The World Health Organisation said that the number of deaths caused by measles dropped 74% in the past seven years worldwide, thanks to dramatic progress in Africa and nations including Afghanistan and Pakistan, The number of deaths dropped by half a million between 2000 and 2007, from an estimated 750,000 to 197,000.

There has been 89% drop in measles deaths in Africa which is two-thirds of the global reduction. There was 90% decrease in deaths caused by measles in the eastern Mediterranean region, which includes Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Sudan from 96,000 to 10,000.

Recent study revealed that deadly lung disease idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) makes patients three times more prone to severe cardiac events such as a heart attack.

Research team analysed data from the computerised records of the Britain's Health Improvement Network for 920 patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and
3,593 control subjects without IPF for diagnoses of coronary events and disease incidence.

Bird Flu virus has spread to two more regions including Barpeta and Nalbari in lower Assam.

The fresh outbreak prompted the State Veterinary department to start the culling of thousands of chickens in these regions.

The samples, which were sent to laboratories in Bhopal, have tested positive for H5N1 avian influenza.

The State Government has ordered culling operations and Rapid Response Teams (RRT)s have already begun going from house-to-house asking the habitants to give away their poultry birds to them.

The United Nations help the rural communities in western and southern Nepal suffering from serious food insecurity caused by increasing food and fuel prices, the effects of long-term conflict and the destruction of food stocks and crops by the recent floods. Around 1.5 million populations in the remote areas also require urgent help, the U.N. said in a statement late on Wednesday. The United Nations Central Emergency Response fund (CERF) has allocated NPR 247 million (US $3 million) to help them.

Researchers have found a new drug, which could ease jet lag and reset the body's natural sleep rhythms. According to Shantha Rajaratnam from Monash University's School of Psychology, Psychiatry and Psychological Medicine, the drug testimelteon works on melatonin receptor in the brain and helped troubled sleepers nod off quicker and stay asleep for longer.  

According to an Italian research, obesity among children may damage their thyroid as it creates a vicious cycle of metabolism and overweight. Researchers conducted the study on 186 obese children who were overweight. They tested their thyroid hormone levels, thyroid antibodies and imaging the thyroid gland by using ultrasound for about three years. These tests suggested that their weight might be linked to structural changes in the thyroid.