http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36984517/ns/health-cancer/
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor
updated 9:04 a.m. ET, Thurs., May 6, 2010
WASHINGTON - Americans are being "bombarded" with chemicals, gases and radiation that can cause cancer, and the federal government must do far more to protect them, presidential cancer advisers said on Thursday.
Although as many as two-thirds of cancer cases are caused by lifestyle choices like smoking, poor diet and lack of exercise, the panel said many avoidable cancers were also caused by pollution, radon from the soil and medical imaging scans.
Since so little is known about the possible risks of cell phones, people would be prudent to wear headsets and make calls quickly, the two members of the panel advised.
"The panel was particularly concerned to find that the true burden of environmentally induced cancer has been grossly underestimated," they wrote in the report, available at the National Cancer Institute.
The report is sure to stun industry and many cancer specialists. It has already delighted environmental groups, which have had hints for more than a week of the report's content.
The American Cancer Society said the report downplayed known risks that cause most cases of cancer including tobacco, obesity, alcohol, infections, hormones and sunlight.
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Cancer is the No. 2 killer of Americans, after heart disease. "The incidence of some cancers, including some most common among children, is increasing for unexplained reasons," the report reads.
"With nearly 80,000 chemicals on the market in the United States, many of which are used by millions of Americans in their daily lives and are un- or understudied and largely unregulated, exposure to potential environmental carcinogens is widespread," it adds.
"The American people — even before they are born — are bombarded continually with myriad combinations of these dangerous exposures," Kripke and Leffall wrote in a letter to President Barack Obama at top of the report.
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Monday, May 10, 2010
Saturday, May 08, 2010
Experts rally to defense of climate science
http://www.salon.com/news/global_warming/index.html?story=/opinion/feature/2010/05/07/climate_science_integrity_open2010
Friday, May 7, 2010 14:08 ET
By Joseph Romm
A version of this piece originally appeared at Climate Progress
On Friday the journal Science published a remarkable Lead Letter supporting the accuracy of climate science. The must-read statement, "Climate Change and the Integrity of Science," is signed by 255 of the world's leading scientists.
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The lead signer, Pacific Institute president Peter Gleick, notes in a HuffPost piece:
http://www.pacinst.org/climate/climate_statement.pdf
WE ARE DEEPLY DISTURBED BY THE RECENT ESCALATION OF POLITICAL ASSAULTS ON SCIENTISTS
in general and on climate scientists in particular. All citizens should understand some basic scientific facts. There is always some uncertainty associated with scientific conclusions; science never absolutely proves anything. When someone says that society should wait until scientists are absolutely certain before taking any action, it is the same as saying society should never take action. For a problem as potentially catastrophic as climate change, taking no action poses a dangerous risk for our planet.
Friday, May 7, 2010 14:08 ET
By Joseph Romm
A version of this piece originally appeared at Climate Progress
On Friday the journal Science published a remarkable Lead Letter supporting the accuracy of climate science. The must-read statement, "Climate Change and the Integrity of Science," is signed by 255 of the world's leading scientists.
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The lead signer, Pacific Institute president Peter Gleick, notes in a HuffPost piece:
It is hard to get 255 members of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences to agree on pretty much anything, making the import of this letter even more substantial.The letter underscores our deep understanding of human-caused climate change and helps illuminate how science works. It deserves to be widely read in its entirety:
http://www.pacinst.org/climate/climate_statement.pdf
WE ARE DEEPLY DISTURBED BY THE RECENT ESCALATION OF POLITICAL ASSAULTS ON SCIENTISTS
in general and on climate scientists in particular. All citizens should understand some basic scientific facts. There is always some uncertainty associated with scientific conclusions; science never absolutely proves anything. When someone says that society should wait until scientists are absolutely certain before taking any action, it is the same as saying society should never take action. For a problem as potentially catastrophic as climate change, taking no action poses a dangerous risk for our planet.
Friday, May 07, 2010
The Long-Term Effects of Spanking
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1983895,00.html?iid=sphere-inline-sidebar
By Alice Park Monday, May. 03, 2010
Disciplining young children is what parents are supposed to do — most moms and dads have no trouble agreeing with that. But should the punishment include spanking?
As many parents can attest, few disciplinary measures stop a child from misbehaving as quickly as a swift smack or two on the bottom.
But in a new study published in Pediatrics, researchers at Tulane University provide the strongest evidence yet that children's short-term response to spanking may make them act out more in the long run. Of the nearly 2,500 youngsters in the study, those who were spanked more frequently at age 3 were much more likely to be aggressive by age 5.
