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Messages - Ahmed Anas Chowdhury

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1
Place / Greenland
« on: January 18, 2018, 05:15:38 PM »
Greenland (Greenlandic: Kalaallit Nunaat, pronounced [kalaːɬit nunaːt]; Danish: Grønland, pronounced [ˈɡʁɶnˌlanˀ]) is an autonomous constituent country within the Kingdom of Denmark between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe (specifically Norway and Denmark, the colonial powers, as well as the nearby island of Iceland) for more than a millennium.[9] The majority of its residents are Inuit, whose ancestors began migrating from the Canadian mainland in the 13th century, gradually settling across the island.

Greenland is the world's largest island. Australia and Antarctica, although larger, are generally considered to be continental landmasses rather than islands.[10] Three-quarters of Greenland is covered by the only permanent ice sheet outside Antarctica. With a population of about 56,480[6] (2013), it is the least densely populated country in the world.[11] About a third of the population live in Nuuk, the capital and largest city. The Arctic Umiaq Line ferry acts as a lifeline for western Greenland, connecting the various cities and settlements.

Greenland has been inhabited off and on for at least the last 4,500 years by Arctic peoples whose forebears migrated there from what is now Canada.[12][13] Norsemen settled the uninhabited southern part of Greenland beginning in the 10th century, having previously settled Iceland to escape persecution from the King of Norway and his central government. These Norsemen would later set sail from Greenland and Iceland, with Leif Erikson becoming the first known European to reach North America nearly 500 years before Columbus reached the Caribbean islands. Inuit peoples arrived in the 13th century. Though under continuous influence of Norway and Norwegians, Greenland was not formally under the Norwegian crown until 1262. The Norse colonies disappeared in the late 15th century when Norway was hit by the Black Death and entered a severe decline. Soon after their demise, beginning in 1499, the Portuguese briefly explored and claimed the island, naming it Terra do Lavrador (later applied to Labrador in Canada).[14]

In the early 18th century, Scandinavian explorers reached Greenland again. To strengthen trading and power, Denmark-Norway affirmed sovereignty over the island. Because of Norway's weak status, it lost sovereignty over Greenland in 1814 when the union was dissolved. Greenland became a Danish colony in 1814, and was made a part of the Danish Realm in 1953 under the Constitution of Denmark.

In 1973, Greenland joined the European Economic Community with Denmark. However, in a referendum in 1982, a majority of the population voted for Greenland to withdraw from the EEC, which was effected in 1985. Greenland contains the world's largest and most northernly national park, Northeast Greenland National Park (Kalaallit Nunaanni nuna eqqissisimatitaq). Established in 1974 and expanded to its present size in 1988, it protects 972,001 square kilometres (375,292 sq mi) of the interior and northeastern coast of Greenland and is bigger than all but twenty-nine countries in the world. Greenland is divided into four municipalities – Sermersooq, Kujalleq, Qaasuitsup, and Qeqqata.

In 1979, Denmark had granted home rule to Greenland, and in 2008, Greenlanders voted in favour of the Self-Government Act, which transferred more power from the Danish government to the local Greenlandic government. Under the new structure, in effect since 21 June 2009,[15] Greenland can gradually assume responsibility for policing, judicial system, company law, accounting, and auditing; mineral resource activities; aviation; law of legal capacity, family law and succession law; aliens and border controls; the working environment; and financial regulation and supervision, while the Danish government retains control of foreign affairs and defence. It also retains control of monetary policy, providing an initial annual subsidy of DKK 3.4 billion, which is planned to diminish gradually over time. Greenland expects to grow its economy based on increased income from the extraction of natural resources. The capital, Nuuk, held the 2016 Arctic Winter Games. At 70%, Greenland has one of the highest shares of renewable energy in the world, mostly coming from hydropower.[16][additional citation needed]

2
Place / Rome
« on: January 18, 2018, 05:14:33 PM »
Rome (/roʊm/ ROHM; Italian: Roma [ˈroːma] (About this sound listen), Latin: Rōma) is the capital of Italy and a special comune (named Comune di Roma Capitale). Rome also serves as the capital of the Lazio region. With 2,876,051 residents in 1,285 km2 (496.1 sq mi),[1] it is also the country's most populated comune. It is the fourth-most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. It is the centre of the Metropolitan City of Rome, which has a population of 4.3 million residents.[2] Rome is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, within Lazio (Latium), along the shores of the Tiber. The Vatican City is an independent country inside the city boundaries of Rome, the only existing example of a country within a city: for this reason Rome has been often defined as capital of two states.[3][4]

