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Tobacco giants in the USA facing far stricter control

A bill which would give the government of the United States far more power and control over the tobacco industry has received the support of the Senate.

12 Jun 2009

Senate approves legislation to give the FDA power to regulate tobacco

The Senate overwhelmingly approved legislation today that gives the Food and Drug Administration regulatory power to limit nicotine in cigarettes, "drastically curtail" advertising and "ban candied tobacco products" aimed at the young, The Associated Press reports.

11 Jun 2009

Democrats target a dozen GOP senators in quest for health reform deal

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus and other Democratic leaders are targeting more than a dozen moderate and conservative Republicans as they pursue a bipartisan deal to extend health care coverage to nearly 46 million uninsured Americans.

11 Jun 2009

National survey looks at HIV/AIDS in South Africa

According to the results of a national survey conducted in 2008 and released Tuesday, HIV prevalence among South Africans between the ages of 15 and 24 dropped from "a high of 10.3 percent in 2005 to 8.7 percent last year, with the decreases most marked among teenagers," AFP/Google.com reports (AFP/Google.com, 6/9).

11 Jun 2009

Study finds childhood obesity increases early signs of cardiovascular disease

At a press conference held today at The Endocrine Society's 91st Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., Nelly Mauras, M.D., Division Chief of Endocrinology at Nemours Children's Clinic in Jacksonville, announced the results of a four year study with findings that show childhood obesity increases early signs of cardiovascular disease. Dr. Mauras' study was chosen for distinction among 5,000 abstracts that were submitted to the national conference.

11 Jun 2009

Social moms make better moms, at least in baboons

Female baboons who have strong social relationships with other females give birth to offspring who are much more likely to survive to adulthood than baboons reared by less social mothers, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of California, Los Angeles, and others.

11 Jun 2009

Potential new way to treat childhood epilepsy

Rutgers researchers have discovered a potential new way to treat childhood epilepsy using a widely available therapeutic drug.

10 Jun 2009

New drug for muscle degenerating diseases shows great promise

A new drug being studied for the treatment of muscle degenerating diseases has shown promising results. According to a study published today in the British Journal of Pharmacology, Debio 025 is as effective as current drugs but, crucially, does not cause unwanted immunosuppressive effects.

10 Jun 2009

Groups want New Jersey to restore immigrant outreach funds

"Immigrant and health-care advocacy groups" are calling on New Jersey to "restore $1 million in funding that has been eliminated in the latest round of budget tightening," the AP/Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

10 Jun 2009

Provisions for young, old in Kennedy bill; Senate leaders eye July for bill

Sen. Edward Kennedy's health care reform bill includes provisions to allow elderly people remain in their homes and the young to stay on their parents health insurance until age 26, according to The Associated Press.

10 Jun 2009

GlaxoSmithKline opens pneumonia vaccine plant In Singapore

Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) on Tuesday opened a $600 million plant in Singapore that is slated to begin producing vaccines to fight pneumonia-causing bacteria in 2011, Reuters reports.

10 Jun 2009

Beware! Computers can seriously damage your health

According to researchers in the United States computers can damage the health and computer-related injuries are on the increase - with young children particularly at risk.

9 Jun 2009

Shame and blame stops women leaving violent men

Researchers in New Zealand say shame and self-blame often stop women leaving violent relationships and campaigns advocating choice and empowerment aimed at prompting abused women to leave their abusers may in some cases have the opposite effect.

9 Jun 2009

WHO, UNICEF say vitamin A, deworming interventions safe, in response to alleged deaths, sickness in Bangladesh

The WHO and UNICEF on Tuesday said that vitamin A supplements and deworming tablets are safe, after two deaths and the "sickness of hundreds" were alleged among the children who received the interventions during a nationwide campaign in Bangladesh, Bernama.com reports (Bernama.com, 6/9).

9 Jun 2009

Opinion: Second-line ARVs in India; PEPFAR funding

The successful scale-up of services for people living with HIV (PLHIV) in India "is now at risk," write Loon Gangte, president of the Delhi Network of Positive People, and Leena Menghaney, projects manager in India for Medecins Sans Frontieres' Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines, in a livemint.com editorial.

9 Jun 2009

Researchers estimate risk of transmission of Huntington's disease to offspring among male carriers

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have quantified the probability of a male who carries a "high normal" variant of the Huntington's Disease (HD) gene having a child who develops the disease. Although thought to be a very rare event, the probability has never been estimated using current information and disease guidelines. The findings, appear on-line in the American Journal of Medical Genetics, may be useful during prenatal genetic counseling.

9 Jun 2009

Obesity and junk food the culprits in increased bowel cancer rates in young adults

New research by scientists in the United States has found despite the overall declining rates of colorectal cancer among adults younger than age 50 years the rates are increasing.

9 Jun 2009

BMI may not provide an accurate picture of a person's health

Being overweight is a health concern, and using only body mass index (BMI) to determine weight classification may not give an accurate picture of a person's health, according to an advisory published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

9 Jun 2009

Researchers find early signs of diabetes in healthy children as young as seven

Research conducted under the direction of Melinda Sothern, PhD, Professor and Director of Health Promotion at the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Public Health, showing early signs of diabetes in healthy children as young as seven years old will be presented at the American Diabetes Association 2009 Annual Scientific Session Meeting in New Orleans.

9 Jun 2009

Having flu when pregnant increases risk of schizophrenia in offspring

When mothers become infected with influenza during their pregnancy, it may increase the risk for schizophrenia in their offspring. Influenza is a very common virus and so there has been substantial concern about this association. A new study in the June 15th issue of Biological Psychiatry, published by Elsevier suggests that the observed association depends upon a pre-existing vulnerability in the fetus.

9 Jun 2009