3. Study of Cousins Who Marry

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Sometimes people who are first cousins get married. Two people are first cousins if their mothers are sisters, or their fathers are brothers, or one's mother and the other's father are brother and sister. American researchers now say it is not as dangerous as had been thought for first cousins to have children.

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A new study says that first cousins are only a little more likely than others to have a child with a serious physical or mental problem, or a genetic disease. It says the chance that a child of unrelated parents will be born with a serious problem is between three and four percent.

The risk for first cousins is increased by between two and three percent, to as much as seven percent. One researcher says this means about ninety-three percent of the children of first cousins are normal.

The small increase in risk exists because people in the same family may carry the same genes that cause disease. Scientists say at least five-thousand diseases are caused by these genes. If both parents have a harmful gene, it is more likely that the gene will be passed on to their child. People who are not related share fewer genes, so their chance of passing such a sickness on to their children is lower.

A committee from the National Society of Genetic Counselors reported the results of their investigation in "The Journal of Genetic Counseling." The group examined six major studies done between Nineteen-Sixty-Five and Two-Thousand involving thousands of births. The group began the investigation after learning that some genetic counselors gave wrong information to people who wanted to know if first cousins could safely have children.

The group said in its report that no genetic tests are needed before first cousins have a child. Their report also noted that Americans fear such marriages more than people in other parts of the world.

Marriages between first cousins are illegal in at least twenty-four American states. However, no countries in Europe have such laws. And marriages between cousins are desirable in many parts of the Middle East, Africa and Asia. The researchers say their study shows that such laws in the United States should be changed.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Nancy Steinbach.

 

 

4. Walking

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Researchers agree that intense physical exercise is not the only way to gain better health. Studies show that walking several times a week can lower the risk of many diseases. They include heart disease, stroke, diabetes, bone loss, arthritis and depression. Walking also can help you lose weight.

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Fast walking is good for the heart. It lowers the blood pressure. It raises the amount of good cholesterol in the blood. Researchers say walking can reduce the risk of suffering a heart attack by as much as fifty percent.

Studies have shown that walking for thirty minutes a day can delay and possibly prevent the development of Type Two Diabetes. It can prevent diabetes among people who are overweight and at risk for the disease.

Walking strengthens the muscles and builds up the bones to which they are attached. Studies show that women who walked and took calcium decreased their risk of developing osteoporosis or thinning of the bones. Walking also helps ease the pain of arthritis in areas where bones are joined by strengthening the muscles around the bones.

Walking several times a week is a good way to control your weight and even lose body fat. Studies show it also helps ease depression, feelings of extreme sadness.

Experts say walking is one of the safest ways to exercise. There is a low risk of injuries. So it is good for people who are starting an exercise program for the first time and for older people.

A walking program is easy to start. You should wear loose clothes and good shoes. Shoes designed for walking are best.

You should stretch the muscles in your arms, legs, and back before and after you walk. Stretching is an important part of any exercise program. It helps prevent injury and muscle pain.

How fast should you walk? You should be breathing hard while you are walking. Yet, you should be able to talk. Let your arms move back and forward at your sides while you walk.

There are no rules to starting a walking program. You may walk short distances. Or you may walk up hills to strengthen your leg muscles. Health experts say you can gain the most from a walking program if you walk about five kilometers an hour for thirty minutes a day. You should do this about five times a week.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Lawan Davis.

 

 

5. Tobacco and Cancer

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

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A recent report by the International Agency for Research on Cancer says the dangers of tobacco smoke are greater than had been thought.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer is part of the World Health Organization. It is based in Lyon, France. The agency researches the causes of cancer. It identifies the number of people who develop cancer around the world. And it develops programs aimed at finding ways to prevent the disease. The new report is part of a series written by independent international experts on the dangers of different chemicals.

A committee of twenty-nine experts from twelve countries developed the report. These scientists examined more than fifty medical studies concerning tobacco smoking. The group says that tobacco use is the largest cause of preventable cancers around the world. Experts say that more than one-thousand-million people around the world smoke tobacco.

The report says that one-half of all people who smoke cigarettes will die from diseases caused by smoking tobacco. These include cancers of the lung, stomach, liver, kidney and blood. The report also says tobacco use causes an even greater number of deaths from lung diseases, heart disease and stroke.

The report says other kinds of tobacco use also increase the chances of developing cancers of the lung, head and neck. These include smoking cigars, pipes and bidis -- tobacco rolled in a leaf that is popular in South Asia.

The report also says that people who smoke endanger the health of non-smokers who breathe in tobacco smoke. These non-smokers are breathing in a smaller amount of cancer-causing chemicals than active smokers get. But it is still enough to cause deadly lung cancer.

