Humans Broke Off Neanderthal Sex After Discovering Eurasia LiveScience.com

Humans Broke Off Neanderthal Sex After Discovering Eurasia - Neanderthals apparently last interbred with the ancestors of today's Europeans after modern humans with advanced stone tools expanded out of Africa, researchers say.

The last sex between Neanderthals and modern humans likely occurred as recently as 47,000 years ago, the researchers added.

Modern humans once shared the globe with now-departed human lineages, including the Neanderthals, our closest known extinct relatives. Neanderthals had been around for about 30,000 years when modern humans appeared in the fossil record about 200,000 years ago. Neanderthals disappeared about 30,000 year ago.

 

The last sex between Neanderthals and modern humans likely occurred as recently as 47,000 years ago, suggests research detailed online Oct. 4, 2012, in the journal PLoS Genetics 

In 2010, scientists completed the first sequence of the Neanderthal genome using DNA extracted from fossils, and an examination of the genetic material suggested that modern humans' ancestors occasionally successfully interbred with Neanderthals. Recent estimates reveal that Neanderthal DNA makes up 1 percent to 4 percent of modern Eurasian genomes, perhaps endowing some people with the robust immune systems they enjoy today.

The Neanderthal genome revealed that people outside Africa share more genetic variants with Neanderthals than Africans do. One possible explanation is that modern humans mixed with Neanderthals after the modern lineage began appearing outside Africa at least 100,000 years ago. Another, more complex scenario is that an African group ancestral to both Neanderthals and certain modern human populations genetically diverged from other Africans beginning about 230,000 years ago. This group then stayed genetically distinct until it eventually left Africa.

To shed light on why Neanderthals appear most closely related to people outside Africa, researchers looked at similar DNA chunks in European and Neanderthal genomes. When sperm and egg cells are created, the strands of DNA within them break and rejoin to form new combinations of genetic material. This "recombination" decreases the length of the chunks in each generation. By comparing lengths, "we can estimate when the two populations last shared genes," explained researcher Sriram Sankararaman, a statistical geneticist at Harvard Medical School.

The research team estimates modern humans and Neanderthals last exchanged genes between 37,000 and 86,000 years ago, and most likely 47,000 to 65,000 years ago. This is well after modern humans began expanding outside Africa, but potentially before they started spreading across Eurasia.

These findings suggest modern humans last shared ancestors with Neanderthals during the period known as the Upper Paleolithic. Back then, modern humans had begun using relatively advanced stone tools, such as knife blades, spear points, and engraving and drilling implements.

"I think we will be able to get new insights on how modern humans adapted as they occupied new regions," Sankararaman told LiveScience. "It shows the power of genetic data to learn about historical events."

Future research will explore other prehistoric interbreeding events, such as the apparent mixing between ancestors of modern Papuans and the recently unearthed extinct human lineage known as the Denisovans.

"There are technical challenges here," Sankararaman said. "Papuans have had gene flow from Neanderthals and from Denisovans. That makes it challenging to tease their contributions apart."

The scientists detailed their findings online Oct. 4 in the journal PLoS Genetics. ( LiveScience.com )

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Do you still believe in the g-spot?

Do you still believe in the g-spot? - Scientists Still Can’t Find G-Spot - Girls, it’s not just your boyfriends and husbands, okay?

Even scientists in laboratories equipped with devices, educational materials, diagrams and non-bedroom lighting can’t find the g-spot. The elusive orgasm shortcut is called the g-spot for short, but it’s full name is the Grafenberg spot, after the doctor that first officially acknowledged it in 1950. Described in medical literature as a small protuberance on the area in the distal anterior vaginal wall, experts, couples and people who apparently don’t have g-spots have been bickering about the contested existence of the area- which is said to cause instant climax when properly stimulated- for more than 60 years.

New research published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, conducted by urological surgeon at Yale Amichai Kilchevsky took “objective measures” to attempt again to officially locate the g-spot in female subjects, and noted that again the research “failed to provide strong and consistent evidence for the existence of an anatomical site that could be related to the famed G-spot.” Kilchevsky instead proposed that the sensations some females report instead stem from interior stimulation of the clitoris, and likened the g-spot area to the base of the penis in males.

Kilchevsky described a good reason to confirm or deny the existence of a g-spot in the first place- the pressures placed on women who feel inadequate because they believe they are missing out on much-hyped g-spot stimulation. He says:

“Lots of women feel almost as though it is their fault… Men are upset they can’t stimulate it for their partners. The reality is that it is probably not something, historically or evolutionarily, that should even exist.”

(Is it just me, or does that kind of make it sound like Bigfoot?) Kilchevsky said that the porn industry holds much of the blame for promoting the idea that women have a magical orgasm switch that either they or their partners are just too inept or sexually unskilled to find. He likened the pressure to that surrounding penis size, and said that due to porn “now men are all talking about penis size… the reality is, most men have the exact same-sized penis.” ( inquisitr.com )

Do you still believe in the g-spot?

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Borneo toad spotted for 1st time in 87 years

Borneo toad spotted for 1st time in 87 years — Scientists scouring the mountains of Borneo spotted a species of toads last seen by European explorers in 1924, providing the world with the first photographs of the colorful, spindly legged creature, a researcher said Thursday.

In recent years, the Washington-based Conservation International placed the Sambas Stream Toad, also known as the Bornean Rainbow Toad, on a list of the world's "Top 10 Most Wanted Lost Frogs" and voiced fears that it might be extinct.

Researchers found three of the slender-limbed toads living on trees during a night search last month in a remote mountainous region of Malaysia's eastern Sarawak state in Borneo, said Indraneil Das, a conservation professor at the Sarawak Malaysia University who led the expedition.

This photo, taken June 13, 2011 and released by Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation, shows an adult female Bornean Rainbow Toad, also referred to as Sambas Stream Toad (Ansonia latidisca) in Penrissen, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. Scientists scouring the mountains of Borneo spotted the toads, which were last seen by European explorers in 1924, providing the world with the first photographs of the colorful, spindly-legged creature, a researcher said Thursday, July 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation, Indraneil Das) NO SALE, MANDATORY CREDIT, ONE TIME USE ONLY, NO ARCHIVES

Only illustrations of the toads previously existed. Das said his team first decided to seek the toad last August, but months of searching proved fruitless until they went higher up the Penrissen mountain range, which has rarely been explored in the past century.

