Health News: Poisoning sickens 1 in 10 every year ♦ Potentially dangerous molecules detected in e-cigarette aerosols ♦ TV you watch may affect midlife cognitive function

Food Poisoning sickens 1 in 10 every year At least 600 million people, or 1 in 10 worldwide, become ill from contaminated food each year and 420,000 die, many of them young children, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday. Giving its first global estimates of preventable foodborne diseases, WHO called on governments and industry to improve inspections

How much TV you watch as a young adult may affect midlife cognitive function Watching a lot of TV and having a low physical activity level as a young adult were associated with worse cognitive function 25 years later in midlife..

Potentially dangerous molecules detected in e-cigarette aerosols Electronic cigarettes produce highly-reactive free radicals -- molecules associated with cell damage and cancer -- and may pose a health risk to users

Accidental discovery of how to stay young for longer works in worms Researchers administered an antidepressant called mianserin to Caenorhabditis elegans, a type of roundworm used frequently in research. In 2007, they discovered that the drug increases the lifespan of roundworms by 30-40 per cent.

Health Research: Prolonged TV viewing linked to eight leading causes of death in US ♦ Acid reflex medications may increase kidney disease risk

Prolonged TV viewing linked to eight leading causes of death in US On average, 80 percent of American adults watch 3.5 hours of television per day and multiple observational studies have demonstrated a link between TV viewing and poorer health. Investigators reported an association between increasing hours of television viewing and increasing risk of death.

Surgical patients should stay on cholesterol medications to reduce risk of death Patients who stop taking cholesterol medications before surgery are following outdated recommendations, and significantly increasing their risk of death if they don’t resume taking the medications within two days after surgery.

Restoring testosterone rather than replacing it helps safeguard a man's fertility  Restoring testosterone production in men may be as effective as replacing it, without compromising their fertility. Two phase III clinical trials show that a drug that restores the body's natural production of testosterone has no negative effect on a man's sperm count .

Acid reflux medications may increase kidney disease risk Certain medications commonly used to treat heartburn and acid reflux may have damaging effects on the kidneys, according to two new studies. The drugs, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), are among the top 10 class of prescribed medications .

Green office environments linked with higher cognitive function scores People who work in well-ventilated offices with below-average levels of indoor pollutants and carbon dioxide have significantly higher cognitive functioning scores -- in crucial areas such as responding to a crisis or developing strategy -- than those who work in offices with typical levels

Weight Loss Research: Surgery achieves better long-term control of type 2 diabetes ♦ Your stomach bacteria determines which diet is best for weight reduction

Watching more TV as a young adult predicts obesity The more hours young adults spend watching television each day, the greater the likelihood that they'll have a higher body mass index and bigger waist circumference’

Genetic factors drive roles of gut bacteria in diabetes, obesity One strain of mice that were genetically prone to become obese became resistant to excess weight gain after their populations of gut microbiota were transformed simply by an sharing an environment with other mice.

Surgery achieves better long-term control of type 2 diabetes than standard therapy Metabolic or bariatric surgery may be more effective than standard medical treatments for the long-term control of type 2 diabetes in obese patients, according to a new study. The study is the first to provide data on five-year outcomes of surgery from a randomized clinical trial specifically designed to compare this new approach against standard medical therapy for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

Your stomach bacteria determines which diet is best for weight reduction New research enables "tailored" diet advice -- based on our personal gut microbiome -- for persons who want to lose weight and reduce the risk of disease. Systems biologists have, for the first time, successfully identified in detail how some of our most common intestinal bacteria interact during metabolism.

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Childrens Health: Anti-hemophilic factor safe in kids, ♦ Just an hour of TV a day linked to unhealthy weight in kindergartners ♦ One third of teens admit to texting while driving

Long lasting anti-hemophilic factor safe in kids, experts say Children with hemophilia A require three to four infusions each week to prevent bleeding episodes, chronic pain and joint damage. A new, extended therapy combines recombinant factor VIII with a fusion protein that allows the molecule to remain in the circulation longer -- translating into a need for less frequent treatment.

Parents sound off on mobile device use by children Smartphones and tablets have become part of everyday life, but parents still worry that mobile devices may not be the best thing for their children

Program puts a dent in summer hunger When schools close their doors for the summer, many low-income children who rely on subsidized breakfasts and lunches don't know when they will get their next meal. An innovative program to fill this gap could serve as a model for communities looking to help feed struggling families when school is out.

Just an hour of TV a day linked to unhealthy weight in kindergartners Kindergartners and first-graders who watched as little as one hour of television a day were more likely to be overweight or obese compared to children who watched TV for less than 60 minutes

One third of teens admit to texting while driving: State laws help State laws banning texting while driving led to significant reductions in the number of teens using their cell phones while behind the wheel, but nearly one-third still admitted to engaging in this risky behavior,

Childrens Health: BPA exposure linked to autism ♦ 2 hours of TV a day increases high blood pressure ♦ Why debunked autism treatment persist ♦ Secondhand smoke risk for infants

BPA exposure linked to autism spectrum disorder, study reports  A newly published study is the first to report an association between bisphenol-A (BPA), a common plasticizer used in a variety of consumer food and beverage containers, with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children. Continue Reading

More than two hours of TV a day increases high blood pressure in children by 30%  A study on European children concludes that spending more than two hours a day in front of a screen increases the probability of high blood pressure by 30%. The article also points out that doing no daily physical activity or less than an hour a day increases this risk by 50%. Continue reading

Why debunked autism treatment fads persist  The communication struggles of children with autism spectrum disorder can drive parents and educators to try anything. Authors describe treatments for autism that have been attempted with little or no success.including gluten- and casein-free diets, antifungal interventions, chelation therapy, magnetic shoe inserts, hyperbaric oxygen sessions, weighted vests, bleach enemas, sheep-stem-cell injections and many more. Continue Reading

High stress for new mothers increases secondhand smoke risk for infants Mothers with a high level of prenatal social stressors -- including possibly less control over their own housing situation or economic distress -- had 2.5 times higher odds to have only a partial or no restriction on smoking in their home than those with no stressors, which increases secondhand smoke risk, a study has found. Continue Reading