The study, led by community-health-sciences professor Catherine Taylor, was the first to control for a host of issues affecting the mother, such as depression, alcohol and drug use, spousal abuse and even whether she considered abortion while pregnant with the child. After controlling for all these factors — each of which can contribute to a child's aggression — spanking remained a strong predictor of violent behavior. "The odds of a child being more aggressive at age 5 increased by 50% if he had been spanked more than twice in the month before the study began," says Taylor.
The association remained even after her team accounted for varying levels of natural aggression in children, suggesting, she says, that "it's not just that children who are more aggressive are more likely to be spanked." (See the top 10 scientific discoveries of 2009.)
Among mothers surveyed in 20 cities when their children were both 3 and 5 years old, nearly half (45.6%) reported not spanking their 3-year-olds in the previous month, 27.9% reported spanking once or twice that month, and 26.5% reported spanking more than twice. As 5-year-olds, the children who had been spanked were more likely than the nonspanked to be defiant, demand immediate satisfaction of their wants and needs, become frustrated easily, have temper tantrums and lash out physically against other people or animals.
The reason for this may be that spanking sets up a loop of bad behavior. Corporal punishment instills fear rather than understanding. Even if children stop tantrums when spanked, that doesn't mean they get why they shouldn't have been acting up in the first place. What's more, spanking sets a bad example, teaching children that aggressive behavior is a solution to their parents' problems.
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Instead of spanking, the AAP recommends time-outs, which typically involve denying the child any interaction, positive or negative, for a specified period of time. These quiet moments force children to calm down and think about their emotions rather than acting on them reflexively. After all, the goal of punishment is to get children to understand not just that they did something wrong but also what motivated them to do it.
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By Alice Park Monday, May. 03, 2010
Disciplining young children is what parents are supposed to do — most moms and dads have no trouble agreeing with that. But should the punishment include spanking?
As many parents can attest, few disciplinary measures stop a child from misbehaving as quickly as a swift smack or two on the bottom.
But in a new study published in Pediatrics, researchers at Tulane University provide the strongest evidence yet that children's short-term response to spanking may make them act out more in the long run. Of the nearly 2,500 youngsters in the study, those who were spanked more frequently at age 3 were much more likely to be aggressive by age 5.
The study, led by community-health-sciences professor Catherine Taylor, was the first to control for a host of issues affecting the mother, such as depression, alcohol and drug use, spousal abuse and even whether she considered abortion while pregnant with the child. After controlling for all these factors — each of which can contribute to a child's aggression — spanking remained a strong predictor of violent behavior. "The odds of a child being more aggressive at age 5 increased by 50% if he had been spanked more than twice in the month before the study began," says Taylor.
The association remained even after her team accounted for varying levels of natural aggression in children, suggesting, she says, that "it's not just that children who are more aggressive are more likely to be spanked." (See the top 10 scientific discoveries of 2009.)
Among mothers surveyed in 20 cities when their children were both 3 and 5 years old, nearly half (45.6%) reported not spanking their 3-year-olds in the previous month, 27.9% reported spanking once or twice that month, and 26.5% reported spanking more than twice. As 5-year-olds, the children who had been spanked were more likely than the nonspanked to be defiant, demand immediate satisfaction of their wants and needs, become frustrated easily, have temper tantrums and lash out physically against other people or animals.
The reason for this may be that spanking sets up a loop of bad behavior. Corporal punishment instills fear rather than understanding. Even if children stop tantrums when spanked, that doesn't mean they get why they shouldn't have been acting up in the first place. What's more, spanking sets a bad example, teaching children that aggressive behavior is a solution to their parents' problems.
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Instead of spanking, the AAP recommends time-outs, which typically involve denying the child any interaction, positive or negative, for a specified period of time. These quiet moments force children to calm down and think about their emotions rather than acting on them reflexively. After all, the goal of punishment is to get children to understand not just that they did something wrong but also what motivated them to do it.
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Shaken-Baby Cases Rose During the Recession
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1986500,00.html?hpt=Sbin
By Alice Park Monday, May. 03, 2010
The stressful effects of a faltering economy, skyrocketing unemployment and precarious personal finances can be dire. People take up smoking or use alcohol to cope, they become depressed or suicidal, and they develop stress-related illnesses like heart disease. Now researchers report that the harm may be spreading to children too, when parents' stress leads them to inadvertently injure their children.
Presenting May 1 at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting in Vancouver, a team of researchers led by child-abuse expert Dr. Rachel Berger at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh reported a significant increase in cases of shaken-baby syndrome, in which youngsters are shaken violently by an adult, since the start of the current recession. Researchers analyzed data on 512 cases of head trauma in the children's centers of four hospitals (in Pittsburgh, Pa.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; and Seattle) and found that the number of cases had increased to 9.3 per month as of Dec. 1, 2007, compared with 6 per month prior to that date — a rate that had held steady since 2004.
