In an effort to save half a million lives each year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on May 14, 2018, urged developing nations to follow the lead of affluent countries and eliminate man-made trans fatty acids from their food supplies. By taking six specific steps, officials from the United Nations’ health agency said countries could reduce a tidal wave of heart disease and strokes that results in more than 500,000
KUALA LUMPUR: The health ministry will extend the e-payment service to 957 government health clinics nationwide to facilitate payment transactions. Its secretary-general, Dr Chen Chaw Min, said the programme would be implemented in phases beginning with 12 clinics in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, and 45 clinics in Selangor this month. “At the moment, the payment for services provided at all government health clinics must be made by cash at the
New European research has found that a naturally occurring pigment in berries could increase the function of an enzyme which reduces the expression of cancer genes and cancer cell growth. Carried out by the University of Eastern Finland, the study looked at the effect of the pigments that give berries their color, known as flavonoids, on the function of the sirtuin 6 (SIRT6) enzyme in cancer cells. Sirtuins are enzymes
Is a healthy heart linked to a healthy brain? New research from Sweden suggests that it is. In a study reported early this month in the journal Neurology, researchers found that women with higher cardiovascular fitness at midlife were less likely to develop dementia later in life. The research team followed 191 women over the course of 44 years, from 1968 to 2012. Among women who had the lowest cardiovascular
It is estimated that there are 10 million cats and 11.5 million dogs kept as pets in the UK – and new research suggests they could be improving the mental health of their human companions. A new study, published in BMC Psychiatry, conducted by researchers from the universities of Liverpool, Manchester and Southampton, is the first systematic review of the evidence related to the comprehensive role of companion animals and
PUTRAJAYA: A 55-year-old man tested positive for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection after returning home from umrah, Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah (pic) said. He said the man, who hails from Selangor, had symptoms of fever, cough, lethargy and aching feet as soon as he arrived home on Dec 23. The man received treatment for flu at a nearby clinic a day after arriving home and
