ScienceDaily for July 9, 2009 reported on lower Dementia later on when they as children had language skills.
People who have superior language skills early in life may be less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease decades later, despite having the hallmark signs of the disease, according to research published in the July 9, 2009, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
ScienceDaily for July 9, 2009 reported on iron supplements and susceptibility to Malaria.
"Based on our review, children should not be denied iron supplements, even if they are living in areas where malaria is prevalent," says lead researcher, Juliana Ojukwu of the Department of Paediatrics at the Ebonyi State University in Ebonyi State, Nigeria. "Iron is important for growth and development, and maintaining a healthy immune system."
ScienceDaily, in an article for July 9, 2009 reported on the activity of children as a result of support from their parents.
Researchers from Baylor College of Medicine and Duke University studied a sample of 681 parents of 433 fourth- and fifth-graders from 12 schools in Houston. They found that those parents who conveyed the importance of high-intensity team sports to their children had more active children. Both the boys and girls watched less TV and spent less time on their computers.
ScienceDaily for July 9, 2009 reported on a drug-compound that extends the life of older mice.
On July 8, in the journal Nature, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and two collaborating centers reported that the Easter Island compound – called "rapamycin" after the island's Polynesian name, Rapa Nui – extended the expected lifespan of middle-aged mice by 28 percent to 38 percent. In human terms, this would be greater than the predicted increase in extra years of life if cancer and heart disease were both cured and prevented.
In an article dated July 8, 2009, ScienceDaily reported on parenting that is biased by a resemblance between father and child.
The investment of a father in the care and education of a child is a decisive factor for the child's development, growth and even survival, particularly in countries with high infant mortality. As this behavior is transmitted from generation to generation, it can evolve by natural selection. Evolutionary theory predicts that men should have developed the capacity to recognise their biological children. This recognition of paternity can be made on the basis of physical resemblance.
ScienceDaily for July 8, 2009 reported on birth complications from mothers who were survivors of childhood cancer.
Dr. Lie Fong and colleagues studied data on the pregnancies of 40 women who had been treated for cancer during their childhood, the majority of them for leukaemia, but also for solid tumours. Six had had radiation treatment directly to the abdomen. The data were compared with those from a control group of more than 9,000 women who had not had cancer treatment. All data were obtained from The Netherlands Perinatal Register, a nationwide database of pregnancy outcomes. Data were matched for age at pregnancy, year and month of delivery, and the number of times the woman had given birth.
ScienceDaily for July 7, 2009 reported on exercise and fatty-liver disease.
NAFLD is the most common form of chronic liver disease in developed countries. It is associated with the metabolic syndrome, which also includes obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, and is characterized by elevated liver enzymes. Currently, patients with NAFLD are encouraged to alter their lifestyles, however the focus has been on weight loss through dietary changes. The effects of increasing physical activity alone have not been thoroughly investigated.
An article in ScienceDaily for July 8, 2009 reported on new developments of reprogramming adult cells into stem cells.
With their work, Ko and his colleagues wanted to establish clarity from the outset. To this end, they started by culturing a precisely defined type of cell, so-called germline stem cells (GSCs), from the testis of adult mice. In their natural environment, these cells can only do one thing: constantly generate new sperm. Moreover, their own reproduction is an extremely rare occurrence. Only two or three of them will be found among the 10,000 cells in the testis tissue of a mouse. However, they can be isolated individually and reproduced as cell lines with stable characteristics. Under the usual cell culturing conditions, they retain their unipotency for weeks and years. Consequently, all they can do is reproduce or form sperm.
ScienceDaily for July 8, 2009 reported on student perceptions of drinking.
Researchers analysed data from 22 trials that together included 7,275 college and university students, mostly studying in the US. They found that students who were provided with personalised feedback via the internet or individual face-to-face sessions drank less often and indulged in less binge drinking than those in control groups. Web-based feedback also resulted in significant reductions in blood alcohol content and alcohol related problems.
ScienceDaily for July 7, 2009 reported on depression and attending college.
However, the research also indicates that lower grade point averages depended upon a student's type of depression, according to Daniel Eisenberg, assistant professor in the University of Michigan School of Public Health and principal investigator of the study.
An article in ScienceDaily for July 7, 2009 reported on teen smoking.
