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Molecular switch provides insights into a form of altered brain activity occurring in schizophrenia

People with schizophrenia have an alteration in a pattern of brain electrical activity associated with learning and memory. Now, researchers from the National Institutes of Health and Sweden's Karolinska Institute have identified in mouse brain tissue a molecular switch that, when thrown, increases the strength of this electrical pattern. The researchers found that adding the brain chemical Neuregulin-1 to the brain tissue boosted the electrical signals that the tissue generated.

13 Aug 2008

Americanization linked to depression in immigrant women

A study of 439 U.S. and Mexican-born Latinas seeking pregnancy and postpartum services at public health clinics in San Antonio uncovered elevated levels of depression among the more "Americanized" women, report researchers from The University of Texas School of Public Health and The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio in the most recent online issue of the Maternal and Child Health Journal.

12 Aug 2008

Chronic pain among women may be down to low levels of vitamin D

According to new research published ahead of print, low vitamin D levels may contribute to chronic pain in women.

12 Aug 2008

New funding to improve UK's breastfeeding rate

The extra funding, announced during World Breastfeeding Week (1-7 August), will help improve the UK's breastfeeding rate that is among the lowest in Europe, and in particular help mums in deprived areas.

6 Aug 2008

Zinc supplementation benefits children suffering from diarrhea in developing countries

An estimated 2 million children in developing countries die each year from diarrhea, but simple zinc treatment could reduce the risk of such deaths.

29 Jul 2008

Knowing means simplifying: gluten-free diet alone is enough to cure the bones of pediatric patients with celiac disease

Individuals affected by celiac disease (gluten intolerance) often present an altered calcium (Ca2+) metabolism that can cause osteopenia, a bone mass decrease due to the impaired adsorption of this mineral, which can lead to osteoporosis (in 35-85% of the cases).

27 Jul 2008

Link between small birth size and changes to the CV system that predispose to disease in later life

Researchers have found the first evidence that smaller size at birth is associated with specific alterations in the functioning of the heart and circulation in children and that these changes differ between boys and girls.

22 Jul 2008

Malaria prevention in schools reduces anaemia and improves educational potential in Kenyan school kids

Providing preventive treatment for malaria, given once per term, dramatically reduces rates of malaria infection and anaemia among schoolchildren, and significantly improves their cognitive ability, according to new research published in the Lancet.

16 Jul 2008

Children's physical activity drops from age 9 to 15

The activity level of a large group of American children dropped sharply between age 9 and age 15, when most failed to reach the daily recommended activity level, according to the latest findings from a long-term study by the National Institutes of Health.

15 Jul 2008

Closing coal-fired power plants directly improves cognitive development in children

Closing coal-fired power plants can have a direct, positive impact on children's cognitive development and health according to a study released by the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health (CCCEH) at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.

14 Jul 2008

Out-of-pocket health care costs for disabled children vary widely by state

The size of the financial burden on families with disabled children largely depends on which state they live in, according to a new study conducted by the schools of social work at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Washington University in St. Louis, Mo.

14 Jul 2008

Malaria prevention in schools reduces anaemia and improves educational potential in Kenyan school children

10 Jul 2008

Researchers discover that learning suffers if brain transcript isn't transported far out to end of neurons

Neuroscientists at Georgetown University Medical Center have solved a mystery that lies at the heart of human learning, and they say the solution may help explain some forms of mental retardation as well as provide clues to overall brain functioning.

10 Jul 2008

Action to improve children's communication following Bercow Review

The funding comes as a result of a ground breaking independent review by John Bercow MP, commissioned by Government, which identifies that communication is the key life skill for every child - if they are to achieve at school, make friends and be successful in later life.

8 Jul 2008

Sex during adolescence doesn't predict future HPV infection

Predicting a child's future is a near impossible task - today's straight-A student may not become tomorrow's doctor, and the school-yard bully may actually grow up to become a member of the Peace Corps.

7 Jul 2008

Lack of sleep means kids do it hard at school

According to new study by Australian researchers, a lack of sleep can have a bad affect on the ability of children to both learn and interact at school.

7 Jul 2008

Fourth edition of the British National Formulary for Children

The fourth edition of the British National Formulary for Children (BNFC) arms health professionals with the information they need to tackle recent controversial health concerns in young people, including rising rates of teenage pregnancy and the increasing incidence of sexually transmitted infections.

3 Jul 2008

Resveratrol improves health, but not longevity in aging mice

Scientists have found that the compound resveratrol slows age-related deterioration and functional decline of mice on a standard diet, but does not increase longevity when started at middle age.

3 Jul 2008

Can children have strokes?

Childhood stroke is at least as common as brain tumours in children and may be as common as all childhood cancer but the condition is under-recognised by both the public and the medical profession. A new study hopes to address some of the large gaps in the understanding of this condition.

1 Jul 2008

A spoonful of sugar helps manage pain in newborns undergoing painful medical procedures

While the fictional character Mary Poppins may have been trying to charm her young wards into the unpleasant task of cleaning their room by singing 'A Spoonful of Sugar', her message apparently rings true to life.

30 Jun 2008