Mental Attitude
Sharing Stress is Better for You. Researchers found that pairing people with similar emotional reactions to a stressful situation actually makes the event feel less stressful to each person. In this study, researchers asked participants to speak in public, but beforehand had them interact with others who felt the same way about their task. While researches hypothesized this interaction would increase stress levels for each person, the opposite happened and participants reported feeling more at ease with the situation. Social Psychological and Personality Science, December 2013
Health Alert
Tanning Beds and Skin Cancer. The World Health Organization has previously labeled indoor tanning beds as a carcinogen, but the overall risk to society posed by the practice was unknown. An analysis of 88 studies that included data on over 400,000 adults found that indoor tanning may be responsible for as many as 450,000 cases of non-melanoma skin cancer and 10,000 cases of melanoma each year across the United States, Australia, and Europe. The researchers note that the annual number of skin cancer diagnoses they attribute to indoor tanning is greater than the number of smoking-related lung cancer cases diagnosed each year
in these regions.
JAMA Dermatology, January 2014
Diet
Decrease Preclampsia Risk with Vitamin D. A new study suggests that women with vitamin D deficiency during the first 26
weeks of pregnancy have a 40% higher risk of developing severe preeclampsia. This condition is a potentially life-threatening
complication that can occur as early as the 20th week of pregnancy to as late as 24-48 hours after giving birth.
Epidemiology, January 2014
Exercise
More Bad News for Smokers. Most smokers are aware that cigarette smoking can lead to lung cancer but few studies have
shown how smoking affects quality of life. Researchers asked smokers and non-smokers to wear pedometers and perform breathing tests over the course of a week. They found that smokers walked less, had decreased lung-capacity, felt more tired, had less motivation to make lifestyle changes, and exhibited more symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Respirology, February 2014
Chiropractic
Does Back Pain Go Away Without Treatment? In 1973, a self-described non-authority and non-researcher on back pain made a comment in a speech that would have long-lasting consequences for back pain sufferers. The speaker, whose last name was Dixon, made the following claim, "Of those who seek advice [for back pain] from their family doctors, 44% are better in one week irrespective of treatment and 86% are better in one month. Only 14% drag on longer than this." In 1976, a well-regarded researcher erroneously referenced the 1973 speech as if it were a legitimate study. Subsequent references in textbooks and papers on the natural history of back pain appear to have copied the 1976 paper's reference without having reviewed the original source to see if
its claims were accurate. More recent research has proven the 90% statistic is false and without proper treatment to address the
underlying cause, as many as 75% of back pain patients will have continued pain and disability a year after the onset of back pain.
The Modern Physician Letter, August 2007
Wellness/Prevention
Waist Measurement Recommended During Doctor Visits. Spanish researchers estimate that 7.5% of normal weight children and adolescents suffer from abdominal obesity which puts them at greater risk for developing arteriosclerosis or type 2 diabetes. However, this risk group may go undetected by most doctors unless they also measure waist circumference when height and weight are recorded during office visits.
PLOS ONE, January 2014
Quote
“Humor is mankind's greatest blessing.”
~ Mark Twain
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