crapbag

Fertility and Preconception Health in the News

2009-12-08T21:04:00.000-08:00

Menshould stay away from microwaves and vacuum cleaners.

Obese People Have 'Severe Brain Degeneration' | LiveScience

2009-08-25T15:01:00.000-07:00

A study found that "the brains of obese people looked 16 years older than the brains of those who were lean, and in overweight people looked 8 years older."

Obese people had "8 percent less brain tissue than normal-weight individuals" and overweight people had "4 percent less brain tissue."

‘Bumpaholics’ crave the belly-rubbing high - TODAY Health

2009-08-14T16:50:00.000-07:00

Some women may love pregnancy a little too much.

Feeling pain? Finger your cash - TODAY Health

2009-08-14T16:40:00.000-07:00

Fascinating article about our weird relationship to money.

Morning sickness tied to higher child IQ | BabyCenter

2009-08-07T18:15:00.000-07:00

Morning sickness tied to higher child IQ | BabyCenter

Prenatal exposure to common pollutant may lower IQ | BabyCenter

2009-07-22T11:47:00.000-07:00

A study found that "[f]etal exposure to high levels of a common airborne pollutant compound seems to threaten the intellectual development of children ...[translating] into lower IQ scores by the time a child reaches the age of 5 years.

This linkage builds on prior research, which has suggested that exposure to these pollutants, known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), while still in the womb can provoke developmental changes that damage lung health and boost the risk for developing childhood asthma.

...'Children exposed to prenatal or in-utero air pollution from traffic oftentimes have lower birth weights, somewhat smaller head circumferences, and a number of adverse outcomes'"

Memory may form at 30 weeks in the womb | BabyCenter

2009-07-22T11:44:00.000-07:00

Memory may form at 30 weeks in the womb | BabyCenter: "Fetuses as young as 30 weeks demonstrated a short-term memory of 10 minutes, and fetuses at 34 weeks seemed able to remember information they stored four weeks prior"

Cats Do Control Humans, Study Finds - Yahoo! News

2009-07-13T15:05:00.000-07:00

Household cats use a special type of purring to get human owners to feed them.

"This meow is actually a purr mixed with a high-pitched cry....The study showed that humans find these mixed calls annoying and difficult to ignore."

Researchers say that "[t]he embedding of a cry within a call that we normally associate with contentment is quite a subtle means of eliciting a response. Solicitation purring is probably more acceptable to humans than overt meowing, which is likely to get cats ejected from the bedroom... [and that] the purr-cry may subtly take advantage of humans' sensitivity to cries they associate with nurturing [human] offspring."

BBC NEWS | Health | Obesity 'link to same-sex parent'

2009-07-13T11:49:00.000-07:00

"There is a strong link in obesity between mothers and daughters and fathers and sons, but not across the gender divide, research suggests....[Researchers] said it was probably because of some form of 'behavioural sympathy' where daughters copied the lifestyles of their mothers and sons their fathers."

Their findings suggest "that obese adults led to obese children...[implying that policies addressing obesity] should be targeting the parents."

BBC NEWS | Health | Right ear is 'better for hearing'

2009-07-13T11:40:00.000-07:00

BBC NEWS | Health | Right ear is 'better for hearing': "If you want to get someone to do something, ask them in their right ear, say scientists."

The Big Money: The Pennies Add Up at Swoopo.com - washingtonpost.com

2009-07-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

Swoopo.com is "an online auction site that fiendishly plays on every irrational impulse buyers have to draw them in to what might be the crack cocaine of online shopping sites,...[combining] the addictiveness of auctions and the chance of lotteries into what may be the most devious way to separate folks from their money yet devised.

...Some of the ideas behind Swoopo have been explored in a theoretical way by game theorists. The reluctance of bidders to say goodbye to their "sunk cost"... has been found to draw bidders deeper into the game. Swoopo plays off those insights to efficiently get people to make bad choices. It's the evil stepchild of game theory and behavioral economics."

Surprising number of teens think they'll die young - Yahoo! News

2009-06-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

Surprising number of teens think they'll die young - Yahoo! News: "A surprising number of teenagers — nearly 15 percent — think they're going to die young, leading many to drug use, suicide attempts and other unsafe behavior"

11 Health Myths That May Surprise You - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

2009-06-29T10:13:00.000-07:00

11 Health Myths That May Surprise You - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

Can You Get Fit in Six Minutes a Week? - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

2009-06-28T07:39:00.000-07:00

It seems you can: “After two weeks, both groups showed almost identical increases in their endurance (as measured in a stationary bicycle time trial), even though the one group had exercised for six to nine minutes per week, and the other about five hours. Additionally, molecular changes that signal increased fitness were evident equally in both groups….

The short, intense workouts aided in weight loss, too…. Other researchers have found that similar, intense, brief sessions of exercise improve cardiac health, even among people with heart disease.

