Traffic noise boosts risk of stroke, says study

Exposure to road traffic noise boosts the risk of stroke for those 65 or older, according to research published online on Wednesday in the European Heart Journal.

In a survey of more than 50,000 people, every 10 additional decibels of road noise led to an increase of 14 percent in the probability of a stroke when averaged for all age groups.

For those under 65, the risk was not statistically significant. But the risk was weighted hugely in the over-65 group, where it rose 27 percent for each 10 decibel increment.

Above 60 decibels or so, the danger of stroke increased even more, the researchers found.

A busy street can easily generate noise levels of 70 or 80 decibels. By comparison, a lawnmower or a chainsaw gives off 90 or 100 decibels, while a nearby jet plane taking off typically measures 120 decibels.

"Previous studies have linked traffic noise with raised blood pressure and heart attacks," said lead researcher Mette Sorensena of the Danish Cancer Society.

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Study Said That Breastfeeding May Not Be Best After Four Months

Breastfeeding exclusively for the first six months is not necessarily best for a baby's health, British researchers said Friday, calling into question advice given to new mothers.

The team led by a paediatrician from University College London said babies fed only breast milk could suffer iron deficiency and may be more prone to allergies.

The study says babies could start to be weaned on to solids as early as four months, although other experts advised sticking to the existing guidelines.

Ten years ago, the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended that infants should be exclusively breastfed for six months.

"Many Western countries, including 65 percent of European member states and the United States, elected not to follow this recommendation fully, or at all," the authors said, although Britain did.

The WHO recommendation "rested largely" on a review of 16 studies, including seven from developing countries.

It concluded that babies given only breast milk for six months had fewer infections and experienced no growth problems.

But another review of 33 studies found "no compelling evidence" not to introduce solids at four to six months, the experts said.

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Breast-Feeding May Counter Some Effects of Childhood Cancer

Breast-feeding may help reduce some long-term negative side effects of cancer treatment in women who survived childhood cancer, according to a new study.

The findings suggest that making women aware of the benefits of breast-feeding should be part of routine recommendations for a post-cancer healthy lifestyle, said Susan W. Ogg and colleagues from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.

The researchers reviewed studies that examined whether women can successfully breast-feed after treatment for childhood cancer, how childhood cancer treatment affects women's health in general over the long term and whether breast-feeding might reduce both the risk and impact of treatment-related toxicity in cancer survivors.

Read more : womenshealth.gov

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Exercise Improves IBS Symptoms

In a study that was conducted with around 102 Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients it was found that physical activity improves IBS symptoms and also protects against deterioration of the condition. Half the group was asked to increase their physical activity and the rest were asked to maintain their usual lifestyle. The group that had physical activity developed reduced symptoms when compared to the non-active group where there was no change. The study, which was conducted at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg and at Alings's Hospital, age groups ranging between 18 and 65.

Read more : Medinda.net

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Android smartphone to rocket into space

A UK-based team of researchers plans to launch a smartphone-bearing satellite to see if the phone will work in space.

The Surrey Training, Research and Nanosatellite Demonstrator (Strand-1) is scheduled to go into orbit around the Earth with a £300 smartphone payload, Guildford-based Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) announced on Monday. The project is designed to show off the capabilities of a satellite built using commercial, off-the-shelf components.

"If a smartphone can be proved to work in space, it opens up lots of new technologies to a multitude of people and companies for space who usually can't afford it," Strand-1 lead researcher Chris Bridges said in a statement.

According to Bridges, smartphones contain components — such as sensors, GPS systems and Wi-Fi radios — that are technologically advanced but smaller, lighter and cheaper than those typically used in satellite systems.

The Strand-1 project, expected to cost around £250,000 including launch costs, has been funded equally by the University of Surrey and SSTL, Bridges told ZDNet UK. So far, the partners have spent about £30,000-£40,000 on the satellite hardware itself, with an additional £20,000 on labour and environmental testing costs, he said.

Read more : zdnet.co.uk

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New evidence that asteroid, not comet, struck Jupiter in 2009

Infrared images of the aftermath of an impact on Jupiter in 2009 have been combined with other observations to conclude that an asteroid, not a comet, slammed into the planet.

