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The boys are four times more likely than girls to be autistic, and this, due to a mutation on chromosome X, a Canadian study published in the journal Science this week Translational Medicine.

Researchers at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and SickKids in Toronto studied the gene in 2000 individuals with autism spectrum disorders. They found that 1% of autistic boys had a mutation in the gene on chromosome X. PTCHD1

The boys are not suffering from autism and who were part of a reference group during the research does not bear this mutation, which was observed by cons in some girls. However, none of those affected was not suffering from autism spectrum disorders.

“Gender bias in autism men have puzzled for years and now we have an indicator that begins to explain why they might actually be more concerned,” said Dr. Stephen Scherer, scientist and director of the Center for Applied Genomics SickKids Hospital.

“This discovery will facilitate early detection, which in turn will increase the likelihood of success of interventions,” said Dr. John B. Vincent, a researcher and head of the Laboratory of Neuropsychiatry Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

There is a strong link between obesity of mothers and daughters and between fathers and son but the link is not present between mother and son or fathers and daughters, according to a study published in the International Journal of Obesity .

Obese mothers were 10 times more likely than girls to be obese than their mothers of normal weight and obese fathers are 6 times more likely to be obese than their son. The weight of the mother, however, would not affect that of the son and vice versa.

Thus, 41% of girls aged 8 years whose mothers are obese are also compared to 4% of those whose mothers had normal weight and 18% of boys whose fathers are obese are also compared to 3%.

Professor Terry Wilkin of Plymouth’s Peninsula Medical School and colleagues conducted this study to 226 families for three years.

These results could hardly be explained by genetics researchers said, because transmission by sex is unusual. They more plausibly be explained by the influence of parents on the eating behavior of children.

These results lead researchers to consider that prevention campaigns should focus further obesity parenting behaviors.

Vitamin D and curcumin, a polyphenol found in turmeric (a spice used in India especially the curry spice blend or curry), may help the immune system to eliminate amyloid plaques in the brain of people with Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

These two ingredients help to stimulate the macrophages (1) that remove these plaques, says Milan Fiala of the University of California at Los Angeles, co-author. “Hopefully,” he said, that vitamin D and curcumin may offer new opportunities for prevention and treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. ”

Macrophages, which typically eliminate amyloid plaques in healthy people, fail to do so in people with Alzheimer’s disease.

The researchers took blood samples from nine people with the disease, a person with mild cognitive impairment (an intermediate state between normal cognitive decline due to aging and Alzheimer’s disease) and 3 healthy individuals to to isolate the cells that develop into monocyte macrophages. These were incubated with amyloid-beta protein, vitamin D and curcumin natural or synthetic.

Vitamin D has important immunostimulatory effects favoring phagocytosis (the capture and ingestion) of beta-amyloid protein by macrophages in people with Alzheimer’s disease and those suffering from mild cognitive impairment.

Curcumin in combination with vitamin D, increased the action of the latter.

Natural curcumin, which was not easily absorbed and decomposed, was less effective than synthetic curcumin.
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Doping in sports lovers and sports ground is a major health hazard, warns Swissmedic, the Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products.

The number of seizures of illegal drugs in customs, mostly anabolic, Switzerland show that more and more amateur athletes taking anabolic steroids and other doping substances from illegal sources.

The number of anabolic drugs seized nearly doubled between 2007 and 2008. More than half of the 17 seizures anabolic preparations showed felonies, who were the impurities found in the product to overdosing or under-dosing through the massive presence of active unsigned or incorrectly reported.

The erectile dysfunction and cardiovascular disease and liver are among the long-term side effects of anabolic particularly serious, amphetamines and other doping substances.

Adverse effects are more immediate masculinization of women and men, the gynomastie and atrophy of the testicles. Acne and hair loss affects more than half of regular consumers. Anabolic steroids act on the central nervous system and can cause psychological side effects such as increased aggression.

In these side effects associated with these products plus the risk of buying them from uncontrolled sources, particularly on the Internet.

Studies in fitness clubs in Germany, showed that about one fifth of their members have already taken illegal substances.

