The study, findings of which appeared in the latest issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, looked at data of 16,667 type 2 diabetes patients. The data were collected over a period of 20 years and after analysis of those data the researchers found that older patients with one episode of hypoglycemia were at 26 % increased risk of dementia. And the risk increases with episodes of hypoglycemic. For example, after two episodes the risk increases by 115% and after three or more episodes of hypoglycemic the risk of dementia increases by 160%.

It means that a drop in blood sugar level may result in some very severe consequences. So, balanced blood sugar level is critical for type 2 diabetes patients. Doctors must take care while prescribing measures to control blood sugar levels in diabetics. Now, the researchers, led by Rachel A. Whitmer of Kaiser Permanente, would like to study how hypoglycemic episodes affect the functions of brain.

During the study, the researchers looked at the results of 200 different studies that investigated different diets and their connection with coronary heart disease. All of those studies were done in the US, Europe and Asia between 1950 to 2007. From the data of those studies the researchers wanted to compare different diets and their ability to reduce the risk of heart disease.

The McMaster University researchers found that there are differences in health benefits offered by different food groups or specific diets. Foods like vegetables, nuts and monosaturated fatty acids are very beneficial for the heart. And when it comes to overall healthy diets the Mediterranean diet is the most beneficial. The Mediterranean diet normally includes tomatoes and other vegetables, fruits, almonds, whole grain bread and monosaturated fat products such olive oil.

On the other hand foods with trans-fatty acids or high glycemic index are very harmful for the heart. In this group there are different fried and baked foods and carbohydrate rich foods such as rice and pasta. So, if you want a good heart, you must control the intake of this kind of food.

The findings of the study was published in the latest issue of journal “Archives of Internal Medicine”. The researchers thinks that their review of different food groups or dietary patterns will help health professionals and dieticians in delivering the right message about health diets. They also added that a good cardiovascular health is very important for a healthy life. So, people must take care not to eat those foods that increases the risk of heart disease.

via McMaster University

Yes, for cancer detection it requires just a tiny drop of blood or speck of tissue. Researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine have developed a machine that can test whether cancer-related proteins are present in the tiny samples. So, a minute drop of your blood will be able to confirm whether or not you have cancer!

The technique not only provide details about the cancer but also tells how the cancer proteins reacts to treatments. During the study, that was mainly focused on blood cancers, the technique was also able to detect and differentiate between different lymphoma types.

If we talk about present techniques of cancer diagnosis, the first thing comes to our mind is surgical biopsies. Biopsies takes time and sometimes are painful for the patients. That’s why it is thought that the new technique will facilitate quick and easy diagnosis of cancer.

Though the new technique was used to detect blood cancers, the researchers hope that it will also help in diagnosis and monitoring of other types of cancers. They are now testing it on head and neck tumors.

How type 2 diabetes may alter the normal brain functions? According to the University of Edinburgh researchers, who conducted the study in UK, hypoglycemia may be one of the reasons. Hypoglycemia is the condition when the blood sugar level drops to a dangerously low level. It affects the sugar supply to the brain and thus a patient may experience fatigue, dizziness, blurred vision and even loss of consciousness.

The study was based on 1,066 type 2 diabetes patients aged between 60 and 75 years. The patients were asked to complete several tests that measured their mental abilities. The researchers found that 113 patients who scored lower in mental ability and vocabulary tests, had already went through several hypoglycemic episodes. So, they thinks that either hypos lead to a poor memory or poor memory makes it more difficult for patients to manager their diabetes.

So, diabetes is really a deadly disease and everyone must take it seriously. The researchers suggested that in order to avoid cognitive decline, diabetes patients must work hard to maintain their blood sugar level. It is not that hard. Follow a healthy diet and exercise regularly. Also regularly consult you doctor and take the prescribed medications. In this way you will not only maintain the blood sugar level but will also reduce the risk of memory loss!

Short rib-polydactyly syndrome is a rare disorder characterized by short ribs. It prevents the skeleton growth and thus the stunted ribs prevents the infant’s lungs from growing. Due to this, the infant is unable to breathe on it’s own and dies soon after birth. It is very rare and hardly accounts for 5% of all genetics defects that affects the skeleton.

The UCLA research team identified the culprit gene after looking at an interesting DNA sequence shared by all three infants from a single family. Dr. Deborah Krakow and Dr. Stan Nelson from UCLA used DNA-scanning techniques to identify the mutated gene that caused the death of those three infants. Later Krakow and Nelson also confirmed the presence of the gene in two other families who already lost their infants because of short-rib polydactyly syndrome.

