Health

Terming the “controversial” Pentavalent vaccine “effective and safe”, health experts here Friday said the vaccine will be pivotal in bringing down the country`s child mortality rate.

Touted as a”one-shot wonder” and introduced in the universal immunisation programme (UIP) in eight states, the vaccine claims to targets five infections: diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus hepatitis-B and HiB (haemophilius influenzae type B).

HiB is responsible for pneumonia and meningitis in children in some countries.

Anil Kapoor admits that doing action sequences has become tough for him but the 53-year-old industry veteran says he has not given up and is training hard to keep fit and fight the goons.

Kapoor flexed his muscles during 90s in many of his films including `Rakhwala`, `Meri Jung` and `Insaaf Ki Awaaz` among others. With `Tezz`, `Race 2` and his upcoming release `Shootout at Wadala`, he is back in action space.

Animal and dairy scientists have revealed that drinking milk at an early age can help mammals throughout their lives.

But understanding exactly how milk affects the body is a complicated story of hormones, antibodies and proteins, as well as other cells and compounds researchers have not yet identified.

Learning how milk affects offspring was the subject of the Lactation Biology Symposium, held as part of the 2012 Joint Annual Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona.

A new set of genetic markers for Alzheimer`s that point to a second pathway through which the disease develops has been identified by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Much of the genetic research on Alzheimer`s centers on amyloid-beta, a key component of brain plaques that build up in the brains of people with the disease.

In the new study, the scientists identified several genes linked to the tau protein, which is found in the tangles that develop in the brain as Alzheimer`s progresses and patients develop dementia.

Bird flu in China appears to have mutated, and the virus has genetic markers that would help it infect people, a report has said.

So far the flu has sickened nine people in China and killed three.

It`s not clear how they became infected, but there`s no evidence that the virus is spreading easily among people.

However, it can evidently move through poultry without making them sick, experts said, making it difficult to track the germ in flocks, the Japan Times reports.

Obesity is associated with the widespread epidemics of diabetes and heart disease, but a lesser-known fact is that the weight can also lead to autoimmune disease.

Now, researchers have shed light on how that damaging immune response happens and how it might be stopped.

The key, they showed, might be to block an important element known as AIM (for apoptosis inhibitor of macrophage) in the bloodstream and, ultimately, the production of antibodies that attack the self.

Researchers in Japan have found a way to “read” dreams after using MRI scans to predict the images that people see when they enter into an early stage of sleep.

They reported that they could do this with 60 percent accuracy.

The team now wants to see if brain activity can be used to predict other aspects of dreaming, such as the emotions experienced during sleep, the BBC reported.

Global population data spanning the years from 1900 to 2010 have enabled researchers to predict that the number of people on Earth will stabilise around the middle of the century, a report has said.

The results, obtained with a model used by a research team from the Autonomous University of Madrid, coincide with the UN`s downward forecasts.

A sixth person has died of H7N9 bird flu in China, state media said Friday, after authorities culled poultry at a Shanghai market where the virus was detected.

The 64-year-old farmer died in Huzhou, in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang, local officials said according to the official Xinhua news agency.

He is thought to be among 14 human cases of H7N9 that were previously confirmed, and is the second person from the Zhejiang to die from the strain, with the other four fatalities coming from the commercial hub of Shanghai.

Cutting down on salt and, at the same time, increasing levels of potassium in our diet will have major health and cost benefits across the world, a new study suggests.

Such a strategy will save millions of lives every year from heart disease and stroke, experts said.

Much evidence shows that reducing salt intake lowers blood pressure and thereby reduces the risk of stroke and heart disease.

Less is known about the potential benefits of increasing potassium intake, but lower potassium consumption has been linked with elevated blood pressure.

Washington, April 3 (ANI): In a mice study, a team of UC Davis scientists has found that a product resulting from a metabolized omega-3 fatty acid helps combat cancer by cutting off the supply of oxygen and nutrients that fuel tumor growth and spread of the disease.

The groundbreaking study was a collaboration among multiple UC Davis laboratories and Harvard University.

Washington, April 3 (ANI): Maintaining emotional balance is crucial to avoiding severe mental health problems in later life, according to a new study led by a UC Irvine psychologist.

Susan Charles, UC Irvine professor of psychology and social behavior, and her colleagues conducted the study in order to answer a long-standing question: Do everyday irritations add up to make the straw that breaks the camel’s back, or do they make us stronger and “inoculate” us against later tribulations?

