When It Comes to Health, Teens Still Ask Mom and Dad First

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Posted in Studies

In the age of technology and the Internet, a lot of things have changed. Instead of doing research at a library, almost everyone turns to Google. This means a lot more misinformation is found as well, since it is simple to publish something to the Internet without fact checking.

 

Study Shows Teens Make Life Changes Based on Internet Information

A recent study completed by researchers at Northwestern University in Illinois found that over half of the teens surveyed still received a significant amount of health information from asking their parents.

child searching internetThe study completed a survey of 1,156 teenagers from age 13 to age 18. Of those teens, 55-percent said they were turning to their parents when they had concerns about health.

Teenagers also were using the Internet responsibly when they did choose to search for information regarding puberty, drugs, sex and depression, among other issues. For those teens who were searching the Internet, 32-percent found information that made them actively change the way they were living.

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Teens Not Likely to Share Health Concerns on Social Media

The study also found a surprising statistic: almost 9 of every 10 teens surveyed said they would not share health concerns they had with friends via their social media platforms. Approximately two of every 10 teens had instead opted to download health-related apps.

One other positive is that teenagers were aware of the importance of using reliable sites to find their information: one-third of the teens reported finding medical information only from reputable medical websites. Somewhat disappointingly though, the next common site for medical information gathering was YouTube. There are, however, a growing number of reliable sources for information on YouTube as well.

With a generation that expects instant results and sometimes seems to complete disregard the older generations when it comes to gaining insight or providing any type of guidance, it is nice to see a study where teenagers reported trusting their parents when it comes to matters concerning health.

It is also reassuring to see that those who found information on the Internet took warning signs seriously and chose to make changes to their lifestyle if there were potential consequences to their health. It is good to know that teenagers do retain the ability to make intelligent decisions and trust the important information and advice to their parents – when it counts, it is good to know they will go to reliable sources and people who can help them to make the best choices.…

Chances of Heart Disease Linked to Number of Missing Teeth

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heart diseasePoor dental hygiene has long been known to be connected to certain health issues and diseases. According to The Mayo Clinic, ignoring dental hygiene can contribute to osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s Disease, Diabetes, Endocarditis and other illnesses. It can increase the risk of low birth weight for the infant of a woman who is pregnant and has poor dental hygiene, and it can be linked to Sjogren’s Syndrome.

Studies are being done regularly that show other connections between brushing and flossing regularly and the decrease in risk for some dangerous health events.

 

New Study connects Missing Teeth to Coronary Heart Disease

A study from a university in Finland has linked the chance of coronary heart disease, particularly heart attacks, to the number of teeth missing from an individual’s mouth. In fact, the University of Helsinki’s study shows that someone who is missing more than five teeth is at risk for a heart attack almost 140-percent more than those who were missing fewer teeth.

This shows serious potential issues for those who do not maintain their dental health, brushing and flossing regularly and scheduling visits to the dentist annually.

 

Other Issues Indicated by Missing Teeth

The study had more than 8,000 subjects, and the age range was from 25 to 75. These individuals filled out questionnaires and agreed to physical exams. Researchers than did a follow-up on each subject at the 13-year mark.

Studies found that individuals with missing teeth were not only prone to heart attacks, but they also were more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes and to die within that 13-year period. With more than nine missing teeth, subjects were 31-percent likely to be diagnosed with diabetes and 37-percent more likely to die within the decade and a half time frame researchers focused on.

 

Keep Healthy Habits to Avoid Tooth Loss

In order to avoid these potential issues with overall health, it is best to brush teeth twice a day and floss daily. Also, eat a healthy diet and avoid sugary foods, and even look into getting a personal trainer (from Fitness on the Go). Remember to replace your toothbrush three to four times a year. It is also important to visit the dentist once a year, since the dentist can do a thorough cleaning and also find potential issues that you may not be aware of on your own. This means good things for your overall health, as well as keeping a beautiful smile. There is a lot to be said for a beautiful smile.

source: Nashville in home personal training

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New Studies Say Cat Ownership Can Make You Into the Crazy Cat Lady

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Posted in Funny Studies

One societal perception that is used tongue-in-cheek is the image of the crazy cat lady: a woman who is “past marriageable age” and chooses to keep company with numerous cats. However, a study that was done recently says the choice to own a cat can seemingly cause the woman to become an older individual with the difficult mantle of mental illness. Therefore, it is important to understand the potential cause of mental illness and protect against that issue in order to stay sane and still keep the loving companionship of your cat.

