3 Things You Need to Know About Earwax

Step away from the cotton swabs: They can shove wax further into your ear. Earwax, while kind of gross, is actually a good thing because its a sticky shield that protects your eardrums from bacteria and dirt.

“What is it, anyway?”
Sloughed-off old skin cells and oil. But it’s healthy—it cleans your ears and pushes out bacteria.

“How do I get rid of it?”
You don’t! Your body does it naturally, through chewing and other jaw motions. If you really need to clean, wash your outer ear with a cloth and warm soapy water. You can also place a few drops of baby oil or drugstore antiwax peroxide drops (like Debrox) into your ear to help wax fall out.

“What about candling?”
Putting candles into your ear and lighting the wick is a no-no. “I’ve seen burns and ruptured eardrums as a result,” says Douglas Backous, MD, medical director of the Center for Hearing and Skull Base Surgery at the Swedish Neuroscience Institute in Seattle.

Source: News Health

Music could help recover stroke victims

Stroke victims could recover earlier if they take up any musical instrument, according to experts of Goldsmiths, University of London.

Dr Lauren Stewart, from the music, mind and brain team based in Goldsmiths’ Department of Psychology, said that despite a good deal of research into rehabilitation approaches, treatment options were limited, News.com.au reported.

Stewart further said that their research showed that playing a musical instrument could be an effective intervention for neglect patients.

Source: business standard

Daily Low-Dose Aspirin May Help Ward Off Pancreatic Cancer

People who take low-dose aspirin for more than 10 years might be reducing their risk for pancreatic cancer, a new study suggests.

Even taking a daily aspirin for just three years lowered the chances of the deadly cancer by 48 percent, the researchers said.

“Aspirin use has potential risks of its own, thus the risks and benefits for each person have to be evaluated based on personal characteristics,” said lead researcher Dr. Harvey Risch, a professor of epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health.

“For the small numbers of people with strong family histories of pancreatic cancer or who otherwise have been evaluated to be at increased risk of pancreatic cancer, aspirin use could be part of a regimen designed to reduce their risk,” he said.

The main risk with continued aspirin use is bleeding in the stomach.

The report was published online June 26 in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.

Eric Jacobs, strategic director for pharmacoepidemiology at the American Cancer Society, said taking aspirin hasn’t been proven to reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer. And no one should take aspirin in the hope of lowering their risk for any cancer.

“The link between aspirin use, particularly low-dose aspirin use, and lower risk of pancreatic cancer observed in this study is intriguing,” but not proven, he said.

Results of other studies of aspirin and pancreatic cancer have been mixed, Jacobs said.

“While long-term regular aspirin use lowers the risk of colorectal cancer, evidence is much too limited to draw conclusions about aspirin and pancreatic cancer. We do know, however, that the most important ways to lower risk of ever getting pancreatic cancer are to avoid smoking and maintain a healthy weight,” he said.

“The American Cancer Society, therefore, does not recommend taking aspirin specifically to prevent cancer. People thinking about taking aspirin on a regular basis should talk to their health care provider, who can take their individual medical history into account when weighing the overall benefits and risks of using aspirin,” Jacobs added.

For the study, Risch and colleagues collected data on 362 people with pancreatic cancer and 690 who did not have the disease. Participants were recruited from 30 Connecticut hospitals between 2005 and 2009.

All of the study participants were asked when they began taking aspirin, how much and for how long. The researchers also took into account other factors, such as weight, smoking history and any history of diabetes.

A dose of 75 milligrams to 325 milligrams of aspirin per day was considered low-dose and was usually taken to prevent heart disease. The researchers considered a dose higher than that, usually taken every four to six hours, as regular-dose taken for pain.

The investigators found that the earlier someone started taking low-dose aspirin regularly, the more the risk for pancreatic cancer seemed reduced.

The reduction ranged from 48 percent among those who started three years before the study to 60 percent in those who started taking it 20 years before the study, the researchers said.

However, people who stopped taking aspirin within two years before the study saw their risk for pancreatic cancer increase threefold, compared with those who continued taking aspirin, the authors said.

