(HealthDay News) — Though exercise and proper diet are essential to maintaining good health, the body’s basic need for water is often overlooked. Not drinking enough water can be dangerous and have a plethora of negative effects, says Texas Health and Human Services. Your body needs to be hydrated to work properly. Breathing, circulation, body temperature regulation and the senses all rely on sufficient water. Dehydration can also affect your mood, making you cranky, tired or irritable. In fact, sometimes when you feel hungry, your body is actually craving water, the school says.
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Is Childbirth More Dangerous in Rural Areas?
If you are pregnant and live in a rural area of the United States, new research shows that you’re at higher risk of life-threatening complications or death during or after childbirth. “Our study suggests that geographic disparities may put rural women at an increased risk of requiring lifesaving interventions during or immediately after delivering a baby,” said study senior author Dr. Lindsay Admon. She’s an obstetrician-gynecologist at Michigan Medicine’s Von Voigtlander Women’s Hospital, in Ann Arbor. “Policies and programs aiming to improve maternal health and reduce adverse events associated with delivery must address the unique health needs and challenges faced by rural women,” Admon added in a University of Michigan news release. In the study, her team analyzed 6.8 million births nationwide between 2007 and 2015, and found that deliveries requiring emergency lifesaving treatment and mothers’ deaths rose from 109 to 152 per 10,000 childbirth hospitalizations during that time. The researchers also found that rural women were 9% more likely to have a dangerous childbirth situation than urban women, with about 4,400 more cases among rural women during the study period. The findings were published in the December issue of the journal Health Affairs. The study’s lead author, Katy Kozhimannil, said, “Where you live shouldn’t dictate the outcome of your pregnancy.” Kozhimannil is director of the University of Minnesota’s Rural Health Research Center. “In rural… read on >
CBD Medicine May Help Ease Another Form of Seizure
Prescription-grade CBD may help control hard-to-treat seizures caused by a rare genetic disorder, a preliminary study suggests. The study involved 224 patients with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) — a genetic condition that affects about one in 6,000 people, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health. It causes noncancerous tumors to arise throughout the body, and — in 90% of patients — seizures that are often resistant to standard drugs. Researchers wanted to know whether these patients might respond to Epidiolex, a liquid medication that contains purified CBD (cannabidiol). Last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Epidiolex for two other rare seizure disorders: Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. That made it the first approved medication to contain an ingredient derived from cannabis plants. CBD is one of hundreds of chemicals found in cannabis, better known as marijuana. CBD differs from THC, the source of the famous marijuana “high.” CBD is present in marijuana but is more abundant in hemp — cannabis plants that have little THC. Despite the Epidiolex approval, researchers still aren’t sure why prescription-grade CBD can help control severe seizures. But standard antiseizure drugs all work by similar mechanisms — and CBD apparently tackles them in a different way, according to Dr. Elizabeth Thiele, who led the new study. “CBD works by a novel mechanism, but we don’t know exactly what… read on >
Playing Sports Might Sharpen Your Hearing
Playing sports may improve the brain’s ability to process sounds, a finding that could lead to new therapies for people who struggle with hearing, researchers report. “No one would argue against the fact that sports lead to better physical fitness, but we don’t always think of brain fitness and sports,” said study senior author Nina Kraus. She’s a professor of communication sciences and neurobiology at Northwestern University, in Evanston, Ill. “We’re saying that playing sports can tune the brain to better understand one’s sensory environment,” added Kraus, director of the university’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory. The study included 495 female and male Northwestern student athletes and a control group of 493 age- and sex-matched non-athletes. The participants’ brain activity was monitored while they wore earbuds that delivered speech sounds. The athletes were more adept than those in the control group to tune out background noise to better process the speech sounds, according to the study published Dec. 9 in the journal Sports Health. That skill can be useful for athletes when they’re trying to hear a teammate or coach calling to them during a game. Kraus equated it to listening to a DJ on the radio. “Think of background electrical noise in the brain like static on the radio,” Kraus said in a university news release. “There are two ways to hear the DJ better: minimize… read on >
Good Workouts Might Extend a Woman’s Life
If you can tackle a tough workout, that may bode well for your longevity, new research suggests. A woman’s risk of dying from heart disease, cancer or other causes is much lower if she can engage in vigorous exercise, scientists report. The new study included more than 4,700 middle-aged and older women, average age 64, who were referred for treadmill exercise echocardiography because they had known or suspected coronary artery disease. The women walked or ran on a treadmill with a gradual increase in intensity, and continued until they were exhausted. During a median follow-up of 4.6 years, there were 345 heart-related deaths, 164 cancer deaths and 203 deaths from other causes. After adjusting for other factors, the researchers concluded that high exercise capacity was significantly associated with lower risk of death during follow-up, though the study didn’t prove a cause-and-effect link. The annual rate of death from heart disease was nearly four times higher in women with poor exercise capacity (2.2%) than in those with good exercise capacity (0.6%), the investigators found. The annual rate of cancer deaths was twice as high among women with poor exercise capacity (0.9%) than those with good exercise capacity (0.4%), and the annual rate of death from other causes was more than four times higher among those with poor exercise capacity (1.4%) than those with good exercise capacity… read on >
Health Tip: Managing ADHD in Adults
(HealthDay News) — About 4 percent of adults have attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), says Harvard University Medical School. Adults with ADHD tend to have more difficulty with attention and memory, rather than with hyperactivity, as with children. To help manage ADHD in adults, the school suggests: Consider medications such as stimulants, non stimulants and antidepressants. Learn more about ADHD and encourage your family and spouse to learn, too. Establish realistic expectations and achievable goals. Avail yourself of cognitive behavioral therapy or coaching.
