London, Nov 10 : A new study by UK and US scientists has revealed that the sheer physical effort involved in breastfeeding may leave babies with stronger lungs well into childhood.

Previous studies have established that breastfeeding protects babies from respiratory problems early in life, but the relationship with lungpower later in childhood is less clear-cut.

For the study, the researchers followed a total of 1,456 babies from the Isle of Wight all the way through to there 10th year to test this.

A third of them had been breastfed for at least four months, and on average, these children could blow out more air after taking a deep breath, and could blow it out faster.

London, Nov 10 : A new study has revealed that statins, which are normally given to people with high cholesterol levels to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, can be equally beneficial for people with lower cholesterol levels.

The research team has found that statins were able to reduce heart attack and stroke risk by almost 44 pct in people with high inflammation but normal cholesterol levels.

The study involving 17,800 men and women with normal cholesterol levels showed that rosuvastatin could cut deaths from heart attacks and strokes.

After a two-year follow up, the researchers found that 20mg a day of rosuvastatin could cut C-reactive protein levels by 37pct.

London, Nov 10 : Scientists have now discovered that anti-cancer drugs, earlier believed to tear down blood vessels, actually help in building stronger and more normal blood vessels.

Previously it was believed that it was possible to cease angiogenesis, a process in which tumour generates blood vessels to feed its growth, by creating drugs targeting at stopping a key vessel growth-promoting protein, called VEGF, or vascular endothelial growth factor.

But now, researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) in La Jolla have found evidence that blocking VEGF may not really halt the process, but would in turn lead to the production of more blood vessels that are not only stronger, but more normal and larger also.

Washington, November 10 : Johns Hopkins researchers have uncovered a set of five proteins in blood, which they believe may lay the basis for a highly accurate early warning test to predict heart attack in people with severely reduced blood flow, a condition medically known as ischemia.

The team comprising over a dozen scientists revealed that it took them a year to perform the study. They believe that theirs is the largest protein analysis ever done at Hopkins.

Bangkok  - Thailand has detected a fresh outbreak of avian influenza among free-range chickens in the northern province of Sukhothai, the country's agriculture minister confirmed Monday.

Agriculture Minister Somsak Prissananathakul said lab tests had confirmed that a dead chicken from a family farm in Thuang Saliam district of Sukhothai province had died of an infection with H5N1, the virus subtype causing bird flu.

Washington, Nov 10 : A new study has revealed that neither vitamin E nor vitamin C supplements reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in men.

Previous studies have suggested that vitamin E, vitamin C, and other antioxidants reduce cardiovascular disease by trapping organic free radicals, by deactivating excited oxygen molecules, or both, to prevent tissue damage.