Smoking leads to hearing loss

Scientists from the U.S. found that teenagers who often become passive smokers may suffer from deafness.

Experts explain hearing problems in passive smokers, the fact that the chemicals contained in tobacco smoke can impair blood supply to the hearing. In a study by American scientists took part in 1.5 thousand teenagers from 12 to 19 years. After checking their sensitivity to the sounds of different frequencies, the researchers found that those exposed to tobacco smoke are twice as likely to have problems with hearing.

Previously, scientists have found an association between smoking and parental behavior and school performance of their children. Parents who have the habit of smoking at home are at risk of bringing up children who will perform poorly in school and will have problems with discipline.

According to WHO, in the last century, smoking killed 100 million people. This year from diseases associated with smoking: stroke, lung cancer and heart attack - could die more than 5 million people. And by 2030, mortality from this bad habit risk increase to 8 million.

Hepatitis B

World Health Organization (WHO) on the eve of the fight against hepatitis B has published data on the number of infected viral hepatitis Earth's inhabitants.

According MedPortal, the total number infected with hepatitis B virus in the world for more than two million each year from hepatitis B kills about a million patients.

The largest proportion of morbidity in the picture is hepatitis B, because it can be transmitted through blood, including in utero, as well as through contaminated hypodermic needles and surgical instruments.

Most carriers of the virus are not even aware of their infection, so WHO urges member countries to strengthen the diagnosis of viral hepatitis, as well as carry out preventive measures. According to international organizations, 180 of the 193 member countries have included hepatitis B vaccine into national immunization schedules.

FDA Approves Second New Treatment for Hepatitis C

On May 23, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the approval of telaprevir for the treatment of chronic viral hepatitis C. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, chronic viral hepatitis C affects 3.2 million Americans. Left untreated, chronic viral hepatitis C can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer, and unwitting transmission to others.

The approval of telaprevir marks the second new treatment approved for chronic hepatitis C. On May 13, the FDA announced the approval of boceprevir. Edward Cox, M.D., M.P.H., director, Office of Antimicrobial Products in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, calls the new treatments “a major step forward in the battle against chronic hepatitis C”, offering patients with this condition a greater chance at a cure.

In a major initiative to bring attention to combating viral hepatitis, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently released the Action Plan for the Prevention, Care & Treatment of Viral Hepatitis (PDF 672KB). Among its goals, the Action Plan calls for a 25% reduction in the number of new cases of hepatitis C and an increase in the proportion of persons who are aware of their hepatitis C virus infection.

A vaccine against alcoholism

Sensational news from the scientists from Chile, who were engaged in research on anti-alcohol people. Chilean scientists claim to have invented a vaccine that can reduce alcohol consumption among men 90-95%.

The principle of the vaccine, invented by Chilean scientists is quite simple - blocking the release in the human body, the enzyme responsible for the withdrawal of alcohol from the body. Thus, the effect as a strong hangover will pursue anyone who had used alcohol after vaccination. Attack of the strongest hangover, which is manifested by headaches, palpitations, severe nausea and sweating, according to scientists, should be sufficient factor for the rejection of alcohol in principle.

At this time clinical trials are conducted on rats and studies involving human subjects should begin no earlier than 2012. While many details remain unknown, such as: the impact of vaccine on liver cells, side effects of the delay of alcoholic substances in the body, emotional and psychological consequences of exposure to modern humans. A vaccine against alcoholism, which is developed by Chilean scientists, so far only theoretically could be a tool used to combat alcoholism. World Health Organization (WHO) has repeatedly drawn the attention of physicians of all countries on the problem of alcoholism and drug addiction, but research in this area has not yet possible to synthesize a vaccine or medicine that has a 100% effect for physiology and for the psyche of dependent people.

Symptoms of insomnia

Insomnia can materialize because of stress, illness, pain, diet and medications.

Symptoms of insomnia may include:

- daytime tiredness,
- general fatigue,
- dulled reaction times, an inability to concentrate,
- decreased performance,
- anxiety and depression,
- muscle aches and an irritable state.

If the condition persists for more than a few times a week and affects one's ability to function normally, then a health care provider should be seen to make sure there isn't a more serious underlying medical condition. It is purported by some experts that chronic insomnia poses a greater risk than smoking, high blood pressure and heart disease.

There are many different types of AIDS alternative medicine available in today's world. Alternative medicine is a treatment type that covers an extensive range of various philosophies related to healing. When the HIV and AIDS epidemic was discovered, the treatments for the condition were extremely limited. The stresses of long working days are getting to Australian employees, with 25% saying they would like a plug-and-play room at work in order to partake in a bit of escapism during the work-day, A further 25% say they would like to see the introduction of a meditation room in the office in order to bring a bit of peace and balance back to their life.

