Women's Health: Timing of first childbirth influences women's health at age 40 ♦ Use aspirin to prevent preeclampsia ♦ Active and passive smoking linked to infertility

Timing of first childbirth influences women's health at age 40 A new study finds some surprising ways in which women's health at midlife is connected to when they had their first child and to their marital history.

Research offers recommendations for use of aspirin to prevent preeclampsia To prevent preeclampsia, new research suggests that low-dose aspirin should be given prophylactically to all women at high risk (those with diabetes or chronic hypertension) and any woman with two or more moderate risk factors (including obesity, multiple gestation and advanced maternal age).

Active and passive smoking linked to infertility and earlier menopause Active and passive smoking are linked to infertility problems and a hastening of the natural menopause before the age of 50.

Increased number of IVF cycles can be beneficial, findings suggest Although in vitro fertilization (IVF) is often limited to three or four treatment cycles, new research shows the effectiveness of extending the number of IVF cycles beyond this number.

Health News: Smoking in pregnancy 'affects boys' fitness in later life' ♦ Over testing for diabetes patients reaps negative rewards ♦ Less than half of US hospitals require flu shots for staff

Combining adult stem cells with hormone may speed bone fracture healing A combination of adult stem cells and parathyroid hormone significantly increased new bone formation in laboratory animals and may speed the healing process for human bone fractures caused by osteoporosis.

Less than half of US hospitals require flu shots for staff, despite risk to patients Within weeks, flu will start spreading. Multiple national recommendations urge all healthcare workers to get the influenza vaccination, to reduce the chances they will pass the virus on to their patients. But a new study finds that more than half of hospitals still don't require this.

Smoking in pregnancy 'affects boys' fitness in later life' Mothers who smoke are putting more than their own health at risk.

Over testing for diabetes patients reaps negative rewards A national trend toward overtesting glycated hemoglobin levels in adult patients with type 2 diabetes has been uncovered by a recent study. Overtesting causes redundancy and waste says the study team, adding unnecessary costs and time burden for patients and providers. In addition, excessive testing can result in overtreatment with hypoglycemic drugs, adding additional cost and potential health complications.

Health News:Which turkey producers allow routine antibiotic use ♦ Costco chicken salad linked to E. coli outbreak ♦ Smoking hits all-time low, but not for these three groups

Which turkey producers allow routine antibiotic use Humane farming advocates Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT) have released an overview of the antibiotics and other drugs used in turkey production. The organization is part of the Keep Antibiotics Working coalition, which recommends that food animal producers limit the use of medically important antibiotics to disease treatment in order to prevent overuse and subsequent

Costco chicken salad linked to E. coli outbreak in CO,UT,MT,and WA. In a statement posted Monday, Nov. 23, 2015, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment  announced that it is working with other western states and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate illnesses due to E. coli O157:H7 from chicken salad purchased at Colorado Costco stores in late October.  

Continuum theory of sexual orientation disputed by researchers Researchers have established a categorical distinction between people who are heterosexual and those who are not. The findings are a clear departure from the homosexual-heterosexual continuum used to describe sexual orientation since it was hypothesized by sexologist Alfred Kinsey in 1948. However, the findings do support more recent biological hypotheses of sexual orientation

Smoking hits all-time low, but not for these three groups A first-of-its-kind program targets groups with highest tobacco rates and matches smokers with counselors in their demographic to help them quit, say experts from one of America's largest nonprofit quitline

Health Research: Implant procedure helps patients with sacroiliac joint pain ♦ New insights into REM sleep crack an enduring mystery ♦ Study combats 'anxiety' as barrier to breast cancer screening

New insights into REM sleep crack an enduring mystery has long fascinated scientists, clinicians, philosophers, and artists alike, but the identity of the neurons that control REM sleep, and its function in sleep have been controversial due to a lack of precise genetic methods to study the sleeping brain. Now, in a remarkable demonstration of a recent brain technology, neuroscientists provide the first answers to both questions, identifying a neural circuit in the brain that regulates REM sleep, and showing that REM sleep controls the physiology of the other major sleep phage.

