‘Virus Bom’ To Stop Swine Flu

TAIPEI – A Taiwanese government-funded research team Tuesday unveiled an organic compound that it says can kill swine flu and bird flu viruses in the environment to help prevent their spread. The National Taiwan University team said the compound – which it has named “VirusBom” – can be made into a hand wash, a spraying agent or integrated into air filters and fabrics like facial masks to effectively kill a variety of viruses such as A(H1N1) swine flu and avian influenza and stop the spread of bacteria including those responsible for staph infections. The invention was unveiled as the World Health Organization said Tuesday the death toll from swine flu had passed 700 since the outbreak began in April.Researchers said the invention was of special significance amid signs that swine flu had started to develop resistance to Tamiflu, the world’s major anti-viral flu drug. C.K. Lee, a professor of engineering science who leads the NTU team, described the chemical as “a simple, organic compound” developed through “synthetic methodology” in the lab. He refused to give details, saying the team is applying for patents in Taiwan and the United States. Lee said “VirusBom” differed from ordinary antiseptics on the market such as Purellbecause it specifically targets the swine and bird flu viruses while other products do not. “This particular compound prevents the virus (from) entering your body to interact with your immune system,” he said. “All types of viruses, the swine flu, bird flu and intestinal diseases collapse” after being exposed to the compound, he said In a rare scientific breakthrough, he said a dose of between 30 and 300 ppm (parts per million) of the compound can break up the virus and kill it without causing any damage to human cells. The compound has the potential to be developed into a drug, which would require a dose lower than 3 ppm to work in the human body, he said. The team had started research on developing the anti-viral compound back in 2006 in response to the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu. The technology has been transferred to a local company to mass produce products incorporating it. Lin said the first products using the compound could hit the market in Sept. – Agencies Source: Saudi Gazette

Kids' Lower IQ Scores Linked To Prenatal Pollution

CHICAGO – Researchers for the first time have linked air pollution exposure before birth with lower IQ scores in childhood, bolstering evidence that smog may harm the developing brain. The results are in a study of 249 children of New York City women who wore backpack air monitors for 48 hours during the last few months of pregnancy. They lived in mostly low-income neighborhoods in northern Manhattan and the South Bronx. They had varying levels of exposure to typical kinds of urban air pollution, mostly from car, bus and truck exhaust. At age 5, before starting school, the children were given IQ tests. Those exposed to the most pollution before birth scored on average four to five points lower than children with less exposure. That's a big enough difference that it could affect children's performance in school, said Frederica Perera, the study's lead author and director of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health. Dr. Michael Msall, a University of Chicago pediatrician not involved in the research, said the study doesn't mean that children living in congested cities "aren't going to learn to read and write and spell.” But it does suggest that you don't have to live right next door to a belching factory to face pollution health risks, and that there may be more dangers from typical urban air pollution than previously thought, he said. "We are learning more and more about low-dose exposure and how things we take for granted may not be a free ride," he said. While future research is needed to confirm the new results, the findings suggest exposure to air pollution before birth could have the same harmful effects on the developing brain as exposure to lead, said Patrick Breysse, an environmental health specialist at Johns Hopkins' school of public health. And along with other environmental harms and disadvantages low-income children are exposed to, it could help explain why they often do worse academically than children from wealthier families, Breysse said. "It's a profound observation," he said. "This paper is going to open a lot of eyes.“ The study in the August edition of Pediatrics was released Monday. In earlier research, involving some of the same children and others, Perera linked prenatal exposure to air pollution with genetic abnormalities at birth that could increase risks for cancer; smaller newborn head size and reduced birth weight. Her research team also has linked it with developmental delays at age 3 and with children's asthma. The researchers studied pollutants that can cross the placenta and are known scientifically as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Main sources include vehicle exhaust and factory emissions. Tobacco smoke is another source, but mothers in the study were nonsmokers. A total of 140 study children, 56 percent, were in the high exposure group. That means their mothers likely lived close to heavily congested streets, bus depots and other typical sources of city air pollution; the researchers are still examining data to confirm that, Perera said. The mothers were black or Dominican-American; the results likely apply to other groups, researchers said. The researchers took into account other factors that could influence IQ, including secondhand smoke exposure, the home learning environment and air pollution exposure after birth, and still found a strong influence from prenatal exposure, Perera said Dr. Robert Geller, an Emory University pediatrician and toxicologist, said the study can't completely rule out that pollution exposure during early childhood might have contributed. He also noted fewer mothers in the high exposure group had graduated from high school. While that might also have contributed to the high-dose children's lower IQ scores, the study still provides compelling evidence implicating prenatal pollution exposure that should prompt additional studies, Geller said. The researchers said they plan to continuing monitoring and testing the children to learn whether school performance is affected and if there are any additional long-term effects. ___ On the Net: Pediatrics: http://www.pediatrics.org Source: Yahoo Health News