 

Common Concern for Pregnant Women Now Has Bigger Impact for Non-Pregnant Females

crazy cat ladyIllnesses like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia can be caused by cat ownership, according to two new studies, one published in Schizophrenia Research and Acta Psychiatra Scandinavica show that more than 60 million people in the US are infected with toxoplasmosis as the result of owning a cat and cleaning the cat’s litter box. The parasite T.gondii, which causes toxoplasmosis, has been linked to greater risk of mental disorders. It also has been known to cause serious infection for pregnant women and those with a weakened immune system. This can lead to blindness and even death.

When it comes to mental illness issues, there are studies that show that owning a cat as a child can attribute to mental illness during adulthood. Indeed, reports show that as many as one-fifth of the diagnosed Schizophrenia cases can be traced back to the bacteria that causes toxoplasmosis and therefore results from cat ownership.

 

Risk for Schizophrenia Great for Those With the T. gondii bacteria

Individuals with the T. gondii infection are at more than twice the risk to develop Schizophrenia. Meanwhile, the risk is present to deal with other mental illnesses as well.

In order to be able to keep the cat and reduce the risk of mental illness, it is recommended to clean the cat litter every day. This removes the parasite before it can become infectious, which is at the 1.5 day mark after the cat rids itself of the parasite in its feces.

Therefore, for those who love cats and yet have a predisposition for mental illness and do not need more potential causes for the illness, it is still possible to keep your cat and your sanity. Simply remember to clean the cat litter box daily and minimize exposure to the T.gondii bacteria. This can make for a happy ending for both you and your cats.

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New Studies Show Placenta Consumption Is Not Beneficial

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Posted in Birth Studies

placenta pillsWhen it comes to being a new parent, there are lots of things to consider about the upcoming arrival of your little one, like child care Winnipeg services. One big consideration is the choice to have your infant’s cord blood stored. Another consideration is whether you will ask your midwife or doctor to save your baby’s placenta for you.

There are many reasons that people have the placenta saved. Some cultures believe it is good luck to bury the placenta in a specific location near the home, in order to bring good luck. Others actually have the placenta made into capsules or simply keep it frozen and consume it for alleged health benefits.

 

Supposed Benefits of Consuming the Placenta

There are several benefits that have been listed as a result of consuming the placenta, according to certain advocates of the practice. Those benefits include avoiding postpartum depression, which is a potential issue that affects more than three million mothers in the United States each year.

Other benefits from consuming the placenta were reported to be pain relief and assistance in both lactation and increasing the bond between mother and infant.

 

New Study Finds Lack of Evidence in Previous Studies

According to a new study published in Archives of Women’s Mental Health finds a surprising lack of conclusive evidence in 10 studies that were previously thought to support the health benefits of consuming the placenta.

These studies, four of which involved humans and six of which were actually completed using animal subjects, did not show any conclusive evidence. The human studies were based on subjective reports from mothers who had chosen to consumer the placenta. However, there was no basis for comparison or any scientific data to back up the reports from mothers who had consumed the placenta.

The animal studies seemed to substantiate the pain reduction benefit. All mammals who give birth to babies with placentas eat the placenta immediately following the birth. For them, it is possible to compare pain levels with other animals, but it is not possible to find any other notable benefits.

This study also brought up the other logical side to this practice – the potential and as yet unknown potential issues that can arise as a result of consuming the placenta. After all, the woman’s body expels the placenta after the birth of the infant. If it were beneficial to re-ingest the placenta, it is possible the body would have a process in place to do so rather than practicing expulsion.

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Virus History Can Be Determined with One Simple Study

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virscan medicalUp until now, the process of determining what viruses an individual has suffered from has been very time-consuming, since it requires various rounds of testing to find results for one virus at a time. Now, a study has been developed that can find the results for several viruses during a single round of testing.

A new study called Virscan, explained recently in the magazine Science, can find an individual’s entire history of viruses through the study of a single drop of blood. For the test, scientists synthesized over 93,000 peptides, or short sections of DNA that encoded pieces of viral proteins. The fact that the test can be done on a single drop of blood, and the results are multiple without the need for repetitive testing rounds.

 

Test Examines Millions of Possible Interactions of Viruses

The test was used on over 500 subjects. The test examined over 100 million possible interactions antibodies and epitopes from the blood samples. The individuals were known to have certain viruses, like HIV and Hepatitis C. The test was around 100-percent accurate in finding the HIV. It also found an average of 10 different viruses in the history of the individuals, who were from Peru, South Africa, Thailand and the US. The individuals from the US typically had fewer viruses than the individuals from the other three countries.

Adults typically had more viruses than children. Also, the test found that those with HIV had more antibodies for viruses than those who did not have HIV. This has a lot of potential benefit for those studying HIV as well.

