important exercise is for your health. Researchers and author of the study published in the journal JAMA Network Open say that a sedentary lifestyle is worse for health than smoking, diabetes and heart disease. This simply means that ‘being unfit on a treadmill or in an exercise stress test has a worse prognosis, as far as death, than being hypertensive, being diabetic or being a current smoker,’ according to  Wael Jaber, senior author of the study. Simply put, you can just keep away from smoking and other vices to be healthy, you’ve actually got to pick up your gym shoes and head to your workout sessions!

The research studied 122,007 patients who underwent exercise treadmill testing to measure all-cause mortality relating to the benefits of exercise and fitness. Those with the lowest exercise rate accounted for 12% of the participants. A big take away from the research is that fitness leads to a longer life. It also reveals that ‘ultra exercisers,’ popularly believed to have been are at a higher risk of death, are actually not and that the ultra-fit still have lower mortality.

When it comes to the benefits of exercise, your age and gender also apparently don’t matter. However, it is ‘probably a little more pronounced in females,’ Jaber said. The risks, he said, became more shocking when comparing those who don’t exercise much.

Comparing those with a sedentary lifestyle to the top exercise performers, the risk associated with death is 500% higher and comparing somebody who doesn’t exercise much to somebody who exercises regularly showed a risk 390% higher.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

29.10.2018

What’s right isn’t always popular. What’s popular isn’t always right

 Howard Cosell

27 October, 2018

These drugs for curbing blood pressure may increase the risk of lung cancer, finds study

In case you are a blood pressure (BP) patient and are on BP drugs, this is what you should not miss. A recent study has shown that long-term use of certain blood pressure drugs that are widely prescribed by doctors may put you at a greater risk of lung cancer. The study has been published on Thursday by the BMJ. According to the researchers, while the risk for individuals is comparatively lower, it could accumulate into large number of patients with potential risk of lung cancer.

The study has found that use of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor drugs (ACEIs) to reduce blood pressure can be linked with an increased chance of developing lung cancer compared to another group of blood pressure drugs called angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs). Not just this, the researchers have also seen that ACEIs are pretty widely prescribed for controlling leaping blood sugar and this can increase the absolute number of patients at risk of lung cancer.

The study has highlighted the proofs that show that prolonged use of ACEIs may result in building-up of protein-like chemicals called bradykinin and substance P in the lung. These chemicals have not only been obtained in lung cancer tissues, but bradykinin may also directly enhance the growth of lung cancer.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

27.10.2018

Happiness is not something you find ….. It’s something you create

25 October, 2018

Eating beetroot, spinach can prevent eye disease

If you have been avoiding to include spinach and beetroot in your diet then you are doing it all wrong! According to a study, eating vegetable nitrates which are found mainly in green leafy vegetables and beetroot, can cut down the risk of developing early-stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which can be termed as an eye disease resulting into vision loss.

In the study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, reportedly, researchers at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research had interviewed more than 2,000 Australian adults over the age of 49 and followed them for a 15-year period.

Reportedly, the researchers observed that those who consumed between 100 to 142 mg of vegetable nitrates per day, had a 35 per cent lower risk of suffering from early AMD compared to people who ate less than 69 mg of vegetable nitrates every day. This research is an eye opener for all.

Reportedly, according to the lead researcher Bamini Gopinath, the connection between vegetable nitrates and macular degeneration could have important implications. According to him, for the first time, the effects of dietary nitrates on macular degeneration risk have been considered. It was discovered that people who ate 100 to 142 mg of vegetable nitrates per day, had a lower risk of developing early signs of macular degeneration than people who ate fewer nitrates. So, eating beetroot and spinach can be beneficial for your eyes.

