International research group discovered six genes responsible for excessive weight. In the course of large-scale study, they studied the genome of 90 thousand people. As a result, the scientists found six genes that are somehow responsible for packing on extra pounds. Five out of six genes regulate appetite and have nothing to do with metabolism. Full story

Surprisingly, our brain cells start dying as we turn twenty. When we reach that age, the number of our neurons is increasingly dropping. But this is a natural process of aging that has no impact on our intellectual ability. Alternatively, our brain activity increases every year. There is a stopover on the way, though. According to scientists from the University of California, LA, when we turn 39, our thought processes stop gathering pace and decline slowly. Full story

Breastfeeding is commonly welcomed. It is considered that prolonged and exclusive breastfeeding (for six months) is equally healthy for mother and baby. Yet, it is curious to know what official statistics and scientists say about it. Researches at University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada, studied 154 Mexican women and their babies. The study was aimed at discovering the real health effects of breastfeeding on infants under six months. Full story

Lots of people experience memory problems during the fall and winter seasons because of the lack of energy. What can we do about it? The answer is simple. Eat more foods that help enhance the memory, such as spinach, blueberries and pumpkin seeds,  as well as lift our spirits and performance. Make sure you get at least one item from the list below into your daily diet to boost your memory. Full story

Not only does scientific progress bring innovations and make our jobs easier, but, unfortunately, it also causes new diseases. Scientists provide sad facts about vision impairment, more spinal disorders and increasing cases of carpal tunnel syndrome that was rare in past years. This medical condition occurs when the median nerve is compressed at the wrist. Full story

Some office workers tend not to take sick leave and go to work sick just to keep the work going. It is irresponsible as the person doing so harms their own health – because the illness needs treatment – and the health of their colleagues. How to prevent cold and flu and ward them off if one of your colleagues is sick? Here are some useful tips. Full story

Indoor heating that keeps us warm during chilly fall and winter nights is what actually damages our hair in the first place. Trichologists claim that drying effect from heaters is even more harmful for your hair than ultraviolet radiation. You will need extra care if you additionally got your hair permed or heavily highlighted. Even the healthiest hair won't be able to withstand such a harsh chemical treatment. Today, most women are using heat-styling appliances and styling products on a daily basis. With windy fall or winter weather, we seem to only double our styling efforts. This puts an extra stress on the hair. Full story

The scientists at the University of Utah have created a synthetic version of superglue which is produced naturally by the sea worms called Phragmatopoma californica. It might be possible to repair fractured human bones with its help. The worms Phragmatopoma californica inhabit the ocean floor along the California coast. They build “castles” using sand and shattered sea shells, sticking them together with their special glue. The glue hardens in 30 seconds after a worm produces it. Usually these worms build their sandcastles close to each other. This results in big colonies like coral reefs which are also stuck together with the glue. Full story

The Daily Mail reports the secrets of eternal youth are opening with the help of scientists. Experiments on mice show that the ferment called telomerase may become the main ingredient of “elixir of eternal youth” – the scientists hope that this ferment will help to slow the process of aging. Full story

Do you count calories to keep your figure slim? Are you famishing just to lose that spare tyre? Those who decided to lose weight before Christmas should know the following – the less calories you get into your body the more difficult it is to fight against viruses and infections. Full story

In winter/fall season we catch the common cold more often than usually. A cold season is a period of flare-up of chronic diseases and flue epidemics. That’s why the great risk to catch virus emerges – for instance, in public transport, at college or at work. Flu and cold are the most frequent “guests” in our body in winter and autumn. And each requires a special treatment. Can we distinguish flu from ARD ourselves or only doctor can do this? Full story

While adequate length of uninterrupted sleep helps our brain function and promotes overall body health, its absence leads to health issues by far more serious than general physical fatigue. Irregular sleep cycle can lead to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, metabolic dysfunction, diabetes, obesity, as well as vision diseases. Full story

Women who decide to enlarge their cup size with the help of silicone implants put themselves at risk of developing a rare form of lymphoma - malignant tissue tumor. T-cell lymphoma may develop after breast augmentation in most cases. This lymphoma is characterized with rapid tumor growth and complicated treatment process. As a rule, this type of lymphoma is a very rare form and makes up three or less percent of total metastasis occurrences. Full story

The study published by US biologists in Science magazine says that it is now possible to extract cells that become the fat tissue from the walls of blood vessels. New findings will help in the treatment of diabetes and obesity as well as improve wound healing. Progenitor cells of the fat tissue are mature stem cells. Unlikely embryonic stem cells that turn into any cell type, they can develop into different cell types within only one tissue – fat tissue in this case. Full story

According to a half-year long study conducted by scientists from Oxford University, perceived health benefits of vegetarianism might eventually turn into health problems. Eating solely vegetarian food leads to decrease in the brain volume as we age, so the scientists warn against excluding fish and meat from diet. Full story

Women who work the night shifts or work very late into the night at the office are often insomniac. How can you fight sleeping problems? Working at night is stressful for our body. We were biologically designed to be active during the day and rest at night. The way our body functions and the type of hormones it produces differ depending on whether we are asleep or awake. If your sleeping schedule is off track, it can disturb the normal sleep-awake cycle. The body becomes unable to function the way it is supposed to. That leads to insomnia and health problems. Here are some tips on how to mitigate effects of disturbed cycle. Full story

Beautiful hair is certainly a great nature’s gift. Unfortunately, there are lots of things that could make them unhealthy. How can we give dry and damaged hair back its strength and lustre? Balanced diet and care will sure help you get healthy and magnificent mane. Here are some simple but useful tips for the healthy hair. Full story

Reasonable consumption of alcohol can reduce the risk of heart diseases, but at the same time consumption of small amounts of alcohol can lead to brain shrinkage. Scientists believe that the larger the doses of alcohol, the higher the risk of brain shrinkage. As we age, our brain naturally shrinks losing 1.9% of its volume over every 10 years. Moreover, there are diseases that affect the brain. Scientists from the Wellesley College conducted a study looking into the effect of alcohol on the brain. Full story

It turned out that our body weight is directly linked to the reproductive power. “Failure” of genetic mechanism responsible for appetite and weight “turns” fertility off. The discovery was made by American biologists. Their study has been published in Nature Medicine Journal. Authors of the article, scientists from Salk Institute for Biological Studies, were studying appetite regulation involving the gene known as TORC1. Full story

American scientists have figured out the real cause of eye bags that appear with aging. It turned out to be a fat expansion in the eye sockets. So far plastic surgeons believed we get baggy eyes because of weakening of eye ligaments that hold fat tissue in the eye sockets. That’s why, the present eyelid surgery technique known as blepharoplasty is based upon tightening these eye ligaments. Full story