However, the scientists found no increased risk of cancer among children who breathe in this second-hand smoke. But they say they do not know the long-term effect of tobacco smoke on children as they grow older. The scientists also say their research found that smoking tobacco does not cause some kinds of cancer. There is clear evidence that smoking has little or no effect on developing breast cancer or prostate cancer.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Nancy Steinbach.

 

6. Fast Food

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

The McDonald's fast-food company is facing legal action by people who say its food made them fat and sick. In New York City, legal action was recently brought against McDonald's and four other fast-food companies.

The lawsuits charge that these companies have not warned people that this kind of food could be harmful. About one-hundred-seventy-thousand American fast-food restaurants sell food that is high in fat, sugar and calories. They include potatoes cooked in oil and meat sandwiches called hamburgers. The restaurants also serve sweet soft drinks.

One man charged that this kind of food damaged his health. He said he had heart attacks and developed the disease diabetes. Several families say their children got fat on fast food and also developed diabetes. One of these teenagers weighs one-hundred-eighty kilograms.

Experts say Americans are now the fattest people in the world. Two years ago, the top government doctor reported an increase in the number of Americans who are too fat. David Satcher said almost sixty percent of American adults weigh too much. Doctor Satcher also said thirteen percent of American children are too fat. He said the fast-food industry, schools and government agencies should change their policies. He said extreme overweight could become the nation's leading cause of preventable death.

A report published by the Center for the Public Interest says Americans spend about half their food budgets on meals eaten outside the home. Many eating places have increased the size of their servings. And it is difficult to know the amount of fat and nutrients in the food served in restaurants. Processed foods sold in food stores are required to include this information.

The food industry spends large amounts of money on advertisements to get people to buy their products. In nineteen-ninety-eight, for example, McDonald's spent about one-thousand-million dollars on ways to increase its business. McDonald's and Hershey Foods have given money to an international food organization to set up an Internet Web site. The goal is to get children to exercise more. But critics say the food industry is not doing enough to protect the public's health.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Jerilyn Watson.

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News update: On January 22, a federal judge dismissed a civil action brought against McDonald's by a lawyer for some young, overweight New Yorkers. Judge Robert Sweet said that if people know or should know they might gain weight or suffer health problems, then they cannot blame the company if they eat large amounts of "supersized McDonald's products."

At the same time, though, he said the young people might have a better case if they could show that "the dangers of McDonald's products were not commonly well known and thus that McDonald's had a duty toward its customers." The judge said Chicken McNuggets, for example, "rather than being merely chicken fried in a pan, are a McFrankenstein creation of various elements not utilized by the home cook."

McDonald's released a statement on January 24 that it uses "the same chicken suppliers that stock grocery store shelves and kitchens across America." The statement, reported by the New York Times, said McNuggets "are made from marinated, boneless, white and dark meat with no fillers. The chicken is then battered and breaded and cooked in vegetable oil."

 

7. Addiction and Girls

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

A study in the United States finds that girls and young women use tobacco, drugs and alcohol for different reasons than boys. It says young males generally use alcohol or drugs for excitement. Or they think it will make them more popular. Young females, however, may hope to feel happier or reduce tension or lose weight.

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University in New York released the findings. The center chairman, Joseph Califano, says prevention programs are often developed more for males. He called for programs designed for girls and young women.

There are physical, psychological and social effects from smoking, drinking and using drugs. The report says some of these may happen more quickly and severely in females. For example, it says they are more likely to become dependent on tobacco than males who smoke just as many cigarettes. And it says females have a greater risk of brain damage from too much alcohol.

The report notes general reductions in substance use by young Americans. But it says girls in many cases have caught up with boys in rates of use.

Here are some other findings:

Girls and young women who drink coffee are much likelier to smoke and drink alcohol -- and to start sooner -- than those who do not drink coffee. The report calls caffeine a "little known" warning sign.

Girls who do unhealthy things to lose weight drink more alcohol than those who do not diet -- even though alcohol can cause weight gain. Also, even girls who do healthy things to lose weight smoke more than those not on diets.

Puberty is a time of higher risk of substance use by girls, especially those whose bodies change early. Other times are when girls rise from elementary to middle school, from middle to high school, and from high school to college. And, girls who move often from one home or community to another are at greater risk than boys.

The report lists a number of warning signs to watch for. These include depression and too much concern about appearance. The study also reminds parents and other adults that they set examples -- good or bad -- by their own actions.

More than one-thousand-two-hundred girls and young women answered questions as part of the study. Most who talk with their parents about substance use said these talks made them less likely to smoke, drink or use drugs.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Jerilyn Watson.