Reportedly, the research didn’t carry any additional benefits for people who exceeded 142mgs of dietary nitrate every day. It also did not show about links between vegetable nitrates and late-stage AMD, or between non-vegetable nitrates and AMD risk. So, you can try to eat spinach and beetroot daily and notice the difference by yourself.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

25.10.2018

Happiness is not something ready made; it comes from your own actions

22 October, 2018

Eating green leafy vegetables could help prevent vision loss

A new study has found that eating vegetable nitrates, found mainly in green leafy vegetables and beetroot, could prevent macular degeneration, a common cause of vision loss in people over age 50. The study has been published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

The researchers interviewed more than 2,000 Australian adults aged over 49 and followed them over a 15-year period for the study. According to the research findings, people who ate between 100 to 142 mgs (milligrams) of vegetable nitrates each day had a 35 per cent lower risk of developing early age-related macular degeneration (AMD) than people who ate less than 69 mgs of vegetable nitrates each day. Spinach has approximately 20mg of nitrate per 100g, while beetroot has nearly 15mg of nitrate per 100g.

The lead researcher Bamini Gopinath from Westmead Institute for Medical Research in Australia reportedly said that this is the first time the effects of dietary nitrates on macular degeneration risk has been measured. He also said that if their findings are confirmed, incorporating a range of foods rich in dietary nitrates like green leafy vegetables and beetroot then it could be a simple strategy to reduce the risk of early macular degeneration.

However, the research did not show any additional benefits for people who exceeded 142mgs of dietary nitrate each day.

Age is the strongest known risk factor for AMD and the disease is more likely to occur after the age of 50. There is currently no cure for the disease.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

22.10.2018

It is very easy to defeat someone, but it is very hard to win someone

Dr Abdul Kalam

17 October, 2018

Dietary supplements can be dangerous for your health

The general perception is dietary supplements won’t harm you like other potent drugs even if you go overboard with them. But this is not true. In the recent past to be more precise during the last decade the US health officials have issued more than 700 warnings to the companies to regulate the sale of the supplements that contained unapproved and potentially dangerous ingredients. In fact, a study done to calculate the health status of these supplements revealed its truth.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration found that in most of the cases the presence of such ingredients was not noted anywhere on supplement labelling. While some products cited the warnings, especially the weight-loss products the other conveniently ignored it. The supplements that were most questionable were the sexual or libido enhancers, weight-loss supplements and muscle gainers. In fact, the number of supplements adulterated with drugs is rapidly increasing. A study that was led by Madhur Kumar, of the California Department of Public Health’s Food and Drug Branch and published in JAMA Network Open highlighted this fact. The agency classifies dietary supplements — including vitamins, minerals, botanicals, amino acids and enzymes — under the category of food, rather than drugs. The FDA explicitly warns that supplements aren’t a replacement for either over-the-counter or prescription medications, and should not be viewed as a way to treat or prevent disease.

Since supplements are not vetted by FDA they don’t follow strict guidelines of safety or efficacy found the study.  This is why you should be wary about the supplements that you use or take without discussing with your doctor. However, if you still want to use supplements, here is something that you should know: If your doctor has not asked you to use any supplement for your health sake, then it is likely that you don’t need it. If you still wish to buy supplements avoid buying the ones which have some exorbitant health claims such as improving immunity or strengthening muscles they could be loaded with toxins.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

17.10.2018

What’s right isn’t always popular. What’s popular isn’t always right

 Howard Cosell

15 October, 2018

Picking your nose could lead to pneumonia

The study, published in the European Respiratory Journal, revealed that the pneumococcus bacteria is not only an airborne virus but it can spread physically as well. Yes, you have heard it right! since the study says that picking your nose can lead to serious illness and if you like to take that dig then you should think twice before doing so.

Researchers from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) undertook the research highlighted how vital it is to keep your hands clean in order to cut down your risk of suffering from serious health ailments.

The study was funded by Unilever and the Medical Research Council and forty adult volunteers were used for the study. By using different hand to nose methods, the volunteers were randomly assigned into four groups and exposed to certain bacteria. One group was exposed to the bacteria in water while the other group was exposed to air-dried bacteria.

Reportedly, the researchers found that participants were as likely to get the bacteria in their noses whether they were exposed to it using those dry or wet samples. If participants poked picked or even rubbed their noses, it was also found that the same amount of transmission was recorded.