Rome's history spans 28 centuries. While Roman mythology dates the founding of Rome at around 753 BC, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it one of the oldest continuously occupied sites in Europe.[5] The city's early population originated from a mix of Latins, Etruscans and Sabines. Eventually, the city successively became the capital of the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, and is regarded as the birthplace of Western civilisation and by some as the first ever metropolis.[6] It was first called The Eternal City (Latin: Urbs Aeterna; Italian: La Città Eterna) by the Roman poet Tibullus in the 1st century BC, and the expression was also taken up by Ovid, Virgil, and Livy.[7][8] Rome is also called the "Caput Mundi" (Capital of the World).

After the fall of the Western Empire, which marked the beginning of the Middle Ages, Rome slowly fell under the political control of the Papacy, which had settled in the city since the 1st century AD, until in the 8th century it became the capital of the Papal States, which lasted until 1870.

Beginning with the Renaissance, almost all the popes since Nicholas V (1447–1455) pursued over four hundred years a coherent architectural and urban programme aimed at making the city the artistic and cultural centre of the world.[9] In this way, Rome became first one of the major centres of the Italian Renaissance,[10] and then the birthplace of both the Baroque style and Neoclassicism. Famous artists, painters, sculptors and architects made Rome the centre of their activity, creating masterpieces throughout the city. In 1871 Rome became the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, which in 1946 became the Italian Republic.

Rome has the status of a global city.[11][12][13] Rome ranked in 2016 as the 14th-most-visited city in the world, 3rd most visited in the European Union, and the most popular tourist attraction in Italy.[14] Its historic centre is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.[15] Monuments and museums such as the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum are among the world's most visited tourist destinations with both locations receiving millions of tourists a year. Rome hosted the 1960 Summer Olympics and is the seat of United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The city hosts the headquarters of many international business companies, such as Eni, Enel, TIM and national and international banks such as Unicredit and BNL. Its business district, called EUR, is the base of many companies involved in the oil industry, the pharmaceutical industry and financial services. Rome is also an important fashion and design centre thanks to international brands such as Fendi, Bulgari, Renato Balestra, Valentino, Laura Biagiotti. Rome's Cinecittà Studios have been the set of many Academy Award–winning movies.

3
Place / Iceland
« on: January 18, 2018, 05:13:09 PM »
Iceland (/ˈaɪslənd/ (About this sound listen); Icelandic: Ísland, pronounced [ˈistlant])[7] is a Nordic island country of Europe located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of 332,529 and an area of 103,000 km2 (40,000 sq mi), making it the most sparsely populated country in Europe.[8] The capital and largest city is Reykjavík. Reykjavík and the surrounding areas in the southwest of the country are home to over two-thirds of the population.

Iceland is volcanically and geologically active. The interior consists of a plateau characterised by sand and lava fields, mountains, and glaciers, while many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate climate, despite a high latitude just outside the Arctic Circle. Its high latitude and marine influence keep summers chilly, with most of the archipelago having a tundra climate.

According to the ancient manuscript Landnámabók, the settlement of Iceland began in 874 AD when the Norwegian chieftain Ingólfr Arnarson became the first permanent settler on the island.[9] In the following centuries, Norwegians, and to a lesser extent other Scandinavians, emigrated to Iceland, bringing with them thralls (i.e. slaves or serfs) of Gaelic origin. The island was governed as an independent commonwealth under the Althing, one of the world's oldest functioning legislative assemblies. Following a period of civil strife, Iceland acceded to Norwegian rule in the 13th century. The establishment of the Kalmar Union in 1397 united the kingdoms of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden. Iceland thus followed Norway's integration to that Union, and came under Danish rule after Sweden's secession from that union in 1523. Although the Danish kingdom introduced Lutheranism forcefully in 1550, Iceland remained a distant semi-colonial territory in which Danish institutions and infrastructures were conspicuous by their absence. In the wake of the French revolution and the Napoleonic wars, Iceland's struggle for independence took form and culminated in independence in 1918 and the founding of a republic in 1944. Until the 20th century, Iceland relied largely on subsistence fishing and agriculture, and was among the poorest in Europe. Industrialisation of the fisheries and Marshall Plan aid following World War II brought prosperity, and Iceland became one of the wealthiest and most developed nations in the world. In 1994, it became a part of the European Economic Area, which further diversified the economy into sectors such as finance, biotechnology, and manufacturing.