The rise in shaken-baby cases correlates with the economic downturn associated with the recession. "This is a perfect storm in a bad way, where we have economic stressors that are causing the removal of social-service resources for preventing and addressing child abuse," says Berger. Although she says she was not surprised by the association observed in her study, she calls the sheer rise in recent cases of abusive head injuries in children "striking."
By Alice Park Monday, May. 03, 2010
The stressful effects of a faltering economy, skyrocketing unemployment and precarious personal finances can be dire. People take up smoking or use alcohol to cope, they become depressed or suicidal, and they develop stress-related illnesses like heart disease. Now researchers report that the harm may be spreading to children too, when parents' stress leads them to inadvertently injure their children.
Presenting May 1 at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting in Vancouver, a team of researchers led by child-abuse expert Dr. Rachel Berger at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh reported a significant increase in cases of shaken-baby syndrome, in which youngsters are shaken violently by an adult, since the start of the current recession. Researchers analyzed data on 512 cases of head trauma in the children's centers of four hospitals (in Pittsburgh, Pa.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; and Seattle) and found that the number of cases had increased to 9.3 per month as of Dec. 1, 2007, compared with 6 per month prior to that date — a rate that had held steady since 2004.
The rise in shaken-baby cases correlates with the economic downturn associated with the recession. "This is a perfect storm in a bad way, where we have economic stressors that are causing the removal of social-service resources for preventing and addressing child abuse," says Berger. Although she says she was not surprised by the association observed in her study, she calls the sheer rise in recent cases of abusive head injuries in children "striking."
Thursday, May 06, 2010
How Dark Chocolate May Guard Against Brain Injury from Stroke
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100505163242.htm
ScienceDaily (May 5, 2010) — Researchers at Johns Hopkins have discovered that a compound in dark chocolate may protect the brain after a stroke by increasing cellular signals already known to shield nerve cells from damage.
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The amount of dark chocolate people would need to consume to benefit from its protective effects remains unclear, since Doré has not studied it in clinical trials. People shouldn't take this research as a free pass to go out and consume large amounts of chocolate, which is high in calories and fat. In fact, people should be reminded to eat a healthy diet with a variety of fruits and vegetables.
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ScienceDaily (May 5, 2010) — Researchers at Johns Hopkins have discovered that a compound in dark chocolate may protect the brain after a stroke by increasing cellular signals already known to shield nerve cells from damage.
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The amount of dark chocolate people would need to consume to benefit from its protective effects remains unclear, since Doré has not studied it in clinical trials. People shouldn't take this research as a free pass to go out and consume large amounts of chocolate, which is high in calories and fat. In fact, people should be reminded to eat a healthy diet with a variety of fruits and vegetables.
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Neanderthal Genome Yields Evidence of Interbreeding With Modern Humans
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100506141549.htm
ScienceDaily (May 6, 2010) — After extracting ancient DNA from the 40,000-year-old bones of Neanderthals, scientists have obtained a draft sequence of the Neanderthal genome, yielding important new insights into the evolution of modern humans.
Among the findings, published in the May 7 issue of Science, is evidence that shortly after early modern humans migrated out of Africa, some of them interbred with Neanderthals, leaving bits of Neanderthal DNA sequences scattered through the genomes of present-day non-Africans.
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"The scenario is not what most people had envisioned," Green said. "We found the genetic signal of Neanderthals in all the non-African genomes, meaning that the admixture occurred early on, probably in the Middle East, and is shared with all descendants of the early humans who migrated out of Africa."
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ScienceDaily (May 6, 2010) — After extracting ancient DNA from the 40,000-year-old bones of Neanderthals, scientists have obtained a draft sequence of the Neanderthal genome, yielding important new insights into the evolution of modern humans.
Among the findings, published in the May 7 issue of Science, is evidence that shortly after early modern humans migrated out of Africa, some of them interbred with Neanderthals, leaving bits of Neanderthal DNA sequences scattered through the genomes of present-day non-Africans.
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"The scenario is not what most people had envisioned," Green said. "We found the genetic signal of Neanderthals in all the non-African genomes, meaning that the admixture occurred early on, probably in the Middle East, and is shared with all descendants of the early humans who migrated out of Africa."
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Cooling with Sunlight
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100503111531.htm
ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — Although it sounds like a contradiction in terms, using the power of the sun for refrigeration is proving to be an original energy concept. In Tunisia and Morocco, Fraunhofer research scientists are using solar energy to keep perishable foodstuffs such as milk, wine and fruit fresh.
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ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — Although it sounds like a contradiction in terms, using the power of the sun for refrigeration is proving to be an original energy concept. In Tunisia and Morocco, Fraunhofer research scientists are using solar energy to keep perishable foodstuffs such as milk, wine and fruit fresh.