According to Doctor Victoria Connor is a clinical research fellow at LSTM who is the lead author on the study, pneumococcal infection is a main cause of death across the world. Reportedly, it is estimated that it is responsible for 1.3 million deaths in children under the age of five annually.

Reportedly, the elderly and people with other causes of impaired immunity like chronic illness, are also at a higher risk of pneumococcal infections.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

15.10.2018

If we don’t learn to control our thoughts, we will never learn to control our behavior

13 October, 2018

Now a colour changing contact lens to act as drug delivery agent for eyes

Imagine contact lenses changing their colours and acting as drug delivery agents. That is exactly what scientists have come up with to deliver drugs and monitor eye treatments, thanks to this group of geniuses from China Pharmaceutical University and Southeast University in China. They tried to create a drug-delivering contact lens that would change colour indicating that the drug has been successfully delivered, highlighted a recent media report.

The study that appeared in the journal ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces showed that this lens could control and point out at the sustained release of many ophthalmic drugs. This novel lens will sort out the challenge that doctors face on knowing how much medication is actually getting into the eye while administering eye drops and ointments.

This challenge, according to doctors, is because the eyes tend to reject foreign elements and tears start flowing when something external goes into the eye. Although this process is great in terms of avoiding eye infection, it can prevent the up-take of much required medication. Contact lens do help doctors overcome this challenge and is an appropriate way of delivering drugs.

However, the real-time monitoring of drug disease still remains a concern. The researchers used molecular imprinting to fabricate a colourful-sensitive contact lens. Molecular imprinting is a technique creating molecular cavities in a polymer structure, matching the size and shape of a specific compound like a medicine.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

13.10.2018

Live life to express not to impress….Don’t worry about your presence…Just make your absence felt…

11 October, 2018

Swimming helps alleviate depression, anxiety symptoms

A number of scientific research studies have proven how exercise benefits those with mental health problems like depression and anxiety. Now, a new UK-based study has shown that swimming has a positive impact on mental health. In a poll by YouGov commissioned by Swim England, it was revealed that about 1.4 million adults in Britain have reported reduced symptoms of depression or anxiety because of swimming. Astonishingly, 4,92,000 British adults with mental health conditions who swim regularly said that that they have ‘reduced the number of visits to a medical professional regarding their mental health as a result of swimming.’ The people enrolled for the study swam at least once every 2-3 weeks. 43 per cent of the subjects said that swimming ‘makes them feel happier, 26 per cent are more motivated to complete daily tasks and 15 per cent believe life feels more manageable.’

A research in 2017 by a group of Chinese researchers also revealed how swimming benefits mental health and helps alleviate symptoms of depression. The study stated that swimming exercise has a positive effect on chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS)-induced changes in depression-like behaviours and hippocampal plasticity-related proteins, which provide a framework for developing new strategies to treat stress-induced depression.

There are plenty of health benefits of swimming. Swimming targets all the muscles and is hence a whole body workout. Swimming makes your heart beat faster, improve lung capacity and blood circulation. Since there is the resistance of water, swimming helps build muscles without putting any pressure on the joints. This makes it especially good for people with conditions like arthritis, osteoporosis, any kind of bone or joint pains and even old people and pregnant women. Swimming combines cardio and strength training. There is every reason why you must start swimming immediately. Just keep in mind to get a coach who will teach you the correct ways of doing different swimming strokes.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

11.10.2018

Don’t trust too much; don’t hope too much because that too much can hurt you so much

9 October, 2018

Risk of bone fractures increases with excessive vitamin A

Turns out, consuming too much vitamin A may decrease bone thickness, leading to weak and fracture-prone bones. A new study, undertaken in mice, found that sustained intake of vitamin A, at levels equivalent to 4.5-13 times the human recommended daily allowance (RDA), caused significant weakening of the bones, and suggests that people should be cautious of over-supplementing vitamin A in their diets.

