India / Health & Beauty
People read car fronts just as they do human faces
23.09.2008 10:38
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Just like people identify others’ sex, age, emotions, and intentions by looking at their faces, they also attribute such characteristics to inanimate objects like cars. A team of researchers, including University of Vienna experts, asked people to report the characteristics, emotions, personality traits, and attitudes that they ascribed to car fronts. The team also used geometric morphometrics to calculate the corresponding shape information. The researchers observed that one-third of the subjects associated a human or animal face with at least 90 per cent of the cars. All subjects marked eyes (headlights), a mouth (air intake/grille), and a nose in more than 50 percent of the cars. The authors also found that people liked cars most that had a wide stance, a narrow windshield, and/or widely spaced, narrow headlights. The better the subjects liked a car, the more it bore shape characteristics corresponding to high values of what the authors termed ”power”, indicating that both men and women like mature, dominant, masculine, arrogant, angry-looking cars. However, the researchers surmise that it is not necessary that people will always buy cars with such traits. The collaborators conclude: “We show that distinct features in the car fronts correspond to different trait attributions. Thus, humans possibly interpret even inanimate structures in biological terms, which could have implications for driving and pedestrian behavior. With respect to practical applications, a tool for automobile designers to style cars according to a desired image could be derived.” A research article describing the study has been published in the journal Human Nature. (ANI)
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Opioid painkillers can significantly reduce workers’ low back pain
23.09.2008 10:38
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A new study has suggested opioid pain medications for workers with chronic low back pain, for it can significantly improve their ability to lift and perform other work-related physical tasks. For the study, a team of Canadian researchers evaluated 30 patients with chronic low back pain of more than six months duration. In the double-blinded, random-ordered, placebo-controlled trial, subjects performed a lifting test twice, once after receiving intravenous fentanyl and once after taking a placebo. The objective of the study was to examine the impact of acute opioid administration on repetitive lifting and lowering exercise in workers with low-back pain. The study showed that opioids improved lifting performance between 15 and 48 percent. The researchers concluded that the performance improvement was due to reduced pain intensity. Pain reduction, as measured by pain scales, was indicative of clinically relevant analgesia achieved by the medication. However, the researchers suggest that longer trials are needed to measure the effectiveness of opioids as an adjunct to functional restoration programs for workers with low-back pain. The study is published in The Journal of Pain, the peer review publication of the American Pain Society. (ANI)
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Current cutbacks in CO2 emissions not enough to save coral reefs
23.09.2008 02:29
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A new study has indicated that modest cutbacks in CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions may be too little, and it might be too late to save coral reefs. Ocean acidification could devastate coral reefs and other marine ecosystems even if atmospheric carbon dioxide stabilizes at 450 ppm, a level well below that of many climate change forecasts, report chemical oceanographers Long Cao and Ken Caldeira of the Carnegie Institution’s Department of Global Ecology. The researchers’ conclusions are based on computer simulations of ocean chemistry stabilized at atmospheric CO2 levels ranging from 280 parts per million (pre-industrial levels) to 2000 ppm. Present levels are 380 ppm and rapidly rising due to accelerating emissions from human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels. Atmospheric CO2 absorbed by the oceans’ surface water produces carbonic acid, the same acid that gives soft drinks their fizz, making certain carbonate minerals dissolve more readily in seawater. This is especially true for aragonite, the mineral used by corals and many other marine organisms to grow their skeletons. For corals to be able to build reefs, which requires rapid growth and strong skeletons, the surrounding water needs to be highly supersaturated with aragonite. “Before the industrial revolution, over 98 percent of warm water coral reefs were surrounded by open ocean waters at least 3.5 times supersaturated with aragonite,” said Cao. “But even if atmospheric CO2 stabilizes at the current level of 380 ppm, fewer than half of existing coral reef will remain in such an environment. If the levels stabilize at 450 ppm, fewer than 10 percent of reefs would be in waters with the kind of chemistry that has sustained coral reefs in the past,” he added. According to Cao, for the ecologically productive cold waters near the poles, the prospects are equally grim. “At atmospheric CO2 levels as low as 450 ppm, large parts of the Southern Ocean, the Arctic Ocean, and the North Pacific would experience a rise in acidity that would violate US Environmental Protection Agency water quality standards,” he said. Under those conditions, the shells of many marine organisms would dissolve, including those at the base of the food chain. “If current trends in CO2 emissions continue unabated, in the next few decades, we will produce chemical conditions in the oceans that have not been seen for tens of millions of years. We are doing something very profound to our oceans. Ecosystems like coral reefs that have been around for many millions of years just won’t be able to cope with the change,” said Caldeira. (ANI)
