EurekAlert! News by Subject: Medicine & Health - News by Subject: Medicine & Health

Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 4-May-2025 14:09 ET (4-May-2025 18:09 GMT/UTC)

Protein in soy may reduce the risk of heart failure by affecting gut bacteria

Nagoya University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A research team from Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine found a potential method to slow heart failure progression. They fed mice a diet high in soybean protein, which influenced gut bacteria and supported heart health. Analysis showed that this diet increased the production of the short-chain fatty acids in the gut that help to protect the heart.

Journal: Clinical Nutrition

Survey finds many Americans apply misguided and counterproductive advice to combat holiday weight gain

Orlando Health
Reports and Proceedings

For those striving to maintain a healthy lifestyle, holiday celebrations can feel like a minefield of dietary pitfalls, bound to derail the progress you’ve made through diet and exercise the rest of the year. In fact, a new national survey by Orlando Health finds nearly two in five (39%) Americans worry about how much they eat over the holidays. The good news is that dietitians say there’s no need to feel guilty about a few holiday treats.

When sun protection begets malnutrition: vitamin D deficiency in Japanese women

Osaka Metropolitan University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A research team led by Osaka Metropolitan University researchers have developed a non-invasive, low-cost tool for assessing the risk of vitamin D deficiency in young women called ViDDPreS (Vitamin D Deficiency Predicting Scoring).

Journal: Public Health Nutrition
Funder: Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, Health Labor Sciences Research Grant

How can we reduce adolescent pregnancies in low- and middle-income countries?

The University of Bergen
Peer-Reviewed Publication

New study by researchers from the University of Bergen (Norway) and the University of Zambia be published on Nov. 14, 2024. Many young girls in low- and middle-income countries become pregnant early, which can be dangerous for them and for their babies. This new large study conducted in Zambia found that two years of financial support combined with comprehensive sexuality education and community dialogue meetings, moderately reduced adolescent pregnancies during the support period, but not after the financial support ended. As a result, the overall effect on births before age 18 was limited over the 4.5 years study period even though more girls completed junior secondary school. Longer-term efforts to make high school more affordable are likely to be important to keep girls in school and more clearly reduce adolescent pregnancies in low- and middle-income countries.

Journal: Clinical Medicine

Chlorine and cocoa butter could protect corals from disease and decrease antibiotic pollution of the oceans

Frontiers
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In coral reefs, tissue loss diseases are widely spread. Treatment options are available but vary in their effectiveness and might have an impact on their surroundings. Now, researchers have tested an alternative to antibiotic treatments and showed that a chlorine and cocoa butter paste mix is effective at containing stony coral tissue loss disease. This non-antibiotic treatment could be a first step to improve environmental conditions in reefs, which ultimately could lead to corals being able to fight pathogens without treatment.

Journal: Frontiers in Marine Science

Community partners key to success of vaccine clinic focused on neurodevelopmental conditions

University of California - Davis Health
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Community partnerships led to a specialized clinic delivering COVID and flu shots to individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions like autism at the MIND Institute.

Transparency and reporting characteristics of randomized controlled trials with Chinese herbal medicine formulas interventions

Higher Education Press

In 2017, the CONSORT-CHM Formulas 2017 extension was introduced to enhance the reporting transparency of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) formulas. This development aimed to detail the rationale, design, analysis, and interpretation of CHM formula interventions, thereby improving clinical trial execution and advancing Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). However, a review assessing the reporting quality of RCTs with CHM formulas has been lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the reporting characteristics and adherence to the CONSORT-CHM Formulas 2017 checklist over the past five years.

Journal: Frontiers of Medicine