Health Tip: Heart-Smart Approaches to Relationship Stress
(HealthDay News) — Arguing with a partner or feeling anxious about meeting the in-laws can induce stress. When these strains are intense or prolonged, your heart can suffer, says Johns Hopkins Medicine. The school mentions these healthier ways to deal with relationship stress: Discuss life stresses with your doctor. Check if your coping strategies are healthy. Find stress outlets that make you feel better quickly, and in the long term. Make taking care of yourself a top priority. Pay attention to newer symptoms, such as pain or nausea.
BPA Levels in Humans Are Underestimated: Study
Levels of the widely used chemical bisphenol A (BPA) in people’s bodies are much higher than once thought, according to scientists who say they’ve created a more accurate way to measure them. BPA is used in many plastic products, including food and drink containers, and animal studies have shown that it can interfere with hormones. Exposure to BPA in the womb has been linked to growth, metabolism, behavior and fertility problems, as well an increased risk of cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, however, contends human exposure to BPA is at very low, and therefore, safe levels. The new method developed by researchers and outlined in their study suggests that the measurements used by the FDA and other regulatory agencies underestimate BPA exposure by as much as 44 times. “This study raises serious concerns about whether we’ve been careful enough about the safety of this chemical,” said study co-author Patricia Hunt, a professor in the School of Molecular Biosciences at Washington State University. “What it comes down to is that the conclusions federal agencies have come to about how to regulate BPA may have been based on inaccurate measurements,” Hunt said in a university news release. Co-author Roy Gerona is an assistant professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. He said he hoped the findings would prompt other experts and labs… read on >
Cleaner Air Quickly Brings Big Health Benefits, Study Finds
When people are breathing cleaner air, their health generally improves — rapidly, in some cases, a new review shows. The report, from the Environmental Committee of the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS), details some of the evidence on air quality and human health. Overall, it concludes, people can reap a range of benefits when air pollution is cut — from fewer asthma attacks, to lower risks of heart attack and stroke, to a longer life expectancy. Some of the effects are “quite striking,” said Dr. Dean Schraufnagel, the report’s lead author and executive director of FIRS. He pointed to the example of changes made in cities hosting the Olympics — which, for a time, resulted in cleaner air and healthier residents. For the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, officials bumped up public transportation and closed downtown streets to private vehicles. As a result, peak daily ozone levels dropped by 28%, and over the next four weeks, the number of city children needing medical care for asthma attacks fell by more than 40%. Similarly, when Beijing hosted the 2008 Olympics, the Chinese national government put three-month restrictions on traffic, as well as factory emissions. Air pollution plummeted, and within two months, there were declines in doctor visits for asthma and in deaths from heart disease and stroke. “If you stop the pollution at its source,… read on >
Health Tip: 4-7-8 Breath Relaxation Exercise
(HealthDay News) — Breathing exercises can help you relax and manage stress, says the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine. The center suggests using the 4-7-8 breath exercise: Exhale completely through your mouth. Close your mouth and inhale through your nose to a mental count of 4. Hold your breath for a count of 7. Exhale through your mouth to a count of 8. Repeat the cycle three more times for a total of four breaths.