Sitting down all day 'may accelerate DNA ageing'
Conclusion
It's not news to anyone that being more physically active and spending less time sitting around is likely to keep people in better health.
But this study has many limitations that make it difficult for us to rely on its results.
While they are used as a marker for ageing cells, telomeres are not a direct measure of ageing. Although shortened telomeres have been linked to certain diseases, everyone's telomeres shorten over time.
Saying shorter telomeres make someone "biologically older" doesn't mean much. This hasn't stopped the emergence of private companies offering to measure your telomeres – b...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 19, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Genetics/stem cells Source Type: news
A third of adults treated for asthma 'may not have the disease'
Conclusion
The study results show being diagnosed with asthma at one point in your life doesn't necessarily mean you need to take asthma medication forever.
This study has some limitations. It was carried out in Canada, where the health service is different and doctors may use different practices to diagnose asthma. That means we don't know if the results are applicable to the UK.
Also, many people invited to take part did not do so, which means the participants may not be representative of the general population of people with asthma.
Not all doctors provided records of diagnosis, so we don't know how many people actua...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 18, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Heart/lungs Medication Source Type: news
Eating disorders in middle-aged women 'common'
Conclusion
This well-designed cross-sectional analysis used data from an existing longitudinal study to investigate the prevalence of eating disorders in middle-aged women and see what childhood, parenting and personality risk factors were associated with the onset of an eating disorder.
The research found that more than 1 in 10 middle aged women experience some form of eating disorder in their lifetime. It found that all potentially harmful childhood life events such as child sexual abuse, death of a carer and parental divorce, were associated with the onset of eating disorders.
An association with traumatic life events ...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 18, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Mental health Food/diet Source Type: news
Can colic really be cured by acupuncture?
Conclusion
This randomised controlled trial aimed to compare two types of acupuncture treatment with usual care in infants with colic.
This trial has a number of strengths and limitations. It was well designed, and the researchers increased its validity by using a robust study protocol. Assessors were also blinded to treatment group.
However, the researchers did not analyse enough infants to be able to reliably detect a meaningful difference between the two different types of acupuncture, and therefore had to pool the groups.
As such, the study only looks at acupuncture in general and cannot provide information on a par...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 17, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy/child Source Type: news
Hot red chilli peppers linked to longer lifespan
Conclusions
The researchers conclude from their observational study that hot chillies may be beneficial to health.
However, there are several points to bear in mind:
This is observational survey data that can't prove direct cause and effect. The researchers have made a valiant attempt in following the survey participants for mortality outcomes for almost 20 years, and tried to adjust for many different health and lifestyle factors that could be influencing the link. However, it is still likely that these adjustments have not been able to fully account for all of these factors – and there may be other unmeasured factor...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 16, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Source Type: news
Urine test could reveal if your diet is a threat to your health
Conclusion
This well-designed, randomised crossover trial investigated whether the dietary intake in individuals could be revealed and measured using urine samples and found that it is possible.
Urine analysis using 1H-NMR spectroscopy was distinct enough to distinguish "healthier" and higher risk diets by looking at the metabolites present in the urine.
The researchers hope that this study offers a method which could be used to assess adherence to healthy eating programmes, and potentially be used as a screening tool to identify and monitor individuals at risk of obesity and non-communicable diseases.
These test...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 13, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Medical practice Heart/lungs Cancer Diabetes Source Type: news
Yoga 'may improve lower back pain'
Conclusion
There was some evidence people doing yoga – compared with those doing no exercise – saw some improvement in back-related function at three and six months.
It was not clear if those undertaking yoga, compared with other exercise or adding yoga to exercise, was any better than exercise alone.
The study does, however, have some downfalls:
Only 12 trials were included, the majority of which were in the US. This may mean results are less generalisable to other countries.
Not all trials looked at all reported outcomes. For example, only four trials were included when comparing yoga with non-yoga exercise, i...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 12, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Neurology Source Type: news
A pattern of brain activity may link stress to heart attacks
Conclusion
This intriguing study sets out a possible pathway by which the effects of stress on the brain could translate into inflammation in the blood vessels, and so raise the risks of cardiovascular disease. This would help to explain why people living in stressful situations, or with illnesses such as depression and anxiety, are more at risk of heart attacks and strokes.