"It is good to know that nature can surprise us when we are close to giving up hope, especially amidst our planet's escalating extinction crisis," Robin Moore, a specialist on amphibians at Conservation International, said in a statement announcing the discovery.

The toads found on three separate trees measured up to 2 inches (5.1 centimeters) in size and comprised an adult male, an adult female and a juvenile, the statement said.

Das declined to reveal the exact site of his team's discovery because of fears of illegal poaching due to strong demand for bright-hued amphibians. Researchers will continue work to find out more about the Borneo Rainbow Toad and other amphibians in Penrissen.

Conservationists say many endangered animals in Borneo are threatened by hunting and habitat loss sparked by logging, plantations and other human development. ( Associated Press )

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Aussie student finds universe's 'missing mass'

Aussie student finds universe's 'missing mass' - A 22-year-old Australian university student has solved a problem which has puzzled astrophysicists for decades, discovering part of the so-called "missing mass" of the universe during her summer break.

Undergraduate Amelia Fraser-McKelvie made the breakthrough during a holiday internship with a team at Monash University's School of Physics, locating the mystery material within vast structures called "filaments of galaxies".

Monash astrophysicist Dr Kevin Pimbblet explained that scientists had previously detected matter that was present in the early history of the universe but that could not now be located.

"There is missing mass, ordinary mass not dark mass ... It's missing to the present day," Pimbblet told AFP.

"We don't know where it went. Now we do know where it went because that's what Amelia found."

Fraser-McKelvie, an aerospace engineering and science student, was able to confirm after a targeted X-ray search for the mystery mass that it had moved to the "filaments of galaxies", which stretch across enormous expanses of space.

Pimbblet's earlier work had suggested the filaments as a possible location for the "missing" matter, thought to be low in density but high in temperature.

Pimbblet said astrophysicists had known about the "missing" mass for the past two decades, but the technology needed to pinpoint its location had only become available in recent years.

He said the discovery could drive the construction of new telescopes designed to specifically study the mass.

Pimbblet admitted the discovery was primarily academic, but he said previous physics research had led to the development of diverse other technologies.

"Whenever I speak to people who have influence, politicians and so on, they sometimes ask me 'Why should I invest in physics pure research?'. And I sometimes say to them: 'Do you use a mobile phone? Some of that technology came about by black hole research'.

"The pure research has knock-on effects to the whole society which are sometimes difficult to anticipate." ( AFP )

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A commentary on kids' caffeine consumption

Kids Are Getting Amped on Caffeine, Even at Age 5 - A commentary on kids' caffeine consumption

Most school-age children drink caffeinated drinks, and many of them are imbibing enough caffeine to give adults the jitters. And their sleep is suffering. That's the news from the Journal of Pediatrics, which surveyed parents on their children's caffeine habits.
Click here to find out more!

It turns out that 5- to 7-year-olds on average drink 52 milligrams of caffeine daily, or the caffeine equivalent of one Coke. That may not sound too bad, but the 228 parents in the new study admitted their 8- to 12-year-olds drink the caffeine equivalent of almost three Cokes daily. And the more caffeine the kids took in, the less they slept.

It's hard to imagine parents thinking double lattes are a good choice for kids, but the fact is that 75 percent of the 228 parents surveyed by the researchers, at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, said their kids down caffeinated drinks daily. Soft drinks are the biggest culprit; they're also a bad choice for kids because they're high in sugar, with zero nutritional value. Schools don't always help on this. A recent study found that 14 percent of public elementary school students and 38 percent of private elementary school students can buy sugar-sweetened beverages at school. And kids often don't realize that Gatorade and other sports drinks are just soft drinks in disguise.

Here are three ways that parents can cut back on children's caffeine consumption, and increase their odds of a good night's sleep:

• Take soft drinks off the menu, at home and in restaurants. They're bad nutritional choices, and many contain caffeine.

• Beware of hidden caffeine. Many orange sodas have caffeine, but you'd never guess it from the taste. Indeed, not all caffeinated drinks are brown. One can of Mountain Dew has 55 mg of caffeine, which beats the amount in a can of Coke or Pepsi.

• Explain that energy drinks aren't the right kind of energy for kids. A 16-ounce Arizona Green Tea Energy has 200 mg of caffeine; that's four Cokes! Clearly this green tea is not a healthy choice.

The fact that so many high-caffeine drinks are also sugary makes them more attractive to children; think of it as training wheels for a caffeine addiction. That's not a lesson that grade-schoolers need to learn. ( usnews.com )

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Nuclear Overreactors

Nuclear Overreactors - Let's cool the political meltdown over Japan's damaged nuclear power plants - Less than a year ago, a drilling rig exploded off the coast of the United States, killing 11 workers and pouring 4 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. No natural disaster caused this tragedy. It was entirely man-made. President Obama halted deep-water drilling but lifted the moratorium less than six months later. On Friday, while fielding questions about Japan's nuclear reactors, he proudly noted that his administration, under new, stricter rules, had "approved more than 35 new offshore drilling permits."

That's how we deal with tragedies in the oil business. Accidents happen. People die. Pollution spreads. We don't abandon oil. We study what went wrong, try to fix it, and move on.

Quake-damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant in Futaba, Japan

Contrast this with the panic over Japan's reactors. For 40 years, they've quietly done their work. Three days ago, they were hit almost simultaneously by Japan's worst earthquake and one of its worst tsunamis. Not one reactor container has failed. The only employee who has died at a Japanese nuclear facility since the quake was killed by a crane. Despite this, voices are rising in Europe and the United States to abandon nuclear power. Industry analysts predict that the Japan scare, like Chernobyl, will freeze plant construction.

Let's cool this panic before it becomes a political meltdown.

Early reports said four Japanese plants were in trouble. Now it appears only two were disabled. Early reports said three employees had radiation sickness. Now we're hearing only one is sick, and even in that case, the radiation dose appears relatively low. Two reactor buildings exploded, but these were explosions of excess hydrogen, not nuclear fuel, and neither of them ruptured the inner containers that encase the reactor cores. Some radiation has leaked, but according to measurements outside the plants, the amount so far is modest. Any leak is bad, and the area of contamination, even at low rates, will probably spread. Japan needs our sympathy and our help. But let's not exaggerate the crisis.

In advanced countries like Japan and the United States, nuclear plants are built to standards no drilling rig can touch. If a sensor, cable, or power source fails, another sensor, cable, or power source is available. Containers of steel or concrete envelop the reactors to prevent massive radiation leaks. Chernobyl didn't have such a container. Three Mile Island did. That's why Three Mile Island produced no uncontrolled leakage or injuries.

Japan's plants were designed to withstand quakes and tsunamis, but not a combination of this magnitude. At the affected facilities, the quake knocked out the primary cooling systems, and the tsunami wiped out the backup diesel generators. Then a valve malfunction thwarted efforts to pump water into one of the reactors. Everything that could go wrong did.

Despite this, the reactor containers have held firm. The explosions around them have blown outward, relieving pressure, as designed. Meanwhile, plant operators, deprived of their primary and secondary power sources for cooling the cores, have tapped batteries and deployed alternate generators. To relieve pressure, they've released vapor. And in some cases, they've pumped seawater and boric acid into the reactors, destroying them to protect the public. Cooling systems are back online at two previously impaired reactors, and a backup pump has averted cooling problems at a third plant.

The reactor where the crisis began, Fukushima Daiichi Unit 1, is one of Japan's oldest. It was two weeks from its 40-year expiration date when the quake hit. Similar plants in the United States have been upgraded to ensure that in the event of power failure, water can still be pumped in to cool them. And nuclear plants are indisputably getting safer. Since 1990, worker radiation exposure and automatic reactor shutdowns worldwide have declined by a factor of three. According to an analysis last year by the Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, plants being constructed by today's standards are 1,600 times safer than early nuclear plants, in terms of the predicted frequency of a large radiation leak. Even if a reactor core is damaged, as in Japan, the NEA report notes that today, "the probability of a release to the environment is about ten times less than that of core damage," thanks to improvements in fuel, circuits, and containment.

If Japan, the United States, or Europe retreats from nuclear power in the face of the current panic, the most likely alternative energy source is fossil fuel. And by any measure, fossil fuel is more dangerous. The sole fatal nuclear power accident of the last 40 years, Chernobyl, directly killed 31 people. By comparison, Switzerland's Paul Scherrer Institute calculates that from 1969 to 2000, more than 20,000 people died in severe accidents in the oil supply chain. More than 15,000 people died in severe accidents in the coal supply chain—11,000 in China alone. The rate of direct fatalities per unit of energy production is 18 times worse for oil than it is for nuclear power.

Even if you count all the deaths plausibly related to Chernobyl—9,000 to 33,000 over a 70-year period—that number is dwarfed by the death rate from burning fossil fuels. The OECD's 2008 Environmental Outlook calculates that fine-particle outdoor air pollution caused nearly 1 million premature deaths in the year 2000, and 30 percent of this was energy-related. You'd need 500 Chernobyls to match that level of annual carnage. But outside Chernobyl, we've had zero fatal nuclear power accidents.

That doesn't mean we can ignore what has happened in Japan. Precisely because nuclear accidents are so rare, we have to study them intensely. Each one tells us what to fix in the next generation of power plants. The most obvious mistake in Japan was parking the diesel generators in an area low enough to be flooded by a quake-driven tsunami. The batteries that backed up the generators weren't adequate, either. They lasted only eight hours, and power outage fallback plans at U.S. reactors are even shorter. Moreover, this is the second time an advanced nuclear facility has had to vent radioactive vapor (Three Mile Island was the first). Maybe it's time to require filtration systems that scrub the vapor before it's released.

Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut says we should "put the brakes" on nuclear power plant construction until we figure out what went wrong in Japan. Rep. Ed Markey of Massachusetts wants a moratorium on new reactors in "seismically active areas" while we study the problem. That's fine. But let's not block construction indefinitely while we go on mindlessly pumping oil. Because nuclear energy, for all its risks, is safer. ( slate.com )

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Japan Finds Plutonium at Stricken Nuclear Plant

Japan Finds Plutonium at Stricken Nuclear Plant - Plutonium found in soil at the crippled Fukushima nuclear complex heightened alarm on Tuesday over Japan's protracted battle to contain the world's worst atomic crisis in 25 years.

Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) said the radioactive material — a by-product of atomic reactions and also used in nuclear bombs — had been found in soil in five places at the plant, hit by an earthquake and tsunami on March 11.

The drama at the six-reactor facility has compounded Japan's agony after the twin disaster left more than 28,000 people dead or missing in the devastated northeast.

"I apologize for making people worried," Sakae Muto, vice-president of under-pressure TEPCO, said at a briefing around midnight in Tokyo. Yet he stressed the traces of plutonium-238, 239 and 240 were not dangerous and work would not be stopped.

"It's not at the level that's harmful to human health."

Officials scan people for radiation, 60 km west of the nuclear power plant in Fukushima prefecture, in Koriyama on March 18, 2011

Muto said the readings were similar to those found in the past in other parts of Japan due to particles in the atmosphere from nuclear testing abroad.

TEPCO said it was unclear where the plutonium was from, though it appeared two of the five finds were related to damage from the plant rather than from the atmosphere.

Experts believe that at least some of the plutonium may have come from spent fuel rods at Fukushima or damage to reactor No. 3, the only one to use plutonium in its fuel mix.

The United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said the find was expected due to known fuel degradation.

Containment Breached

Japan's own nuclear safety agency was concerned at the plutonium samples, whose levels of radioactive decay ranged from 0.18 to 0.54 becquerels per kg.

"While it's not the level harmful to human health, I am not optimistic. This means the containment mechanism is being breached so I think the situation is worrisome," agency official Hidehiko Nishiyama was quoted as saying by Jiji news agency.

The plutonium discovery, from samples taken a week ago, was the latest bad news from the Fukushima plant, where engineers are resigned to a struggle of weeks or possibly months to re-establish cooling systems vital to control of the reactors.

On Monday, TEPCO said highly radioactive water had been found in concrete tunnels that extend beyond one reactor.

Fires, blasts and leaks have forced engineers to stop work at times, including at the weekend when radiation spiked to 100,000 times above normal in water inside reactor No. 2.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said a partial meltdown of fuel rods inside the reactor vessel was responsible.

The crisis, the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl in 1986, has already contaminated vegetables and milk produced in the area, as well as the surrounding sea.

Apocalyptic Scenes

With Japan's towns and villages on the northeast coast reduced to apocalyptic landscapes of mud and debris, more than a quarter of a million people are homeless. The event may be the world's costliest natural disaster, with estimates of damage topping $300 billion.