Iceland has a market economy with relatively low taxes, compared to other OECD countries.[10] It maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides universal health care and tertiary education for its citizens.[11] Iceland ranks high in economic, political, and social stability and equality. In 2016, it was ranked as the 9th most developed country in the world by the United Nations' Human Development Index, and ranks first on the Global Peace Index.[6] Iceland runs almost completely on renewable energy. Affected by the ongoing worldwide financial crisis, the nation's entire banking system systemically failed in October 2008, leading to a severe depression, substantial political unrest, the Icesave dispute, and the institution of capital controls. Some bankers were jailed.[12] Since then, the economy has made a significant recovery, in large part due to a surge in tourism.[13][14][15]

Icelandic culture is founded upon the nation's Scandinavian heritage. Most Icelanders are descendants of Norse and Gaelic settlers. Icelandic, a North Germanic language, is descended from Old West Norse and is closely related to Faroese and West Norwegian dialects. The country's cultural heritage includes traditional Icelandic cuisine, Icelandic literature and medieval sagas. Iceland has the smallest population of any NATO member and is the only one with no standing army, with the lightly armed coast guard in charge of defence.[16]

4
EEE / Re: 5 ways to Celebrate Earth Day-7
« on: April 23, 2017, 03:40:33 PM »
nice

5
EEE / Re: How to Treat Electrical Burns
« on: April 23, 2017, 03:40:14 PM »
helpful

6
EEE / Dr. Roizen's Four Steps to Better Brain Health
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:33:04 PM »
Although healthy living habits are always important for your mind and body, they take on special importance in the mid-fifties and beyond. From the age of 55, our faculties begin to decline, and we are less able to multitask. "Our goal with the Beautiful Minds campaign is to motivate people to change how their minds age," Dr. Roizen told Everyday Health. "Keeping the brain healthy is easier than many people realize."

Roizen outlines the following steps you can take to improve your brain health:

Get more physical activity. Exercise doesn't just help your body - "Staying fit can actually help reconstruct your brain," says Roizen. Although any exercise you enjoy doing is fine, Roizen recommends interval training, meaning doing an exercise at a moderate pace and then ramping up to a faster pace during the last minute, provided that your doctor says you are fit enough. For example, if you spend 20 minutes on a treadmill, spend the last minute running at a higher speed.
Be socially engaged. People who are involved with their family, friends, and community tend to stay sharper than those who aren't. In addition to socializing with your immediate circle, brain health experts suggest getting involved with your community through religious or spiritual activities as a way to lower your stress levels. "In research, men and women who had the most social interaction within their community had less than half the rate of memory loss as those with the least social engagement," says Roizen.
Get your blood pressure checked. The brain is dependent on blood supply, and as we get older, these blood vessels age, too. "When we're older, our brains actually decrease in IQ every five years," says Roizen. Keeping your blood pressure within a healthy range will help your blood vessels stay as healthy as possible. A study published in the journal Neurology found that treating traditional risk factors for heart disease such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol may also help to prevent the progression of cognitive problems into full-blown Alzheimer's disease.
Get more DHA in your diet. The Memory Improvement With DHA Study (MIDAS) presented at the 2009 Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease found that DHA supplements may help slow the rate of progression of age-related mental decline in healthy seniors. "The best natural sources of DHA are salmon and trout. DHA is also in fortified foods like soy milk, eggs, and nutrition bars, or in supplements," Roizen says. Of course, eating a healthy, well-rounded diet is important too.

7
EEE / Breaking Down the Brain Health Statistics
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:32:39 PM »
States that ranked high in the 2011 America’s Brain Health Index share some traits, such as good diets and higher levels of physical activity, and residents of the top states tend to be intellectually curious. "It's so important to have an intellectual passion and hobbies," says Cleveland Clinic chief wellness officer Dr. Michael Roizen. The Beautiful Minds campaign also highlights inspiring seniors who are putting their minds to good use by volunteering, teaching classes, writing novels, and even bodybuilding.

Roizen notes that many of the states in the South rank at the bottom of the list, which he attributes to unhealthy diets and physical inactivity, reflected in the high incidence of diabetes.

