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A new study gives the strongest evidence yet that obesity surgery can cure diabetes. Patients who had surgery to reduce the size of their stomachs were five times more likely to see their diabetes disappear over the next two years than were patients who had standard diabetes care, according to Australian researchers. Most of the surgery patients were able to stop taking diabetes drugs and achieve normal blood tests. “It’s the best therapy for diabetes that we have today, and it’s very low risk,” said the study’s lead author, Dr. John Dixon of Monash University Medical School in Melbourne, Australia....

(CNN) -- Brazilian model Mariana Bridi da Costa, whose hands and feet were amputated in a bid to save her from a deadly and little-known illness, died early Saturday, two friends of the model told CNN. (exotic UTI infection) So young and gone so quick.

Al Qaeda terrorists have been left fearing the Black Death plague after it wiped out at least 40 insurgents at an Algerian training camp, it was reported today. The horror disease, which killed 25 million people in medieval Europe, is understood to have been found in a militant’s body dumped at a roadside. Terror group AQLIM (al Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb) was forced to turn its shelter in the Yakouren forests into mass graves and flee, it has been claimed. Now al Qaeda chiefs are said to fear the plague has been passed into other cells...

Caution: The following contains a report on activities many will find objectionable. Peter LaBarbera at Americans for Truth about Homosexuality announced today that a Washington, D.C., inaugural week event that originally was described in an e-mail as a "pig sex" orgy has been cancelled after concerned citizens complained to the Doubletree Hotel hosting the event. "A big 'Thanks' to each of you who called the Doubletree and its parent company, Hilton Hotels," said LaBarbera in a statement, "urging them to not allow this unbelievably depraved and unhealthy homosexual event to occur in public conference rooms." LaBarbera continued, "We learned that...

What Are the Types of Bottled Water? There are several types of bottled water on the market today and each kind has a different level of quality and method of production. Spring water and purified water represent the main options available to the consumer. There seems to be a belief among many consumers that spring water represents the best option for those looking for the purest water. However, in reality this is a misconception brought on by clever marketing from spring water companies. Upon closer inspection it becomes clear that the for the purity concerned water drinker, purified bottled water...

Caution: subject not suitable for children. As millions head to Washington, D.C. to participate in Inaugural events kicking off this Sunday, the Doubletree Hotel on Rhode Island Avenue has set aside a block of guest rooms and several conference rooms for a homosexual mass orgy. The invitation-only event called "The Maneuvers," booked at the Doubletree Hotel Washington for three days, is one part of the larger Mid-Atlantic Leather Conference being held at a nearby hotel. Peter LaBarbera, President of Americans for Truth, has more on this event and its health consequences for participants, hotel workers, and possibly the future...

Chlamydia infections now top 1.1 million, more than ever recorded. Syphilis cases are up for the 7th year in a row. And gonorrhea is not declining as hoped. Rates of the sexually transmitted disease chlamydia are climbing in the U.S., and rates of syphilis -- once on the verge of elimination -- rose for the seventh consecutive year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday in its annual report on STDs. Gonorrhea rates did not increase, but they ceased falling a few years ago, frustrating goals set by public health leaders. Chlamydia infections in the United States now...

MINNEAPOLIS – The salmonella bacteria that has sickened more than 400 people in 43 states has been conclusively linked to peanut butter, Minnesota health officials announced Monday. Federal officials said the outbreak may have contributed to three deaths. State health and agriculture officials said last week they had found salmonella bacteria in a 5-pound package of King Nut peanut butter at a nursing facility in Minnesota. Officials tested the bacteria over the weekend and found a genetic match with the bacterial strain that has led to 30 illnesses in Minnesota and others across the country. "The commonality among all of...