Washington, April 2 (ANI): 12 weeks of physical plus mental activity improves cognitive function in inactive older adults, according to a new study.

Washington, April 2 (ANI): Proper sleep patterns are critical for healthy metabolic function, and even mild impairment in our circadian rhythms can lead to serious health consequences, including diabetes and obesity, a new study has warned.

New York, Apr 2 (ANI): Occasional sleeplessness is a common occurrence, with about 30 to 40 percent of adults report having symptoms of insomnia within a given year.

But you can take charge of your sleep by eliminating some of the bad habits that may be keeping you awake and restless.

First of all if you’re having difficulty falling asleep, don’t stay under the covers in hopes of somehow becoming drowsy, Nitun Verma, M.D., an Indian-origin sleep specialist and the medical director of the Washington Township Center for Sleep Disorders in Fremont, California said.

Raspberry ketones can help you lose weight and boost levels of a metabolism-regulating hormone, a report has claimed.

Raspberry ketones are fragrant compounds that occur naturally in raspberries and other fruits. The compounds can boost levels of adiponectin hormone, which regulates metabolism. Higher levels of this hormone are associated with fewer fat stores.

Harvard scientists have developed a new ‘artificial spleen’ to treat bloodstream infections – leading cause of death in critically ill patients and soldiers injured in combat.

The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University said that it was awarded a USD 9.25 million contract from the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to further advance its blood-cleansing technology and help accelerate its translation to humans as a new type of sepsis therapy.

Apollo Hospitals, country’s pioneering healthcare group, today announced the launch of a largescale nationwide vaccination drive to create awareness and encourage Indians to take precautionary steps and avoid easily preventable diseases.

Titled “Apollo Protect”, the campaign will focus on encouraging vaccinations for adolescent and adult population
and will be driven across the group’s integrated healthcare network of hospitals and medical centres across the country, Apollo Hospitals Group Chairman Dr Prathap C Reddy said in a statement here.

A study has found that tea, coffee and liquid smoke flavouring can activate a gene associated with cancer.

Pairing food chemistry and cancer biology in a laboratory study, scientists at the Johns Hopkins University`s Kimmel Cancer Centre tested the potentially harmful effects of foods and flavourings on the DNA of cells.

They found that liquid smoke flavouring, black and green teas and coffee activated the highest levels of a well-known cancer-linked gene called p53.

Women in India are more likely to get prenatal care when pregnant with male babies, according to a groundbreaking study that has implications for girls` health and survival in patriarchal societies.

The study by Leah Lakdawala of Michigan State University and Prashant Bharadwaj of the University of California, San Diego, suggests sex discrimination begins in the womb in male-dominated societies such as India.

“It paints a pretty dire picture of what`s happening,” said Lakdawala, MSU assistant professor of economics.

A group of scientists in Australia claimed to have discovered the genes which can increase a person`s risk of developing several cancers.

Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) has been working with an international study led by Cambridge University in England for the research project that examined the DNA make-up of more than 200,000 people, a news report said.

The content of a person`s breath may indicate how susceptible they are to weight gain, a new study led by an Indian researcher has revealed.

People whose breath has high concentrations of both hydrogen and methane gases are more likely to have a higher body mass index and percentage of body fat, according to the findings.

The combination of the two gases signals the presence of a microorganism that may contribute to obesity.

Eating a breakfast rich in protein significantly improves appetite control and reduces unhealthy snacking on high-fat or high-sugar foods in the evening, according to an expert.

This could help improve the diets of more than 25 million overweight or obese young adults in the US.

Heather Leidy, an assistant professor in the Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology, is the first to examine the impact of breakfast consumption on daily appetite and evening snacking in young people who habitually skip breakfast.

Researchers have engineered ovaries that showed sustained release of the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone.

The proof-of-concept study suggests the possibility of engineering artificial ovaries in the lab to provide a more natural option for hormone replacement therapy for women.

“A bioartificial ovary has the potential to secrete hormones in a natural way based on the body`s needs, rather than the patient taking a specific dose of drugs each day,” Emmanuel C. Opara, Ph.D., professor of regenerative medicine Wake Forest Baptist and senior researcher, said.

Five years since the busting of a thriving racket in human kidneys in Gurgaon, where unsuspecting poor people would have their kidneys removed without their consent, a “huge disparity” between demand and supply of organs for transplant continues to promote a black market in kidneys, says doctors.

Medical professionals say it is the lack of availability of organs that leads to people resorting to illegal means in order to save the lives of their near and dear ones.