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Tips to protect yourself from getting sick during cold and flu season

As you travel to visit friends and family this holiday season, don't leave home without the hand sanitizer. During cold and flu season, that's one of three things you can do to protect yourself from getting sick you're on the go.

3 Dec 2013

Study identifies high burden of pain in older adults

More than half of older adults in the United States - an estimated 18.7 million people - have experienced bothersome pain in the previous month, impairing their physical function and underscoring the need for public health action on pain. Many of those interviewed by investigators for a study published in the current issue of PAIN- reported pain in multiple areas.

3 Dec 2013

Mixing energy drinks with alcohol may lead to more serious alcohol-related problems

Mixing energy drinks with alcohol is riskier than just drinking alcohol alone, according to a new study that examines the impact of a growing trend among young adults.

3 Dec 2013

U.S. Administration to provide $5 billion to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

In an address recognizing World AIDS Day, President Barack Obama announced today that the U.S. Administration will commit up to $5 billion to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria over the next three years. Specifically, he said the United States will contribute $1 for every $2 provided by other donors worldwide through 2016, up to $5 billion.

3 Dec 2013

Recently discovered humanin peptide could lead to powerful new treatments for diabetes

Even if the obesity trend cannot be reversed, here's hope that it's partner in crime-diabetes-might be thwarted. New research published in the December 2013 issue of The FASEB Journal shows how a recently discovered human peptide, called humanin, could lead to powerful new treatments for some people living with diabetes.

2 Dec 2013

Scientists transform human stem cells into functional lung and airway cells

For the first time, scientists have succeeded in transforming human stem cells into functional lung and airway cells. The advance, reported by Columbia University Medical Center researchers, has significant potential for modeling lung disease, screening drugs, studying human lung development, and, ultimately, generating lung tissue for transplantation.

2 Dec 2013

Social networking sites have positive effects on people with eating disorders

Social networking sites, such as Instagram have traditionally been believed to have a negative effect on people with eating disorders, but new research from Griffith’s School of Public Health has found that may not be the case.

30 Nov 2013

UC San Diego biophysicists discover how antibiotic resistance allows bacteria to multiply

Using quantitative models of bacterial growth, a team of UC San Diego biophysicists has discovered the bizarre way by which antibiotic resistance allows bacteria to multiply in the presence of antibiotics, a growing health problem in hospitals and nursing homes across the United States.

30 Nov 2013

LifeStyles Condoms partners with AIDS Healthcare Foundation to raise awareness for World AIDS Day

The makers of LifeStyles Condoms, one of the nation's leading condom brands, today announced the launch of the #LetsChangeEverything social media campaign in partnership with the AIDS Healthcare Foundation to raise awareness for World AIDS Day on December 1, 2013.

29 Nov 2013

Sagkeeng First Nation supports the Principles to Guide Health Care Transformation in Canada

The Canadian Medical Association is pleased to announce that Sagkeeng First Nation of Manitoba is supporting the Principles to Guide Health Care Transformation in Canada, now endorsed by 133 organizations across the country.

29 Nov 2013

Poor oral hygiene, excess sugar consumption linked to heart disease

The association between poor oral health and increased risk of cardiovascular disease should make the reduction of sugars such as those contained in junk food, particularly fizzy drinks, an important health policy target, say experts writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.

28 Nov 2013

Scientists identify new approach to fight malaria parasites

Using advanced methodologies that pit drug compounds against specific types of malaria parasite cells, an international team of scientists, including researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation, have identified a potential new weapon and approach for attacking the parasites that cause malaria.

28 Nov 2013

New alliance formed to address domestic child sex trafficking

The Moore Center for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse at The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the bipartisan Advisory Council on Child Trafficking (ACCT) announce a new, formal alliance, building on the May 2013 symposium highlighting the need for more rigorous research addressing domestic child sex trafficking.

28 Nov 2013

Pre-existing diabetes in pregnant women doubles risk of death of infants

New research shows that pre-existing diabetes in pregnant women greatly increases the risk of death of their unborn fetus by around four-and-a-half times compared with pregnant women without diabetes, and also almost doubles the risk of death of infants after birth.

28 Nov 2013

PLOS and DNDi to launch collection of neglected tropical diseases at 10-year anniversary of DNDi

As part of a collaborative initiative, PLOS and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) are delighted to be launching a special Collection-PLOS & DNDi: a decade of Open Access and Neglected Tropical Diseases R&D (Research and Development)-to coincide with a joint event at the Institut Pasteur in Paris celebrating the 10-year anniversary of DNDi.

28 Nov 2013

Findings highlight possible new approach to combat malaria

An international team of scientists, including researchers at Columbia University Medical Center, has identified a key metabolic enzyme that common malaria parasites require for survival at each stage of infection in humans. The findings raise the possibility of a new approach to combating malaria, one of the world's deadliest diseases. The study was published today in the online edition of the journal Nature.

27 Nov 2013

RSNA and Regenstrief Institute partner to standardize radiology procedure names

Under a contract awarded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, the developers of two advanced medical terminologies have begun work to harmonize and unify terms for radiology procedures. Creating standardized radiology procedure names will improve the quality, consistency and interoperability of radiology test results in electronic medical record systems and health information exchange.

27 Nov 2013

Study highlights unique barriers for African Americans with hypertension

For African-Americans who have hypertension, controlling their high blood pressure is critical to avoid serious complications. However, a history of racial discrimination and/or mistrust in their physicians often causes them to skip taking their necessary medication, finds a new study in the American Journal of Public Health.

27 Nov 2013

Graphic warnings would lead to decrease in smoking rates

A research paper published in the scientific journal Tobacco Control, "Cigarette graphic warning labels and smoking prevalence in Canada: a critical examination and reformulation of the FDA regulatory impact analysis", shows that graphic warning labels on cigarette packs led to a decrease in smoking rates in Canada of between 12% and 20% from 2000 to 2009. The authors estimate that if the same model was applied to the United States, the introduction of graphic warnings would potentially lead to a decrease of between 5.3 and 8.6 million smokers.

27 Nov 2013

Mass urbanisation brings great health risks in China’s major cities

At the third plenum held earlier this month, the Chinese government announced reforms to further drive urbanisation in China. After already experiencing the largest human migration in history, what are the public health consequences of this mass movement from rural towns to cities?

27 Nov 2013