Catherine – Page 96 – News by Nature

Cold And Flu Remedies That Actually Work

22Dec

By CatherineNo Comments

Remedies

Cold And Flu Remedies That Actually Work

Cold weather doesn’t literally make you sick, but the winter season does indeed make you more prone to catching a bad cold. Chilly conditions mean you spend more time indoors, where bacteria and viruses are more likely to linger in the air and on surfaces you touch, and the drop in temperature leaves your mucous membranes dry, irritated, and more vulnerable to infection. The holiday season can be particularly rough on the ol’ immune system, what with all the traveling and hanging out with far-flung relatives and their exotic germs. And let’s be honest, you’re probably not taking the best care of yourself either—drinking, eating lots of unhealthy food, staying up late. Actually, take a break! The simplest remedy is also the most effective, and probably the most disappointing. If yo...

Gene Editing Could Rewrite the GMO Debate

19Dec

By CatherineNo Comments

Genetically Modified Foods

Gene Editing Could Rewrite the GMO Debate

Decades of fretting over the safety and virtue of genetically modified organisms have led to a perverse outcome. Plant scientists in academia and startup companies have largely shied away from creating new GM crop varieties because it takes, on average, more than a hundred million dollars and over a decade to get such a plant approved by regulators in the United States, and also because the idea of GMO food has elicited public outrage. As a result, a few large agricultural and chemical producers like Monsanto—or MonSatan, if you prefer—dominate the GM industry, making a killing off herbicide- and insect-resistant corn and soybeans. New gene-editing tools, either CRISPR or the slightly older TALEN, don’t insert a foreign gene into the plant to create a new trait (as typically happens...

Wellness For Men: 4 Tips For Healthier Skin

19Dec

By CatherineNo Comments

Wellness

Wellness For Men: 4 Tips For Healthier Skin

Everybody wants glowing skin – be it a man or a woman. Now, everyone is not blessed with healthy skin, and some of us are constantly on the look-out for measures to make our skin not only look better but also feel better. To help you tackle this, and ensure your skin looks healthier than ever, here are 4 points that will surely be of some help. • Cleanse your skin • Moisturise to energize • Hydrate • A good night’s sleep Read the full article at GQ India

Can A GM Banana Solve Uganda’s Hunger Crisis?

17Dec

By CatherineNo Comments

Genetically Modified Foods

Can A GM Banana Solve Uganda’s Hunger Crisis?

Trials for a GM banana variety, which is resistant to wilt and contains vitamin A, have been ongoing since 2004 in an effort to improve production. The law will mean this crop can be released to the public. “Now that the law has been passed, we’re able to go for open-field trials [of the technologies] before releasing them to the public,” says Priver Namanya Bwesigye, a plant biotechnologist at the National Agricultural Research Organisation. She adds that GM bananas could be released for public use in 2021. Other GM trials include developing cassava resistant to brown streak, drought-resistant maize, and bollworm-resistant cotton. Critics say GM crops will make farmers beholden to big agribusiness by having to buy seeds every season. Farmers in Uganda produce between 80% and 85% ...

12Dec

By CatherineNo Comments

Diet

Want More Brain Energy? Try this Diet!

What doesn’t kill brain cells might make them stronger. The brain cells of mice who regularly fast may grow more than usual once they get food again, according to research presented at the Society for Neuroscience’s annual meeting in November and first reported by New Scientist. One particular protein may be behind the growth: brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). In humans, BDNF may be involved in learning and memory. Levels of this protein tend to decline as a person gets older, especially if someone is diagnosed with a disease that can affect cognitive functions like Alzheimer’s. However, levels of this protein increase in mice that have been fasting by up to 50 percent. In theory, Mattson said, BDNF might be stimulating cells to produce more mitochondria. Mitochondria are oft...

Popularity of Botanical in the U.S. Market

6Dec

By CatherineNo Comments

Botanicals

Popularity of Botanical in the U.S. Market

Botanical dietary supplements continue to be popular in the United States. The American Botanical Council (ABC) recently published the Herb Market Report 2016, which listed a number of reasons behind the current interest by consumers. Botanicals that are believed to be beneficial for overall health—rather than a specific health condition—showed greater increases in sales. In alignment with this is the uptick in sales of a number of adaptogens--substances that allow the body to better resist various stress factors. Plants in this category include ashwagandha, Asian ginseng, mushrooms and Rhodiola. The increased interest in herbs used in Ayurvedic medicine has also been obvious by the fact that Boswellia, turmeric, and fenugreek posted some of the largest gains in 2016. But the success...

28Nov

By CatherineNo Comments

Remedies

Antibiotics or Home Remedies

For parents, it can be hard to tell whether your child's illness requires antibiotics or if there are other ways to effectively treat his or her symptoms. To prevent overuse of these drugs, it's important to know when home remedies can be used instead of antibiotics. "If your child has an ear infection, consider using over-the-counter pain relievers in place of antibiotics," says Tiffany Casper, D.O., a Mayo Clinic Health System family physician. "Children's ear infections usually improve within two to three days, especially for kids who are 2 years or older. If your child's health does not improve within a few days, it would be wise to take them in to see their provider." "Instead, Dr. Casper suggests offering your child warm liquids, such as tea or soup. These can have a soothing e...

GMO Expert Voices Concerns About Engineered Foods

28Nov

By CatherineNo Comments

Genetically Modified Foods

GMO Expert Voices Concerns About Engineered Foods

The Ecology Action Centre and the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network are hosting an international expert in genetically modified organisms at talks in Halifax, Truro and Charlottetown this week to try to answer that question and others. Lucy Sharratt, a coordinator with the biotechnology network, said genetically engineered salmon is already available to Canadian consumers, and genetically modified apples and potatoes have been approved in Canada but aren’t yet on the market. “We’re so excited to have Dr. Steinbrecher come and speak because we want to have a discussion about the potential of the science and how, as a society, we should introduce new technology, and that involves public engagement and it involves good government regulation, and if we have new technologies in front of...

Antibiotics or Home Remedies: What’s best?

24Nov

By CatherineNo Comments

Remedies

Antibiotics or Home Remedies: What’s best?

For parents, it can be hard to tell whether your child's illness requires antibiotics or if there are other ways to effectively treat his or her symptoms. "Children's ear infections usually improve within two to three days, especially for kids who are 2 years or older. If your child's health does not improve within a few days, it would be wise to take them in to see their provider," says Tiffany Casper, D.O., a Mayo Clinic Health System family physician. Dr. Casper recommends antibiotics for an ear infection if: • Your child is 6 months old or younger. • Your child is between 6 months and 2 years old and has moderate to severe pain. • Your child is 2 years old or older and experiencing severe symptoms. Ice cream, frozen fruit pops or cold beverages may soothe a sore throat. O...

People Are Losing Their Minds Over The CICO Diet

16Nov

By CatherineNo Comments

Diet

People Are Losing Their Minds Over The CICO Diet

Another day, another diet (or another diet headline at least) and this new diet, named CICO for “Calories In, Calories Out” is particularly appealing because you can eat whatever you like and still lose weight. Sprouted on the Reddit website, it is claimed that the CICO diet works wonders as it allows dieters to eat whatever types of foods they like, in whatever form they want, as long as they consume fewer calories than they burn — the good old weight loss equation. As such we are likely to see the CICO Diet in the pile of old, useless diets in a few short months. So here are just some of the reasons it is unlikely you can eat masses of cake, fast food, and sugary processed snacks while dropping the kilos. 1. Weight loss is not a one size fits all model While we often talk ab...