Health

After hurricane, Haiti confronts cholera outbreak

by Marc BURLEIGH PORT-SALUT, Haiti (AFP) — A week after being devastated by a hurricane, Haiti faces a growing cholera outbreak that threatens to turn its disaster even more deadly. In Port Salut, a smashed-up town on Haiti’s southern peninsula that was among those that bore the brunt of Hurricane Matthew — the Caribbean’s most powerful storm in a nearly decade — fears are rising. The town’s sole hospital on Sunday recorded its first death […]

Global health: longer lives, more lifestyle disease

by Marlowe HOOD PARIS, France (AFP) — Life expectancy worldwide has jumped by a decade since 1980, rising in 2015 to 69 years for men and nearly 75 for women, according to a comprehensive overview of global health released Thursday. These extra years came in large measure thanks to a sharp drop in deaths from communicable diseases, especially over the last decade, said the Global Burden of Disease report, published in The Lancet. Despite population […]

Japanese scientist wins Nobel Medicine Prize for work on ‘self-eating’ cells

TOKYO, Japan — Japan’s Yoshinori Ohsumi won the 2016 Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology for his discovery of how cells break down and recycles their content, which could lead to a better understanding of diseases like cancer, Parkinson’s and Type 2 diabetes. “The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has today decided to award the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine to Yoshinori Ohsumi for his discoveries on mechanisms for Autophagy,” Thomas Perlmann, Nobel […]

Cells’ garbage disposal may hold key to healthier life

PARIS, France (AFP) – by Mariëtte Le Roux Autophagy, the little-understood method by which human cells dispose of harmful waste and unwelcome intruders, may one day be central to therapies for longer, healthier living, experts said. Japanese cell biologist Yoshinori Ohsumi was awarded the 2016 Nobel Medicine Prize Monday for discovering genes involved in autophagy, a non-stop housecleaning process that keeps cells healthy, and is thought to spur ageing and disease when disrupted. Scientists are […]

Painkillers linked to heart failure: study

PARIS, France (AFP) — Widely used prescription and non-prescription painkillers are associated with an increased risk of hospital admission for heart failure, according to a study released Thursday. The drugs in question are so-called NSAIDs, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, including several known as COX-2 inhibitors. Many are among the most commonly used drugs to alleviate pain and inflammation, and some were introduced over a century ago with minimal safety checks. The broad link between the use […]

FDA approves Medtronic’s ‘artificial pancreas’ for diabetes

By Ransdell Pierson and Toni Clarke (Reuters) – Medtronic Plc won U.S. approval on Wednesday for an “artificial pancreas” that is the first device to automatically deliver the right dose of insulin to patients with type 1 diabetes, freeing them from continually monitoring insulin levels throughout each day. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in its approval of the device, the MiniMed 670G, hailed it as a breakthrough. The device offers type 1 diabetics “greater […]

‘Morning sickness’ linked to lower miscarriage risk: study

MIAMI, United States (AFP) — Morning sickness is linked to a lower risk of miscarriage, according to research out Monday that suggests a woman’s nausea and vomiting early in pregnancy may have protective effects for the fetus. Between 50 and 80 percent of pregnant women report feeling nauseous or throwing up during their first trimester, said the findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Internal Medicine. The condition is often called “morning sickness,” […]

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

QUEZON City, Philippines (September 26) – Everyday we take our sense of hearing for granted. But take a moment, stop, and imagine a world where you cannot hear anything. The world would be a dull place indeed.  Especially for the music-lovers out there. But ironically, what we love can also be the cause of harm. Listening to music too loudly, especially while using earphones, can lead to permanent ear damage. Here are some important tips and […]

Mental health experts: Build healthy ties to prevent emotional crisis

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, September 23 — The Cagayan de Oro chapter of the Philippine Mental Health Association (PMHA), in partnership with Xavier University Psychology Department and XU Psychology Society, recently conducted a seminar on love, relationships, and emotional crises in connection with the World Suicide Prevention Day. The seminar, held at the XU Little Theater, was attended by psychology faculty and students from XU, Lourdes College and Liceo de Cagayan University, including psychometricians, psychologists, […]

Alzheimer’s stemmed but not stopped, say experts

by Mariëtte Le Roux PARIS, France (AFP) — Soaring rates of population growth and ageing have long been seen as portending a global explosion of Alzheimer’s, the debilitating disease that robs older people of their memory and independence. But an unexpected, and hopeful, trend may be emerging. In rich countries at least, recent data suggests the rate of new cases has slowed or even reversed — a tantalizing hint that quality-of-life improvements may protect against […]

Alzheimer’s stemmed but not stopped, say experts

by Mariëtte Le Roux PARIS, France (AFP) — Soaring rates of population growth and ageing have long been seen as portending a global explosion of Alzheimer’s, the debilitating disease that robs older people of their memory and independence. But an unexpected, and hopeful, trend may be emerging. In rich countries at least, recent data suggests the rate of new cases has slowed or even reversed — a tantalising hint that quality-of-life improvements may protect against dementia. […]