Diabetes - Symptoms, Causes and Treatment

About 200 million people all over the world suffer from a disease called diabetes. Sometimes
people don’t even know that they have it because they you can’t see any symptoms. But if
you don’t treat it it may cause health problems and sometimes may even be deadly.

Diabetes happens when the body has too much sugar in it. It is the energy we need and comes
from the food we eat. Normally, a hormone called insulin regulates how much sugar the body
needs.

There are two type of diabetes. Type 1 normally occurs when people are young or are
becoming adults. Some cells in the body are destroyed and it cannot produce any more or
not enough insulin.

Type 2 is the most common type of diabetes. Adults have problems changing food into
energy. It usually starts at around the age of 30. The older you get the higher the risk is of
getting diabetes.

Symptoms

People who have diabetes are often very thirsty and they urinate a lot. Your skin can become
dry and and you may get very tired. Diabetes can lead to heart diseases, kidney problems and
may even cause death.
Causes

Doctors do not know exactly what causes diabetes . If your parents or grandparents have it
you also have a higher chance of getting it. Overweight and not enough exercises can also put
you at a higher risk. High blood pressure may also lead to diabetes.

How to Treat Diabetes

People who have Type 1 diabetes must get insulin every day. Usually they inject it into their
body. Older people who have Type 2 diabetes can control it by eating healthy food and doing
a lot of exercise.

Drugs Under Control in Portugal

Not the Netherlands but Portugal is the European country that has the most liberal drug laws.
In 2001 the Iberian country was the first in Europe that did not punish people for taking drugs
like heroin, cocaine or marijuana.

Instead of sending a drug addict to prison the Portuguese authorities offer a therapy to get
them off drugs. As the government says punishing them might drive more and more to
underground drug dealers, so they choose to give them health treatment. People who are
caught with drugs are sent to a psychologist and a social worker.

Those against the liberal law were afraid of drug tourists who would come to the small nation
to get legal drugs but that didn't happen in the last few years.

Results that were published by a national institution on drug use say that illegal drug use
among teenagers in Portugal has actually gone down. The number of HIV infections caused
by sharing needles has also dropped while there are more and more people in Portugal who
ask for treatment. The number of drug-related deaths has also decreased.
A government spokesman says that Portugal, which had one of the highest drug use rates in
Europe, now has the problem under control. Compared with the European Union and the
United States, Portugal is really making progress. More Americans have used cocaine than
Portuguese have taken marijuana.

Americans are now looking towards Portugal's success to try to find a solution to their own
problems. More and more drugs are pouring into the country from Mexico where drug gangs
are fighting each other for a big share of the US market. American anti-drug experts are
sceptical. They say that Portugal is a small country and does not have the same problems that
the Americans do, so the situation cannot be compared.

Sumber : English Online Articles in Easy Understandable English for Learners

Human bone is grown naturally in a lab for the first time in a

breakthrough that could signal the end for grafting

 Around two million people every year undergo painful and risky graft surgery
 British scientists have now grown human bone naturally in a lab for the first time
 Human trials are three years away but it could be available on the NHS in decade

Human bone has been grown naturally in a laboratory for the first time, which could do away
with painful grafting operations.

Every year, around two million people have bone graft surgery, often removing part of their
hip. The bone is needed for joint replacements, to fix badly broken bones, for spinal
fusions and victims of landmines.

Now British scientists hope to spare patients this risky surgery by growing bones using cells
taken from their own bone marrow.

Researchers, led by the University of Glasgow, have successfully triggered stem cells to turn
into bone using tiny vibrations, providing 1,000 ‘nanokicks’ a second

The bone was grown in a petri dish. Human trials are three years away and the bone could be
available on the NHS within a decade.
Co-author Dr Peter Childs, from the University of Glasgow, said: ‘Currently patients have to
have bone grafts taken from their hip, which is painful, comes with the risk of surgery and
can lead to infection.

