Tuesday 31 July 2018
How reiki helps me cope with recurrent miscarriage
Having been devastated by three previous miscarriages Nadine turned to a complementary therapy - reiki - to help her find some peace. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Vagina rejuvenating therapies 'pose serious risk'
These cosmetic procedures pose a serious risk of burns, scarring and recurring pain, warn experts. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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'My abortion pill took effect on the Tube home'
Women are illegally taking abortion pills, which they have bought online, at home to avoid experiencing abortions on public transport. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Will the EHIC be valid after Brexit?
Will you be able to use the European Health Insurance Card when the UK leaves the EU? via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Social media and reality TV is 'bad for body image', survey suggests
A survey also showed that younger people were more likely to consider cosmetic surgery than older people. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Women 'illegally buying abortion pill online'
The abortion process can start within 30 minutes, meaning many want to take the pill at home. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Monday 30 July 2018
Melinda Messenger: 'How do breasts have so much power?'
Former glamour model Melinda Messenger reflects on the breast augmentation she had in her 20s. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Supreme Court backs agreed end-of-life decisions
Legal permission will no longer be needed to end care for patients in a permanent vegetative state. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Queen's granddaughter Zara Tindall reveals second miscarriage
The Queen's granddaughter says it has been "too raw" to talk about until now. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Dying young in Stockton - England’s most unequal town
How one man is preparing for his own death at the age of 46 in the town with England's biggest health gap. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Boys more 'cliquey' than girls
Boys are more likely to keep the same group of friends, research suggests. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Saturday 28 July 2018
Prostatitis: 'How I meditated away chronic pelvic pain'
The BBC's Henri Astier explains how mindfulness helped him beat the curse of chronic pelvic pain. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Friday 27 July 2018
Trying to conquer my fear of flying
5 Live listener Jo tries to overcome her fear of flying on a special course, which includes a 30 min flight. But will she be able to do it? via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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UK to legalise medical cannabis products
It follows high-profile cases involving children with severe epilepsy being denied access to cannabis oil. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Thursday 26 July 2018
World Down Syndrome Congress in Glasgow
Meet some people from the World Down Syndrome Congress, being held in Glasgow. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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The 12-year-old author who writes with his eyes
Jonathan Bryan was born with severe cerebral palsy which makes it difficult to communicate. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Older mothers: Brigitte Nielsen baby at 54 sparks debate
The numbers of older mothers are growing, but what are the health risks? via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Cannabis-derived medicines: What you need to know
UK doctors will be able to legally prescribe medicinal cannabis to patients from the autumn. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Meet the NHS duo keeping the elderly safe at home.
An NHS scheme in Burnley aims to keep people safe at home and reduce hospital admissions. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Wednesday 25 July 2018
Dizziness when getting up could increase dementia risk, US study says
The light-headed feeling is caused by a sudden drop in blood pressure, known as orthostatic hypotension. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Coventry woman to speak at World Down Syndrome Congress
Heidi Crowter, from Coventry, is speaking at the World Down Syndrome Congress in Glasgow. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Warning over suntan lotion application
People are getting less protection than they should because of slapdash application, scientists say. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Louise Brown: World's first IVF baby's family archive unveiled
Hundreds of cards and letters were received by Louise Brown's family after her birth in July 1978. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Tuesday 24 July 2018
'I helped deliver world's first IVF baby'
A retired fertility expert speaks of helping to deliver the world's first IVF baby 40 years ago. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Mother calls for families to speak about organ donation
Stella Curran's nine-year-old daughter Belle is waiting for lung transplant. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Animal robots comfort Cornwall dementia patients
A researcher is working to develop cheaper robotic pets for use in care homes. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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NHS blood scandal: 'I don't want him to have died in vain'
In the 1970s and 1980s thousands of UK patients were given blood products infected with Hepatitis C and HIV. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Babies die after mums given Viagra in Dutch trial
Dutch scientists have urgently stopped the research with the anti-impotence drug in pregnancy. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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HPV jab will be given to boys, government says
Adolescent boys in England will now get the vaccine for which girls are already eligible. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Optician's eye test 'could spot early dementia signs'
Researchers say it could help to identify dementia earlier when the condition is easier to treat. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Boy, 4, befriends Nottingham dementia patient, 91
Daniel was only 18 months old when he first met Stuart at a care home. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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A GP's advice on staying healthy in the heatwave
Dr Rosemary Leonard advises elderly people in particular to take care and drink lots of water. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Antidepressant prescriptions for children on the rise
More drugs are being prescribed to young people in Britain, despite concerns about potential harm. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Record number of severely obese children
One in 25 children fell into the category when they left primary school last year, figures show. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Monday 23 July 2018
How the Brain Perceives Colors?
