#Transparent Snails &'Fairy'Wasps: Top 10 New Species Revealed A fuzzy-faced tree-living carnivore a transparent snail
This aspect of wildlife forensic science is supported by the United nations Office for Drugs and Crime and has already proved highly successful in tracking seizures and locating their source.
Meanwhile typical forest-health treatments and community protection projects are just dots on the landscape They are not enough to save forests on a large scale.
Just like in human medicine a person has the best chance to fight off and recover from an illness
when they are healthy. It is important to make sure our forests are in their most natural healthy condition
so they too are able to endure disturbances like fire insects disease and climate change.
By acting quickly and at larger scales we can restore forest health and build resiliency that will better prepare forests for whatever changes may occur in the future.
Sea snake Dehydrates for Months</a p><p>A 3000-year-old skeleton from a conquered territory of ancient Egypt is now the earliest known complete example of a person with malignant cancer spreading from an organ findings
that could help reveal insights on the evolution of the disease researchers say.</</p><p>Cancer is one of the world's leading causes of death today with numbers more than doubling over the past 30 years.
However direct evidence of cancer from ancient human remains is compared very rare with that from other medical conditions.
This suggests the disease could mainly be a product of modern factors such as smoking diet pollution and greater life expectancies.</
</p><p>Full Story:<<a href=http://www. livescience. com/44269-oldest-metastatic-cancer-skeleton. html target=blank>Earliest Invasive Cancer Found in 3000-Year-Old Skeleton
</a p><p>There's no mistaking the odor of burning rubber for the fresh smell after a summer rain
</p><p>The measurement was made using the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Geneva Switzerland and the Tevatron at Fermilab in Batavia Ill.
and type 2 diabetes risk according to a 2011 review in the journal Diabetes Care. This suggests that magnesium may play an important role in controlling blood sugar levels.
when people consume a half of a fresh grapefruit before meals according to a 2006 study in the Journal of Medicinal Food.
Deborah Herlax Enos is certified a nutritionist and a health coach and weight loss expert in the Seattle area with more than 20 years of experience.
Read more tips on her blog Health in a Hurry r
#How Cold Was Winter? Starving Rats Ate Trees By now most of North america has thawed out from a brutal winter that introduced unhappy phrases such as polar vortex into the lexicon.
But some effects of the long-lasting subfreezing temperatures are only now becoming apparent. One surprise was the discovery that starving rats in New york city had attacked the trees in urban parks for sustenance.
which can transmit Lyme disease and other illnesses. Sorry no rat Armageddon The population of Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) whose numbers are almost wholly dependent on humans for food may drop somewhat this year as a result of wintry blasts.
#Got Allergies? Avoid These 7 Mistakes Misery loves comfort and with approximately 50 million Americans plagued by seasonal allergies there are plenty of people feeling miserable and seeking comfort
when pollen is in the air. But in an attempt to relieve their sneezing stuffy or runny noses and itchy eyes allergy sufferers might make a few mistakes.
The good news is that seasonal allergies are said totally treatable Dr. Clifford Bassett medical director of Allergy
and Asthma Care of New york. The key is to have a plan in place. Bassett described seven common mistakes that people with seasonal allergies make so you can know to avoid them.
Mistake 1: Spending unwisely on over-the-counter medications When people with allergies feel lousy they may head to the drugstore and try a variety of products such as antihistamines nasal sprays and eye drops.
This isn't necessarily a smart or cost-effective way to relieve their symptoms though.
It's better to see an allergist who can pinpoint exactly what your allergies are
and create an allergy action plan said Bassett a fellow of the American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology. 9 Weirdest Allergies Mistake 2:
Opening the windows Wind is not a good friend to people with seasonal allergies Bassett told Live Science.
But when the weather gets warm it's tempting to let fresh air and cool breezes into your home or car.
This is a big mistake for people with seasonal allergies because this allows pollens to visit Bassett said.
He recommends keeping windows shut running the air conditioner to recirculate inside air and using HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air filters to trap pollen.
Mistake 3: Not taking steps to keep pollen away Your shoes clothes hair and glasses can all track pollen from outside into your home.