CAPE TOWN, South Africa—In her AIDS-scarred South African township, Sweetness Mzolisa leads a chorus of praise for George W. Bush that echoes to the deserts of Namibia, the hills of Rwanda and the villages of Ethiopia. Like countless Africans, Mzolisa looks forward to Barack Obama becoming America's first black president Jan 20. But—like countless Africans—Mzolisa says she will always be grateful to Bush for his war on AIDS, which has helped to treat more than 2 million Africans, support 10 million more, and revitalize the global fight against the disease. "It has done a lot for the people of South...

OTHER BUGS ACTING BADLY _______________________________________________________ International experts to study ebola reston INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC and animal health experts arrived on Tuesday to start a joint risk assessment on the ebola reston contamination of local hogs, officials of the Agriculture department said yesterday. Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III (R), flanked by international experts, addresses a press conference in Manila for an update on the outbreak of ebola reston at two pig farms north of the capital. The experts are (L to R) Kate Glynn of World Organization for Animal Health, Juan Lubroth and Kazuyuki Tsurumi of the Food and Agriculture Organization,...

President-elect Barack Obama has approached CNN's chief medical correspondent, Sanjay Gupta, to be the country's next surgeon general, the cable news network said Tuesday. CNN said it has kept Gupta from reporting on health care policy and other matters involving the incoming Obama administration since learning he was under consideration for the post. Two Democrats with knowledge of the discussions over the surgeon general spot said Gupta was under consideration but cautioned there was not yet a final decision on who would fill the post. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the...

Researchers have found out what made the 1918 flu pandemic so deadly -- a group of three genes that lets the virus invade the lungs and cause pneumonia. They mixed samples of the 1918 influenza strain with modern seasonal flu viruses to find the three genes and said their study might help in the development of new flu drugs. The discovery, published in Tuesday's issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could also point to mutations that might turn ordinary flu into a dangerous pandemic strain. Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the University of Wisconsin and colleagues at the...

Improving blood flow to brain is a preventive strategy CHICAGO --- A slow, chronic starvation of the brain as we age appears to be one of the major triggers of a biochemical process that causes some forms of Alzheimer's disease. A new study from Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine has found when the brain doesn't get enough sugar glucose -- as might occur when cardiovascular disease restricts blood flow in arteries to the brain -- a process is launched that ultimately produces the sticky clumps of protein that appear to be a cause of Alzheimer's. Robert Vassar, lead author,...

Zim cholera death toll tops 1 100HARARE, ZIMBABWE Dec 18 2008 13:03The death toll from a cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe has soared to 1,111, the United Nations said on Thursday, adding to pressure for a quick solution to the crisis in the Southern African country. African National Congress leader Jacob Zuma backed a diplomatic push as the way to end political deadlock and rejected any suggestion of sending troops. The latest cholera figures from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Geneva included a new outbreak in Chegutu Urban in Mashonaland West, west of Harare, where...

The Bush administration’s prescription for economic health has been to encourage consumers to shop our way to prosperity. But as we’ve been learning the hard way, doing so with borrowed money isn’t sustainable. The current recession is already being compared to the Great Depression. And while the effort to win World War II is often credited with helping to end that funk, the two wars we’re currently fighting have only helped sink the economy even more. While we probably don’t need another world war, some lessons learned during the last one may still be relevant. The nation awaits President-elect Obama’s...

It's the fear of losing our health care that worries us most - not the fear of diseases like AIDS, cancer and diabetes. Policy wonk weighs in.

An Indonesian bill that includes a bylaw requiring "sexually aggressive" people living with HIV/AIDS to be implanted with microchips is causing debate between some lawmakers, who argue that the bill is necessary to curb the spread of the virus, and advocates, who say the bylaw is discriminatory and a violation of human rights, the AP/Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. According to John Manangsang, a lawmaker who supports the bill, authorities would be able to identify, track and punish people living with HIV/AIDS in the country's province of Papua who intentionally spread the virus with a $5,000 fine or up to six...

