The Helper
Aug
18
Phantom smells can be a sign of a serious health problem, but until now it’s not been known how many people experience them.
A new study finds that 1 in 15 Americans over the age of 40 detect strange odors like burning hair or rotting food when nothing is actually there. The study, published Thursday in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, is the first in the U.S. to estimate how common the phenomenon is in nationally representative data.
“Problems with the sense of smell are often overlooked, despite their importance," said Judith A. Cooper, acting director of the the National Institute on Deafness and Communication Disorders, part of the National Institutes of Health. "They can have a big impact on appetite, food preferences and the ability to smell danger signals such as fire, gas leaks and spoiled food.”
Researchers used data from 7,417 participants over 40 years of age from the 2011-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The data was collected by the National Center for Health Statistics, which is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Millions of Americans experience some type of olfactory problem,...
A new study finds that 1 in 15 Americans over the age of 40 detect strange odors like burning hair or rotting food when nothing is actually there. The study, published Thursday in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, is the first in the U.S. to estimate how common the phenomenon is in nationally representative data.
“Problems with the sense of smell are often overlooked, despite their importance," said Judith A. Cooper, acting director of the the National Institute on Deafness and Communication Disorders, part of the National Institutes of Health. "They can have a big impact on appetite, food preferences and the ability to smell danger signals such as fire, gas leaks and spoiled food.”
Researchers used data from 7,417 participants over 40 years of age from the 2011-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The data was collected by the National Center for Health Statistics, which is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Millions of Americans experience some type of olfactory problem,...
Aug
18
Trying to have a baby? Eating fish might help.
Researchers interviewed 501 couples who were trying to get pregnant without medical assistance. All kept diaries on their diet and other health and behavioral habits, including fish consumption and frequency of sexual intercourse. They followed the pairs for a year or until pregnancy.
They found that men who had two or more four-ounce servings of fish a week had a 47 percent shorter time to pregnancy, and women a 60 percent shorter time, than those who ate one or fewer servings a week.
Partners who ate fish also had sexual intercourse, on average, 22 percent more frequently, but the association of eating fish with pregnancy persisted even after controlling for frequency of lovemaking.
By 12 months, 92 percent of couples who ate fish twice a week or more were pregnant, compared with 79 percent among those who ate less.
study, in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, controlled for age, education level, smoking, alcohol intake, physical activity and other factors. The mechanism remains unclear.
Read more here. (New York Times)
Researchers interviewed 501 couples who were trying to get pregnant without medical assistance. All kept diaries on their diet and other health and behavioral habits, including fish consumption and frequency of sexual intercourse. They followed the pairs for a year or until pregnancy.
They found that men who had two or more four-ounce servings of fish a week had a 47 percent shorter time to pregnancy, and women a 60 percent shorter time, than those who ate one or fewer servings a week.
Partners who ate fish also had sexual intercourse, on average, 22 percent more frequently, but the association of eating fish with pregnancy persisted even after controlling for frequency of lovemaking.
By 12 months, 92 percent of couples who ate fish twice a week or more were pregnant, compared with 79 percent among those who ate less.
study, in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, controlled for age, education level, smoking, alcohol intake, physical activity and other factors. The mechanism remains unclear.
Read more here. (New York Times)
Aug
18
RIVERSIDE, Calif. (www.ucr.edu/) — In just three years, physician burnout increased from 45.5 percent to 54.4 percent, according to a paper authored by doctors at the University of California, Riverside School of Medicine.
“Doctors aren’t depressed or less content at home,” write coauthors Drs. Andrew G. Alexander and Kenneth A. Ballou in the August 2018 issue of the American Journal of Medicine. “They’re less happy at work.”
Alexander, an associate clinical professor of family medicine, and Ballou, an assistant clinical professor of family medicine, list three factors that contribute to physician burnout:
“Doctors aren’t depressed or less content at home,” write coauthors Drs. Andrew G. Alexander and Kenneth A. Ballou in the August 2018 issue of the American Journal of Medicine. “They’re less happy at work.”
Alexander, an associate clinical professor of family medicine, and Ballou, an assistant clinical professor of family medicine, list three factors that contribute to physician burnout:
- The doctor-patient relationship has been morphed into an insurance company-client relationship that imposes limitations upon the treatment doctors can provide to the insurance company’s members.
- Feelings of cynicism (resulting from patients no longer expecting continuity of care and routinely changing doctors).
- Lack of enthusiasm for work.
Aug
13
It is a landmark deal that has been more than two decades in the making.
Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan - all bordering the Caspian Sea - have agreed in principle on how to divide it up.
