Health News and Nutrition: January 2014

'The path of the peanut from a snack staple to the object of bans at schools, day care centers and beyond offers important insights into how and why a rare, life-threatening food allergy can prompt far-reaching societal change, according to a Princeton University researcher.

Before 1980, peanut allergies were rarely mentioned in medical literature or the media, said Miranda Waggoner, a postdoctoral researcher at the Office of Population Research in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Her article on the subject, "Parsing the peanut panic: The social life of a contested food allergy epidemic," was published recently in the journal Social Science & Medicine.

Starting around 1990, articles in medical journals began discussing the seriousness of peanut allergies, Waggoner said. At the same time, advocacy groups were emerging to raise awareness of the issue. By the mid-1990s, newspapers were printing articles with headlines such as "Nut Allergy Girl's Terror; Girl Almost Dies from Peanut Allergy."

And the 21st century brought descriptions of peanut allergies — in medical journals and the media — as an epidemic.

For those with a peanut allergy, ingesting the legume can lead to anaphylactic shock and, if untreated, death. But the allergy is quite rare and it isn't clear whether it is becoming more common, Waggoner said.'

http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S37/46/79G28/index.xml?section=topstories

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Heavy drinking in middle age speeds cognitive decline, study finds

http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-alcohol-cognitive-decline-20140115,0,233411.story?track=rss#axzz2qt7MCuT3

No evidence of "obesity paradox" for diabetes: study

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/15/us-obesity-diabetes-idUSBREA0E1O020140115

This is your brain on sugar: UCLA study shows high-fructose diet sabotages learning, memory

http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/this-is-your-brain-on-sugar-ucla-233992.aspx

Did Fish Oil Help Grant Virgin Recover From A Coma? Parents Of 17-Year-Old Hit-And-Run Victim Say Supplement Healed His Brain

http://www.ibtimes.com/did-fish-oil-help-grant-virgin-recover-coma-parents-17-year-old-hit-run-victim-say-supplement-healed

Now microscopic robots ‘Bio-Bots’ to diagnose diseases inside Human Body

http://www.utahpeoplespost.com/2014/01/now-microscopic-robots-bio-bots-to-diagnose-diseases-inside-human-body/

Friday, January 17, 2014

Fwd: Google contacts

'Google's smart contact lens: what it does and how it works

Wearables may be on everyone's list as the major tech trend of the year, but Google just kicked it up to a whole new level. The company announced a project to make a smart contact lens on its official blog Thursday.

But the lens isn't going to be used to deliver your e-mail straight into your skull — at least not yet. This project is working to tackle one of the biggest health problems facing the country today: diabetes.

The soft contact lens that Google's is introducing — it's still just a prototype — houses a sensor between two layers of lenses that measures the glucose levels in tears. The lens also features a small — really small — antenna, capacitor and controller, so that the information gathered from the lens can move from your eye to a device where that data can be read and analyzed.

According to a short explanation of the technology provided by Google, the chip and sensors are mounted on a small plastic-like film. A tiny pinhole in the lens lets tear fluid seep over the glucose monitor to get regular readings. Right now, the company said, it can get a level reading once every second.'

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/googles-smart-contact-lens-what-it-does-and-how-it-works/2014/01/17/96b938ec-7f80-11e3-93c1-0e888170b723_story.html

Since when did Google get into the medical devices business?

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Fwd: Sugar/Liver

From: <larry.r.trout

'Nov. 1, 2013 — Despite current beliefs, sugar intake is not directly associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, according to a new study in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association. Rather, high-calorie diets promote the progression of this serious form of liver disease.

Researchers conducted a double-blind study of healthy, but centrally overweight men to compare the effects of high intakes of two types of sugar, glucose and fructose, in two conditions -- weight-maintaining (moderate-calorie diet) and weight-gaining (high-calorie diet). In the weight-maintaining period, men on neither diet developed any significant changes to the liver. However, in the weight-gaining period, both diets produced equivalent features of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, including steatosis (fatty liver) and elevated serum transaminase and triglycerides. These findings indicate that fructose and glucose have comparable effects on one's liver, and calorie intake is the factor responsible for the progression of liver disease.

"Based on the results of our study, recommending a low-fructose or low-glycemic diet to prevent nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is unjustified," said Professor Ian A. Macdonald, study author and faculty of medicine and health sciences, University of Nottingham, UK. "The best advice to give a patient is to maintain a healthy lifestyle with diet and exercise. Our study serves as a warning that even short changes in lifestyle can have profound impacts on your liver."'

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131101112406.htm

Monday, January 13, 2014

First large-scale study finds cognitive training aids in long-term function in older people

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/first-large-scale-study-finds-cognitive-training-aids-in-long-term-function-in-older-people/2014/01/12/f7ef34be-7bba-11e3-95c6-0a7aa80874bc_story.html

Sunday, January 12, 2014

Caffeine pill 'could boost memory'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-25665781

Fresh hope on stem cells use to regenerate human organs

http://littlewww.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php/features/science/141297-fresh-hope-on-stem-cells-use-to-regenerate-human-organs

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Match 3 in a row game iPhone/Android game.

At times I get somewhat addicted to The Lorax Truffalufa game. I wasn’t thrilled with the movie, but the game is great fun.

I have heard that video games are a good way for older people to keep their mind active.