Health

Omega fatty acids could protect against Alzheimer’s disease in women, new research showed on Wednesday, August 20.  Scientists from the UK’s King’s College London and Queen Mary University London conducted an analysis of lipids -- fat molecules that perform many essential functions in the body -- in the blood. They found a noticeable loss of unsaturated fats, such as those that contain omega fatty acids, in the blood of women with Alzheimer’s disease compared to healthy women. They found no significant difference in the same lipid molecule composition in men with Alzheimer’s disease compared to healthy men, which suggests that those lipids have a different role in the disease according to sex. Fats perform important roles in maintaining a healthy brain, so this study could indicate why m...

A continued global warming could bring down the world`s emotional well-being by 2.3 per cent by 2100, according to a study that shows how climate change threatens one`s daily experience and not just health and economic stability. Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, among others in the US, analysed 1.2 billion social media posts of 2019 from 157 countries. Findings published in the journal One Earth show that daily maximum temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius can worsen people`s emotional well-being, with poorer countries impacted disproportionately -- almost thrice -- compared to richer ones. Policymakers cannot truly assess the social costs of climate change or design equitable interventions to protect citizens` physical and psyc...

Adults in the national capital inhale almost twice as many microplastic particles in summer as they do in winter, with the estimated average daily exposure rising from 10.7 particles in the colder months to 21.1 in the hotter season -- a 97 per cent jump, according to a new study. The study, titled `Characterization and Health Risk Assessment of Airborne Microplastics in Delhi NCR`, a joint effort by researchers from the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, and the Department of Environmental Sciences at Savitribai Phule Pune University, said children and toddlers also face significant exposure. Children aged 6 to 12 inhale about 8.1 particles a day in winter, rising to 15.6 in summer, while toddlers aged between one to six breathe in 6.1...

A diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids is not only good for adults, but also crucial to ward off the development of shortsightedness (myopia) in children, according to a global study. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω-3 PUFAs), which can only be obtained from the diet -- found predominantly in fish oils -- are thought to improve or prevent several chronic eye conditions, including dry eye disease and age-related macular degeneration. But whether they can help ward off myopia wasn`t clear, as studies to date have been experimental and haven`t included people. "This study provides the human evidence that higher dietary ω-3 PUFA intake is associated with shorter axial length and less myopic refraction, highlighting ω-3 PUFAs as a potential protective dietary factor against myopia developm...

Girls who go through puberty (the onset of menstruation) before the age of 11 or women who give birth before the age of 21 have double the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, heart failure, and obesity, and quadruple the risk of developing severe metabolic disorders, according to a study. The study led by researchers at the US-based Buck Institute for Research on Aging revealed that later puberty and childbirth are genetically associated with longer lifespan, lower frailty, slower epigenetic ageing, and reduced risk of age-related diseases, including type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer`s. "We show that genetic factors favouring early reproduction come with a significant cost later in life, including accelerated ageing and disease. It makes sense that the very factors that help enhance the surv...

The monsoon season in Mumbai is far from over, and among several health issues that accompany rainy days, health experts have also observed a surge in kidney stone cases in the city and suburbs. Traditionally considered a condition affecting middle-aged men, kidney stones are also being observed in young adults and women, with patients presenting symptoms like severe pain, recurrent infections, and other complications. Explaining the condition, Dr Nasreen Gite, consultant urologist at Apollo Spectra Hospital in Mumbai, says, “Urinary stones are hard mineral deposits that form in the kidneys when substances like calcium, oxalate, and uric acid become concentrated in the urine. The number of kidney stone cases are rising in young adults and women because people often drink less water as th...

Monsoons bring a welcome respite from the summer heat, but it can wreak havoc on our hair. The surge in humidity disrupts the scalp and hair`s delicate balance, leading to frizz, limpness, and breakage. Increased humidity, unexpected rain showers, and dampness can lead to a host of hair problems, from increased hair fall and frizz to scalp infections. However, with the right approach and products, you can navigate these challenges and keep your mane looking fabulous all season long. Fret not, we’ve got experts to help you with a monsoon routine, practical tips, and DIY hair masks that will keep your locks healthy and beautiful throughout the monsoon.   Understanding monsoon hair woesWhy does hair fall increase during the monsoon?According to Dr Pranil More, hair transplant surgeon and di...

A Covid-19 infection can accelerate ageing in blood vessels around five years, particularly in women, according to research.  As blood vessels ages, it can make arteries stiffer -- raising the risk of cardiovascular disease, including stroke and heart attack, explained the researchers. "We know that Covid can directly affect blood vessels. We believe that this may result in what we call early vascular ageing, meaning that your blood vessels are older than your chronological age and you are more susceptible to heart disease,” said Professor Rosa Maria Bruno from Université Paris Cité, France. “If that is happening, we need to identify who is at risk at an early stage to prevent heart attacks and strokes," Bruno said. The study, published in the European Heart Journal, included 2,390 peo...

Brain’s immune cells may explain why a fading sense of smell is an early signal for Alzheimer`s disease even before cognitive impairments manifest, according to a study. Researchers at DZNE and Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) in Germany revealed that the brain`s immune response seems to fatally attack neuronal fibres crucial for the perception of odours. These olfactory dysfunctions arise because immune cells of the brain called "microglia" remove connections between two brain regions, namely the olfactory bulb and the locus coeruleus, they noted in the paper published in the journal Nature Communications. These findings, based on observations in mice and humans, including analysis of brain tissue and so-called PET scanning, may help to devise ways for early diagnosis and, ...

A poor lifestyle with lack of sleep, binge drinking, and high stress, coupled with genes, is playing a significant role in the rising heart-related deaths in India, said experts on Saturday. Recently, an increasing number of heart-related deaths have been reported in the country. These have also been among people who are seemingly fit and are maintaining a healthy lifestyle. “Not all can be called heart attacks. About 20 per cent of the heart-related deaths in India are because of certain genes,” said Dr Rajiv Bhal, Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). He also blamed “binge drinking (alcohol) among the younger generation, silent hypertension, increasing stress, and a lack of proper sleep, as well as childhood obesity” for the surge in heart-related deaths. ...