Wellnews from Creators Syndicate

Blame the Bug for 06/24/2009

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Here's a new excuse for your insurance company next time you're in a fender bender: It's a parasite's fault.

Czech Republic researchers say that people who lack a particular protein in their blood cells and are infected with a common parasite called Toxoplasma have slower reaction times.

In rats, the natural host of Toxoplasma, the parasite infects the brain, altering the rodent's ...

Updated: Wed Jun 24, 2009

Statins and Alzheimer's for 07/01/2009

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Statins are drugs used to lower cholesterol and, in recent years, have often been touted as a 21st-century weapon against heart disease. Some studies have gone further, suggesting the drugs — which go by well-known market names like Lipitor, Zocor and Crestor — may also help prevent arthritis, bone fractures and cancer, reduce inflammation and help aid kidney function.

A new ...

Updated: Wed Jul 01, 2009

If the Food Doesn't Kill You, the Singing Will for 07/08/2009

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

For some folks, scary tales about not washing one's hands or thoroughly cooking meat aren't enough. For them, you need a song.

A University of California Davis study reports that musical parodies can be a more effective way to educate people about safe food handling, which is no small problem: An estimated 76 million cases of food borne illness occur annually in the United States.

Updated: Wed Jul 08, 2009

Beauty is in the I for 07/15/2009

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Ask a bunch of guys to name women they find attractive and, by and large, they'll all pretty much agree upon the basics. The same can't be said of women, according to a new study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

"Men agree a lot more about whom they find attractive and unattractive than women agree about whom they find attractive and unattractive," ...

Updated: Wed Jul 15, 2009

Weight Loss Nobody Wants for 07/22/2009

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Chalk up one more bad consequence of obesity: An increased risk of rapid loss of knee cartilage. This is the flexible connective tissue that covers, cushions and protects the bones of the knee. It diminishes with age, but also with excessive wear and tear, injury and misalignment. When that happens, bones can rub together, causing more damage, significant pain and immobility.

The best wa ...

Updated: Wed Jul 22, 2009

Speed Kills for 07/29/2009

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

The repeal of the federal speed control law in 1995, which had restricted the maximum highway speed to 55 miles per hour, has boosted more than just how fast cars move down the road these days. It has resulted in a marked increase in the number of road fatalities and injuries.

In a new study out of the University of Illinois Chicago's Public School of Health, researchers found that in th ...

Updated: Wed Jul 29, 2009

Until Health Do Us Part for 08/05/2009

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0700

A stable, long-term marriage can be good for your health. Divorce or widowhood, on the other hand, leaves lasting scars on the health of middle-aged and older people that remarriage may reduce but cannot entirely erase.

According to a University of Chicago study, divorced or widowed people have 20 percent more chronic health conditions, such as heart disease or cancer, than married peopl ...

Updated: Wed Aug 05, 2009

No Sweat for 08/12/2009

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0700

You know that old phrase about "sweating buckets"?

Well, you don't. Not literally at least and, apparently, not continuously either.

Scientists at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine wanted to re-examine long-standing equations about how much people sweat during extended periods of hard labor.

The knowledge is important. It helps military of ...

Updated: Wed Aug 12, 2009

Green in the Facebook for 08/19/2009

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0700

The more time college students spend on Facebook, the more likely they are to become jealous of their romantic partners, leading them to spend even more time on the social network site looking for additional information that will further fuel their jealousy.

So write researchers at the University of Guelph in Canada in the journal CyberPsychology & Behavior. The scientists surveyed c ...

Updated: Wed Aug 19, 2009

Smoking is not a Pretty Picture for 08/26/2009

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Health warnings from the U.S. surgeon general have been printed on cigarette packs for almost 45 years. The language has been changed repeatedly through the years, but the overall effectiveness of the warnings has always been debatable.

Example: Smoking by pregnant women may result in fetal injury, premature birth and low birth weight.

Under a new law signed by President Barack Ob ...

Updated: Wed Aug 26, 2009

Nasal Warfare for 09/02/2009

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Nostrils come in pairs and, on the face of it, would seem to be a happy coupling, working together to help you make scents of the world.