The learning capacity would be temporarily reduced by the end of the premenopausal according to a study published in the journal Neurology. Gail Greendale, University of California at Los Angeles and his colleagues conducted the study with 2362 women aged 42-52 years who had at least one menstrual period during the three months preceding the study.

They passed the tests of verbal memory, working memory and speed of thinking (information processing speed) at different stages of the menopausal transition:

- The premenopausal (no change in the menstrual cycle);
- The beginning of the perimenopause (irregular cycles but not in the absence of the rule for a period of three months);
- Late perimenopause (no rule for 3-11 months);
- Postmenopause (no rule for 12 months).

The performance on these tests improved with repetition. But this improvement was less significant in the perimenopause. Improving the speed of thought in late perimenopause only 28% of that of premenopausal. The improvement in verbal memory in early and late perimenopause was only 29% and 7% of that of premenopausal. “Combined, these results indicate that early and late perimenopause, women do not learn as well as during other stages of transition,” says Greendale.

“These results are consistent with the memory problems reported by 60% of women like symptoms during the menopausal transition,” she said. “The good news is that these learning effects seem to be temporary. The results show that, postmenopause, learning comes at the premenopause. ”

The results also show that hormone replacement therapy, estrogen and progesterone before menopause improve verbal memory and speed of thought. But instead, those hormones after the last menstrual period, had a negative effect postmenopausal women who took hormones did not show improvement as opposed to those who did not. “Our results suggest that the critical period for the benefits of estrogen and progesterone on the brain can be pre-menopausal, but these results should be interpreted with caution,” said Greendale.

Yes, eat quickly, finishing his meals on the run before returning to the office to prepare a meeting or end a working folder seems to be the daily lot of many people. Snacks pulled in front of the computer between two e-mails, just chewed while driving to the workplace or to a business appointment, without paying attention to what you eat because of a meeting prepare an emergency or a folder to finish quickly before picking up children at school, there are many opportunities to eat without being fully aware of what we eat.

However, eating with awareness has many health benefits, including the right to stabilize the weight, since you do not overeat. Indeed, when you eat consciously, you will eat more slowly and allow your meals last longer than 20 minutes, the time it takes for your brain to start receiving signals of satiety (so if you finish a meal less than 20 minutes you may eat too strongly).

Assess the appearance of food
Although we can drool over beautiful food advertisements in magazines or on websites, we sometimes forget the beauty of the food we’re about to eat. Take time to notice the beauty of food is directed to eat with consciousness.

You focus on each bite
Think about the flavors and textures of your food, and even the sounds they make in your mouth when you chew. Concentrate on knowing as much you love or hate the feel a particular food.

Chew
Although this may seem restrictive to chew at least 20 times with each bite (try to take small bites), make sure to order enough to break your food before swallowing. Take time to chew can give you more time to focus on each bite (see item No. 5) and eat better with awareness.

Use covered and the rest between bites
It is much easier to eat smaller portions when you use a fork and a knife. Of course, if you feel you’ll look ridiculous while eating a chocolate bar with dishes, then skip this step, but remember to rest the bar of chocolate (or any food that is eaten with the fingers ) between bites so you can stay focused on what you eat.

Two new studies presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, confirms previous studies indicating that vitamin D deficiency in older people is associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline.

Vitamin D appears to have anti-inflammatory effects that may help keep blood vessels healthy. And the presence of vitamin D receptors in the brain suggests that it can directly affect brain tissue.

Amie Peterson of the Oregon Health & Science University and colleagues conducted the study with 150 people aged 70 and over (85 years on average) living independently.

The levels of vitamin D ranged from 9-90 nanograms per milliliter of blood. Levels of 30 or more are considered normal.

The more cognitive test scores were low, the levels of vitamin D were low. Lower levels of vitamin D were also associated with greater risk of falling.

A second study, led by Cedric Annweiler University Hospital of Angers and his colleagues, involved 752 women aged 75 and over in France. A total of 129 women had levels below 10 nanograms per milliliter. Compared to women with higher levels, they were twice as likely to have cognitive impairment.

Further studies are needed to determine the causal relationship between vitamin D and cognitive decline. It is possible that the cognitive decline limit the level of sun exposure by limiting activities.