The environmental group Greenpeace said its experts had confirmed dangerous radiation of up to 10 microsieverts per hour in Iitate village, 40 km (25 miles) northwest of the plant.

It called for the extension of a 20-km (12-mile) evacuation zone. "It is clearly not safe for people to remain in Iitate, especially children and pregnant women, when it could mean receiving the maximum allowed annual dose of radiation in only a few days," Greenpeace said in a statement.

In most countries the maximum permissible annual dose for radiation workers is 50 millisieverts, or 50,000 microsieverts, according to the World Nuclear Association Industry body.

Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from a 20 km (12 mile) radius around the plant and people within a radius extending a further 10 km have been told by the government to stay indoors or, better still, leave too.

Beyond the evacuation zone, traces of radiation have been found in tap water in Tokyo and as far away as Iceland.

The U.S. government said tiny traces of radiation believed to be from Japan were being detected by sensors round the nation, but were "far below levels of public health concern".

Japanese officials and international experts have generally said the levels away from the plant were not dangerous for human beings, who in any case face higher radiation doses on a daily basis from natural sources, X-rays or flying.

Leadership Problems

Facing a long and uncertain operation, TEPCO sought outside help from firms including Electricite de France SA and Areva SA, a French government minister said.

Japan is also seeking American help, said Robin Grimes, head of the center for nuclear engineering at Imperial College in London. "Each country has its own expertise."

Mark Prelas, a professor of nuclear engineering at University of Missouri in the United States, warned against overreaction to the fast-moving events in Japan.

"It's worth remembering that millions of Americans in the west of the country would have been exposed to tiny traces of plutonium during the above-ground bomb tests prior to the 1960s," he said.

The risk of a core meltdown had receded, he added, and hopefully water pumps would be restarted in the next couple of weeks to get the reactors into a safe "cold shutdown" stage.

"The eventual clean-up still looks like it should be easily manageable," he added.

The crisis has put huge pressure on TEPCO, which has been criticized for safety lapses at the plant and a slow response to the disaster. Its boss Masataka Shimizu has barely been seen.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan, leading Japan during its worst crisis since World War Two, has been similarly low-profile.

Even though Japan's culture stresses group efficiency over individual charisma, many are unhappy and a weekend poll suggested two-thirds of people felt Kan was not showing leadership.

"The characters involved are too weak to take decisive actions," said Jesper Koll, analyst at JP Morgan Securities. ( cnbc.com )

READ MORE - Japan Finds Plutonium at Stricken Nuclear Plant

Firstborn Children More Likely To Develop Food Allergies

Firstborn Children More Likely To Develop Food Allergies, Study Says - New Research Indicates 'Birth Order Effect' a Factor in Development of Allergies

From watching "The Brady Bunch," it's clear to see that the eldest girl, Marsha, gets the most attention. But according to a new study, she also might get the most allergies.

Birth order, thought by some to determine everything from romantic compatibility to IQ score, may be the reason your oldest child is allergic to peanuts and your younger children are not.

According to a new study, older children are more likely to suffer from food allergies than their younger siblings. The results indicate the "birth order effect" occurs specifically in food allergies, as compared with other types of allergies.

Among study participants, the prevalence of food allergies was 4 percent in firstborn children, 3.5 percent in second-born children, and 2.6 percent in those born later.

Kara Corridan, the Health Editor at Parents magazine, said the study is too preliminary to get "too excited about this." It may be reassuring to parents whose first child has an allergy.
For parents, raising a child with a food allergy puts them "in a club they really don't want to be a part of," Corridan said. Food allergies can sometimes be life-threatening, and parents may have to monitor everything their child eats and touches in all environments. "Even if there's a small fraction of a chance that younger children don't have [food allergies], that would be great," she said.

Firstborns were also more likely to have allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis -- conditions that affect the nose and mouth, respectively -- than their younger siblings.

The study's authors say that multiple pregnancies may cause changes in the womb that help build the immune systems of the second and third children. Another contributing factor may be the "hygiene hypothesis:" in preparing for their firstborn to come home, parents may hyper-sterilize their environments. By the time babies 2 and 3 come around, there are more germs, and the younger siblings may develop stronger immune systems.

"The more you are exposed to an allergen, the more likely it is you'll be immune to it," Corridan said. The connection between birth order and allergies had been established by earlier studies, she said, but this study is the first that breaks the connection down by allergic condition.

Birth order does not seem to affect a child's likelihood to develop asthma or atopic dermatitis, a type of eczema.

The study surveyed 13,000 children ages 7 to 15. The researchers compared the incidence of each allergic disease with birth order. The survey also asked parents whether their children experienced wheezing, eczema or food allergies before age 1 -- and researchers saw the same trend: the prevalence of allergies was higher in firstborn children.

Birth Order Can Be An Indicator For Behavioral Characteristics

The findings were presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology in San Francisco on March 20.

The birth order effect has been studied in several other areas of children's lives; literature has indicated firstborns excel at school and science, while younger siblings tend to be more exploratory and take more risks.

Dr. Frank Sulloway, a visiting scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, has studied the birth order effect. He said examining children's behavior compared with their birth order opens up the issue of family niches and family dynamics.

"When the firstborn comes along, there are no younger siblings and they've got 100 percent of parental attention," he said. "It seems to be reflected not only in IQ differences ... but firstborns essentially do things that the parents value."

So it makes sense that firstborns score 3 points higher than their younger siblings on IQ tests. Twenty-one of the first 23 American astronauts to fly in space were firstborn, along with a disproportionate number of our nation's presidents and CEOs.

"The good story about younger siblings is they diversify in other ways," Sulloway said. "Younger siblings are always looking for alternative niches to explore and to exploit as a way of getting back some of that parental investment and attention they may have otherwise lost."

While more Nobel Prize winners for science are firstborns, more winners of the Nobel Prize for literature are younger siblings, Sulloway said. Younger siblings are also 50 percent more likely to play dangerous sports.

Sulloway said it's important to keep in mind that most birth order effects are "fairly modest in size," and that there are other contributing factors that influence human behavior and personality development.

