Discussion with adults can decrease teens’ marijuana use

Discussion with adults can decrease teens’ marijuana use : A brief, voluntary conversation with adults leads to up to a 20 percent decrease in marijuana use for teenagers who frequently use the drug, according to a new research. To many people, smoking pot is no big deal. They cite reasons such as: "it isn't dangerous or addictive" and "everybody is doing it."

Denise Walker, co-director of the University of Washington's Innovative Programs Research Group, disagrees. "It's not a risk-free drug," she said.

"Lots of people who use it do so without problems. But there are others who use it regularly - almost daily - and want to stop but aren't sure how." "Many teens also have concerns about their use, even if they're not sharing them with family or friends," she added.

The participants in the motivational interviewing group-in which the health educator and student discussed the student's marijuana use and how it might be interfering with the student's life, goals and personal values, and about social norms of how much others use the drug-started the study using marijuana 40 out of the previous 60 days. Three months after counseling they had decreased their use 20 percent, to 32 out of 60 days. After a year they still showed a 15 percent decrease, 34 days out of 60. The study was published in the journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. (ANI)

Health Benefits of Eating Strawberries

Revealed that eating strawberries could help stave off ageing and even prevent cancer, diabetes!: It's often called the wonder fruit. Now, a new research has revealed that eating strawberries could help stave off ageing and even prevent cancer.

It said eating the fruit helps boost antioxidant levels in the blood, reports the Daily Mail. Higher levels of antioxidants have been found to combat the effects of oxidative stress, lessening the effects of ageing and even the chances of contracting diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. To cone to the conclusion, Spanish and Italian researchers fed 12 healthy volunteers half a kilo of strawberries over two weeks. Results showed that eating strawberries regularly can boost levels of antioxidants in the blood and also help prevent red blood cells undergoing haemolysis, a process which sees them fragmenting.

Scientists from Marche Polytechnic University in Italy and the University of Granada in Spain say that the power of strawberries lies in the high levels of phenolic compounds they contain, which have antioxidant properties. Oxidative stress can also occur as we age, when we exercise or even give birth, highlighting the potential of the humble soft fruit.

"We have shown that some varieties of strawberries make erythrocytes more resistant to oxidative stress. This could be of great significance if you take into account that this phenomenon can lead to serious diseases," said study author Maurizio Battino, from Marche Polytechnic Univesity. The finding was published in journal Chemistry.(ANI)

Simple way to stay slim 'Eat quality food to lose weight'

Simple way to stay slim 'Eat quality food to lose weight': There is a simple way to stay slim. Eat quality food instead of worrying about the amount of food you eat, say experts.

Consuming bigger amounts of healthier food rather than smaller amounts of poor quality produce is the key, the express.co.uk reported quoting experts Thursday. Experts at the Harvard School of Public Health in America revealed that small lifestyle changes can make all the difference to ­staying in shape. They said focusing on calories alone would not keep you slim. Instead, the best way to stay at a healthy weight is to eat nutritious and filling foods of good quality.

They recommend that people watching their weight need to cut out fizzy, sugar-sweetened drinks, potatoes and refined grain foods like white rice and low-fibre breakfast cereals. And they should eat a lot more “natural” foods, like fruit and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and yoghurt, while avoiding anything processed.

“Small dietary and other lifestyle changes can together make a big difference - for bad or good. This makes it easy to gain weight unintentionally, but also demonstrates the tremendous opportunity for prevention,” the report quoted Dariush Mozaffaria, study co-author as saying. Nutritionist Angela Dowden said: “This research singles out once again the benefits of minimally processed foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and yoghurt.

“As well as being nutrient-dense they are satiating and their fibrous nature also require slightly more energy to digest. “It is not so much that calories don’t count - they definitely do - it’s more that a healthy pattern of eating makes it easier for you to feel full on fewer of them.” The findings, published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine, also showed the right amount of sleep helped people maintain a healthy weight.(IANS)

Anorexic Twin Sisters

Katy and Maria Campbell have anorexia since they were 11. One night the girls heard a conversation between their parents. Dad told mom that their daughters were getting fatter. Since then Katy and Maria stopped eating enough. Now the sisters are 33 years old and each of them weigh 84 lbs (38 kg) only.

(daily Mail)

Unique Toothbrush (9 Pics)

Unique Toothbrush 'Salvadora Persica Linn' (SIWAK/MISWAK):  This toothbrush is not a new invention. It's more like back to basics. Such sticks have been used in the Saharan desert for thousands of years. They have a natural source of fluoride and their fibers are softer than the bristles of a normal toothbrush.

