A glass of wine can help you keep your depression away

Hello reader,

Of-course we all have heard before that drinking red wine in moderate amount is known to be very good for our health since it decreases the risk of heart diseases, But recently the researches have found that drinking red wine can also help to reduce the risk of depression, this article was posted in the BMC medicine journal.

Researches in Spain analysed about 2,683 men and 2,822 women over a 7-year period, the participants in the study were between 55-80 yrs of age, with no history of depression and alcohol-related problems.

The findings of the study showed that those people who drank moderate amounts of alcohol (5- 15 g a day) were less likely to suffer from depression, additionally those who drank a moderate amount of wine on weekly basis( about 2-7 small glasses of wine a week) were found to have even lower risk of depression.


Also, however further findings show that if this amount is increased to more then 7 glasses per week then it can increase the risk of depression. 

So,it's recommended to drink a moderate amount of red wine, not only to reduce the risk of heart diseases but also to over come depression.

Stay sober, be healthy ;)



#mHealth, #hcsm, #digitalhealth ,#MedEd

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New Defibrillator Works Without Wires Touching Heart

A new implantable defibrillator accurately detects abnormal heart rhythms and shocks the heart back into normal rhythm, yet has no wires touching the heart.

This device is called as - subcutaneous implantable cardiac defibrillator (S-ICD), this device is placed under the patient's skin and has a wire under the skin along the left side of the breast bone.

The device detects life-threatening arrhythmias from normal rhythms, and once it notices the life-threatening rhythm it will automatically shock the heart back to its normal rhythm.

This device has a great advantage that it's very durable, because of the flexibility in the wiring.

However, the new device won't replace standard implantable defibrillators because many patients who need an implantable defibrillator also need a pacemaker to keep the heart beating regularly and this new device does not pace the heart, so it will be a good alternative for the patients who doesnt need pacing.

Also, this new device is more costly then the standard defibrillators and cost about $24,000.

For more information about the study please visit-http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_140080.html

So, what are your thoughts about the device? will it be very useful in future? looking at the cost of the device and also the fact that it doesn't have the ability of pacing the heart.

 #hcsm  #meddevice #healthinnovations #biotech

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DNA from our mother's influences the aging process

Scientists say that the process through which we age is determined not only by the changes we go through in our lifetime, but also by the genes we get from our mothers.

A new research from from Karolinska Institute and the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Aging, say's that the process of aging is dependent of the power house of the cell, i.e the Mitochondria (The mitochondrion is located within the cell and is responsible for producing the cell's supply of Adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) - a source of chemical energy) 

According to the professor at the Karolinska Institute and principal investigator at the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Aging, Nils-Göran Larsson - "The mitochondria contains their own DNA, which changes more than the DNA in the nucleus, and this has a significant impact on the aging process" also "Many mutations in the mitochondria gradually disable the cell's energy production."

So basically, "a mutated DNA speeds up the aging process."

Mitochondrial DNA (mDNA) damage can build up over a person's lifetime, according to the researchers. But this latest study has found that mitochondrial DNA damage can actually be passed on from our mothers.

This research was performed on a series of inbred mice, and through MRI scanning the scientist were able to detect the amount of mutated DNA's which lead to speed up the aging process in mice.

So, if we inherit more mutated mDNA (Mitochondria DNA) from our mothers we age more quickly.

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Researchers Prove Carbon Monoxide Passes Through Walls

Carbon monoxide gas can pass easily through drywall, and poison those living inside a home, apartment or condo, researchers from Seattle report.

The finding highlights the need for having carbon monoxide alarms in your home, since even checking your own appliances won't guarantee that the lethal gas might not seep through your walls from another source, experts say.

"What this study tells me is that carbon monoxide does not stay put in a building, that the barriers between apartments or condos will slow down carbon monoxide, but do not stop it," said Dr. Eric Lavonas, associate director of the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center in Denver.

"Therefore, the best way to protect your family is to have a working carbon monoxide alarm in your home," according to Lavonas, who was not involved with the study.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas found in car exhaust and in fumes from fuel-burning sources such as generators, charcoal grills, gas stoves and wood fireplaces.

"Any source of combustion produces carbon monoxide of some degree, no matter how clean-burning your appliances are," said study author Dr. Neil Hampson, with the Center for Hyperbaric Medicine at the Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle.

The report is published in the Aug. 21 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning kills between 400 and 500 people per year in the United States. The only form of protection is a carbon monoxide alarm.

"[Carbon monoxide] is undetectable to human senses. You cannot see it, you cannot smell it, and you cannot taste it, so you do not know you've been poisoned until you get sick and start getting headaches, vomiting or pass out," Hampson explained.

Twenty-five states require residences to have these alarms, but 10 of these states now allow exemptions for homes that have no internal sources of carbon monoxide. Many experts are concerned that these exemptions will lead to an increase in accidental poisonings, particularly in multi-family dwellings, where walls between homes are shared.

To prove that carbon monoxide can go through walls, researchers placed varying thicknesses of drywall in a Plexiglas container to observe how quickly the gas could travel through the walls. Because the pores in the wallboard are 1 million times larger than a carbon monoxide molecule, the gas passed easily through the porous barrier. Painted drywall slowed down the gas only a bit.

Only alarms can detect carbon monoxide gas once it is in a home, but far too many homes either don't have one or have one that isn't functioning because the batteries have died or have been removed. According to Lavonas, only 30 percent of American homes have a working carbon monoxide alarm. In North Carolina, a state that has a law requiring the devices, only 67.8 percent of homes do, according to a study published in the American Journal of Public Health in 2012.

There have been many cases of poisonings in homes where carbon monoxide alarms were found, "but they either had no battery in them or they hadn't even been taken out of the package," Hampson said. In addition to changing the batteries regularly, it's important to check the expiration date on the alarm itself, he added.

"When you change your batteries, you should look at the back of the alarm to see when the expiration date is. It's either five or seven years, depending on the manufacturer," Hampson explained.

Unlike smoke alarms, carbon monoxide alarms may be placed anywhere, from the bottom of the wall to the ceiling, and only one is needed per level, preferably located just outside the sleeping areas.

Some alarms can be plugged directly into an electrical outlet or hard-wired, but both Hampson and Lavonas caution that if these are used, they should have a battery back-up. Most carbon monoxide poisonings occur during blackouts, when power is out, they noted.

If your alarm sounds, leave your home immediately, and call the fire department.

SOURCES: Neil Hampson, M.D., emeritus physician, Center for Hyperbaric Medicine, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle; Eric Lavonas, M.D., associate director, Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center, Denver; Aug. 21, 2013, Journal of the American Medical Association

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