So, for the first time scientists came to know about the genetics of the disease. Now, it will help in early diagnosis of the disease. Dr. Deborah Krakow thinks that families will be now able to test embryos at risk for the disease. The researchers are now trying to find out more suspected genes that contribute to development of short-rib polydactyly syndrome.

via: http://www.ucla.edu/

The “AVantage A/H5N1 Flu Test” is manufactured by California based Arbor Vita Corporation. It detects the deadly virus from throat or nose swabs by identifying a marker protein that indicates the presence of the influenza A/H5N1 virus subtype. And the whole process takes just 40 minutes or less. During clinical studies it correctly detected the presence and absence of A/H5N1 virus subtype in more than 700 specimens.

Influenza A virus can infect both humans and animals. It’s subtype H5N1 is mostly found in birds and very rare for humans. But when it infects humans it becomes very deadly and may kill the infected person. Influenza A/H5N1 virus infection in humans are mainly reported from Asia and northern Africa.

FDA hopes that due to it’s fast detection ability, the “AVantage A/H5N1 Flu Test” will protect the public from the threat of bird flu pandemic. A bird flu pandemic may occur when the virus acquires the ability to easily infect humans through mutation. In that case the virus may create havoc by becoming resistant to antiviral drugs.

The good fat is also called as brown fat and unlike white fat it burns calories to generate heat. During the study, the researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center analyzed the records of 1,972 patients who had undergone PET/CT scans and found that the amount of brown fat in the body changes with many factors such as age, obesity, glucose levels etc. They also found that brown fat was present in large amounts in younger people compared to adults.

The study also revealed that amount of brown fat may be very little in people with higher Body Mass Index (BMI), that means those who are overweight and obese people. So, the researchers suggested that there might be a role of brown fat in regulating the body weight. Higher levels of brown fat may even prevent age-related obesity. On the other hand obesity is one of the prime risk factors of type 2 diabetes. So, if somehow development of brown fat could be stimulated later in life, it will not only stop obesity but will also reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Now, the researchers hope that their findings will open doors for development of some special therapies to stimulate brown fat in later stage of life. So, our own good fat or brown fat will save us from obesity and from the risk of diabetes!

The levels of Cortisol in the body increases by two-fold within 30 minutes of waking up. Then, during the day the level of hormone gradually decreases according to our body clock. The researchers found that children with Asperger Syndrome do not experience any kind of surge in the hormone level, though hormone decreased during the day like normal people.

Now, the researchers, led by Dr Mark Brosnan and Dr Julie Turner-Cobb from the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath, thinks that there might be a link between the levels of Cortisol and the Asperger Syndrome. Why? Because, cortisol makes us react and cope with unexpected changes around us and on the other hand, children with fails to do that. So, reduced levels of cortisol may explain why children with Asperger Syndrome finds it difficult to react and cope with unexpected changes in the environment around them.

The researchers thinks that their findings will help caretakers and teachers in developing strategies for children with Asperger Syndrome so that they can easily avoid stressful situations. The findings of the study was published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology.

The study conducted by the Ritchie Centre for Baby Health Research at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, looked at 25 infants who were born on time and healthy. Out of those 25 infants, 12 were born to mothers who smoked on average 15 cigarettes per day. The arousal responses of those 12 infants were monitored during daytime sleep and compared the data with that of the other 13 infants born to nonsmoking mothers.

During the study arousals were induced by delivering a pulsatile air-jet for five seconds at the infants’ nostrils. Care was taken not to disturb the natural sleep cycles of those infants and then sub-cortical arousals and full cortical arousals were monitored with polysomnography.

The researchers found that cortical arousals were lowest in infants who were exposed to higher levels of cigarette smoke. On the other hand complications in arousal processes that reacts to life-threatening situations is regarded as one of the causes of SIDS. So, the researchers concluded that maternal smoking can impair the arousal pathways of normal infants and thus may increase the risk of SIDS. It means if you smoke, chances are more that your own habit will harm your infant baby. Think about it.

via: http://www.aasmnet.org/

Broccoli sprouts contains sulforaphane, which activates the production of protective enzymes in the gut. In this was broccoli sprouts helps suppress infection of bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H.Pylori), which is regarded as one of the major cause of stomach cancer.

The study was conducted by researchers from Japan and involved people infected by bacterium H.Pylori. The researchers gave 25 people a diet of broccoli sprouts (70 grams per day for two months). Another group of 25 people were given the same amount of alfalfa sprouts.

The researchers found that patients who ate broccoli sprouts had 40 percent reduced levels of HpSA, a marker of H. Pylori compared to those who ate alfalfa sprouts. The researchers, was led by Dr Jed Fahey of Johns Hopkins University in the US, also tested broccoli sprouts on H. Pylori infected mice and got same kind of results. Mice which got broccoli sprouts experienced reduced levels of H. Pylori in the stomach.

It means broccoli sprouts helps the body fight against H. Pylori infection and thus reduces the risk of stomach related ailments such as stomach ulcers, gastritis and stomach cancer. But, as there may be several other factors, which leads to development of stomach cancer, simply eating may not provide 100% protection against stomach cancer, the researchers warned!