The Star Online: Lifestyle: Health
The Star Online: Lifestyle: Health |
- Light drinking during pregnancy isn't harmful: study
- Old age is a state of mind, study says
- Vibrating fork to combat obesity makes its debut
| Light drinking during pregnancy isn't harmful: study Posted: 17 Apr 2013 11:30 PM PDT Pregnant women who drink small amounts of alcohol aren't likely doing any harm to their child, a new British study finds. While the link between heavy alcohol consumption and health and developmental problems in children is well established, researchers say the picture is different for light drinking. Researchers from University College focused on what happened to children at the age of seven whose mothers had drunk no more than two units of alcohol each week during pregnancy. The researchers used information on 10,534 seven-year-olds from The Millennium Cohort Study. Interestingly, children born to light drinkers were slightly less likely to have behavioural difficulties compared with those born to mothers who did not drink during pregnancy. Also, children born to light drinkers scored slightly higher on cognitive tests than those born to non-drinkers. "There appears to be no increased risk of negative impacts of light drinking in pregnancy on behavioural or cognitive development in seven-year-old children," said co-author Yvonne Kelly. "We need to understand more about how children's environments influence their behavioural and intellectual development. While we have followed these children for the first seven years of their lives, further research is needed to detect whether any adverse effects of low levels of alcohol consumption in pregnancy emerge later in childhood," Kelly added. Findings were published online April 17 in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommends that women not drink at all in the first three months of pregnancy due to increased risk of miscarriage. -- AFP |
| Old age is a state of mind, study says Posted: 17 Apr 2013 11:25 PM PDT A new study suggests that age is a state of mind, and if you think of yourself as old and frail, your perception may become a self-fulfilling prophecy. But seniors who have a more positive attitude about their age stay more socially active and enjoy a greater quality of life, despite having equal levels of physical weakness, the study found. Lead researcher Krystal Warmoth and colleagues at University of Exeter Medical School interviewed 29 older adults living in England about their views on ageing and frailty. Findings also showed that perceiving oneself as frail tended to lead to ceasing activities such as exercise that could reduce the likelihood of frailty. According to an announcement from the researchers, one respondent summed it up by saying, "If people think that they are old and frail, they will act like they're old and frail." How to avoid this happening to you? Don't get caught in what the researchers describe as a "cycle of decline," and stay active and keep your brain engaged. Prior research shows that staying active and social into your golden years can help keep you agile, strong, and mentally sharp. Warmoth presented her findings this week at the British Psychological Society Annual Conference in Harrogate, in the UK. -- AFP |
| Vibrating fork to combat obesity makes its debut Posted: 17 Apr 2013 11:18 PM PDT An electronic fork that vibrates when you eat too fast went on sale Wednesday on Kickstarter, with its French inventors claiming it can help combat obesity and digestive issues. Those who contribute at least US$89 on the crowd funding website will get a HAPIfork, which comes in blue, green and pink, ahead of its planned general release to consumers in the United States and Europe later this year. "While our product is still a prototype, we're thrilled by the global response so far," said Fabrice Boutain, founder of the product's California-based developer HAPILABS, in a statement. "We believe this is affirmation of the growing consumer health awareness movement to gain better control of issues impacting weight and digestive issues as well as more serious issues such as diabetes and other chronic conditions." First shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, the HAPIfork -- the brainchild of French inventor Jacques Lepine -- is based on research that suggests people living in a fast-paced world can lose weight by eating more slowly. The gadget, which is dishwasher safe, includes LED warning lights, a USB connector and software for computers and smartphones enabling users to monitor their progress towards a healthier pace of eating. -- AFP |
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