No reason to build that border wall #17,056. And you thought their gifts were limited to freeloaders, salmonella, and e-coli. Silly geese! It's Not a Tumor, It's a Brain Worm Late last summer, Rosemary Alvarez of Phoenix thought she had a brain tumor. But on the operating table her doctor discovered something even more unsightly -- a parasitic worm eating her brain..."We've got a lot more of cases of this in the United States now," said Raymond Kuhn, professor of biology and an expert on parasites at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C. "Upwards of 20 percent of neurology offices...

Gay couple living American dream They fear Prop. 8 threatens their civil rights By Brian Charles The Galluccio family doesn’t look much different than most American families — except two dads head the household. “We sit down for dinner. We even say grace,” said Jon Galluccio, 45. Jon and Michael Galluccio are a gay couple and the parents of three adopted children. A recent Yes on Prop. 8 rally left the Galluccio’s steaming. “Why is my life, liberty and my pursuit of happiness a threat to anyone?” said Michael Galluccio, 46. The No on 8 sign stands in their front...

Test could be ready as early next year Couples can have healthy kids via IVF Critic says thousands of embryos would be needed BRITISH researchers have developed a revolutionary test that will let prospective parents screen embryos for almost any known genetic disease.The £1500 ($3630) test, which should be available as early as next year, will allow couples at risk of passing on gene defects to conceive healthy children using IVF treatment, The Times reports.Unlike current tests it takes just weeks from start to finish and is suitable for couples at risk of almost any condition.At present only 2...

Simply installing toilets where needed throughout the world and ensuring safe water supplies would do more to end crippling poverty and improve world health than any other possible measure, according to an analysis released by the United Nations University. The analysis says better water and sanitation reduces poverty in three ways. + New service business opportunities are created for local entrepreneurs; + Significant savings are achieved in the public health sector; and + Individual productivity is greater in contributing to local and national economies. UNU also calls on the world's research community to help fill major knowledge gaps that impede...

Note: Go to the site and see the images this guy claims are subliminal messages in McCain's ads. Toooo funnyMind control McCain style It has been widely known but not widely discussed that Advertisers have been using subliminal techniques to get the attention and subconsciously influence the behavior of consumers. Psychologists and advertisers have demonstrated proof that people are capable of reacting to and being influenced by images that are shown for as little as 1/20th of a second. The nature of reaction can be so subtle that it cant even be felt by the victim of persuasion but it...

Why is it that the origins of many serious diseases remain a mystery? In considering that question, a scientist at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine has come up with a unified molecular view of the indivisible unit of life, the cell, which may provide an answer. Reviewing findings from multiple disciplines, Jamey Marth, Ph.D., UC San Diego Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, realized that only 68 molecular building blocks are used to construct these four fundamental components of cells: the nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), proteins, glycans...

Rural Kanpur is fighting its most frightening scourge — a mystery disease that has left a long line of bodies in its trail and doesn’t seem anywhere finished. What started from one village two weeks ago has now spread to 350 and has so far claimed 160 lives. Thousands more are bed-ridden. On an average, 15 to 20 people have been dying every day; Saturday saw the highest toll in a day: 24. The district’s health department is somewhat confused about the nature of the disease that has struck. At the beginning, the diagnosis was viral fever. Then doctors concluded...

FRESNO, Calif. — Federal inspectors at U.S. border crossings repeatedly turned back filthy, disease-ridden shipments of peppers from Mexico in the months before a salmonella outbreak that sickened 1,400 people was finally traced to Mexican chilies.Yet no larger action was taken. Food and Drug Administration officials insisted as recently as last week that they were surprised by the outbreak because Mexican peppers had not been spotted as a problem before. But an Associated Press analysis of FDA records found that peppers and chilies were consistently the top Mexican crop rejected by border inspectors for the last year.

Religions thrived to protect our ancestors against the ravages of disease, according to a radical new evolutionary theory of the genesis of faith. Prof Richard Dawkins the atheist and sceptic, has condemned religion as a "virus of the mind" but it seems that people became religious for good reason - actually to avoid infection by viruses and other diseases - according to a study published today in the Proceedings of the Royal Society, Biological Sciences. Dr Corey Fincher and Prof Randy Thornhill of the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, come to this conclusion after studying why religions are far more...

