Hidden Tooth Infections Could Raise Heart Disease Risk

An undetected infection at the root of a tooth could put one at the risk of heart disease. This is the outcome of a Finnish study published in the latest issue of the ‘Journal of Dental Research’.
According to Researcher John Liljestrand, “Acute coronary syndrome is 2.7 times more common among patients with untreated teeth in need of root canal treatment than among patients without this issue.”
An abscessed tooth is a painful infection at the root of a tooth or between the gum and a tooth. It is most commonly caused by severe tooth decay. Other causes of tooth abscess are trauma to the tooth, such as when it is broken or chipped, and gingivitis or gum disease.
The study included 508 Finnish patients with a mean age of 62, who were experiencing heart symptoms at the time of the study. Gum disease, such as periodontitis, is regarded as an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease and diabetes.
Infections of root tips have been studied relatively little in this context, even though they appear to be connected with low-grade inflammation as well. Cardiovascular diseases cause more than 30 per cent of deaths globally.
They can be prevented by a healthy diet, weight control, exercise and not smoking. With regards to the health of the heart, measures should be taken to prevent or treat oral infections, as they are very common and often asymptomatic. Root canal treatment of an infected tooth may reduce the risk of heart disease, but the researchers note that more research is needed.
The newsmaxHealth reported that the coronary arteries of the patients were examined using angiography, and 36 per cent of them were found to be suffering from stable coronary artery disease, 33 per cent were undergoing acute coronary syndrome, and 31 per cent did not suffer from coronary artery disease to a significant degree.
Their teeth were examined using panoramic tomography of the teeth and jaws. As many as 58 per cent were found to be suffering from one or more inflammatory lesions.

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The Dangers Of Taking Paracetamol Pregnancy

Pregnant women who take paracetamol are more likely to have children with behavioural problems.
This is the result of a new study by scientists at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom (UK).
According to the study, scientists found an association between mothers who took the drug in the first and third trimester of pregnancy and hyperactivity and emotional problems in their sevenyear- old children. The first trimester begins on the first day of your last period and lasts until the end of week 12.
This means that by the time a woman knows for sure that she is pregnant, she might already be five or six weeks pregnant. A lot happens during these first three months.
On the other hand, the third trimester of pregnancy is from week 29 to week 40. Paracetamol is the world’s most popular painkiller and is the only one deemed safe to take during pregnancy.
However, there is a growing body of research suggesting it could affect the development of children in the womb, with studies linking it with conditions as diverse as asthma, infertility and autism.
Pregnant women have been told there is no need to panic – they should continue to take the lowest dose needed for the shortest time possible and see their doctor if they have any concerns.
In the latest research, carried out by the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom (UK), scientists analysed records of 7,796 mothers in the UK. The mothers had been asked at 18 weeks and 32 weeks of pregnancy whether they had taken any paracetamol.
They and their partners were asked again about their paracetamol use when the child was 61 months old. Children were then tested at seven years old to see if they had any emotional or behavioural problems. Just over half of mothers had used the painkiller at 18 weeks, with 42 per cent using it at 32 weeks. Following birth, 84 per cent of mothers and their partners used it.
Around five per cent of the children studied had behavioural problems. The results showed a link between use of the drug at 18 weeks with increased risk of conduct problems and hyperactivity symptoms in children, while taking paracetamol at 32 weeks was linked with emotional symptoms and overall difficulties. Researchers suggested that paracetamol could affect a mechanism in the womb which affected brain development.
Author Dr. Evie Stergiakouli, said the extent of the results was ‘surprising’. She added: “We found that maternal prenatal (paracetamol) use at 18 weeks was associated with higher odds of the offspring having conduct problems as well as hyperactivity symptoms. “(Paracetamol) use at 32 weeks was associated with higher odds of emotional symptoms, hyperactivity, as well as total difficulties.’
The study found the link between taking paracetamol and multiple behavioural and emotional problems was strongest when mothers took it in the third trimester of pregnancy. Story By JOHNSON OKPUSA OBASI

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Coffee Reduces Cardiac Damage

Drinking at least one cup of coffee a day could boost survival after a heart attack. These are the findings of a study published in the journal ‘Coronary Artery’. According to the researchers, patients who drink one to two cups a day are 20 per cent less likely to die prematurely from heart damage than those who never touch coffee, while those downing more than two are nearly half as likely to die early.
The findings, by the British team at York University in Canada, support other recent research suggesting coffee – once considered a potential danger to the heart – may actually have a protective effect when drunk in moderation. Although, around 70 million cups of coffee are consumed every day in the United Kingdom (UK), not as much is consumed in Nigeria.
Many Nigerians are also not only known to drink coffee, some are addicted to it. Coffee is slightly acidic and can have a stimulating effect on humans because of its caffeine content. Coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the world, after water.
The popular beverage has been shown to protect against liver cancer, Alzheimer’s disease and even strokes. Last year, experts at the renowned Harvard School of Public Health in Boston in the United States (U.S), found three to five cups a day reduced the risk of dying from heart disease, as well as incurable conditions like Parkinson’s, according to reports.
Now a British team has found coffee may also help those who have already had a heart attack. The findings are potentially very significant because this group of patients is at high risk of another heart attack, or developing heart failure as a result of severe scarring in the cardiac muscle.
The team tracked 3,271 victims across the UK, including 604 who survived but later died as a result of their condition. The patients had all taken part in research which chronicled their coffeedrinking habits as part of a wider lifestyle study. ‘Light’ drinkers, who got through just one or two daily were also at much lower risk of an early death, with the dangers reduced by about a fifth.
Few studies have looked at how coffee might improve the health of this large group of patients. The York researchers said it’s still not entirely clear how coffee might boost the heart but noted there were a host of potentially beneficial ingredients in coffee beans, not just caffeine. These include healthboosting plant chemicals, called flavonoids, as well as compounds called melanoidins, which can reduce the build-up of fatty deposits.

