Health | WPN World People News

A new research has revealed that asthma is the most common complication of pregnancy in Australia with harmful effects on babies, but many of these could be prevented.

A Mexican aquatic salamander called an axolotl has helped scientists uncover the mysteries of stem cells and evolution.

Cold weather, short days and big coats are a thing of the past. Summer is finally here! It is now time to enjoy warm weather, long sun-filled days and light, airy clothes.

It's an appealing notion that our daily pick-me-up may also confer a range of health benefits. And for coffee drinkers there's a lot of research percolating. Several studies suggest that a daily caffeine habit may help protect against Alzheimer's disease. But there's a catch. The cup or two a day that most Americans drink doesn't seem to be enough. Researchers say 500 mg of caffeine, or about five cups of regular coffee, is the dose that seems to protect the brain.

Amid the technical talk about sirtuins, resveratrol, and stem cells at Harvard Medical School (HMS) on Monday (June 21), a nontechnical message became clear: Progress is slowly being made in understanding why people age and in laying the foundation to lessen the debilitating diseases of aging.

Donors hope spirulina, a blue-green, protein-packed algae, labelled a "wonderful future food source" 45 years ago by the International Association of Microbiology, will deliver on its promise by the time a US$1.7 million cultivation project in Chad, funded by the European Union (EU), ends in December 2010.

"Out of sight, out of mind" explains why Southern Africa has been grappling with one of the biggest outbreaks of measles, a highly contagious viral disease, since 2009.

Several studies suggest that a daily caffeine habit may help protect against Alzheimer's disease. But there's a catch. The cup or two a day that most Americans drink doesn't seem to be enough. Researchers say 500 mg of caffeine, or about five cups of regular coffee, is the dose that seems to protect the brain.

Without a major breakthrough in preventing and treating diabetes, the number of cases in sub-Saharan Africa is projected to double, reaching 24 million by 2030, according to the Brussels-based International Diabetes Federation (IDF).

Routine HIV testing is central to ending the HIV/AIDS pandemic. In the United States, someone becomes infected with HIV every nine and a half minutes. More than 20 percent of the estimated 1.1 million Americans living with HIV infection do not know they are infected.