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Complementary medicine to save millions: Report

According to a new report substituting pharmaceutical antidepressants with St John’s Wort could save the health system $50 million a year. This research was conducted by Access Economics for the National Institute of Complementary Medicine (NICM) at the University of Western Sydney. It showed that cost effectiveness of complementary and alternative therapies have the potential to cut costs without compromising patient outcomes.

13 Sep 2010

Roadside memorials to be regulated

The ACT Government has released a policy on roadside memorials. This policy will put in place restrictions on height and width of the homemade tributes to road accident victims that dot the region’s roadsides. The authorities also stress on safety issues of these memorials. Under the policy, permanent roadside memorials can be erected in a public area only if permission is obtained from nearby residents and the site is maintained.

12 Sep 2010

Victoria tightens smoking bans

The Monash City Council will decide this week whether to start community consultation on a ban on smoking in alfresco dining areas, shopping strips, and sports clubs. Cr Micaela Drieberg said more public areas would be covered. She added that Eaton Mall in Oakleigh would be one of the areas. She said, “I think people want to be able to enjoy a meal or a coffee or just sitting outside with friends and family, especially as the weather is getting warmer, and not have to be exposed to second-hand smoke… They have just as much right to fresh air as a smoker has the right to smoke in certain places.”

12 Sep 2010

Global food crisis is not imminent, but food commodities markets need regulation, FAO official says

A global food crisis does not appear to be on the horizon despite recent food price rises, but steps must be taken to regulate volatile food commodities markets, Hafez Ghanem, a top official at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, said on Tuesday, the Associated Press reports.

10 Sep 2010

Canberra restaurants put on notice over hygiene

According to health authorities some of the ‘shabbier’ Canberra restaurants have been put on notice after a court quadrupled the fines imposed on an inner north eatery caught preparing food in “Third World” conditions.

9 Sep 2010

Safe sex campaign for over 50’s

New figures have shown an alarming rise in sexually transmitted infections among the over-50s in Britain. Health charity FPA (Flamily Planning Association) has come up with a nation wide campaign using fashion adverts from the 60s and 70s to encourage members of the baby boomer generation to use condoms and practice safe sex.

9 Sep 2010

World Bank report highlights concerns, potential benefits of large-scale farm deals in developing countries

Foreign purchases of agricultural land in developing countries "pose 'significant risks' to the livelihoods of farmers in countries with 'weak land governance,' the World Bank said in a report" (.pdf) on Tuesday, which also noted the potential benefits of these investments, Bloomberg Businessweek reports.

9 Sep 2010

Severe eye problems at cattle show

After nearly fifty people complained of serious eye irritations, the dairy cow pavilion at the Royal Adelaide Show has been closed down. Organizers are blaming stagnant urine for the irritations. St John Ambulance volunteers were called to the Dairy Cattle pavilion after some people reported irritation to their eyes. 30 people required treatment at the site. 20 more people reported to the emergency department of the Royal Adelaide Hospital where their eyes were washed.

8 Sep 2010

Flood victims in Pakistan helped by Australian health team

Hundreds of Pakistani flood victims have been treated at an Australian health centre set up in the country last week. This center at the Punjab city of Kot Addu is manned by a team of doctors, nurses and paramedics from the Northern Territory, Western Australia, Victoria and Queensland.

8 Sep 2010

Cocaine use on the rise in Australia

The number of cocaine abuse related arrests has risen in Sydney's CBD and an increasing number of users of the drug are being treated in hospitals. According to the latest NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research figures arrests for possession and use of the drug have risen by 76.6 per cent in the past two years.

8 Sep 2010

FAO names 15 experts to new food security advisory body

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has named 15 experts to a committee "to help formulate policies to ensure food security and avoid a repeat of the food crisis of a few years ago," VOA News reports (DeCapua, 9/6).

8 Sep 2010

Bligh explains plans for asset sales

According to Queensland Premier Anna Bligh, new developments are on the horizon only if her Government continues with the sell off of $15 billion of public assets. She revealed this in her annual State of the State address at the mid point of her term in Government yesterday while reviewing the past 18 months and forecasting the next stage of the state's development.

7 Sep 2010

Coles supermarkets to stop selling beef containing growth hormones

Come November Coles supermarket chain will no longer accept beef from animals treated with hormone growth promotants, or HGPs. These HGPs are used by grazers and feedlots to boost cattle growth.

7 Sep 2010

Elsevier launches new tool to help editors find reviewers

Elsevier, a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and solutions, announced today the launch of a new and unique tool to help editors find reviewers ( http://support.elsevier.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/710), which addresses the number one pain point for journal editors. Developed in close consultation with journal editors, this tool which is accessible from EES - Elsevier's Editorial and peer review system - suggests a list of potential reviewers.

6 Sep 2010

TimeTemp's shelf-life indicator for food will help Norwegian retailers reduce waste

Norwegian food retailers discard over 50,000 tonnes of food annually - much of it of perfectly good quality. New technology from Norway could substantially reduce this wastefulness.

4 Sep 2010

Companies need new, better tools for measuring employee productivity: Article

Can investing in employee health improve the bottom line by making workers more productive? To answer that question, companies need new and better tools for measuring employee productivity, according to an article in the September Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

4 Sep 2010

At U.N. MDG summit, ministers will propose world currency tax to fund development aid

"A group of 60 nations, including France, Britain and Japan, will propose at the U.N. [summit on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)] this month that a tax be introduced on international currency transactions to raise funds for development aid, ministers said on Wednesday," Reuters reports (Irish, 9/1).

4 Sep 2010

FAO calls for special meeting to address global food price spikes

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization "has called a special meeting on the recent spike in food prices, responding to fears of a repeat of the shortages that led to riots in parts of the world two years ago," the Associated Press reports.

4 Sep 2010

24 Hour Fitness partners with Safran Group to offer cardless check-in for members

24 Hour Fitness, the largest U.S. fitness chain and a leading health club industry pioneer, is pleased to announce a new convenient, secure and environmentally friendly cardless check-in option for members. 24 Hour Fitness has partnered with MorphoTrak (Safran Group), part of the world's largest, most trusted provider of biometric technology, to offer cardless check-in for its members at all 420 clubs by the end of 2010.

3 Sep 2010

Fewer injuries and deaths justify cost of providing body armor to all law enforcement officers

Providing body armor to all law enforcement officers in the United States would provide enough benefit to justify the cost, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

3 Sep 2010