Female coffee drinkers at risk of reduced fertility

Posted Thu, 26 May 2011 11:11:01 GMT by Kieran Ball

Caffeine shown to reduce fertility in women. Research from the University of Nevada School of Medicine indicates that caffeine inhibits the movement of eggs along the fallopian tubes, reducing the chance of conception.

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Possible danger in fire safety chemicals revealed by fish tests

Posted Thu, 26 May 2011 09:42:00 GMT by Colin Ricketts

Tests on a group of chemicals commonly used to impart fire resistance to products shows developmental abnormalities in fish. A common chemical used in thousands of products to help save us from fire, and which has even passed into human body fluids, could be killing fish say scientists.

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Protein responsible for drug resistance in breast cancer found

Posted Tue, 24 May 2011 11:09:00 GMT by Kieran Ball

Scientists are looking for ways to block a protein that helps breast cancers become resistant to drug treatments. It is thought that the protein, known as LMTK3, will now become a target for new breast cancer treatments.

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Lower incidence of prostate cancer in coffee drinkers

Posted Mon, 23 May 2011 18:41:00 GMT by Kieran Ball

Men who drink more coffee could be at less risk from prostate cancer. The study, which focussed on a group of 50,000 men, found that those who drank six or more cups of coffee per day were 20% less like to contract prostate cancer than those who didn't drink coffee.

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CT Scan could identify diabetics at high risk of death from heart disease

Posted Mon, 23 May 2011 18:00:00 GMT by Kieran Ball

A simple CT test could predict early death in diabetics. Heart disease is twice as common in diabetics as it is in the general population. Diabetes Care, reports that a simple CT scan could identify those diabetics that are at greatest risk of early death due to heart disease.

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US Government dedicates day to skin cancer education

Posted Mon, 23 May 2011 17:54:00 GMT by Colin Ricketts

The Environmental Protection Agency has named the Friday before Memorial Day Don't Fry Day in an effort to educate Americans about the dangers of skin cancer, now the most common cancer in the states.

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Good bacteria pack a positive punch for the gut

Posted Mon, 23 May 2011 16:00:00 GMT by Martin Leggett

Pro-biotic bacteria get a 'thumbs up' in a new paper in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, published today. IBD sufferers often take probiotic supplements to relieve symptoms, but in this new study, the team from Vanderbilt University believes it has found a more effective way of helping those with irritable bowels - extracting the proteins directly from the bacteria.

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Yoga boosts women in recovery from breast cancer treatment

Posted Wed, 18 May 2011 22:00:00 GMT by Martin Leggett

Yoga doesn't just keep mind and body fit - it can aid recovery from stressful treatments such as radiation therapy. So says a new study on the benefits of yoga for women undergoing breast cancer treatment - to be presented at June's meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The meditative aspect of yoga has a crucial part to play in enhancing women's health, lowering their stress, and improving their mental outlook.

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3,500 year old mummy diagnosed with coronary disease

Posted Wed, 18 May 2011 16:11:01 GMT by Kieran Ball

Horus Project confirms that heart disease is not a ailment of modern times. At the International Conference of Non-Invasive Cardiovascular Imaging in Amsterdam this week, one of the biggest talking points was an Egyptian princess known as Ahmosa-Meryet-Amon, is now officially the first person in history to be diagnosed with coronary disease.

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New tool picks out smoke-hazard in atmosphere

Posted Mon, 16 May 2011 19:01:00 GMT by Martin Leggett

A customized tool for picking up on very low levels of noxious burning byproducts has enabled NOAA scientists to sniff out isocyanic acid - a chemical linked to known health problems - in LA smog and wildfire smoke. This compound is though likely to be at worryingly high levels in cigarette smoke, as well as homes using poorly-drafted wood fires, and may increase as the planet hots up, says the paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Stem cell research: Two steps forward, one step back

Posted Sun, 15 May 2011 14:01:00 GMT by Gracie Valena

A flurry of stem cell research brings us closer to stem cell therapies for cancer and other degenerative diseases. In a stem cell step forward, Christine Chaffer and colleages at the Whitehead Institute overturned a long-held belief that cell differentiation only moves forward - that is stem cells become specific cell types, but not the other way around.

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Turning cold houses into cozy homes save lives - and the planet

Posted Thu, 12 May 2011 22:30:01 GMT by Martin Leggett

The need to move fast in dealing with the UK's stock of poorly heated houses is highlighted in a report, sponsored by Friends of the Earth, out today. It sees turning cold homes to cozy homes as unlocking benefits for the health and finances of their inhabitants - and as a major boon to help slow down climate change.

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Marine organism reveals hidden secrets that could help fight disease

Posted Tue, 10 May 2011 18:00:00 GMT by Ruth Hendry

Potentially beneficial bacteria has genome sequenced. The research has groundbreaking implications for treatments of several human diseases, including cancer and Alzheimer's disease. This follows on from recent research which shows that L. majuscula produces substances potentially useful in fighting these human diseases.

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Methane-contaminated drinking water confirmed near fracking wells

Posted Mon, 09 May 2011 19:00:00 GMT by Martin Leggett

The drinking water of homes close to wells that use hydraulic fracturing - to help get gas from buried shales - has up to 17 times the level of methane of those further away, says new research published in today's online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Scientists from Duke University have pinned the methane in tap water to the gas wells themselves, adding to an already long list of environmental concerns with shale gas 'fracking'.

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Foot-and-mouth infectious for less time - raising hopes for binning culls

Posted Thu, 05 May 2011 18:00:00 GMT by Martin Leggett

Important new research into the infectiousness of foot-and-mouth disease, published in Science tomorrow, shows that the livestock virus can only be passed-on for half the time previously thought. That makes less destructive disease management approaches much more viable, and could help relegate the wholesale livestock slaughter of 'preemptive culling' to the grim pages of history.

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Can nutrition alone reverse established cancers?

Posted Wed, 04 May 2011 14:49:00 GMT by Kieran Ball

A reputed nutritionist and biochemist says changes in diet can cause cancers to regress. We know that following a healthy diet can help prevent certain forms of cancer, just as an unhealthy diet can promote cancer. It has also been shown that a radical change of diet will help in the fight against established cancer when used in combination with traditional treatments, but can nutrition alone reverse cancer?

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