Advocating for raising the smoking age to 21 A physician, who during his 31-year career in medicine has seen the harmful effects of smoking on his patients, advocates for raising the smoking age to 21. He says the move would help curb access to tobacco products at an early age and lead to reductions in smoking prevalence.

Study combats 'anxiety' as barrier to breast cancer screening A new article describes a successful intervention to decrease anxiety accompanying breast cancer screening, lessening this barrier to mammography.

Implant procedure helps patients with sacroiliac joint pain A minimally invasive implant procedure is highly effective in reducing pain and disability for patients with sacroiliac joint dysfunction.

Plague in humans 'twice as old' but didn't begin as flea-borne, ancient DNA reveals New research dates plague back to the early Bronze Age, showing it had been endemic in humans across Eurasia for millennia prior to first recorded global outbreak, and that ancestral plague mutated into its bubonic, flea-borne form between the 2nd and 1st millennium BC

Cardiovascular Research: Look inside your heart ♦ Studying cardiac arrhythmias in nematodes ♦ Exercise and stop smoking to improve depression after heart attack

Look inside your heart Quantifying the damage caused to specific parts of the heart by cardiac arrest is key to providing effective treatment and accurate prognoses for millions of people worldwide. Now, researchers have developed a computational method that uses magnetic resonance imaging data to assess the extent of damage to the left ventricle, the heart’s powerhouse.

Studying cardiac arrhythmias in nematodes A simple model using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has been developed that can be used to test substances for treating genetically-mediated cardiac arrhythmias. They used the nematode feeding apparatus for this purpose, a rhythmically active muscle pump that resembles the muscle cells in the mammalian heart.

Novel prosthetic heart valve developed for treatment of severe heart disorder A novel prosthetic heart valve has been developed, known as VeloX, which can be implanted through a small incision for the treatment of a serious heart valve disorder called mitral regurgitation. This is a condition in which the mitral valve on the left side of the heart does not close properly. The device is particularly beneficial to patients who are of high surgical risk or are unsuitable for existing clinical interventions

Transplantation of unique, newly discovered stems cells may lead to promising stroke therapy When rats modeled with stroke were transplanted with newly discovered and unique Muse cells, neuronal regeneration resulted in significant improvements in neurological and motor functions and did not cause cancer, as other cells often do, scientists report.

Exercise and stop smoking to improve depression after heart attack  Exercise and stop smoking to improve depression after a heart attack, experts urge.

Pulmonary Research: Immunotherapy superior to chemotherapy for lung cancer ♦ Rapid testing for TB aims to reduce drug resistance ♦ Algorithm interprets breathing difficulties

Algorithm interprets breathing difficulties to aid in medical care Researchers have developed an efficient algorithm that can interpret the wheezing of patients with breathing difficulties to give medical providers information about what's happening in the lungs. The work is part of a larger, ongoing project to develop wearable smart medical sensors for monitoring, collecting and interpreting personal health data.

Drug for fungal infections in lung transplant recipients increases risk for cancer, death Voriconazole, a prescription drug commonly used to treat fungal infections in lung transplant recipients, significantly increases the risk for skin cancer and even death.

Rapid testing for TB aims to reduce drug resistance, lower mortality rate Researchers have documented the accuracies of three new tests for more rapidly diagnosing drug-resistant forms of tuberculosis (TB), which are much harder and more expensive to treat and which represent a major threat to global public health.

First UK Biobank genetic study reveals new links between lung disease and smoking behavior Smokers who survive their habit into old age may hold the key to better lung health for all. The new discoveries may one day help scientists develop better treatments for diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a life-threatening condition that affects millions of people.

