Antioxidants May Help Prevent Influenza Damage to Lungs
While much of the media buzz concerning the H1N1 virus has faded, scientists remain hard at work researching how the virus functions. Now, a team of Alabama researchers may have found what could be an answer for all strains of the flu. They've shown that antioxidants - the same compounds found in plant-based foods - might hold the key in preventing the flu virus from causing damage to our lungs. The study was published in the FASEB journal.
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Protect Yourself From a Cold With Exercise
In the cold days of winter, seasonal cold infections continue to make their rounds, causing general distress and discomfort. However, there are ways to be proactive about your health - making exercise a daily part of your life can reduce the incidence of colds, according to an expert from the American College of Sports Medicine.
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Natural Killer Cells to the Rescue
The human body has an array of defenses to protect itself. Our skin is a natural barrier protecting us from bacteria and viruses. The body has a natural internal thermostat that regulates body temperature despite the vagaries of the weather.
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Binge Drinking Can Temporarily Weaken Immune System
Binge drinking can weaken the immune system and undermine the body's ability to fight infection for at least 24 hours afterwards by inhibiting certain signaling molecules that launch pro-inflammatory responses, according to research published in the journal BMC Immunology.
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Flu Tips for This Winter
With Flu season underway, it's time to look at what these viruses are and what makes them tick. The flu virus is a nasty, yet simple organism composed of 11 genes compared to the 20,000 found in humans. What makes the flu so potentially dangerous is that it's prone to mutations, which are slight changes in its genetic code, when it replicates. Though most mutations do not amount to anything, some can lead to new versions of the flu that are more contagious or lead to more serious symptoms and complications.
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Swine Flu Now an Official, but 'Moderate,' Pandemic
The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised the threat alert of the swine flu infection that is sweeping the world from 5 to 6, its highest level, officially declaring it a pandemic but making it clear that the outbreak is not exceptionally dangerous.
As of June 11, the H1N1 swine flu bug has claimed 144 lives among 28,774 people it has infected in 74 countries, according to the WHO – far fewer than the 250,000 to 500,000 deaths worldwide during a typical flu season.
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Expert Commentary: Dr. John D. Cahill, M.D. June 12, 2009
With swine flu spreading to a number of countries, most of them developed and with fairly comfortable supplies of antiviral drugs, it might seem that the world is in pretty good shape to suppress a seriously lethal pandemic.
Although these drugs appear effective against this strain, it should be remembered that theses drugs are not necessarily indicated for cases of low possible exposure or less severe cases of swine influenza. They should be reserved for more severe infection, those with underlying significant medical problems, and if there is a clear high-risk exposure to an infected individual. Indiscriminant use of these drugs could lead to rapid resistance and decrease their effectiveness.
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Swine Flu Containment Unlikely; Alleviation Should Be Focus
Since the swine flu outbreak has now spread to several countries, it’s probably no longer possible to contain it, a leading public health expert said, so anti-flu efforts should emphasize mitigation of the situation.
In an editorial in the British Medical Journal, Richard Coker, a professor of public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, suggested the best way to slow the spread of the virus and alleviate the severity of its impact is to use antiviral drugs. The H1N1 swine flu virus is still susceptible to these drugs, which are well stockpiled in most developed countries, such as the United States, Canada and the nations of Western Europe.
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Honey May Heal Diabetic Ulcers
While anecdotes abound concerning the wound-healing power of simple honey, a researcher is conducting the first formal study designed to rigorously examine the value of the sweet liquid in healing stubborn diabetic ulcers.
If honey’s medicinal potency is proven, it could represent a huge breakthrough in treating antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections, which are becoming increasingly prevalent today, especially in hospitals.
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Syphilis: From Near Zero to a Big Threat
Just a few years ago, at the beginning of the new century, syphilis was close to being wiped out in the United States.
But today, according to the latest annual report of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the ancient sexually transmitted disease is looming as a serious new threat to the health especially of gay and bisexual men. The open sores, rashes and lesions that characterize two stages of the syphilis life cycle are of particular concern because they promote the transmission of HIV, the AIDS virus that's especially prevalent in the alternative-sexuality population.
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