A study conducted by researchers at Canada’s Acadia University finds that insecurity and anxiety about a relationship may not only generate heart ache, but also heart attacks. In a study of more than 5,600 people between the ages of 18 to 60, researchers found that those who said they felt insecure in relationships were more likely to
…
Some reassuring news from the Institute of Food Technologists on the safety of seafood from the Gulf. Despite the photos of pelicans and turtles drenched in the oil from Deepwater Horizon, seafood from Louisiana, which provides one-third of the continental US’s seafood (that’s about 1.5 billion pounds a year) does not seem to be that …
A new technique that identifies early differences in vocal development between children with an autism spectrum disorder or language delay and those developing on a normal trajectory could give pediatricians and other caregivers a tool for earlier detection of autism, and as a result facilitate earlier intervention. To distinguish the
…
Among the findings being presented and discussed this week at the 18th International AIDS Conference being held in Vienna are data suggesting that more HIV patients are taking anti-retroviral medications, study results indicating that proper, routine use of a vaginal gel before and after sex may cut infection HIV-infection rates by as
…
Expanding on previous research into the possible use of tiny “micro-needles” to deliver vaccines using a patch, researchers at Emory University and the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed dissolving “micro-needles” made from freeze-dried vaccine that could not only minimize pain associated with vaccinations, but improve immune
…
Sat in on an interesting session on meat substitutes at the Institute of Food Technologists meeting. So here’s the argument, which you’ve no doubt heard before – most of the western world, including North and South America and Europe is a carnivorous group. We love our meat. Since the 1960s, our consumption of animal-based protein …
More news from the Institute of Food Technologists meeting.
It’s always disturbing to hear about intentional cases of food adulteration – the melamine in infant formula, for example, because it represents a concerted effort to deceive, and in many cases, harm the public. But how common is such nefarious manipulation of our food?
Hello from Chicago, where I’m attending the annual meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists. It’s an interesting gathering of food scientists from academia, industry and government who think about what we eat, how we eat and why we aren’t eating better. Over the next several days, I’ll be brining you some news from the …
Women who routinely wear high heels may feel pain when they don flats because regularly walking around with their heels elevated can significantly change leg muscle structure — causing the calf muscles to shorten and tendons to stiffen — according to a study published online today in The Journal of Experimental Biology.
For the
…
The issue of whether parents whose children are obese should be charged with neglect has fueled debate and generated controversial court cases, but, according to an article published this week in BMJ, so far there is little research analyzing negligence and obesity — and particularly whether obese children who are put into foster care
…
New data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that the number of hospital admissions for prescription drug-related substance abuse increased 400% between 1998 and 2008. The latest figures add weight to concerns about surging prescription drug abuse in the U.S., and were characterized by Gil
…
A new study published in the International Journal of Clinical Practice adds to research suggesting that, when it comes to measuring children’s medicine, a “spoonful” is seldom the right dose. The findings highlighted by the BBC are based on an analysis of teaspoons taken from 25 households in Greece, as well as an experiment in which
…
Despite concerns that the popular GlaxoSmithKline diabetes drug Avandia could raise the risk for heart attack, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel voted today in favor of keeping the medication on the market. As the Wall Street Journal reports, 20 members of the 33-person panel voted in favor of keeping Avandia on the
…