Unraveling How Children Become Bilingual So Easily

WASHINGTON – The best time to learn a foreign language: Between birth and age 7. Missed that window? New research is showing just how children's brains can become bilingual so easily, findings that scientists hope eventually could help the rest of us learn a new language a bit easier. "We think the magic that kids apply to this learning situation, some of the principles, can be imported into learning programs for adults," says Dr. Patricia Kuhl of the University of Washington, who is part of an international team now trying to turn those lessons into more teachable technology. Each language uses a unique set of sounds. Scientists now know babies are born with the ability to distinguish all of them, but that ability starts weakening even before they start talking, by the first birthday. Kuhl offers an example: Japanese doesn't distinguish between the "L" and "R" sounds of English — "rake" and "lake" would sound the same. Her team proved that a 7-month-old in Tokyo and a 7-month-old in Seattle respond equally well to those different sounds. But by 11 months, the Japanese infant had lost a lot of that ability. Time out — how do you test a baby? By tracking eye gaze. Make a fun toy appear on one side or the other whenever there's a particular sound. The baby quickly learns to look on that side whenever he or she hears a brand-new but similar sound. Noninvasive brain scans document how the brain is processing and imprinting language. Mastering your dominant language gets in the way of learning a second, less familiar one, Kuhl's research suggests. The brain tunes out sounds that don't fit. "You're building a brain architecture that's a perfect fit for Japanese or English or French," whatever is native, Kuhl explains — or, if you're a lucky baby, a brain with two sets of neural circuits dedicated to two languages. It's remarkable that babies being raised bilingual — by simply speaking to them in two languages — can learn both in the time it takes most babies to learn one. On average, monolingual and bilingual babies start talking around age 1 and can say about 50 words by 18 months. Italian researchers wondered why there wasn't a delay, and reported this month in the journal Sciencethat being bilingual seems to make the brain more flexible. The researchers tested 44 12-month-olds to see how they recognized three-syllable patterns — nonsense words, just to test sound learning. Sure enough, gaze-tracking showed the bilingual babies learned two kinds of patterns at the same time — like lo-ba-lo or lo-lo-ba — while the one-language babies learned only one, concluded Agnes Melinda Kovacs of Italy's International School for Advanced Studies. While new language learning is easiest by age 7, the ability markedly declines after puberty. "We're seeing the brain as more plastic and ready to create new circuits before than after puberty," Kuhl says. As an adult, "it's a totally different process. You won't learn it in the same way. You won't become (as good as) a native speaker.“ Yet a soon-to-be-released survey from the Center for Applied Linguistics, a nonprofit organization that researches language issues, shows U.S. elementary schools cut back on foreign language instruction over the last decade. About a quarter of public elementary schools were teaching foreign languages in 1997, but just 15 percent last year, say preliminary results posted on the center's Web site. What might help people who missed their childhood window? Baby brains need personal interaction to soak in a new language — TV or CDs alone don't work. So researchers are improving the technology that adults tend to use for language learning, to make it more social and possibly tap brain circuitry that tots would use. Recall that Japanese "L" and "R" difficulty? Kuhl and scientists at Tokyo Denki University and the University of Minnesota helped develop a computer language program that pictures people speaking in "motherese," the slow exaggeration of sounds that parents use with babies. Japanese college students who'd had little exposure to spoken English underwent 12 sessions listening to exaggerated "Ls" and "Rs" while watching the computerized instructor's face pronounce English words. Brain scans — a hair dryer-looking device called MEG, for magnetoencephalography — that measure millisecond-by-millisecond activity showed the students could better distinguish between those alien English sounds. And they pronounced them better, too, the team reported in the journal NeuroImage. "It's our very first, preliminary crude attempt but the gains were phenomenal," says Kuhl. But she'd rather see parents follow biology and expose youngsters early. If you speak a second language, speak it at home. Or find a play group or caregiver where your child can hear another language regularly. "You'll be surprised," Kuhl says. "They do seem to pick it up like sponges." ___ EDITOR's NOTE — Lauran Neergaard covers health and medical issues for The Associated Press in Washington. Source: Yahoo Health News

