Higher Maternal Iron Levels May up Gestational Diabetes Risk

Pregnant women who are particularly vulnerable to iron deficiency, may also be at risk if iron is found in excess in their bodies. They are likely to develop gestational diabetes, a study has found. As a strong pro-oxidant, free iron can promote several cellular reactions that generate reactive oxygen species and increase the level of oxidative stress. Oxidative stress induced from excess iron accumulation can cause damage to and death of pancreatic beta cells which produce insulin, and consequently, contribute to impaired insulin synthesis and secretion. In the liver, high…

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Childhood Antibiotic Use Linked To Higher Food Allergy Risk

Antibiotic treatment within the first year of life is associated with an increase in food allergy diagnosis, suggests new research. The researchers found that children prescribed antibiotics within the first year of life were 1.21 times more likely to be diagnosed with food allergy than children who hadn’t received an antibiotic prescription. “Overusing antibiotics invites more opportunity for side effects, including the potential development of food allergies, and can encourage antibacterial resistance,” said lead researcher Bryan Love from South Carolina College of Pharmacy in the US. The study involved analysis…

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Food Allergies Linked to Higher Asthma Risk in Kids

The higher the number of food allergies a child might have, the greater is his or her risk of developing asthma and allergic rhinitis during childhood, new research has found. “Of the major food allergens, allergy to peanut, milk and egg significantly predisposed children to asthma and allergic rhinitis,” said lead researcher David Hill from The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) in the US. The study is a retrospective analysis of the electronic health records of more than one million urban and suburban children in the CHOP Care Network from…

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Calcium Supplements Tied to Higher Dementia Risk for Some Women

Some older women who take calcium supplements commonly recommended to ward off age-related bone damage may face an increased risk of developing dementia, a small study suggests. The heightened dementia risk appears limited to women who have had a stroke or suffer from other disorders that affect blood flow to the brain, researchers report in the journal Neurology. “Our study is the first to show a relationship between calcium supplementation and increased risk for dementia in older women,” said lead author Dr. Silke Kern of the University of Gothenburg in…

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Hepatitis & HIV patients with infection at higher risk of suicide

Hepatitis & HIV patients with infection at higher risk of suicide (MarioGuti/Getty Images) People diagnosed with Hepatitis and HIV or AIDS have high chances of committing suicide after being hospitalised with infections like viral, according to a new study. The study, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry investigated associations between infectious diseases and the risk of death by suicide. Researchers studied those aged 15 and above and the infections were divided into categories like bacterial, viral, others and infection type such as sepsis, hepatitis, genital, central nervous system, HIV or…

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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…

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