"You just have to keep in mind that there are a lot of different things that are influencing behavior, and birth order is just one player in that whole complex process of how we become who we become," Sulloway said." ( abcnews.go.com )

READ MORE - Firstborn Children More Likely To Develop Food Allergies

Scientists find the kilo isn't pulling its weight

Scientists find the kilo isn't pulling its weight - It is news to gladden the heart of any metric martyr - Scientists have discovered that the kilogram is struggling with a weight problem.

Measurements taken over the past 100 years show that the international prototype – the metal object on which the scientific unit of mass is based – has got lighter.

Weight off: The cylinder of platinum-iridium alloy may have shed around 50 micrograms, the equivalent to the mass of a small grain of sand

For reasons that remain a mystery, the cylinder of platinum-iridium alloy, which is just under four centimetres tall and wide, may have shed around 50 micrograms, the equivalent to the mass of a small grain of sand.

Scientists are now looking for a way to define the unit without referring to a physical object.

If they are successful, the ‘gold standard’ kilogram, which since 1889 has been triple-locked under two bell jars at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures in Paris, will follow the prototype metre into history.

Dr Michael Stock, who works at the bureau, presented the latest research on the matter to the Royal Society in London yesterday.

The experiments aim to define the kilogram based on a link between mass and the Planck constant – the fundamental unit of measurement in quantum physics.

Dr Stock said there were ‘reasonable chances’ that the new definition will be introduced in 2015, when the General Conference on Weights and Measures is due to meet in Paris.

He said: ‘The international prototype has fulfilled its role quite well during the last century.

‘However, measurements get more and more precise, and precise measurements require well- defined measurement units to express their results.

‘Another disadvantage is that the international prototype exists only at one place, in Paris.

‘A material artefact could also be damaged, with obvious negative consequences.’

Brussels directives state that the kilogram should be the basis for all sales by weight in the EU.

Vendors have been prosecuted for selling goods priced only in imperial units, earning them the nickname ‘metric martyrs’. ( dailymail.co.uk )

READ MORE - Scientists find the kilo isn't pulling its weight

Living and working with migraine

Living and working with migraine. Migraine is more than just a headache. It's a serious problem that affects six million people in Britain alone and loses 18 million working days each year, costing the nation a staggering £750 million in lost production as a result. So how can sufferers cope with migraines both at work and at home?

Identify triggers Migraine triggers are many and varied, and most often it is a combination of several triggers which starts an attack. Once you identify your trigger factors, look for a pattern, and make minor adjustments to your lifestyle. There are six categories of trigger:

1. Emotional Stress such as anger, excitement, worry, shock, depression.
   
2. Physical Stress, such as a blow to the head, travelling, a change in sleep pattern, bending, changes in routine, and muscle tension.
   
3. Alcohol and certain foods such as chocolate, citrus fruits, cheese, fried food; additives such as monosodium glutamate (MSG); or long gaps between meals, fasting or dieting.
   
4. Environmental.
   
5. Hormonal triggers such as PMT or periods.
   
6. Other triggers include taking sleeping tablets, having high blood pressure, dental problems, eye strain or sinus problems.

Watch for warnings Even though some migraines are preceded by an aura, the notion that all migraines have a special warning signal is a myth: only 10pc-15 pc of migraine sufferers experience an aura before a classic migraine attack. If you experience these warnings, make sure you have your medication at hand.

Look at your diet Avoid foods you know you are sensitive to. Keep blood sugar levels stable by eating regularly, avoiding sugary snacks, and eating lots of slow-release carbohydrate foods, such as porridge. Drink at least two litres of water a day.

Get treatment fast Many people find that if they can treat a migraine early enough, even simple over-the-counter remedies such as aspirin or paracetamol can be effective.

Plan with your cycle Many women get hormonally-triggered migraines connected with menstrual cycles. If this happens to you, try to plan your workload to get important jobs done at other times wherever possible.

Have a check-up See your GP - especially if your headaches have been getting worse. You may need to change your medicine if it has become ineffective. If you are worried about the security of your job, it could be important to prove a medical history of migraine.

Take breaks Take all your rest and lunch breaks, don't skip meals, and try not to get overtired. When you have a break, take a walk in the fresh air.

Let your boss know Tell your employer that you suffer from migraines and try to get their support. Flexible working hours can be effective, and will encourage your employer to see that you are not using your illness as an excuse. FOR more information visit the web-sites: www.migrainetrust.org and www.migraine.org.uk ( dailymail.co.uk )

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Solution to killer superbug found in Norway ( 3 )

Solution to killer superbug found in Norway ( 2 ). In 2001, the CDC approached a Veterans Affairs hospital in Pittsburgh about conducting a small test program. It started in one unit, and within four years, the entire hospital was screening everyone who came through the door for MRSA. The result: an 80 percent decrease in MRSA infections. The program has now been expanded to all 153 VA hospitals, resulting in a 50 percent drop in MRSA bloodstream infections, said Dr. Robert Muder, chief of infectious diseases at the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System.

"It's kind of a no-brainer," he said. "You save people pain, you save people the work of taking care of them, you save money, you save lives and you can export what you learn to other hospital-acquired infections."

Pittsburgh's program has prompted all other major hospital-acquired infections to plummet as well, saving roughly $1 million a year.

"So, how do you pay for it?" Muder asked. "Well, we just don't pay for MRSA infections, that's all."

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Beth Reimer of Batavia, Ill., became an advocate for MRSA precautions after her 5-week-old daughter Madeline caught a cold that took a fatal turn. One day her beautiful baby had the sniffles. The next?

"She wasn't breathing. She was limp," the mother recalled. "Something was terribly wrong."

MRSA had invaded her little lungs. The antibiotics were useless. Maddie struggled to breathe, swallow, survive, for two weeks.

"For me to sit and watch Madeline pass away from such an aggressive form of something, to watch her fight for her little life - it was too much," Reimer said.

Since Madeline's death, Reimer has become outspoken about the need for better precautions, pushing for methods successfully used in Norway. She's stunned, she said, that anyone disputes the need for change.

"Why are they fighting for this not to take place?" she said.

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Martha Mendoza is an AP national writer who reported from Norway and England. Margie Mason is an AP medical writer based in Vietnam, who reported while on a fellowship from The Nieman Foundation at Harvard University. ( washingtonpost.com )

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Solution to killer superbug found in Norway ( 2 )

Solution to killer superbug found in Norway ( 2 ). Forty years ago, a new spectrum of antibiotics enchanted public health officials, quickly quelling one infection after another. In wealthier countries that could afford them, patients and providers came to depend on antibiotics. Trouble was, the more antibiotics are consumed, the more resistant bacteria develop.

