Health

A new at-home pregnancy test that not only tells women if they are expecting but also informs them with 93 per cent accuracy how far along they are in their pregnancy is being launched in the US.

Already popular in Europe, the Clearblue Advanced Pregnancy Test with Weeks Estimator has been given the green signal by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

All home pregnancy tests are designed to detect the human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) hormone, that women produce when they are pregnant, in the urine.

A new survey has revealed that one out of 10 people do not sleep properly at night in order to stay in touch on the internet.

In the poll conducted by Nytol last December, more than 50 percent of 2000 people polled admitted that they went online while in bed trying to sleep, News.com.au reported.

It was found that one in five said that they needed to check their Twitter, Facebook or email accounts because they have a “fear of missing out”, while just one in 10 described their quality of sleep as “good”.

Researchers have found a preliminary link between workaholics and reduced physical and mental well-being.

Sarah Asebedo, doctoral student in the College of Human Ecology’s personal financial planning and conflict resolution program, Edina, Minnesota, conducted the study using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979.

Researchers have linked increased breast cancer risk to drinking between early adolescence and first full-term pregnancy.

Post-pregnancy weight is a nightmare for most women, but with some easy exercises, it can be easily tackled.

Femalefirst.co.uk shares five easy-to-do yoga poses which help lose weight fast:

Eagle: This exercise releases tension in shoulders and upper back. It brings fresh oxygenated blood to the reproductive organs, strengthens lower back, legs, feet and ankles. It opens all the major joints of the body.

Two treatments that slow the development of diabetes may also protect people from heart disease, a new study suggests.

Researchers examined the effect that making intensive lifestyle changes or taking the medication metformin had on cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

The study, part of the National Institutes of Health`s Diabetes Prevention Program, found that both treatments induced positive changes in the level of particles that carry cholesterol and triglycerides through the blood stream.

These changes could lower the chances of plaque building up in blood vessels.

When it comes to running, women may be able to get more out of high intensity interval training (HIIT) than their male counterparts, according to a study.

‘Sex-specific Responses to Interval Training’ was conducted by Drs. Matt Laurent and Matt Kutz, Human Movement, Sport and Leisure Studies at Bowling Green State University; Lauren Vervaecke, Division of Applied Physiology, University of South Carolina; and Dr. Matt Green, Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation at the University of North Alabama.

Health experts have warned that taking too many painkillers and other treatments for migraine attacks can lead to more headaches.

According to Professor Gillian Leng, from medicines watchdog the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), headaches and migraine can have a very significant, negative impact on sufferers, therefore people should understand that different headaches require different treatments, the Daily Express reported.

Scientists have revealed that eating broccoli could help you avoid suffering the most common form of arthritis- osteoarthritis.

Researchers at the University of East Anglia have discovered that a compound sulforaphane, found mainly in the vegetable, slows down the destruction of cartilage in joints linked with osteoarthritis, the Mirror reported.

The study found that the vegetable might have health benefits for people with osteoarthritis and even protect them from developing the disease. (ANI)

Kids are becoming increasingly anxious due to too much time in front of TV and computer screens these days, a new study suggests.

According to a British government briefing document from Public Health England, inactive lifestyles are also to blame for the negative impact on children’s wellbeing, News.com.au reported.

It said higher levels of TV viewing were having a negative effect on children’s wellbeing, including lower self-worth, lower self-esteem and lower levels of self-reported happiness.

Researchers found people who ate two kiwifruit daily had significantly less fatigue and depression than those who consumed half a kiwifruit daily.

The finding came out of a University of Otago, Christchurch study which involved 54 young male university students who generally eat little fresh fruit and vegetables.

They also felt they had more energy, Stuff.co.nz reported.

These changes appeared to be related to the optimising of vitamin C intake with the two-kiwifruit dose. Kiwifruit are an exceptional source of vitamin C.

A group of researchers have made a significant breakthrough for figuring out which mutations are benign and which are deleterious in cystic fibrosis.

Researchers have now raised the number of known CF-causing mutations from 22 to 127, accounting for 95 percent of the variations found in patients with CF.

It`s well known that iron, vitamins or carbohydrates are nutrients essential to keep our body fit. But be careful about the quantity, warns an expert.

Annapurna Agrawal, nutritionist at Snap Fitness India, recommends a list of nutrients that are required by our body. Focus on the quantity to avoid health problems.

Carbohydrate: Whole grains cereals, legumes, fruits, milk, sugar, honey and potatoes are sources of carbohydrates. Quantity should be 40 percent to 60 percent of your calories requirement.

