Month: March 2014

Calorie counting is stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. Put your diet on autopilot with these calorie-saving Tips.

About 9 percent of women suffer from an iron deficiency, according to the most recent stats from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—but that number’s even higher for physically active women, say experts. How can you tell if your levels are a little low? Be on the lookout for these 10 warning signs.

Older people are the most likely to be diagnosed with colon cancer.

If your child is having trouble sleeping, or isn't getting the amount of sleep he or she needs, it may very well have to do with electronic devices. A new survey by the US National Sleep Foundation found American kids ages 6 through 17 aren't getting enough sleep, with almost 72 percent sleeping with at least one electronic device in their bedrooms.

Scientists in South Africa have mapped the evolution of an antibody that kills different strains of the HIV virus, which might yield a vaccine for the incurable disease, the National Institute of Communicable Diseases said on Monday. The scientists have been studying one woman’s response to HIV infection from stored samples of her blood and isolated the antibodies that she developed, said Lynn Morris, head of the virology unit at the NICD. The study, by a consortium of scientists from the NICD, local universities and the U.S. Vaccine Research Centre of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was published in the journal Nature. Humans respond to HIV by producing antibodies to fight the virus.

TODAY, going on a diet to lose weight isn't about eating less. … Food should consist of lean, natural meats; low glycaemic-load fruits and vegetables …

By Valerie Volcovici WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration on Monday announced new fuel and automobile rules to cut soot, smog and toxic emissions, which it says will reduce asthma and heart attacks in the United States. The rules unveiled by the Environmental Protection Agency will cut sulfur levels in gasoline by more than 60 percent and will be phased in between 2017 and 2025. Health advocates praised the move, while a petroleum refiners' group called the compliance schedule unrealistic and warned that these regulations and others would eventually raise gasoline prices throughout the country. "By reducing these pollutants and making our air healthier, we will bring relief to those suffering from asthma, other lung diseases and cardiovascular disease, and to the nation as a whole," said Dr. Albert Rizzo, former chairman of the American Lung Association.

By Barbara Liston ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – A Florida hospital on Monday settled for $80 million to $90 million part of a federal whistleblower lawsuit that accused it of Medicare fraud and kickbacks to its cancer doctors and neurosurgeons, according to a lawyer for the whistleblower. Halifax Health, a 678-bed hospital in Daytona Beach serving Florida’s East Coast, reached the tentative settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice on the morning that jury selection was set to begin in the U.S. District Court in Orlando, said Atlanta lawyer Marlan Wilbanks, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of former hospital employee Elin Baklid-Kunz.

CHICAGO (AP) — Most people who abuse addictive prescription painkillers get them for free from friends or relatives, while drug dealers are a relatively uncommon source for those at highest risk for deadly overdoses, a government study found.

By Susan Heavey WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Most Americans who abuse prescription pain killers get them free from friends or family, but a new study released on Monday shows that addicts who use these opiates most frequently gravitate toward doctors or dealers to get their fixes. U.S. government researchers found that nearly one in three “high use” abusers – people who take opioids between 200 and 365 days a year – obtained a doctor’s prescription for the drugs, compared with about one in five of those who used the drugs less than 30 days over the course of a year. Prevention programs should concentrate much more on ensuring that doctors prescribe pain killers judiciously, screen patients carefully and conduct follow-up monitoring of frequent users. “This is the group where we really need to be targeting our efforts because they’re most at risk for overdose or dependence,” lead author Christopher Jones, former head of the CDC’s prescription drug overdose team, told Reuters.

By Natalie Huet PARIS (Reuters) – The first patient fitted with an artificial heart made by the French company Carmat has died, the hospital that had performed the transplant in December said on Monday. The 76-year-old man died on Sunday, 75 days after the operation, the Georges Pompidou European Hospital in Paris said in a statement, adding that the cause of his death could not be known for sure at this stage. When he was fitted with the device, the man was suffering from terminal heart failure, when the sick heart can no longer pump enough blood to sustain the body, and was said to have only a few weeks, or even days, to live. Carmat’s bioprosthetic device is designed to replace the real heart for as much as five years, mimicking nature’s work using biological materials and sensors.

By Andrew M. Seaman NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Education campaigns that aim to inform people about the benefits of vaccines do little to increase the intent of parents to vaccinate their future children, according to a new study. Furthermore, researchers found that among a group of parents who were least likely to vaccinate their future children, some education campaigns actually added to their reservations. The study’s lead author told Reuters Health that the research is an extension of his work in political science that found it is difficult to correct people’s misinformation. “We found political misinformation is often very difficult to correct and giving people the correct information can backfire,” said Brendan Nyhan, a political scientist at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.