Health

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. ...

Doctors at a hospital in Kolkata have successfully treated a 76-year-old male patient from Patna in Bihar, who had been battling a recurring pacemaker-related infection for nearly a decade, caused by incomplete lead removal.  The complex case was treated at Manipal Hospital at EM Bypass by Dr Dilip Kumar, director - Cath Lab, senior interventional cardiologist, device and structural heart expert.  The patient got a pacemaker first implanted on the right side of his chest in 2015 at a local hospital in Patna. In 2018, the pacemaker was taken out and re-implanted on the left side but the initial lead that remained from the right-side implantation was not entirely removed.  Instead, it was severed and left within, which resulted in a subacute infection that gradually worsened. Though anoth...

Preterm babies with very low birth weight who received a probiotic alongside antibiotics had fewer multidrug-resistant bacteria and a more typical gut microbiome, according to a study.  The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, is based on a trial testing probiotics among a group of 34 preterm babies born with a very low birth weight, under 1,500g, representing around 1-1.5 per cent of babies born around the world. Researchers from the University of Birmingham in the UK sequenced gut bacteria from the babies during the first three weeks after birth. They found that among babies who received a probiotic treatment of a certain strain, including Bifidobacterium, alongside antibiotics -- the typical bacterial strains associated with early-life gut microbiota -- were at leve...

UK researchers have discovered eight new genes associated with schizophrenia, an advance that will improve the understanding and future treatment development for the severe mental disorder.  Schizophrenia significantly affects how a person thinks, feels, and behaves. It can cause a range of symptoms, including hallucinations, delusions, disorganised thinking, and changes in behaviour. In the breakthrough study, scientists at the Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics (CNGG) at Cardiff University focused on detecting rare, high-impact mutations in protein-coding genes that are significantly more common in people with schizophrenia. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, identified two genes -- STAG1 and ZNF136 -- that were linked to schizophrenia with stron...