World Patient Safety Day

World Patient Safety day is celebrated every year on 9^th of December to raise awareness about the safety of patient. Patient safety is a global public health concern and is a fundamental principle of health care. The main aim of this day is to raise awareness about patient safety issues in all parts of the world.

Hospital is a place which provides treatment to sick people round the clock. However at times, it could turn out to be life threatening as well. Every process of patient care safety involves a certain degree of uncertainty. The discipline of patient safety highlights the importance to prevent harm to patients, caused by the process of healthcare itself.  Improving patient safety means reducing harm to the patient.

Why this concern?
According to WHO, estimates show that in developed countries as many as 1 in 10 patients are harmed while receiving hospital care. The harm can be caused by a range of errors or adverse events. Recent advancement in technology has created an immensely complex healthcare system. This complexity brings many challenges for healthcare staff in order to keep the patient safe. Though, a lot of people are treated successfully but there are times when things can go wrong.

Patient Safety Issues: 

Diagnostic Errors:  such as wrong, missed or unintentional delayed diagnosis.
Health Care-Acquired Infections: These are the errors which occur during patient’s hospitalization.
Medication Errors- are when a patient gets the wrong medication, or when he or she receives the right medication but in the wrong dosage.
Readmissions: A readmission is when a patient needs to return to the hospital less than 30 days after being discharged.
Wrong-Site Surgery: Wrong-site surgery means an operation done on the wrong part of the body or on the wrong person.
Communication: Proper communication between the hospital workers as well as between the patient and doctor.

How to ensure proper patient Safety?

• Ensure proper patient identity. Patient coding/ labelling can be helpful.
• Do not use abbreviations while writing prescriptions. Preferably use capital letters so that it is easy for the patient to understand.
• Training of healthcare professionals and team building activities can help in reducing such errors.
• Proper healthcare infrastructure will help in reducing patient harm during hospitalization.
• Effective use of signages will avoid unnecessary delays during hospitalization. 
• Take proper charge when handing over/taking over the patients especially during shifts.
• Engaging patient and their families in their own care. Adherence to Standard Operative Procedure (SOP) facilitates patient’s safety.
• Doctors should be trained for rational use of medicines and especially avoid over prescription.

Source: National Health Portal

Short-term sleep deprivation affects heart function

People who work in fire and emergency medical services, medical residencies and other high-stress jobs are often called upon to work 24-hour shifts with little opportunity for sleep. While it is known that extreme fatigue can affect many physical, cognitive and emotional processes, this is the first study to examine how working a 24-hour shift specifically affects cardiac function.

"For the first time, we have shown that short-term sleep deprivation in the context of 24-hour shifts can lead to a significant increase in cardiac contractility, blood pressure and heart rate," said study author Daniel Kuetting, M.D., from the Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at the University of Bonn in Bonn, Germany.

For the study, Dr. Kuetting and colleagues recruited 20 healthy radiologists, including 19 men and one woman, with a mean age of 31.6 years. Each of the study participants underwent cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging with strain analysis before and after a 24-hour shift with an average of three hours of sleep.

"Cardiac function in the context of sleep deprivation has not previously been investigated with CMR strain analysis, the most sensitive parameter of cardiac contractility," Dr. Kuetting said.

The researchers also collected blood and urine samples from the participants and measured blood pressure and heart rate.

Following short-term sleep deprivation, the participants showed significant increases in mean peak systolic strain (pre = -21.9; post = -23.4), systolic (112.8; 118.5) and diastolic (62.9; 69.2) blood pressure and heart rate (63.0; 68.9). In addition, the participants had significant increases in levels of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), thyroid hormones FT3 and FT4, and cortisol, a hormone released by the body in response to stress.

Although the researchers were able to perform follow-up examinations on half of the participants after regular sleep, Dr. Kuetting notes that further study in a larger cohort is needed to determine possible long-term effects of sleep loss.

"The study was designed to investigate real-life work-related sleep deprivation," Dr. Kuetting said. "While the participants were not permitted to consume caffeine or food and beverages containing theobromine, such as chocolate, nuts or tea, we did not take into account factors like individual stress level or environmental stimuli."

