As research has moved away from the realm of universities and into the private sector, more physicians are being paid by drug companies to enroll and monitor patients during clinical trials. Private corporations have been the largest sponsors of pharmaceutical research in both Canada and the United Sates... Read more →

Music not only soothes the savage beast; it heals the critically ill. A study in Critical Care Medicine evaluated the mechanisms of music-induced relaxation in critically ill patients. The researchers measured blood pressure and heart rate, brain electrical activity, serum levels of stress hormones and... Read more →

Vitamin E today ranks as the second highest single vitamin consumed in the world after vitamin C, following well organized marketing campaigns extolling its anti-oxidative properties. Anti-oxidation is today a key marketing buzzword for the growing market segment of anti-aging dietary supplements, although... Read more →

Amongst older adults aged 65 and over, falls are the leading cause of non-fatal injuries and hospital admissions. It is estimated that at least one-third of adults above 65 experience serious falls in their lifetime. The cause of falls in the elderly is often multi-factorial, and no definite cause is... Read more →

It has been known for years that babies in utero (womb) suffer ill effects from their mothers’ exposure to tobacco, drugs and alcohol. A new study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and performed by Michael Rivkin of Children’s Hospital Boston showed that children exposed to these... Read more →

How do thoughts, emotions and social environment influence people diagnosed with breast cancer? A report by Falagas and his colleagues looked at and compared 46 studies investigating psychological and social factors that affect breast cancer survival rates. The results are not entirely conclusive. The... Read more →

Good news from the world of medicine for those caught snoozing after lunch at their desks — you can claim it was a deliberate memory enhancement strategy. New research from the University of Haifa’s Center for Brain and Behavior Research shows that a 90-minute day nap speeds up the process... Read more →

A recent study reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences demonstrates that marketing can have a significant effect on the neural mechanisms governing decision-making. The study measured the “experienced pleasantness” of three different wines, both by subjective reporting... Read more →

Research in the field of dementia prevention and treatment is widespread, as people are living longer and thus developing dementia at a higher rate. Three recently published studies point to the importance of diet and exercise in the development of Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia, the two most... Read more →

As the field of genetics advances it is likely that treatment with antidepressants will be tailored to your personal genes. A study published by the National Institute of Mental Health in the American Journal of Psychiatry states that certain genetic markers directly corresponded to an increased risk... Read more →

According to new research published in Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology, patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease can see a rapid acceleration of symptoms as a result of a small silent stroke. The study on 150 patients at the Catholic University of Korea demonstrated that patients showing... Read more →