There’s a catch, though. Those six minutes, if they’re to be effective, must hurt. ‘We describe it as an ”all-out“ effort… well out of your comfort zone.’”

Women more likely than men to reject unattractive babies | BabyCenter

2009-06-26T10:21:00.000-07:00

A study of "13 men and 14 women who were shown photos of 80 infants, including 50 normal ones and 30 with abnormal facial features, and [were] asked to score them on attractiveness," found that "men's attractiveness ratings for normal babies were much lower than those given by women, whereas women and men gave abnormal faces similar unattractive ratings. However, women made a greater effort to avoid looking at the unattractive faces."

"The findings might reflect an evolutionary-based need to provide limited resources only to healthy offspring, suggest the researchers....

'[A] woman's parental love may be 'determined by facial attractiveness.... Women may be more sensitized to aesthetic defects and may be more prone to reject unattractive kids. Men do not appear to be as motivated. They didn't expend the same effort.'"

A few extra pounds can add years to your life: study | U.S. | Reuters

2009-06-25T04:41:00.000-07:00

Being a bit overweight may not be so bad:

"Researchers found that while underweight and extremely obese people die earlier than people of a normal weight, people who are slightly overweight actually live longer than those of a normal weight.

...During the study period, from 1994/1995 through 2006/2007, underweight people were 70 percent more likely than people of normal weight to die, and extremely obese people were 36 percent more likely to die.

But overweight individuals were 17 percent less likely to die. The relative risk for obese people was nearly the same as for people of normal weight."

Still, they warn that "while a few extra pounds may protect older people as their health declines, that did not mean people of normal weight should try to add bulk, [as the study]
only looked at mortality, not at quality of life, and there are many negative health consequences associated with obesity, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes."

Study links breastfeeding to high grades, college entry | Lifestyle | Reuters

2009-06-25T04:28:00.000-07:00

Study links breastfeeding to high grades, college entry | Lifestyle | Reuters: "an additional month of breastfeeding was associated with an increase in high school grade point averages of 0.019 points and an increase in the probability of college attendance of 0.014"

Healthy growth in womb tied to higher IQ scores | BabyCenter

2009-06-21T12:06:00.000-07:00

"[F]or every 1-centimeter increase in birth length, 1-kilogram increase in birth weight, or 1 centimeter in head circumference, there was a corresponding increase in IQ of 0.49, 2.19, and 0.62 points, respectively."

Why Go Nuts

2009-06-19T12:50:00.000-07:00

Nuts are good for you and may not be bad for your waistline either.

The Sunny Side of Eggs - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

2009-06-19T12:39:00.000-07:00

Eggs are good for you.

Read this over coffee - Los Angeles Times

2009-05-20T04:22:00.000-07:00

Coffee may not be bad for you after all.

2009-05-18T16:03:00.000-07:00

Here's why you shouldn't share a toothbrush with anyone and why you might want to disinfect yours regularly.

Flu or Cold? Or Swine Flu? Know the Differences

2009-05-12T09:49:00.000-07:00

Do you have a cold or the flu?

Secrets of the Super-Healthy: People Who Never Get Sick

2009-05-12T09:48:00.000-07:00

Some people never seem to get sick. Find out their secrets in this article.

How Doctors Avoid Cold and Flu Germs

2009-05-12T09:47:00.000-07:00

Good tips from doctors on how to avoid cold and flu germs.

crapbag

Fertility and Preconception Health in the News

Obese People Have 'Severe Brain Degeneration' | LiveScience

‘Bumpaholics’ crave the belly-rubbing high - TODAY Health

Feeling pain? Finger your cash - TODAY Health

Morning sickness tied to higher child IQ | BabyCenter

Prenatal exposure to common pollutant may lower IQ | BabyCenter

Memory may form at 30 weeks in the womb | BabyCenter

Cats Do Control Humans, Study Finds - Yahoo! News

BBC NEWS | Health | Obesity 'link to same-sex parent'

BBC NEWS | Health | Right ear is 'better for hearing'

The Big Money: The Pennies Add Up at Swoopo.com - washingtonpost.com

Surprising number of teens think they'll die young - Yahoo! News

11 Health Myths That May Surprise You - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

Can You Get Fit in Six Minutes a Week? - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

Women more likely than men to reject unattractive babies | BabyCenter

A few extra pounds can add years to your life: study | U.S. | Reuters

Study links breastfeeding to high grades, college entry | Lifestyle | Reuters

Healthy growth in womb tied to higher IQ scores | BabyCenter

Why Go Nuts

The Sunny Side of Eggs - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

Read this over coffee - Los Angeles Times

Newsletter

Flu or Cold? Or Swine Flu? Know the Differences

Secrets of the Super-Healthy: People Who Never Get Sick

How Doctors Avoid Cold and Flu Germs