Researchers have reported on the health benefits of two controversial drinks, both have been associated with preventing prostate cancer, they are coffee and beer.

 The report was on two separate studies.
1- The first study involved  50,000 men, they were followed  over a 20 year period.   According to the study, the men who consumed coffee had a 60% lower risk of developing aggressive prostate cancer.

2-  In the second study, researchers  found that a  compound found in beer called Xanthohu...

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Do you exercise regularly, or involve yourself in meditation? If you do you may not have to worry about having the flu or catching a cold.

According to researchers those who involve themselves in regular meditation or exercise have fewer colds and flus than those who participate in neither.

The study involved 149 participants.

In a randomized trail they were split into three groups:

1-Those who participated in mindless meditation

2-Those who had regular moderate-intensity exercise

3-A ...

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Adequate sleep is important to maintain good health, but in later years it may be more important than you think.
There is a lot of evidence to support it as important to  both health and longevity.

This time researchers linked sleep deprivation to an increased risk for alzheimer's disease

According to a recent study sleep deprivation may increase the risk for the disease and that sleepiness in the elderly could be an indication of it.

The study involved 84 elderly adults 66-87 ye...
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Family members whose loved ones are hospitalized in a vegetative state may be better able to meet their loved ones needs.

A bedside device which enables doctors to read the minds of patients hospitalized in a vegetative state would soon be available.

According to researchers those patients may soon be able to have their thoughts and feelings communicated.  The device would bridge the communication gap between patients, their family members and hospital caregivers. It will serve as a ...

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How important is your health to you?

There is no shortage of health information available to consumers.  Health is a well communicated topic both online and offline, but Is its popularity reflected in your interest. Is your health important enough to generate sufficient interest in consumer health matters?  Are you willing to take control and responsibility?

Here is a lesson for you.

 

 

Our consumer health education program prepares people to take responsibility and control of their health. One w...
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Moderate-intensity aerobics is recommended for overall health and vitality and to prevent non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and strokes. It is recommended for all adults.

More vigorous aerobics exercise may be required by those who need to lose weight and keep it off, since burning calories is their goal.

For the prevention of diseases 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise 5 times per week is enough to promote good health.

In one study, researchers wanted to evaluate the dif...

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Are most Americans pursuing a healthy lifestyle due to health concerns?

A recent study done in the USA showed that middle-income earners main health concern is non-communicable diseases(NCD"s). NCD's are cancer, heart disease, strokes, diabetes and respiratory diseases.

Partcipants of the survey were 1001 Americans age 30-66 with an annual income of $35,000-$99,999. Both men and women paritcipated.

The result
Cancer was at the top of the list of health concerns at 79%, heart disease at 74%...
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Too much sugar in the diet has been associated with an unhealthy diet and consumers have been warned against sugary drinks. 

Overweight and obese individuals are especially at risk because they need to control their calorie intake to be a healthy weight.
 
A recent study found that the risk for type 2 diabetes is significantly increased with one serving of sweetened soft drink per day.

For the study, researchers collected data on consumption of:

1. Juices
2. Nectars
3. Sugar sweetened soft drinks
4. Artif...

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 be


You want to be successful and you have a bright future.  May be you are well employed and even love your job. You may have the best family one can ever ask for, but how secure are you?
 
All those achievements can fall apart without good health. The question is, how important is good health to you?

Here is a video on a lesson to be learnt. 


 
 
Remember good health is as a result of prevention and not cure.

You can take responsibility for good health through our consumer health education. ...
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 Watching TV for more than 2 hours per day has been associated with obesity in children and parents were warned against too much sitting time.

A new study has linked screen time in kids to risk of heart disease. For the study screen time was  represented by 55% of activities spent watching TV, on the computer or playing video games.
 
The participants were 500 children age 8-10, all caucasian and with at least one biological parent obese.
 
The participants wore accelerometers to measure ph...
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For healthy eating, Canada Food Guide uses a rainbow to illustrate the importance of each food group.  The food group that is least important to a healthy eating pattern is 'meat.'

There is a good reason for identifying this food group as not being important as the other;  there are limits to its daily use.  There is a daily recommended daily intake for one's age and gender, following the guidelines will protect against over eating.

According to a recent study, too much processed meat i...
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 Men who become bald early in life may be  at increased risk for heart disease, but eliminating avoidable risk factors early in life can help them reduce it. This is another good reason for choosing a healthy lifestyle.
 
Researchers of a recent study have linked an increase risk for heart disease with balding before age 50.  