Immunotherapy superior to chemotherapy for lung cancer in international trial "Game-changing results” have been announced by a team of scientists using the immunotherapy drug nivolumab to treat certain lung cancers that failed to respond to first-line therapies

Children's Health: Teen marijuana use down despite greater availability ♦iVruses flourish in guts of healthy babies ♦ Time spent outdoors results in decreased rate of nearsightedness

Viruses flourish in guts of healthy babies Bacteria aren't the only nonhuman invaders to colonize the gut shortly after a baby's birth. Viruses also set up house there. The study is one of the first surveys of viruses that reside in the intestine, beginning the work of defining a healthy gut virome.

Racial disparities in pain of children with appendicitis in EDs Black children were less likely to receive any pain medication for moderate pain and less likely to receive opioids for severe pain than white children in a study of racial disparities in the pain management of children with appendicitis in emergency department.

Teen marijuana use down despite greater availability Marijuana use among American high school students is significantly lower today than it was 15 years ago, despite the legalization in many states of marijuana for medical purposes, a move toward decriminalization of the drug and the approval of its recreational use in a handful of places.

Hookah tobacco smoking seems to be increasing in both prevalence, frequency Nearly one in five recently surveyed high school seniors report having smoked tobacco from a hookah in the past year, and more than a third of them reported smoking hookahs often enough to be considered regular users. The findings add to evidence that hookah use among adolescents is increasing in both prevalence and frequency.

Additional time spent outdoors by children results in decreased rate of nearsightedness The addition of a daily outdoor activity class at school for three years for children in Guangzhou, China, resulted in a reduction in the rate of myopia (nearsightedness, the ability to see close objects more clearly than distant objects,

Health News: Surgical research stops suffering for millions ♦ Blood, teeth samples accurately predict a criminal's age ♦ Dermatologists share tips to stop nail biting

Dermatologists share tips to stop nail biting Breaking a nail is one thing. Breaking a nail-biting habit is another, say dermatologists. Nail biting typically begins in childhood and can continue through adulthood, and the side effects can be more than cosmetic.

Blood, teeth samples accurately predict a criminal's age Forensic biomedical scientists have developed a test to predict individual's' age on the basis of blood or teeth samples. This test may be particularly useful for the police, as it can help track down criminals or identify human remains.

Continued smoking after MS diagnosis associated with accelerated disease progression Continued smoking after a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) appears to be associated with accelerated disease progression compared with those patients who quit smoking

Study finds high prevalence of diabetes, pre-diabetes in U.S. In 2011-2012, the estimated prevalence of diabetes among U.S. adults was 12 percent to 14 percent and the prevalence of prediabetes was 37 percent to 38 percent, indicating that about half of the U.S. adult population has either diabetes or prediabetes, according to a study. Though data from recent years suggests that the increasing prevalence of diabetes may be leveling off.

Surgical research stops suffering for millions of impoverished citizens Mosquito mesh cannot just prevent malaria, but can also be used to reduce the suffering caused by groin hernia. A surgical operation using mosquito mesh to repair the hernia can give millions of people a chance at a better life.

Health Research: Spine surgery: Findings could cut costs for osteoporosis patients ♦ Neuron responsible for alcoholism found ♦ Raising pay can reduce smoking rates

Medication treatment for opioid use disorders in primary care increases patient access Expanding the number of sites offering office-based opioid treatment with buprenorphine utilizing addiction nurse care managers, trainings and technical support resulted in more physicians becoming waived to prescribe buprenorphine and more patients accessing treatment at sites across Massachusetts.

Raising pay can reduce smoking rates In addition to restricting when and where tobacco is used at work, research shows that employers can do something else to reduce smoking: raise wages

Neuron responsible for alcoholism found Scientists have pinpointed a population of neurons in the brain that influences whether one drink leads to two, which could ultimately lead to a cure for alcoholism and other addictions. Their study finds that alcohol consumption alters the structure and function of neurons in the dorsomedial striatum, a part of the brain known to be important in goal-driven behaviors

Feeling blue and seeing blue: Sadness may impair color perception The world might seem a little grayer than usual when we're down in the dumps and we often talk about 'feeling blue' -- new research suggests that the associations we make between emotion and color go beyond mere metaphor. The results of two studies indicate that feeling sadness may actually change how we perceive color.