But Southerners don't have it all wrong: A positive brain health factor the Southern states share is a high level of religious and spiritual activity, which is a big boost for emotional health. "The benefit of believing in a higher being is that it will help you manage stress better," says Roizen. "Stress ages you more than any other factor." Several scientific studies have confirmed the benefits of religious activity: The Whitehall study of British civil servants, a major study on the health effects of stress, found that the participants who said they were more spiritual experienced less aging from stress and aged better. "Spirituality and religious practices may also help slow the regression of cognitive abilities caused by Alzheimer's disease," adds Roizen.

Check out the Brain Health Index interactive map for the full ranking of all the states.

8
EEE / The Best States for Your Brain
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:32:16 PM »
Congratulations to the Old Line State: Maryland has emerged as the state with the best brain health in the 2011 America's Brain Health Index. Developed by National Center for Creative Aging, the index ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia on 21 brain health indicators including diet, physical health, mental health, and social well-being. This is the second time the index has been calculated; the first one appeared in 2009.

In the 2011 report, Maryland edged out the District of Columbia, which slipped to No. 2 from its first-place 2009 ranking. Maryland took top honors because it experienced a decrease in Alzheimer's disease-related deaths, and because residents consume a high amount of fish, a natural source of DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), an omega-3 fatty acid that is tied to brain and eye health. Residents of Washington, DC, came in second due to its high proportion of active readers - more than any of the 50 states.

The Brain Health Index was created by health experts including Michael Roizen, MD, chief wellness officer at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio and creator of the RealAge concept, and Majid Fotuhi, MD, PhD, chairman of the Neurology Institute for Brain Health and Fitness and assistant professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. The index was created as part of a national health education campaign called Beautiful Minds: Finding Your Lifelong Potential, aimed at encouraging adults in the second half of life to develop and maintain brain health. It's sponsored by Life'sDHA, a supplement created by the nutritional products company Market Biosciences Corporation.

Wondering How Your State Stacks Up?

Here are the top 10 states in the 2011 index and the factors that give them a brain health advantage:

1. Maryland: Marylanders consume plenty of omega-3-rich foods, such as fish, and have a low incidence of Alzheimer's disease-related deaths.

2. District of Columbia: Residents of Washington, DC, are the top active readers and have a high consumption of healthy foods.

3. Washington State: The Evergreen State is among the top five states in consumption of DHA-rich fish.

4. Colorado: Residents of colorful Colorado consume a healthy diet and have a low incidence of diabetes.

5. Vermont: People in the Green Mountain State keep their minds engaged by reading and are active community participants.

6. New Hampshire: The state has a high level of mental engagement through game playing, and residents tend to consume healthy diets of fruits, vegetables, and fish.

7. Oregon: Oregonians are bookworms, fish lovers, and involved in their community.

8. Utah: Residents are active in their communities and have a low incidence of Alzheimer's disease.

9. Maine: This coastal state has a high level of fish consumption, and reading is a popular pastime.

10. New Jersey: Despite what you've seen on the Jersey Shore, the Garden State ranks relatively high in education, and has a low incidence of Alzheimer's disease.

The states that fall at the bottom of the index are:

42. North Dakota: North Dakotans are active game players, but the state has a high prevalence of Alzheimer's disease.

43. Kentucky: Kentucky does boast a high level of religious activity, but is tied with West Virginia for unhealthy smoking habits.

44. Indiana: Indiana ranks high in education, but has many smokers and low fish consumption.

45. Tennessee: The Volunteer State does have a high level of religious activity, but has a high incidence of Alzheimer's disease-related deaths.

46. West Virginia: Another state with high religious activity, West Virginia has a large number of smokers and the second-worst diabetes rate in the nation.

47. Alabama: The state's high involvement in religious activities boosts social well-being, but its residents' brain health suffers due to a high incidence of diabetes and Alzheimer's-related deaths.

48. Oklahoma: Oklahomans engage their brains through religious activities and playing games, but don't consume many fruits, vegetables, or omega-3 fatty acids.

49. Arkansas: Arkansans are active game players and participate in religious activity, but they're not big on reading and eating DHA-rich foods.

50. Louisiana: Up from the last spot in the 2009 rankings, Louisiana residents have a high incidence of diabetes and Alzheimer's-related deaths.

51. Mississippi: The Magnolia State comes in last place because of its high incidence of diabetes, low educational rankings, and low consumption of brain-healthy foods.