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Mice Can Synthesize Their Own Morphine
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100506165907.htm
ScienceDaily (May 6, 2010) — Traces of morphine in urine samples have been considered a clear proof of drug use or the consumption of food containing poppy in the past. Now a study by a team of scientists from the Institute of Environmental Research at TU Dortmund and the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St Louis, Missouri, point to another possible explanation: they managed for the first time to prove that mice -- and probably humans and other mammals as well -- produce their own morphine in their bodies.
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ScienceDaily (May 6, 2010) — Traces of morphine in urine samples have been considered a clear proof of drug use or the consumption of food containing poppy in the past. Now a study by a team of scientists from the Institute of Environmental Research at TU Dortmund and the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St Louis, Missouri, point to another possible explanation: they managed for the first time to prove that mice -- and probably humans and other mammals as well -- produce their own morphine in their bodies.
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Stand Up While You Read This!
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/23/stand-up-while-you-read-this/#more-39489
February 23, 2010, 6:20 pm
By OLIVIA JUDSON
Your chair is your enemy.
It doesn’t matter if you go running every morning, or you’re a regular at the gym. If you spend most of the rest of the day sitting — in your car, your office chair, on your sofa at home — you are putting yourself at increased risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, a variety of cancers and an early death. In other words, irrespective of whether you exercise vigorously, sitting for long periods is bad for you.
That, at least, is the conclusion of several recent studies. Indeed, if you consider only healthy people who exercise regularly, those who sit the most during the rest of the day have larger waists and worse profiles of blood pressure and blood sugar than those who sit less. Among people who sit in front of the television for more than three hours each day, those who exercise are as fat as those who don’t: sitting a lot appears to offset some of the benefits of jogging a lot.
February 23, 2010, 6:20 pm
By OLIVIA JUDSON
Your chair is your enemy.
It doesn’t matter if you go running every morning, or you’re a regular at the gym. If you spend most of the rest of the day sitting — in your car, your office chair, on your sofa at home — you are putting yourself at increased risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, a variety of cancers and an early death. In other words, irrespective of whether you exercise vigorously, sitting for long periods is bad for you.
That, at least, is the conclusion of several recent studies. Indeed, if you consider only healthy people who exercise regularly, those who sit the most during the rest of the day have larger waists and worse profiles of blood pressure and blood sugar than those who sit less. Among people who sit in front of the television for more than three hours each day, those who exercise are as fat as those who don’t: sitting a lot appears to offset some of the benefits of jogging a lot.
Laboratory Life
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/13/laboratory-life/#more-45909
April 13, 2010, 7:00 pm
By OLIVIA JUDSON
Here’s a problem: evolution never stops.
Imagine you’re a wild fruit fly, of the species Drosophila melanogaster. You’re happily feasting on some yeast that’s growing on rotting fruit when, whoomf, you get sucked into a bottle and taken to a laboratory. From now on, this is your home.
Life in a bottle — or cage — is different from life in the wild. In nature, for example, fruit flies reproduce throughout their adult lives. Often, in the laboratory, they do not: flies grown in bottles may only be allowed to reproduce for the first five or six days after emerging from the pupa. (Wild flies can live for more than 80 days.) In nature, flies choose their mates. Often, in the laboratory, they do not: they are often assigned to one, and that one may be a close relative. On top of that, the food is different; infectious diseases are rare; predators are absent.
April 13, 2010, 7:00 pm
By OLIVIA JUDSON
Here’s a problem: evolution never stops.
Imagine you’re a wild fruit fly, of the species Drosophila melanogaster. You’re happily feasting on some yeast that’s growing on rotting fruit when, whoomf, you get sucked into a bottle and taken to a laboratory. From now on, this is your home.
Life in a bottle — or cage — is different from life in the wild. In nature, for example, fruit flies reproduce throughout their adult lives. Often, in the laboratory, they do not: flies grown in bottles may only be allowed to reproduce for the first five or six days after emerging from the pupa. (Wild flies can live for more than 80 days.) In nature, flies choose their mates. Often, in the laboratory, they do not: they are often assigned to one, and that one may be a close relative. On top of that, the food is different; infectious diseases are rare; predators are absent.
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Watch out, there's a black elephant in the air
I think it would be more fitting to call them "flourescent orange elephants".
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20627573.000-watch-out-theres-a-black-elephant-in-the-air.html
21 April 2010
Magazine issue 2757
POLICY-MAKERS have been much occupied with so-called "black swans" - rare, disruptive events that lie well beyond normal expectations. Is the current air-travel pandemonium across Europe such a bird (see "Blame the volcano trouble on sun and global warming ")?