Norway responded swiftly to initial MRSA outbreaks in the 1980s by cutting antibiotic use. Thus while they got ahead of the infection, the rest of the world fell behind.

In Norway, MRSA has accounted for less than 1 percent of staph infections for years. That compares to 80 percent in Japan, the world leader in MRSA; 44 percent in Israel; and 38 percent in Greece.

In the U.S., cases have soared and MRSA cost $6 billion last year. Rates have gone up from 2 percent in 1974 to 63 percent in 2004. And in the United Kingdom, they rose from about 2 percent in the early 1990s to about 45 percent, although an aggressive control program is now starting to work.

About 1 percent of people in developed countries carry MRSA on their skin. Usually harmless, the bacteria can be deadly when they enter a body, often through a scratch. MRSA spreads rapidly in hospitals where sick people are more vulnerable, but there have been outbreaks in prisons, gyms, even on beaches. When dormant, the bacteria are easily detected by a quick nasal swab and destroyed by antibiotics.

Dr. John Jernigan at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said they incorporate some of Norway's solutions in varying degrees, and his agency "requires hospitals to move the needle, to show improvement, and if they don't show improvement they need to do more."

And if they don't?

"Nobody is accountable to our recommendations," he said, "but I assume hospitals and institutions are interested in doing the right thing."

Dr. Barry Farr, a retired epidemiologist who watched a successful MRSA control program launched 30 years ago at the University of Virginia's hospitals, blamed the CDC for clinging to past beliefs that hand washing is the best way to stop the spread of infections like MRSA. He says it's time to add screening and isolation methods to their controls.

The CDC needs to "eat a little crow and say, 'Yeah, it does work,'" he said. "There's example after example. We don't need another study. We need somebody to just do the right thing."

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But can Norway's program really work elsewhere?

The answer lies in the busy laboratory of an aging little public hospital about 100 miles outside of London. It's here that microbiologist Dr. Lynne Liebowitz got tired of seeing the stunningly low Nordic MRSA rates while facing her own burgeoning cases.

So she turned Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kings Lynn into a petri dish, asking doctors to almost completely stop using two antibiotics known for provoking MRSA infections.

One month later, the results were in: MRSA rates were tumbling. And they've continued to plummet. Five years ago, the hospital had 47 MRSA bloodstream infections. This year they've had one.

"I was shocked, shocked," says Liebowitz, bouncing onto her toes and grinning as colleagues nearby drip blood onto slides and peer through microscopes in the hospital laboratory.

When word spread of her success, Liebowitz's phone began to ring. So far she has replicated her experiment at four other hospitals, all with the same dramatic results.

"It's really very upsetting that some patients are dying from infections which could be prevented," she says. "It's wrong."

Around the world, various medical providers have also successfully adapted Norway's program with encouraging results. A medical center in Billings, Mont., cut MRSA infections by 89 percent by increasing screening, isolating patients and making all staff - not just doctors - responsible for increasing hygiene.

In Japan, with its cutting-edge technology and modern hospitals, about 17,000 people die from MRSA every year.

Dr. Satoshi Hori, chief infection control doctor at Juntendo University Hospital in Tokyo, says doctors overprescribe antibiotics because they are given financial incentives to push drugs on patients.

Hori now limits antibiotics only to patients who really need them and screens and isolates high-risk patients. So far his hospital has cut the number of MRSA cases by two-thirds. ( washingtonpost.com )

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Solution to killer superbug found in Norway ( 1 )

Solution to killer superbug found in Norway ( 1 ) -- Aker University Hospital is a dingy place to heal. The floors are streaked and scratched. A light layer of dust coats the blood pressure monitors. A faint stench of urine and bleach wafts from a pile of soiled bedsheets dropped in a corner.

Look closer, however, at a microscopic level, and this place is pristine. There is no sign of a dangerous and contagious staph infection that killed tens of thousands of patients in the most sophisticated hospitals of Europe, North America and Asia this year, soaring virtually unchecked.

The reason: Norwegians stopped taking so many drugs.

Twenty-five years ago, Norwegians were also losing their lives to this bacteria. But Norway's public health system fought back with an aggressive program that made it the most infection-free country in the world. A key part of that program was cutting back severely on the use of antibiotics.

Now a spate of new studies from around the world prove that Norway's model can be replicated with extraordinary success, and public health experts are saying these deaths - 19,000 in the U.S. each year alone, more than from AIDS - are unnecessary.

"It's a very sad situation that in some places so many are dying from this, because we have shown here in Norway that Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) can be controlled, and with not too much effort," said Jan Hendrik-Binder, Oslo's MRSA medical adviser. "But you have to take it seriously, you have to give it attention, and you must not give up."

The World Health Organization says antibiotic resistance is one of the leading public health threats on the planet. A six-month investigation by The Associated Press found overuse and misuse of medicines has led to mutations in once curable diseases like tuberculosis and malaria, making them harder and in some cases impossible to treat.

Now, in Norway's simple solution, there's a glimmer of hope.

---

Dr. John Birger Haug shuffles down Aker's scuffed corridors, patting the pocket of his baggy white scrubs. "My bible," the infectious disease specialist says, pulling out a little red Antibiotic Guide that details this country's impressive MRSA solution.

It's what's missing from this book - an array of antibiotics - that makes it so remarkable.

"There are times I must show these golden rules to our doctors and tell them they cannot prescribe something, but our patients do not suffer more and our nation, as a result, is mostly infection free," he says.

Norway's model is surprisingly straightforward.

• Norwegian doctors prescribe fewer antibiotics than any other country, so people do not have a chance to develop resistance to them.
• Patients with MRSA are isolated and medical staff who test positive stay at home.
• Doctors track each case of MRSA by its individual strain, interviewing patients about where they've been and who they've been with, testing anyone who has been in contact with them.

Haug unlocks the dispensary, a small room lined with boxes of pills, bottles of syrups and tubes of ointment. What's here? Medicines considered obsolete in many developed countries. What's not? Some of the newest, most expensive antibiotics, which aren't even registered for use in Norway, "because if we have them here, doctors will use them," he says.

He points to an antibiotic. "If I treated someone with an infection in Spain with this penicillin I would probably be thrown in jail," he says, "and rightly so because it's useless there."

