Author: Avisoscuba
Air pollution is known for negatively impacting the lives of many. It causes several health problems such as increasing the risk of heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, and respiratory issues. More than that, it’s really bad for the environment. But recently, another adverse effect of air pollution was added to the list. In a study published at the IZA Institute of Labor Economics, researchers from the London School of Economics (LSE) found that air pollution also triggers higher crime rates in London. By looking into 1.8 million crimes in over two years, and comparing them to pollution data, they discovered that air pollution levels directly affect the…
While trains in Singapore are a convenient way to travel, living near train tracks could mean that you sometimes have to suffer through the constant noise of trains passing by. However, researchers are currently working on noise reduction technology that could soon help address this issue. According to a team of researchers from Nanyang Technological University (NTU), the noise-canceling device that they’re currently developing could benefit countless individuals who reside near busy roads, construction sites, or train tracks. The NTU researchers explained that the device, which can be mounted on window grilles, can reduce at least 50 percent of noise from the…
Acupuncture is now a widely known medicinal alternative to relieve chronic pain. Through skin penetration using small needles, certain nerve endings in our body become stimulated which help relieve us from a lot of health conditions including cardiovascular diseases. Acupuncture does a great deal in promoting a healthy circulatory system. In just one session, blood vessels are more dilated and our blood flow improves thanks to the stimulation of our energy pathways. Here’s exactly how this traditional practice benefits our circulatory system: Helps in poor circulation in the legs – People often experience poor blood circulation in the legs since it’s…
Lead poisoning has been an ongoing issue in Milwaukee City, Wisconsin as 11 percent of their children suffered from it back in 2016. More recently, parents of a five-year-old boy victim called out the city government for being “complicit.” Nazir Al-Mujaahid and his wife Aminah shared the horrific story of finding out that their youngest child, Shu’aib, had extremely high levels of lead in his blood in 2017. They detailed that through a finger-prick test, they learned that Shu’aib’s blood lead level was at 11.4 which is alarmingly more than twice the level that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) deem dangerous.…
Cancer remains one of the trickiest medical conditions to treat, with no clear solution or completely effective treatment. Because it strikes so many people, it has also been the subject of countless studies. In this huge body of research, some foods have been repeatedly identified as being effective at killing cancer stem cells. This is critical because the fact that chemotherapy doesn’t eradicate cancer stem cells is believed to be the reason that people experience recurrences and metastasis. These cells, sometimes called “mother cells”, only make up a small portion of the cells in tumors but continuously self-renew and resist…
Many of us still interchange Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. It can be a little confusing, especially since they’re both related to memory loss and the deterioration of our cognitive abilities, but this can be easily remedied with a short explanation. In essence, dementia is an overall term used to categorize a group of symptoms and has no definitive diagnosis. This means it is not a disease, but rather a syndrome that has a negative effect on our cognition. At least 47.6 million people are diagnosed with dementia globally. There’s a chance that a person can have more than one type…
Drinking whey protein before eating does wonders for a person’s blood pressure, according to a study in the Journal of Nutrition & Intermediary Metabolism. In particular, “preloading” on it before a person’s heaviest meal not only improves blood pressure, but it also helps keep fasting blood sugar and lipid profile at bay for people who are overweight or obese. The study, led by researchers from the Iran University of Medical Sciences and the Tehran University of Medical Sciences, compared the benefits of whey protein concentrate (WPC) with soy protein isolate (SPI) in a 12-week randomized, double-blind clinical trial. Pitting whey and soy head-to-head Most…
If you happen to have irregular heartbeats, chances are your healthcare provider will tell you to skip caffeinated drinks. But a new review by Australian researchers suggested that these drinks are safe for people with abnormal heart rhythms. Coffee and tea can even lower the prevalence of arrhythmia, according to an article on Medical Xpress. If your heart beats too quickly, slowly, or irregularly, you probably have arrhythmia. Some instances are not dangerous to the patient and might even be overlooked for many years. Other times, though, arrhythmia could raise the chances of a sudden heart attack. The most common…
Ketamine started out as an anesthetic for surgeries, only to quickly get abused as a hallucinogenic party drug. Now a U.S. study is claiming it can serve as a “fast-acting” treatment for people afflicted with clinical depression, an article from the BBC reported. The researchers administered ketamine to participants via nasal spray. It claimed that volunteers with symptoms of depression showed “significant” improvements within 24 hours of treatment. The U.K.’s Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP) described the study’s findings as a big step for ketamine, which has not yet been accepted as an antidepressant by the country’s National Health Service (NHS). Conducted by researchers…
Pecans are so much more than the main ingredient for pecan pie. For one, they are packed with essential nutrients that help protect us against cardiovascular disease (CVD). Referred to as Carya illinoinensis in scientific literature, pecans are a member of the Juglandaceae family, which makes it a relative of the hickory and the walnut. Pecans are also considered native to North America; their existence has predated even the earliest human settlements. Despite being referred to as a nut, pecans are actually drupes, a type of fruit where the fleshy part surrounds the pit containing the seeds. Some examples of…
Aside from keeping us in good physical condition, a study has shown that regular exercise can help prevent breast cancer. However, the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) warns that even though exercise like brisk walking can help reduce the risk of breast cancer among women of all ages, only a handful of Americans are aware of this fact. For this study, researchers have collaborated on an analysis of the global research on lifestyle and breast cancer risk. Based on data from AICR’s 2017 awareness survey, only four of 10 Americans (or 39 percent) were aware that physical activity can help lower cancer…