As people continue to work longer hours or work at more than one job to make ends meet, it is critical to investigate the detrimental effects of too much work and not enough sleep. Dr. Kuetting believes the results of this pilot study are transferable to other professions in which long periods of uninterrupted labor are common.

"These findings may help us better understand how workload and shift duration affect public health," he said

Source: ScienceDaily

Stroke: New drug limits brain damage and promotes repair

The study, led by the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom, is published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. The researchers believe the findings offer further support for developing the new drug as a treatment for stroke.

A stroke is an event that blocks or interrupts the blood supply to the brain, depriving cells of essential oxygen. Without oxygen, cells die within minutes. There are few effective treatments for stroke and they apply to a low proportion of patients.

A stroke can lead to lasting brain damage, long-term disability, or even death. Risk factors for stroke include high blood pressure, smoking, heart disease, having a personal or family history of stroke, obesity, and diabetes.

The new study concerns ischemic strokes, responsible for the majority of strokes. These occur when the artery that supplies oxygen-rich blood to the brain becomes blocked, most often by a blood clot.

IL-1Ra and stroke

The researchers, led by Stuart Allan, professor of neuroscience at Manchester, investigated the effect of an anti-inflammatory drug, interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra), on rats after a stroke.

he researchers found that rats treated with IL-1Ra not only had reduced brain damage in the early stages following a stroke, but several days later, they showed increased numbers of new brain cells (neurogenesis). They found the results were just as promising whether the rats were young, old, lean, or obese.

The authors note that while stroke itself can also trigger a robust repair response following injury, many of the new cells generated fail to survive or integrate into the circuits that are already there.

When they analyzed the effect of IL-1Ra on neurogenesis in the rats' brains, they found the drug "not only increases stem cell proliferation, but also significantly enhances neuroblast migration and the number of newly born neurons after cerebral ischemia."

The researchers suggest previous attempts to find a drug to prevent brain damage after stroke have not successfully completed the journey from the lab to the clinic because they fail to deal with the strong inflammatory response that occurs in a stroke.

Source: MedNewstoday

Breathing-based Yoga May Help Treat Major Depression

Antidepressant medication is considered a primary treatment for major depression, but the drugs fail to fully work for more than half of Americans who use them. Now, researchers suggest a way to boost their effectiveness: breathing-based yoga

In a pilot study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, researchers reveal how 8 weeks of Sudarshan Kriya yoga improved symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who were not responding to antidepressants.

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, depression is the most common mental illness in the United States. In 2014, around 15.7 million adults experienced at least one major depressive episode in the past 12 months.

Symptoms of depression may include persistent sadness, feelings of hopelessness, pessimism, guilt or worthlessness, fatigue, loss of interest in activities, reduced appetite, weight loss, and insomnia.

An individual is usually diagnosed with MDD if they experience at least five of these symptoms for at least 2 weeks, and such depressive episodes may commonly occur after a traumatic event, such as the death of a loved one or a medical illness.

Antidepressants - such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) - are often the first port of call when it comes to treatment for MDD, but patients do not always respond to the drugs. While additional medication may be offered, this can lead to unpleasant side effects that cause patients to stop treatment completely, making relapses more likely.

Now, Dr. Anup Sharma, a neuropsychiatry research fellow at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of Medicine, and team suggest Sudarshan Kriya yoga may be an effective, low-cost, non-drug approach to help patients who do not respond to antidepressants.

Source: MedNewsToday

India To Become The World Leader in Digital Health

In May this year, India had tabled a resolution at WHO for mHealth, which was supported by over 30 nations. This clearly signals India's intent to be a global leader in Digital Health.

Digital Health has the potential to revolutionize how populations interact with national health services and also strengthen health systems. India is now embarking on a futuristic journey to bridge the healthcare divide between have’s and have-nots using digital health tools. We have a number of projects that will extensively deploy technology.

The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has been taking several impactful initiatives in the field of Digital Health. Our Hon’ble Prime Minister has envisioned for Digital Platform & Electronic Health to be optimally leveraged so as to meet the key challenges posed to us in health sector e.g. shortage of health human resource, accessibility of healthcare infrastructure, affordability of healthcare services etc. Electronic Health Records (EHRs) of citizens are envisaged to be created for ensuring continuity of care and other associated benefits. Delivery of services to citizens through “online mode” is at core of the overall electronic health ecosystem being talked about.