Norwegians are sanguine about their coughs and colds, toughing it out through low-grade infections.

"We don't throw antibiotics at every person with a fever. We tell them to hang on, wait and see, and we give them a Tylenol to feel better," says Haug.

Convenience stores in downtown Oslo are stocked with an amazing and colorful array - 42 different brands at one downtown 7-Eleven - of soothing, but non-medicated, lozenges, sprays and tablets. All workers are paid on days they, or their children, stay home sick. And drug makers aren't allowed to advertise, reducing patient demands for prescription drugs.

In fact, most marketing here sends the opposite message: "Penicillin is not a cough medicine," says the tissue packet on the desk of Norway's MRSA control director, Dr. Petter Elstrom.

He recognizes his country is "unique in the world and best in the world" when it comes to MRSA. Less than 1 percent of health care providers are positive carriers of MRSA staph.

But Elstrom worries about the bacteria slipping in through other countries. Last year almost every diagnosed case in Norway came from someone who had been abroad.

"So far we've managed to contain it, but if we lose this, it will be a huge problem," he said. "To be very depressing about it, we might in some years be in a situation where MRSA is so endemic that we have to stop doing advanced surgeries, things like organ transplants, if we can't prevent infections. In the worst case scenario we are back to 1913, before we had antibiotics." ( washingtonpost.com )

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20 proven benefits of exercise

20 proven benefits of exercise. A 30-minute walk every day can do more for your long-term health than all the efforts of a dozen doctors and their medication.

Not only does exercise improve your health, even if you have already been diagnosed with something, but it can go a long way to prevent the onset of several life-threatening conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

And exercise can make you look great – younger, fitter and thinner. Who needs any more convincing?

We have scrutinised the medical journals. Here's a summary of the proven health benefits of exercise:

1. It's good for your heart

"Even a moderate amount of exercise helps your heart," says Dr William Kraus, associate professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Centre, in an article published in The New England Journal of Medicine. "Some exercise is better than none and more is better than less."

Exercise reduces LDL cholesterol, the kind that clogs arteries. It also reduces your blood pressure, relieving stress on your heart; improves your insulin sensitivity; improves heart muscle function; and blood flow and diminishes the chances of developing blood clots. These findings have been corroborated by a host of studies over the years.

2. Exercise promotes weight loss

Research has shown that to manage weight, you should exercise energetically for at least 30 minutes a day. You can also do an hour of intensive exercise every second day if this fits into your schedule more easily. Be consistent and be regular. Do those one-hour exercise sessions three to four times every week, not just one week a month, and you will achieve the result you desire - to lose weight and keep it off, says Dr Ingrid van Heerden, registered dietician.

3. Exercise prevents osteoporosis

Exercise, together with a healthy calcium intake, builds strong bones. Weight-bearing exercises, like running, walking and weight-lifting, help lower your odds of getting osteoporosis as you grow older, according to experts.

Ideally, you should start when you're young, but it's never too late to pick up the habit. Even a brisk walk can help, say metabolic disease specialists.

4. Exercise lowers high blood pressure

Exercise is good for your blood pressure - no matter your age, weight, race or gender. And it really doesn't matter whether you get exercise from a brisk walk, a fast run or a few laps in the pool; the results are equally good.

The studies on which these findings were based used "aerobic" exercise - activities that increase heart rate and improve the body's ability to use oxygen. Most of the studies involved participating in one or more aerobic activity for 20 - 30 minutes per session, several times a week.

On average, exercise helped study participants reduce systolic (top number) pressure by nearly 4 mm Hg, and diastolic (bottom number) pressure by slightly more than 2.5 mm Hg. But experts caution that those with extremely high blood pressure should not rely on exercise alone to control hypertension.

5. Exercise is an excellent de-stressor

It's general knowledge: exercise counters stress and depression. But exactly how and why does this work?

Exercise acts as a temporary diversion to daily stresses and it improves self-esteem. Increased core temperature during exercise may lead to reduced muscle tension and favourable alterations in brain neurotransmitters. Mood improvements may also occur due to the increased secretion of endogenous (internal) opiates, e.g. endorphins. Psychological changes may occur because of changes in norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin, all hormones which can affect mood and anxiety levels.

6. Exercise prevents colds

One doesn't automatically associate regular exercise with a reduction in the number of colds people get. But researchers from the University of Carolina found that people who exercised regularly were 23% less likely to get colds than those who exercised less. And if those who exercised got colds, the symptoms disappeared more quickly than in the study participants who did little exercise.

Health experts believe that exercise spikes the immune system for a few hours each day, helping to ward off colds. Thirty minutes of brisk walking is enough to make you reap the benefits of exercise.

7. Exercise reduces the severity of asthma

Many people who suffer from exercise-induced asthma, understandably try to avoid exercise. But sports medicine specialists say it's possible for asthmatics to continue exercising if they use preventive medications wisely and avoid certain triggers that exacerbate attacks. Exercise-induced asthma can be made worse by cold, dry air or air containing high levels of pollen or pollutants. The extra effort made to stay fit pays off in fewer or milder asthma attacks overall and a need for less medication.

Experts recommend swimming as one of the best exercises for people with asthma.

8. Exercise reduces diabetic complications

Lifestyle factors have a huge impact on certain conditions – and diabetes is one of them. Exercise can help to reduce your insulin requirements, lower your cholesterol levels and high blood pressure, and in the long term can reduce the development of heart disease and stroke. This is important because diabetics have a higher risk of developing heart and circulatory problems. Exercise can also promote weight loss, improve circulation and reduce stress levels (raising your glucose level).

9. Exercise promotes a healthy pregnancy

Although exercise might be risky in some cases, the benefits of exercising during pregnancy generally far outweigh the risks and some women can even exercise up until the third trimester. Relaxation exercises, Kegel exercise that strengthen the pelvic muscles and back exercises are all important for pregnant women.

10. Exercise plays a role in preventing cancer

At least 35% of all cancer deaths may be related to overweight and lack of activity, the Seattle Cancer Research Centre has found. Exercise is believed to speed the passage of food through the colon, thereby reducing the amount of time that any toxins are in contact with the body. Overweight people also tend to have more insulin, which promotes the growth of tumours. For women, exercise reduces the level of oestrogen, a hormone linked to breast cancer.

