Archive for January, 2009

Cutting Calories May Increase Memory

It is believed that that if you reduce your calorie intake by 30%, your memory may improve. There have been experiments done on rats to study whether or not a diet low in calories and high in unsaturated fatty acids cause the memory to improve.

The volunteers in this study were the average age of 60 and divided into three different

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Cutting calories may boost your memory

According to a study conducted by the University of Munster in Germany, reducing calorie intake by as little as one-third may work to help you remember more.

Researchers took 50 volunteers whose average age was 60, and separated them into three groups. One group ate a regular diet containing the normal number of calories. Another group was provided with a similar diet with more unsaturated fatty acids added. Unsaturated fatty acids include fats such as olive and fish oils. Finally, the third group ate a calorie-restricted diet with calories reduced by about 30%.

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Obama Reverses Abortion-Funding Policy

In what appears to be an ongoing tennis match between Republicans and Democrats with the lives of women around the world being used as the ball, Obama has once again reversed the Bush Administrations decision to not fund abortions to International organizations. Pro-lifers will no doubt be up in arms since they do not want their tax dollars being spent in such a fashion but Pro-choicer’s are cheering the reversal.

International organizations around the world can once again start receiving the necessary funds to properly provide education, guidance, and family planning healthcare to millions of women in under-developed countries. It’s more

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Patrick Swayze to Write Memoir with Wife

Cancer-stricken Patrick Swayze is proving that he’s feeling better one week after being released from the hospital where he suffered a bout of pneumonia. Swayze rep, Annett Wolf, has confirmed to Usmagazine.com that the 56 year-old actor is planning on writing a memoir with help from his wife Lisa. There isn’t any information on what the book will focus on but his Wolf has denied the rumours of it being an inspirational-type tome. Swayze is still in the process of meeting with publishers and no release date has been announced yet.

New Director of CDC Chosen

Dr. Richard Besser was recently appointed as the interim director of the CDC, after Dr. Julie Gerberding, the previous director, resigned. Gerberding stepped down after the change in administration on January 20th, along with a few other officials, though she had headed the department for six years. William Gimson III replaced Gerberding until an interim director could be chosen, and has since returned to his post as chief operating officer. Before being named the interim director, Besser was head of a department that organizes the country’s response to bio-terrorism as well as the health after-

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National Study Shows Genes Influence Popularity and Social Status

A study led by researchers at Harvard University Medical School and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) has found that the answer to why some people are highly social and popular, while others are shy and on the edge of their social groups, may lie in their genes.

Researchers Nicholas Christakis of Harvard and Christopher Dawes and James Fowler of UCSD studied a number of indicators related to popularity and social status among 1,110 identical and fraternal twins. Identical twins have 100%

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Risks Of Every Day Health And Lifestyle

In nutrition as well as any life aspect, many risks always threaten the health and lifestyle of every person. Even the most popular type of food has the ability to harm the consumer with a health incident even leading to death. In recent news, salmonella outbreak hits the U.S. and spreads to 43 states. With over 500 infections and 7 total deaths recorded, the salmonella was traced back to the consumption of peanut butter.

Peanut butter is a new kind of fast food made from roasted peanuts with the addition of

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Katrina Darrell - American Idol’s “Bikini Girl”

If you watched the season premiere of American Idol, no doubt you missed the girl who came into an audition wearing only a very skimpy bikini. At first glance, most viewers probably thought she had a great body, but probably would not be able to sing, but she had a voice, too. Although the female judges did not like her, and were quite threatened by her outfit, the male judges didn’t even have to think about putting her through to Hollywood.

She was sassy, too, and managed to put down the new judge within the first couple minutes of the audition. She also planted a big, wet kiss on Ryan Seacrest’s mouth and jumped into a pool after the audition. Seacrest jumped right in after her. She has proven to be one of the most interesting and talented singers on the show to date.

Blogs have been going wild for her all night and all day, wondering what she’ll do in Hollywood. If she doesn’t make it singing, she will most likely be offered several lucrative modeling opportunities because of her exposure on the show.

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Non Prescription Weight Loss Pill Gets European Go Ahead

The weight loss drug Orlistat is slated to go on sale in European pharmacies without the requirement of a prescription within the next few months. Although early approval was first given several months ago in October 2008, the European Commission has just now given the go ahead for public distribution of the anti-obesity drug, which will be marketed under the name Alli by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), the makers of the product. The estimated price for Alli is £1.50 a day.

Although consumers won’t require a prescription to purchase Alli, European regulators have mandated that the drug be placed behind the counter in order that users are only able to purchase it when its necessity is determined by the pharmacist’s discretion. It’s intended that the weight loss drug be sold only to those who are actually overweight and as such will be available to consumers with a BMI of 28 kg/m2 or higher, a standard indication of obesity. The weight loss pill is taken three times per day and works by reducing the amount of fat from food that’s absorbed by the body, though with the provision that a low-fat diet is necessary to optimize the results.

However, experts have expressed concern at the perception of popular weight loss drugs such as Alli as “wonder drugs,” or drugs which are believed to be a quick and easy solution to fat loss. “This plays a part in the a weight management regime - but lifestyle changes in terms of eating a better diet must come first and last,” stated Dr. Ian Campbell, the medical director of the charity organization Weight Concern.

Patrick Swayze Checks Into Hospital with Pneumonia

Actor Patrick Swayze, 56, has revealed that he has pneumonia and is currently in the hospital. He has struggled with health issues since discovering that he had pancreatic cancer in early 2008.

Swayze, famous for his leading roles in films like “Dirty Dancing”, “Ghost”, and “Point Break”, recently completed the first season of A&E’s television series “The Beast”, set to premiere on January 15. An executive of A&E, Robert DiBitetto, announced Swayze’s hospitalization at a meeting of the Television Critics Association. Swayze was scheduled to discuss “The Beast” at the meeting in Los Angeles on Friday.

DiBitetto told the participants of the meeting that Swayze apologized for not being able to attend. After beginning a new course of chemotherapy for treating his cancer, Swayze fell ill with pneumonia and admitted himself into the hospital for further observation.

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