Public Health
The small intestine is not easy to examine. X-rays, MRIs and ultrasound images provide snapshots but each suffers limitations.
The average human small intestine is roughly 23 feet long and 1 inch thick. Sandwiched between the stomach and large intestine, it is where much of the digestion and absorption of food takes place. It is also where symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, celiac disease, Crohn's disease and other gastrointestinal illnesses occur. To assess the organ, doctors typically require patients to drink a thick, chalky liquid called barium. Doctors then use X-rays, magnetic…
46 years ago, an idea was introduced that the first eggs produced in a female's fetal stage tend to have better connections or "crossovers" between chromosomes and that, as the woman ages and ovulates eggs produced later, her eggs will have more faulty chromosomes, leading to miscarriages and developmental abnormalities.
But after counting the actual chromosome crossovers in thousands of eggs, researchers found those of eggs produced early in the fetal stage were no different from those produced later. This rules out the "Production-Line Hypothesis" as one of the…
25 percent of people who look obese are metabolically healthy and don't have a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes, even though obesity is a major risk factor for diabetes.
A study finds a possible explanation, revealing that high levels of a molecule called heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) are linked to poor metabolic health and an increased risk of type 2 diabetes in obese humans. Moreover, HO-1 inhibition improves metabolic health in obese mice, suggesting that HO-1 blockers could represent a promising new strategy for the treatment of metabolic disease.
"The results indicate that HO-1 is in…
Though strange fads like the blood type diet, going gluten-free or going vegetarian are clearly gimmicks, when your body is in a rut, it helps to change it up a little.
Just like exercise, if you do the same workout every day, its effectiveness will drop - and eating pasta and vegetables all of the time will make it hard to lose weight. But if that is your diet, forget counting calories and just eat meat. Your body will take care of the rest. Don't live the rest of your life that way, that is as crazy as being vegetarian, but for weight loss, it's better to count macronutrients than calories…
In Switzerland, 7,000 to 8,000 persons each year fall ill with a campylobacter infection, making it the most frequent bacterial disease transmitted through food.
A new study found that meat fondue really increases the risk. The study identified two factors for an increased risk of infection with campylobacter pathogens: the risk of infection increased by a factor of four when consuming Fondue chinoise. About half of the notified campylobacteriosis cases over the Christmas and New Year period can be attributed to this source of infection. The second biggest factor was hygienic measures at…
You know why soup tastes good - and your dogs love it too. It's bone marrow fat. Now it may be healthier to eat delicious.
A study has found that the fat tissue in bone marrow is a significant source of the hormone adiponectin, which helps maintain insulin sensitivity, break down fat, and has been linked to decreased risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity-associated cancers.
Bone marrow adipose tissue has primarily been associated with negative health effects, most notably because of a documented relationship to reduced bone mass and increased risks of fractures and…
I am fortunate enough to own a small cottage on Fire Island.
The island is a barrier beach, located about five miles off the south shore of Long Island. It is a wonderful, unique place. There are no roads or cars. And no stress, which is especially astounding, since it is only 50 miles (and a short ferry trip) from Manhattan.
We may not have cars, roads or stress, but we have mosquitos— plenty of them.
The island is a 32-mile long sand spit, which is mostly undeveloped. There are 17 different communities, ranging in size from six houses to 600. Mine is called Ocean Beach, which is the largest…
There's a reason scare journalism is so popular - people respond to it.
If you ask most people why they should use sunscreen, they will tell you it prevents skin cancer, though humanity survived forever without it. And they can't tell you what difference it's making for their particular biology. They don't know about the statistical likelihood of developing the disease, they just know they don't want to get skin cancer. You see the same behavior about organic food, people are educated by advertising rather than evidence. 40 years ago people went to the beach and put on suntan oil to get…
Generally, people on the autism spectrum tend to be personally cautious and socially withdrawn. As you would expect, previous research shows that people with autism tend to have low rates of substance abuse – the preference for low risk and avoidance of social situations means less drinking or drug use. But new research from the Washington University School of Medicine found the opposite: in their study of 3,080 Australian twins, people with symptoms of autism were more likely than people without symptoms to abuse alcohol and marijuana. The interesting reason why and perhaps implications for…
In a recent study, researchers at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center used video observation to assess
anesthesia provider
hand hygiene compliance.
They observed an average of 149 hand hygiene opportunities per hour of anesthesia time. Hand hygiene compliance was lowest during the first and last 20-minute time periods. The low hand hygiene compliance rates at case start and case end corresponded with sharp peaks in bacterial contamination of the 20 most frequently touched objects during these same time periods.
According to the study, conducted at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical…