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Sperm bank spurns potential redhead donors

Cryos International, one of the world's largest sperm banks is refusing potential donors who have red hair. The bank's director told the Danish newspaper Ekstrabladet that there simply wasn't much demand for sperm from red-headed men.

20 Sep 2011

Whooping cough vaccine may lose protective capacity in 3 years: Study

The whooping cough vaccine given to babies and toddlers loses much of its effectiveness after just three years. Doctors believe that could help explain a recent series of outbreaks in the U.S. among children who were fully vaccinated, a study suggests.

20 Sep 2011

Qualitest recalls birth control pills citing “packaging error”

Alabama-based Qualitest Pharmaceuticals is voluntarily recalling several lots of birth control pills because of a packaging error that could leave women at risk for unplanned pregnancy, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced.

20 Sep 2011

The obese can’t help but eat: Study

A new study suggests that brains of people who are obese may be wired differently for impulse control, such as resisting a doughnut when their blood sugar levels drop, compared with people who are not obese.

20 Sep 2011

Gilead’s new 4 in 1 combo HIV pill works

Gilead Sciences Inc's four-drug experimental HIV pill worked as well as a regimen containing protease inhibitor Reyataz in the second pivotal trial of the drug, the company announced this Monday. Although the trial succeeded, it did not show the experimental pill, called the Quad, was superior to the Reyataz regimen and Gilead shares fell less than a percentage point.

20 Sep 2011

Exercise helps teens quit smoking

Research has shown that a program that combines counseling with physical activity may offer teens a more effective way to stop smoking. Less than 5 percent of those who were assigned to a brief smoking cessation intervention had quit smoking after three months. But, in the group of teens that received smoking cessation counseling coupled with physical activity, almost 14 percent were off cigarettes at the three-month mark. And, the findings were most dramatic for boys. Nearly a quarter of the boys in the combination group had quit smoking at the end of three months.

20 Sep 2011

Diabetes and dementia, connection found

A new study revealed that people with diabetes may be at an increased risk of developing dementia. Scientists have suspected the link between the two diseases for several years, but several experts say this latest study highlights how treating preventable diseases like diabetes and obesity may be useful in preventing the onset of dementia.

20 Sep 2011

Many still find insurance unaffordable and employer-sponsored insurance unavailable

Despite the implementation of the Massachusetts health care reform designed to bolster employer-based insurance and to provide no-cost or low-cost insurance to those unable to afford it, the uninsured in Massachusetts remain predominantly the working poor, according to a new study by researchers at Harvard Medical School just published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

20 Sep 2011

Regulatory bias against taking oral anti-cancer medications with food places patients at risk of overdose

A regulatory bias against taking oral anti-cancer medications with food places many patients at increased risk for an overdose and forces them to "flush costly medicines down the toilet," argues Mark Ratain, MD, an authority on cancer-drug dosing.

20 Sep 2011

Minute levels of banned substances in dietary supplements cause athletes to fail doping tests

Minute levels of banned substances in some dietary supplements are leaving athletes susceptible to failed drugs tests according to Loughborough University Professor of Sport and Exercise Nutrition Ron Maughan.

20 Sep 2011

Collectible toy influences children's perceptions of food taste

The thought of toys being given out as part of children's meal deals might be easier to swallow, and better for you, if the toys are part of a collectible set and tied to healthy, nutrition-rich food choices. Who says? Kids and their parents do.

20 Sep 2011

Vigorous exercise results in stronger bones, reduced diabetes risk and less visceral fat

Cells in bone, fat and the pancreas appear to be talking to each other and one thing they likely are saying is, "Get moving."

20 Sep 2011

New trick of tumors

Tumors have an arsenal of tricks to help them sidestep the immune system. A study published on September 19 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine reveals a new trick—the ability to keep tumor-fighting T cells out by disabling a T cell-attracting protein within the tumor core.

20 Sep 2011

Multimodal analgesia important for effective control of pain

Efforts to effectively control pain in hospitalized patients with opioid (narcotic) analgesics can lead to unintentional sedation and respiratory depression, which are serious adverse events affecting the quality of recovery for patients.

20 Sep 2011

Water plays a decisive role in biologically active enzyme substrate compounds

In biologically active enzyme substrate compounds, as can be found in medicines, water plays a more decisive role than has been imagined up to now. The surrounding water acts like an "adhesive", in order to keep the substrate at the right place on an enzyme.

20 Sep 2011

First Edition: September 20, 2011

In today's headlines, details and analysis of President Barack Obama's debt-reduction plan, which would trim health programs by $320 billion and links such entitlement trims to new taxes.

20 Sep 2011

Neuroticism affects brain processing during anticipation and experience of pain

Neuroticism - the tendency to experience negative emotions -significantly affects brain processing during pain, as well as during the anticipation of pain, according to a new study in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association. Neuroticism tends to be higher in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and is a risk factor for chronic, unexplained pain in IBS.

20 Sep 2011

Overweight older women have less leg power, strength than normal weight women

A new study from the University of New Hampshire finds that the leg strength and power of overweight older women is significantly less than that of normal-weight older women, increasing their risk for disability and loss of independence.

20 Sep 2011

Common symptoms of pediatric feeding disorder

Catering to a child who is a picky eater is like being a short-order cook: chaotic. Dinnertime becomes a war zone, leading to hopeless battles fought over vegetables and macaroni and cheese.

20 Sep 2011

U-M Professor to review data from three prominent studies on heart failure

Roughly 5 million people in the United States live with heart failure, a condition in which the heart is unable to pump blood around the body effectively. The causes and types of heart failure vary greatly, and treatment must be tailored to each patient. In some cases, doctors will prescribe a class of diuretic drugs called aldosterone antagonists.

20 Sep 2011