Abstract

Antibacterial Activity of Siwak (Salvadora persica Linn.) against Streptococcus mutans (ATC31987) and Bacteroides melaninogenicus. Dental diseases with high prevalences in Indonesia and also in some other countries are periodontitis and caries. Both diseases are until now still a health problem. Bacteria causing dental diseases are for examples Streptococcus mutans and Bacteroides melaninogenicus, which both can spread to other organs and cause fatal diseases.

Salvadora persica (arak, siwak) has been used for a long time ago as a tool for teeth cleanser in the Middle East, Africa and several Asian countries. In this study, we have done antibacterial tests of the extract and crystal of siwak against Streptococcus mutans and Bacteroides melaninogenicus. In determining the Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC), the macro and micro dilution methods were used. The result showed that MIC of siwaks’ extract against Streptococcus mutans was 6.25%, and against Bacteroides melaninogenicus 1.56%.

Minimal Inhibitory Concentration of siwaks’ crystal against Streptococcus mutans and Bacteroides melaninogenicus was 12.5%, and 3.12% respectively. This study showed that the antibacterial activity of siwak’ crystal and extract were more potent against B. Melaninogenicus; it may be either that B. melaninogenicus was more susceptible than S. mutans or S. mutans was more virulent than B. melaninogenicus.

Detail for study of siwak Toothbrush extract HERE

Malissa Jones' The Fattest Teenager in Britain is now Anorexic

Malissa Jones' The Fattest Teenager in Britain is now Anorexic: The woman who was once Britain's fattest teenager now has anorexia. Malissa Jones, 21, lost 26 stone (364lbs) after having a gastric band fitted four years ago. She now weighs just 8st (112lbs).

Doctors had warned her that she was close to death at 34stone (476lbs). At aged just 15, she had already suffered from a suspected heart attack, and her massive weight was crushing her internal organs on her 5ft 8inch frame.

But now Malissa has been told she could die within six months unless she eats more. She told Closer magazine: "I would urge anyone wanting surgery to lose weight healthily. I wish I had. "Surgery can have consequences you might never have imagined."

Malissa was the world's youngest stomach bypass patient when she had the £10,000 NHS operation in January 2008.

Malissa Jones at age 6

She consumed 15,000 calories a day from gorging on chocolate, crisps and junk food - seven and a half times the recommended 2,000 calories for a girl of her age. But parents Richard and Dawn were unable to stop her food cravings.

(daily mail)

Health: 3 or More cups of Coffee a day 'Doubles Hepatitis C Treatment Response'

3 or More cups of Coffee a day 'Doubles Hepatitis CTreatment Response': A new study has found that advanced hepatitis C patients with chronic liver disease may benefit from drinking coffee during treatment. Patients who received peginterferon plus ribavirin treatment and who drank three or more cups of coffee per day were two times more likely to respond to treatment than non-drinkers.

"Coffee intake has been associated with a lower level of liver enzymes, reduced progression of chronic liver disease and reduced incidence of liver cancer," said Neal Freedman, of the National Cancer Institute and the study's lead author. "Although we observed an independent association between coffee intake and virologic response to treatment, this association needs replication in other studies," he said.

Among the non-drinkers studied, 46 percent had an early virologic response; 26 percent had no detectable serum hepatitis C virus (HCV) ribonucleic acid at week 20; 22 percent had no detectable serum at week 48; and 11 percent had a sustained virologic response.

In contrast, the corresponding proportions for those who drank three or more cups of coffee per day were 73 percent, 52 percent, 49 percent and 26 percent, respectively. The study appeared in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. (ANI)

Testosterone therapy 'Boosts Memory' in postmenopausal women

Testosterone therapy 'Boosts Memory' in postmenopausal women: A new study has revealed that testosterone could hold the key to a healthy memory in later years for women. It found that postmenopausal women have better memory after daily treatment with a testosterone spray for six months.

"Women have a higher risk of developing dementia compared to men," said Sonia Davison, MD, PhD, the study''s lead investigator and a postdoctoral research fellow at Monash University, Melbourne. "These results offer a potential therapy, where none currently exists, to slow cognitive decline in women," she added.

The researchers compared a control group of 30 women who received no treatment with a group of nine healthy women in early menopause (ages 47 to 60) who knowingly received the testosterone spray on their skin.

The spray dose returned testosterone levels in the blood to those typical of young women of childbearing age, according to Davison. All of the treated women were receiving a stable dose of non-oral hormone replacement therapy.

All women underwent testing of cognitive function with a battery of computerized tests that can detect even small changes in cognitive performance, Davison said.