He also recommended that people avoid hanging laundry on an outdoor clothesline during allergy season.
and antihistamine eye drops can relieve red itchy eyes. Mistake 5: Waiting too long to take allergy medications Treat allergies at the onset of pollen season rather than waiting until symptoms get more severe Bassett said.
He advises his patients to begin taking their medications one or two weeks before their allergy season typically begins.
A proactive approach works better for many people; it may reduce the severity of symptoms
and the patient may end up needing less medication Bassett explained. Mistake 6: Overusing nasal sprays People should generally limit their use of over-the-counter nasal decongestant spray to a maximum of five days in a row;
otherwise the spray may irritate the lining of the nose and sinuses. With too much use these sprays can make the nose severely congested
and some people just keep squirting in more spray to ease the stuffiness. Rebound congestion creates symptoms worse than the original problem Bassett said.
Mistake 7: Eating foods that aggravate allergies. When some people with pollen allergies eat certain fresh fruits
and vegetables it may result in an itchy mouth or throat. This is known as oral allergy syndrome.
The allergic cross-reaction occurs shortly after the offending food is eaten. It happens because the immune system recognizes a similarity between proteins in some pollens and those in fruits vegetables nuts and spices.
For example a person with a birch pollen allergy may develop oral allergy symptoms after eating an apple carrot peach almond or hazelnut.
Sometimes peeling cooking or avoiding the food altogether during allergy season may prevent symptoms Bassett said.
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#Bumble Inn: New england Gets New'Hotel'for Pollinators An unusual hotel in New england is generating a lot of buzz in scientific circles.
The newly constructed bee hotel at the University of New hampshire's Woodman Farm isn't much to look at with its cinder block floors
The study called Sustainable Solutions to Problems Affecting Bee Health was launched to coincide with National Pollinator Week (June 16-22) an annual event sanctioned by the U s. Secretary of agriculture that highlights the urgent issue
Bees which play a critical role in the health of food crops and natural ecosystems have experienced rapid declines in population and diversity over the past several years research from NHAES shows.
Noctambulism is another word for sleepwalking and it seemed a fitting title for this picture.
and highly nutritious vegetables because the membrane keeps the plants separated from any pathogens in the culture medium allowing only the water
The primary motivation behind veganism is to reduce harm to all living creatures. It is compassion in action according to the American Vegan Society.
or have related animal ingredients such as lard beeswax and lanolin (a waxy substance in sheep's wool).
or hypertension and subsequent heart damage the study found. The research by scientists in Japan and the United states was a meta-analysis of 39 high-quality previously conducted hypertension studies from 18 countries with a total of more than 21000 participants.
The researchers found that people who avoid meat had consistently lower and healthier blood pressure levels.
The results appear today (Feb 24) in the journal JAMA Internal medicine. Hypertension is a leading risk factor for stroke heart disease kidney disease and shortened life expectancy.
The condition affects one in three U s. adults according to the CDC. Vegetarian diets were associated on average with a 6. 9-point drop in systolic blood pressure
10 Amazing Facts About Your Heart The full analysis led by Dr. Yoko Yokoyama of the National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center in Osaka Japan found that meat eaters with hypertension could gain the most by switching
For some study participants plant-based diets lowered blood pressure better than did prescription hypertension medicine and without the medication's side effects.
Just a 5-point drop in systolic blood pressure applied on average across the United states would lead to a 9-percent drop in heart disease
and a 14-percent drop in stroke said Dr. Neal Barnard a co-author on the study and president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
Show me a medication that does that. The results are in accord with the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet
which the USDA recommends for all Americans to lower the risk of many chronic diseases including obesity and diabetes.
The DASH diet is not vegetarian but does emphasize a diet rich in vegetables and limited meat particularly red meats and luncheon meats.
Hypertension has long been associated with diets high in sodium (salt) and saturated fat and with obesity inactivity alcohol consumption and smoking.
Nevertheless Barnard a well-known proponent of the vegan diet said that any movement toward a plant-centric diet would bring health benefits.
Follow Christopher Wanjek@wanjekfor daily tweets on health and science with a humorous edge. Wanjek is the author of Food At work and Bad Medicine.
