Health Briefs
May 25, 2008
MAGNOLIA bark extract, a traditional Chinese medicine, may be the newest weapon in the fight against bad breath. Chewing gum maker Wm Wrigley Jr Co has said it has added this germ-killing compound to their Eclipse gum and mints.
Chewing gum to cure bad breath
MAGNOLIA bark extract, a traditional Chinese medicine, may be the newest weapon in the fight against bad breath. Chewing gum maker Wm Wrigley Jr Co has said it has added this germ-killing compound to their Eclipse gum and mints.
Magnolia bark extract has long been a staple of traditional Chinese medicine. According to research published recently by company scientists, researchers in Wrigley's lab tested magnolia bark extract on cultures of three types of oral micro organisms. The extract killed 99.9% of the micro organisms within five minutes, the researchers said.
Chronic diseases leading killers
Chronic conditions such as heart disease and stroke, often associated with a Western lifestyle, have become the leading causes of death globally, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said.
The shift from infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and malaria to non-communicable diseases is set to continue to 2030, the UN agency said in a report. The annual report, World Health Statistics 2008, is based on data collected from the agency’s 193 member states.
The report documents levels of mortality, patterns of disease and risk factors such as smoking and alcohol consumption.
New alcohol strategy passed
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has approved plans for a new strategy to curb the harmful effects of alcohol. WHO’s 193 member states, meeting at its annual assembly in Geneva called on director-general, Margaret Chan, to draft a global strategy over the next two years on how best to tackle the problem.
The agency said it was concerned about the extent of public health problems associated with harmful use of alcohol.
Clinical tests on heart pills start
Spanish researchers have started clinical testing of a three-in-one pill to prevent heart attacks, which they hope to launch worldwide in 2010 for less than $10 a month.
The first patients started taking the so-called “polypill†last month and a total of 600 will be recruited into the trials, doctors said recently.
Its backers say the new low-cost combination drug could save millions of lives, particularly in developing countries, where most heart attacks occur.
MAGNOLIA bark extract, a traditional Chinese medicine, may be the newest weapon in the fight against bad breath. Chewing gum maker Wm Wrigley Jr Co has said it has added this germ-killing compound to their Eclipse gum and mints.
Magnolia bark extract has long been a staple of traditional Chinese medicine. According to research published recently by company scientists, researchers in Wrigley's lab tested magnolia bark extract on cultures of three types of oral micro organisms. The extract killed 99.9% of the micro organisms within five minutes, the researchers said.
Chronic diseases leading killers
Chronic conditions such as heart disease and stroke, often associated with a Western lifestyle, have become the leading causes of death globally, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said.
The shift from infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and malaria to non-communicable diseases is set to continue to 2030, the UN agency said in a report. The annual report, World Health Statistics 2008, is based on data collected from the agency’s 193 member states.
The report documents levels of mortality, patterns of disease and risk factors such as smoking and alcohol consumption.
New alcohol strategy passed
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has approved plans for a new strategy to curb the harmful effects of alcohol. WHO’s 193 member states, meeting at its annual assembly in Geneva called on director-general, Margaret Chan, to draft a global strategy over the next two years on how best to tackle the problem.
The agency said it was concerned about the extent of public health problems associated with harmful use of alcohol.
Clinical tests on heart pills start
Spanish researchers have started clinical testing of a three-in-one pill to prevent heart attacks, which they hope to launch worldwide in 2010 for less than $10 a month.
The first patients started taking the so-called “polypill†last month and a total of 600 will be recruited into the trials, doctors said recently.
Its backers say the new low-cost combination drug could save millions of lives, particularly in developing countries, where most heart attacks occur.