Category: Research (Page 51 of 93)

Security Cameras Ensure Hospital Employees Wash Their Hands

December 23, 2011 / Staff

Proper hand washing is the easiest way to prevent the spread of illness.

100,000 people die every year from hospital-acquired infections, and many of these could be prevented if more medical workers simply remembered to wash and sanitize their hands.

North Shore University Hospital (NSUH) in Manhasset, NY, is one of only a few hospitals that has decided to take this more drastic measure to increase hygiene levels among medical workers — but it is one that has had incredible success. According to a controlled, peer-reviewed study on the hospital’s video monitoring system recently published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, watching employees through the Big Brother-esque video monitoring system has increased the overall hand washing rate by nearly 1400 percent, taking it from 6.5 percent to nearly 88 percent.

Health Care Policy, Hospitals, Nurses, Quality Control, Research, Wellness

Hand washing Hand washing in hospitals hospital infections

Winter Weight; Fact or Folly?

December 22, 2011 / Staff

Does the cold weather increase your appetite?

Cold weather, shorter days and plenty of holiday feasts contribute to winter weight gain but is it biological or just bad habits?

Not all scientists agree about our winter food-seeking habits.

“I’m not disputing the possibility that people eat more in the winter,” says Marcia Pelchat of the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia. But she says doesn’t think it’s a vestigial “chipmunk” instinct.
Pelchat says another explanation: Our winter eating habits are likely born of opportunity. There is more holiday feasting, better leftovers, more grazing in the kitchen, and fewer opportunities for playing and exercising outside.

Nutrition, Research, Wellness

preventing winter weight gain seasonal affective disorder weight gain winter weight winter weight gain

The Sweetening of America

December 18, 2011 / Staff

A battle wages for your “sweet tooth“.

Big corn manufactures are spending tens of millions of dollars to re-brand high fructose corn syrup.

Sugar makers say the corn industry is making a desperate effort to salvage the product which consumers are increasingly avoiding.

“The most widely used kind of HFCS may have disruptive effects on metabolism, as the body doesn’t utilize fructose well. In fact, regular consumption of HFCS may contribute to obesity.”
The National Consumers League has sent a letter urging the FDA to reject the renaming petition and noted that the corn sweetener in question “has received much negative publicity over the last several years.”
“Questions have been raised concerning potential links to obesity and a variety of obesity-related health conditions including diabetes and heart disease,” the letter said.
“Some consumers are concerned about emerging science regarding nutrition and health effects of HFCS, while others simply want to avoid highly processed sweeteners in favor of more natural substances.”

All sugars should be consumed in moderation and are best consumed in the form of whole foods such as fruits with the skin intact.

Quality Control, Research, Resources, Wellness

agri-business corn corn lobbies corn subsidies diabetes food lobbies High fructose corn syrup Monsanto obesity obesity epidemic Sugar

The American Lifestyle is Making Us Sick

December 18, 2011 / Staff

The American lifestyle is the biggest threat that our nation faces today.

Better treatments are saving and preserving lives, however, lifestyle and overall health does not account for any drop in fatalities due to cardiovascular illness.

Lives may be saved but the quality of life enjoyed on an expensive diet of pharmaceuticals comes with it’s own disadvantages.

The authors of the report, which appears online Dec. 15 in the journal Circulation, looked at seven markers of cardiovascular health: smoking, weight, exercise, diet, cholesterol, blood pressure and fasting blood sugar levels, as well as whether or not a person had a diagnosis of heart disease.
Using those criteria, 94 percent of U.S. adults — that’s almost everyone — have at least one risk factor for heart disease. For example, one-third of U.S. adults have high blood pressure while 15 percent have high cholesterol.

American’s demand for fast food and sedentary entertainment is undoing the health of men, women and children nation wide.

Quality Control, Research, Resources, Wellness

American health American lifestyle cardio-vascular disease diabetes heart disease men's health obesity over weight pharmaceuticals The health of Americans women's health

HPV Testing for All Women Over 30 Recommended by New Study

December 15, 2011 / Staff

A new study recommends HPV testing for all women over 30 years.

The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) has been shown to be present in women who later develop certain types of cervical cancer.

Detecting the virus leads to closer screening for cervical cancer.

Results of a five-year study involving 45,000 women provided the strongest evidence yet in favor of using human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, Chris Meijer and colleagues from the VU University Medical Centre in Amsterdam reported in The Lancet Oncology.

Health Care Policy, Research

cancer cervical cancer cervical cancer prevention cervical cancer research HPV HPV Vaccine human papillomavirus oncology women's health