The human body needs sleep as much as it needs food and water. Yet many people fail to get enough, causing both mind and body to suffer. People who struggle for shut-eye could benefit from monitoring their sleep, but they have limited options for doing so. In a new study in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, one team describes a potential solution: a self-powering smart … [Read more...]
Danish and Chinese tongue taste broccoli and chocolate differently
Two studies from the University of Copenhagen show that Danes aren't quite as good as Chinese at discerning bitter tastes. The research suggests that this is related to anatomical differences upon the tongue of Danish and Chinese people. For several years, researchers have known that women are generally better than men at tasting bitter flavours. Now, research from the … [Read more...]
Study confirms ‘classic’ symptoms of COVID-19
A persistent cough and fever have been confirmed as the most prevalent symptoms associated with COVID-19, according to a major review of the scientific literature. Other major symptoms include fatigue, losing the ability to smell and difficulty in breathing. The study ratifies the list of symptoms listed by the World Health Organisation at the start of the … [Read more...]
Therapeutic strategies for pregnant women with lupus
The disease, which has no cure, operates much like an allergic reaction gone awry: When activated, the immune system also attacks the body's healthy cells, tissues, and organs, causing inflammation and producing a host of symptoms that, though unique to each person, are universally called flares. A highly gender-biased disease, lupus afflicts females some nine times more than … [Read more...]
Using antidepressants during pregnancy may affect your child’s mental health
The use of antidepressants has been on the rise for many years. Between 2 and 8% of pregnant women are on antidepressants. Now researchers from the National Centre for Register-based Research at Aarhus BSS show that there is an increased risk involved in using antidepressants during pregnancy. The researchers, headed by Xiaoqin Liu, have applied register-based research … [Read more...]
Large-scale study of adaptation in yeast could help explain the evolution of cancer
Genes provide instructions to cells in the body telling them what to do and not do in order to function optimally. Small changes in genes, called mutations, can have major consequences. Similar to a glitch in a computer's coding, a glitch in gene coding can cause a cell's system to go haywire. Not all mutations are bad, however. The process of adaptive evolution selects for … [Read more...]
What kind of Facebook user are you?
On an average day, 1.28 billion people check it. Monthly? Nearly 2 billion. And according to one recent estimate, the average Facebook user spends 35 minutes a day on the platform -- which makes for a whole lot of daily and monthly minutes. In a recently published study, a trio of Brigham Young University communications professors explores why. "What is it about this … [Read more...]
Real acupuncture no better than sham acupuncture for treating hot flushes
A new study has revealed traditional Chinese acupuncture treatments are no better than fake acupuncture for treating menopause symptoms. But in a surprise finding, both the real and sham treatments showed a 40 per cent improvement in the severity and frequency of hot flushes at the end of eight weeks of treatment. The benefits were sustained at six months after … [Read more...]
New look at Cesarean rate in China
Overuse of cesarean can jeopardize the health of mothers and babies. As cesarean rates have grown in many nations, cesarean overuse has become a key public health issue. That's why the public health community was alarmed when in 2010 the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that 46.2% of Chinese babies were delivered by cesarean. China is the home for about one-fifth … [Read more...]
Air travel maps identify countries in Africa, Asia at greatest risk of Zika virus
Many countries across Africa and Asia-Pacific may be vulnerable to Zika virus outbreaks, with India, China, the Philippines, Indonesia, Nigeria, Vietnam, Pakistan, and Bangladesh expected to be at greatest risk of Zika virus transmission due to a combination of high travel volumes from Zika affected areas in the Americas, local presence of mosquitos capable of transmitting Zika … [Read more...]
Yellow fever epidemic threatens to spread from Angola to China
The spread of yellow fever (YF) is a global health threat. In response to current outbreaks in Angola, other African countries, and China, which represents the first ever documented cases of YF in Asia, the World Health Organization (WHO) convened an emergency committee on May 19, 2016 to underscore the severity of the outbreak. In the current issue of the International Journal … [Read more...]
Moderate alcohol intake may slow good cholesterol’s decline
In a study of 80,000 healthy Chinese adults, moderate drinking was associated with slower declines in high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or good cholesterol, over time, according to a preliminary study presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2016. Researchers followed alcohol consumption and HDL levels for more than six years in this … [Read more...]