11. Exercise has anti-ageing effects

Exercise enhances blood flow to the brain, possibly reducing risk of stroke. It also improves reasoning and memory.

Regular exercise arouses the brain and slows down degeneration of the central nervous system, which leads to slower reaction times and poorer coordination.

Exercise also increases strength and size of muscles and improves lung function. Regular exercise can reduce body fat and lower the risk of chronic lifestyle diseases in the elderly. Recent literature suggests that the greatest threat to health is not the aging process itself, but rather inactivity.

12. Exercise promotes brain health

If you thought exercising your brain meant only doing a few crossword puzzles or learning a language, you may be wrong – rather put on your walking shoes and get moving. This was the finding of researchers from the University of Illinois.

Their study found that the brain responses in active seniors were comparable to those of young adults.

It is thought that exercise increases the flow of blood to the brain, just as it improves circulation to the heart and the rest of the body. Activity also stimulates the growth of nerve cells in the part of the brain involved in memory.

13. Exercise is great for your sex life.

The medical research points towards it: the fitter you are, the better your sex life is.

The reason seems to be two-fold: psychologically you feel better about yourself and more inclined towards sex, and physically, being fit improves libido, blood circulation and sexual functioning.

It has been said before that the brain may be the most important sexual organ. This is because stressed, anxious and depressed people are usually unable to enjoy a healthy sex life. Additionally, people with a bad body image do not feel good about their bodies and often avoid sex or are unable to truly enjoy it.

According to the American Council on Exercise (ACE), being physically active can be “a natural Viagra boost”. “Men and women who exercise regularly are going to have increased levels of desire. They’re going to have enhanced confidence, enhanced ability to achieve orgasm and greater sexual satisfaction,” says Cedric Bryant, the council’s chief exercise physiologist.

14. Exercise improves sleeping patterns

Relaxation exercises will help you to ease tension and relieve headaches, backaches and insomnia. Exercise releases the body's own painkillers, called endorphins, into your system. It also helps you to gain a sense of emotional wellbeing and a feeling of being more in control.

Exercise during the day promotes the onset and quality of sleep, according to the South African Memory Resource Centre. But you need to exercise at the right time: the ideal time for exercise is in the morning. Exercising late in the day can contribute to sleeplessness, because exercise causes an increase in your body's energy.

15. Exercise combats impotence

If you stop and think about it, it makes sense - increased circulation as a result of exercise should result in lower levels of impotence, as getting an erection is dependent on the efficiency of blood circulating to the penis.

"Losing weight, stopping smoking and doing more exercise are associated with better sexual health," says Dr Andrew McCullough, director of Male Sexual Health, Fertility and Microsurgery at New York University Medical Center in New York City. "We talk so much about treating, treating, treating. Here we're beginning to see an increasing body of evidence that we can modify the appearance of this by changing lifestyle."

16. Exercise helps prevent stroke

Need another reason to make good on that long overdue promise to get more exercise? It can dramatically cut your risk of stroke.

"Highly active" people had a 27 percent lower risk of having a stroke or dying if they had one, compared with sedentary folks. And people who were "moderately active" had a 20 percent lower risk.

These findings are based on a review of 23 international studies that appear in the October issue of the journal Stroke, the Associated Press reports.

Jogging 15 to 20 minutes a day most days would qualify as highly active. Brisk walks of 30 minutes a day on most days would qualify as moderate activity, the AP says.

17. Exercise is good for mind and soul.

In a synopsis on “Exercise, Fitness and Mental Health” (1990), sports psychologist D.R.Brown summarised the possible beneficial effects that exercise has on mental health. These include the following:

• Exercise may act as a temporary diversion to daily stresses.
• Exercise provides an opportunity for social interaction that may otherwise be lacking in an individual’s life.
• Exercise provides an opportunity for self-mastery. Increasing fitness or improving body composition and other health parameters may improve an individual’s self-esteem.
• Increased core temperature during exercise may lead to reduced muscle tension or alterations to brain neurotransmitters.
• Mood improvements may occur due to the increased secretion of endogenous (internal) opiates e.g. endorphins
• Psychological changes may occur due to alterations in norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin, all hormones which can affect mood and anxiety level.

18. Exercise improves oxygen and nutrient supply to all cells in your body.

An American study indicates that ‘80-plus-ers’ can dramatically improve their health by exercising a few times a week. If this is true for elderly people, it certainly is for the younger set as well.

Exercise improves the body's utilisation of oxygen, and lowers systolic blood pressure (high pressure is a dangerous condition common in elderly people).

Positive results were obtained from the 22 elderly people (80 years and older) who took part in the study at the Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Healthcare System in Michigan.

19. Exercise allows you to improve muscle strength, joint structure and joint function

Strengthening exercises increase not only muscle strength and mass, but also bone strength, and the body's metabolism.

A certain level of muscle strength is needed to function every day and do things such as walking and climbing stairs. Strengthening exercises increase this muscle strength by putting more strain on a muscle than it is normally accustomed to receiving. This increased load stimulates the growth of proteins inside each muscle cell that allow the muscle as a whole to contract.

Exercise can promote joint health for everyone, but particularly for people who suffer from arthritis. Arthritis is a general term for over 100 different conditions that cause pain, stiffness and often inflammation in one or more joints. Exercise can reduce some arthritis symptoms and improve joint mobility and strength.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis. Normally, the two bones of a joint are cushioned with a strong flexible tissue called cartilage. In osteoarthritis, the cartilage deteriorates, causing pain and stiffness.

Cartilage doesn't have a blood supply; it relies on synovial fluid moving in and out of the joint to nourish it and take away waste products. Exercise helps this process.

20. Exercise helps to manage arthritis

Regular, intensive exercise for patients with rheumatoid arthritis builds muscle strength and aerobic capacity, improves the ability to do daily tasks and fosters a sense of well-being.

That's the conclusion of a study by Dutch researchers who tracked 300 people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) for two years. About half the patients participated in a one-hour exercise regimen twice weekly; the rest received traditional treatment, including physical therapy, if prescribed by their physicians.

The findings, appearing in journal Arthritis & Rheumatism, suggest high-intensity exercise programmes can benefit many RA patients, says researcher Dr Thea Vlieland of Leiden University Medical Centre.

The positive effects on muscle strength and aerobic capacity could be translated into an improvement in the activities of daily living, and this is what really makes a difference in your life, Vlieland says. ( health24.com )

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