9
EEE / Dry Up Those Onion Tears
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:31:10 PM »
To minimize onion-triggered weepiness, Goldman recommends freezing or chilling onions before cutting them up. The cold temperature causes a slower release of the enzymes, which helps reduce your reaction. "You can also start chopping an onion from the top end — where the skin comes together — instead of from the bottom end, where the stem is," he adds. Enzymes are more conentrated in the bottom of the onion.

If onions cause you to tear up excessively, consider wearing eye protection when you slice them. "Swimming goggles really do work," says Goldman. Or just delegate the chore to another cook in the kitchen.

10
EEE / Why Do Onions Make Us Cry?
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:30:37 PM »
For some people, slicing a raw onion is no big deal, but for others, it causes a stinging reaction that results in tears and mild discomfort.

What’s to blame for this teary reaction? Enzymes in the onion that release a pungent gas when you slice into it, and when the gas comes into contact with your eyes, it forms sulfuric acid, which is responsible for that telltale stinging sensation. "The more pungent the onion is, the more likely it will make you tear up," says Irwin Goldman, PhD, department chair and professor of horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

That means that yellow onions popular in cooking are the biggest culprits, and sweet, mild Vidalia onions are the least likely to trigger tears. Luckily, onions are the only type of vegetable that cause this crying reaction, because of their unique sulfur compounds.

So why do onions make you well up, but don't seem to make your partner weepy at all? Dr. Goldman says it's probably due to the individual chemistry of your eyes: Some people have little or no reaction to sulfuric acid, while others have a stronger sensitivity. And while some people find that wearing contact lenses reduces their onion-related tears, others may find it makes no difference.

11
EEE / Dangerous Bacteria Hide Out in Nurses', Doctors' Uniforms
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:30:06 PM »
The white coats and medical scrubs worn by hospital staff may harbor hazardous bacteria, a new study finds.

Researchers in Israel swabbed nurses' and physicians' uniforms and found potentially dangerous bacteria on more than 60 percent of the clothing items.

The team, from the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, analyzed swab samples collected from three parts — sleeve ends, pockets and abdominal area — of the uniforms of 75 registered nurses and 60 doctors.

Potentially dangerous bacteria were found on 60 percent of the doctors' uniforms and 65 percent of the nurses' uniforms. Especially dangerous drug-resistant bacteria were found in 21 of the samples from nurses' uniforms and six samples from doctors' uniforms. Eight of the samples had methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which is becoming tough to fight using conventional antibiotics.

The bacteria on the uniforms may not pose a direct risk of disease transmission, but the findings suggest that many hospital patients are in close proximity to antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria, the researchers said.

"It is important to put these study results into perspective," Russell Olmsted, president of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), said in an association news release. "Any clothing that is worn by humans will become contaminated with microorganisms. The cornerstone of infection prevention remains the use of hand hygiene to prevent the movement of microbes from these surfaces to patients."

The study appears in the September issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC.

12
EEE / Too Much TV May Take Years Off Your Life
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:28:33 PM »
 Spending your days in front of the television may contribute to a shortened lifespan, a new study suggests.

Researchers in Australia found that people who averaged six hours a day of TV lived, on average, nearly five years less than people who watched no TV.

For every hour of television watched after age 25, lifespan fell by 22 minutes, according to the research led by Dr. J. Lennert Veerman of the University of Queensland.

But other experts cautioned that the study did not show that TV watching caused people to die sooner, only that there was an association between watching lots of TV and a shorter lifespan.

Though a direct link between watching TV and a shortened lifespan is highly provocative, the harms of TV are almost certainly indirect, said Dr. David L. Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine.

"As a rule, the more time we spend watching TV, the more time we spend eating mindlessly in front of the TV, and the less time we spend being physically active," Katz said. "More eating and less physical activity, in turn, mean greater risk for obesity, and the chronic diseases it tends to anticipate, notably diabetes, heart disease and cancer."

Another explanation for the possible link may be that people who watch excessive amounts of TV "are lonely, or isolated, or depressed, and these conditions, in turn, may be the real causes of premature mortality," he added.

The report was published in the Aug 15 online edition of the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

In the study, researchers used data on 11,000 people aged 25 and older from the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle Study, which included survey information about how much TV people watched in a week. Researchers also used national population and mortality figures.