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Whole brain radiation ups cancer patients’ learning, memory problems risk
23.09.2008 02:29
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A new research has found that cancer patients who receive stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and whole brain radiation therapy (WBRT) for the treatment of metastatic brain tumours have more than twice the risk of developing learning and memory problems than those treated with SRS alone. The study was led by Eric L. Chang, M.D., associate professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. Over the last decade, SRS, which uses high-doses of targeted x-rays, has gained acceptance as an initial treatment for tumours that have spread to the brain. SRS is also commonly used in combination with WBRT, radiation of the entire brain, to treat tumours that are visible and those that may not be detected by diagnostic imaging. "Determining how to optimize outcomes with the smallest cost to the quality of life is a treatment decision every radiation oncologist faces," said Chang. "While both approaches are in practice and both are equally acceptable, data from this trial suggest that oncologists should offer SRS alone as the upfront, initial therapy for patients with up to three brain metastases," Chang added. In the seven-year study, the researchers observed 58 patients presenting with one to three newly diagnosed brain metastases who were randomized to receive SRS followed by WBRT or SRS alone. Approximately four months after treatment, 49 percent of patients who received WBRT experienced a decline in learning and memory function compared to 23 percent in those patients who received SRS alone. "This is a case where the risks of learning dysfunction outweigh the benefits of freedom from progression and tip the scales in favour of using SRS alone. Patients are spared from the side effects of whole brain radiation and we are able to preserve their memory and learning function to a higher degree," said Chang. "Here the research suggests patients who receive SRS as their initial treatment and then are monitored closely for any recurrence will fare better," Chang added. The findings of the phase III randomized trial were presented at today''s 50th annual meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology. (ANI)
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Calorie restricted diet doesn’t cause bone loss in overweight adults
23.09.2008 02:29
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A calorie-restricted diet does not appear to induce bone loss in young, overweight adults, according to a report in the September 22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. However, adequate amounts of calcium and other nutrients have to be maintained to reap the benefits. Calorie restriction is the only intervention known to decrease the rate of biological aging and increase longevity, according to background information in the article. However, it is well known that chronic energy deficiency impairs bone mineral uptake and that weight loss is associated with bone loss in obese individuals. Calorie restriction, therefore, could also lead to bone loss and fracture. To reach the conclusion, Leanne M. Redman, Ph.D., and colleagues at Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, La., studied 46 healthy, overweight men and women (average age 37) who were randomly assigned to one of four groups for six months. Eleven formed the control group, assigned to eat a healthy diet; 12 were assigned to consume 25 percent fewer calories than they expended per day; 12 were assigned to create a 25 percent energy deficit through eating fewer calories and exercising five days per week; and 11 ate a low-calorie diet (890 calories per day) until they achieved 15 percent weight loss, at which time they switched to a weight maintenance plan. All diets included recommended levels of vitamins and minerals, including calcium, and contained 30 percent fat, 15 percent protein and 55 percent carbohydrates, based on American Heart Association guidelines. After six months, average body weight was reduced by 1 percent in the control group, 10.4 percent in the calorie restriction group, 10 percent in the calorie restriction plus exercise group and 13.9 percent in the low-calorie diet group. Bone mineral density and blood markers of bone resorption and formation (processes by which bone is broken down and regenerated on a regular basis) were measured at the beginning of the study and again after six months. "Compared with the control group, none of the groups showed any change in bone mineral density for total body or hip," the researchers said. Markers of bone resorption were increased in all three intervention groups, while markers of bone formation were decreased in the calorie restriction group but were unchanged in the low-calorie diet or calorie restriction plus exercise group. (ANI)