The participants in the study were 40,000 men, middle age to 60.

For this study, the researchers analyzed data from 6 existing studies that had examined the link between h...
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A study done at the University of California,found that the biggest impact on alzheimer's disease worldwide is low education.

Researchers believe that education even at a young age can contribute to development of the brain, giving the person the brain power that can be carried on into old age.

According to the study in the USA; however, the risk factor with the greatest impact is physical inactivity. This could be because of the sedentary lifestyle, as 1/3 of the population is sed...

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 According to a recent study, people who wake at nights to urinate are less productive during the day, and that the  reduction in productivity is about the same as those with chronic conditions.

The study involved 385 men and 261 women with nocturia, they were  given questionnaires to complete on:

1. Work productivity
2. Activity impairment  

The study linked nocturia to a 24% drop in productivity.


Read more about this study

A person is said to have nocturia if he/she needs to wake at least once per ni...
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 There is another good reason for including a healthy diet in family planning. This time researchers linked Omega-3 to healthier babies and  reduced risk for premature delivery.

Omega-3 is present in oily fish and fish oil and is available as a supplement. Omega -3 is also present in some packaged food products that have it as an additive.

 In a double blind clinical trials study done on Omega-3 fatty acids, researchers found that mothers who took the supplement during pregnancy have healthie...
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 A certain amount of fat in the diet is necessary for a healthy eating pattern, but all fats are not equal. Trans fat is bad and must be avoided while saturated fat must be limited to a certain amount each day.
 
Poly-unsaturated and mono-unsaturated fats are good for you and are necessary for health eating. One oil in in this group of fats is olive oil.

A recent study done on Mediterranean diet showed that olive oil added to it can prevent cardiovascular disease problems. 

 According to the stud...
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Men, if you are considering starting a family or if there is a fertility problem this study could help you make healthy decisions. 

Being physically active has many health benefits and lack of it can cause many health problems.

Lack of physical activity is associated with non-communicable diseases; it is a health risk factor for cancer, heart disease, strokes and respiratory problems.

Lack of physical activity contributes to overweight and obesity, to lose weight and keep it off  regular e...

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Unhealthy eating is known to be a major risk factor for non-communicable diseases such as cancer.  A recent study supports this fact when it linked fried foods to increased risk for prostate cancer.

The participants of the study were:

1. 1500 men diagnosed with prostate cancer
2. 1500 without prostate cancer

For the study, the  men provided details of their eating habits

Researchers found that the men who reported eating fried foods at least once per week were 30-37% more likely to develop th...

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Cancer is a non-communicable disease and a major cause of deaths globally; lung cancer takes most of the lives lost to the disease. 

 About 1.37 million people die each year from lung cancer, it accounts for 1:6 deaths from cancer.

Smoking is the major risk factor, 80-90% of lung cancers are caused by smoking tobacco.

Here are 9 risk factors for lung cancer, they are slide format.

1. Smoking
2. Second-hand smoke
3. Alcohol dependency
4. Physical inactivity
5. Air pollution
6. Exposure to asbestos
7. Unhealthy diet
8. Ar...

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If you've made a resolution to quit smoking or if you are  a smoker you can quit the habit in 2013.

Quitting at any time has tremendous health benefits, but the younger you are when you quit the greater they are.

Quitting has immediate and long-term effects,  but the longer you stay quit the greater the effects.

Why Quit

Tobacco is a major health risk factor for non-communicable diseases and a big public health concern.

Almost 6 million people die each year due to smoking and 600,0...

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A recent study reports that fructose can cause obesity by playing a role in overeating. This is useful information for obese people  whose cause of obesity is overeating.
 
The study involved 20 young, normal weight people.

Scientists used magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) scans to track blood flow in their brain. The scans were done before and after drinks containing:

1. Glucose
2. Fructose

For the study, there were two sessions several weeks apart.

The MRI's showed that glucose suppresses activ...

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This article is about the importance of physical activity in maintaining a healthy weight, in losing weight and keeping it off.

Exercise must be combined with healthy eating in order to lose weight long-term.

Physical activity is necessary for successful weight loss, but  also to prevent non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease and strokes. 

 Physical activity helps with high blood pressure, depression, arthritis and vitality. Overweight and obese people will therefore ...
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Researchers wanted to know what the risk of cardiovascular disease is with the use of ADHD drugs.

Some ADHD medications cause a slight increase in heart rate and blood pressure levels and was the cause for the concern.