In 2008, Australian adults watched a total of 9.8 billion hours of TV. People who watched more than six hours of TV were in the top 1 percent for TV viewing.

The statistics suggest that too much TV may be as dangerous as smoking and lack of exercise in reducing life expectancy, the researchers said.

For example, smoking can shorten of life expectancy by more than four years after the age of 50. That represents 11 minutes of life lost for every cigarette and that's the same as half an hour of TV watching, the researchers said.

Without TV, researchers estimated life expectancy for men would be 1.8 years longer and for women, 1.5 years longer.

"While we used Australian data, the effects in other industrialized and developing countries are likely to be comparable, given the typically large amounts of time spent watching TV and similarities in disease patterns," the researchers noted.

Dr. Gregg Fonarow, associate chief of cardiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles, said that "there is increasing evidence that the amount of time spent in sedentary activity such at TV watching, distinct from the amount of time spent in purposeful exercise, may adversely impact health."

And although participating in a regular exercise program can help, it may not be enough to offset the risks of spending too much of the rest of the day — while at work or at home — getting no exercise whatsoever.

"Staying active and reducing time spent sedentary may be of benefit in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and may be considered as part of a comprehensive approach to improve cardiovascular health," Fonarow added.

Dr. Robert J. Myerburg, a professor of medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, added that "a sedentary lifestyle can reduce life expectancy."

Myerburg isn't sure why sitting around is not good for your health. "It's better to look at it from a positive prospective," he said. "That is: a physically active lifestyle is protective."

13
EEE / Scientists Take Navel-Gazing to New Level
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:27:45 PM »
Germs used to be viewed as only bad, but scientists who have taken navel-gazing to a new level are finding that the ones living in your belly button coexist quite nicely with the rest of your body's microbes.

Setting out to dispel the notion that all skin bacteria cause disease, researchers from North Carolina State University swabbed the navels of 391 volunteers from across the country, sequenced the DNA from each sample and published photos of the cultures anonymously online on the Bellybutton Bacteria Culture database.

Preliminary results, scheduled to be presented Aug. 12 at the Ecological Society of America's annual meeting in Austin, Texas, revealed similarities in navel bacteria among family members and a wide diversity of microbes present in any given person.

"The overall concept is compelling," said Dr. Bruce Hirsch, an attending physician in infectious diseases at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y. "When I grew up, germs were bad. But the vast majority of the time, they're good or neutral," he said.

"I think of the human body as more of a forest than a tree," added Hirsch, who was not involved in the study. "Bacteria are a normal part of health, and each human body has more bacteria cells than human cells."

The Bellybutton Bacteria Culture database has become one of the most watched citizen-science projects in the nation, the study authors said, with about 55,000 visitors to the website in just three months. The rate of voluntary participation at sampling events shot up from 17 percent to 80 percent when passers-by were informed of the project's purpose.

The researchers chose to sample belly button bacteria because the area is generally protected from excretions, soaps and ultraviolet ray exposure. They also felt it would generate excitement about the study from participants, whose gender, ethnic background, age and hygienic habits were recorded. More than 80 percent of the samples were viable in cell culture dishes.

Hirsch noted that the results of the study — which are a work in progress and have not undergone peer review — are not detailed and did not yield many conclusions. But he said most bacteria are good "and their very presence crowds out more dangerous bacteria."

"I'm amazed at how the body responds to infection and how often we see spectacular successes in the way it responds," he said. "The human body is incredible. When we look at it from a bacterial perspective, it's like a new world."

Philip M. Tierno Jr., author of The Secret Life of Germs and director of clinical microbiology and immunology at NYU Langone Medical Center, said it's not news to him that there's a greater diversity of bacteria on the skin than many people think.

The number and types of microbes found in belly buttons may not be representative of what's found on the rest of the human body because of its depth, where lint and other "cellular debris" can accumulate, said Tierno, also a clinical professor of microbiology and pathology at New York University School of Medicine.

"Only 10 percent of you is you, which should give you an idea of how important microbes are," he said. "Ninety percent is bacteria or microbial cells, although body cells are bigger."

14
EEE / Exposure to Common Chemicals May Affect Thyroid Function
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:26:44 PM »
Chemicals called phthalates and bisphenol-A (BPA) that are found in solvents, plastics and numerous household products may alter levels of thyroid hormones in the body, according to a new study.

Thyroid hormones play a role in many critical bodily functions, including reproduction and metabolism.

