Month: October 2013

BEIJING (Reuters) – China has confirmed a new case of the H7N9 bird flu, state media said, the country’s first report since August of human infection with a virus that has so far afflicted 135 people. A 35-year-old man in Shaoxing in China’s eastern province of Zhejiang has been hospitalized with the virus and is in critical condition, the official Xinhua news agency said on Tuesday. “Liu, a company employee from Shaoxing county, was admitted to a township hospital on October 8,” the agency said. …

It sounds like something a quack would support, but it’s true. There’s growing evidence that lifestyle changes such as eating a healthier diet and exercising more may be enough to prevent and even treat conditions ranging from diabetes to cancer.

Young bonobos share hugs and kisses to make their peers feel better much the way children do, according to a new study suggesting people and ape emotions function similarly.

By Ransdell Pierson (Reuters) – A new type of cholesterol drug being developed by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc and Sanofi SA, when used by itself, cut levels of “bad” LDL cholesterol almost in half in the first of a dozen late-stage trials of the injectable medicine. The experimental drug, called alirocumab, is from a promising new class of injectable cholesterol fighters also being developed by Amgen Inc and other drugmakers. …

By Gyles Beckford WELLINGTON (Reuters) – A Pacific Island man trying to flee rising seas and environmental risks caused by global warming in his home country of Kiribati asked a New Zealand court on Wednesday to let him pursue his claim as a climate change refugee. The low-lying South Pacific island nation has a population of more than 100,000, but its average height of 2 m. (6-1/2 feet) above sea level makes it one of the countries most vulnerable to rising waters and other climate change effects. …

A low-carb diet means less insulin, making it easier to lose weight because less fat is … Admittedly the types of fat on his high-fat diet weren't your usual fatty foods, … same amount of weight whether they come from a “healthy” diet full of fat or a …

By Richard Cowan WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate prepared for a last ditch effort Wednesday to avoid a historic lapse in the government's borrowing authority, a breach that President Barack Obama has said could lead to default and deliver a damaging blow to the global economy. After a day of stop-and-go negotiations, the top Democrat and Republican in the U.S. Senate were said to be close to agreeing on a proposal to raise the debt limit – and reopen the partially shuttered government – for consideration by the full Senate on Wednesday. …