Going on holiday, enjoying the sun, and cultivate a good tan on the beach or the mountains are moments of relaxation and well-being that delight us. Fostering a healthy and balanced diet to give your body what it needs and prepare your skin for tanning. Here are some tips for effectively and enjoy the sun safely.

Take advantage of seasonal foods

Sun exposure generates more free radicals, oxygen molecules that can cause damage in our body. To neutralize them, we must supply a steady and sufficient antioxidants, molecules that are found in our food. In summer, the shelves are full of fruits and vegetables rich in these precious nutrients. Overuse of fresh seasonal vegetables, preferably organic quality.

On a plate, invite greedily carotenoids which give the fruit and vegetables an orange or red, often masked by chlorophyll. Among them and perhaps the best known: beta-carotene (or pro-vitamin A) which can be found in carrots, spinach, parsley, sweet potato, melon, dried apricot, yellow peach, mango, red pepper, watercress, alfalfa.
Note that beta-carotene in carrots is an advantage assimilated by the body especially when eaten raw.

Eating effective

For your eyes, strained, increase your intake of lutein present in corn, marigolds, green beans, spinach, green cabbage, lettuce, fresh pollen and cyst willow, etc. Consuming also zeaxanthin, mainly present in corn. Not forgetting the famous lycopene that is found in tomatoes (even when it is cooked and combined with lipids), watermelon, guava, pink grapefruit.

The menu also valuable antioxidant vitamins: vitamin E than is found in wheat germ oil, sunflower oil, wheat germ, almonds, hazelnuts, oil, cod liver etc.. Vitamin C is essential, it is present in the acerola, guava, goji berries, kale, kiwi, broccoli, parsley, citrus, etc.

Add two more to essential in the fight free radicals: selenium, found in fish, seafood, eggs, Brazil nuts, whole grains, legumes, brewer’s yeast, etc.., And zinc present in oysters, shellfish, herring, meat, liver, wheat germ, egg yolk, lentils, mile, etc..

Not forgetting to pay your summer salads good fatty acids omega 3 and 6 fatty fish oil, nuts, camelina, rapeseed oil for omega 3, evening primrose and borage for omega 6.

You can also opt for a dietary supplement containing a mixture of these precious elements, in this case make sure that beta-carotene and vitamin E content of both natural and not synthetic. This treatment is ideally 2-3 weeks before the show or before the summer. It is also recommended to extend it during the exposure if the skin is sensitive or reactive. Also consider urucum an Amazonian plant orange color extremely rich in beta-carotene, about 100 times more than carrots and stimulating the production of melanin.

Hydration for good tan

It is also important to drink plenty and often. In summer, we sweat twice as much as usual and lose water and minerals. Hydration is important. Eat so without moderation, water and natural fruit juices. The fruit juice industry are high in sugar but low in nutritional value.

Need a break, calm and well-being? Regardless of your age and fitness, relaxation therapy is available to all. Through relaxation exercises dynamic and static, relaxation therapy is becoming more and more as a healthy and effective method to deal with stress.

An effective relaxation therapy session lasts about one fifteen ET must be supervised by a professional sophrologist.

Good conditions primarily

For efficiency, the environment in which occurs a relaxation therapy session should be quiet and pleasant. The sophrologists professionals generally recommend to dress in loose, comfortable and a place to lie down or sit (chair, sofa, mattress or mat). A small blanket or rug can also be used to keep warm because the body temperature decreases slightly when it relaxes.

Dialogue

Each session begins with a dialogue initiated by the relaxation therapist with his patient, how he feels physically and mentally, and to present the exercises he recommends for the meeting. This stage lasts about 10 minutes.

Relaxation dynamics

For 25 minutes, the relaxation therapist invites the patient to achieve dynamic relaxation exercises. These exercises are based on breathing, and to effect a movement of contraction and relaxation of the body. These relaxation exercises will be dynamic in early supervised by a relaxation therapist. Once the patient is formed, it can reproduce independently in daily life.