His column Bad Medicine appears regularly on Live Science e
#'Microbial Pompeii'Found on Teeth of 1, 000-Year-Old Skeletons A microbial Pompeii has been found on the teeth of 1000-year-old human skeletons.
Just as volcanic ash entombed the citizens of the ancient Roman city dental plaque preserved bacteria and food particles on the skeletons'teeth.
Researchers analyzed dental plaque from skeletons in a medieval cemetery in Germany and found that the mouths of these aged humans were home to many of the same bacterial invaders that cause gum disease in the mouths of modern humans.
Breath Plaque is a dentist's worst enemy but it turns out to be a great time capsule for preserving the bacteria
We knew that calculus preserved microscopic particles of food and other debris but the level of preservation of biomolecules is remarkable a microbiome entombed
The team reconstructed the genome of a major bacterial pathogen and recovered some of the first evidence of food molecules from ancient dental plaque.
and many of them showed signs of gum disease and tooth decay. While a few individuals had surprisingly healthy teeth most of the older adults had lost most or all of their teeth due to wearing decay or dental disease.
The microbe species found in the ancient plaque were remarkably similar to ones found in modern mouths the researchers said.
Gum disease is caused most often by the species Porphyromonas gingivalis Tannerella forsythiatreponema denticola and Filifactor alocis and these microbes were all present on the teeth of the skeletons with dental disease.
Gum diseases are caused usually by infections or inflammation of the gums and surrounding bone. About 47 percent of adults ages 30 or older in the United states have some form of gum disease according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Nonhuman primates and other wild animals rarely get dental diseases Warinner said which raises the question What is it about humans that allows these pathogens to grow?
Scientists speculate that modern human diets and lifestyles may be to blame but Warinner's team plans to analyze more ancient populations from other time periods to find out.
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Vietnam would join other countries that have destroyed recently their stockpiles of confiscated illegal wildlife items often used in traditional Asian medicines luxury goods and souvenirs.
The degree of decay was proportional to the degree of radioactive contamination at each site according to the study published in the journal Oecologia.
Recent research has found that radiation therapy can cause severe complications in cancer patients by reducing the populations of helpful bacteria in the intestines.
and other contaminants via smoke into populated areas Mousseau said. This litter accumulation that we measured
and Drug Administration announced plans in February to revise what information appears on the labels.
Nutritionists and consumer advocates have voiced their desires for improvements such as a more prominent display of the number of calories or the inclusion of the level of added sugars.
and can give people a false sense of security about their health. Its voluntary labeling schemes also have been a joke.
Follow Christopher Wanjek@wanjek for daily tweets on health and science with a humorous edge.
Wanjek is the author of Food At work and Bad Medicine. His column Bad Medicine appears regularly on Live Science c
#What Is Whey Protein? Whey protein is a popular diet supplement among people of all ages.
Very early studies indicate whey protein may have a role in the body's cancer-fighting abilities.
Whey protein is said also to help control blood sugar lower cholesterol treat asthma and possibly prevent allergies.
Do whey protein supplements work? Whey protein supplements can certainly provide high-quality protein in the diet.
But most health organizations including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend getting your protein from food
At the end of 54 days the protein-supplemented group showed stronger immune systems with 33 percent fewer medical visits than the Marines given a placebo or a carbohydrate and fat supplement.
and had 28 percent fewer medical visits for muscle and joint problems. The members of the group taking protein supplements were also less likely to visit doctors for infections during the study published in 2003 in the Journal of Applied Physiology.
Among other protein supplements small studies show whey protein may have an edge at increasing muscle mass.
A 2009 joint statement by the American Dietetic Association (ADA) Dietitians of Canada (DC) and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) noted that eating protein during exercise did little to improve athletic performance.
because whey protein has a high level of leucine an easily absorbed amino acid according to Joslin Diabetes Center.
Many of whey protein's purported health benefits are linked to a powerful antioxidant called glutathione.
People with HIV liver disease diabetes and various cancers can all develop low glutathione levels in the body.
whether whey protein has a meaningful effect on the health of people with conditions linked to low glutathione.