Vitamin A is an essential vitamin that is important for numerous biological processes including growth, vision, immunity and organ function. Our bodies are unable to make vitamin A but a healthy diet including meat, dairy products and vegetables should be sufficient to maintain the body’s nutritional needs. Some evidence has suggested that people who take vitamin A supplements may be increasing their risk of bone damage.

In this study, Dr Ulf Lerner and colleagues from Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, report that mice given lower doses of vitamin A, equivalent to 4.5-13 times the RDA in humans, over a longer time period, also showed thinning of their bones after just 8 days, which progressed over the ten-week study period.

Dr. Ulf Lerner commented, “Previous studies in rodents have shown that vitamin A decreases bone thickness but these studies were performed with very high doses of vitamin A, over a short period of time. In our study, we have shown that much lower concentrations of vitamin A, a range more relevant for humans, still decreases rodent bone thickness and strength.”

“Overconsumption of vitamin A may be an increasing problem as many more people now take vitamin supplements. An overdose of vitamin A could be increasing the risk of bone weakening disorders in humans but more studies are needed to investigate this. In the majority of cases, a balanced diet is perfectly sufficient to maintain the body’s nutritional needs for vitamin A,” cautioned Lerner.

The full findings are present in the Journal of Endocrinology.

Source: www.thehealthnews.com

09.10.2018

Being honest may not get you a lot of friends but it will always get you the right ones

5 October, 2018

This new technology can detect heart attack years before it can occur

Technology has once again brought in a breakthrough in terms of detecting heart attacks. A team of researchers from Oxford University and institutions in Germany and the United States has come up with a novel method of analysing images from CT scans to predict which patients are at risk of a heart attack years before it occurs, highlighted a recent media report. According to the researchers, this technology seeks help of algorithms for examining the fat surrounding coronary arteries as it shows up on computed tomography (CT) heart scans. The study points out that this fat gets changed or altered when there is an inflammation in the artery and this acts as a sign of early warning as this can increase the chance of heart attack by 30%.

“If you are able to identify inflammation in the arteries of the heart then you can say which arteries … will cause heart attacks,” reportedly said Oxford Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Charalambos Antoniades. According to him, this new technology can help achieve this by analysing simple CT scans.

With the new technology, researchers believe that the doctors will be able to point out which arteries are at a greater chance of narrowing and thereby predict a heart attack way before.

“We can say …your arteries are inflamed and a narrowing will be developed five years down the line. So maybe you can start preventive measures to avoid this formation of the plaques,” Antoniades reportedly said.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

05.10.2018

The world suffers a lot not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people

Napoleon

4 October, 2018

Scientists find a new algorithm to produce new antibiotics and cancer drugs

Recently a group of scientist stumbled upon a computer algorithm that will make discovery of new drugs much easier. This computer algorithm reduces the chances of simply rediscovering known compounds. The algorithm was discovered while they were trying to discover new antibiotic and cancer drugs. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, found a new means of searching vast repositories of compounds produced by microbes.

Researchers, including those from the Carnegie Mellon University in the US, were able to identify known compounds within the repository and eliminate them from further analysis. This reduces the repetition of finding the same drug and improving one’s knowledge about drugs. Once they could eliminate the known compounds within the repository they focussed on the unknown variants that might potentially be better or more efficient antibiotics, anticancer drugs or other pharmaceuticals.

In just a week, running on 100 computers, the algorithm, called Dereplicator+, identified over 5,000 promising, unknown compounds that merit further investigation, said Hosein Mohimani reportedly, an assistant professor at Carnegie Mellon University.

Analysing the compounds’ mass spectra — essentially, a measurement of the masses within a sample that has been ionised — is a relatively inexpensive way of identifying possible new pharmaceuticals. However, existing techniques were largely limited to peptides, which have simple structures such as chains and loops.

To analyse the larger number of complex compounds that have entangled structures and numerous loops and branches, the researchers developed a method for predicting how a mass spectrometer would break apart the molecules. Using 5,000 known compounds and their mass spectra, they trained a computer model that could then be used to predict how other compounds would break down.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

04.10.2018

Attitude makes you different from others, while Ego makes you alone from others