A study from 1986 to 2005 found that  ADHD medication did not increase the risk for CVD; when compared to people who didn't use ADHD medication, those who used them were not associated with increased risk.

During the study there were 1,357 heart attacks, 296 sudden cardiac death...
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Healthy eating includes healthy snacking, but all snacks are not equal.
 
According to a recent survey, people who snack more than once per day have healthier eating patterns. The survey defined a snack as food eaten between the three major meals. Data was collected for two years.

The study found that those with the healthiest diets snack twice as often as those on a least healthy diet.
 
Read more on this study.

Snacks must be included in one's diet plan, the approved and most popular times are b...
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Doctors were looking for reproductive factors that could help them learn about women's vulnerability to disease, it led them to a study.

According to the recent study, early puberty  is a risk for heart disease. The study lasted several decades and involved1,638 female children and 3rd generation participants.

The researchers wanted to know if reproductive factors were associated with body weight and heart disease.

Result of the study showed that early puberty was linked to higher body ...
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You may have heard of our two ages, our biological(real) age and our chronological age.

The risk factors that make us sick  can also make us older than we are, with a significant difference between the two ages.

A study that highlights the difference between biological age and chronological age found the people who look older that their age have a greater risk of developing heart disease.

The study used signs of aging such as receding hairlines at the temples, baldness at the crown of the he...
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 Unhealthy eating is the #1  avoidable risk factor for diseases such as strokes. Fortunately it is also the simplest risk factor to modify.

For healthy eating it is recommended that a diet includes 2 servings of fish per week, also recommended is omega 3 & 6 fish oils.

According to a recent study 2 servings of fish per week reduces the risk for strokes, but not fish oil supplements. This is
another reason to place diet as number 1 and not rely on supplements.
 
For the study, researchers examine...
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A recent study has linked exposure to mercury in the prenatal period to attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) in children.
 
For the study researchers looked at a group of infants born between 1993 and 1998. They compared ADHD behaviour in the children at age 8 with:

1. Maternal fish intake in pregnancy
2. Maternal hair mercury levels in the last month of pregnancy  

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 An autistic adult was able to keep his job after he used an iPod with videos, a clock alarm and written messages to remind him of his work.
 
This amazing story was as a result of a study done on the use of.  

In a 4 year study involving dozens of participants, researchers found that the use of an iPod greatly improved the workplace performance of autistic adults.
 
For the study researchers paired each participant with a coach who trained them on using the program. The coach's involvement tape...
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People on a weight control program are advised to be physically active to balance  the calories  hey consume with the calories burned.

 Most people; however, don't do it on the recommended 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobics per week.

They need vigorous-intensity aerobics exercise; they need more intense exercise such as running, jogging, biking,dancing and swimming to burn the excess calories. 

Zumba, a dance-fitness program has been identified as an effective and healthy way to burn ex...
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A recent study found  shift workers were at increased risk for  strokes, heart attacks and coronary disease.

The study involved 2 million participants from 34 studies.
 
The researchers defined a shift worker as anyone who does not hold a traditional day time job, for example:
people who work the evening shift, the night shift, rotating shifts and on calls.
 
They found  that shift workers had a:

1. 23 % increased risk for a heart attack
2. 24 % for coronary disease
3. 5% for stroke

Working the night...
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The prostate is a male reproductive gland, associated with sperm production. It is situated below the bladder and surrounds the urethra. 
 
The prostate gland is about the size of a walnut; as men age the gland becomes enlarged a disease known as benign prostatic hyperthropy (BPH). 

The enlargement causes narrowing of the urethra affecting the flow of urine.

BPH, unlike cancer is not malignant.

The test for diagnosing BPH is the same as for cancer of the prostate, but the levels are only slightl...
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According to researchers those who involve themselves in meditation or exercise regularly have fewer colds and flus than those who participate in neither.

The study involved 149 participants.

In the randomized trial they were split into three groups:

1. Those who participated in mindless meditation
2. Those who had regular moderate-intensity exercise
3. A control group that did neither.
   The meditation group had 257 days of the cold or flu, the exercise group had 241 days and the control gro...

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If an individual has a heart attack, It is important that blood flow is restored immediately to prevent further damage to the heart muscle and to save the life.

When the blood supply to the heart muscle is obstructed it does not receive the oxygen that it requires. 
This can cause a heart attack, the cells can begin to die.

The sooner the blood flow is restored the less damage will result.

It is important to recognize the signs of a heart attack to get help immediately.