Their leaders signed the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea in the Kazakh city of Aktau on Sunday.
It establishes a formula for dividing up its resources and prevents other powers from setting up a military presence there.
It is an important step in the easing of regional tensions, but the deal over the world's largest inland body of water matters for several reasons.
Here's what you need to know about the hotly disputed Caspian Sea.
Read more here. (BBC)
Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan - all bordering the Caspian Sea - have agreed in principle on how to divide it up.
Their leaders signed the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea in the Kazakh city of Aktau on Sunday.
It establishes a formula for dividing up its resources and prevents other powers from setting up a military presence there.
It is an important step in the easing of regional tensions, but the deal over the world's largest inland body of water matters for several reasons.
Here's what you need to know about the hotly disputed Caspian Sea.
Read more here. (BBC)
Aug
10
A rare Chinese tree that has sat flowerless in a Cardiff park for more than a century has now blossomed for the first time “because of the heatwave”.
The creamy white flowering of Roath Park’s Emmenopterys henryi, which stunned the local wardens, is believed to be only the sixth such occasion since the species was introduced to the UK at the beginning of the twentieth century.
However, it has been joined by other blossoming Emmenopterys in Gloucestershire and Sussex, leading experts to conclude the sustained record temperatures are the cause.
The species was first planted in the Europe in 1907, having been sent from Hubei province by the renowned plant collector Ernest Henry Wilson.
Despite a “few hundred” under cultivation at various show gardens across the UK, most have never blossomed, according to Tony Kirkham, head of the Arboretum at Kew.
Read more here. (The Telegraph UK)
The creamy white flowering of Roath Park’s Emmenopterys henryi, which stunned the local wardens, is believed to be only the sixth such occasion since the species was introduced to the UK at the beginning of the twentieth century.
However, it has been joined by other blossoming Emmenopterys in Gloucestershire and Sussex, leading experts to conclude the sustained record temperatures are the cause.
The species was first planted in the Europe in 1907, having been sent from Hubei province by the renowned plant collector Ernest Henry Wilson.
Despite a “few hundred” under cultivation at various show gardens across the UK, most have never blossomed, according to Tony Kirkham, head of the Arboretum at Kew.
Read more here. (The Telegraph UK)
Aug
07
A medical school in the Japanese capital apologized Tuesday for altering the results of entrance exams to stop women from studying there.
An internal investigation found that Tokyo Medical University started manipulating the results in 2006 - or possibly earlier - because its leaders thought female students would leave their careers when they became mothers.
The investigation found that last year, the school reduced all applicants’ first-stage test scores by 20 percent, then added up to 20 points for male applicants. It said similar manipulations had been taking place for years.
Lawyers investigating the scandal said the university’s former chairman and president each received money from parents of prospective students whose entrance exam results were “padded," Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported.
The manipulation was revealed during an investigation into the alleged wrongful admission of a bureaucrat’s son in exchange for favorable treatment for the school in a ministry project. The bureaucrat and the former head of the school have been charged with bribery.
Read more here. (USA Today)
An internal investigation found that Tokyo Medical University started manipulating the results in 2006 - or possibly earlier - because its leaders thought female students would leave their careers when they became mothers.
The investigation found that last year, the school reduced all applicants’ first-stage test scores by 20 percent, then added up to 20 points for male applicants. It said similar manipulations had been taking place for years.
Lawyers investigating the scandal said the university’s former chairman and president each received money from parents of prospective students whose entrance exam results were “padded," Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported.
The manipulation was revealed during an investigation into the alleged wrongful admission of a bureaucrat’s son in exchange for favorable treatment for the school in a ministry project. The bureaucrat and the former head of the school have been charged with bribery.
Read more here. (USA Today)
Aug
07
The BBC's web services are all currently blocked in China, following a decision by the corporation to change the website's format.
It has altered all of its addresses from beginning "HTTP" to "HTTPS", which is widely considered to be a more secure connection but is routinely blocked in China.
In a statement, the BBC recommended the use of either a virtual private network (VPN) or the Psiphon app.
Both of these can circumvent the block.
In a recent blog post, James Donohue, principal software engineer in BBC News, explained why the website had made the transition and why BBC pages now had a green padlock next to the address on the top left hand side.
"In a climate of anxiety around fake news, it's vital that users are able to determine that articles have not been tampered with and that their browsing history is private to them," he wrote.
Read more here. (BBC)
It has altered all of its addresses from beginning "HTTP" to "HTTPS", which is widely considered to be a more secure connection but is routinely blocked in China.