Anna M. Adachi-Mejia, Ph.D., of Hood Center for Children and Families, Dartmouth Medical School, Lebanon, N.H., and colleagues analyzed data from school- and telephone-based surveys that assessed movie smoking exposure and team sports participation in 2,048 youths from September 1999 through November 1999 and February 2006 through February 2007. Baseline movie smoking exposure was reported when respondents were ages 9 to 14 and team sport participation was assessed at ages 16 to 21 at follow-up. Movie smoking exposure was classified in quartiles with 0 to 522 smoking occurrences for the first quartile, 523 to 947 for the second, 948 to 1,649 for the third and 1,650 to 5,308 for the fourth.
ScienceDaily for July 7, 2009 reported on a use of string theory to describe a phenomenon in physics. [String theory is important to this blog because it gives a theoretical basis for a belief in other dimensions and universes]
String theory has come under fire in recent years. Promises have been made that have not been lived up to. Leiden theoretical physicists have now for the first time used string theory to describe a physical phenomenon -- the quantum-critical state of electrons leading to high-temperature superconductivity. Their discovery has been reported recently in the journal Science.
ScienceDaily for July 7, 2009 reported on a link between vinegsr and control of fat.
Tomoo Kondo and colleagues note in the new study that vinegar has also been used as a folk medicine since ancient times. People have used it for a range of ills. Modern scientific research suggests that acetic acid, the main component of vinegar, may help control blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and fat accumulation.
ScienceDaily for July 6, 2009 reported on vitamin D deficiencies.
A new report issued by the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) and published in the scientific journal Osteoporosis International1, shows that populations across the globe are suffering from the impact of low levels of vitamin D. The problem is widespread and on the increase, with potentially severe repercussions for overall health and fracture rates.
In an article dated July 6, 2009 ScienceDaily reported on a link between's ones immune system and Schizophrenia.
Now following on their earlier work that identified three gene locations that may be implicated in schizophrenia, researchers at UCLA and colleagues from around the world have, for the first time, identified additional genes that confirm what scientists have long suspected — that the immune system may play a role in the development of the disorder. Further, they have also identified genetic anomalies that disrupt the cellular pathways involved in brain development, memory and cognition, all markers of schizophrenia.
ScienceDaily for July 6, 2009 reported on caffeine and Alzheimer's.
Back-to-back studies published online July 6 in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, show caffeine significantly decreased abnormal levels of the protein linked to Alzheimer's disease, both in the brains and in the blood of mice exhibiting symptoms of the disease. Both studies build upon previous research by the Florida ADRC group showing that caffeine in early adulthood prevented the onset of memory problems in mice bred to develop Alzheimer's symptoms in old age.
ScienceDaily for July 6, 2009 reported on a link between being overweight and memory problems.
“The adverse effects of being overweight and obese are not limited to cardiac function, but also extend to brain function,” says Anna Dahl doctoral student at the School of Health Sciences, Jönköping. Several studies, including studies from the Swedish Twin Registry, have shown that individuals who are overweight or obese in mid-life are at an increased risk of suffering from dementia.
In an article dated July 7, 2009, ScienceDaily reported on possible a link between vitamin D and cancer.
One gene identified in this previous study was CST5, which is responsible for making the protein cystatin D. Now, a team of researchers, at the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas-Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain, and the Universidad de Oviedo, Spain, has studied this protein in detail and determined that it has tumor suppressor activity that likely accounts for some of the anticancer effects of the active form of vitamin D3.
ScienceDaily for July 3, 2009 reported on an effect on children of being overweight.
"We found that both boys and girls who were overweight from kindergarten through third grade displayed more depression, anxiety and loneliness than kids who were never overweight, and those negative feelings worsened over time," said Sara Gable, associate professor of human development and family studies in the MU College of Human Environmental Sciences. "Overweight is widely considered a stigmatizing condition and overweight individuals are typically blamed for their situation. The experience of being stigmatized often leads to negative feelings, even in children."
ScienceDaily for July 5, 2009 reported on research into the Swine flu.
The current H1N1 swine flu strain has genetic roots in an illness that sickened pigs at the 1918 Cedar Rapids Swine Show in Iowa, report infectious disease experts at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health in the New England Journal of Medicine. Their paper, published online June 29 and slated for the July 16 print issue, describes H1N1's nearly century-long and often convoluted journey, which may include the accidental resurrection of an extinct strain.
