Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles
Grapefruit Benefits

New Study Shows Boys Face Serious Issues Which Are Being Ignored
Both boys and girls have issues, but boys seem to be the ones getting the raw deal. According to Judith Kleinfeld, professor of psychology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in the US, issues affecting boys are more serious than those affecting girls, but they have been neglected by policy makers. Her review1 of issues characterizing American boyhood, how they compare to those affecting girls, and the lack of initiatives in place to address them has just been published in the June issue of Springer"s journal Gender Issues.
generic viagra online
Antibodies That May Prevent Disease
Antibodies to a wide range of substances that can aggregate to form plaques, such as those found in Alzheimer"s patients, have been identified in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid of healthy people. Levels of these antibodies decline with age and, in Alzheimer"s patients, with increasing progression of the disease.
News of the day
Psychiatrists Begin Revising Diagnostic Manual For Mental Illnesses
Over the next 18 months, psychiatrists will revise the American Psychiatric Association"s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which is used to determine how U.S. residents" mental health is assessed, diagnosed and treated, the Los Angeles Times reports. Since the manual was last updated in 1994, technologies such as brain imaging and new understandings of the biological and genetic causes of many disorders have "almost guaranteed alterations" in the number of mental disorders included in fifth DSM volume, which is scheduled to be published in 2012, the Times reports.While some psychiatrists argue the manual should be broad enough to determine treatment for those who need it, others are concerned that if too broad, the manual will diagnose conditions that would otherwise be considered normal human behavior. David Kupfer, a psychiatrist at the University of Pittsburgh"s Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinics and chair of the DSM-V task force, said the DSM-V will recognize variations of disorders that have not been seen as part of "classic" illnesses, and will describe disorders in more detail, including how they differ based on race, gender, age, physical health and culture. Health insurance companies use the manual to determine coverage options for certain treatments.People involved in the revisions said the manual will be a better reflection of mental conditions of "real" people, rather than just those with the most severe cases of disorders or obvious diagnoses, the Times reports (Roan, Los Angeles Times, 5/26).
Nutrition

Linus Pauling Prize For Health Research Won By Vitamin D Expert Dr. Michael Holick

Dr. Michael Holick, a professor of medicine, physiology and biophysics at the Boston University School of Medicine who has revolutionized the understanding of vitamin D and its role in disease prevention, has received the $50,000 Linus Pauling Institute Prize for Health Research. The prize was presented at a biennial conference, Diet and Optimum Health, sponsored by the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University. It recognizes international leaders in research on the role of diet and nutrition in health promotion and disease prevention, as well as efforts to disseminate knowledge on diet, lifestyle and health to enhance public health and reduce suffering from disease. Holick is responsible for redefining vitamin D deficiency, a concern that"s now seen as a national epidemic, and has been strongly criticized in the past 20 years when warning that abstinence from direct sun exposure through sunblock use was leading to increasing vitamin D deficiency - with serious implications for cancer and other diseases. "I well remember Linus Pauling standing up to criticism and skepticism, a trait of Holick as well," said Nevin Scrimshaw, president of the International Nutrition Foundation, in nominating him for this award. "Today, Holick is recognized as a world renowned nutritional biochemist/physician whose research has had a global impact on the health of both children and adults." Holick"s work opened a wide field of investigation that has now demonstrated how vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of cancer, autoimmune diseases, infectious and cardiovascular disease, Scrimshaw said. And studies have concluded that more than 50 percent of the children and adults in the United States are vitamin D deficient - a growing crisis, due in part to successful campaigns to always wear sun protection outdoors and reduce natural production of what"s known as the "sunshine vitamin." Holick was the first scientist to isolate the active forms of vitamin D, and in the past three decades has become the world authority on photobiology of vitamin D through synthesis in the skin. He"s determined that anyone living north of 35 degrees latitude can"t make enough vitamin D in the skin during winter exposure to sunlight. His work has helped lead to vitamin D fortification in various foods. In more recent work, Holick has shown links between vitamin D deficiency and the development of preeclampsia in pregnancy. An understanding of the health benefits of vitamin D was cited by Time magazine as one of the top 10 medical advances in 2007. The prize is named after Linus Pauling, a two-time Nobel laureate, OSU alumnus, founder of the Linus Pauling Institute and pioneer in the role of vitamins and micronutrients in promoting health and preventing disease. Balz Frei Oregon State University


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009