Fiber-optic pen helps see inside brains of children with learning disabilities

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For less than $100, University of Washington researchers have designed a computer-interfaced drawing pad that helps scientists see inside the brains of children with learning disabilities while they read and write.

Parenting and home environment influence children's exercise and eating habits

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DURHAM, N.C. -- Kids whose moms encourage them to exercise and eat well, and model those healthy behaviors themselves, are more likely to be active and healthy eaters, according to researchers at Duke Medicine.

Their findings, published online in the International Journal of Obesity on June 18, 2013, remind parents that they are role models for their children, and underscore the importance of parental policies promoting physical activity and healthy eating.

Fibromyalgia is not all in your head, new research confirms

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[June 17, 2013, Rensselaer, NY] – Fibromyalgia, a painful condition affecting approximately 10 million people in the U.S., is not imaginary after all, as some doctors have believed. A discovery, published this month in PAIN MEDICINE (the journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine), clearly now demonstrates that fibromyalgia may have a rational biological basis located in the skin.

Sexual minority youth need specialized treatment from therapists

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President Obama officially declared June as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month. However, despite advances in civil rights, sexual minority youth are still at greater risk for suicide than their heterosexual peers, according to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center. A University of Missouri psychology graduate student recently published recommendation to improve psychologists' treatment of sexual minority youth, which could help improve psychological functioning and reduce depression and suicide rates.

New concussion data: 2 biomarkers better than 1

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Scientists are scrambling to gather data for the FDA to support the need for a blood test to diagnose brain injury in the United States. The University of Rochester Medical Center just added significant evidence by reporting in the Journal of Neurotrauma that it might be clinically useful to measure two brain biomarkers instead of one.

Iodine in bread not enough for pregnant women

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Research from the University of Adelaide shows that iodized salt used in bread is not enough to provide healthy levels of iodine for pregnant women and their unborn children.

The study-– led by researchers from the University's Robinson Institute – has prompted calls for pregnant women to keep taking iodine supplements.

Iodine deficiency is recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the most common preventable cause of brain damage in the world.

What makes people click?

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A new study has analysed tens of thousands of articles available to readers of online news and created a model to find out 'what makes people click'.

The researchers developed a model of "news appeal" based on the words contained in an article's title and text intro, which is what a reader uses when they choose to click on a story.

The study by academics at the University of Bristol's Intelligent Systems Laboratory is published in a series of publications.

It's the way you tell em': Study discovers how the brain controls accents and impersonations

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A study, led by Royal Holloway University researcher Carolyn McGettigan, has identified the brain regions and interactions involved in impersonations and accents.

Using an fMRI scanner, the team asked participants, all non-professional impressionists, to repeatedly recite the opening lines of a familiar nursery rhyme either with their normal voice, by impersonating individuals, or by impersonating regional and foreign accents of English.

IQ link to baby's weight gain in first month

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New research from the University of Adelaide shows that weight gain and increased head size in the first month of a baby's life is linked to a higher IQ at early school age.

The study was led by University of Adelaide Public Health researchers, who analysed data from more than 13,800 children who were born full-term.

Atherosclerosis in abdominal aorta may signal future heart attack, stroke

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OAK BROOK, Ill. – In a study of more than 2,000 adults, researchers found that two MRI measurements of the abdominal aorta — the amount of plaque in the vessel and the thickness of its wall — are associated with future cardiovascular events, such as a heart attack or stroke. Results of the study are published online in the journal Radiology.