Swine Flu Pregnancy Tips Reissued

The Department of Health has attempted to clarify its guidelines to expectant mothers and parents with children under five on how best to avoid swine flu. Its advice to practise good hygiene by washing hands and surfaces regularly has been re-issued after a woman with the virus died soon after giving birth. The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) says all expectant mothers should avoid crowded places and unnecessary travel. But the DoH says only the "particularly concerned" should consider the advice. Concern over the effects of swine flu on new and expectant mothers has heightened since the death of Ruptara Miah, 39, in London's Whipps Cross Hospital on 13 July. Her baby is said to be very ill in intensive care. Good hygiene Another child under six months old, who died in London, is also among the latest victims of the virus. Swine flu advice for pregnant women from the Royal College of Midwives The refreshed DoH advice has been given greater prominence on its website. Health experts say expectant mothers could suffer possible complications if they contract swine flu, such as pneumonia, breathing difficulties and dehydration, because they have suppressed immune systems. Young children are also vulnerable. Most mothers-to-be with swine flu are being prescribed Relenza, an inhaled antiviral drug which treats the virus without reaching the foetus. However, where it is particularly severe, doctors can offer Tamiflu instead. The NHS website stresses that most expectant mothers who contract swine flu will only have mild symptoms and recover within a week. Belinda Phipps, chief executive of the National Childbirth Trust (NCT), said that while the risks for expectant mothers were low, women needed information to make an informed decision. "If you are pregnant, you are slightly more susceptible to all infections. One of them is swine flu. "It is important that pregnant women know that - and particularly other members of the population know that - so that they behave responsibly and if they are sickthey don't go and put themselves close to a pregnant woman." The Department of Health said it advised women to plan their pregnancy carefully, but was not advising against trying to conceive. "Mums-to-be are more vulnerable to any type of flu. It is particularly important that anyone who has existing health problems and is thinking about starting a family should talk to their GP first, as they normally would," a DoH spokesman said. Louise Silverton, deputy general secretary of the RCM, said women could not be expected to wait for the first wave of the pandemic to end before trying for a baby. Speaking on BBC One's Andrew Marr Show, Alan Johnson, the new home secretary, said an unexpected aspect of the virus was that it was attacking the young, not the elderly as with seasonal flu. He called on parents to keep using their common sense, saying the "vast majority" had been following public health advice. Twenty-nine people have now died in the UK aftercontracting swine flu - 26 in England and three in Scotland. The government has warned that the number of deaths from the virus this winter in the UK could reach between 19,000 and 65,000. However, during the 1999 to 2000 winter, seasonal flu deaths reached 21,000 and even during average winters there are normally anywhere between 6,000 to 8,000 deathsWe asked you whether you were concerned about the effects swine flu might have on expectant mothers. Here is a selection of your comments. I am in the third trimester of pregnancy, and I am asthmatic. I am concerned that neither Tamiflu or Relenza will be suitable for me if I contract swine flu. Louise, Nottingham This is such stupid advice. I am pregnant and travel to work every day on a packed Tube. How am I supposed to avoid crowded places and unnecessary travel? It's impossible. I can't just stop going to work can I? Laura, Hertfordshire My daughter has a 4yr old son who has swine flu, she is 4 months pregnant and worried in case she catches it and it harms the baby, we are also worried about the treatments used in pregnant women. There is to much contradiction going around to know what to believe. Tina, Essex I am currently 24 weeks pregnant and have been ill and at home for 5 days now with bad cold symptoms. After consulting the doctor by phone I was told it could possibly be swine flu but how am I to know? I am usually very level headed in these situations but not sure that not swabbing pregnant women with symptoms is wise - at least if we know if we have it we can be better informed! Anonymous, Wales I am 36 weeks pregnant and came into contact with Swine flu last week. I experienced a slight sore throat spoke with a nurse at NHS direct and my GP and was completely reassured that I was fine and not displaying any symptoms. There is definitely some scaremongering going on but if you seek appropriate medical advice your fears can be eased. Jo, Romford, Essex I have got a 14 month old child and am currently pregnant. I'm very worried we could all catch the virus as a lot of people where we live are getting it. Also it is going round schools where my niece goes. I believe there should be vaccinations soon as possible for young children and those who it could endanger more than others Source: Google Health News www.news.bbc.com

Probiotics Supplement May Help After Gastric Bypass Surgery

(HealthDay News) -- Taking a probiotics supplement after gastric bypass surgery helps patients lose weight faster and avoid vitamin B deficiency, a new study finds. Probiotics are the "good" bacteria found in yogurt and in dietary supplements that aid digestion. The Stanford University School of Medicine study included 44 patients who had Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery and were randomly assigned to either a probiotics group or a control group. Both groups received the same bariatric medical care and nutritional counseling and both were allowed to consume yogurt, a natural source of probiotics. Patients in the probiotics group also took one pill per day of a probiotics supplement. After three months, the probiotics group had a 47.6 percent weight loss, compared with 38.5 percent in the control group. Patients in the probiotics group also had higher levels of vitamin B-12 three months after surgery than those in the control group -- 1,214 picograms per milliliter as opposed to 811 picograms per milliliter, a significant difference since B-12 deficiency is common after gastric bypass surgery. The study appears in the July issue of the Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery. More information The U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine has more about probiotics Source: Yahoo Health News