Dr. Tony Philip, an oncologist at North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute in Lake Success, N.Y., said, “Pancreatic cancer is not a common cancer, but a deadly one nonetheless.”

Over the last several years, more has been learned about the role of inflammation in cancer, he said, and has been well described in colon cancer. There are also ongoing studies looking at the role of anti-inflammatory drugs in reducing recurrence of other types of tumors.

“Much more work needs to be done before we start recommending this [aspirin] to the general population. The next step, which may be harder to do, is to prove cause and effect and figure out who benefits most from this,” Philip said.

Source: American Cancer Society

Truth about high sodium intake and health

Sodium has gotten a great deal of bad press over the past few decades. There is, of course, good reason for the warnings that are frequently posted by health experts, both online and in numerous medical journals, that are designed to make people think twice before using their salt shaker liberally. After all, the American Heart Association (AHA) cautions that excessive sodium intake can cause the following health risks:

• enlarged heart muscle
• strokes
• headaches
• high blood pressure
• stomach cancer
• kidney stones
• heart disease
• kidney disease

Culprits of too much sodium in the diet

The majority of the sodium in the average diet — about 65% — comes from foods that are obtained from convenience stores or supermarkets. This comes in the form of processed foods, since manufacturers often use added sodium in order to help preserve their food for a longer shelf life. The remaining 35% of the sodium comes from restaurants and other sources — 25% and 10% respectively. It can be assumed that the other sources include the sodium that people add to their foods when they cook at home.

Sodium has other hazards too

In addition to the health risks that are posed by eating a diet that is high in sodium, health experts caution that excess sodium can take a toll on the way a person looks. Too much sodium can lead to bloating, puffiness and weight gain. Health organizations have different amounts of sodium that they deem safe, with most, such as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the American Diabetic Association (ADA) and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND), putting the highest safe amount at 2,300 mg. An interesting note is that the optimal level of sodium that the AHA deems is safe is 1,500 mg. This is the same amount the other agencies place on the lower level of being acceptable.

Sodium has surprises for people

There is a growing body of evidence that points to the fact that a salt-restricted diet might not be the best for long-term health. The Journal of the American Medical Association recently noted a correlation between a low-sodium diet and a higher mortality rate from cardiovascular causes. This data pointed to an increase in hospitalization for cardiovascular issues for those people who had low salt intake compared to those who had a moderate amount of salt in their diets.

In addition, a recent study cited in the American Journal of Hypertension found that diets low in salt resulted in higher levels of cholesterol and triglycerides in the plasma. The researchers concluded that these higher levels of hormones and lipids in the blood negate the effects of the slightly lower blood pressure seen in patients who restrict their salt intake greatly.

As with many health recommendations, it is perhaps best to exercise moderation when it comes to the amount of salt in the diet.

Source; Natural news

Education Quality Key to Bangladesh’s Goal to Become Middle Income Country

Bangladesh needs to focus on high-quality learning, and strong foundational cognitive and behavioral skills from early childhood, says a new World Bank report “Seeding Fertile Ground: Education That Works for Bangladesh”.

The findings and recommendations of the report were discussed today at a national dialogue organized by the Campaign for Popular Organization (CAMPE). Today’s event was preceded by six divisional workshops. The report, which focuses on access and equity, quality and skills, was prepared under the guidance of two advisory groups drawn from the members of civil society, the government, academia, think-tanks and development partners in Bangladesh.

The report praises Bangladesh’s success in improving access to education and completion at all levels, despite daunting challenges. Bangladesh achieved gender equity in primary and secondary education well ahead of the 2015 Millennium Development Goal. About 76% of youth aged 15-19 completed primary education in 2010. Progress in education has paved the way for an increasing number of women to enter the labor market, bolstering the country’s manufacturing production.

“With more youth entering the working age population, Bangladesh is poised to benefit from a demographic dividend in the next 10 years,” said Johannes Zutt, World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh. “To reap the benefits of demographic changes, Bangladesh will need policies that create higher-skilled jobs with higher wages. By improving education quality and skills development, the country can link its youth to productive employment in local or overseas job markets.”