‘If you can produce an off-the-shelf solution using bone cells, the cells themselves can act as
a repair mechanism. This study is a great step towards seeing stem cells used to grow bone
and treat patients in the clinic, which is very exciting.’

Bone grafts are often needed in older people following hip and knee replacements to fill in
the gap around the medical implant.

In complex fractures, such as those seen in people with osteoporosis, bone is taken from
their hip and put into the break to help the shattered sections knit back together.

It is also vital for people who have been blown up by landmines and amputees who need
more bone to attach a prosthetic leg or arm to save them from being wheelchair-bound.

The key to creating bone which will grow within the body is to use stem cells produced
naturally within our bone marrow.

These cells can also turn into cartilage, ligaments, tendons or muscle, and scientists have
previously used a chemical ‘soup’ to turn the stem cells into bone.

However these chemicals raise fears of side effects in patients if the stem cell mixture
containing them is put into the human body.

Instead, scientists at the universities of Glasgow, Strathclyde, the West of Scotland and
Galway used a more natural method using tiny vibrations to trigger the stem cells to become
bone-producing cells called osteoblasts.

The technique, which delivers 1,000 vibrations a second, is called ‘nanokicking’ and its
success is reported in the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering.
Co-author Matthew Dalby, professor of cell engineering at the University of Glasgow, said:
‘This is an exciting step forward for nanokicking, and it takes us one step further towards
making the technique available for use in medical therapies.

‘We are especially excited by these developments as much of the work we’re doing now is
funded by Sir Bobby Charlton’s landmine charity Find a Better Way, which help individuals
and communities heal from the devastating impact of landmines and other explosive
remnants of war.’

In future stem cells could be taken from bone marrow using an injection, with one donor
providing cells for many patients, or less painfully removed from fat stores within the body.

The first human trials are expected in three years, working with reconstructive and
orthopaedic surgeons in Glasgow, along with the Scottish National Blood Transfusion
Service.

Sumber : by Victoria Allen Science Correspondent For The Daily Mail

Teeth - How To Keep Them Healthy

As long as parents care for the health of their children’s teeth they will make sure that they
are checked every six months but as children get older it is up to them to look after their
teeth. Here are some easy suggestions on how to keep your teeth in good shape.

 Use an electric toothbrush. It can remove food and other things better than a
toothbrush.
 Use fluoride toothpaste and brush your teeth especially where they meet the gum.
 After that use dental floss and go around each tooth. This will get rid of any food that
is still left between your teeth.
 Use a mouthwash and gargle for about 30 seconds ,or you could use salty water to
clean your mouth.
 Be careful about the food you eat. Don’t overdo it with chocolate, energy bars or
candy. Eat more vegetables and fruit.
  Red wine, fruit juices and vinegar on salad can harm your teeth and destroy tooth
enamel .
 Do not crack nuts, chew pencils or open bottle caps with your teeth.
Visit the dentist regularly. They have everything they need to check out your teeth
and find holes or other problem spots .

There are connections between bad teeth and heart disease or strokes. If you find or feel
something unusual go to the dentist right away.

Sumber : English Online Articles in Easy Understandable English for Learners

Medical Device Recalls Raise Questions About FDA Process

A large proportion of the medical devices recalled in recent years because they posed a
significant safety hazard made their way to market via the a FDA process that is too lenient,
researchers say.

In a review of 113 urgent recalls from 2005 to 2009, more than 70 percent of the recalled
devices were found to have been cleared via the 510(k) program — compared with 19
percent approved through the FDA's more rigorous premarket approval (PMA) system, Dr.
Steven Nissen, of the Cleveland Clinic, and colleagues reported.

The findings demonstrate "systematic problems" in current medical device regulation "that
have exposed patients to serious harm," Nissen and co-authors wrote in the Feb. 14 issue of
the Archives of Internal Medicine.

"There should be NO recalls for 'serious injuries or death' amongst 510(k) approved devices,"
Nissen said in an e-mail to MedPage Today. "The FDA is supposed to require a PMA for
Class III devices, those used to sustain life or preserve health.