The researchers tested subjects'' memory through their ability to recall items from a grocery list read aloud to them-a test of verbal learning and memory-and through their performance on tests of visual learning and memory. Cognitive testing occurred at the beginning and end (week 26) of the study.

At the start of the study the two groups did not differ significantly in their cognitive test results. After 26 weeks the untreated controls showed no significant differences between their initial and final test results, the authors found. The testosterone-treated group, however, improved their verbal learning and memory, as found on the shopping list test, Davison said.

"This is exciting in that the testosterone-treated women were all healthy, with no cognitive impairment, and there was a definite treatment effect of the testosterone spray," she said. "Testosterone may play a protective role against dementia," she added.

She said their results need confirmation in a randomized, controlled clinical trial. The results were presented recently at The Endocrine Society''s 93rd Annual Meeting in Boston. (ANI)

Too much drinking coffee produces hallucinations

Too much drinking coffee produces hallucinations : Coffee may benefit health in some ways, but beware. Drinking too many cups could bring on hallucinations. Five coffees a day or more was found to be enough to increase the participant’s tendency to hallucinate, says Simon Crowe, professor of psychology at the La Trobe University.

Hallucinations are false perceptions that an individual has that do not exist. For example, a person may hear, see or smell things that are not there. Crowe and colleagues at the University’s School of Psychological Sciences measured the effect of stress and caffeine with 92 non-clinical participants, according to a La Trobe statement.

Participants were assigned to either a high or a low stress condition and a high or a low caffeine condition on the basis of self-report. They were then asked to listen to white noise and to report each time they heard Bing Crosby’s rendition of “White Christmas” during the white noise. White noise is a type that is produced by combining sounds of all different frequencies together, just as white light is produced by a combination of seven colours.

The song was never played. The results indicated that the interaction of stress and caffeine had a significant effect on the reported frequency of hearing “White Christmas.” The participants with high levels of stress or who consumed high levels of caffeine were more likely to hear the song. “The combination of caffeine and stress affect the likelihood of an individual experiencing a psychosis-like symptom,” says Crowe. (IANS)

Health: Headaches can be treated with Placebo Treatment

Placebo Treatment' heals Headache! : A new study found a considerable number of patients recovered from headache when treated with placebo. Headache is a very common complaint, with over 90 percent of all persons experiencing a headache at some time in their lives.

Headaches commonly are tension-type (TTH) or migraine. They have high socioeconomic impact and can disturb most daily activities. In the study, a group of Dutch researchers analyzed 119 randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) and determined the magnitude of placebo effect and no treatment effect on headache recovery rate.

"The aim of this study was to analyze the observed effects in the ''no treatment'' and placebo control groups in clinical trials with TTH and migraine patients," said corresponding investigator Arianne P. Verhagen, from the Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

In the headache clinical trials studied, the "no treatment" and placebo groups had a high overall recovery rate of 36 percent. Control groups in pharmacological trials showed a higher response rate than the behavioral (non-pharmacological) trials. The study was published online in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. (ANI)

Health: Yoga benefits people suffering from Fibrolmyalgia, Rheumatoid Arthritis!

Yoga benefits people suffering from Fibrolmyalgia, Rheumatoid Arthritis! : Two studies have suggested that individuals with rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia who practice yoga showed statistically significant improvements in disease activity.

The results of one study conducted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) among 47 patients (26 yoga patients and 21 controls) demonstrated that patients who completed 12 sessions of Raj yoga which is one of the gentler styles of yoga, combining exercise and breathing techniques showed significant improvements in disease activity scores (DAS28) of p=0.021 and health assessment questionnaire''s. However there was no statistically significant improvement on the quality of life scale (QoL).


"Most patients with RA do not exercise regularly despite the fact that those who do report less pain and are therefore more physically active," said Dr Humeira Badsha MD Rheumatologist and founder of the Emirates Arthritis Foundation, Dubai, UAE.

"While our study has been conducted in a small group of patients the results show clear benefits for patients who regularly practice Raj yoga. We believe that practicing yoga longer term could in fact result in further significant improvements and hope our study drives further research into the benefits of yoga in RA," added Badsha.

Results of another study investigating the effects of yoga on the QoL of patients with fibromyalgia, demonstrated that QoL scores, after an eight session classical yoga program which combines gentle yoga postures, breathing techniques and meditation, were better than scores obtained before the program along with a significant decrease in the anxiety levels of patients. As anxiety is often a key symptom in patients with this condition, this study represents a positive step in improving the lives of people suffering from fibrolmyalgia.

The studies were presented at the EULAR 2011 Annual Congress. (ANI)

Health: Green tea helps fight 'Autoimmune Disease'

Health: Green tea helps fight 'Autoimmune Disease' : Researchers at the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University have discovered that one of the beneficial compounds found in green tea has a powerful ability to fight autoimmune disease.