No. We've long known that Iceland has active volcanoes and that ash and jet engines don't mix. It seems we need a term for big, obvious threats that are sure to emerge - think asteroid impacts - but which few want to face. Handily, students of "collapsonomics" have already coined one: "black elephants".
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http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20627573.000-watch-out-theres-a-black-elephant-in-the-air.html
21 April 2010
Magazine issue 2757
POLICY-MAKERS have been much occupied with so-called "black swans" - rare, disruptive events that lie well beyond normal expectations. Is the current air-travel pandemonium across Europe such a bird (see "Blame the volcano trouble on sun and global warming ")?
No. We've long known that Iceland has active volcanoes and that ash and jet engines don't mix. It seems we need a term for big, obvious threats that are sure to emerge - think asteroid impacts - but which few want to face. Handily, students of "collapsonomics" have already coined one: "black elephants".
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Ocean Bacteria Can Harvest Energy from Sunlight for Survival
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100427171754.htm
ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — Bacteria in the ocean can harvest light energy from sunlight to promote survival thanks to a unique photoprotein.
"It was long thought that phytoplankton were the only organisms in the sea that could harvest the energy from sunlight for growth," says Dr. Jarone Pinhassi, scientist in marine microbiology at Linnaeus University, Sweden. These microscopic planktonic organisms carry out the same chlorophyll driven photosynthesis process as green plants on land.
In 2000, American scientists discovered that many marine bacteria contain a gene in their genome that encodes a new kind of light-harvesting pigment: proteorhodopsin. Proteorhodopsin is related to the pigment in the retina that enables human vision in less intense light. Now, a decade later, the first direct evidence for the functioning of proteorhodopsin in native marine bacteria is presented, based on mutational analysis in a marine bacterium. At the same time the present study shows that proteorhodopsin-mediated phototrophy (the process of acquiring energy from light) allows marine bacteria to better survive periods of starvation in an often nutrient-depleted ocean.
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ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — Bacteria in the ocean can harvest light energy from sunlight to promote survival thanks to a unique photoprotein.
"It was long thought that phytoplankton were the only organisms in the sea that could harvest the energy from sunlight for growth," says Dr. Jarone Pinhassi, scientist in marine microbiology at Linnaeus University, Sweden. These microscopic planktonic organisms carry out the same chlorophyll driven photosynthesis process as green plants on land.
In 2000, American scientists discovered that many marine bacteria contain a gene in their genome that encodes a new kind of light-harvesting pigment: proteorhodopsin. Proteorhodopsin is related to the pigment in the retina that enables human vision in less intense light. Now, a decade later, the first direct evidence for the functioning of proteorhodopsin in native marine bacteria is presented, based on mutational analysis in a marine bacterium. At the same time the present study shows that proteorhodopsin-mediated phototrophy (the process of acquiring energy from light) allows marine bacteria to better survive periods of starvation in an often nutrient-depleted ocean.
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Testosterone Directly Amplifies but Does Not Program Male Behaviors
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100428142246.htm
ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — New research uncovers some surprising information about how sex hormones control masculinization of the brain during development and drive gender related behaviors in adult males. The study, published in the April 29 issue of the journal Neuron, demonstrates that direct action of testosterone, the prototypical male hormone, is unnecessary for masculinizing the brain and behavior.
Testosterone and estrogen are thought to play an essential role in organizing and activating gender-specific patterns of behavior in sexually reproducing animals. Testosterone is produced by the testes and directly activates the androgen receptor (AR) in target tissues such as muscle. Estrogen is produced by the ovaries and is nearly undetectable in the circulation of males of most species. However, circulating testosterone in males can be converted into estrogen in the brain, and this testosterone-derived estrogen has been shown to control many male behaviors.
"It was known that testosterone and estrogen are essential for typical male behaviors in many vertebrate species," explains the study's senior author, Dr. Nirao M. Shah from the Department of Anatomy at the University of California, San Francisco. "However, how these two hormones interact to control masculinization of the brain and behavior remained to be established."
Dr. Shah and colleagues found that during the neonatal testosterone surge there is very little AR expressed in the developing brain, making it unlikely that testosterone signaling via AR plays a major role in masculinizing neural pathways. Importantly, they went on to show that the male pattern of AR expression in the brain was dependent on testosterone-derived estrogen signaling.
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ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — New research uncovers some surprising information about how sex hormones control masculinization of the brain during development and drive gender related behaviors in adult males. The study, published in the April 29 issue of the journal Neuron, demonstrates that direct action of testosterone, the prototypical male hormone, is unnecessary for masculinizing the brain and behavior.