Static relaxation

For 25 minutes, the relaxation therapist invites the patient to move into a position most comfortable (sitting or lying). The patient closes his eyes and lulled by the sound of his voice that leads him on a path of total relaxation, to the edge of sleep (but not sleep). Then once the patient is in a state of deep relaxation, the relaxation therapist invites him to see a positive and fun (all defined at the beginning of dialogue meeting or not) to encourage and appreciate more the benefits of relaxation.

Back on the course of the meeting

A relaxation therapy session always ends with another dialog 10 minutes during which the patient can share with his sophrologist sensations felt during the session. It is also an opportunity for relaxation therapist to recommend to the patient an exercise program to achieve alone everyday. A good relaxation therapist will give it to he can practice independently until its next meeting.

A training day, even 10 minutes is recommended: it is the key to achieve results more quickly and sustainably.
Example of dynamic relaxation exercise

- Relaxation therapist invites the patient to be placed upright, feet in the width of the basin;

- He asks her to take a deep breath through the abdomen;

- Retention in lungs full of air, the patient should shrug from top to bottom and from bottom to top (more or less energetically, shrugging about a dozen);

- Then the patient should blow by releasing good shoulders, hands down to your fingertips. To help create a vacuum in his head, he can imagine, when he releases the arms and hands to lay on the ground that clutters her mind and wants to evacuate (stress, tensions, frustrations, fears , fear …)

- Finally, the relaxation therapist invited him to take a time to welcome the sensations due to the stimulation and to resume its natural breathing.

The exercise should be repeated two or three times, with small breaks between each repetition to feel the relaxation move gradually.

Children receiving regular spankings to three years are more aggressive at the age of five years, according to a U.S. study published in the journal Pediatrics.

Catherine Taylor of Tulane University (New Orleans) conducted the study with 2,500 mothers of children under 3 years. Nearly half (45.6%) reported to have failed to spank their child during the previous month, 27.9% had one or two times and over a quarter (26.5%) had done more twice.

The researchers took into account in data analysis, other factors that may affect the development of aggression in children, such as neglect, drug or alcohol, stress and Maternal depression.

Children who regularly received the spanking showed aggressive behavior at age five. They were proof of “insolence, screams, cruelty, viciousness, vis-à-vis others. Some children were fighting, threatening and destroying things.

“There are ways to discipline children effectively without hitting them and this can reduce their chances of being aggressive later,” says the researcher.

“Parents do not have to resort to spanking to get what they want. If they avoid spanking, but use non-physical means, their child is more likely to perform well later.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics strongly opposes spanking for some reason.

In 2008, the Council of Europe has called on its member states to ban spanking. A call to which the French in particular are resisting.

Google is testing a trespass in the results of research to contribute to the prevention of suicide. In response to research “means to commit suicide” or “suicidal thoughts”, U.S. Internet are now show a number of emergency anti-suicide highlighted by a red phone icon.

The search engine can not read minds, several studies such as “I want to end my life” does not show the preventive message.

The search engine displays already for several months the number of national poison control center for U.S. research related to poisoning, told the New York Times, Dr. Roni Zeiger, head of Google’s health issues

This practice goes against the normal functioning of Google, which claims not to intervene manually in the ranking of its results is completely determined by algorithms.

Specialized blogs are questioning the possible implications of this intrusion into the search results. The ReadWriteWeb site speculates on possible interventions: “Looking for cheap cigarettes? Are you sure it is not rather patches of weaning you’re looking for? McDonald’s? Look, here are some suggestions of plans and tips to feed healthy. ‘

It is possible, says the site, a search engine to act on its results “for the greater good. But who will define what is good?”

New criteria for diagnosis of fibromyalgia, which the American College of Rheumatology endorsed, could lead to an increase in diagnosed cases, according to a study published in the journal Arthritis Care & Research.

The current diagnostic criteria are the tenderness of 11 or more points 18 and generalized pain in all four quadrants of the body for three months. But this method is not safe, “said Robert Katz of Rush University (Chicago). The doctors, he said, are not comfortable with the examination of sensitive points and these points fluctuate over time.

The new criteria avoid sensitive issues and review. They rely instead on an index of generalized pain, consisting of a list of 19 elements, combined with a scale of severity of symptoms. The person indicates the number of body parts when she experienced pain during the previous week. The scale of symptoms includes sleep, not recovery, fatigue and cognitive problems, which are three characteristics of the disease. Symptoms are rated on a severity scale of 0-3.

