XIAM007

Making Unique Observations in a Very Cluttered World

Tuesday 16 July 2013

REPORT: VIAGRA to 'boost baby growth' in womb... -


REPORT: VIAGRA to 'boost baby growth' in womb... - 



Pregnant women could be given the anti-impotence drug Viagra to boost the growth of underweight babies.
A trial is underway to see if the little blue pill can boost survival in babies that are not growing properly in the womb.
More than 120 women carrying extremely low-growth babies will be given regular doses of sildenafil citrate, a generic version of Viagra, during their pregnancy.

The results will then be compared with those from a similar group of women given an identical looking dummy tablet.
The trial has been set up after laboratory studies suggested Viagra, which was launched in the UK in 1998 as the world's first pill for erectile dysfunction, could help babies thrive in the womb by boosting the blood supply to the placenta.
Around 600 babies a year in the UK are stillborn because of a pregnancy disorder called pre-eclampsia.

The arteries feeding the placenta do not widen enough to deliver all the blood the baby needs. 
But during tests foetal deaths dropped sharply in pregnant mice given Viagra. The drug helps by relaxing muscles in the artery walls and allowing more nutrient-rich blood to pump through.
Now scientists in New Zealand and Australia are recruiting pregnant women for the first human trial of Viagra for foetal growth.


Read more: -

STUDY: Mosquitoes prefer beer drinkers... -


STUDY: Mosquitoes prefer beer drinkers... - 



Roughly 20 percent of people are more frequent meal tickets for mosquitoes than the rest of the population, and Smithsonian Magazine set out to investigate: Why?
Beer drinkers beware. Mosquitoes love the brew.
A Smithsonian Magazine blogger wrote: “Just a single 12-ounce bottle of beer can make you more attractive to the insects, one study found. But even though researchers had suspected this was because drinking increases the amount of ethanol excreted in sweat, or because it increases body temperature, neither of these factors were found to correlate with mosquito landings, making their affinity for drinkers something of a mystery.”
Scientists also say a slew of other factors — from blood type, metabolism and pregnancy status to the levels of exercise you do and carbon dioxide you emit — play roles.
Mosquitoes, for instance, can smell lactic acid and other substances in sweat, and go for the higher temperature bodies, Smithsonian Magazine reported.
The pests also like Type O blood twice as much as Type A. And they’re attracted to high levels of carbon dioxide and can smell the gas from 164 feet away.
That means those with larger frames and bigger bodies are more at risk for bites. That goes double for pregnant women: Mosquitoes bite women who are expecting about twice as many times as the general population, the magazine found.
Two other findings: Genetics play a role, as do clothing selections. Mosquitoes do use eyesight to scan out there victims, and dressing in black, dark blue and red — colors contrary to nature — are draws, Smithsonian reported.


Read more: -

Japanese look to change their fate through Palm plastic surgery -


Japanese look to change their fate through Palm plastic surgery  - 



Japanese intent on changing their fate have begun having plastic surgeries to alter their palms.
The new trend relies on the ancient art of palm reading - also known as palmistry -, the belief that you can tell a person’s future based on the lines on their palms.
Plastic surgeons have reported an increase in patients asking for operations to extend or add lines associated with luck or marriage.
According to a report on the Daily Beast, the surgeries cost around $1,100 and are performed with an electric scalpel.
Takaaki Matsuoka, a plastic surgeon at the Shonan Beauty Clinic’s Shinjuku branch in Tokyo, said: “If you try to create a palm line with a laser, it heals, and it won’t leave a clear mark. You have to use the electric scalpel and make a shaky incision on purpose, because palm lines are never completely straight.”
Around 40 palm plastic surgeries have been performed at the Shonan Beauty Clinic alone in the last two years.
The surgery is popular with men and women usually takes 10 to 15 minutes, includes anywhere between 5 and 10 lines on the palm, and takes about a month to heal.


Read more: - 

Police bust sex home-delivery service in Japan... - specialising in women weighing up to 150 kilograms (330 lbs) -


Police bust sex home-delivery service in Japan... - specialising in women weighing up to 150 kilograms (330 lbs) - 



Japanese police have arrested the alleged ringleader of a sex home-delivery service specialising in women weighing up to 150 kilograms (330 lbs), a spokesman said.
Keiko Saito, 41, and one of her employees are suspected of conspiring to run a prostitution business under the name "Makkusu Bodi" (Max Body), which boasted that it catered for men who like "explosive boobs and bums", police said.
Saito is alleged to have had about 30 overweight women working for her, including one who tipped the scales at more than 150 kilograms, Jiji Press reported.
Police say punters in Tokyo could telephone to request a visit in their home or hotel room, a service called "deri-heru" (delivery health) that is widespread in Japan, where it is illegal to sell penetrative sex.
Saito, who is believed to have earned about 400 million yen ($4 million) over three years, had previously worked as a prostitute, Jiji said. She began her business because she believed larger women were popular with customers, the agency added.


Read more: -