Spine surgery: Findings could cut costs for osteoporosis patients, facilities New findings from an interventional radiology department have shown that a more expensive option isn’t necessarily more effective for spine augmentation.

Women's Health: Abusive men put female partners at greater sexual risk ♦ highly refined carbohydrates increases risk of depression ♦ Gastric bypass surgery lowers women's alcohol tolerance

Gastric bypass surgery lowers women's alcohol tolerance Women who have gastric bypass surgery to lose weight should keep a close eye on their alcohol consumption, according to a study. The researchers found that changes in how alcohol is metabolized after surgery can speed its delivery into the bloodstream, resulting in earlier and higher peaks in blood-alcohol levels.

Consuming highly refined carbohydrates increases risk of depression A diet high in refined carbohydrates may lead to an increased risk for new-onset depression in postmenopausal women, according to a study. The study looked at the dietary glycemic index, glycemic load, types of carbohydrates consumed, and depression in data from more than 70,000 postmenopausal women who participated in the National Institutes of Health's Women's Health Initiative Observational Study between 1994 and 1998.

Combined impact of smoking, early menopause on mortality Women may now have yet another reason to quit smoking given the results of a new study. The Swedish study involving 25,474 women is the first to quantify the combined effects of smoking and age at menopause on overall mortality in terms of survival time by investigating the role of smoking as a possible effect modifier.

Abusive men put female partners at greater sexual risk Men who were physically and sexually abusive to women were more likely than non-abusive men to engage in behaviors that exposed them and their partners to sexually transmitted infections.

Health Research:Improving gene therapy ♦ Depressive ruminations and the idling brain ♦ Pharmacists help patients with hypertension

Researchers resurrect ancient viruses in hopes of improving gene therapy Researchers have reconstructed an ancient virus that is highly effective at delivering gene therapies to the liver, muscle, and retina. This discovery could potentially be used to design gene therapies that are not only safer and more potent than therapies currently available, but may also help a greater number of patients.

Trying to quit smoking? First strengthen self-control The desire to quit smoking -- often considered a requirement for enrolling in treatment programs -- is not always necessary to reduce cigarette cravings, argues a review of addiction research. Early evidence suggests that exercises aimed at increasing self-control, such as mindfulness meditation, can decrease the unconscious influences that motivate a person to smoke.

Pharmacists help patients with hypertension Patients with hypertension benefit from interacting with a medical team that includes a pharmacist. Two studies showed pharmacist-included care teams delivered more hands-on and tailored medication regimens to patients, which yielded more effective blood-pressure control results than for those patients who did not have a pharmacist on hand.

Depressive ruminations and the idling brain Depressed people often find themselves preoccupied with guilty, shameful, or self-defeating thoughts for large parts of their day. These thoughts not only distract from other activities but also fail to resolve the underlying life issues. Further, the ideas that receive focused attention in these depressive ruminations are frequently quite distorted and lead to distress.

Treating ships' ballast water: Filtration preferable to disinfection Untreated ballast water discharge from ships can spread living organisms and even pathogens across the world thereby introducing non-native or invasive species into the local environment. Scientists therefore recommend using physical treatment processes such as filtration rather than electrochemical disinfection, which creates countless potentially toxic compounds.

Children's Health: Antibiotic choice for treating childhood pneumonia ♦ How to predict biphasic allergic reactions in children ♦ Grandparents support helps reduce risk of child obesity

Study looks at antibiotic choice for treating childhood pneumonia Hospitals are doing a better job of using antibiotics less commonly associated with antibiotic resistance to treat children hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia .

How to predict biphasic allergic reactions in children Children are more likely to have a repeat, delayed anaphylactic reaction from the same allergic cause, depending on the severity of the initial reaction, reports the first pediatric study to look at the predictors for this phenomenon.

Smoking around your toddler could be just as bad as smoking while pregnant Children whose parents smoked when they were toddlers are likely to have a wider waist and a higher BMI by time they reach ten years of age. “We suspect the statistics we’ve established linking childhood obesity to exposure to parents’ smoking may underestimate the effect due to parents under reporting the amount they smoked out of shame, 40% of children are exposed to secondhand smoke in their own homes.

Grandparents support helps reduce risk of child obesity According to an English saying, it takes a whole village to raise a child. A new study has shown how important the support from grandparents could be. According to the study, emotional support from grandparents has a protective effect against child obesity.

Health Research: Engineered E.coli to produce new forms of popular antibiotic ♦ Prosthetic hands with a sense of touch ♦ Smoking legislation prevents 11,000 child hospital admissions

Researchers engineer E. coli to produce new forms of popular antibiotic University at Buffalo researchers will report that they have managed to turn E. coli into tiny factories for producing new forms of the popular antibiotic erythromycin -- including three that were shown in the lab to kill drug-resistant bacteria.

Prosthetic hands with a sense of touch? 'Sensory feedback' from artificial limbs Researchers are exploring new approaches to designing prosthetic hands capable of providing "sensory feedback." New advances have been made toward developing prostheses with a sense of touch

Inmates denied methadone treatment less likely to seek it once free When people on methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) are incarcerated in the United States, they are almost always forced off of the addiction-controlling medicine. In a randomized trial, inmates allowed to stay on MMT while in jail proved much more likely to seek treatment after release than those whose treatment was interrupted.

Parental smoking puts nearly half a million UK children into poverty Smoking is not only bad for your health; it also puts 400,000 children in poverty in the UK alone. Smoking places a financial burden on low income families, suggesting that parents are likely to forgo basic household and food necessities in order to fund their addiction.

Smoking legislation prevents more than 11,000 child hospital admissions in England each year The introduction of smoke-free legislation in England was associated with over 11,000 fewer admissions to hospital a year from respiratory infections in children, according to a new study

Cardiovascular Research: Race influences warfarin dose ♦ All forms of smoking are bad for the heart ♦ Blood pressure medications can lead to increased risk of stroke

Before an operation, low blood pressure rather than high is a risk factor for death New research suggests that, before an operation, low blood pressure rather than high blood pressure is an independent risk factor for death.

Blood pressure medications can lead to increased risk of stroke The importance of preventing hypertension is reinforced by a study showing anti-hypertension medicines can increase stroke risk by 248 percent, according to new research.

Anticoagulant medications: Newer, easier to manage medications may not always be the best choice If you are over age 75, and taking an anticoagulant, the old standard may be the gold standard, Mayo Clinic researchers and collaborators have determined.

Race influences warfarin dose A new report demonstrates that clinical and genetic factors affecting dose requirements for warfarin vary by race. The study proposes race-specific equations to help clinicians better calculate warfarin dosage

All forms of smoking are bad for the heart All forms of smoking are bad for the heart, the European Society of Cardiology has warned.

Health Research: Drug that can prevent onset of diabetes is rarely used ♦ Quitting smoking deteriorates diabetes control ♦ How to reset a diseased cell

Drug that can prevent onset of diabetes is rarely used Few doctors are prescribing a low-cost drug that has been proven effective in preventing the onset of diabetes. New research finds that only 3.7 percent of U.S. adults with prediabetes were prescribed metformin during a recent three-year period.

New method of investigating human lung tissue enables improved drug target validation for COPD treatment Scientists have succeeded in testing the effectiveness of new approaches for treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on ex vivo 3D human lung tissue cultures. For the first time, the suitability of Wnt/beta-catenin activation has been investigated to initiate repair in patient-derived COPD lung tissue.