Although the country has succeeded in expanding access to education, learning is currently low and unequal. Only a limited number of students remain competent in their respective grades. An assessment of literacy and numeracy at grade 5 indicates that only 25 percent of grade 5 students master Bangla competencies, and only 33 percent master Mathematics. Students with low levels of learning at lower grades are most at risk for dropping out and are most likely to join the informal labor market.

An important determinant of learning within the school is the quality of the teachers. Studies show that many teachers lack adequate training and career progression opportunities. Lack of knowledge about subjects and overemphasis on rote-learning than encouraging creative thinking and problem-solving skills further affects students’ learning.

Bangladesh’s current momentum in improving medical education can be harnessed for greater advances, states the report. Understanding the complexity and interrelated nature of education quality, skills development, and the labor market will aid in policy planning. The country needs to shift and strengthen the focus on education relevant to the labor market and on the quality of education.

In both the formal and informal labor markets, possessing strong cognitive skills, along with positive behavioral skills, can lead to better jobs and career advancement. Improving skills and productivity are crucial for Bangladesh to achieve middle income status. Currently, most of the labor force is in informal sector and possess low levels of education – 96 percent of workers have up to a secondary education, and less than 5 percent of the workforce has a tertiary education.

The report emphasizes that skill development is incremental, cumulative and transformational. A good skills-development policy recognizes that skills are not built at a certain time in an individual’s life – skills development is an incremental and lifelong process, acquired through formal and non-formal education, from pre-primary through higher education, networks, jobs, and other means.

Source: The world bank

Tomato pill’ hope for stopping heart disease

Taking a tomato pill a day could help keep heart disease at bay, say UK scientists who have carried out a small but robust study.

The trial, which tested the tomato pill versus a dummy drug in 72 adults, found it improved the functioning of blood vessels. But experts say more studies are needed to prove it really works. The pill contains lycopene, a natural antioxidant that also gives tomatoes their colour.

A daily ‘tomato pill’ is not a substitute for other treatments, but may provide added benefits when taken alongside other medication” Experts have suspected for some time that lycopene might be good for avoiding illnesses, including certain cancers and cardiovascular disease.

There is some evidence that eating a Mediterranean-style diet, which is rich in tomatoes (as well as other fruit and vegetables and olive oil), is beneficial for health. Following a healthy diet is still advisable but scientists have been researching whether there is a way to put at least some of this good stuff into an easy-to-take pill.

Tomato pill
A spin-off company from the University of Cambridge – Cambridge Theranostics (CTL) – has come up with its own “tomato pill”.

Working independently of CTL, and instead funded by the Wellcome Trust, the British Heart Foundation and the National Institute of Health Research, a team at Cambridge University set out to see if the pill would have the desired effect. They recruited 36 volunteers known to have heart disease and 36 “healthy” controls, who were all given a daily tablet to take, which was either the tomato pill or a placebo. To ensure a fairer trial, neither the volunteers nor the researchers were told what the tablets actually contained until after the two-month study had ended and the results were in.

For comparison, the researchers measured something called forearm blood flow, which is predictive of future cardiovascular risk because narrowed blood vessels can lead to heart attack and stroke. In the heart disease patients, the tomato pill improved forearm blood flow significantly, while the placebo did not.

The supplement had no effect on blood pressure, arterial stiffness or levels of fats in the blood, however. A natural antioxidant – substances thought to protect the body’s cells from damage

Found in tomatoes, but also in apricots, watermelon and papaya as well as pink grapefruit Lycopene content varies according to the variety of tomato and how it is prepared eg. puree, ketchup, cooked or raw

It is unclear whether supplements would ever be able to replace the benefits of a varied diet

Source: BBC news

Hair Dyes May Still Cause Cancer

With over 5,000 chemicals in a hair dye product — they’re powerful, after all — some of them were bound to have some harmful effects. In the late 1970s, scientists discovered that 89 percent of formulations contained carcinogenic chemicals. So, dye manufacturers began using different chemicals, and some of those that were deemed carcinogenic, such as aromatic amines, were banned in cosmetic products in the European Union (The FDA regulates these products on a case-by-case basis.). But a new study from Lund University in Sweden has found that hairdressers may still be exposed to these carcinogens, and if so, they’re getting in their blood every time someone walks into the salon.