According to Katz, this new set of criteria “casts a wider net” and the number of diagnoses could double or even triple.

The researchers developed and tested the new criteria with 829 people with the disease and a group of people with other disorders such as painful syndrome affecting the neck and back as well as osteoarthritis. The new criteria allow to identify 88% of people with fibromyalgia without physical examination or consideration of sensitive issues.

With these new criteria, all physicians, not only rheumatologists should find it easier to diagnose, “said Katz.

Daniel J. Clauw University of Michigan at Ann Arbor who has worked on the development of new criteria was that the old criteria based on sensitive issues were not intended to diagnose initially, but looking.

This study was funded by the Lilly laboratory that produces the antidepressant Cymbalta (duloxetine) used for the treatment of fibromyalgia. Clauw said receiving consulting fees from Pfizer, Lilly, Forest, Cypress Biosciences, Pierre Fabre, UCB and AstraZeneca.

A high-protein diet for weight loss, such as the system Dukan (also called system beak) which is currently very popular, is dangerous “says Dr. Alain Golay has asked the journalist Marie-Christine Petit-Pierre for the newspaper Le Temps. Dr. Golay is medical director of the Education therapeutic for chronic diseases, diabetes and obesity, University Hospitals of Geneva.

The scheme, says it leads to a great hunger and a resumption of normal weight when food is gradually reintroduced.

Recall that the high-protein diet by Dr. Pierre Dukan method, which excludes carbohydrates or carbohydrates (starches, cereals, rice, pasta), consists of four phases: a relatively short attack phase where only the animal proteins are permitted, a cruise phase which are gradually added vegetables except starchy foods (potatoes, corn, peas, lentils, …) and finally a consolidation phase where carbohydrates are gradually reintroduced and a stabilization phase that is a return to normal diet with protein a day per week.

Some twenty years ago, said Dr. Golay, the high-protein diet had the support of hospitals, which is no longer the case, its deleterious effects have been shown by an abundant literature. He himself has tested the scheme in its practice. “Three groups followed six weeks of diet. The first with a balanced diet, the second separated, and the third protein diet. The weight loss was similar in all three categories. But those fed diets high protein were separated and taken over many more weight than the others later. ”

The high-protein diet allows the first phase without carbohydrates, not too hungry. But, he said, as soon as they are reintroduced, “the body screams with hunger. It “remembers that he was deprived of carbohydrates, and when he gets back, it stores all the better. And he’ll ask for more, for fear of missing”, which is gaining weight.

He advises those who have already started a fast-protein diet to reintroduce carbohydrates in moderate amounts. They will be very hungry at first, but the more they take their high-protein diet, the longer it will be difficult, “he said.

To lose weight, he advises the government “everybody knows”: half plate of vegetables, one quarter protein, one quarter of flour (potato, rice, pasta …), limiting fats sweets. “Nothing should be prohibited as it is a source of frustration.” This is not a diet, people need to achieve a balanced diet they can lose weight in normality. ”

20% of calories from the diet should come from protein (meat, fish, eggs, cheese) and 50% carbohydrates (from starchy, fruit, vegetables, dairy products), says he.

The level of testosterone may influence the career choices of women according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Luigi Zingales of the University of Chicago and colleagues studied the link between testosterone levels in 500 MBA students (MBA) and aversion to financial risk and the choice of career.

Initially, students could choose, in a computer simulation of situations, among receive fixed payments or play the lottery in situations involving different levels of risk. Those who had the lowest levels of risk aversion chose the option of the lottery more often.

Among women, those who had higher levels of testosterone were more likely to take risks. Whereas among men, testosterone levels had no influence.

Two years later, when these students have entered the labor market, people with high levels of testosterone and low risk aversion were more likely to have chosen careers in finance risky.

“This study has important implications for how the effects of testosterone may have an impact on the actual risk-taking in financial markets,” believes Zingales. “Moreover, it can illuminate the differences between the sexes in career choices. Future research should explore the mechanisms by which this sex hormone affects the brain. “