 

 

8. Cancer and Children

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Most children who die of cancer are in developing nations. British researchers say only ten percent of children with cancer in these countries survive. They say many more could be saved if their countries had the resources needed to find cancers and treat them.

Around the world, about one-hundred-sixty-six thousand children under age fifteen are found each year to have cancer. The researchers say eighty-four percent of these cases are found in developing countries. But many others go unnoticed.

Children from industrial countries who do get cancer also have a much better chance to survive. For example, more than seventy percent in countries like Britain and the United States are alive after five years.

An organization called Cancer Research United Kingdom announced these numbers to mark International Childhood Cancer Day on February fifteenth. The purpose of the event is to educate the public and raise money for children with cancer.

Cancer Research U-K says fifty-four percent of cancer cases among children strike in Asia. Also, more than half of all child cancer deaths happen in Asia. Africa has twenty-percent of childhood cancer cases and twenty-five percent of the deaths.

Vaskar Saha of Cancer Research U-K is a childhood cancer expert. Professor Saha called for an international campaign against childhood cancer similar to the campaign against AIDS. The goal would be to increase the supply and reduce the cost of drugs to treat cancer in developing countries.

Earlier this month, world trade negotiators agreed to continue to look for ways to cut drug prices for developing nations.

Chemotherapy drugs kill cancer cells. Drug companies say they have improved this treatment in recent years while reducing harmful side effects. But many developing countries cannot pay for chemotherapy drugs. Another way to fight cancer is to cut out the diseased cells. A third way is to use radiation to target cancer cells.

Scientists say most cancers are caused by a combination of genetic and environmental conditions. There are warning signs of childhood cancer. These can include a white spot in the eye, unusual growths, weight loss and tiredness. Unexplained bleeding, pain and high body temperature are other possible signs.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Jerilyn Watson.

 

9. Childhood Bed-Wetting: Some Advice for Parents

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

We continue the first in a new series of reports from time to time on raising children. Today we discuss some ways to help bed-wetters stay dry all night long.

First of all, health experts say bed-wetting should be treated with understanding. The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, says children do not wet the bed to upset their parents.

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health say the young people who do it are usually physically and emotionally normal. They say the causes of bed-wetting are not known. But they think most cases probably result from a mix of things including slower physical development. Often there is a strong family history of bed-wetting.

The good news is that most children grow out of it over time. So, until that happens, here are some steps that might help.

First, consider a limit on the amount of liquid a child drinks before bedtime. Also, make sure children use the bathroom right before bed -- an empty bladder at bedtime should help.

Some parents wake their children at night to use the bathroom. Others set a timer to sound, so children wake up on their own.

The Mayo Clinic says even going to bed thirty minutes earlier can help some children stop wetting the bed.

If children do have an accident at night, the experts at the clinic say parents should let them help clean up. For example, children could rinse out their wet nightclothes. The Mayo Clinic says taking responsibility may help the bed-wetter feel a sense of control over the situation.

But the American Academy of Pediatrics has a warning about such advice. It says having to clean up may seen like punishment if other children in the family do not have similar duties.

The academy advises families to establish a "no teasing" rule. Bed-wetters usually feel shame enough without having other children make fun of them.

Some parents put a plastic cover on the bed, then a cloth sheet, followed by an additional set of plastic and cloth sheets. This way, it is easy to remove wet coverings and have a dry set ready.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says the first thing a parent should do about bed-wetting is talk to their child's doctor. When nothing else works, doctors sometimes give medicines to reduce urine production, or antidepressant drugs or both.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report. You can find the first part of our report on bed-wetting at www.voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Barbara Klein.

 

 

10. Explaining the Placebo Effect

I'm Katherine Cole with the VOA Special English Health Report.

Studies of new drugs traditionally involve at least two groups of people. The people in one of those groups are given only what they think is the drug. Really they get a placebo -- an inactive substance. The drug is proven effective if it performs better than the placebo.

Some researchers do not think drug studies should use placebos. They say it makes more sense to compare new medicines to drugs already on the market. Then people would know if a new drug is any better.

"Placebo" is Latin for "I shall please." It may contain nothing more than sugar.

Yet some people who are given a placebo experience improvements in their health. This is called the placebo effect.

Some doctors use the placebo effect in their treatments. An influential study published in nineteen fifty-five said placebo treatments made patients feel better thirty-five percent of the time.

But in two thousand one, Danish researchers reported that they had examined more than one hundred studies. They found little evidence of healing as a result of placebos.

Still, there is continued belief in the placebo effect.

