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People who smoke and have multiple sclerosis (MS) may be at increased risk of brain shrinkage and increased brain lesions related to the disease, according to a study published in the Aug. 18, 2009, p...

Medically inducing labour does not increase a woman's risk of a caesarean delivery as thought, U.S. researchers say.

Antioxidant supplementation did not increase the risk of melanoma in men or women, analysis of data from a population study of almost 70,000 participants showed.

Type D personality (MedPage Today) -- the tendency to experience negative emotions and to inhibit self-expression in social interactions -- was associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality among patients with peripheral artery disease, a pilot study found.

A preliminary study suggests that a negative, inhibited personality type (type D personality) appears to predict an increased risk of death over four years among patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD), according to a report in the August issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Peripheral arterial disease occurs when plaque builds up in arteries that supply blood to body areas other than the heart and brain, such as the extremities.

Antioxidant supplements do not appear to be associated with an increased risk of melanoma, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Predicting a woman's risk of osteoporotic fractures should be based on both clinical risk factors and measurement of bone density. Because measurement of bone density is quite expensive, there has been increasing interest to estimate fracture risk by clinical risk factors. Women at increased risk may be selected by clinical risk factors with or without measurement of bone density. (Source: Health News from medical News Today)

Although genetic factors are important, there is considerable evidence that breast cancer risk is related to modifiable lifestyle factors, such as physical activity, body weight, alcohol intake, and dietary choices. Researchers are now reporting results from three recent human studies designed to better delineate the relation between animal foods and breast cancer risk. The studies provide no evidence that animal-food consumption increases, or decreases, risk of breast cancer.

Commonly used osteoporosis drugs have not been found to increase the risk of irregular heartbeat, say research team led by Indian-origin scientist from Wake Forest University school of Medicine.

Maintaining the integrity of your joint cartilage is vital to your quality of life, ability to stay fit, participation in physical activities, and general anti-aging. While the extra weight from obesity places understandable stress on cartilage, a new study indicates the problem is more significant and that obesity increases the risk for rapid cartilage loss beyond the issue of the mechanical pressure of the extra weight. This is one more study that builds evidence that the inflammation of obesity is detrimental to health for many reasons. This study involved 3,026 people, age 50 – 79, at risk for osteoarthritis or with early x-ray evidence of the disease. During a 30-month follow up period 20% of participants had slowly progressive cartilage loss, while 5.8% had rapid cartilage loss. For each one-unit increase in BMI, the odds of rapid cartilage loss increased by 11 percent. It is always a good idea to use nutrients like hyaluronic acid, chondroitin sulfate