Major I.T. initiatives by Ministry include various mHealth initiatives for improving efficiency and efficacy of public healthcare across the country under the Digita India Programme. For example, the Vaccine Tracker mobile application support parents in tracking immunization status of their children and helps them in ensuring complete and timely vaccination. The India Fights Dengue mobile application provides interactive information on identification of symptoms of Dengue and links users to nearest hospitals and blood banks The Swasth Bharat (Health India) mobile application provides detailed information on healthy lifestyle, disease conditions and their symptoms, treatment options, first aid and public health alerts. Through our Kilkari mobile app initiative, we are sending audio messages about pregnancy, child birth and child care directly to families and parents. A mobile based audio training course has been developed for expanding the knowledge of our village based voluntary health workforce. Our other mHealth initiatives include National Health Portal, Online Registration System, E-Rakt Kosh, ANM Online (ANMOL), telemedicine projects (in remote & inaccessible areas), Tobacco Cessation Programme and leveraging mobile phones for reaching patients of Tuberculosis. Soon the Ministry will launch the Stress management app.

These initiatives are ensuing remarkable improvement in healthcare delivery and management. For example Online Registration System (ORS) for public hospitals, launched in July 2015, has been able to bring about a significant change in the patient registration and appointment system and as a result patients now don’t need to wait at hospitals for taking appointments. As on date all AIIMS, most of the central government hospitals and many state government hospitals are linked through ORS.

Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com

Spoil Sprouts: How Little Greens Can Make You Sick

Sprouts may sound cute, but the tiny greens have sickened more than 2,500 people and caused 186 hospitalizations and three deaths in the past two decades, a new report finds.

"Sprout contamination continues to pose a serious public health concern," the researchers from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) wrote in their report. The arm of the FDA that wrote the new report focuses on investigating outbreaks and finding ways to prevent them. The findings on sprouts were presented on Oct. 28 at IDWeek 2016, a meeting in New Orleans of several organizations focused on infectious diseases. The report on sprouts has not been published in a peer-reviewed journal.

From 1996 to August 2016, 48 outbreaks of illness were associated with sprouts, the researchers found.

Alfalfa sprouts were the most common culprit during the study period, with 30 outbreaks. There were seven outbreaks linked to clover sprouts, six outbreaks linked to mung bean sprouts, two outbreaks linked to unspecified sprouts, two outbreaks linked to multiple sprout types and one outbreak linked to a food ingredient called sprouted chia powder, the FDA found.

Sprouts carried a number of different types of bacteria, the researchers found. Salmonella was implicated in the greatest number of outbreaks, at 35, followed by Escherichia coli (11 outbreaks) and Listeria monocytogenes (two outbreaks), according to the report.

Of the three sprout-related deaths during the study period, two were attributed to Salmonella and one to Listeria.

Sprouts "certainly rank up there" among types of produce that have been linked to outbreaks, said Dr. Kathleen Gensheimer, the director of the FDA's Coordinated Outbreak Response and Evaluation Network and the lead author of the study.

Sprouts' propensity to harbor dangerous bacteria has to do with how they are grown, Gensheimer told Live Science. To grow sprouts, seeds are placed in water in a warm, humid environment that is ideal for rapid bacterial growth, she said.

Source: cnnnews

Headaches in Children

Headaches are very common among children and are not usually a sign of a serious underlying condition. The headaches are often caused by stress, anxiety, depression, lifestyle, minor head trauma and common illnesses such as colds, flu and ear infections. The headaches can usually be treated with over-the-counter medications and lifestyle changes.

