Pet store puppies could cause infections. Medical experts have found a link between bacterial infections and puppies sold through a national pet store chain in the U.S. Campylobacter is a bacterium that causes infections. It people to develop diarrhea, cramping, abdominal pain, and fever within two to five days of exposure to the organism. Most cases in humans occur from eating raw or undercooked chicken or eating foods that have been cross contaminated by infected poultry products. But people could also get infected from contact with the stool of an infected puppy, note studies. To prevent catching campylobacter from dogs, people are advised to wash hands thoroughly after touching dogs, their poop, or their food.
Diet and exercise for asthma
Asthma symptoms can be considerably improved in non-obese patients with diet and exercise, according to a new research on the subject. Although majority of patients are wary of exercise, as they fear it might induce symptoms, new research suggests that exercise, combined with a healthy diet, could help patients gain better control of symptoms, more so wheezing, chest pain and shortness of breath. On an average, patients who took part in the exercise and followed the diet, rated their asthma symptom score 50 percent better in comparison to the control group. And those patients who only followed either the exercise programme or the diet programme, rated, on average, their asthma symptom score 30 percent better than the control group.
Diagnosing food allergy
If you want to diagnose a food allergy, opt for an oral food challenge, suggest researchers, as they have been found to be safe, rarely resulting in a serious reaction. In an oral food challenge, patients are asked to eat a very small amount of a suspected allergen while under the close supervision of an allergist, who will evaluate the person for signs of an allergic reaction. Researchers who analyzed more than 6,300 oral food challenges found these tests were safe and caused very few people to have a serious allergic reaction. Most of these tests involved children and teens younger than 18.
Waistline check
A new study has found that widening waistline, after menopause, may increase the risk of lung, gastrointestinal cancers, among women. Researchers followed nearly 5,900 postmenopausal women for up to 12 years and found that abdominal fat was a bigger factor than body weight when it came to the risk of lung and gastrointestinal cancers. This is more of a concern for older women who are prone to abdominal weight. On an average, the menopause transition is known to initiate a shift in body fat towards the central trunk area. Women should be aware of their lifestyle when they approach the pre-menopause age, advice researchers.