Color vision is the ability to distinguish different wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation. Color vision relies on a brain perception mechanism that treats light with different wavelengths as different visual stimuli (e.g., colors). Usual color insensitive photoreceptors (the rods in human eyes) only react to the presence or absence of light and do not distinguish between specific wavelengths.
We can argue that colors are not real—they are “synthesized” by our brain to distinguish light with different wavelengths. While rods give us the ability to detect the presence and intensity of light (and thus allow our brain to construct the picture of the world around us), specific detection of different wavelengths through independent channels gives our view of the world additional high resolution. For instance, red and green colors look like near identical shades of grey in black and white photos.
An animal with black and white vision alone won’t be able to make a distinction between, let’s say, a green and red apple, and won’t know which one tastes better before trying them both based on color. Evolutionary biologists believe that human ancestors developed color vision to facilitate the identification of ripe fruits, which would obviously provide an advantage in the competitive natural world.
Why certain wavelengths are paired with certain colors remains a mystery. Technically, color is an illusion created by our brain. Therefore, it is not clear if other animals see colors the same way we see them. It is likely that, due to shared evolutionary history, other vertebrates see the world colored similarly to how we see it. But color vision is quite common across the vast animal kingdom: insects, arachnids, and cephalopods are able to distinguish colors.
What kind of colors do these animals see?
Human color vision relies on three photoreceptors that detect primary colors—red, green, and blue. However, some people lack red photoreceptors (they are “bichromates”) or have an additional photoreceptor that detects somewhere between red and green colors (“tetrachromates”). Obviously, having only 3 photoreceptors doesn’t limit our ability to distinguish other colors.
Each photoreceptor can absorb a rather broad range of wavelengths of light. To distinguish a specific color, the brain compares and quantitatively analyses the data from all three photoreceptors. And our brain does this remarkably successfully—some research indicates that we can distinguish colors that correspond to wavelength differences of just 1 nanometer.
This scheme works in largely the same way in most higher vertebrate animals that have color vision. Although the ability to distinguish between specific shades varies significantly between the species, with humans having one of the best color distinguishing abilities.
However, invertebrates that have developed color vision (and vision in general) completely independently from us demonstrate remarkably different approaches to color detection and processing. These animals can have a exceptionally large number of color receptors. The mantis shrimp, for instance, has 12 different types of photoreceptors. The common bluebottle butterfly has even more—15 receptors.
Does it mean that these animals can see additional colors unimaginable to us? Perhaps yes. Some of their photoreceptors operate in a rather narrow region of light spectrum. For instance, they can have 4-5 photoreceptors sensitive in the green region of the visual spectrum. This means that for these animals the different shades of green may appear as different as blue and red colors appear to our eyes! Again, the evolutionary advantages of such adaptations are obvious for an animal living among the trees and grasses where most objects, as we see them, are colored in various shades of green.
Researchers tried to test if a more complicated set of visual receptors provide any advantages for animals when it comes to the distinguishing between main colors. The findings show that this is not necessarily the case, at least not for the mantis shrimp. Despite the impressive array of receptors detecting light in a much broader part of the electromagnetic spectrum compared to humans, the shrimp’s ability to distinguish between colors that great in comparison to us. However, they determine the colors fast. This is probably more important for practical purposes, as mantis shrimps are predators. A large number of photoreceptors allows for their quick activation at specific wavelengths of light and thus communicate directly to the brain what specific wavelength was detected. In comparison, humans have to assess and quantify the signals from all three photoreceptors to decide on a specific color. This requires more time and energy.
Apart from employing a different number of photoreceptors to sense light of specific wavelengths, some animals can detect light that we humans are completely unable to see. For example, many birds and insects can see in the UV part of the spectrum. Bumblebees, for instance, have three photoreceptors absorbing in the UV, blue, and green regions of the spectrum. This makes them trichromates, like humans, but with the spectral sensitivity shifted to the blue end of the spectrum. The ability to detect UV light explains why some flowers have patterns visible only in this part of the spectrum. These patterns attract pollinating insects, which have an ability to see in this spectral region.
A number of animals can detect infrared light (the long wavelength radiation) emitted by heated objects and bodies. This ability significantly facilitates hunting for snakes that are usually looking for small warm-blooded prey. Seeing them through IR detecting receptors is, thus, a great tool for slow-moving reptiles. The photoreceptors sensitive to IR radiation in snakes are located not in their eye but in “pit organs” located between the eyes and nostrils. The result is still the same: snakes can color objects according to their surface temperature.
As this brief article shows, we humans can see and analyze only a small portion of the visual information available to other creatures. Next time you see a humble fly, think about how different it perceives the same things you are both looking at!
