“Chemicals found in perfume, hand creams and body lotion may make girls go through puberty months early,” reports the Mail Online. Researchers in California looked at levels of chemicals commonly found in personal care and household products, in pregnant women and then in their children at age 9. The children were assessed regularly for milestones
“GPs should prescribe protein powders and weight lifting to pensioners to help reverse frailty,” The Daily Telegraph reports. While there is no exact definition of frailty, it is usually used as an umbrella term to describe a range of linked age-related factors such as lack of energy, unintentional weight loss, slow walking speed and reduced
“Running is better than weight training at reversing signs of ageing,” reports The Independent. Researchers from Germany assessed the impact of 3 types of exercise – high intensity interval training, endurance walking or running, and weight training – on signs of ageing in human blood cells. They found that, after 6 months of exercising for
“‘Be wary’ about prostate cancer YouTube videos, scientists warn,” reports Sky News. Researchers viewed the 150 first-listed videos on YouTube for prostate cancer screening and treatment, checking them against standard patient information quality criteria. They found that 77% had errors or bias either in the videos or the comments beneath them. Worryingly, the most popular
“Hope for multiple sclerosis patients as scientists discover attacking the glandular fever virus can combat symptoms,” reports the Mail Online. This virus – called the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) – “is found in almost all people with multiple sclerosis and has long been thought to cause it,” explains the news site. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an
“Family meals really do improve teenagers’ diets and put them on a path to healthy eating in later life – even if home life is dysfunctional,” reports the Mail Online. Researchers in the US used data from a 2011 survey of teenagers and young adults aged 14 to 24. They looked at how often they
“Low-protein, high-carb diet may help ward off dementia,” reports The Guardian. Researchers studying mice kept on different diets found that mice on either restricted-calorie diets or low-protein, high-carbohydrate diets showed differences in the hippocampus region of the brain compared with mice fed on other diets. The hippocampus plays an important part in memory, especially long-term
“Peanut allergy treatment ‘in sight’,” reports BBC News, on a study investigating the effectiveness of a new drug to reduce the symptoms seen in people with severe peanut allergies. Peanut allergy is increasingly common in children in countries such as the US and UK, and usually continues into adulthood. There is currently no approved treatment
“Low-carb dieters can lose more than 1.5 stone over three years,” reports The Daily Telegraph. Researchers in the US carried out a trial involving 164 people who’d already lost weight on a 10-week diet, during which all meals were provided. They assigned them to a further 20 weeks of dieting intended to maintain weight loss.
“Vitamin D supplements may be pointless for preventing heart disease and cancer,” reports the Mail Online. Vitamin D, known as the “sunshine vitamin” because our skin makes it from contact with sunlight, is needed to make strong bones. In recent years, scientists have investigated whether it’s also helpful in preventing cardiovascular disease (heart attacks and
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