In a statement, the BBC recommended the use of either a virtual private network (VPN) or the Psiphon app.
Both of these can circumvent the block.
In a recent blog post, James Donohue, principal software engineer in BBC News, explained why the website had made the transition and why BBC pages now had a green padlock next to the address on the top left hand side.
"In a climate of anxiety around fake news, it's vital that users are able to determine that articles have not been tampered with and that their browsing history is private to them," he wrote.
Read more here. (BBC)
Aug
07
Bangladeshi authorities are "unlawfully attacking" student protesters in a crackdown after days of demonstrations while locking up people for "peaceful criticism", a human rights group said.
Numerous witnesses claimed individuals linked to the ruling Awami League party have attacked protesters with machetes and sticks, according to a statement released on Monday by New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW).
"Yet again, Bangladesh authorities seem determined to take abusive shortcuts to problems, and then denounce those who criticise," Brad Adams, Asia director at HRW, said in the statement.
"The authorities should immediately release anyone ... they have locked up for peaceful criticism."
Adams urged authorities to "prosecute those, including members of the ruling party's youth supporters, who are attacking children with sticks and machetes".
Read more here. (Aljazeera)
Numerous witnesses claimed individuals linked to the ruling Awami League party have attacked protesters with machetes and sticks, according to a statement released on Monday by New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW).
"Yet again, Bangladesh authorities seem determined to take abusive shortcuts to problems, and then denounce those who criticise," Brad Adams, Asia director at HRW, said in the statement.
"The authorities should immediately release anyone ... they have locked up for peaceful criticism."
Adams urged authorities to "prosecute those, including members of the ruling party's youth supporters, who are attacking children with sticks and machetes".
Read more here. (Aljazeera)
Aug
07
Unaffordable and unreliable public transport is cutting off the poorest families in the north of England from crucial job opportunities, a study has found.
Researchers from Sheffield Hallam University and the University of Sheffield, commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), interviewed residents in neighbourhoods across Greater Manchester and Leeds city regions.
Interviewees complained that local transport was expensive, unreliable and slow, making it harder for them to attend job interviews and hold on to paid employment.
The research found that residents were reliant on buses, as running a car and taking the train were too expensive.
Workers complained they were unable to guarantee punctuality because buses were frequently late, meaning they were disregarded by potential employers. The report found that job seekers often turned down jobs because their potential earnings were too low compared with the high transport costs.
Read more here. (The Guardian UK)
Researchers from Sheffield Hallam University and the University of Sheffield, commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), interviewed residents in neighbourhoods across Greater Manchester and Leeds city regions.
Interviewees complained that local transport was expensive, unreliable and slow, making it harder for them to attend job interviews and hold on to paid employment.
The research found that residents were reliant on buses, as running a car and taking the train were too expensive.
Workers complained they were unable to guarantee punctuality because buses were frequently late, meaning they were disregarded by potential employers. The report found that job seekers often turned down jobs because their potential earnings were too low compared with the high transport costs.
Read more here. (The Guardian UK)
Aug
07
The unusually hot summer has ravaged the mosquito population in Finland, but it appears other blood-sucking pests are thriving, it's been reported.
With meteorological records being broken across continental Europe, Finnish experts say that the country has experienced its hottest July on record, with one town experiencing heat of 33.7 Celsius (92.6 Fahrenheit).
The heat means that mosquitoes, often the bane of Finnish summers, have virtually disappeared from some areas.
According to the University of Lapland's Dr Jukka Salmela, the shallow ponds in areas like Lapland - which are their breeding grounds - have largely dried up, meaning that there are far fewer larvae than usual.
Dr Salmela, whose field of expertise is biting midges in Lapland, warns that the new conditions have become perfect for horseflies.
"It was almost laughable how many horseflies there were," he noted of his experiences in the northern Sodankylä region of Lapland earlier in the summer.
Read more here. (BBC)
With meteorological records being broken across continental Europe, Finnish experts say that the country has experienced its hottest July on record, with one town experiencing heat of 33.7 Celsius (92.6 Fahrenheit).
The heat means that mosquitoes, often the bane of Finnish summers, have virtually disappeared from some areas.
According to the University of Lapland's Dr Jukka Salmela, the shallow ponds in areas like Lapland - which are their breeding grounds - have largely dried up, meaning that there are far fewer larvae than usual.
Dr Salmela, whose field of expertise is biting midges in Lapland, warns that the new conditions have become perfect for horseflies.
"It was almost laughable how many horseflies there were," he noted of his experiences in the northern Sodankylä region of Lapland earlier in the summer.
Read more here. (BBC)
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