Skin rashes and other forms of allergic reaction on the skin are terrible, and most mothers would feel ten times worse seeing those rashes on their newborn. An entry from the American Herbalists Guild provides some natural remedies for your baby’s protection, as well your own, against infantile dermatitis. (h/t to AmericanHerbalistsGroup.) Infant’s treatments Internal Oral use of flax seed oil 1/4 tbsp three times a day (TID), sucked from a dropper. Botanical formula containing equal parts of the following tinctures: Chamomile Wild violet Lavender flowers Wild strawberry leaf Mix the tinctures into a one-oz bottle. Dose: 12 drops of the mix in one-tbsp…
It is well-known that plastic contributes a great deal to worldwide pollution problems, not just on land but also in the world’s seas and oceans. Now a team of researchers has revealed that the problem of plastic pollution in Earth’s bodies of water may be much worse than previously thought. To be more specific, a close look at the amount of microplastics in one specific area in the U.K. resulted in the discovery of a much higher level of microplastic pollution than expected. This means that the world may be majorly underestimating the amount of pollution everywhere else as well.…
Every single one of us is involved in a war that we probably know nothing about. There are villains and heroes on both sides of the battle, and the battleground is littered with landmines that have to be navigated every single day. What is this war? The epic battle between conventional medicine and natural health. You see, every time you take a supplement, get medication at the pharmacy, eat a meal, choose whether or not to exercise, or make one of a thousand other small choices, you are choosing sides between modern medicine that promises to medicate all your symptoms…
Teens aged between 15 and 19 were found to be more vulnerable to succumb to depression due to academic stress and social pressure. To combat this mental issue, experts suggest that teens run a mile daily to prevent depression. Research says, the lack of physical activity could possibly be the reason why more kids are having problems with mental health issues. This case is even more evident in secondary school as students become more sedentary. What started out as a simple initiative of primary school headteacher Elaine Wyllie in Scotland, the “daily mile” has now become a solution in more than…
Targeted memory reactivation (TMR), a procedure which presents learning-related cues during sleep, can better strengthen memory when it is accompanied with undisturbed sleep to encourage memory consolidation, according to a study in the journal Sleep Spindles & Cortical Up States. Previous studies have shown that an undisturbed short plastic period after cueing is needed for TMR to be effective. Therefore, researchers from Université libre de Bruxelles in Belgium looked at the effect of verbatim or interfering auditory presentation during wakefulness or non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and its impact on memory consolidation. The researchers recruited 96 participants for the study. The…
Like many people these days, your relationship with sleep may be complicated. It creeps in during the day when you actively avoid it but eludes you at night when all you want is a long, quality rest. Before your erratic sleep cycle has you thinking of health-related worst-case scenarios, know that your inability to sleep doesn’t automatically mean there’s something wrong with your body. You probably just need to cut back on certain bad habits. Not eating right – The phrase, “You are what you eat,” might feel worn-out, but it’s still true. The food you consume, especially before you sleep, will…
Just a little more than 500 days into his first term, there are already signs that President Donald Trump will cruise to reelection in 2020. The economy is not just humming along, it’s roaring. Wall Street is up; housing starts and values are up; retirement earnings are up; unemployment is at historic lows; the U.S. military is regaining its predominance; and the president has slashed and burned scores of burdensome regulations. He’s picked the right battles in our neverending culture war. He’s delivering on his pledge to “Make America Great Again.” Now he’s set to sign off on a policy…
Can you recall the last time you were stressed? If you’re like most people, you probably don’t have to think too far back to come up with a stressful moment – or perhaps you feel that way all the time. Many of us are feeling the effects of our busy lives and the constant technological overstimulation we’re exposed to, and this can take a serious toll on your health. Getting rid of stress is easier said than done, so how can you protect yourself from the diseases this stress can cause? Scientists have found one very useful tool in the…
Tortillas are an important food for Mexicans and their neighbors, but maize lacks vital proteins. Looking for natural ways of fortifying the grain, researchers chose flour made from nontoxic Jatropha curcas (J. curcas) plants. The resulting fortified maize tortillas looked, felt, and tasted like ordinary ones while also packing more proteins. Maize is rich in calories, but it lacks lysine and trytophan. It also lacks micronutrients like iron, zinc, and various important vitamins. The combination of poverty and burgeoning population forced many Mexicans to adopt less healthy diets that rely on tortillas. To fix this, maize dough was fortified with flours from more nutritious crops.…
Aside from morphology, there are a lot of ways males are widely different from females. One of these, as discussed in an article in the journal Nature Communications, has to do with how either sex gain weight. The paper, authored by researchers from the Baylor College of Medicine, indicated that while the underlying process in the phenomenon is still unclear, understanding how the brain affects body weight control may unlock at least part of the answer. Dr. Yong Xu, the senior author of the study, wanted to figure out what role the brain plays in weight control. The sex-weight connection proposed “a novel mechanism that may contribute…
Heart attacks are fatal, and no one really knows when it will happen, but when it does, it’s vital that you know how to reverse it. In Western Australia, a 44-year-old nurse saved himself from possible death caused by a heart attack. After feeling severe chest pain and dizziness while alone on-duty, the nurse, identified as Ryan Franks, managed to attach the leads of an electrocardiogram (ECG) machine to his chest and send the results to an emergency physician, Dr. Beatrice Scicchitano, through an Emergency Telehealth Service (ETS). According to the report of The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), the result of the first…