Health Update

Alternate-Day Fasting diet may be the best fat buster

Washington, Sept 18: If you gorge on food on day, and then eat half as much or fast the next day may, it may help you lose those extra pounds, for a new study has found that doing so shrinks fat cells and boosts mechanisms that break down fats.

The study was conducted by Krista Varady and colleagues, at the University of California.

As a part of the research, the team studied the effects of alternate-day fasting on 24 male mice for four weeks to assess the effects of Alternate-Day Fasting (ADF).

Violent shaking may leave babies with brain damage

Washington, Sept 18: A new research has revealed that violently shaking a baby can result the brain damage.

Brain damage due to this is one of the serious consequences extracted from the bibliographic review carried out by a group of interns at the Teaching Maternity Unit of the University College of Health Care of the University of Granada (UGR).

Crying is one way in which an infant expresses its feelings and needs, but the researchers noted that if parents cannot discern what their baby needs, they react sharply by shaking the baby.

Tight socks can leave infants with lesions on their legs

London, Sept 18: A team of researchers at Washington University has revealed that socks with tight elastic bands may result in infants getting lesions on their legs.

Sock-line bands are raised, reddish markings in the region of the ankle or leg, which occur after wearing a tight pair of socks just once.

According to the study, the marks fade but the raised lines remain.

However, the lesions appear to be harmless.

Since the condition has only recently been recognised, it is unclear whether scarring will be permanent.

Statin drug helps unclog blood vessels from excess cholesterol, fats

Washington, Sep 18: Scientists have shed more light on the use of statins, by discovering how a statin drug used against heart disease helps to unclog blood vessels from an excess of cholesterol and fats.

Canadian researchers say that the results help explain how the drug works and may provide ways to improve similar drugs in the future.

Sulphur in shipping smoke trails cools atmosphere, reveals study

London, Sept 18: Particles found in smoke plumes produced by cargo ships has a surprising cooling effect on the Earth's atmosphere, a new study by a team of German researchers from the University of Bremen, has revealed.

Shipping fuel is less refined than aeroplane fuel and contains more sulphur. As a result, tiny particles of sulphur dioxide contained in ship exhaust fumes create cloud tracks – similar to plane contrails – in the sky above a travelling vessel.

Teaching teenagers to use condoms does reduce HIV risk: Review

Washington, Sept 18: A new study has revealed that abstinence-plus programs (to use condoms) are better than abstinence-only programs when it comes to reducing HIV risk among teenagers.

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