According to the National Cancer Institute, permanent hair dyes, also called oxidative dyes, are the ones most dangerous to hairdressers. Making up almost 80 percent of the dye market, people go to them because the only way to remove them is to grow out new hair. They work with the help of hydrogen peroxide, which causes a chemical reaction between so-called “intermediates” — the aromatic amines — and dye “couplers.” In turn, the chemical reaction causes pigment molecules to form.

Many of the aromatic amines called toluidines have been implicated in causing cancer, but ortho-toluidine (o-toluidine) has actually been confirmed as a carcinogenic. Altogether, these chemicals have been suspected of causing bladder cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, leukaemia, and breast cancer. Considering the severity of these cancers, it would be in everyone’s best interest to know what they’re touching when they come into contact with hair dyes.

For their study, the researchers looked at o-toluidine levels in the blood, along with levels of seven other aromatic amines. Specifically, they looked at structures in the blood called hemoglobin adducts, which gave them a sense of long-term exposure to the carcinogen, as they showed how many molecules of hemoglobin had attached to molecules of the toluidines.

Testing this method on 295 female hairdressers, 32 regular users of hair dye, and 60 people who hadn’t used any products in a year, they found that hairdressers were indeed exposing themselves to o-toluidine and meta-toluidine (m-toluidine). What’s more, hairdressers who performed more weekly hair dye or hair waving treatments tended to have higher concentrations of the carcinogens.

“The latter was somewhat unexpected, but analysis of a common randomly-chosen product confirmed the presence of both o- and m-toluidine,” the researchers wrote. They added that even with the variety of products hairdressers use, they were able to narrow down the source of o-toluidine to “light-color permanent hair dyes and hair waving.”

The findings may be especially troubling for hairdressers in Sweden, since most of the study population was based in the southern province of Scania in Sweden. The researchers called for further studies into the ingredients of current dyes, as the probability that these chemicals are being transferred from dyes and hair into water systems, the air, and the food supply.

Source: BMJ Occupational & Environmental Medicine

Can Vitamin D Prevent Type 2 Diabetes? NIH Donates Millions To New Study

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is donating millions of dollars to research that will determine if vitamin D supplements are effective in preventing type 2 diabetes. Over 20 health centers around the United States have been tasked with identifying the healthy qualities of vitamin D and how they are able to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes.

“This study aims to definitively answer the question: Can vitamin D reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes?” said Myrlene Staten, M.D., D2d project officer at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).

Upwards of 2,500 volunteers who suffer from prediabetes, or blood glucose levels that are higher than normal, were recruited for the study’s sample. Half of the group will receive a daily dose of 4,000 international units (IUs) of vitamin D while the other half will receive a placebo. A total of 600-800 IUs of vitamin D are recommended as the typical adult intake for each day.

Participants will be asked to return to their health care provider twice a year for routine checkups, and the study will continue until enough people have developed diabetes to make a scientific comparison. Researchers will also screen for the effects of sex, age, and race on vitamin D’s potential to reduce diabetes risk.

 “Vitamin D use has risen sharply in the U.S. in the last 15 years, since it has been suggested as a remedy for a variety of conditions, including prevention of type 2 diabetes,” Dr. Staten added. “But we need rigorous testing to determine if vitamin D will help prevent diabetes. That’s what D2d will do.”

According to the American Diabetes Association, around 25.8 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with diabetes, accounting for 8.3 percent of the population. A total of 231,404 death certificates were contributed to type 2 diabetes in 2007.

Developing type 2 diabetes can also lead to various other health concerns, including high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, blindness, and amputation. Diabetes is considered the leading cause of kidney failure and blindness in adults over the age of 20. People with diabetes are two to four times more likely to have a stroke.

