Public Health News and Research

RSS

Epigenetic factors that increase breast cancer risk

Women can encounter environmental factors that increase their risk of breast cancer at various periods of their physical development, beginning before birth and extending until menopause.

16 Apr 2007

Potential biomarkers for early detection of liver cancer

Researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health have discovered a means for early detection of liver cancer.

16 Apr 2007

Astrocytes may contribute to Lou Gehrig's disease

Two papers by Columbia and Harvard researchers report for the first time that astrocytes (the most abundant non-neuronal cells in the central nervous system), which carry a mutated gene known to cause some cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS/Lou Gehrig's disease), induce motor neuron death.

16 Apr 2007

deCODE launches novel DNA-based reference laboratory test for assessing inherited risk of type 2 diabetes

deCODE genetics has announced the launch of deCODE T2, a novel DNA-based reference laboratory test for the first common and well-validated genetic risk factor for type 2 diabetes (T2D).

16 Apr 2007

Essential medicines for children

Following recommendations from the Expert Committee on Essential Medicines, the World Health Organization (WHO) will immediately begin work to create a medicines list specifically tailored to children's needs. A group of experts will meet in July 2007 to produce the first international list of medicines to tackle diseases with high mortality and morbidity rates in children.

16 Apr 2007

For teens - abstinence-only sex education programs...a waste of money!

It has taken a U.S. government report to confirm what experts in sexual behaviour have repeatedly warned about in recent years regarding teenage sex....abstinence just doesn't work.

16 Apr 2007

Exercise reduces risk of hypertension in young adults

Young adults who spend more time participating in physical activity have a reduced risk of developing high blood pressure within the next 15 years, according to researchers at the University of Minnesota.

15 Apr 2007

Should stocks of smallpox virus be destroyed?

Smallpox was eradicated in 1980, but the virus still exists in WHO controlled depositories. In this week's BMJ , two experts go head to head over whether these stocks should be destroyed.

15 Apr 2007

Men and women show different patterns of brain activity when viewing sexual stimuli

A study funded by the Atlanta-based Center for Behavioral Neuroscience (CBN) analyzed the viewing patterns of men and women looking at sexual photographs, and the result was not what one typically might expect.

15 Apr 2007

A report for the ten year strategy for the reduction of vitamin and mineral deficiencies

A new report by AED Center for Nutrition and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) for the Food and Nutrition Bulletin shows that while cost-effective interventions to reduce vitamin and mineral deficiencies have existed for more than 20 years, significant micronutrient deficiencies still plague many countries, increasing maternal and child mortality and slowing brain development in children.

15 Apr 2007

Eradicating polio a better option than extended control of the disease

Concerns about the high perceived costs of eradicating the relatively low number of polio cases worldwide have led to recent suggestions that it is time to shift from a goal of eradication to control—abandoning eradication and allowing wild poliovirus to continue to circulate, which proponents of control believe can sustain the low number of cases.

15 Apr 2007

People with two copies of a particular gene have a 70% higher risk of being obese

Scientists have identified the most clear genetic link yet to obesity in the general population as part of a major study of diseases funded by the Wellcome Trust, the UK's largest medical research charity.

15 Apr 2007

Intarcia Therapeutics announces results from study of injectable Omega Interferon plus Ribavirin for treatment of hepatitis C genotype-1

Intarcia Therapeutics has announced final results from a Phase 2 study of omega interferon with or without ribavirin in treatment-naive patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C.

15 Apr 2007

FDA approves GlaxoSmithKline's antibacterial Altabax

GlaxoSmithKline has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its antibacterial Altabax for the topical treatment of impetigo due to susceptible strains of Staphylococcus aureus or Streptococcus pyogenes, the two most common types of bacteria in this kind of infection.

14 Apr 2007

Gay and bisexual men may be at far higher risk for eating disorders

In the first population-based study of its kind, the researchers found that gay and bisexual men have higher rates of eating disorders. The findings are reported in the April 2007 issue of International Journal of Eating Disorders.

14 Apr 2007

65 per cent of Cree preschoolers in northern Quebec overweight or obese

Childhood obesity is increasing among the general population in Canada, but the statistics are even more alarming among First Nations, Inuit and Metis children.

14 Apr 2007

Spanish doctors and nurses report high rates of drink driving

A disturbingly high prevalence of self-reported drinking and driving has been found among Spanish health professionals.

12 Apr 2007

Study finds poor diets of most Australian teens

A quarter of Australian teenagers eat fast food everyday and more than a third hardly ever eat fruit, a Deakin University study has found.

12 Apr 2007

A wavering commitment to polio eradication is not a good option!

Concerns about the high perceived costs of eradicating the relatively low number of polio cases worldwide have led to recent suggestions that it is time to shift from a goal of eradication to control-abandoning eradication and allowing wild poliovirus to continue to circulate, which proponents of control believe can sustain the low number of cases.

12 Apr 2007

Momentum for indoor smoking bans across the globe growing

In a Perspective in the April 12, 2007 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) , researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and the Association of European Cancer Leagues describe the growing momentum for indoor smoking bans in countries across the globe.

12 Apr 2007