Study links quitting smoking with deterioration in diabetes control Sufferers of type 2 diabetes mellitus who quit smoking are likely to see a temporary deterioration in their glycaemic control which could last up to three years.

How to reset a diseased cell  Researchers demonstrate the ability to tune medically relevant cell behaviors by manipulating a key hub in cell communication networks. The manipulation of this communication node makes it possible to reprogram large parts of a cell's signaling network instead of targeting only a single receptor or cell signaling pathway

Health Research: Scientists set out to build a better gut ♦ Smoking increases likelihood of twins ♦ Text messages support mothers with postpartum depression

New genetic mutation could signal start of malaria drug resistance in Africa Early indicators of the malaria parasite in Africa developing resistance to the most effective drug available have been confirmed. Investigators found Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites with a mutation to the gene Ap2mu were less sensitive to the drug artemisinin.

Text messages a good way to support mothers with postpartum depression New research explores the feasibility of helping low-income mothers through postpartum depression using text messages. The objective of the study was to evaluate the feasibility of sending supportive text messages to low-income mothers of racial and ethnic minority backgrounds with postpartum depression

Diabetes perceptions vary according to risk factors,  Differing perceptions among adult populations at-risk for diabetes have been uncovered by researchers, which may offer new approaches to diabetes education and prevention. The way that people mentally represent their conditions has a concrete effect on the way that they manage these conditions on their prognoses.

Smoking and mother's genetics combine to increase likelihood of twins African American mothers who smoke and have a genetic profile that includes a single nucleotide polymorphism, SNP, of the TP53 gene have an increased likelihood of having twins,

To fight nasty digestive bugs, scientists set out to build a better gut – using stem cells If you’ve ever been hit with an ‘intestinal bug’, you’ve felt the effects of infectious microbes on your digestive system. But scientists don’t fully understand what’s going on in gut infections like that – or in far more serious ones. Now, a team of scientists will tackle that issue in a new way

Women's Health: Low Testosterone not just in males ♦ Domestic violence deters contraception ♦ Breastfeeding may prevent postpartum smoking relapse

Low Testosterone not just in males: Testosterone, atherosclerosis and obesity may be linked in females  While testosterone replacement therapies may be controversial in males, new research may extend this controversy to females too. That's because research involving mice suggests that there is an association between low levels of androgens, including testosterone, and atherosclerosis and obesity in female

Domestic violence deters contraception Women who are abused by their partner or ex-partner are much less likely to use contraception; this exposes them to sexually transmitted diseases and leads to more frequent unintended pregnancies and abortions.

A third of breast cancer patients concerned about genetic risk Many women diagnosed with breast cancer are concerned about the genetic risk of developing other cancers themselves or of a loved one developing cancer. Overall, 35 percent of women with breast cancer expressed a strong desire for genetic testing, but 43 percent of those women did not have a relevant discussion with a health care professional.

Breastfeeding may prevent postpartum smoking relapse While a large number of women quit or reduce smoking upon pregnancy recognition, many resume smoking postpartum. Previous research has estimated that approximately 70 percent of women who quit smoking during pregnancy relapse within the first year after childbirth, and of those who relapse, 67 percent resume smoking by three months, and up to 90 percent by six months. A new study indicates the only significant predictor in change in smoking behaviors for women who smoked during pregnancy was in those who breastfed their infant, finding that women who breastfed their infants for at least 90 days smoked less in the months following childbirth than women who breastfed for a shorter period of time or who did not breastfeed at all.

Pregnancy Research: Pacemaker designed for fetal use ♦ Mother's diet influences weight-control neural circuits in offspring ♦ Effects of smoking seen in unborn babies

First fully-implantable micro pacemaker designed for fetal use The first fully implantable micro pacemaker designed for use in a fetus with complete heart block has been designed by researchers. The investigators anticipate the first human use of the device in the near future.

