Health News

SYDNEY (AFP) - Thousands of children across Australia are to be weighed, measured and interviewed about their diet under a national plan to tackle obesity, the government said.

TUESDAY, July 18 (HealthDay News) -- Obesity surgery has become increasingly popular, but deciding on the right procedure can be a tough choice.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Although technically more challenging, laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, a common type of stomach bypass operation, provides greater weight loss in severely obese patients than does placing a plastic band around the stomach to make it smaller, new research shows.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The weight-loss drug Meridia may be a safe, effective treatment for severely overweight children as young as 12, researchers reported Monday.

MONDAY, July 17 (HealthDay News) -- Teenage girls who are obese run a three-fold greater risk of premature death in middle age, according to a new study in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

LONDON (Reuters) - Men suffering from impotence should be screened for cardiovascular disease because it could be an early sign of the illness, Italian researchers said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Some sexual enhancement products sold on the Internet contain the same ingredients as prescription drugs such as Viagra and are not only illegal but dangerous, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cautioned on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON - Some products touted on the Internet as natural alternatives to impotence drugs like Viagra illegally contain the same active ingredients as the prescription medicines, the Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday.

Chlamydia is a unique type of bacteria that can live and reproduce inside human cells. There are 4 known species of these bacteria, 3 of which can cause disease in humans:Chlamydia trachomatis, Chlamydia pneumonia, and Chlamydia psittaci.

(HealthDay News) -- Genital herpes is caused by a sexually transmitted virus, often leading to blisters on or near the genitals or rectum. These blisters eventually open into painful sores that take several weeks to heal. Over time, outbreaks tend to become less severe and last for shorter periods.

(HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of Thomson CenterWatch:

(HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of Thomson CenterWatch:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Young women who are overweight at the age of 18 have a higher risk of dying young, but medication and behavior therapy can help young people lose weight, U.S. researchers reported on Monday.

(HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of Thomson CenterWatch:

(HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of Thomson CenterWatch:

SYDNEY (AFP) - Thousands of children across Australia are to be weighed, measured and interviewed about their diet under a national plan to tackle obesity, the government said.

During these early months, you may find yourself with many questions about your baby's health. Most doctors have phone hours when you can call with routine questions. Don't hesitate to call your child's doctor with your concerns, no matter how small they may seem. Of course, if you suspect illness, don't wait for phone hours - call your doctor immediately. As in the newborn period, illness at this age requires immediate attention.

TUESDAY, July 18 (HealthDay News) -- Doctors say they've come up with a cheaper but equally effective means of battling an infection of the lining of the lungs in children.

A group of viruses that infect the membranes (tissue linings) of the respiratory tract, the eyes, the intestines, and the urinary tract, adenoviruses account for about 10% of acute respiratory infections in children and are a frequent cause of diarrhea.

TUESDAY, July 18 (HealthDay News) -- The front air bags now installed in cars offer as much protection as first-generation air bags but are less likely to kill children or small adults when they deploy, a U.S. government study finds.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women destined to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease often show a reduction in body weight many years before symptom onset, new research shows. However, men who develop this neurologic disorder do not show any weight changes.

(HealthDay News) -- Wandering is a common but dangerous symptom of Alzheimer's disease -- a degenerative disease of the brain that affects memory and cognition.

TUESDAY, July 18 (HealthDay News) -- A specific gene variant has a major impact on the risk for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of vision loss in the elderly, Dutch researchers report.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Infusing human antibodies into people with Alzheimer's disease appears to help stop the disease from getting worse and may even help the patients improve a little, researchers reported on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Alzheimer's drug Aricept not only improves memory and understanding in patients but appears to slow the characteristic shrinkage of the brain, researchers reported on Monday.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Diet changes or nutritional supplements, such as vitamins, antioxidants, retinol or garlic, do not alter the course of disease in patients with cancer or precancerous conditions, according to the findings of one of two studies published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

TUESDAY, July 18 (HealthDay News) -- Treatment with a non-surgical technique called thermal ablation can provide some terminal lung cancer patients with a few extra years of life, a U.S. study finds.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Advisers working at some federally funded pregnancy resource centers mislead pregnant teens about the risks of abortion, falsely telling callers it raises the risk of breast cancer, infertility and mental illness, a U.S. congressman said on Monday.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Depression and anxiety are associated with poor sleep quality, daytime drowsiness and nightmares in patients with Parkinson's disease, according to a recent report.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Knowledge of available treatment options and the significance of drug resistance has declined in patients infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, according to results of a survey presented Tuesday.

PENSACOLA, Fla. - When Marine Lt. Alan Zarracina finally did the splits after months of struggling with the difficult pose in yoga class, the limber women around him applauded.

CHICAGO - Just days after announcing a crackdown on researchers who do not disclose drug company ties, the editor of a prestigious medical journal says she was misled again — this time by the authors of a study linking severe migraines to heart attacks in women.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Tuesday strongly backed bipartisan legislation to expand federally funded embryonic stem cell research, but President George W. Bush has vowed to veto the measure as morally indefensible.

SAN FRANCISCO - The waves were flat at Ocean Beach, but Brian Bennett paddled out anyway. For Bennett, a surfer of 20 years, it didn't matter that he might not catch a single wave on this crisp sunny afternoon with no other surfers in sight. Surfing is what the 34-year-old ad salesman does for exercise.

WASHINGTON - Meth abuse continues to fuel an increase in crimes like robbery and assault, straining the workload of local police forces despite a drop in the number of meth lab seizures, according to a survey Tuesday.