Small studies done in people show whey protein may have a modest effect on asthma symptoms inflammation after stroke and some liver conditions by indirectly increasing glutathione levels.
and early signs of complications from obesity and diabetes according to a 2012 review published in the journal Lipids in Health and Disease.
and very preliminary evidence that whey protein may help lower high blood pressure. Whey protein also shows a potential for lowering blood sugar.
A study of 14 people with type 2 diabetes found that combining whey protein with a high-sugar meal increased people's insulin production
The study was published i 2005 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Are whey protein supplements safe?
Most Americans eat twice the protein they need according to the National institutes of health (NIH. Excess protein of any kind will be stored as fat in the body
and osteoporosis. That's because acids are released into the bloodstream when protein is digested and the body uses calcium to neutralize these acids.
It is possible that the extra calcium needed will be leeched from bones according to the NIH. However studies are inconclusive on this point.
Some research shows high-protein diets are correlated with more fractures but other research has found people with high-protein diets have increased bone density according to the Harvard School of Public health.
Athletes can safely eat more protein than people who are not physically active. In fact an athlete who does not get enough protein will sustain some muscle damage
or even up to 2. 0 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight a day according to various statements by the American Dietetic Association the American College of Sports Medicine and the International Society of Sports Nutrition.
Because whey is a dairy product people with milk allergies should avoid whey protein. People who are lactose intolerant should also take caution.
Protein supplements of any kind may cause additional strain on the kidneys if a person has a kidney condition.
but there is less oversight of supplements sold in the United states than of prescription drugs. In their joint statement the American Dietetic Association and the American College of Sports Medicine noted some cases of protein supplements also containing anabolic steroids.
One 2010 experiment by Consumer Reports tested 15 protein drinks purchased online or from stores in the New york metro area.
Whey protein may also interact with some medications. Whey protein supplements can decrease the effectiveness of the Parkinson's drug levodopa.
Whey protein supplements may also reduce how much of the osteoporosis drug alendronate is absorbed by the body making the medicine less effective.
Whey protein supplements may reduce the effectiveness of quinolone and tetracycline antibiotics. People with diabetes may experience changes in blood sugar when taking protein supplements.
It is best to talk to your doctor about your athletic goals and personal needs before starting protein supplements.
Overall the International Society of Sports Nutrition considered a short-term regimen of whey protein supplements safe for most healthy adults.
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#Missing Link? Mississippi Floods, and a Great City Disappears The mysterious abandonment of one of North america's first big cities may be linked to a massive Mississippi river flood 800 years ago a new study finds.
In the bottom of an oxbow lake next to Cahokia Ill. which was the most powerful and populous city north of Mexico in A d. 1200 lie the buried remains of a flood that likely destroyed the crops and houses of more than 15000 people.
Heat and humidity pose public health threats as higher humidity disrupts the body s natural ability to cool itself
#It Takes A lot More than Carrots to Beat Cancer (Op-Ed) This article was published originally at The Conversation.
Another story about how some food holds the cure for cancer is making headlines in the Daily Express.
In March the Daily mail claimed that eating carrots is a way to avoid prostate cancer.
and vegetables is associated with a reduced risk of a variety of cancers. But the charity organisation Cancer Research UK stresses the link between diet
and cancer is complex and difficult to unravel#.#That is an important caveat. There is little chance that the key to preventing one of the world s deadliest diseases has been on our dinner plates the whole time.
The lead researcher of the new study Dr. Kirsten Brandt at Newcastle University has been studying naturally occurring chemicals found in certain vegetables called polyacetylenes for many years.
They have been shown to kill leukaemia cells in the laboratory. And a compound which can be extracted easily from something as common and cheap as carrots is bound to arouse interest.
This however is only the first step in testing any potential new anticancer chemicals. In their study Brandt and her colleagues also used a mouse model as proxy for humans
which has a genetic mutation that increases the chances of developing intestinal cancer. Mice fed a diet where a fifth of the food was powdered carrot had fewer and smaller tumours than mice who were fed a normal diet.
The scientists will now look to see if this tumour-preventing effect is seen also in people by doing a small-scale study involving 20 participants.
This if successful will have to be followed up by even larger scale trials before carrots can be considered beneficial in cancer prevention.
Sarah Warner a Phd student in Brandt s research group described her project to me.
