Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry

Scientists are reporting development of a healthy “designer fat” that, when added to infant formula, provides a key nutrient that premature babies need in high quantities, but isn’t available in large enough amounts in their mothers’ milk. The new nutrient, based on hazelnut oil, also could boost nutrition for babies who are bottle-fed for other reasons. The report appears in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Here’s the bad news! Nearly half of today’s North American men and one-third of women will develop cancer, making it the second leading cause of death after heart disease. To some people, fate deals a bad hand when they inherit genes that increase the risk of cancer. But here’s the good news. Drs. John Swartzberg and Jeffery Wolf at the University of California say that lifestyle changes can help people reduce the risk of at least 65 percent of cancers.

How would you like to save a life this week? After all, it’s not only doctors who are involved in life or death situations. So all you have to do is remember this column.

“How is your sex life?” I often ask patients.  It’s amazing how often I get the response, “Finally, someone I can trust will discuss this matter with me!” So what can be done to make the bedroom a happier place? It’s important, even though good sex may be only five percent of a relationship. But I stress to patients that it’s the first five percent! Besides, it can also affect physical health.

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry

A new study provides a long-sought explanation for the beneficial fat-fighting effects of black pepper. The research, published in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, pinpoints piperine — the pungent-tasting substance that gives black pepper its characteristic taste, concluding that piperine also can block the formation of new fat cells.

When does a doctor fully realize the nature of a disease? Sir William Osler, distinguished Professor of Medicine at McGill, Johns Hopkins and Oxford University, remarked that a doctor only fully understood a disease when he suffered from it himself. Having just recovered from a hip replacement operation, I couldn’t agree more with Osler. So what did I learn and what did I fear?

Houston, TX, – Forty-hour work weeks, two-hour commutes, carpools, school conferences, commitments: who has time to eat healthy foods and exercise? And who can afford pricey organic, fresh foods anyway? You can, according to Randy Wright, MD and his co-author David Tabatsky. They spell it out in practical terms in The Wright Choice: Your Family’s Prescription for Healthy Eating, Modern Fitness and Saving Money (Intouch Media Health Network).

Ig Nobel prizes are prestigious awards given each year at Harvard University to those engaged in strange scientific research. For instance, Canadian researchers received the award for showing that small farts, known as fast repetitive ticks (FRTs), can be lethal. But why would the Vatican receive one?

UK Telegraph

Would Albert Einstein’s genius have discovered the secret of life if he hadn’t died at 76 years of age? We will never know. But for years, in an endeavour to extend life, scientists have searched for Ponce de Leon’s “fountain of youth”. Now, their discovery of a unique molecule, TA-65, which is not science fiction, has opened new doors to this goal.

Analytical Chemistry

Scientists are reporting a key advance in efforts to develop a handheld device that could revolutionize the complete blood cell count (CBC), one of the most frequently performed blood tests used to diagnose and treat disease. In a report in ACS’ journal Analytical Chemistry, they describe adding a key feature to their “blood lab-on-a-chip” that allows it to count white blood cells more accurately.

San Francisco, CA - Medizone International, Inc. (MZEI:OB) (MZEI:QB) announced today that the first production unit of its HYPERLINK “http://medizoneint.com/asepticsure/dr-dick-zoutman-presents-the-case-for-asepticsure/“AsepticSure disinfection technology has been successfully completed by its manufacturing partner, SMTC Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTX).

“Do you know there’s financial help for your child?” I recently asked a friend. Like many new parents he and his wife had expected a healthy child. But the fickle finger of fate had ordained otherwise. Now, several years later, they were struggling with the medical, financial and emotional burdens of caring for a child with cerebral palsy, a lifetime disability. Unfortunately, many families are unaware of the new government project providing financial security for all disabled Canadians.