Fifty years after legalisation, the UK's betting shops are attracting a new type of customer. This widening appeal may have harmful consequences in terms of problem gambling, argues initial research findings funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
Culture
CHICAGO, IL (May 8, 2011) — Research being presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) shows that screening individuals for hepatitis C based on age instead of conventional risk factors may help increase detection rates as well as prevent liver disease. Additionally, the rate of vaccination against viral hepatitis in patients with chronic liver disease and type 2 diabetes is relatively low, and these patients are at increased risk of severe liver injury once infected.
CHICAGO, IL (May 8, 2011) — Research being presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) offers further evidence that diet affects gastrointestinal illnesses, such as gallstones and celiac disease, and that some patients who think their digestive problems are caused by lactose intolerance are actually reacting to a psychological disorder. DDW is the largest international gathering of physicians and researchers in the field of gastroenterology, hepatology, endoscopy and gastrointestinal surgery.
Income is a pivotal factor in whether a patient without common symptoms of celiac disease is accurately diagnosed with the digestive condition, according to a new study from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA.
WACO, Texas (May 6, 2011) — People living in countries with governments that have a greater number of social services report being more satisfied with life, according to a study by a Baylor University researcher.
Dr. Patrick Flavin, assistant professor of political science at Baylor, said the effect of state intervention into the economy equaled or exceeded marriage when it came to satisfaction. The study is published in the spring issue of the journal Politics & Policy.
Experts from medical and patient communities call on national policymakers in the Asia-Pacific region to take urgent action against preventable strokes that strike millions of people with atrial fibrillation (AF) each year
Countries in the Asia-Pacific region carry a disproportionate share of the burden of stroke with millions of people affected; a burden that will grow as life expectancy rises1
San Diego, CA, May 5, 2011 – A study published in the June 2011 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine examined the association between patient–physician gender concordance and weight-related counseling in obese individuals. Investigators from the University of Pennsylvania and Johns Hopkins University found that obese male patients seeing male physicians had higher odds of receiving weight-related counseling than obese women seeing a female physician.
In the first-of-its-kind analysis of Groupon's impact on a startup company, a new Rice University study found that the daily deal promotion was beneficial even though it had no material impact on the company's profits when unredeemed Groupons were not accounted for. When those unredeemed Groupons were factored in, the company had a substantial 30 percent increase in profits.
Philadelphia, PA, May 6, 2011 – According to the United States Department of Agriculture, Americans are spending about half their food budget in restaurants. As it is widely known, food prepared away from home, as compared to food prepared at home, is often higher in calories, saturated fat, and sodium. With children's dietary quality at risk, a study in the May/June 2011 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior explores the influence of parental styles and work schedules on children's use of and time spent in fast-food and full-service restaurants.
Many patients on dialysis may not understand medical information critical to their wellbeing, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). The results suggest that clinicians must understand and address the limited health literacy of patients with kidney disease.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – When a new tobacco-free policy was instituted at an Ohio women's substance abuse treatment center, both smokers and non-smokers were more likely to leave treatment early in the first few months after the policy change, a new study found.
The results don't mean treatment centers shouldn't try smoking bans, according to the researchers, but they do highlight the challenges involved with implementing a new policy that goes against years of conventional thinking.
TEMPE, Ariz. – Obesity is socially contagious, according to research published in the past few years. How it is "caught" from others remains a murky area. But findings from Arizona State University researchers published online May 5 in the American Journal of Public Health shed light on the transmission of obesity among friends and family.
Shared ideas about acceptable weight or body size play only a minor role in spreading obesity among friends, according to the findings published in the article "Shared Norms and Their Explanation for the Social Clustering of Obesity."
EAST LANSING, Mich. — In order to provide abundant and affordable food, feed, fiber and fuel, U.S. agriculture needs to change its approach, according to research appearing in the current issue of Science magazine.
Reston, Va. (May 5, 2011) – Two articles in the June issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine make a case for maintaining current U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) regulations on the release of patients who undergo radioactive iodine treatments for thyroid cancer, known as I-131. Currently, the NRC recommends outpatient treatment for patients receiving radioactive iodine after total or near-total thyroidectomy; however, several groups have been urging NRC to mandate overnight hospital stays to protect others from a perceived risk of radiation exposure.
More than 20 percent of atheist scientists are spiritual, according to new research from Rice University. Though the general public marries spirituality and religion, the study found that spirituality is a separate idea – one that more closely aligns with scientific discovery – for "spiritual atheist" scientists.
The research will be published in the June issue of Sociology of Religion.