Enlarge ImageAdaptive behavior? The huge variety in religious practice--including this shaman ritual in Ecuador--may be linked to infectious diseases.Credit: Reuters The same diseases that plague humanity may also drive one of the fundamental elements of human culture, a new study suggests. A statistical analysis shows an association between higher rates of infectious disease and religious diversity around the world. The findings have already sparked debate within the academic community; critics are questioning the validity of the interpretation, and supporters say that the finding could offer a new perspective on why religions exist and what role they play in society....

An immigration activist is questioning the White House decision to give foreign nationals with HIV/AIDS a special waiver to obtain short-term visas to enter the country. At a recent White House press briefing, Press Secretary Dana Perino was asked if President Bush agrees with a call by Senators John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) and Gordon Smith (R-Oregon) for the lifting of a ban on immigration into the U.S. for those who have HIV or AIDS. Perino said the president has directed the Secretary of State to request that the Secretary of Homeland Security initiate a rulemaking to propose a categorical waiver for...

Immigrants infected with HIV may no longer be banned from living in the U.S. for the first time in more than 20 years. A $50 billion Senate bill (SB 2731) intended to combat AIDS in Africa and other impoverished areas may effectively repeal a 1987 ban prohibiting travel and immigration for people infected with HIV. The U.S. is one of several countries to have such a rule, including Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Libya, and Russia, the Associated Press reports. Supporters of the proposal say the policy is dated and must be eliminated. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass, said even China has lifted...

Lyme Disease Bacterium Came From Europe Before Ice AgeThe blacklegged tick Ixodes pacificus, a known vector for Borrelia burgdorferi, the pathogen responsible for Lyme disease. (Credit: CDC/ James Gathany; William Nicholson) ScienceDaily (June 30, 2008) — Researchers at the University of Bath have discovered that a bacterium that causes Lyme disease originated in Europe, rather than in North America as previously thought. The bacterium responsible for Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi, originated in America, or so researchers thought. Now, however, a team from the University of Bath has shown that this bug in fact came from Europe, originating from before the...

New research links drinking lowfat milk to lower risk for heart disease Grabbing as little as one glass of lowfat or fat free milk could help protect your heart, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Researchers found that adults who had at least one serving of lowfat milk or milk products each day had 37 percent lower odds of poor kidney function linked to heart disease compared to those who drank little or no lowfat milk. To determine heart disease risk, researchers from several universities in the United States and Norway measured the...

ONCE you become accustomed to gas at $4 a gallon, brace yourself for the next shocking retail threshold: bananas reaching $1 a pound. At that price, Americans may stop thinking of bananas as a cheap staple, and then a strategy that has served the big banana companies for more than a century — enabling them to turn an exotic, tropical fruit into an everyday favorite — will begin to unravel. The immediate reasons for the price increase are the rising cost of oil and reduced supply caused by floods in Ecuador, the world’s biggest banana exporter. But something larger is...

Now in June, just under two months before the start of the Olympics games, I have been hard pressed to find any news stories about EV71. The story seems to have dropped 'off the radar' as people have focused their attention on the earthquake relief effort. When I ask Chinese people about the virus, some of them give me a strange look and ask 'what in the world' I am talking about. Others just smile and tell me that they have no idea what happened to the virus; many assume that the government 'cured' it. Others tell me that they...

Pets can serve as wonderful companions – and owning one certainly has many physical and mental health benefits. However, with the summer months upon us, it is likely your pets will be spending more time outdoors, leaving them prone to zoonotic diseases – diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans. A Corpus Christi, Texas, man and his daughter spent weeks in the hospital because of a diseased cockatiel bought from a PetSmart store, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by the man’s family. [Snip] The following are common diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans: Parasites...