Testosterone and estrogen are thought to play an essential role in organizing and activating gender-specific patterns of behavior in sexually reproducing animals. Testosterone is produced by the testes and directly activates the androgen receptor (AR) in target tissues such as muscle. Estrogen is produced by the ovaries and is nearly undetectable in the circulation of males of most species. However, circulating testosterone in males can be converted into estrogen in the brain, and this testosterone-derived estrogen has been shown to control many male behaviors.
"It was known that testosterone and estrogen are essential for typical male behaviors in many vertebrate species," explains the study's senior author, Dr. Nirao M. Shah from the Department of Anatomy at the University of California, San Francisco. "However, how these two hormones interact to control masculinization of the brain and behavior remained to be established."
Dr. Shah and colleagues found that during the neonatal testosterone surge there is very little AR expressed in the developing brain, making it unlikely that testosterone signaling via AR plays a major role in masculinizing neural pathways. Importantly, they went on to show that the male pattern of AR expression in the brain was dependent on testosterone-derived estrogen signaling.
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Exposure to Prenatal Smoking May Lead to Psychiatric Problems
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100504074835.htm
ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — It is well-known that maternal smoking during pregnancy can have long-term effects on the physical health of the child, including increased risk for respiratory disease, ear infections and asthma. New research shows that prenatal smoking also can lead to psychiatric problems and increase the need for psychotropic medications in childhood and young adulthood.
Finnish researchers found that adolescents who had been exposed to prenatal smoking were at increased risk for use of all psychiatric drugs especially those uses to treat depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and addiction compared to non-exposed youths. The study is being presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
"Recent studies show that maternal smoking during pregnancy may interfere with brain development of the growing fetus," said Mikael Ekblad, lead author of the study and a pediatric researcher at Turku University Hospital in Finland. "By avoiding smoking during pregnancy, all the later psychiatric problems caused by smoking exposure could be prevented."
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ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — It is well-known that maternal smoking during pregnancy can have long-term effects on the physical health of the child, including increased risk for respiratory disease, ear infections and asthma. New research shows that prenatal smoking also can lead to psychiatric problems and increase the need for psychotropic medications in childhood and young adulthood.
Finnish researchers found that adolescents who had been exposed to prenatal smoking were at increased risk for use of all psychiatric drugs especially those uses to treat depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and addiction compared to non-exposed youths. The study is being presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
"Recent studies show that maternal smoking during pregnancy may interfere with brain development of the growing fetus," said Mikael Ekblad, lead author of the study and a pediatric researcher at Turku University Hospital in Finland. "By avoiding smoking during pregnancy, all the later psychiatric problems caused by smoking exposure could be prevented."
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Less Sleep May Add Up to More Pounds in Adolescents
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100504074837.htm
ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — Adolescents who don't get enough sleep may gain more than some extra time to play video games or text their friends. They also may gain weight, according to research being presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Other studies have shown a relationship between sleep and weight issues, particularly in young children. However, this is one of the first studies to document an association between sleep duration and weight in adolescents, even after controlling for calorie intake, activity level and depressive symptoms.
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ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — Adolescents who don't get enough sleep may gain more than some extra time to play video games or text their friends. They also may gain weight, according to research being presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Other studies have shown a relationship between sleep and weight issues, particularly in young children. However, this is one of the first studies to document an association between sleep duration and weight in adolescents, even after controlling for calorie intake, activity level and depressive symptoms.
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Global Warming: Future Temperatures Could Exceed Livable Limits, Researchers Find
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100504155413.htm
ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — Reasonable worst-case scenarios for global warming could lead to deadly temperatures for humans in coming centuries, according to research findings from Purdue University and the University of New South Wales, Australia.
Researchers for the first time have calculated the highest tolerable "wet-bulb" temperature and found that this temperature could be exceeded for the first time in human history in future climate scenarios if greenhouse gas emissions continue at their current rate.
Wet-bulb temperature is equivalent to what is felt when wet skin is exposed to moving air. It includes temperature and atmospheric humidity and is measured by covering a standard thermometer bulb with a wetted cloth and fully ventilating it.
The researchers calculated that humans and most mammals, which have internal body temperatures near 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, will experience a potentially lethal level of heat stress at wet-bulb temperature above 95 degrees sustained for six hours or more, said Matthew Huber, the Purdue professor of earth and atmospheric sciences who co-authored the paper that will be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"Although areas of the world regularly see temperatures above 100 degrees, really high wet-bulb temperatures are rare," Huber said. "This is because the hottest areas normally have low humidity, like the 'dry heat' referred to in Arizona. When it is dry, we are able to cool our bodies through perspiration and can remain fairly comfortable. The highest wet-bulb temperatures ever recorded were in places like Saudi Arabia near the coast where winds occasionally bring extremely hot, humid ocean air over hot land leading to unbearably stifling conditions, which fortunately are short-lived today."
ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — Reasonable worst-case scenarios for global warming could lead to deadly temperatures for humans in coming centuries, according to research findings from Purdue University and the University of New South Wales, Australia.
Researchers for the first time have calculated the highest tolerable "wet-bulb" temperature and found that this temperature could be exceeded for the first time in human history in future climate scenarios if greenhouse gas emissions continue at their current rate.
Wet-bulb temperature is equivalent to what is felt when wet skin is exposed to moving air. It includes temperature and atmospheric humidity and is measured by covering a standard thermometer bulb with a wetted cloth and fully ventilating it.
The researchers calculated that humans and most mammals, which have internal body temperatures near 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, will experience a potentially lethal level of heat stress at wet-bulb temperature above 95 degrees sustained for six hours or more, said Matthew Huber, the Purdue professor of earth and atmospheric sciences who co-authored the paper that will be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"Although areas of the world regularly see temperatures above 100 degrees, really high wet-bulb temperatures are rare," Huber said. "This is because the hottest areas normally have low humidity, like the 'dry heat' referred to in Arizona. When it is dry, we are able to cool our bodies through perspiration and can remain fairly comfortable. The highest wet-bulb temperatures ever recorded were in places like Saudi Arabia near the coast where winds occasionally bring extremely hot, humid ocean air over hot land leading to unbearably stifling conditions, which fortunately are short-lived today."
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
Children Living in Apartments With Nonsmoking Adults Still Exposed to Secondhand Smoke
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100502080418.htm
ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — The majority of children living in apartments are exposed to secondhand smoke, even when they don't live with smokers. This study from the University of Rochester Medical Center is the first to examine whether housing type is a potential contributor to children's exposure to cigarette smoke. The abstract was presented at the Pediatric Academic Society Meeting in Vancouver, Canada.
Among children who lived in an apartment, 84 percent had been exposed to tobacco smoke, according to the level of a biomarker (cotinine) in their blood that indicates exposure to nicotine found in tobacco, and this included more than 9 of 10 African-American and white children. Even among children who lived in detached houses, 70 percent showed evidence of exposure.
"We are starting to understand the role that seepage through walls and through shared ventilation may impact tobacco smoke exposure in apartments," said Karen Wilson, M.D., MPH, author of the study and an assistant professor of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center's Golisano Children's Hospital. "We see that children are being exposed in ways we are not picking up, and it's important, for their health, that we figure out where this exposure is taking place, and work to eliminate it. Multi-unit housing is one potential source, but a very important one."
Previous studies have shown that children with cotinine levels indicating tobacco smoke exposure have higher rates of respiratory diseases, decreased cognitive abilities and decreased antioxidant levels.
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ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — The majority of children living in apartments are exposed to secondhand smoke, even when they don't live with smokers. This study from the University of Rochester Medical Center is the first to examine whether housing type is a potential contributor to children's exposure to cigarette smoke. The abstract was presented at the Pediatric Academic Society Meeting in Vancouver, Canada.
Among children who lived in an apartment, 84 percent had been exposed to tobacco smoke, according to the level of a biomarker (cotinine) in their blood that indicates exposure to nicotine found in tobacco, and this included more than 9 of 10 African-American and white children. Even among children who lived in detached houses, 70 percent showed evidence of exposure.
"We are starting to understand the role that seepage through walls and through shared ventilation may impact tobacco smoke exposure in apartments," said Karen Wilson, M.D., MPH, author of the study and an assistant professor of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center's Golisano Children's Hospital. "We see that children are being exposed in ways we are not picking up, and it's important, for their health, that we figure out where this exposure is taking place, and work to eliminate it. Multi-unit housing is one potential source, but a very important one."
Previous studies have shown that children with cotinine levels indicating tobacco smoke exposure have higher rates of respiratory diseases, decreased cognitive abilities and decreased antioxidant levels.
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High Doses of Antioxidant Supplements Induce Stem Cell Genetic Abnormalities, Study Finds
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100504173821.htm
ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — High doses of antioxidant nutritional supplements, such as vitamins C and E, can increase genetic abnormalities in cells, which may predispose supplement-takers to developing cancer, according to a new study from the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute.
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Marbán and his team accidentally discovered the danger of excessive antioxidant doses while seeking a way to reduce the genetic abnormalities that occurred naturally when the scientists sought to multiply human cardiac stem cells.
Marbán stressed that the study's finding applies only to excessive nutritional supplements and not to foods that are rich in antioxidants, such as milk, oranges, blueberries and peanuts. In recent years, multiple studies have touted the benefits of foods rich in antioxidants.