Types of Headache

As with adults, children can develop various different types of headache, with the most common types being migraine and muscle tension headaches. The symptoms children develop tend to be different from those seen in adults. For example, when a child experiences a migraine, the pain may last for less than four hours, where as it can last a lot longer in adults. The different symptoms children experience can make it difficult to diagnose the exact type of headache a child has, but usually, it is possible to categorize the headache. In general, they are classified as the following:

Migraine

These are severe, episodic headaches that are associated with the following symptoms:

1. Pounding or pulsating head pain
2. Nausea and vomiting
3. Abdominal pain
4. Sensitivity to light and noise
5. Pain that becomes worse on exertion

Tension-Type Headaches

Tension headaches occur on a daily or periodic basis and may last anywhere from half-an-hour to several days. Tension headaches do not usually cause the same signs and symptoms seen in migraine. Symptoms may include:

1. Tension in the head or neck muscles
2. Pain that does not intensify with exertion
3. A non-throbbing, mild-to-moderate pain felt on both sides of the head
4. Absence of the nausea and vomiting often seen with migraine

Cluster Headache

Cluster headaches usually occur in a series of at least five episodes, with the child experiencing anything from one headache every other day to eight headaches per day. Symptoms include the following:

1. Sharp pain in one side of the head lasting less than three hours
2. Congestion
3. Runny nose
4. Restlessness
5. Irritability

Source: Medicalnews

Teen’s Wish to be Cryogenically Preserved Granted by High Court

A 14-year-old girl with terminal cancer wanted her body to be frozen after her death in case she could be cured in the future. Since she was not old enough to write a will, she wrote a letter to the High Court in London asking that her mother would be the sole decision maker regarding the disposal of her body when she died.

She wrote "I want to live and live longer and I think that in the future they may find a cure for my cancer and wake me up. I want to have this chance. This is my wish".

The ruling by the High Court judge in London that the girl's mother should be allowed to decide what happened to the body of her daughter was made on 6 October.

The judge highlighted that he had not made a ruling on cryopreservation, he merely gave the mother the legal right to follow her daughter's last wish. The girl died peacefully later that month comforted by the knowledge that her remains would be preserved.

A publicity ban was imposed at the time of the hearing so that the girl was not subjected to further distress in her final days of life. Immediately after her death, the girl was flown to the US (cryogenics is not available in the UK) where her body is now being stored indefinitely in liquid nitrogen at temperatures below -130 ̊C. The cost of £37,000 had been raised by the family once the girl had made her wishes known.

Cryonics is based on the theory that the whole body is preserved in the hope that resuscitation and a cure are possible in the distant future. Although frozen embryos have been showed to remain viable and successfully used in fertility treatments, there is no evidence that it would be possible to bring a frozen body back to life.

Although the hospital trust co-operated in the procedure needed for the girl's body to be preserved, they raised concerns and highlighted the need for proper regulation. The process required for a body that is to be cryogenically preserved is similar to that used after the death of a potential organ donor.

Source: cnnnewstoday

World Toilet Day

World Toilet Day is celebrated every year on 19th November. The aim of this day is to draw global attention to the sanitation crisis. This year the theme of this day is ‘Toilets and Jobs’. The objective of this theme is to spread awareness that toilets and sanitation have a crucial role in the development of economy, lack of toilets and poor sanitation at workplaces creates inconvenience and discomfort among the workers. It effects the attendance rates, health, concentration and productivity of the workforce.  It is must to have clean toilets and separate facilities for both men and women for improving the health and to protect people’s safety and dignity.  

Key facts related to Toilet facility:

• 4 billion people have no access to basic sanitation services, such as toilets or latrines
• On this planet, still 1 out of every 3 people do not have access to a clean and safe toilet
• Every day around 1,000 children die due to poor sanitation

Thus, it is the time to encourage people to use toilets rather than defecating in open.

Benefits of using toilets

• Protects the privacy
• Improve the sanitation and hygiene
• To prevent  from diseases  such as  pneumonia , worm infestation and diarrhoea
• To increase attendance rates of girls in school because due to the lack of a clean and safe toilet many girls leave school
• To decrease the number of  people defecating in open, because still 1 billion people in the  world practice open defecation
• Hygiene and sanitation will reduce health care cost
• To keep river water safe

Source: nhp.gov

Vitamin D Reduces Respiratory Infections

The findings of the clinical trial, published today in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, could help reduce one of the leading causes of serious illness, debilitation and death among patients in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

"After studying these patients for a year, we found a 40 percent reduction in acute respiratory illness among those who took higher doses of vitamin D," said the study's lead author, Adit Ginde, MD, MPH, professor of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. "Vitamin D can improve the immune system's ability to fight infections because it bolsters the first line of defense of the immune system."