"If a PMA is required for devices used to support or sustain life," Nissen continued, "why
were so many of the devices recalled for 'serious injury or death' originally approved using
510?
Several researchers contacted by MedPage Today and ABC News via e-mail said the study
highlights a major flaw in the FDA approval process for medical devices.

"The system is set up so that safety and innovation are opposed to each other. It doesn't have
to be that way," said Dr. Cam Patterson, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
"The requirements for premarket testing have gotten so over the top that it is almost
considered the kiss of death for a company if the FDA requires their product to reach
approval through this pathway."

"This creates a perverse incentive for companies to seek 510(k) approval rather than
premarket testing," Patterson added. "This situation may reflect in part the observations in
this study."

Dr. Mark Adelman, of the NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City, called the
510(k) program a "double-edged sword."

"While some lives have been lost by expedited approval, many lives have been saved by
getting better devices to market quickly," Adelman said. "How many lives have been saved
by the 510(k) fast track?

Several other physicians contacted by MedPage Today and ABC News via e-mail noted the
need for a balance between expensive premarket testing and getting devices to market fast
enough to save lives.

They also pointed out that Nissen and colleagues didn't compare the proportions of devices
recalled in each category.

Nissen acknowledged in his e-mail to MedPage Today that a "higher percentage of PMAs
result in serious injuries or deaths, but we think that is not very relevant." Rather, he said, the
question is whether fewer recalls would occur if the life-sustaining devices were more
frequently subject to the PMA approval process.

The FDA began officially regulating devices with the dual-pathway strategy in 1976. At that
time, few devices were permanently implanted or intended to sustain life. Thus, the system
was challenged as new devices changed more dramatically and became more complex, the
researchers said.
Sumber : English Online Articles in Easy Understandable English for Learners

Dangerous Bacteria Also Spreads Outside Hospitals

TUESDAY, March 6, 2012 (Health Day News) — The dangerous bacteria Clostridium
difficile spreads not only in hospitals but also in other health-care settings, causing infections
and death rates to hit "historic highs," U.S. health officials reported Tuesday.

"C. difficile is a deadly diarrheal infection that poses a significant threat to U.S. health care
patients," Ileana Arias, principal deputy director at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, said during a morning news conference. "C. difficile is causing many Americans
to suffer and die."

The germ is linked to about 14,000 deaths in the United States every year. People most at
risk from C. difficile are those who take antibiotics and also receive care in any medical
facility.

"This failure is more difficult to accept because these are treatable, often preventable deaths,"
Arias said. "We know what can be done to do a better job of protecting our patients."

Much of the growth of this bacterial epidemic has been due to the overuse of antibiotics, the
CDC noted in its March 6 report. Unlike healthy people, people in poor health are at high risk
for C. difficile infection.

Almost 50 percent of infections are among people under 65, but more than 90 percent of
deaths are among those aged 65 and older, according to the report.

Previous estimates found that about 337,000 people are hospitalized each year because of C.
difficile infections. Those are historically high levels and add at least $1 billion in extra costs
to the health care system, the CDC said.

However, these estimates might not completely reflect C. difficile's overall impact.
According to the new report, 94 percent of C. difficile infections are related to medical
care, with 25 percent among hospital patients and 75 percent among nursing home patients or
people recently seen in doctors' offices and clinics.

Although the proportion of infection is lowest in hospitals, they are at the core of prevention
because many infected patients are transferred to hospitals for care, raising the risk of
spreading the infection there, the CDC said.

Half of those with C. difficile infections were already infected when they were admitted to the
hospital, often after getting care at another facility, the agency noted.

The other 50 percent of infections were related to care at the hospital where the infection was
diagnosed.

The CDC said that these infections could be reduced if health care workers follow simple
infection control precautions, such as prescribing fewer antibiotics, washing their hands more
often and isolating infected patients.

These and other measures have reduced C. difficile infections by 20 percent in hospitals in
Illinois, Massachusetts and New York, the CDC said.

Sumber : Everyday Healt By Kristina Fiore