"Taking one multivitamin daily is fine, but a lot of people take way too much because they think if a little is good, a lot must be better," said Marbán, who is also the Mark Siegel Family Professor at Cedars-Sinai. "That is just not the case. If you are taking 10 or 100 times the amount in a daily multivitamin, you may be predisposing your cells to developing cancer, therefore doing yourself more harm than good."
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ScienceDaily (May 4, 2010) — High doses of antioxidant nutritional supplements, such as vitamins C and E, can increase genetic abnormalities in cells, which may predispose supplement-takers to developing cancer, according to a new study from the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute.
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Marbán and his team accidentally discovered the danger of excessive antioxidant doses while seeking a way to reduce the genetic abnormalities that occurred naturally when the scientists sought to multiply human cardiac stem cells.
Marbán stressed that the study's finding applies only to excessive nutritional supplements and not to foods that are rich in antioxidants, such as milk, oranges, blueberries and peanuts. In recent years, multiple studies have touted the benefits of foods rich in antioxidants.
"Taking one multivitamin daily is fine, but a lot of people take way too much because they think if a little is good, a lot must be better," said Marbán, who is also the Mark Siegel Family Professor at Cedars-Sinai. "That is just not the case. If you are taking 10 or 100 times the amount in a daily multivitamin, you may be predisposing your cells to developing cancer, therefore doing yourself more harm than good."
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Breast Cancer Risk Tied to Grandmother's Diet
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100419172840.htm
ScienceDaily (Apr. 20, 2010) — Eating too much fat in pregnancy may be an indulgence that has a less-than-beneficial effect on generations to come, say researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. Their unique study in rats shows that pregnant females that ate a high fat diet not only increased breast cancer risk in their female daughters but also in that daughter's offspring -- the "granddaughters."
The researchers say they don't know why this risk is passed on through two generations, but they believe it occurs through as-yet unknown "epigenetic" changes that result in an increase in terminal end buds in the breast tissue -- an increase that apparently can then be passed on through generations. These buds are believed to be the structures where breast cancer can develop, and having more of these structures seems to increase breast cancer risk, says the study's lead investigator, Sonia de Assis, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in Leena Hilakivi-Clarke's laboratory at Lombardi. "That is our theory, but we really don't know how it is happening -- just yet."
ScienceDaily (Apr. 20, 2010) — Eating too much fat in pregnancy may be an indulgence that has a less-than-beneficial effect on generations to come, say researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. Their unique study in rats shows that pregnant females that ate a high fat diet not only increased breast cancer risk in their female daughters but also in that daughter's offspring -- the "granddaughters."
The researchers say they don't know why this risk is passed on through two generations, but they believe it occurs through as-yet unknown "epigenetic" changes that result in an increase in terminal end buds in the breast tissue -- an increase that apparently can then be passed on through generations. These buds are believed to be the structures where breast cancer can develop, and having more of these structures seems to increase breast cancer risk, says the study's lead investigator, Sonia de Assis, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in Leena Hilakivi-Clarke's laboratory at Lombardi. "That is our theory, but we really don't know how it is happening -- just yet."
'My Kid Wouldn't Do That:' Study Shows Parents' Difficulty With Teen Sexuality
Parents inability or unwillingness to accept the reality of their children's actions is not limited to sex.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100503111517.htm
ScienceDaily (May 3, 2010) — It can be difficult for parents of teenagers to come to terms with the fact their kids may have sex, particularly given widespread concerns about the consequences of teen sexual activity. In fact, a new study from North Carolina State University shows that many parents think that their children aren’t interested in sex – but that everyone else’s kids are.
“Parents I interviewed had a very hard time thinking about their own teen children as sexually desiring subjects,” says Dr. Sinikka Elliott, an assistant professor of sociology at NC State and author of the study. In other words, parents find it difficult to think that their teenagers want to have sex.
“At the same time,” Elliott says, “parents view their teens’ peers as highly sexual, even sexually predatory.” By taking this stance, the parents shift the responsibility for potential sexual activity to others – attributing any such behavior to peer pressure, coercion or even entrapment.
For example, Elliott says, parents of teenage boys were often concerned that their sons may be lured into sexual situations by teenage girls who, the parents felt, may use sex in an effort to solidify a relationship. The parents of teenage girls, meanwhile, expressed fears that their daughters would be taken advantage of by sexually driven teenage boys.
These beliefs contribute to stereotypes of sexual behavior that aren’t helpful to parents or kids.
“By using sexual stereotypes to absolve their children of responsibility for sexual activity, the parents effectively reinforce those same stereotypes,” Elliott says.
Parents’ use of these stereotypes also paints teen heterosexual relationships in an unflattering, adversarial light, Elliott says and notes the irony of this: “Although parents assume their kids are heterosexual, they don’t make heterosexual relationships sound very appealing.”
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