Researchers from Hong Kong have warned that women should be cautious about using the herbal remedy ginseng in the early stages of pregnancy after a study found abnormalities in rat embryos. They found that embryos exposed to more than 30 micrograms per millilitre of...
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How Black Cohosh Works: Herb safe and effective for hot flashes
Black cohosh, an herb increasingly used by women as an alternative to estrogen replacement therapy, may reduce hot flashes by targeting serotonin receptors, according to a team of researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago. The finding, the first to show a...
Fountains of Youth? Key ingredients in Mediterranean diet can extend life
Scientists from Harvard Medical School and Biomol research laboratory in Philadelphia report that two natural substances may hold the key to why those who eat a “Mediterranean diet” seem to be healthier and to live longer. Resveratrol is a polyphenol abundant in red...
Fish Oil Finding: Omega-3 fats help advanced cancer patients
Fish oil may help to prevent the severe wasting and weight loss (cachexia), which characterizes some types of advanced cancer, suggests research in the medical journal Gut. Cachexia is a major factor contributing to the illness and death of patients with advanced...
Curry? Don’t Worry! Ancient spice shown to aid inflammatory bowel disease
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) refers to Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, debilitating illnesses characterized by chronic recurrent ulceration of the bowel, abdominal pain, digestive problems, diarrhea or constipation. Some research into the cause of IBD has...
Alzheimer’s and Vitamin E: Vitamin/drug combo appears to slow progression
Combining vitamin E and a drug used to treat mild to moderate dementia may slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, a new study reports. Researchers at Ohio State University found that after just a year of treatment with vitamin E and the drug donepezil (Aricept),...
Young at Heart? Vitamins improve cholesterol problems in children
An estimated 50 million children have high levels of the "bad" cholesterol -- known as LDL -- that puts them at high risk for suffering heart attacks as adults. Most of these children have inherited disorders causing these abnormal cholesterol levels. Because...
Vitamin Could Save Lives: Low B-1 linked to diabetic kidney disease
Researchers at the University of Essex have discovered a new link to the cause of kidney disease in diabetes sufferers which could save hundreds of lives each year. Professor Paul Thornalley and a team of researchers from the University's Department of Biological...
Potent Cancer Fighter: Green tea works on many different levels, say researchers
Green tea's ability to fight cancer is even more potent and varied than scientists suspected, say researchers who have discovered that chemicals in green tea shut down one of the key molecules that tobacco relies upon to cause cancer. It's a find that could help...
New Role for Ginkgo? Herb found effective in vitiligo
It’s estimated that nearly 5% of the world’s population is affected by vitiligo, a type of skin discolouration. This condition is characterized by progressively widening areas of depigmented (very white) skin caused by damage to cells that produce pigment in the skin,...