A Swedish study published last year suggested that a placebo can reduce the emotional effects of unpleasant experiences. The study involved people who looked at images of dead bodies and other unpleasant pictures. The findings appeared in the journal Neuron.

The researchers said the effects in the brain were similar to those seen when placebos have been used as a pain treatment. In both cases, they said, expectations of improvement are a major influence.

But more than expectations might explain why placebos appear effective sometimes.

Researchers led by Scot Simpson at the University of Alberta, in Canada, just had a report published in the British Medical Journal. They examined twenty-one studies. These compared death rates between patients who always took their medicine and those who did not.

Even patients who took placebos had better results than those who did not follow doctor's orders. The researchers see this finding as support for the idea of a so-called healthy adherer effect. That is, a person who takes a drug treatment as directed may also do other things to live a healthy life.

And that is the VOA Special English Health Report. You can download free transcripts and MP3 files of our weekly reports at www.voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Katherine Cole.

 

11. Staying Healthy by Washing Your Hands

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Hand washing is a powerful way to prevent the spread of disease.

The World Bank, the United Nations and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical

Washing hands with soap

Medicine did a study to urge hand washing around the world. They found that one million lives could be saved each year if people washed their hands with soap often. They said that programs to increase hand washing with soap could be among the most effective ways to reduce infectious disease.

Doctors say many diseases can be prevented from spreading by hand washing. These include pinworms, influenza, the common cold, hepatitis A, meningitis and infectious diarrhea.

Hand washing destroys germs from other people, animals or objects a person has touched. When people get bacteria on their hands, they can infect themselves by touching their eyes, nose or mouth. Then these people can infect other people.

The experts say the easiest way to catch a cold is to touch your nose or eyes after someone nearby has sneezed or coughed. Another way to become sick is to eat food prepared by someone whose hands were not clean.

The experts say that hand washing is especially important before and after preparing food, before eating and after using the toilet. People should wash their hands after handling animals or animal waste, and after cleaning a baby. The experts say it is also a good idea to wash your hands after handling money and after sneezing or coughing. And it is important to wash your hands often when someone in your home is sick.

The experts say the most effective way to wash your hands is to rub them together while using soap and warm water. They say you do not have to use special antibacterial soap. Be sure to rub all areas of the hands for about ten to fifteen seconds. The rubbing action helps remove germs. Then rinse the hands with water and dry them.

Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are rubbed into the hands and do not require soap and water. Experts say these products must contain at least sixty percent alcohol to be effective in killing most bacteria and viruses.

Experts also say that people who use public bathrooms and dry their hands with a paper towel should use the towel to turn off the water. Then, before throwing it away, use the same paper to open the bathroom door.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. For more news and information about health, go to www.voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

 

A Handful of Findings About Finger Length

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Is there meaning in the length of a finger? An eighteen ninety-three guidebook called "Modern Etiquette in Public and Private" had this to say: "Long fingers are a sign of refinement. A short stubby hand argues a lack of sensibility."

Well, long fingers might also be a sign of a good basketball player or pianist. Or maybe just a master at thumb wars. This much is sure: studies in recent years have pointed toward a number of findings.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge in England, for example, just tied finger length to success in financial trading.

Traders at the New York Stock Exchange in a 2006 photo

The study led by John Coates looked at stock traders in London. Earlier work found that male stock traders made more money on days when their level of the male hormone testosterone was higher. John Coates -- himself a former trader -- wondered if, over all, men with more testosterone made more successful traders.

Individuals are exposed to testosterone while in their mother's womb. A way to know how much is to compare their ring finger to their index finger. The index finger is the one next to the thumb; the ring finger is third from the thumb. The longer the ring finger and the shorter the index finger, the greater the testosterone exposure.

The study involved forty-four traders and their profits and losses over a twenty-month period ending in two thousand seven.

Those with the most experience and testosterone exposure earned about six times as much as those with the least. Also, the research showed that traders with the most exposure generally made the most money in wild markets when quick action is required. Testosterone is known to make people more sure of themselves and more willing to take risks. It may also improve a person's thinking ability.

The findings appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

A two thousand seven British study showed that finger length might help predict test results among schoolchildren. Psychology researchers at the University of Bath looked at the hands of seven-year-olds. Those with ring fingers longer than index fingers did better on the math part of a standardized test than the reading part.

This was true for boys as well as girls. Females are also exposed to some testosterone in the womb.

And another British study reported last year that people whose index finger is shorter than their ring finger are at higher risk of osteoarthritis. That study was from the University of Nottingham.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Catty Weaver. Looking at my fingers, I'm Steve Ember.