“An estimated 79 million Americans have prediabetes, and nearly 26 million more have diabetes,” said NIDDK Director Griffin P. Rodgers, M.D. “With D2d, we seek evidence for an affordable and accessible way to help prevent or delay type 2 diabetes.”

Source: medicaldaily

Algeria reports first death from MERS

Algeria said a 66-year-old man died from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), the first deadly case of the virus in the North African country.

The man died late on Monday at a hospital in western Algeria where he had been receiving treatment since the confirmation of his infection late last month, the Health Ministry said in a statement.

The man was one of two identified with MERS after returning from a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, which has seen a jump in cases.

A 59-year-old man, the second confirmed case, is still being treated in hospital and his health has improved, the statement said.

Source: Foxnews

How Your Doctor Really Feels About End-of-Life Care

Most American doctors would decline aggressive treatment if they were dying, a new study finds.

Researchers looked at the responses of nearly 1,100 doctors in California who took part in a 2013 survey about their end-of-life care preferences and 790 doctors in Arkansas who completed a similar survey in 1989.

Although conducted decades apart, both surveys yielded similar findings. Most doctors (88 percent in the 2013 survey) would give do-not-resuscitate orders if they were terminally ill, according to the study published May 28 in the journal PLoS One.

Even though most doctors don’t want extraordinary measures to keep them alive if they are dying, they tend to order aggressive, life-prolonging treatment for terminally ill patients, the Stanford University School of Medicine researchers said.

Further research is needed to understand this discrepancy, said study author Dr. V.J. Periyakoil, a clinical associate professor of medicine at Stanford.

“Why do we physicians choose to pursue such aggressive treatment for our patients when we wouldn’t choose it for ourselves? The reasons likely are multifaceted and complex,” Periyakoil said in a university news release.

She is director of the Stanford Palliative Care Education and Training Program and associate director of palliative care services at the Palo Alto VA Center in California.

Most Americans say they would prefer to die at home without life-prolonging treatments, according to the study authors.

“A big disparity exists between what Americans say they want at the end of life and the care they actually receive,” the researchers wrote. “More than 80 percent of patients say that they wish to avoid hospitalizations and high-intensity care at the end of life, but their wishes are often overridden.”

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

91-Year-Old Woman Finished the San Diego Marathon AND Set a New Record

Prepare yourself for a major dose of fitness inspiration.

On Sunday, Harriette Thompson, 91 (yes, you read that right), finished the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in 7:07:42, the fastest time on record by a woman 90 or older, according to Runner’s World. And get this: Even though it was Thompson’s slowest-ever marathon, she STILL knocked more than an hour and 45 minutes off the previous record of 8:53:08, run by Mavis Lindgren at the 1997 Portland Marathon.

Running seems to be a family affair for the grandmother of 10 from Charlotte, North Carolina. She ran the race with her 55-year-old son, Brenny, at average pace of 16:19 per mile—slower than she would have liked. Her training was affected by recent radiation treatment on her legs to treat squamous cell carcinoma, The Charlotte Observer reported. And six days before the marathon, she and husband Sydnor, 90, completed a Memorial Day 5K together. The couple celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary yesterday.

“I can’t believe how big a deal they’re making over me. I felt like a queen for the day,” she told The Observer.

Thompson ran her first marathon at age 76 in 1999. “You’re never too old to do it,” she told Runner’s World. Since her marathon debut 16 years ago, Thompson has run in support of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team In Training, and has raised more than $90,000 for the charity.

And she’s not done yet. When Runner’s World asked Thompson if she had more marathons planned, she said she’d run San Diego in 2015 “if I’m still here.” She would be 92. The oldest female marathon finisher on record is Gladys Burrill, who at age 92 ran the 2010 Honolulu Marathon in 9:53:16, according to Runner’s World.

“I’ll try and do better next year and be in better shape,” she said. Let that be a lesson to all of us: Never stop improving.

Source: Health Media Ventures, Inc