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The Often-Overlooked Benefits of a Healthy Lifestyle

Dec 08, 2019 12:03 AM EST

We all know that we probably need to pay a little more attention to our health and wellness. Doctors, experts on television, even our family and friends tell us about the importance of regularly exercising, eating well, and even spending some time on mental wellbeing, but what do we do about it?

Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products Are Now All The Rage

Nov 29, 2019 07:52 PM EST

Eco-friendly products haven't always fared well on the competitive marketplace; whether it's critics deriding the environmental consciousness of consumers or higher prices, eco-friendly products have historically faced steep boundaries when it comes to achieving commercial success.

Does Health Insurance Cover Assisted Living?

Nov 28, 2019 04:09 PM EST

Making the decision to put a loved one is difficult, even knowing that this is the safer alternative, it is still hard. There are countless monumental decisions to make to ensure you are putting your loved one is the best assisted living community available. Still, there will be a few aspects that are out of your control-one of those being insurance coverage.

Medical Marijuana: How to Get it and Who Can Take It

Dec 02, 2019 01:10 PM EST

Obtaining and using medical marijuana is easier than ever, but there are some things you need to know to be able to start the process. We can expect to see changes in the coming years that improve the standard of cannabis that's available. However, further steps need to be made in the research of the drug. Medical marijuana can be used for a number of conditions, including cancer, Crohn's disease, and Alzheimer's. It is legal in many states in a medical form but remains illegal at a federal level. Many states allow for growth by registered patients and caregivers. Alternatively, you can obtain the drug through dispensaries with a specific card.

CBD and Human's Health: Pros and Cons

Nov 18, 2019 10:08 AM EST

CBD or cannabidiol is a major component of the hemp plant or cannabis. Many studies have been conducted on CBD following revelations that it has the potential to help with different medical conditions. What's more, findings of some studies have suggested that it might even be a good alternative to some of the synthetic drugs currently in the market.

3 Reasons to Buy Your Medications Online

Nov 15, 2019 03:08 PM EST

While it may not yet be the norm in the medical realm, many people enjoy purchasing a vast array of items online. So, why not medications? Although many of us are used to buying our medications at our local stores or pharmacies, there are plenty of people who have already started to purchase their medications online. The following is a list of three reasons you should consider doing just that.

U.S. Birthrate Hits a 32-Year Low in 2018

Nov 14, 2019 10:00 PM EST

U.S. births fell to a 32-year low in 2018, dipping 2% from 2017 to 3,788,235 births. The latest figure is part of an ongoing trend, according to a new federal report. Last year marked the fourth consecutive year of declining births in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Stress Can Impact the Sex of Your Baby According to New Study

Nov 14, 2019 09:56 PM EST

Stress has been shown to have an impact on the sex of a baby, according to a new study out of Columbia University. The impact on stress on pregnancy has been the focal point of many studies, including studies in areas where natural disasters occurred.

What Are the Most Common Causes of Chronic Pain?

Nov 06, 2019 10:43 AM EST

Chronic pain is something that affects millions of people in the United States, and many more than that, perhaps in indirect ways. When someone has chronic pain, it can impact every area of their life and their physical and mental well-being.

The Effect of Sulphates on Your Hair: Should You Eliminate Them Completely?

Oct 23, 2019 04:56 PM EDT

Sulphates in shampoos have a number of advantages, but they also have a number of disadvantages that come along with them. They deep clean the scalp, which is highly beneficial, however, they also strip the oil from the hair and scalp which can be damaging for those that are experiencing any form of hair loss due to brittle hair.

Invisible Illnesses and Disabilities Take Their Toll

Oct 23, 2019 10:21 AM EDT

Healthcare data shows that about one in three people suffers some type of chronic illness. The word "chronic" has a specific medical meaning and refers to any condition that lasts for more than a year, requires routine checkups and limits physical activity in some way.