The key stress management issue for employers is how to maximize and sustain high quality work productivity in the pressure-cooker world of 21st century living. Think of a long distance runner. A drink of water during the run gives a temporary boost, but it's what they do between runs, mentally and physically, which improves their performance, endurance, energy levels, self confidence and self esteem. It's much the same for the long-distance worker. Better than a short recreational break at work, creating your own stress-reducing recreational experience away from the work environment has much wider, more sustainable benefits. There's far deeper value in creating an experience that is custom-designed to suit your personal needs, in your chosen location, in your own time, at your desired pace and to your chosen level of ability. It becomes a creative expression of your unique, natural talents, of benefit to work and to personal life alike.

HIV Infection

Would you believe this!? The cure for HIV/AIDS has been discovered but the mainstream media are not reporting it as the big news that it should be! The only mainstream source I have found so far is from MSNBC.
The cure was reported first in May 2008 at an annual conference on "Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections" in Boston by a team of German doctors. The New England Journal of Medicine finally published the report in its Feb. 12, 2009, issue. Gero Huetter, who works in the Department of Hematology, Oncology and Transfusion Medicine at Charity University Hospital in Berlin, Germany is the hero who discovered the cure.
HIV infection is a medical condition characterized by a progressive deficiency in the immune system of the human body, caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. Currently there is no cure for this condition. However, anti-retroviral therapy has succeeded in reducing the virus count to a bare minimum, and has helped the immune system to improve. This therapy has multiple side-effects, and over time, the virus starts multiplying, while the immune system fails gradually. Some Ayurvedic physicians compare the symptoms of HIV/AIDS to those of "Kshaya" or "Oja-Kshaya" mentioned in Ayurveda. While Ayurvedic treatment may not show the initial dramatic improvement seen with modern drugs, this treatment still has a significant role to play in the long term management of HIV infection. Ayurvedic medicines reduce the virus count and improve the CD4/CD8 count, which are indicative of the modulated immune status of the body. Judicious use of Ayurvedic medicines may also increase the innate (basic) immunity of the body, improve weight and cause excretion of the HIV virus from the body.
Traditional Ayurvedic formulations can be effectively used to treat the opportunistic infections which are a hallmark of advanced HIV infection. Kutaj Ghana Vati, Sanjeevani Vati, Panchamrut Parpati and Kutaj Parpati are used to treat recurrent diarrhea. Arogya Vardhini, Triphala Guggulu, Mahamanjishthadi Ghan Vati, Praval and Kamdudha are useful in Herpes Zoster infection and also in other skin infections. Laxmi Narayan Rasa, Samshamani Vati and Laghu Sutshekhar are used in chronic fever. These medicines have anti-viral, immunomodulating and adaptogenic properties. Some of these increase body weight, yet others increase the "agni" of the body and therefore maintain cellular metabolism at an optimum level.

Race for HIV cure overshadows prevention, says expert

THE CANADIAN PRESS

CALGARY—When Dr. Luc Montagnier painstakingly teased out the source of the new mysterious AIDS syndrome in a Paris laboratory 25 years ago, the very concept of the disease sparked panic in many people.

But people have become complacent and infections are on the rise even in many developed countries because they trust science will develop a vaccine or cure that, in reality, may be many years away, Montagnier said last week.

“It seems that the young generation has forgotten about prevention because they think there are cures for HIV, that it’s no big deal,” the Nobel Prize winner said after giving a talk in Calgary.
“But it is, because HIV treatment is very heavy, has to be kept for the rest of their lives, and if they are young this is really a burden.”

The rush for a cure, while important, should never overshadow the push for prevention, stressed Montagnier, who shared the 2008 Nobel Prize in Medicine with Francoise Barre-Sinoussi for identifying the virus that causes AIDS.

He disputes the idea that modern medicine makes AIDS a controllable disease.
While a cocktail of drugs can keep people alive for decades, the punishing side-effects can make life miserable, painful, or even cause death, he warned.
“In the long-term they may die not of AIDS, but of a side-effect: cardiovascular, obesity and hypertension, brain disease,” he said. “It’s still a very important disease, and it’s not a chronic disease.” This attitude even is showing up in Alberta, where, in a “baffling” trend, HIV infections have risen 20 percent over the past two years, said Amanda Chapman, communications analyst for AIDS Calgary.

Montagnier’s message of prevention is one the organization has continued to push, she said.
People should control their own actions because they can’t count on scientists making a breakthrough.

“Every single route they’ve taken has failed. Nothing has worked,” she noted.
“So it’s really risky to say, ‘Well, we think science is going to be able to find the answer for us’ when, really, all you have to do is put on a condom.”

Montagnier said it will be easier to find a cure for the disease rather than a preventative vaccine, but either option is still a long way off.