I m going to be looking at whether a portion of carrots consumed per day can affect the risk of someone developing a chronic disease by looking at DNA damage
and biomarkers related to intestinal cancer#she said. All cancers are a result of damaged DNA.
So commonly consumed foods that reduce this damage could be a significant step in preventing cancer especially in individuals who have a genetic predisposition to the disease.
But the current results do not imply that they hold the key to beating cancer#.
#What is perhaps more interesting is that the preparation of the carrots influences how much polyacetylene actually gets from the food into our bodies.
I ll be investigating how best to prepare the carrots so that when people eat it they get the most polyacetylenes#she said.
Dissecting exactly which chemicals in plants are observed responsible for health benefits is notoriously tricky.##oewe may be able to figure this out as white carrots are rich in polyacetylenes
Sarah hopes that contrasting these two varieties of carrots may allow the research team to pinpoint the chemicals that are responsible for their early cancer-protective findings
Probably not because polyacetylenes are quite toxic in high concentrations. In the small quantities found in carrots we think they may be beneficial.
If it was to be used more like a drug we would have to be really careful to get the dose right#Warner said.
and it may lead to great advances in the fight against cancer the researchers are not making that claim just yet.
and prevent cancer. These stories erode the public s trust in health journalism. When reporting such stories it would be better to focus on the scientific method
and the incremental development than to make bold hollow claims. Next read this: How to save time:
a rule-of-thumb to choose what health stories to ignore Victoria Forster does not work for consult to own shares in
and Democracy at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) where she focuses on food and drug safety protections for scientist whistle-blowers and government transparency and accountability.
He published the documents on the Internet proving that cigarette companies had been fully aware of the health harms of tobacco for decades.
Fighting tobacco has been a lifelong effort for Glantz a professor of medicine at the University of California San francisco He has done research on both the health effects of tobacco and the efficacy of smoking-cessation programs.
when discussing products that people often are addicted to. The lost pleasure factor he argues makes sense
But an addicted consumer is not rational. Neither is a minor who may be tempted to experiment with a lot of addictive products.
while agencies discuss improving public health and saving lives which are difficult to measure in dollars.
But at the U s. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) economists are pushing the envelope in ways that could very well tie government's hands
The FDA figured that lost pleasure would reduce the value of health benefits lives saved
and health improved by 50 percent. That's right. The agency estimated that the value of lost pleasure to smokers was so great it would cut the benefits in better health
and lives saved by half. Tobacco companies sued the FDA over those rules claiming it violated the tobacco industry's First amendment rights to promote their product
So if e-cigarette regulations produce health and productivity benefits of $1 billion by this calculation the benefits would be worth only $300 million.
The paper published last February in the journal Health Economics includes an economist from the Office of management and budget as a co-author.
Because I'm addicted to sugar and sugar has demonstrated harmful health impacts labels letting me know how much extra sugar has been added to a food product would in some way make me unhappy as well as healthier.
Just knowing about the extra sugar would deprive me of the pleasure of literally feeding my addiction.
When a Reuters reporter tried to get these economists on record to explain their reasoning they demurred
and now are addicted. Extensive and careful scientific analysis has documented the health risks from tobacco alcohol
and junk food particularly to those who are addicted to those products. This makes no sense in terms of science Glantz said.
Economists have a role to play at federal agencies but Glantz pointed out that in this evaluation economists should not be the only voice.
Behavioral psychologists pharmacologists physicians epidemiologists and biologists among others also should weigh in. Protecting our families from harm should not be trumped by invented theories about lost pleasure.
This is just plain dumb Glantz pronounced. But it is powerfully dumb. The FDA's proposed regulation including this wacky cost-benefit calculation is open for public comment until August 8.
Those changes can in turn have economic and health consequences such as altering the crop yields in agricultural markets or providing a more conducive environment for the spread of malaria.
but too much can expose crops to disease. Excessive rains can also have health impacts: In Kenya during the 1998 El Niã o rains caused catastrophic flooding that seriously damaged health infrastructure and spread malaria and Rift valley fever.
Those impacts are why forecasters like Barnston Goddard and L Heureux are working to better predict El Niã os
and understand the climate impacts they have. It is also why places like the IRI
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