However, there are important limitations to the study which mean we should treat the findings with caution. The main study of 293 people was relatively small for a long-term study looking at cardiovascular disease, and only 22 people had a cardiovascul...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 12, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Neurology Mental health Source Type: news
Study reveals how alcohol shifts brain into 'starvation mode'
Conclusion
Alcohol is no friend of people trying to lose weight, or stick to a healthy weight. Not only is it high in calories (the second most energy-dense nutrient after fat), but it tends to be linked to a desire to eat more.
Scientists have suggested various theories to explain this. One theory is that alcohol erodes willpower, meaning people are likely to eat more than they intended after a drink. That could also explain why people often pick less healthy options, such as crisps or kebabs, if they've been drinking.
This new research suggests an alternative explanation – that the specific effect of alcohol on brain ...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 11, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Neurology Food/diet Source Type: news
Weekend-only workouts 'still give an important health boost'
Conclusion
This survey aimed to investigate patterns of physical activity in adults over the age of 40 and the potential impact on their cause of death.
The study found that, compared with those who were not physically active, all active groups saw a reduction in their risk of death from any cause and cardiovascular disease. Being active at the weekend only had no effect on cancer mortality.
However, interpretations around the optimal level of activity are difficult when you note that insufficient activity gave similar mortality reductions as the recommended regular activity.
This study has both strengths and limitations...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 10, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Heart/lungs Cancer Source Type: news
Reports of a 'wrinkle cure' look a little saggy
Conclusions
This laboratory study furthers understanding of how wounds heal. It found that mouse skin wounds are able to regenerate new fat cells through signalling pathways triggered when new hair follicles form.
The researchers hope their findings may be developed and offer potential new ways to treat scar tissue in humans, enabling them to produce new fat cells that are normally lacking in a scar formed of connective tissue cells – hopefully ultimately improving the appearance of scars and making them look like normal skin.
And, as the media seized upon, there may be the possibility of repairing the effects of ageing ...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 9, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medical practice Genetics/stem cells Medication Source Type: news
Some babies should be given peanuts early say new US guidelines
"Babies should be given peanut early – some at four months old – in order to reduce the risk of allergy, according to new US guidance," BBC News reports. The guidelines are based on UK-led research that found early exposure reduced allergy risk.
The new US guidelines, which are informed by expert panel discussions and a new UK study, suggest that if an infant has severe eczema or an egg allergy, peanuts may be introduced at around four to six months. And that waiting later may increase the risk of an allergy developing.
However, they suggest checking with a health professional first if the infant does have t...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 6, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy/child QA articles Food/diet Source Type: news
People who live near busy roads have higher dementia rates
Conclusion
Dementia is a growing problem as more people live longer. We don't yet know exactly how it develops, and it seems likely that a number of factors affect a person's chances of getting it, including genetics, lifestyle and other environmental factors.
This study seems to add to evidence that something about living near busy roads – whether it be air pollution, noise or other unknown factors – also has an effect on the chances of getting dementia. There are several limitations to be aware of, however:
the study only looked at where people lived at one point in time, and we don't know how well that represents...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 5, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Neurology Lifestyle/exercise Older people Source Type: news
Does discovery of 'severe PMS genes' offer hope of a cure?
Conclusion
PMDD can make life extremely difficult. While hormone treatments and antidepressants help some women, you can't use hormone treatments if you're trying to get pregnant, and they have side effects that mean they're not suitable for everyone.
Finding out more about the condition is a first step to understanding it, and might lead to better treatments in the long term.
This early-stage research shows that the genetic make-up and response cells have to hormones may have a hand in how likely women are to get PMDD.
But we're a long way from knowing for sure if these cell responses are actually a cause of PMDD.
It'...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 4, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Genetics/stem cells Lifestyle/exercise Source Type: news
No proof that sugar-free soft drinks are healthier, argues review
Conclusions
This review assessed a range of research exploring the the potential negative health impact of artificially sweetened drinks, compared to sugar sweetened drinks. The review is fairly one-sided, discussing the links between artificially sweetened drinks and the global obesity crisis, as well as the negative environmental impact of sweetened drinks.
The researchers suggest that national dietary guidance shouldn't recommend consuming artificially sweetened drinks as an alternative to sugar sweetened drinks.
However, a number of experts commenting on the review expressed the opinion that despite the lack of evidenc...
Source: NHS News Feed - January 4, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Obesity QA articles Source Type: news
