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Brain Chemicals Affected By Exercise. Researchers have found that people who exercise not only have better physical fitness than inactive persons, but they also have better mental fitness. Using MRI scans, researchers found that intense exercise increased the levels of two common neurotransmitters called glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid in study participants. The finding offers insights…
Read MoreHigh-Fat Diet May Raise Cancer Risk. New research suggests that a high-fat diet could increase the risk of colon cancer. In this study, researchers fed healthy mice a high-fat diet (60% of total calories from fat) for nine months and found the mice gained 30-50% more body mass and developed more intestinal tumors than mice…
Read MoreSecondhand Smoke Exacerbates COPD Symptoms. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic lung disease that makes breathing difficult and is the third leading cause of death in the United States. A recent study found 20% of COPD patients live with an active smoker and 27% were exposed to secondhand smoke during the previous week.…
Read MoreChronic Stress Can Affect Memory. Individuals subjected to chronic stress due to bullying or a tough job may experience problems with their memory. Researchers found that mice who were repeatedly stressed by larger, more aggressive mice when they tried to find an escape hole in a maze became more forgetful than mice not exposed to…
Read MoreProbiotics May Prevent Dental Cavities. In the future, preventing cavities may be as simple as taking a supplement to keep unwanted bacteria in check. Researchers have found a strain of bacteria that could keep bad bacteria under control and pave the way to using probiotics (beneficial bacteria) to prevent cavities. The newly identified bacteria is…
Read MoreTennis Not Dangerous to Teen Spines. Many health experts believe that tennis and other asymmetrical sports pose risk factors for scoliosis development in adolescents even though scientific data is lacking. A new study that involved 102 adolescent tennis players failed to find a correlation between tennis and either an increased risk for low back pain…
Read MoreBeing Physically Fit Reduces Depression Risk After Heart Attack. People who are physically fit may be less likely to become depressed after a heart attack. Researchers looked at 189 middle-aged and older Norwegians and found that those who exercised regularly in the years preceding their heart attack were less than half as likely to become…
Read MoreOmega-3s May Lower Breast Cancer Risk Among Obese Women. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) reports that women with dense breast tissue have a four to six times increased risk of developing breast cancer. Now, a randomized clinical trial involving 266 postmenopausal women has found an association between increased levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the…
Read MoreLawn Mowers Pose Dangers to Kids. Children in the United States continue to suffer severe injuries from both regular power lawn mowers and ride-on mowers. Currently, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that no child under the age of 16 operate a ride-on mower and no child under twelve operate a push mower. Additionally, they…
Read MoreIncreasing Depression May Indicate Greater Dementia Risk. Depression is a known risk factor for dementia, but most studies have only focused on depression at a single point in time and not over a multi-year time frame. In this study, researchers looked at the depressive symptoms of 2,488 seniors over a five-year time period and then…
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