Ex-stripper with AIDS fights ouster

A former stripper with advanced AIDS who faces deportation to her native Thailand is asking the Ontario Court of Appeal to reduce her prison sentence by even just one day, saying it could mean the difference between life and death.

"I'm really scared," said Suwalee Iamkhong, 39, who was convicted and sentenced to two years in a penitentiary in 2007 for transmitting HIV to her husband, Percy Whiteman, whom she met while dancing at Toronto's Zanzibar Tavern.

She was ordered deported on Dec. 16 but remains entangled in a complex web of legal proceedings, where timing is everything.

As long as Iamkhong's sentence remains two years or longer, she is considered, under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, to have been convicted of "serious criminality" with no right to appeal the deportation order.

Had her sentence been just 24 hours shorter – two years less a day in a provincial institution – she would have a right of appeal.

In an interview with the Star, Iamkhong, who has also been stripped of permanent residency status, said she's afraid she will not obtain specialized AIDS medication in Thailand and will be ostracized in her village.

Her lawyers are expecting a decision today from the Immigration and Refugee Board on whether she can be free until a date is set for her deportation

Iamkhong's appeal from her conviction and sentence is scheduled for March 24, but she could be removed from Canada as soon as citizenship documents are obtained from the Thai government, said her lawyer, Elizabeth Long.

Meanwhile, Whiteman is suing Iamkhong and the federal government for allowing her into Canada. The lawsuit may be in jeopardy if she's kicked out.

Before the appeals court, Philip Campbell, Iamkhong's criminal lawyer, is seeking either a stay of the charges, a new trial or a sentence reduction of at least one day. The trial judge, Todd Ducharme, engaged in "circular reasoning" and misunderstood the evidence, he argues in court documents.

Campbell's client, who arrived in Canada on a work visa in 1995, was skeptical of a test previously conducted in a "ramshackle" Hong Kong lab showing she was HIV positive and concluded she did not have HIV after undergoing blood tests in Canada for her visa renewal.

At the trial, Ducharme didn't believe Iamkhong thought she was HIV negative, saying anyone faced with conflicting results would have had more tests.

But Ducharme's conclusions about how a normal person would behave was based on his belief Iamkhong was in doubt about the results, when in fact she was confident she didn't have the virus, Campbell said.

The leader of U2 received the Peace Prize

Nobel Peace Prize awarded in Paris, U2 leader Bono Award "Man Of Peace" for establishing a fund to combat AIDS and malaria, and work actively to write off debts of African countries, reported AFP.

Prize to musician was given by the Mayor of Paris Bertrand Delane. At the awarding ceremony attended by former South African president Frederik Willem de Klerk, Polish politician Lech Walesa, Irish politician John Hume.

"For me this is a very important award because, let me be honest, it is very close to the Nobel Peace Prize" - Bono said.

In 2007, the prize of peace "Man Of Peace" was awarded to George Clooney and Don Chidlu.

Awards took place at the annual three-day summit of Nobel laureates. One of the organizers of the summit in favor of Mikhail Gorbachev Foundation. Gorbachev himself was unable to attend the awarding ceremony for health reasons.

British activists need to stop the deportation of people with HIV

Two major charitable AIDS Service Organizations Britain - AHPN and NAT - urged the Government to review the policy of deporting people who have been diagnosed with HIV.

Representatives of organizations in conjunction with its appeal to the World Human Rights Day, celebrated on 10 December. Activists believe that you'd like to prevent the deportation of people with HIV in those countries where they would be prohibitively treatment.

Britain, as a member of Group of Eight, has signed a promise to provide universal access to HIV treatment for all who need it by 2010. At the same time, the British government deports people living with HIV without assurances that the country of destination for them will be available treatment, which is contrary to this promise. For many people living with HIV, lifting or suspension of the treatment is life-threatening.

Titise Code, executive director of AHPN, explains: "At the international level, Britain has become a leader in support of universal access to treatment for all who need it. But that leadership does not occur at home, where the practice of deporting people to countries without access to treatment. This violates the rights of HIV-positive people and questioned the intentions of the Government in respect of human rights. "

Deborah Jack, executive director of NAT, believes that "Human Rights Day, the British Government should immediately review the process of deportation, which does not guarantee people that their therapy against HIV will not be disrupted in Britain and the destination country. Deportation people living with HIV without regard to their treatment The Government has ignored the right to health and putting their lives at risk. "

Organization launched a campaign, which demands that the Government deferred the deportation of people living with HIV in the UK until the treatment becomes more affordable in their home country.

Earlier this year, the organization released a report NAT "The Myth of HIV-tourism", which belies the stereotype that people often emigrate to the UK just to get a costly treatment, such as therapy against HIV.