Researchers from the University of Michigan School of Public Health used data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to compare thyroid levels and traces of phthalates and BPA in urine samples of 1,346 adults and 329 teenagers. Their findings confirmed previous research linking BPA — used in certain plastic water bottles and the linings of canned foods — with disruptions in thyroid hormone levels, they said.

Overall, higher concentrations of the chemicals had an inverse impact on thyroid levels, said study lead author John Meeker, an assistant professor, in a university news release. The greater the exposure to phthalates and BPA, the lower the thyroid hormone levels.

The strongest link occurred with exposure to DEHP, a phthalate commonly used as a plasticizer, which people come into contact with through diet.

In the cases of DEHP ingestion, urine samples showed that the greatest exposure was associated with as much as a 10 percent drop in thyroid hormones.

"This seems like a subtle difference," said Meeker, "but if you think about the entire population being exposed at this level you'd see many more thyroid related effects in people."

The authors concluded that additional research is needed. In other ongoing studies, they are assessing the chemicals' potential effects on pregnancy outcomes and child development.

Developing fetuses and children may be particularly vulnerable to disruptions in thyroid hormone levels associated with exposure to these and other environmental chemicals, Meeker said.

The researchers, acknowledging some limitations of their study, said their work could be improved by following people over time and collecting several urine samples, since these chemicals metabolize quickly and one single sample may not represent the true chemical exposure.

The findings were published online July 11 in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

15
EEE / Health Risks of Facebook
« on: April 22, 2017, 03:25:37 PM »
Research also shows that Facebook can:

Cause depression. A recently published American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) paper made a major splash when it described Facebook depression — a condition said to result when tweens and teens spend too much time on social media, leading them to turn to “substance abuse, unsafe sexual practices, or aggressive or self-destructive behaviors.”
However, the phenomenon is more anecdotal than based on solid science, and some experts suggest that it’s more of a correlation — that people who are depressed may simply be more likely to use Facebook. “People who are already feeling down or depressed might go online to talk to their friends, and try and be cheered up,” wrote John M. Grohol, PsyD, founder and editor-in-chief of PsychCentral.com on his blog. “This in no way suggests that by using more and more of Facebook, a person is going to get more depressed.”

In one of the papers cited by the AAP report, researchers found that the more time first-time Internet users spent online, the more likely they were to experience loneliness and depression but a follow-up study showed such effects disappeared a year later, according to Dr. Grohol. “It may simply be something related to greater familiarity with the Internet,” he wrote. In another paper referenced by the AAP report, the depression-Facebook link only held true among people with “low-quality” friendships; people with good pals did not experience depression with increasing Facebook use.

Trigger eating disorders. The more time adolescent girls spent on the social networking site, the more likely they were to develop eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia, and extreme dieting, Israeli researchers recently found. Exposure to online fashion and music content, as well as watching TV shows like Gossip Girl, were also associated with an increased risk for eating disorders.
But researchers aren’t saying that social networking sites necessarily cause eating disorders; as with Facebook depression, it may be that people prone to eating disorders spend more time online. What’s more, the researchers found that parents can help protect their daughters from harmful effects of media: The children of parents who were aware of what their daughters were viewing online — and talked to them about what they saw and how much time they spent — were less prone to develop eating disorders, according to study authors.

Split up marriages. Facebook was referenced in 20 percent of divorce petitions processed in 2009 by Divorce-Online, a British law firm. Time magazine reported that feuding spouses use their Facebook pages to air dirty laundry, while their lawyers use posts as evidence in divorce proceedings. Sexual health expert Ian Kerner, PhD, recently blogged on CNN that he’s seen many relationships destroyed by “Facebook bombs” — people reconnecting with high school sweethearts or other blasts from the past that can lead to emotional, if not actual, cheating.
“The mistake I often see is when someone gets friended or messaged by an ex and doesn’t tell their partner,” Kerner told Everyday Health. “It’s a slippery slope from the moment you don’t disclose information.”

He warns that it’s easy to over-romanticize the past, which can cause people to check out of their current relationship. Kerner advises couples to not keep secrets about whom they’re chatting with on Facebook. And while the site certainly makes it easy to reconnect with old flames and flirt behind the façade of your computer, the potential damage it can do depends on the stability of your relationship in the first place. “It all depends on your level of trust in your spouse,” says Kerner. “Have a dialogue, set some rules. The key is transparency.”

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