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Vitamin D and its good and bad effects on the heart

Vitamin D in excess may not be beneficial and may even harm the heart says a new study. Scientists have long known that low levels of the nutrient can hurt the heart, but new research shows that higher than normal levels can make it beat too fast and out of rhythm, a condition called atrial fibrillation. The study was presented at the annual meeting of the American Heart Association.

17 Nov 2011

New possibilities for relief from digestive diseases

As a researcher in neurogastroenterology for 40 years, professor Khalil Bitar has spent his professional life studying the causes of perplexing and what frequently become embarrassing problems for humans—issues such as constipation, diarrhea and colon disease.

17 Nov 2011

Novel program aims to improve nutrition, physical activity among young children and prevent obesity

A Kansas State University research group is jumping ahead to improve nutrition and physical activity among young children and prevent childhood obesity.

17 Nov 2011

PCBs affect growth and bone density in turtles, an 'indicator species'

Manufactured until 1977, and banned by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1979, pentachlorobiphenyls (PCBs) are chemicals still commonly found in the environment because they break down slowly.

17 Nov 2011

Improper payments reduced by $17.6 billion, White House says

This cut in wasteful or improper payments in social welfare programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, applies to the year ending Sept. 30.

17 Nov 2011

Protein, not sugar, stimulates cells keeping us thin and awake

A new study has found that protein and not sugar activates the cells responsible for keeping us awake and burning calories. The research, published in the 17 November issue of the scientific journal Neuron, has implications for understanding obesity and sleep disorders.

17 Nov 2011

One billion non-Medicare billings are processed yearly, says expert

The U.S. remains on track to spend twice as much for health care as for food, yet millions are without insurance or uninsured.

17 Nov 2011

Loyola surgeon first in the Chicago to implant Esteem hearing device

Lesa Merlo's hearing loss was so severe she had to read her children's lips when they talked to her. Then Dr. Sam Marzo of Loyola University Medical Center implanted a new hearing device in her middle ear. "I could hear their real laugh for the first time since they were babies," she said. "It was different, clear, pure and more beautiful than I could have ever imagined."

17 Nov 2011

Research into role of insulin in obesity-related cancers

Niyati Parekh, an assistant professor at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, has received a $720,000 Research Scholar Grant from the American Cancer Society to study the role of insulin in obesity-related cancers.

17 Nov 2011

Teens more likely to die from heart disease at younger age than adults

A new study that takes a complete snapshot of adolescent cardiovascular health in the United States reveals a dismal picture of teens who are likely to die of heart disease at a younger age than adults do today, reports Northwestern Medicine research.

17 Nov 2011

Multivitamin use linked to less healthy behaviors

The lack of evidence on multivitamin health benefits is no impediment to their widespread popularity, with over half the U.S. population popping such pills. This translates into a $27 billion industry, which lures consumers with the illusory promise of better health. But shocking new research suggests taking multivitamins might have the opposite effect -- not simply on the metabolic level, but on a metaphysical one: promoting a false sense of invulnerability that actually leads users to engage in riskier behaviors.

17 Nov 2011

Incyte receives FDA approval for Jakafi to treat intermediate or high-risk MF

Incyte Corporation today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted marketing approval for Jakafi (ruxolitinib) for the treatment of patients with intermediate or high-risk myelofibrosis (MF), including primary MF, post-polycythemia vera MF and post-essential thrombocythemia MF.

17 Nov 2011

GORE TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis receives FDA approval for treatment of TAAs

W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc. (Gore) announced that it has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market the Conformable GORE TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis as a minimally invasive treatment for patients suffering from thoracic aortic aneurysms.

16 Nov 2011

Non-therapeutic antibiotic usage in food animals creates resistance genes, promotes antibiotic resistance

In a review study, researchers from Tufts University School of Medicine zero in on the controversial, non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in food animals and fish farming as a cause of antibiotic resistance.

16 Nov 2011

The story of E. coli

It has been the cause of infamous international foodborne disease outbreaks and yet it is the most studied bacterium in science, an essential part of the human digestive tract, and a backbone of the biotech industry.

16 Nov 2011

Press Ganey recognizes UT Southwestern with two major patient satisfaction awards

UT Southwestern Medical Center today became the nation's only academic medical center to win two major patient satisfaction awards - the Patient Voice Award and the Summit Award for inpatient services - from Press Ganey, a national consulting firm specializing in health care performance.

16 Nov 2011

Health of millions of children in East Asia, Pacific at risk due to climate change, UNICEF report says

"Climate change is expected to worsen the plight of millions of children in East Asia and the Pacific who already lack food and clean water and are vulnerable to disease, ... UNICEF said Monday ... in its report 'Children's vulnerabilities to climate change and disaster impacts in East Asia and the Pacific,'" AlertNet reports.

16 Nov 2011

Researchers to begin drug development projects for rare and neglected diseases

Researchers will begin drug development projects for rare and neglected diseases that include potential treatments for a musculoskeletal disorder, a cognitive dysfunction disorder, a virus that affects the central nervous system of newborns, a parasitic worm infection, a form of muscular dystrophy and a rare lung disease.

16 Nov 2011

Amgen's XGEVA delays onset of bone metastases in men with prostate cancer

Amgen announced today the publication of results from a Phase 3 trial (the '147 study) that evaluated XGEVA (denosumab) for use in preventing or delaying the onset of bone metastases in men with nonmetastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

16 Nov 2011

Xarelto (rivaroxaban) shows success as blood thinner in acute coronary syndrome

A new anti-blood clotting drug – Xarelto (rivaroxaban) has shown clinical success. It may help people with “acute coronary syndrome” lower their risk of death, subsequent heart attack or stroke, a new study finds. Acute coronary syndrome is term that includes people with angina or prior history of heart attack.

15 Nov 2011