Body | Page 3318 | Science Codex

Cocoa could prevent intestinal pathologies such as colon cancer

A new study on living animals has shown for the first time that eating cocoa (the raw material in chocolate) can help to prevent intestinal complaints linked to oxidative stress, including colon carcinogenesis onset caused by chemical substances.

The growing interest amongst the scientific community to identify those foods capable of preventing diseases has now categorized cocoa as a 'superfood'. It has been recognised as an excellent source of phytochemical compounds, which offer potential health benefits.

HPV testing: Indications of a benefit in primary screening

Generation X: How young adults deal with influenza

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Only about one in five young adults in their late 30s received a flu shot during the 2009-2010 swine flu epidemic, according to a University of Michigan report that details the behavior and attitudes of Generation X.

But about 65 percent were at least moderately concerned about the flu, and nearly 60 percent said they were following the issue very or moderately closely.

Preoperative MRI may reduce risk of nerve damage in prostate cancer surgeries

OAK BROOK, Ill. – Preoperative MRI helps surgeons make more informed decisions about nerve-sparing procedures in men with prostate cancer, according to a new study published online in the journal Radiology.

Excluding skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in American men, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Open radical prostatectomy, or removal of the prostate, is a common treatment for the disease, but it carries substantial risks, including incontinence and impotence.

Expansion of the Panama Canal has knock-on effect for the environment

Expansion of one of the world's most important shipping routes brings with it a unique opportunity to reduce the carbon footprint of the marine industry, experts claim.

Expanded sections of the Panama Canal are due to open in 2014 following an eight-year programme to widen and deepen the waterway in order to increase capacity for liner shipping.

This will remove the breadth restriction of 32.2m (known as 'panamax' in the shipping industry) that has constrained ships using the canal since it opened in 1914.

Prostate cancer study proves drug delays disease progression

(TORONTO, Canada – Jan. 24, 2012) – For men diagnosed with low-risk, localized prostate cancer, being treated with the drug dutasteride ("Avodart") delays disease progression and initiating active treatment, and also reduces anxiety, show the results of a three-year international clinical trial led by Dr. Neil Fleshner, Head of the Division of Urology, University Health Network (UHN).

Anaphylactic shock after vaccination 'extremely rare'

A sudden, serious allergic reaction—known anaphylaxis or anaphylactic shock— following vaccination, is "extremely rare," concludes research published online in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.

Anaphylaxis can be fatal and can be triggered by several factors, including specific foods, airborne allergens, stings and bites, and drugs/vaccines.

Expensive egos

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—The personality trait narcissism may have an especially negative effect on the health of men, according to a recent study published in PLoS ONE.

"Narcissistic men may be paying a high price in terms of their physical health, in addition to the psychological cost to their relationships," says Sara Konrath, a University of Michigan psychologist who co-authored the study.

CU School of Medicine researchers look at effects of 2 common sweeteners on the body

AURORA, Colo. (Jan. 23, 2012) - With growing concern that excessive levels of fructose may pose a great health risk – causing high blood pressure, kidney disease and diabetes – researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, along with their colleagues at the University of Florida, set out to see if two common sweeteners in western diets differ in their effects on the body in the first few hours after ingestion.

New tool enhances view of muscles

Simon Fraser University associate professor James Wakeling is adding to the arsenal of increasingly sophisticated medical imaging tools with a new signal-processing method for viewing muscle activation details that have never been seen before.

Fascinated with the mechanics of muscle movement in people and animals, Wakeling has developed a novel method using ultrasound imaging, 3D motion-capture technology and proprietary data-processing software to scan and capture 3D maps of the muscle structure — in just 90 seconds.

Van Andel research institute study provides new details of fundamental cellular process

Grand Rapids, Mich. – A recent Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) study published in the journal Science investigating the molecular structure and function of an essential plant hormone could profoundly change our understanding of a key cell process, and might ultimately lead to the development of new drugs for a variety of diseases.

Powerful people feel taller than they are

After the huge 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the chairman of BP referred to the victims of the spill as the "small people." He explained it as awkward word choice by a non-native speaker of English, but the authors of a new paper published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, wondered if there was something real behind it. In their study, they found that people who feel powerful tend to overestimate their own height—they feel physically larger than they actually are.

To 'think outside the box,' think outside the box

Want to think outside the box? Try actually thinking outside of a box. In a study to be published in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, researchers had students think up solutions to problems while acting out various metaphors about creative thinking and found that the instructions actually worked.

Researchers quantify muscle soreness

Quantifying how sore a person is after a long workout is a challenge for doctors and researchers, but scientists from Loma Linda and Asuza Pacific Universities think they may have figured it out. Their research article describing a new technique to measure muscle soreness will be published in the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE).

Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) or exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) is one of the most common sports injuries, but without a reliable method of quantifying muscle soreness, assessing treatments is difficult.

Family focus may help obese kids to succeed in treatment

Parents should be involved in treatment programs for their obese children, according to a new scientific statement published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.