Weight Loss Diet And Exercise: Mar 27, 2013

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

China's Overuse of Antibiotics in Livestock May Threaten Human Health

Title: China's Overuse of Antibiotics in Livestock May Threaten Human Health
Category: Health News
Created: 2/11/2013 4:36:00 PM
Last Editorial Review: 2/12/2013 12:00:00 AM

View the original article here

New SARS-Like Virus May Have Spread Between People

Feb. 13, 2013 -- A new illness similar to the deadly SARS virus has probably spread from person to person in the U.K.

Previous cases of this new virus, a coronavirus, have been seen in people who've returned from visits abroad. The latest case is in a person who hasn’t been abroad recently and is thought to have caught it from a relative, British officials say.

However, officials say the threat of the infection spreading remains very low.

Many coronaviruses are not a cause for concern. Some strains cause the common cold but also include SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome.

The new coronavirus was identified in September 2012 in a person who died from a severe infection of the lungs. The virus caused fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing problems.

British officials say 11 confirmed cases have been seen worldwide, including three deaths in Saudi Arabia and two deaths in Jordan. None have been reported in the U.S., according to the CDC.

Previous U.K. cases have been seen in people who travelled to Qatar, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia.

Officials say two new cases were found in a U.K. resident who had recently been to the Middle East and Pakistan and a family member who had not traveled recently. They are in intensive care at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. The family member has an existing medical condition that makes them more susceptible to infections of the lungs, officials say.

In a statement, Professor John Watson, head of the respiratory diseases department at Britain’s Health Protection Agency (HPA), says, "Confirmed novel coronavirus infection in a person without travel history to the Middle East suggests that person-to-person transmission has occurred, and that it occurred in the U.K.

"Although this case provides strong evidence for person-to-person transmission, the risk of infection in most circumstances is still considered to be very low. If novel coronavirus were more infectious, we would have expected to have seen a larger number of cases than we have seen since the first case was reported three months ago."

The HPA says special measures have been put in place to stop the infection from spreading.

View the original article here

Jessica Chastain: “I don’t hate Jennifer Lawrence!”

Jessica Chastain has spoken out about the recent rumours claiming she hates fellow actress Jennifer Lawrence.

View the original article here

Chris Brown crashes car before Rihanna Grammys reunion

Chris Brown crashed his car into a wall while being chased by the paparazzi in Beverly Hills on Saturday 9 February

View the original article here

Hand Sanitizers: Do They Help Stop All Germs?

Feb. 8, 2013 -- With winter cold and flu season in full swing -- and a new strain of norovirus circulating -- everyone's trying to dodge the bugs. Norovirus causes intestinal illness, and it's often the root of outbreaks at schools and in nursing homes.

The question is: How best to avoid infection? Thorough hand washing is typically recommended. But use of hand sanitizers is promoted, too.

However, a recent study found that staff in long-term care facilities who relied too much on hand sanitizers over hand washing actually reported more outbreaks of norovirus-related illness.

WebMD turned to the experts for perspective on what to do now.

What is the active ingredient in hand sanitizers?

Hand sanitizers have a form of alcohol, such as ethyl alcohol, as an active ingredient. It works as an antiseptic.

Other ingredients may include water, fragrance, and glycerin.

Which bugs can hand sanitizers prevent?

''Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are clearly a very useful and important method to prevent most bacterial and viral infections, with rare exceptions," says Aaron E. Glatt, MD, executive vice president of Mercy Medical Center, Rockville Centre, Long Island, N.Y. He is a spokesman for the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Viruses cause colds and flu.

Hand sanitizers won't work, Glatt says, against the infection caused by C. difficile, a bacterium that can lead to life-threatening inflammation in the colon.

What about the study finding more norovirus outbreaks with use of hand sanitizers?

"This study does not change my routine recommendation that people should use a hand sanitizer," Glatt says. He sees them as especially useful when water is not available.

In the study, published in the American Journal of Infection Control, CDC researchers looked at the use of hand sanitizers by the staff in 91 long-term care facilities. In those where the staff were equally or more likely to use the hand sanitizers over soap and water for routine hand hygiene, the chance of an outbreak was nearly six times greater.

"It's one study,” says Glatt.

More research is needed, he and other experts say.

So, is hand washing better than hand sanitizers to prevent infection spread?

Both are important, say Glatt and Brian Sansoni, spokesman for the American Cleaning Institute.

"Soap and water are number one," says Sansoni. "Hand sanitizers are a very effective additional tool."

The sanitizers are meant to supplement, not replace, good old-fashioned soap and water washing, Sansoni says.

The CDC agrees. It says that for norovirus, washing hands is your best prevention, especially after using the bathroom, changing a diaper, and before eating and doing food prep. Sanitizers may help, but “they are not a substitute for washing with soap and water.”

They also can be used if soap and water aren’t available, the CDC says.

View the original article here

Don't Overlook Eating Issues Tied to Autism, Study Warns

U.S. study offers somewhat encouraging finding,

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

SATURDAY, Feb. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Children with autism are five times more likely than other kids to have feeding issues, such as being especially picky eaters or having ritualistic behaviors or extreme tantrums during meals, new research finds.

These problems can lead to deficiencies in calcium, protein and other nutrients, according to the study, which was published online this month in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Healthy eating promotes a child's growth and development, and mealtimes provide important opportunities for children to socialize, the researchers noted. Chronic feeding troubles increase a child's risk for problems such as malnutrition, poor growth, social difficulties and poor school performance.

The researchers added that there is growing evidence that feeding problems and dietary patterns among children with autism may put them at increased risk for long-term health problems such as poor bone growth, obesity and cardiovascular disease.

"The results of this study have broad implications for children with autism," study author William Sharp, an assistant professor at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, said in a university news release.

"It not only highlights the importance of assessing mealtime concerns as part of routine health care screenings, but also suggests the need for greater focus on diet and nutrition in the autism community," added Sharp, who also is a behavioral pediatric psychologist in the Pediatric Feeding Disorders Program at Marcus Autism Center in Atlanta.

Sharp said that despite the risk of long-term medical issues, feeding problems often are overlooked in relation to other areas of concern in the autism population.

"Our findings have immediate and important implications for the work of practitioners serving children and families with autism, who in the absence of such information may struggle to address parents' concerns, or, worse, may fill the void with alternative treatments that may be ill-conceived or even harmful to children and families," Sharp explained.

More information

The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke has more about autism.

View the original article here