A hurtling asteroid about the size of the Titanic caused the scar that appeared in Jupiter's atmosphere on July 19, 2009, according to two papers published recently in the journal Icarus.

Data from three infrared telescopes enabled scientists to observe the warm atmospheric temperatures and unique chemical conditions associated with the impact debris. By piecing together signatures of the gases and dark debris produced by the impact shockwaves, an international team of scientists was able to deduce that the object was more likely a rocky asteroid than an icy comet. Among the teams were those led by Glenn Orton, an astronomer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and Leigh Fletcher, researcher at Oxford University, U.K., who started the work while he was a postdoctoral fellow at JPL.

"Both the fact that the impact itself happened at all and the implication that it may well have been an asteroid rather than a comet shows us that the outer solar system is a complex, violent and dynamic place, and that many surprises may be out there waiting for us," said Orton. "There is still a lot to sort out in the outer solar system."

The new conclusion is also consistent with evidence from results from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope indicating the impact debris in 2009 was heavier or denser than debris from comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, the last known object to hurl itself into Jupiter's atmosphere in 1994.

Read more : physorg.com

Image credit: NASA/IRTF/JPL-Caltech/University of Oxford

Premature Clamping of the Umbilical Cord may Result in Brain Damage to Newborns

A major error in modern obstetrical practice is routine premature clamping of the umbilical cord. Thousands of obstetricians have been taught that immediate cord clamping is an acceptable, standard obstetrical procedure, and millions of newborns have been subjected to it. Cerebral palsy (CP), along with other injuries, can result from premature cord clamping.

A task force of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) issued a report on Neonatal Encephalopathy and Cerebral Palsy; the chairman states: "Scientific evidence shows that neonatal encephalopathy and cerebral palsy are largely not caused by labor and delivery events." The president of ACOG says the report is useful for educating doctors, parents and jurors and that "adverse outcome has nothing to do with medical negligence or error." The report offers doctors legal care; for patients, there is little hope, the causes of brain damage are "unpreventable."

In relation to the report, the January 2003 "Obstetrics & Gynecology" ("Green Journal") published a "knowledge survey" of OB’s [1] on the etiology and pathophysiology of neonatal encephalopathy and its relationship to CP. "Don’t know" was the most frequent response to the multiple-choice questions. The task force chairman also admits that the "true genesis ... of these injuries" has not yet been defined; he also states "most cases of CP are the result of multi-factorial and unpreventable causes that occur either during fetal development or in the newborn after delivery." In fact, the true genesis of these injuries is clearly illustrated in the correct answers to his questions:

Read more : mercola.com

Image credit to : embryology.med.unsw.edu.au

Stressed Out? It Might Be Messing with Your Memory

Right when you thought stress and anxiety were bad enough on their own, new research shows they can seriously mess with your memory

What is it that makes a person either go completely blank or perform brilliantly on simple tasks involving memory when feeling stressed?

The answer is complicated, and the best doctors out there are finally teasing out some of the bigger mysteries behind how that three-pound mass of electrochemical soup remembers, or forgets, where the damn keys are. An old adage says a little stress is good for memory, and a lot is bad—but it turns out to be true only for men. New research suggests that gender matters when it comes to memory and stress, whether that stress is acute, chronic, or traumatic.

Acute Stress
Being able to remember things and learn new info depends entirely on the ability of networks of neurons—mostly in the areas of the brain called the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus—to communicate with one another. Picture each neuron as an old-fashioned telephone, but with multiple wires snaking out from the receiver. Some of those wires are called axons, and they intersect with other wires called dendrites at connections called synapses. The brain creates and retains memories in part by growing thicker, more efficient communication lines between groups of neurons—basically, by hooking up the phone wires and keeping them on a biological speed dial. When you try to remember when your son first smiled, says Todd Sacktor, M.D., a professor of neurology at the State University of New York Downstate College of Medicine, the phone lines should start buzzing with activity, connecting the neurons that hold those memories.

Read more: womenshealthmag.com

Credit image to : flickr.com