A new study suggests otherwise. Researchers at Rice University say nostrils wage a kind of continuous rivalry. Like eyes and ears, nostrils pick up sensory cues at slightly different times and intensities. A smell, for example, will arrive in one nostri ...

Updated: Wed Sep 02, 2009

Depressed? Have a Drink for 09/09/2009

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Excessive alcohol consumption has long been linked to poor physical and mental health. But little or no alcohol consumption can apparently cause problems, too.

A Norwegian study looked at the drinking habits and mental health of more than 38,000 individuals. It found that people who reported drinking no alcohol over a two-week period were more likely than moderate drinkers to report symp ...

Updated: Wed Sep 09, 2009

Coming Clean for 09/16/2009

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Modern medical science is all about asking deep, probing, revealing questions. We might not have penicillin today if Dr. Florey hadn't asked, "What's this damn mold on my coat?" Or something to that effect.

Some questions of health and hygiene, however, are better left unasked. And yet, in the spirit of full disclosure (figuratively speaking), we present the results of a 20,000 ...

Updated: Wed Sep 16, 2009

Sleep on This for 09/23/2009

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Early birds get the worm and better spots in line for those 4 a.m. department store sales, but they're apparently not much use later in the day.

Researchers at the University of Liege in Belgium asked 16 volunteers who routinely get up very, very early and 16 people who routinely stay up very late to spend a week following their normal sleep pattern. Both groups then spent two nights sle ...

Updated: Wed Sep 23, 2009

Sanitize Me! for 09/30/2009

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

In grocery stores, offices and other places where people gather, hand sanitizer dispensers are reproducing with the exuberant frequency of, well, bacteria. In fact, hand sanitizing has become a $112 million-a-year industry, with sales up 19 percent over last year.

What's spurring the growth, of course, are fears and concerns about the looming flu season and the threat of H1N1 flu. Whethe ...

Updated: Wed Sep 30, 2009

Shoes Blues for 10/07/2009

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

OK, this probably isn't news to most females, but science has confirmed that women who make poor shoe choices early in life (and we're not talking about Manolos vs. Jimmy Choos) suffer severe or chronic foot pain later in life.

Men, on the other hand (or foot), generally do not.

The Farmington Foot Study surveyed 3,372 surviving members of two earlier Farmington studies launched i ...

Updated: Wed Oct 07, 2009

Pangs of Hunger and Love for 10/14/2009

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Ladies, listen up: The way to a man's heart may be through your stomach.

A study published in the Journal of Social, Evolutionary and Cultural Psychology says hungry men (we're talking literally, as in wanting food) prefer a romantic partner who is, shall we say, well-fed.

The finding confirms two earlier studies: a 2005 paper that found cultures with scarce resources typically ho ...

Updated: Wed Oct 14, 2009

A Workout for the Head for 10/21/2009

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Exercise really does make you feel good about yourself.

A new University of Florida study found that just the simple act of getting sweaty helped people gain greater confidence, even if the workouts produced no dramatic or even obvious results.

"You would think that if you become more fit that you would experience greater improvements in terms of body image, but that's not wh ...

Updated: Wed Oct 21, 2009

Not Much Fungus Among Us for 10/28/2009

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

There are roughly 1.5 million known species of fungus in the world, but only a few hundred are pathogenic to mammals. That is, they pose a health hazard. And in most of these cases, the resulting infection is the consequence of an impaired immune function.

By comparison, an estimated 270,000 fungal species afflict plants and 50,000 species infect insects. It is a fungal disease called ch ...

Updated: Wed Oct 28, 2009

The Smell of Virtue for 11/04/2009

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0800

A new study out of Brigham Young University suggests cleanliness actually is next to godliness. Or at least it makes one a better person.

In the journal Psychological Science, BYU researcher Katie Liljenquist reports that people who live in clean-smelling environments are unconsciously fairer and more generous.

Liljenquist asked volunteers to perform a series of tasks in different ...

Updated: Wed Nov 04, 2009