 

Interesting Similarity Found in Antibody Reactions

The antibodies of different individuals were found to have similar reactions to a specific virus. The amino acids in the peptides were recognized by the antibodies, causing similar reactions from different individuals.

antibodies

Researchers are hopeful that this scan will have a lot of potential benefits. Not only will it replace current virus testing, which tests for one virus at a time, but it will also have potentially impressive impact on the design of future vaccines and will possibly help with the discovery of factors that have impacted health and previously gone undetected.

This scan decreases the cost of virus testing, because it is less labor intensive and far less time-consuming. Researchers described it as a “one-stop shop” for virus scanning. It also inly requires one drop of blood to discover a history of various viruses. This also cuts down on cost and time.…

New Benefit of Breastfeeding Has Been Uncovered

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Posted in Birth Health Benefits Studies

Breastfeeding gives infants better chance of immunity to various illnesses. This is because the mother’s antibodies are passed to the baby through the breastmilk. Since vaccines are not given until the two-month mark, this is a great benefit for these tiny beings who are exposed to new germs and potentially fatal viruses with a brand-new immune system.

 

Study Finds Breastfeeding Beneficial When it Comes to Leukemia

A new study has discovered that breastfeeding has been found to be linked to lower instances of childhood leukemia. Throughout the world, 175,000 cases of childhood leukemia are diagnosed annually.

Those cases are found in children age 15 and under. More than 18 studies on childhood leukemia and the potential connections to breastfeeding were looked at by researchers who published findings in the periodical JAMA Pediatrics. These studies were reviewed for their information regarding the likelihood of diagnosis of childhood leukemia and the proportion of children who were breastfed at all versus those who were never the recipients of breast milk.

 

Decrease of Leukemia Risk Found to be almost 20-percent

breastfeeding benefitsThose researchers determined that a 19-percent decreased risk of childhood leukemia occurred when individuals were breastfed for six months or longer. Indeed, even those children who were breastfed less than six months received an 11-percent decreased risk of being diagnosed with childhood leukemia, compared to those children who were only fed formula.

It is important to note that this study looked at 18 studies that were completed. It is possible that other factors, like selectional bias for test subjects or outlying factors that influenced both the breastfeeding aspect of the surveys and the risks of childhood leukemia were not appropriately weighed during this study of those previously completed studies.

Researchers noted the importance of emphasizing the health benefits of breastfeeding to new mothers and those who hoped to become pregnant. They also noted the need for further studies regarding this topic, in order to deal with various other factors and improve the clarity of the results showing this connection.

Researchers also noted the importance of sharing the health benefits of breastfeeding with society in general, as part of an effort to normalize breastfeeding and save more lives from childhood leukemia. This would be a great step forward for society and for science, as it finds an already important life choice for women to be helpful further in protecting children from leukemia. In order to better serve the future of humans, it is a great thing that breastfeeding can be even more beneficial.…

Good News From Rabbits: Rabbit Virus Could Improve Safety for Bone Marrow Transplants

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Posted in Health Benefits Studies

rabbit virusStudying the viruses in animals that have no ability to cross over to humans and cause death or serious illness can sometimes have surprising results. The myxoma virus, which causes myxomatosis in rabbits, was used as a pesticide in Australia. Now, the virus has been found to kill cancerous cells in humans and also is credited with preventing one of the most serious complications that are found in a bone marrow transplant – the graft-versus-host disease.

This could have an extremely positive impact on the future success of bone marrow transplants for humans. The myxoma virus is benign in humans, despite its fatal impact on rabbits. Therefore, the discovery of its benefits to those who require a bone marrow transplant is a welcome one. Not only can it prevent the complications, but it also was found to kill cancer cells at the same time. This means a two-pronged approach to eradicating leukemia through one treatment.

 

Progress Involving the Use of the Myxoma Virus Has Long Way to Go

Researchers hope to expand on their current research, utilizing a mouse impact study to move their research closer to a point where it can be used successfully for humans, particularly those who are at a high risk for graft-versus-host disease. These individuals are typically the ones that have difficulty finding a donor and usually are attempting a successful transplant with only a partial match.

The current status of the studies involving the Myxoma Virus is preliminary, since the study was done only in the laboratory involving human cells, when the virus was attached to white blood cells, known as T cells. The virus and T cell combination was then added to a bone marrow transplant, which is when they were found to kill cancer cells and prevent the graft-versus-host disease.

 

Potential for Virus to Help with Other Cancers Is Unknown

It is hoped that the process of using the myxoma virus to prevent graft-versus-host disease and also to kill cancer cells can be adjusted to have positive effects on other forms of cancer. In the meantime, the virus will be studied and a clinical grade of the virus created. Future trials will need to be funded, and the process refined.

Still, the potential benefits of a virus that is fatal in rabbits is ironic and yet intriguing. It is extremely difficult to understand at times the processes that nature uses to keep one species from over-populating while it provides another species the means to keep more of its ill population alive.…