There are symptoms that w...
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 Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) is a vascular disease affecting the arteries of the legs.

The arteries carry oxygen-rich blood to the cells of the body so they can function and keep the organs healthy.

In PAD there is a gradual build up of plaque within the arteries , these fatty deposits restrict the blood flow and can cause other organs to fail.

PAD can also be as a result of an embolism or inflammation of the blood vessels.

PAD can be serious if not treated early; it requires medical attenti...
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Moderate intensity aerobics exercise is recommened for overall health and vitality and to prevent non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and strokes.

More vigorous and prolonged aerobics exercise may be necessary for those who need to lose weight keep it off.

Researchers wanted to evaluate the effects of  different intensities of aerobics exercise on the elderly, with mild cognitive impairment.

According to the result of study the different intensities of aerobics had no effe...
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Epilepsy is a disorder of the brain characterized by spontaneous repeated seizures of any type occurring without an immediate cause.

Epilepsy can affect people of any age.

The seizures of epilepsy, called fits or convulsions are a result of abnormal electrical signals of the brain. A seizure may last from a few seconds to minutes. The type of seizure depends on the part of the brain affected and the cause of the seizure.

Causes of Seizures- In most cases the cause of the seizure cannot be...

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Non-communicable diseases (NCD's) are a global concern. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations are calling on all to join together in the fight against them.

  
Watch the video

 

NCD's can be prevented by li...
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Obesity is a known cause of type 2 diabetes, a  health reason to control weight. Because it was reported that phthalate levels in humans may be associated with obesity, researchers  believed that it may be a risk factor for diabetes.

 A recent study found that phthalate chemicals used in plastics, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals have been linked to diabetes.

The chemicals called phthalates metabolites wers linked to an increased risk of the elderly developing type 2 diabetes.

Phatalates are indu...

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Vitamin D is called the sunshine vitamin, it is necessary to prevent diabetes, to build strong bones, for teeth health and for general health.

We produce it ourselves through exposure to the sun.

Unfortunately we need a lot more sun than we can get to produce enough vitamin-D for our health.

Due to the harmful effects of the sun we need to protect our health from it.  Actions and products that can do so also prevent us from the exposure necessary to produce vitamin-D.

Certain people are espe...
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The World Health Organization describes depression as a mental disorder characterized by sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy and poor concentration. 

 Depression can be described as a type of sadness that will not go away, it lingers around for more than two weeks.

Depression affects people of any gender, age or background, it affects over 120 million people worldwide and is a leading cause of disability.

Depression ...
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Physical activity is important to everyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity or country of residence.

Physical activity is necessary to prevent non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease   and strokes.

The recommended for overall health and longevity is 150 minutes of moderate-intensity 150 minutes per week, this can be achieved by brisk walking.

More vigorous and more prolonged activity has additional health benefits.

If you are someone who are not used to 150 min...
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April 07 is World Health Day, World Health Day is celebrated every year to honour the founding of World Health Organization (WHO).

Every year, World Health Day focuses on a single health challenge with global impact.

"World Health Day 2012 focuses on how good health can add life to years, enabling older men and women to not only live longer, but also to extend their active involvement in all levels of society."

This year the theme is : ' Ageing and Health.'

The slogan is: "Good health adds l...
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March 24 is  World TB Day, a day dedicated to the treatment and eradication of tuberculosis around the globe.

This article is help raise awareness of tuberculosis (TB): what it is, how it can be contacted and the signs & symptoms.

World TB Day, 2012.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious disease caused by the tubercle bacillus, mycobacterium tuberculosis. It commonly affects the lungs but can affect bones and the spine.

The infection is transferred when a person inhales droplets from an inf...

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Heart disease is a number 1 killer globally, it is a major non-communicable disease and has experts worried because of the number of deaths worldwide.

Heart disease can be prevented by lifestyle choices, choices of what we eat and drink and our level of activity.

According to a heart disease report cholesterol and blood pressure are not the only indicators of our heart health, there are more.

Knowing  the 14 important numbers can protect your health, heart and prevent premature deaths. The n...
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Your very first health insurance must be taking control of your health. This does not begin in the medical doctor's office but at home before the symptoms of disease develop.

 For everyone, it begins early in life with maternal health and safety and continues throughout the lifespan.

Believe it or not some lifestyle habits are avoidable and are therefore as a result of choice.

The choice to avoid them or make them part of daily living is the individual's.

The risk factors I'm referring to are:...