Obstructive sleep pattern could be why your child snores at night: Docs

Recently, when Subham, 4, was brought to a city hospital with complaints of persistent mouth breathing, snoring with gasps and frequently waking up from sleep, doctors found his case to be syndromic -the boy had a large tongue, narrowed facial features, weakness of muscles and enlarged tonsils. Subham (name changed) had already developed pulmonary hypertension (elevated pressure on the right side of the heart). All these was due to Obstructive sleep Apnoea (OSA), a sleep-related breathing disorder affecting 2% to 6% children of all ages and even newborns with enlarged…

Read More

New initiative promises diabetics better control on the disease

Researchers from various prominent health institutions, including the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Emory University of the US, have said that a new Multi-Component Diabetes Quality Improvement (QI) initiative can help patients with diabetes double their likelihood of controlling the disease in comparison with the usual doctor care. Led by researchers at the Public Health Foundation of India, AIIMS, and Emory University (Atlanta, USA), the initiative, comprising non-physician care coordinators and decision-support electronic health records, is a result of years of trial at ten clinical centres in…

Read More

Common medications can make heart failure worse

Many prescribed medications, over-the-counter drugs, and herbal products can cause or worsen heart failure, so it’s important for patients to tell doctors about everything they’re taking. So says a new scientific statement from the American heart Association (AHA). Heart failure is the leading cause of hospitalization for people 65 years of age and older, and the average heart failure patient takes an average of seven prescription medications per day. More than a third of heart failure patients also take herbal supplements, two thirds take vitamins, and seven out of eight…

Read More

Cycling may cut risk of Type 2 diabetes risk

Cycling, often marked as a recreational activity, can significantly reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes (T2D), if used as a means of transport to work daily, suggests a research. The findings showed that people who took up habitual cycling were at 20 per cent lower risk for T2D than non-cyclists. “Because cycling can be included in everyday activities, it may be appealing to a large part of the population. This includes people who due to lack of time, would not otherwise have the resources to engage in physical…

Read More

Higher BMI supports spread of blood cancer

As body mass index increases, so does the growth and spread of the blood cancer multiple myeloma, which accounts for about 10 percent of all blood cancers in patients, a study warns. “Once a person with cancer is out of the normal weight category, their BMI is contributing to multiple myeloma growth and progression,” said lead study author Katie DeCicco-Skinner, Associate Professor of Biology at American University. Obesity is believed to be a risk factor for many cancers. In the multiple myeloma study, normal weight is defined as a BMI…

Read More

Artificial sweeteners can make you actually eat more

Researchers have identified a complex network in the brain that has revealed why artificial sweeteners may not be the best way to slim down. Artificial sweeteners are substitutes for sugar that provides a sweet taste like that of sugar while containing significantly less food energy. According to the researchers, the brain system responds to artificially sweetened food by telling the animal it hasn’t eaten enough energy, thus increasing the appetite and prompting them to actually eat more. It senses and integrates the sweetness and energy content of food, said the…

Read More