Researchers have identified nine genes that might make people more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. They confirmed earlier reports that a variation in the vitamin D3 receptor gene, on chromosome 12, might also increase risk for Alzheimer’s. Low levels of vitamin D have been found in people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias, leading researchers to…
Read moreThe National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) recommends that after a myocardial infarction patients should eat two to four portions of oily fish a week or omega 3 acid ethyl esters. The aim is a daily intake of 1 g of long chain polyunsaturated fish oil and thereby to reduce the risk of…
Read morePeriodic oscillations are the basis of time keeping. So begins an article in Nature .Gore and van Oudenaarden 2009 The yin and yan of nature. Nature vol 457 pp271-2.They describe how Gallileo’s observation on the pendulum altered time keeping. There are similar oscillatory networks in nature. Simplistically negative feed back with delay in between. Three…
Read moreThis paper (Backman et al ) is a mine of information from many countries and their Health standards. 60 years ago, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights laid the foundations for the right to the highest attainable standard of health. This right is central to the creation of equitable health systems. We identify some of…
Read moreGuidelines for the management of irritable bowel syndrome in the United Kingdom recommend that the diagnosis should be made on clinical grounds alone, without invasive investigations, unless alarm symptoms such as rectal bleeding are present. General practitioners therefore need efficacious treatments that do not require monitoring and are cheap, safe, and readily available. People with…
Read moreHow enjoyable old age is depends on many factors. In old age we reap the benefits and disadvantages of what has gone before. Diet, smoking, alcohol intake, exercise, family life, financial prudence and all the other boring things for young people. Jagger et al in the Lancet discuss this aspect of life. Life expectation is…
Read more