Latest News

Excess weight and obesity in pre-pregnancy period bring changes in breast milk that can impact infant growth, a study claims. The study was published in the journal 'PLOS ONE'. "The importance of this study is that it demonstrates that breast milk contents can vary depending on mother's weight status at the time of conception and further impact the growth and development of breastfeeding infants," said Henry Nuss, lead author of the study. "Childhood obesity rates in the United States have increased significantly in recent decades," noted Melinda Sothern, professor of Behavioral & Community Health Sciences at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center. "Although many studies have shown that breastfeeding may be protective against excessive weight gain during early life, we do not fully understand why," Sothern added. Breast milk contains pro-inflammatory proteins such as tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-a) and interleuk...

Only one in 760,000 vaccinations will respond with anaphylaxis and for all other side effects, there are ways around any problem, a new study shows. Five facts about allergies to vaccines, pulled together by two McMaster University physicians, were published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), are: Immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated allergies to vaccines are extremely uncommon: Responding to a vaccine with hives, swelling, wheezing or anaphylaxis happens in about one of 760,000 vaccinations. It will start within minutes of the vaccination, is unlikely to begin after 60 minutes and highly unlikely to occur after four hours. Read Complete Article

Dietary consumption of peanut after completing oral immunotherapy (OIT) or sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) for peanut allergy may actually provide continued protection against accidental exposures to the allergen, according to a new study led by Edwin Kim. The findings were presented in the annual American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) conference in San Francisco. The study followed 55 people who had completed OIT or SLIT peanut immunotherapy trials at UNC-Chapel Hill and were desensitised to between 300mg and 5,000mg of peanut. Notably, Desensitisation increases the amount of peanut it takes to cause an allergic reaction, decreasing the likelihood of a severe reaction caused by accidental peanut exposure. Speaking about it, Kim said, "They don't necessarily want to eat large amounts of their allergen, they just want a level of reassurance that if a restaurant cook makes a mistake or a food label is wrong, they won't have a severe all...

Budget 2019 : It is natural for parents to protect their children from any harm, including the endless array of germs they are exposed to every day. As children grow up, they are continuously exposed to various germs, especially in places such as daycare centres and preschool. Children with low immunity are highly susceptible to various types of infections. The high incidence of infections has led to an increased and inappropriate use of antibiotics, which has further resulted in antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial resistance, a widespread problem, takes places when microbes build resistance against the medications intended to kill them due to overuse. It is one of the world's most pressing public health problems. The best way to tackle this is to build a strong immunity, which naturally protects your child from infections. Dr. Rajesh Kumawat, Head - Medical Services & Clinical Development, The Himalaya Drug Company, shares a few tips that can help boost your c...

Business Standard : Babies have delicate skin, which is sensitive to humidity and changes in the weather. Cold weather affects the skin even further by causing rashes, redness and itching. Most rashes are harmless and go away on their own. However, in some situations, the skin condition can become chronic and difficult to manage. Atopic dermatitis, also called atopic eczema, is one such skin condition that affects one in five children globally. Atopic dermatitis is long-lasting (chronic) and tends to flare periodically. Often, it appears in infants in the first year of birth and progresses till five years of age and, at times, even beyond. It leads to inflamed and itchy skin, resulting in patches of red and dry skin. The condition may worsen during colder months. Often, as the child enters teenage, the skin condition persists, affecting daily activities. This leads to a lack of self-confidence, thus impacting the child's overall personality development. BS Atopic ...

Turns out, asthma patients with a specific genetic profile exhibit more intense symptoms of asthma following exposure to vehicular pollution. According to researchers at the National Institutes of Health, asthma patients who lack this specific genetic profile do not have the same sensitivity to vehicular pollution and do not experience worse asthma symptoms. The scientists stated that the results were based on genetic variation, the subtle differences in DNA that make each person unique. They further added that to understand the concept, one should think of human genes, which are made up of DNA base pairs A, C, G, and T, as written instructions for making proteins. "All humans have the same genes, in other words, the same basic instructions, but in some people, one DNA base pair has been changed. This common type of genetic variation is called a single nucleotide polymorphism or SNP, and it can alter the way proteins are made and make individuals more or less prone...