Babies Burdened By Environmental Estrogens In Mothers' Wombs

Oct 10, 2019 11:22 PM EDT

Xenoestrogens are absorbed through the environment, especially through food. As oestrogen-like substances, they can have a profound effect on the body's hormonal balance. Zearalenone, the widespread food estrogen, is formed by fungi of the Fusarium genus and enters our body mainly via our diet through bread or muesli. "The placental barrier offers the unborn child a certain protection against bacteria, viruses and some substances such as some medications or environmental toxins absorbed by the body. But zearalenone migrates through the placenta, as we have now been able to show for the first time," says Benedikt Warth from the Institute of Food Chemistry and Toxicology at the University of Vienna. Unique human placenta The path of zearalenone through the womb could be determined in analyses using fully functional placentas available after planned Caesarean sections. "It is crucial to use human placentas to obtain significant results concerning the transport and metabolism of zearalenone," says Empa researcher Tina Bürki from the Particles-Biology Interactions Laboratory in St. Gallen. "The reasons are the properties of the human placenta, because structure, function and metabolic capacity are unique and specific." The researchers not only determined the concentrations of zearalenone in the tissue of the placenta itself. Using a nutrient solution before and after entry from the placenta, they also simulated the area of mass transport to which the fetus is exposed. At the same time, they were able to investigate the various metabolic products produced by enzymes in the placenta. 70-fold increased activity "As soon as we ingest environmental substances, these are usually detoxified and excreted by our metabolism. However, there are also enzymes that activate these substances even more strongly," said Bürki. In this case, too, the placenta forms a new metabolic product from zearalenone with about 70 times higher estrogen activity. Even low concentrations could have a greater effect on the unborn child than previously assumed. " These findings should be taken into account in future risk assessments - even if the limits for baby food and breast milk substitutes are already more strictly regulated than for other products and the EU has introduced the world's lowest thresholds," says Benedikt Warth. The body's hormonal balance is highly sensitive. It is assumed that exposure early in life to foreign estrogens many decades later could have an effect on various diseases such as breast or cervical cancer, but also on other manifestations such as premature puberty or infertility. "Until further research results are available, one can only recommend a balanced diet in order to reduce the exposure to toxins," said the team of authors. The analytical method allows the simultaneous detection of more than 50 different foreign estrogens in biological samples. "Our method includes practically all important foreign substances that affect the estrogen system. This also includes numerous other substances that are currently the subject of much discussion, such as bisphenol A or pesticides," says Warth. With the new analytical method, researchers hope to be able to better investigate the exposure and combinatorial effects of environmental pollutants in the human body in the future.

Scientists Ask: How Can Liquid Organelles In Cells Coexist Without Merging?

Oct 10, 2019 11:11 PM EDT

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- New research may help to explain an intriguing phenomenon inside human cells: how wall-less liquid organelles are able to coexist as separate entities instead of just merging together.

'Sticky' Gene May Help Valium Calm Nerves

Oct 10, 2019 11:06 PM EDT

Between 1999 and 2017, the United States experienced a 10-fold increase in the number of people who died from overdoses of Valium and other benzodiazepines.

Women and Black Americans More Likely To Face Severe Adult Obesity

Oct 10, 2019 12:15 AM EDT

Severe adult obesity carries many risks to health, but until now, little has been known about childhood risk factors involved. Now, a multi-national study led by experts at Cincinnati Children's shows how adult severe obesity risk rates vary by sex, race and other factors identifiable in childhood. The study, led by corresponding author Jessica Woo, PhD, was published online Oct. 9, 2019, in the International Journal of Obesity, offers a predictive tool that doctors can use to focus intervention efforts on children and teens who are most likely to suffer health risks from obesity. "Early prevention and treatment are critical, because severe adult obesity has significant adverse health outcomes, such as diabetes and heart disease," Woo says. "And unfortunately, severe obesity is rarely reversible, even with bariatric surgery." More than 12,000 people tracked This study focused on "adult class II/III obesity," defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 35 and up. The team analyzed data about more than 12,000 people who enrolled as children in the International Childhood Cardiovascular Cohort Consortium in the 1970s and 1980s, then were tracked into adulthood. At the beginning, 82% were children of normal weight, 11% were overweight, 5% were obese and 2% were severely obese. Around 20 years later, just 41% of the adults were normal weight, 32% were overweight, 15% were obese and 12% were severely obese. Overall, obesity rates were higher among American participants than from other nations. Importantly, although the highest risks for adult severe obesity were among those with childhood severe obesity, more than one-third of the severely obese adults were normal weight as children. "The risk of severe obesity in adulthood was substantially higher for girls than boys, for black participants than white, and for those with lower education levels," Woo says. BMI trajectory charts for doctors The study produced a series of figures resembling growth charts that doctors can use to show children and their families what their chances are of being obese in later years. For example, a 5-year-old white girl with obesity has a 60% chance of being severely obese by age 35, and an 80% chance of being severely obese by age 45. The study could not answer, at an individual level, which children of normal weight were most likely to become severely obese in adulthood. The team did not have complete information on genetic and lifestyle risk factors. However, black girls emerged as having the highest obesity risks as a group. "These findings suggest that greater clinical attention should be focused on both the prevention of childhood obesity at all ages, especially in girls and black populations, and to preventing children with normal weight in these groups from developing into adults with class II/III obesity," Woo says. "With tailored childhood monitoring through childhood, adolescence and young adulthood, it may be possible to prevent the high rate of progression to adult obesity."