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Study finds increase in snacking related to parental oversight

In a new study examining how parenting contributes to snacking, researchers found that parents who have a hands-off approach to feeding children may unknowingly contribute to an increase in children's snacking.

In the 18-month study researchers from Baylor College of Medicine, the University of Michigan and Temple University's College of Public Health determined that more than 40 percent of children's daily intake of added sugars came from snacks. Researchers focused on Hispanic children, as they are disproportionately affected by obesity.

The colon is defended from bacteria by a self-sacrificing sentinel cell

A lone Sentinel cell monitors and coordinates the defense of the entrance to the colon's most sensitive parts. The Sentinel cell detects nearby bacteria and signals to a line of defensive cells to send out a cascade of mucus to push away the invaders. As a final self-sacrificing action the cell commits suicide and ejects itself into the intestinal lumen.

Orchid or demon: Flower of a new species of orchid looks like a devil's head

A lone and unique population of about 30 reddish to dark violet-maroon orchids grows on the small patch of land between the borders of two Colombian departments. However, its extremely small habitat is far from the only striking thing about the new species.

A closer look at its flowers' heart reveals what appears to be a devil's head. Named after its demonic patterns, the new orchid species, Telipogon diabolicus, is described in the open access journal PhytoKeys.

Academic female physicians paid less than male counterparts

Female academic physicians at public medical schools had lower average salaries than their male counterparts, a disparity that was only partly accounted for by age, experience, medical specialty, faculty rank and other factors, according to an article published online by JAMA Internal Medicine.

While the number of women in medicine has grown rapidly since the 1970s, significant sex differences persist in job achievement and compensation.

Research letter examines cancer center advertising spending

Total spending on advertising to the public by 890 cancer centers in the United States was $173 million in 2014, according to an article published online by JAMA Internal Medicine.

Cancer centers commonly advertise clinical services directly to the public. This practice has potential benefits by alerting patents to available treatments and removing stigma from cancer but also potential risks including creating false hope and increasing demand for unnecessary tests and treatments.

Autism spectrum disorder insurance mandates associated with increased diagnoses

State mandates requiring commercial health plans to cover services for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were associated with increased diagnoses but the treated prevalence of ASD was still lower than estimates of community prevalence, according to an article published online by JAMA Pediatrics.

Cutting nerves during breast cancer surgery is associated with chronic pain

Hamilton, ON (July 11, 2016) - An analysis led by McMaster University researchers has found that women who undergo armpit lymph node surgery for breast cancer are much more likely to develop chronic pain.

CMAJ today published their review of studies exploring risk factors for developing chronic pain after breast cancer surgery which also included younger age and radiation therapy.

Open chromatin profiling key to identifying leukemia cells of origin

Every cancer starts with a single cell, and Jackson Laboratory (JAX) researchers have found a precise and reliable way -- whole-genome profiling of open chromatin -- to identify the kind of cell that leads to a given case of leukemia, a valuable key to cancer prognosis and outcome.

Advertising by US cancer centers soars over the past decade, new analysis shows

INDIANAPOLIS - Cancer centers promoting their services dramatically increased their advertising spending from 2005 to 2014, with the bulk of the spending by for-profit organizations, according to the results of a study published Monday.

Researchers at Indiana University School of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Graduate School of Public Health reported that 890 cancer centers spent $173 million for advertising in 2014, and just 20 centers accounted for 86 percent of the spending.

Colistin-resistant gene detected in the US for the second time

Washington, DC - July 11, 2016 - For the second time, a clinical isolate of a bacterial pathogen has been detected in humans in the United States which carries the colistin resistance gene, mcr-1. This may also be the first case to show up in the US. That would be concerning because plasmids, genetic elements that are independent of the host genome, often jump between different bacterial species, spreading any resistance genes they carry.

Genetics of type 2 diabetes revealed in unprecedented detail

A comprehensive investigation of the underlying genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes has unveiled the most detailed look at the genetic differences that heighten a person's risk for disease development.

The findings, published today in the journal Nature by an international team of more than 300 scientists led by the University of Oxford, the Broad Institute, and the University of Michigan, reveal the complexity of the disease in more detail than previously appreciated, but also identify several promising targets for new treatments.

Thumb-sucking and nail-biting children show fewer allergies in later life

Children who suck their thumbs or bite their nails may be less likely to develop allergies, according to a new study from New Zealand's University of Otago.

The finding emerges from the long-running Dunedin Multidisciplinary Study, which has followed the progress of 1,037 participants born in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1972-1973 into adulthood.

The study, which appears in the August issue of the US journal Pediatrics, suggests that childhood exposure to microbial organisms through thumb-sucking and nail-biting reduces the risk of developing allergies.

Research suggests common blood cancer could be prevented before it develops

Researchers from the University of Birmingham and hospitals across the West Midlands have revealed how a common symptomless condition can develop into the blood cancer myeloma.

They discovered that changes in the bone marrow needed for the cancer to grow have already taken hold in the preceding condition, raising the possibility that early medical intervention could prevent this incurable type of cancer from taking root.

The research, which was funded by the blood cancer charity Bloodwise, is published today in the journal Leukemia.

Gene sequencing offers way to beat global spread of gonorrhea

With drug-resistant strains of sexually-transmitted infection gonorrhoeae increasing, scientists from Brighton, Oxford University and Public Health England have found that genetic sequencing can track the spread of infection. They show coordinated national and international strategies are required to stop drug-resistance spreading further.

U-M, international research team explore genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes

ANN ARBOR--New research from a large international team of scientists offers a more complete picture of the genes responsible for type 2 diabetes, demonstrating that previously identified common alleles shared by many in the world are the biggest culprits--not the less common variants some scientists had hypothesized might play a large role in who gets the disease.