Guzzling coffee may cut heart disease 22:00 16 June 2008 NewScientist.com news service Ewen Callaway A strong cup of coffee in the morning can feel like a life saver. Now, one of the largest and longest studies of coffee drinking suggests that coffee may indeed boost your lifespan – providing you drink enough of the stuff, that is. The study tracked 129,000 men and women over two decades. It found that people who consumed several cups of coffee every day were less likely to die of heart disease than those who shied away from the stuff. Heart disease is an...

Eating Fish And Foods With Omega-3 Fatty Acids Linked To Lower Risk Of Age-related Eye Disease"Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of severe vision loss among elderly people," they write as background information in the article. New treatments for AMD are potentially risky and treat only certain forms of the disease. "Thus, primary prevention of AMD by modifying risk factors (e.g., cigarette smoking) remains an important public health strategy." Elaine W-T. Chong, M.B.B.S., of the University of Melbourne, Australia, and colleagues conducted a systematic review of studies published before May 2007 evaluating the fish consumption and overall omega-3...

While Chinese and Indian government-backed companies continue to produce DDT for their own public health programmes, and for export, no western company has produced DDT for over a decade. Major chemical companies such as Bayer, Dow Chemical, Du Pont and BASF produce alternative products, and have incentives to see DDT phased out. Bayer actually agitated against the use of DDT, abusing its position as private sector delegate to the Roll Back Malaria Partnership, as reported in the Financial Times. AFM was alone among advocacy groups to raise this as a concern. The reality is that DDT is probably the most...

Friendly gut bugs could fight diabetes Last Updated: 12:01am BST 26/05/2008 A new study suggests that microbes in the gut could help fight diabetes. Roger Highfield reports. Probiotic drinks containing certain kinds of "friendly bacteria" could help prevent adult diabetes according to a new study. Now a new insight into the disease has come from scientists focusing on the microbes in the gut, which outnumber the cells in the body and play a crucial role in extracting calories, vitamins and nutrients from food. Consuming excess calories usually spurs what scientists call insulin resistance, when cells in the body that normally...

BROWNSVILLE - The origin of drug-resistant bacteria's recent outbreak at Cameron County hospitals is stumping health officials. Similar outbreaks of the opportunistic Acinetobacter baumannii have been possibly linked to war veterans. But Dr. Brian Smith of the Texas Department of State Health Services said Friday that the source of the local AB outbreaks was still unknown. And while U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention studies suggests the bacteria could be linked to war veterans, there is no evidence that the local outbreak could have originated from a military veteran who served in Iraq or Afghanistan, Smith said. In an...

Blood Cholesterol Levels Predict Risk Of Heart Disease Due To Hormone Therapy, Study Shows ScienceDaily (May 25, 2008) — A research study has found that a simple blood test may indicate whether post-menopausal hormone therapies present an elevated risk of a heart attack. The study, part of the Women's Health Initiative (WHI), sponsored by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health, was conducted in 40 centers nationwide and included 271 cases of coronary heart disease in the first four years of the trials of estrogen alone and of estrogen plus progestin. Paul F. Bray,...

Research Advances May Help Prevent And Improve Diagnosis Of Celiac Disease ScienceDaily (May 21, 2008) — For those suffering from celiac disease, there may be good news on the horizon. New research presented at Digestive Disease Week® 2008 (DDW®) will discuss the latest advancements in the diagnosis and prevention of celiac sprue. "At this time, the only effective treatment for celiac disease is a lifelong gluten-free diet, a lifestyle that is difficult for many patients to manage," said Peter H. Green, MD, Columbia University Medical School. "Unfortunately, many people are unaware that they have celiac disease, and if left untreated,...

Sen. Edward Kennedy had two seizures over the weekend, not one as originally reported, his father-in-law told WBZ Monday. Kennedy was taken first to Cape Cod Hospital Saturday morning after having a seizure and was later transferred to Massachusetts General Hospital for further examination. During the helicopter ride to Mass. General, Edmund Reggie said Kennedy had a second seizure. "He had a seizure in the helicopter. You think that would be bad, but it's good the doctors said... By flailing his arms and moving his arms and legs and head, it showed he was not a stroke victim." Kennedy's spokeswoman...

SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court has overturned a gay marriage ban in a ruling that would make the nation's largest state the second one to allow gay and lesbian weddings. The justices' 4-3 decision Thursday says domestic partnerships are not a good enough substitute for marriage. Chief Justice Ron George wrote the opinion. The city of San Francisco, two dozen gay and lesbian couples and gay rights groups sued in March 2004 after the court halted San Francisco's monthlong same-sex wedding march. The case before the court involved a series of lawsuits seeking to overturn a voter-approved law...

BAGRAM, Afghanistan, May 8, 2008 – Medical leaders from coalition forces and international medical organizations gathered at the Jirga Center here May 5 for an all-day seminar to discuss infectious diseases that plague the Afghan population. Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) Mark McGrail, a surgeon with Combined Task Force 101, gives the opening remarks at an infectious disease seminar at the Jirga Center in Bagram, Afghanistan, May 5, 2008. U.S. Army photo by Pvt. Tamara Gabbard  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The seminar featured presentations by experts from Afghanistan’s Public Health Ministry and the World Health Organization. “The purpose...

BEIJING (Reuters) - A deadly virus has spread rapidly in eastern China, killing at least 21 children and infecting nearly 3,000, Xinhua news agency said on Friday.

Vitamin D May Protect Against Peripheral Artery DiseasePeople obtain vitamin D by making it themselves (through skin exposure to sunlight), by ingesting foods such as fish and fortified dairy products that contain vitamin D, or by taking dietary supplements. (Credit: iStockphoto/Nikolay Suslov) ScienceDaily (Apr. 20, 2008) — People with low vitamin D levels may face an increased risk for peripheral artery disease (PAD), according to researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University. PAD is a common disease that occurs when arteries in the legs become narrowed by fatty deposits, causing pain and numbness and impairing the...

WASHINGTON -- The only U.S. facility allowed to research the highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease experienced several accidents with the feared virus, the Bush administration acknowledged Friday. A 1978 release of the virus into cattle holding pens on Plum Island, N.Y., triggered new safety procedures. While that incident was previously known, the Homeland Security Department told a House committee there were other accidents inside the government's laboratory. The accidents are significant because the administration is likely to move foot-and-mouth research from the remote island to one of five sites on the U.S. mainland near livestock herds. This has raised concerns about...

f 1 cow shows symptoms, the government plan is to shut down all exports and livestock movement..all. Herds would start to be quarantined. And finally, herds would start to be slaughtered. The government will come in and kill herds within a certain radius of miles. The cattle may be perfectly healthy, but they will not test them, they will slaughter them.

Technique Traces Origins Of Disease Genes In Mixed Human Populations ScienceDaily (Apr. 9, 2008) — A team of researchers from Washington University in St. Louis and the Israeli Institute of Technology (Technion) in Haifa has developed a technique to detect the ancestry of disease genes in hybrid, or mixed, human populations. The technique, called expected mutual information (EMI), determines how a set of DNA markers is likely to show the ancestral origin of locations on each chromosome. The team constructed an algorithm for the technique that selects panels of DNA markers that render the best picture of ancestral origin of...

Transmitting Prion Diseases In Milk ScienceDaily (Apr. 8, 2008) — Scrapie can be transmitted to lambs through milk, according to new research. The study provides important information on the transmission of this prion-associated disease and the control of scrapie in affected flocks. Scrapie is a fatal neurodegenerative disease of sheep and goats. Clinical signs include itchiness, head tremor, wool loss and skin lesions as well as changes in behaviour and gait. Timm Konold and colleagues from the Veterinary Laboratories Agency in Weybridge, UK, investigated the transmission of scrapie by feeding milk from scrapie-affected ewes to lambs that are genetically susceptible...