Air pollution linked to increased rate of kidney disease
While air pollution is known to cause respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, a new study indicates that it also likely causes damage to the kidneys. The findings, which appear in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN), call for attention on the role of air pollution in the development of kidney disease in urban areas. Air … [Read more...]
Chinese medicinal plant anti-cancer compound found: A Chinese Study
New research led by Professor Cathie Martin of the John Innes Centre has revealed how a plant used in traditional Chinese medicine produces compounds which may help to treat cancer and liver diseases. The Chinese skullcap, Scutellaria baicalensis -- otherwise known in medicine as Huang-Qin -- is traditionally used as a treatment for fever, liver and lung … [Read more...]
Chinese herbal compound relieves inflammatory and neuropathic pain: University of California Study
A compound derived from a traditional Chinese herbal medicine has been found effective at alleviating pain, pointing the way to a new nonaddictive analgesic for acute inflammatory and nerve pain, according to UC Irvine pharmacology researchers. Working with Chinese scientists, Olivier Civelli and his UC Irvine colleagues isolated a compound called dehydrocorybulbine (DHCB) … [Read more...]
New Chinese herbal medicine has significant potential in treating hepatitis C: A Study
Data from a late-breaking abstract presented at the International Liver CongressTM 2014 identifies a new compound, SBEL1, that has the ability to inhibit hepatitis C virus (HCV) activity in cells at several points in the virus' lifecycle.[i] SBEL1 is a compound isolated from Chinese herbal medicines that was found to inhibit HCV activity by approximately 90%. SBEL1 is … [Read more...]
Chinese herbal remedy is good for treating rheumatoid arthritis: A Study
A traditional Chinese herbal remedy used to relieve joint pain and inflammation works as well as methotrexate, a standard drug treatment that is frequently prescribed to control the symptoms of active rheumatoid arthritis, reveals research published online in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. Furthermore, combining the herbal remedy with methotrexate -- the disease … [Read more...]
New disease-preventing antioxidant: A Singaporean Study
Interested in antioxidants? They protect us against aging and cancer. It's one of the reasons we like our green tea and even our broccoli. But there is a new kid on the antioxidant block -- uric acid. But wait, you're thinking, doesn't uric acid cause gout? A team in Singapore has recently showed that uric acid is a major intracellular antioxidant, possibly even more important … [Read more...]
Understanding Chinese medicine: University of California Study
Millions of people in the West today utilize traditional Chinese medicine, including acupuncture, herbs, massage and nutritional therapies. Yet only a few U.S. schools that teach Chinese medicine require Chinese-language training and only a handful of Chinese medical texts have so far been translated into English. Given the complexity of the language and concepts in these … [Read more...]
Common herbal-based anti-malarial drug effective in controlling asthma: A Singaporean Study
Asthmatic patients may soon have a more effective way to control the condition, thanks to a new pharmacological discovery by researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS). The team, led by Associate Professor Fred Wong from the Department of Pharmacology at the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, together with Dr Eugene Ho Wanxing, a recent PhD graduate from … [Read more...]
Chinese herbal medicine is dangerous: Australian Study
A herbal preparation prescribed by a Chinese herbal medication practitioner in Melbourne for back pain resulted in life-threatening heart changes, prompting a team of intensive care and emergency physicians to call for appropriate patient education by practitioners who prescribe complementary medications. Writing in Emergency Medicine Australasia, the journal of the … [Read more...]
Chinese herbal medicines cause of a fatal kidney wasting disease: A Study
Risk analysts have examined extensive health evidence to conclude that a toxin produced by a weed commonly found in certain grain fields in Balkan countries, and also used in Chinese herbal medicines, is the most likely cause of a fatal kidney wasting disease often found there. The results may also shed light on related diseases worldwide. In their new paper, "Evaluating … [Read more...]
Comparing analgesic effect of manual vs laser acupuncture for lateral epicondylalgia: A Chinese and Taiwanese Study
A team of researchers from China Medical University and Da-Chien General Hospital in Taiwan (R.O.C.) recently compared the analgesic effect of laser acupuncture and manual acupuncture for the treatment of lateral epicondylalgia. Manual acupuncture is effective in short-term pain relief for the treatment of lateral epicondylalgia. The acupuncture increases endorphin secretion … [Read more...]