Mother's diet influences weight-control neural circuits in offspring Maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation may prime offspring for weight gain and obesity later in life, according to researchers who looked at rats whose mothers consumed a high-fat diet and found that the offspring's feeding controls and feelings of fullness did not function normally.

High-definition scans suggest effects of smoking seen in unborn babies The harmful effects of smoking during pregnancy may be reflected in the facial movements of mothers' unborn babies, new research has suggested. The researchers say that the reason for this might be that the fetal central nervous system, did not develop at the same rate and in the same manner as in fetuses of mothers who did not smoke during pregnancy

Research on medical abortion, miscarriage may change international routines Two scientific studies are expected to form the basis of new international recommendations for the treatment of medical abortions and miscarriages. One of the studies shows that it is possible to replace the clinical follow-up examinations recommended today with medical abortions that include a home pregnancy test. The other study shows that midwives can safely and effectively treat failed abortions and miscarriages in rural districts of Uganda.

Childrens Health: Concerns over the online market of human breast milk ♦ Medulloblastoma: Promising drug target identified ♦ High school seniors now try smoking water pipes

Many things can be read in a newborn's gaze, such as future visual cognitive abilities Experienced nannies and doctors have always known how much the visual contact with a newborn can convey. A recent study provides scientific evidence for this everyday understanding. The findings show that a newborn's ability to fixate relates to the microscopic maturation of brain structures, and it predicts visual cognitive abilities later in childhood.

Concerns over the online market of human breast milk  The sale of human breast milk on the internet poses serious risks to infant health and needs urgent regulation, argue experts. Purchasing human breast milk on the internet can be cheaper than buying from regulated milk banks, where it can cost up to $3-4 per ounce, because sellers can cut corners to save on costs such as pasteurization, testing for disease and contamination, and the appropriate collection, storage and shipping of milk.

Medulloblastoma: Promising drug target identified  A protein has been found that is critical to both the normal development of the brain and, in many cases, the development of medulloblastoma, a fast-growing brain tumor that usually strikes children under 10. When the researchers cut the level of the protein Eya1 in half in mice prone to develop medulloblastoma, the animals' risk of dying from the disease dropped dramatically.

One in four high school seniors now try smoking water pipes  Despite declines in the number of youths who smoke cigarettes, hookah or water pipe use continues to rise among Canadian youth, a new study reports. The study found that almost one in four high school seniors try smoking hookah.

Childrens Health: Effects of smoking may be seen in unborn babies ♦Nudging Children toward Healthier Food Choices ♦ 'Violence-free' zones improve behavior + more

High-definition scans suggest effects of smoking may be seen in unborn babies The harmful effects of smoking during pregnancy may be reflected in the facial movements of mothers' unborn babies. The researchers say that the reason for this might be that the fetal central nervous system Continue Reading

Suggestions for Nudging Children toward Healthier Food Choices  Strategies aimed at reducing childhood obesity should acknowledge individuals’ rational taste preferences and apply insights from behavioral economics to design choice architecture that increases their likelihood of success,  Continue Reading

'Violence-free' zones improve behavior, performance in middle, high school students  A youth violence-reduction mentoring program for trouble-plagued schools in urban centers has contributed to improved student behavior and performance at high-risk middle and high schools in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Richmond, Virginia, Continue Reading

Children less likely to come to the rescue when others are available  Children as young as 5 years old are less likely to help a person in need when other children are present and available to help, according to new research. Previous research has shown that children are generally very helpful, but few studies had specifically looked a t whether the presence of others affects this helping behavior.  Continue Reading

More schools, more challenging assignments add up to higher IQ scores   More schooling,and the more mentally challenging problems tackled in those schools, may be the best explanation for the dramatic rise in IQ scores during the past century,. These findings also suggest that environment may have a stronger influence on intelligence than many genetic determinists once thought  Continue Reading