Questioning the Safety of Airport Full-Body Scanners & Other News of Note

“Naked” Scanners at US Airports May Be Dangerous (PhysOrg) Some US scientists warned Friday that the full-body, graphic-image X-ray scanners now being used to screen passengers and airline crews at airports around the country may be unsafe. “They say the risk is minimal, but statistically someone is going to get skin cancer from these X-rays,” …

Yoga’s Effect on Inflammation & Other News of Note

Yoga Shows Potential to Ward Off Certain Diseases (LiveScience) Practicing yoga may do more than calm the mind — it may help protect against certain diseases, a new study suggests. In the study, women who had practiced yoga regularly for at least two years were found to have lower levels of inflammation in their bodies …

New Cancer-Inflammation Link & Other News of Note

Research Finds New Link Between Inflammation and Cancer (PhysOrg) Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center researchers have uncovered a new link between chronic inflammation and cancer. Although cancers do not always cause inflammation, chronic inflammation is known to help tumor cells grow. In an article published in the June issue of Nature, VCU Massey scientists …

Fluoride in Black Tea & Other News of Note

Black Tea Contains More Fluoride Than Ever Thought (Foodconsumer) Black tea may contain a higher concentration of fluoride than previously thought, according to a new study cited in a press release by Medical College of Georgia. Dr. Gary Whiteford of the School of Dentistry, co-author of the study, suggests that heavy tea drinkers could get …

Teeth & Your Memory

Ever have a senior moment? Then you might be missing some teeth, too. Researchers at Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (GSDM) link tooth loss and periodontal disease to cognitive decline in one of the largest and longest prospective studies on the topic to date, released in this month’s issue of the …

Why It’s So Hard to Tell Which Tooth Aches & Other News of Note

Why It’s So Hard to Tell Which Tooth Has the Ache (Wired) When it comes to a toothache, the brain doesn’t discriminate. A new imaging study shows that to the brain, a painful upper tooth feels a lot like a painful lower tooth. The results, which will be published in the journal Pain, help explain …

The Problem with Sour Candies & Other News of Note

Sour Candy Like Battery Acid to Teeth (CBS News) Research indicates tooth enamel erodes in a pH of less than 4.0. More than two dozen popular candies were shown to have acid levels ranging from 3.0 pH down to 1.6 pH. “When they’re gummy or sticky, then they stick to our tooth surface,” said [dentist …

Diabetes Risk with Gum Disease, Bone Loss with Implants & Other News of Note

Study Finds Over 90% of People with Gum Disease Are at Risk for Diabetes (PhysOrg) The study, led by Dr. Shiela Strauss, Associate Professor of Nursing and Co-Director of the Statistics and Data Management Core for NYU’s Colleges of Dentistry and Nursing, examined data from 2,923 adult participants in the 2003-2004 National Health and Nutrition …

Little Evidence Tamiflu Works & Other News of Note

British Researchers: Little Evidence Tamiflu Works (PhysOrg) Researchers at the Cochrane Review, an international nonprofit that reviews health information, looked at previously published papers on Tamiflu as used for seasonal flu. They found insufficient data to prove whether the antiviral reduces complications like pneumonia in otherwise healthy people but concluded the drug shortens flu symptoms …

Integrative Medicine Is Healthcare Reform

Guest post by Michael Bauerschmidt, M.D.; Director, Full Potential Health, Fort Lauderdale, FL:   Our current model of healthcare is based on Pasteur’s germ theory. His remarkable achievements in identifying causative microorganisms as the basis for infectious disease form the bedrock upon which modern Western allopathic medicine was built. But what is allopathic medicine? According …