References:
Skorupski P, Chittka L (2010) Photoreceptor Spectral Sensitivity in the Bumblebee, Bombus impatiens (Hymenoptera: Apidae). PLoS ONE 5(8): e12049. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0012049
Thoen HH, How MJ, Chiou TH, Marshall J. (2014) A different form of color vision in mantis shrimp. Science 343(6169):411-3. doi: 10.1126/science.1245824
Chen P-J, Awata H, Matsushita A, Yang E-C and Arikawa K (2016) Extreme Spectral Richness in the Eye of the Common Bluebottle Butterfly, Graphium sarpedon. Front. Ecol. Evol. 4:18. doi: 10.3389/fevo.2016.00018
Arikawa, K., Iwanaga, T., Wakakuwa, M., & Kinoshita, M. (2017) Unique Temporal Expression of Triplicated Long-Wavelength Opsins in Developing Butterfly Eyes. Frontiers in Neural Circuits, 11, 96. doi: 10.3389/fncir.2017.00096
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via Brain Blogger Read More Here..'I was trapped in my mind for a decade, now I'm going to be a dad'
Martin Pistorius had locked-in syndrome for more than a decade. Now he's about to become a father. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Chinese Premier Li Keqiang calls for crackdown on vaccine industry
There has been no evidence of harm but it's not clear how many people have received faulty vaccines. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Sunday 22 July 2018
The boy whose arthritic eyes threaten Marine dream
An aspiring Royal Marine hopes an unusual arthritis diagnosis will not derail his career plans. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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First malaria drug in 60 years given approval
A drug that can stop people getting recurrent bouts of malaria has been approved by regulators in the United States. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Richard Bacon: 'The most shocking moment of my life'
TV and radio presenter Richard Bacon has told the BBC about the moment he was told he had to be put into a coma for at least a week. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Saturday 21 July 2018
Opioids: Why 'dangerous' drugs are still being used to treat pain
Despite links to UK hospital deaths and a US addiction crisis, opioids remain the painkiller of choice. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Japan heatwave: Warnings issued amid scorching temperatures
Scorching temperatures have killed 30 people in two weeks, prompting officials to issue warnings. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Friday 20 July 2018
Blind dog gave autistic woman 'hope in life'
Emma Barker, 18, who has autism and depression, says adopting a dog "saved her life". via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Belfast barber offers haircuts to Liverpool dementia patients
A barber from Belfast has travelled to a care home in Liverpool to offer haircuts to people with dementia. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Is Social Media the Bad Guy? Redefining Beauty in a Digital World
We’re living in an age of hyper-connectivity where social media is being widely used by almost every age group in the world. It’s connected people from all corners of the planet and given us the opportunity to have global conversations about practically any subject, event, or news piece.
However, many mental health and behavioral experts believe that social media has had a negative impact on the psychological well-being of those who use it because it gives people the illusion of being popular based solely on how many “likes” and “friends” they have on their profiles.
Psychologists have also observed that social media exacerbates the tendency for frequent users to develop a skewed impression of the world which is seldom accurate or healthy. Young girls and women, for example, may develop unrealistic standards when it comes to their looks and bodies based on what they see on social media.
But instead of labeling social media as the bad guy, I see it as a double-edged sword. The eventual effect that it has on your life really comes down to how you use it and for what purpose. The Internet is a neutral and open platform that levels the playing field when it comes to having access to knowledge that could help us live healthier, productive, and more fulfilling lives.
If anyone wants to avoid the negative impact that social media could have on her self-image, they need to become more conscious of their media diet. If they follow social media accounts and blogs run by people and institutions that are shallow and appearance-focused, such as Instagram models and celebrity fashion and gossip related profiles, it can hurt them if they aren’t mindful of its probable impact on them, especially on a subconscious level.
The negative impact of social media can be avoided if people are guided towards adopting a more empowering and all-encompassing standard of beauty which includes all aspects of being—intellect, aspirations, passions, talents and her morals.
In this way, they will be naturally drawn towards developing an identity that isn’t solely based on outward appearances but on character—this, in turn, will influence the use of social media for noble purposes that will expand the mind and provide a platform to express creative potential and to make a difference. In other words, we need to take an inside-out approach when it comes to combating the potentially harmful effects of social media, or any other forms of media.
via Brain Blogger Read More Here..What is the sex 'superbug' MGen?
What do you need to know about mycoplasma genitalium, the emerging sexually transmitted "superbug"? via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Model: 'My Brazilian butt lift gave me septicaemia'
Model Darcie Russell went to Turkey for a "Brazilian butt lift" but it left her with septicaemia. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Egg donation: ‘Will they look like me?’
Ashleigh Kelso, 27, donated some of her eggs to a couple to help them start their own family. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Thursday 19 July 2018
Zara Holland on Love Island: 'Like being in a posh prison'
Former contestant Zara Holland talks about being on the show and how the experience impacted her health. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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Complementary cancer therapies linked to reduced survival
Cancer patients who receive complementary therapies are more likely to shun proven treatments, a study finds. via BBC News - Health Read More Here..
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