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Healthy blood vessels key to checking fat growth
23.09.2008 02:29
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A research team including an Indian origin researcher from Indiana University School of Medicine has found that cells lining blood vessels may be crucial in controlling the development of fat cells. The study showed that when the stem cells were placed directly in contact with healthy endothelial cells that line blood vessels, they were less likely to develop into fat cells. "The key to this discovery was our recent observation that these cells, also known as adipose stromal cells, in fat tissue are in very close contact with endothelial cells in small blood vessels and capillaries," said Keith L. March, M.D., Ph.D., co-principal investigator of the study and director of the Indiana Center for Vascular Biology and Medicine (ICVBM). "Once we had recognized this link between endothelial and stromal cells, it was a logical step to ask how these cells can influence each other," he added. With the help of one of nature''s building blocks, adipose stem cells, harvested from fat tissues, the research team is looking at ways to treat vascular disease, including the use of adipose stem cells to grow new vessels as a treatment for peripheral artery disease. “When the adipose stem cells were mixed with endothelial cells, they were less likely to develop into fat cells,” said Gangaraju Rajashekhar, Ph.D., lead author of the journal article and a research associate at the Indiana Centre for Vascular Biology and Medicine. The researchers discovered that endothelial cells released proteins – including Wnt proteins to be precise – that play a significant role in blocking fat cell development. “Wnt proteins regulate development and differentiation in many tissues and may even play a role in aging," he said. The findings are reported in the September issue of the journal Stem Cells. (ANI)
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Acupuncture as good as drug therapy to reduce breast cancer treatment side effects
23.09.2008 02:28
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A new study has found that acupuncture is as effective and longer-lasting in managing the common debilitating side effects of hot flashes, night sweats, and excessive sweating associated with breast cancer treatment and has no treatment side effects compared to conventional drug therapy. The study also shows that there were additional benefits to acupuncture treatment for breast cancer patients, such as an increased sense of well being, more energy, and in some cases, a higher sex drive, that were not experienced in those patients who underwent drug treatment for their hot flashes. "Our study shows that physicians and patients have an additional therapy for something that affects the majority of breast cancer survivors and actually has benefits, as opposed to more side effects,” Eleanor Walker, M.D., lead author of the study and a radiation oncologist at the Henry Ford Hospital Department of Radiation Oncology in Detroit, said. “The effect is more durable than a drug commonly used to treat these vasomotor symptoms and, ultimately, is more cost-effective for insurance companies," Walker added. The reduction in hot flashes lasted longer for those breast cancer patients after completing their acupuncture treatment, compared to patients after stopping their drug therapy plan. Eighty percent of women treated for breast cancer suffer from hot flashes after being treated with chemotherapy and/or anti-estrogen hormones, such as Tamoxifen and Arimidex. Although hormone replacement therapy is typically used to relieve these symptoms, breast cancer patients cannot use this therapy because it may increase the risk of the cancer coming back. As a treatment alternative, patients are generally treated with steroids and/or antidepressant drugs. However, many women decide against this treatment choice because of potential side effects, including weight gain, nausea, constipation and fatigue. In the randomized clinical trial, the researchers compared acupuncture treatment to venlafixine for 12 weeks to find out if acupuncture reduced vasomotor symptoms in breast cancer patients receiving hormonal therapy and produced fewer side effects than venlafaxine. The study involved 47 breast cancer patients who received either Tamoxifen or Arimidex and had at least 14 hot flashes per week. Results show that acupuncture reduces hot flashes as effectively as venlafaxine, with no side effects, and also provides additional health benefits to patients. The study will be presented on September 24, 2008, at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology''s 50th Annual Meeting in Boston. (ANI)
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