They found that the compound increases the number of `regulatory T cells' that play a key role in immune function.

This may be one of the underlying mechanisms for the health benefits of green tea, which has attracted wide interest for its ability to help control inflammation, improve immune function and prevent cancer.

Though pharmaceutical drugs are available that perform similar roles and have been the subject of much research, they have problems with toxicity. A natural food product might provide a long-term, sustainable way to accomplish this same goal without toxicity, said the researchers.

"This appears to be a natural, plant-derived compound that can affect the number of regulatory T cells, and in the process improve immune function," said Emily Ho, an LPI principal investigator and associate professor in the OSU Department of Nutrition and Exercise Sciences.

"When fully understood, this could provide an easy and safe way to help control autoimmune problems and address various diseases," she said.

In this study, OSU scientists did experiments with a compound in green tea, a polyphenol called EGCG, which is believed to be responsible for much of its health benefits and has both anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer characteristics.

They found it could cause a higher production of regulatory T cells. Its effects were not as potent as some of those produced by prescription drugs, but it also had few concerns about long-term use or toxicity.

"EGCG may have health benefits through an epigenetic mechanism, meaning we aren't changing the underlying DNA codes, but just influencing what gets expressed, what cells get turned on," Ho said. "And we may be able to do this with a simple, whole-food approach."

The findings have been published in Immunology Letters. (ANI)

Tourist dies of 'Mosquito-Borne Virus' in Australia

Tourist dies of 'Mosquito-Borne Virus' in Australia :A 19-year-old Canadian woman has died after contracting a rare and incurable mosquito-borne virus while on holiday in Australia’s northern region, officials said.

The department of health in the Northern Territory has issued a warning advising people to avoid being bitten, after the woman became the third person to contract the Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) virus this year, the Australian Associated Press (AAP) reported Thursday.

The woman became unwell when she arrived in Canada from a holiday in the Northern Territory this month and was admitted to hospital in Calgary, where she died Wednesday.

Peter Markey, acting director of the Centre for Disease Control, said amongst the three confirmed cases of MVE is a two-year-old child.

Earlier this month, a 27-year-old man died from the disease in South Australia.

Markey said there was no specific medical treatment for MVE.

Unlike other mosquito-borne illnesses, which are not typically fatal, about 25 percent of people who contract MVE die.

Many MVE patients suffer from delirium and coma, leading to paralysis or brain damage.(IANS/Thaindian)

Asian mushrooms could help fight 'Prostate Cancer'

Asian mushrooms could help fight Prostate Cancer! :Mushroom used in Asia for medicinal purposes vanquished prostate tumour successfully in mice during early trials.

Polysaccharopeptide (PSP), a compound extracted from the “Turkey Tail Mushroom”, was found to target prostate cancer stem cells and suppress their formation in mice, says a new study conducted by senior research fellow Patrick Ling.

Ling, from the Institute for Biomedical Health and Innovation (IHBI) at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) added that the results could be an important step towards fighting a disease that kills 3,000 Australian men a year, reports the journal Public Library of Science ONE.

“What we wanted to demonstrate was whether that compound could stop the development of prostate tumours in the first place,” said Ling, according to a Queensland statement.

“In the past, other inhibitors tested in research trials have been shown to be up to 70 percent effective, but we’re seeing 100 percent of this tumour prevented from developing with PSP. Importantly, we did not see any side effects from the treatment.”

Ling said conventional therapies were only effective in targeting certain cancer cells, not cancer stem cells, which initiated cancer and caused the disease to progress.

During the research trial, in collaboration with the University of Hong Kong and Provital Pty Ltd, transgenic mice that developed prostate tumours were fed PSP for 20 weeks.

Ling said no tumours were found in any of the mice fed PSP, whereas mice not given the treatment developed prostate tumours. He said the research suggested that PSP treatment could completely inhibit prostate tumour formation. (IANS/Thaindian)

OMG:Two-headed baby born in China (Weird News)

OMG:Two-headed baby born in China : Conjoined twin girls babies, with a single body and two heads, have been born to migrant farmers in Sichuan Province, southern China. A hospital staff Suining City Central Hospital, Wang, said the unique baby was born 5 may Thursday. Wang said the first of the baby's father and mother refused to keep the baby twins. Both claim to have no cost for raising their children.

Finally the baby was transferred to a larger hospital in Chongqing. The specialist will take care of and examines the phenomenon of two heads of this baby.

The twins weighed 9 pounds (4 kilograms) and measured 20 inches (51 centimetres), according to local press reports.