Category Archives: Health News

Insulin isn’t just for blood sugar control; new findings suggest it plays a role in the brain’s pleasure center by controlling the release of dopamine. The findings come from researchers at New York University Langone Medical Center. Senior investigator, Margaret Rice, Ph.D., said, “We found that when there’s more insulin in the brain, there will ...click here to read more

New findings suggest that certain acid reflux medications could increase the risk of kidney disease. The medications are known as proton pump inhibitors (PPI) and are part of the top 10 most popular prescribed medications. The study will be presented at ASN Kidney Week 2015 from November 3rd to 8th at the San Diego Convention ...click here to read more

A recent study, presented at the 23rd United European Gastroenterology Week in Barcelona, uncovered that with every one centimeter growth in waist circumference a person’s risk of large bowel cancer increases. Furthermore, with every five-unit increase in body mass index (BMI) the risk of large bowel cancer – colorectal cancer – rises 18 percent. Professor ...click here to read more

Prior to an Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis, benzodiazepines and related drugs are commonly used and become more even more common after diagnosis. The research comes from the University of Eastern Finland. Benzodiazepines are a line of drugs used for sleep or anxiolytic purposes. Use of benzodiazepines becomes more common in those with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s ...click here to read more

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is the ‘bible’ of mental disorders, but new research suggests a checklist for depression may not be the most useful. For a person to be diagnosed with depression they must experience symptoms outlined in the DSM, but researchers at KU Leuven, Belgium have found these symptoms ...click here to read more

Although 1.3 million Americans suffer from Lewy body dementia, it is still hard to recognize, which can delay diagnosis and treatment. Researchers have found a three-minute test that may be successful in diagnosing Lewy body dementia and speeding up treatment. Lewy body dementia is characterized by a decline in cognitive function, mobility and changes in ...click here to read more

Low-weight, high-repetition resistance exercise has been found to increase bone density in adults by eight percent. The new findings challenge the assumption that to build bone mineral density heavy weight-training is required. An increase in bone density was found in the hips, legs, pelvis, arms and spine. The researchers suggest that this type of training ...click here to read more

Recent research revealed that a fit body can lead to a younger brain. The study, led by Dr. Hideaki Soya from the University of Tsukuba, researched the benefits of physical exercise on the aging brain using neuroimaging. The researchers uncovered that there is a direct relationship between exercise and brain activity and function. Their research ...click here to read more

Researchers from the Sahlgrenska University found that women on long-term sick leave have an easier time returning back to work if they use gardening therapy. Women have more risk of experiencing a chronic illness that requires sick leave. The consequences of women on long-term sick leave range from those that directly affect the women to ...click here to read more

Researchers at the University of Tsukuba’s International Institute for Integrative Sleep Medicine (WPI-IIIS) and Shigeyoshi Itohara of RIKEN Brain Science Institute are now offering new insights into the rapid eye movement (REM) sleep phase, which may have cracked the long-lasting mystery behind it. REM sleep is the deepest sleep cycle we experience. This is also ...click here to read more

When Selena Gomez, a famous pop singer, announced she was battling lupus, little was known about the condition. It turns out that nearly 72 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 have not heard of the disease or don’t know anything about it. Worse yet, that age category is at the highest ...click here to read more

More seniors are being prescribed antipsychotic drugs, even though no clinical psychiatric diagnoses have been made. Antipsychotic drugs can be beneficial in treating certain mental disorders, but the researchers found that in 2010 nearly one-third of seniors who were prescribed antipsychotic drugs had no documented mental disorder. Furthermore, half of those who actually did have ...click here to read more

Researchers from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital of McGill University have found that the often overlooked B cells may play a larger than expected role in multiple sclerosis (MS), which could shed light on better treatment. Current beliefs suggest that multiple sclerosis is controlled by T cells that attack the myelin. The new research ...click here to read more

Research from the University of East Anglia suggests that routine blood work could better help determine dehydration in older adults. Older adults are at a higher risk of dehydration, which is a serious health condition. Dehydration can lead to poor health outcomes such as disability or even death. The current test for dehydration – serum ...click here to read more