Ginde said in older people that first line of defense is often impaired. But vitamin D can reinforce it and prevent illnesses like pneumonia, influenza and bronchitis.

It may also prevent infections and exacerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) like emphysema.

At the same time, Ginde found that those who received higher doses of vitamin D also saw an increase in falls. The falls were lower in those given smaller doses rather than higher monthly doses of vitamin D.

The clinical trial, the first to examine vitamin D's impact on respiratory infections in nursing home residents, looked at 107 patients with an average age of 84 over a 12 month period. Of those, 55 received high doses of vitamin D or 100,000 units monthly (averaging 3,300-4,300 units daily). And 52 received lower doses averaging between 400-1,000 units daily. Those with higher doses saw ARIs cut nearly in half. They also had over double the incidence of falls, the study said.

"This finding requires a confirmatory trial, including whether high daily doses of vitamin D, rather than high monthly doses, makes patients less likely to fall," Ginde said.

But Ginde said the primary finding that vitamin D can reduce ARI is a major step forward in treating these dangerous infections.

"This is a potentially life-saving discovery," Ginde said. "There is very little in a doctor's arsenal to battle ARI, especially since most are viral infections where antibiotics don't work. But vitamin D seems able to potentially prevent these infections."

Source: sciencedaily

How Can I Help Someone with Depression?

Depression is a mood disorder marked by constant feelings of sadness or a loss of interest in activities previously enjoyed. It is also known as major depressive disorder

The World Health Organization estimate that 350 million people globally are affected by this condition. In fact, depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide.

Major depressive disorder can cause many emotional and physical problems, and significantly reduces the quality of life of those affected. However, there are effective treatments available to those with depression.

How to tell if someone is depressed

The signs and symptoms of depression will be different from person to person.

According to the American Psychiatric Association, the signs and symptoms of depression vary from mild to severe.

Someone may be depressed if they:

• Appear sad or hopeless, or if they express feelings of worthlessness or guilt
• Have lost interest in activities they once enjoyed
• Are sleeping more than usual or are unable to sleep
• Seem tired or lack energy
• Are eating more or less than usual
• Appear agitated or restless
• Have trouble concentrating, remembering, or making decisions
• Are angry, irritable, or frustrated
• Appear more introverted than usual
• Are moving or speaking slower than usual
• Express thoughts of suicide or have attempted suicide.

Read More at: MedNewsToday

High-Protein Diet May Raise Heart Failure Risk For Older Women

Heart failure occurs when the heart is no longer able to pump enough oxygen-rich blood around the body to support other organs.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 5.7 millionAmerican adults have heart failure, and in 2009, heart failure contributed to around 1 in 9 deaths in the United States.

A diet high in fat, cholesterol, and sodium is known to raise the risk of heart failure, but according to study co-author Dr. Mohamad Firas Barbour, of Brown University Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island, and colleagues, a diet high in protein may be just as harmful.

The researchers recently presented their findings at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2016, held in New Orleans, LA.

Protein is found in foods such as meat, poultry, dairy products, seafood, beans, peas, and nuts, and it is considered essential for healthy bones, muscles, and skin.

While some studies have suggested a diet high in protein may aid weight loss by suppressing appetite, other research has cited the downfalls of a high-protein diet.

A 2014 study published in the journal Cell Metabolism, for example, suggested a link between a high-protein diet and greater risk of cancer, diabetes, and all-cause mortality.

Such studies claim animal-derived proteins are more to blame for negative health implications than plant-derived proteins, and the new research is no exception.

Source: MEDNEWSTODAY

World Immunization Day

World Immunization Day is celebrated every year on November 10. This day is celebrated to make people aware about the importance of getting timely vaccinations against vaccine preventable diseases.

Immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine. Immunization helps protect the child from life threatening diseases. It also helps reduce the spread of disease to others. Vaccines stimulate the body’s own immune system to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease. Babies are born with some natural immunity which they get from their mother through breast-feeding. This immunity gradually diminishes as the baby's own immune system starts to develop. Immunization is one of the most cost-effective health investments and vaccination does not require any major lifestyle change.

According to WHO, Immunization is a proven tool for controlling and eliminating life-threatening infectious diseases and is estimated to avert between 2 and 3 million deaths each year but an estimated 18.7 million infants worldwide are still missing out on basic vaccines.

India has one of the largest Universal Immunization Programs (UIP) in the world in terms of the quantities of vaccines used, number of beneficiaries covered, geographical spread and human resources involved. Despite being operational for over 30 years, UIP has been able to fully immunize only 65% children in the first year of their life and the increase in coverage has stagnated. To achieve full immunization coverage for all children, the Government of India launched Mission Indradhanush in December 2014. The ultimate goal of this program is to ensure full immunization with all available vaccines for children up to two years and pregnant women. Under this programme, all vaccines are available free of cost.

Source: NationalHealthProg

Blood vessels control brain growth

Blood vessels play a vital role in stem cell reproduction, enabling the brain to grow and develop in the womb, reveals new UCL research in mice.

The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and funded by Wellcome, shows that blood vessels can increase the number of neural stem cells inside a living organism. This could be important for the design of stem cell-based therapies that aim to regenerate diseased or damaged parts of the nervous system.

Source : Blood vessels play a vital role in stem cell

Food Additive Alters Gut Bacteria

 the cancers that affect both men and women, colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer in the United States and the second leading cause of cancer-related death. New research - published in the journal Cancer Research - suggests a very common food additive might play a role in its development.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 136,119 Americans were diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2013.

Risk factors for developing the condition include inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), such as Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis.

What IBD and colorectal cancer have in common is an alteration in the gut microbiota.

An overview of recent scientific literature shows that changes in the microbiota have become increasingly associated with colorectal cancer.

This is why Dr. Emilie Viennois, assistant professor at the Georgia State University Institute for Biomedical Sciences, Atlanta, believes there might be a connection between a common food additive that alters intestinal microbiota and colorectal cancer.

The role of intestinal microbiota in colorectal cancer

There are over 100 trillion microorganisms living in the gut, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi. The microbiota is made of the physiological interaction between the host's microorganisms and the ones introduced from the environment.

The microbiota is acquired during the first stages of life and varies with every individual. Having a diverse and balanced microbiota is crucial in keeping a healthy immune system.

Severe changes in the microbiota, either as a result of changing one's diet, lifestyle, or because of an infection, can alter the symbiotic relationship between the host microorganisms and the environmental ones, leading to IBD.

IBD promotes the formation of tumors in the colon. Low-grade inflammation, which has been associated with changes in the microbiota and metabolic disease, has also been observed in many cases of colorectal cancer.

Source: 

A Six-Hour Workday Could Be Good For You!

It may sound counterintuitive, but working less could actually result in higher productivity. Seriously.

Although many of us continue the tradition of working at least eight hours per day, with an hour's break in the middle -- if we're lucky -- a recent study found that productivity is actually highest when people spend fewer hours working, according to researchers at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which examined working hours in several countries over a period of 22 years.

In fact, one paper (PDF) suggested that output actually starts to fall if people work more than 48 hours per week. Data on munition plant workers in Britain during World War I showed that long hours led to fatigue and stress that not only reduce productivity, they make accidents, errors and sickness more likely.

A hundred years later, we're still facing the same issues. Today, working overtime has been linked (PDF) tohigher rates of injury, illness, weight gain, alcohol use and smoking and, in general, an increased risk of mortality. One study found that putting in long hours could result in a 40% higher likelihood of coronary heart disease, compared with people who work standard hours.

Reducing our working hours could, therefore, make a huge difference to our health and well-being, in turn enabling us to work more efficiently. In Sweden, this theory is being put to the test -- with promising results.

Source: CNN

Worrying About Health Increases Heart Disease Risk!

Anxiety is a serious health concern affecting a large part of the American population. Now, new research indicates that health anxiety might increase the risk of heart disease.

In the United States, anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness, affecting 40 million adults, or 18 percent of the population.