A new research has identified an essential circuit within the developing visual system that helps dictate how the eyes connect to the brain, and has implications for treating amblyopia.

Amblyopia is a vision disorder that occurs when the brain ignores one eye in favour of the other.

Fifty years of research on it has even led to a general theory of plasticity called the sliding threshold model. The new study tested a fundamental piece of a model that at first seems at odds with ocular dominance.

A new study has claimed that eating raspberries could potentially enhance fertility in both men and women.

The berries are believed to have high levels of Vitamin C, which is an essential nutrient in male fertility, and magnesium that helps in the production of testosterone.

Raspberries also contain 10 times additional antioxidants than tomatoes, and are potent in protecting sperm.

Even after a woman has conceived, the antioxidants continue to protect the embryo and decrease the risk of miscarriage.

ANI

Health experts have warned consumers to limit their consumption of apple juice, as it has as much sugar as soft drinks and can increase the risk of weight gain.

According to Dietitians Association of Australia, apple juice, which is often selected as the healthier option over soft or energy drinks, is no more than a “sugar syrup,” the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

A drug that is used for treating blood cancers may also help stop the spread of invasive breast cancer, according to researchers.

Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida’s study, found that in the lab and in animals, the drug Decitabine turns on a gene coding for protein kinase D1 (PRKD1) that halts the ability of cancer cells to separate from a tumor and spread to distant organs.

Researchers have found that the way that the gut ‘tastes’ sweet food differs in type 2 diabetes sufferers, which could lead to problems with glucose uptake.

Dr Richard Young, Senior Postdoctoral Researcher in the University of Adelaide’s Nerve-Gut Research Laboratory, says taste buds aren’t the only way the body detects sweetness.

He said that when we talk about ‘sweet taste’, most people think of tasting sweet food on their tongue, but scientists have found that sweet taste receptors are present in a number of sites in the human body.

A new study has suggested a way in which cocaine use may lead to drug-seeking behaviour that fosters continued drug use.

According to a research team from the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center at UC San Francisco, mice given cocaine showed rapid growth in new brain structures associated with learning and memory.

Employees who work for more than 50 hours a week may be harming their mental and physical health, a new study has warned.

Researchers from Kansas State University found a preliminary link between workaholics and reduced physical and mental well-being.

Sarah Asebedo, doctoral student in the University, working with colleagues Sonya Britt and Jamie Blue used the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 for the study.

“We looked at the association between workaholism and physical and mental well-being,” Asebedo said.

Michelle Obama has revealed that she didn’t play tennis as a kid, but that didn’t deter her from forcing the sport on her kids.

Speaking on the occasion to promote her ‘Let’s Move’ children’s health campaign, the First Lady said that she has always told her daughters, Sasha and Malia, that tennis is a great way to stay healthy, fit and it’s a lifelong sport that will help them learn the value of hard work and practice, ABC News reported.

Obama asserted that for adults it was a great way to stay active.

A new intravenous antibody medication, vedolizumab has shown positive results for treating both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.

William Sandborn, MD, principal investigator of the Crohn’s disease study, said the results offer new hope to the more than one million Americans who suffer from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and do not respond to treatment.

Both studies showed that the use of vedolizumab resulted in remission and discontinued use of prednisone, a common yet difficult to tolerate drug used to treat both diseases.

Researchers have claimed that a greater consumption of fruits and vegetables may help lower the risk of invasive bladder cancer in women.

The investigation was conducted as part of the Multiethnic Cohort (MEC) Study, established in 1993 to assess the relationships among dietary, lifestyle, genetic factors, and cancer risk.

Park and her fellow researcher’s analyzed data collected from 185,885 older adults over a period of 12.5 years, of which 581 invasive bladder cancer cases were diagnosed (152 women and 429 men).

Researchers have said that BMI – standard metric for finding out who is normal-weight, overweight and obese – is not an accurate measure of fat, and does not explain causes of poor health, according to scientists.

Dr Rexford Ahima, a medical professor at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, and co-author of the editorial said that most studies depend on BMI, asserting that it’s not a very accurate measure.

According to many studies, people having BMIs above 30 are at an increased risk of dying from heart disease, diabetes, cancer and other diseases.

People who spend too much time working on their desks are putting their physical and mental health at risk, a research suggests.

People who work more than 50 hours a week are more likely to skip meals and become depressed, the Daily Express reported.

But despite the threat to their long-term health they are often driven by the need to work overtime to earn extra money.