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Low Sperm Count May Lead To Bone Fracture, Diabetes

A new report by Swedish researchers has indicated that men with infertility problems have a heightened risk of developing other diseases later in life.
This is the finding of a study published by Skane University Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden.
According to the researchers, men with fertility problems were more likely to suffer bone fractures and may also be more susceptible to diabetes later in life.
Infertility refers to an inability to conceive after having regular unprotected sex.
Infertility can also refer to the biological inability of an individual to contribute to conception, or to a female who cannot carry a pregnancy to full term.
According to the researchers, the findings was the result of research carried out on 192 men with sub-average sperm counts.
While a complete absence of sperm is called azoospermia, sperm count is considered lower than normal if it is fewer than 15 million sperm per milliliter of semen.
Having a low sperm count decreases the odds that one’s sperm will fertilise the partner’s egg, resulting in pregnancy.
It said that men with fertility problems were more likely to suffer bone fractures and may also be more susceptible diabetes later in life.
The study registered that a third of men aged below 50 with low sperm counts suffered from testosterone levels below average.
Testosterone is a steroid hormone from the androgen group and is found in humans and other vertebrates.
In humans and other mammals, testosterone is secreted primarily by the testicles of males and, to a lesser extent, the ovaries of females. Story By Johnson OKPUSA OBASI

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WHO's Recommended Excercis333e Too Low To Beat Deseases

In order to reduce the risk of five common chronic diseases, researchers from the United States (U.S) and Canada have urged the world community to engage in higher levels of physical activities far above the recommended levels by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
According to the researchers, when the level of total physical activity per week is five to seven times the minimum level recommended by the WHO, there would be a lower risk of stroke and of contracting breast and bowel cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
Chronic diseases are long-term medical conditions that are generally progressive. Some examples of chronic diseases include heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and chronic respiratory problems.
At present, these are the major causes of disability and death globally. In effect, the study findings show that higher levels of physical activity can achieve bigger reductions in the risk of the five highlighted common chronic diseases, but only if people engage in levels far above the recommended minimum exertion.
An analysis of 174 studies found that gardening, household chores and more strenuous activities, when done in sufficient quantities, were strongly associated with a lower risk of stroke and of contracting breast and bowel cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
At present, the WHO recommends that people conduct at least 600 metabolic equivalent minutes (MET minutes) of physical activity – the equivalent of 150 minutes each week of brisk walking or 75 minutes of running.
But the new study suggested most health gains were achieved at 3,000 to 4,000 MET minutes per week. Reacting, the lead author, Hmwe Kyu, from the University of Washington, said: “Major gains occurred at lower levels of activity. The decrease in risk was minimal at levels higher than 3,000 to 4,000 MET minutes per week.
“A person can achieve 3,000 MET minutes per week by incorporating different types of physical activity into the daily routine – for example, climbing stairs 10 minutes, vacuuming 15 minutes, gardening 20 minutes, running 20 minutes, and walking or cycling for transportation 25 minutes on a daily basis would together achieve about 3,000 MET minutes a week.
Analysing studies published between 1980 and 2016, the researchers found the pattern highlighted was most prominent for ischemic heart disease and diabetes and least prominent for breast cancer.
For example, individuals with a total activity level of 600 MET minutes per week had a two per cent lower risk of diabetes compared with those reporting no physical activity. An increase from 600 to 3,600 MET minutes reduced the risk by an additional 19 per cent.
The same amount of increase yielded much smaller returns at higher levels of activity. “With population ageing, and an increasing number of cardiovascular and diabetes deaths since 1990, greater attention and investments in interventions to promote physical activity in the general public is required,” they wrote. “More studies using the detailed quantification of total physical activity will help to find a more precise estimate for different levels of physical activity.” Story By JOHNSON OKPUSA OBASI

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Breastfeeding Prevents Cancers In Mothers - UNICEF

Nursing mothers now have a strong reason to take the issues of breastfeeding very seriously as UNICEF has said that nursing mothers who breastfeed their children exclusively in the first six months of their lives stand a chance of being protected against breast cancer and cancer of the uterus.
Speaking at a press conference to commemorate the 2016 World Breastfeeding Day, Chief of Kaduna UNICEF Field Office, Utpal Moitra, said breastfeeding within 30 minutes of childbirth equally saves mothers from maternal death.
Explaining how exclusive breastfeeding reduces some health risks, Kaduna State Nutrition Officer, Mrs. June Gwani, stated that constant breastfeeding of the baby protects nursing mothers against cancer of the uterus and breast cancer, such that it equally helps the mothers’ uterus to return to its position quickly after delivery.
Speaking further, Moitra said the 2016 World Breastfeeding Week was targeted at creating awareness on the relationship between breastfeeding an infant and young child feeding as a key component of sustainable development goals.
According to him: “Initiation of breastfeeding within 30 minutes after birth saves mothers from the risk of post-partum haemorrhage and maternal death and exclusive breastfeeding on demand in the first six months of life without water or any other food starts every baby on healthy path in life, providing all the nutrients the baby requires for optimum growth and development.
Gwani said that against the general belief of mothers that a baby needs water, all a baby needs in the first six months of life is in breast milk.
According to her, breast milk contains 85 per cent of water; so there is no fear of absence of water in the breast milk. “The feeding of the colostrums serves as the first immunisation against a host of diseases the mother must have been exposed to while continuing breastfeeding up to two years and beyond.”

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