Anxiety is a known risk factor for heart disease. Previous research indicates a connection between depression and anxiety and the risk of coronary heart disease.

A meta-analysis found that anxious people have a 48 percent higher risk of dying from a heart problem.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death among Americans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), killing 365,000 people in 2014.

New research suggests that the consequences of health anxiety are also serious and the condition should be treated properly.

Health anxiety describes a patient's excessive worrying over having a serious illness, and seeking medical advice in the absence of a physical disease.

Patients with health anxiety misread physical symptoms as serious illnesses, and they often seek repeated medical help for the same issues. In its most intense form, health anxiety becomes hypochondria.

Source: MedNewsToday

5 Things People With Hidden Depression May Do

If what I feel were equally distributed to the whole human family, there would not be one cheerful face on the earth, said Abraham Lincoln, who often wrote about his depression.

Depression can be one of the hardest and most misunderstood things to deal with. Despite many attempts which have been made to single out an explanation, one outdoes the other. Though generalizing symptoms of a severe condition such as depression is hard, we have penned down a few of these, which may help you point it out in yourself or others:

Trying hard to conceal it

Can you understand? Someone, somewhere, can you understand me a little, love me a little?
- Sylvia Plath

When we think of depression, what comes to our mind is a person sitting by himself, head facing down, locked in his room, often in a dimly-lit setting. Well, the first step towards understanding depression is doing away with this stereotype. A depressed person may look as cheerful, as outgoing and as happy as anyone. But that’s only starkly juxtaposed with what is going on inside their minds. So, if someone tells you that they are depressed while they wear the best of their smiles, don’t ask them if they are kidding.



Displaying irritation and anger too often

Depression is the most unpleasant thing I have ever experienced… Sad hurts, but it’s a healthy feeling. It is a necessary thing to feel. Depression is very different.
- J.K. Rowling
Source: thetimesofindia.com

Energy Drinks Linked to Hepatitis in New Case Study

Most of us have consumed energy drinks at one point or another, either because of a looming deadline or during a fun night out. Although energy drinks are often perceived as harmless, a new case report links the beverages to liver damage, after a previously healthy man developed hepatitis from consuming too many.

In the United States, most energy drinks are consumed by young males between 18-34 years of age. Almost one third of teenagers between 12-17 years old consume energy drinks regularly, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH).

Between 2007-2011, the number of energy drink-related emergency department visits in the U.S. doubled. Main concerns regard the combined use of energy drinks with alcohol, which leads to excessive binge drinking.

As for the contents of an energy drink, it is believed that caffeine and sugar pose the greatest threat to consumers' health.

According to a new case report, however, there may be something in energy drinks that can cause liver damage.

The report details a 50-year-old man who was admitted to the hospital for acute hepatitis. The patient had reportedly consumed four to five energy drinks per day for more than 3 weeks.

This is a very rare occurrence; there is only one other case, in which a 22-year-old woman developed acute hepatitis from consuming energy drinks in excess.

Source: MedNewsToday

'Only Drink Water When Thirsty,' study suggests

Popular notion holds that eight glasses of water is the optimal amount to drink each day, but many people find this hard to achieve. Now, a new study may shed light on why, after identifying a swallowing mechanism that stops us from consuming too much liquid when we are not thirsty.

Given that around 60 percent of human body weight is made up of water, it is no surprise that water is essential for human health, aiding every bodily function.

But how much water do we need to drink on a daily basis?

While you may have heard that eight 8-ounce glasses of water each day - known as the "8x8 rule" - is the aim, there is no scientific evidence that pinpoints precisely how much fluid is the optimal amount.

Based on studies to date, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommend that women should aim to drink around 2.2 liters of total beverages daily (around 9 cups), while men should aim to consume around 3 liters of total beverages daily (around 13 cups).

However, contrary to these recommendations and the so-called 8x8 rule, the new study suggests we should only drink when we are thirsty, after discovering a mechanism that makes drinking excess water challenging.

Study co-author Michael Farrell, of the Biomedicine Discovery Institute at Monash University in Australia, and colleagues publish their finding in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Source: MedNewsToday