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London (PA Media/dpa) – A simple neck scan could help to pick up early warning signs of heart failure in men, a study suggests. The method – similar to ultrasounds offered during pregnancy – is “safe, cheap and painless”, and is something GPs could consider offering patients over 60, researchers said. The scan, known as a carotid ultrasound, takes between 15 and 30 minutes and is performed using a small handheld device that is moved gently over the neck. It allows medics to look at the flexibility of the carotid arteries, the main vessels that supply blood to the brain, face and neck. The large arteries in the body are elastic, but can stiffen with certain diseases and age, leading to high blood pressure, heart failure and an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. The study, led by University College London (UCL), included 1,631 men aged 71 to 92. A quarter of those with the least flexible arteries included in the analysis were 2.5 times more likely to develop heart failure compared to those with the most flexible arteries. Researchers used data from the British Regional Heart Study, which started in the 1970s, and more research is needed to determine if the method works on women. Dr Atinuke Akinmolayan, a National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) academic clinical fellow who led the research from UCL and is now a GP, said: “The carotid ultrasound is a safe, cheap and painless investigation, and our findings suggest it may be able to provide an early warning sign for heart failure. “More research is needed, especially to see if this works for women, but this is something GPs could look at offering to people over the age of 60, where possible and believed needed. “A patient who gets an ultrasound result indicating they may be at higher risk of future heart failure could have an important conversation with their doctor about lifestyle changes they could make to lower that risk.” Cardiovascular diseases are the source of around a third of all global deaths, according to the World Health Organization. The British Heart Foundation (BHF), which part-funded the research, estimates that around 920,000 people in the UK are living with heart failure. Experts say heart failure is a rapidly growing public health issue with an estimated prevalence of 64 million people globally. Elsewhere, the study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, looked at the thickness of carotid arteries. Researchers found that men with thicker vessels were more likely to have a heart attack. For every 0.16 millimetre increase in thickness, heart attack risk increased by about 29%, the study suggests. Professor Bryan Williams, chief scientific and medical officer at the BHF, said: “The findings of this study are interesting and show that stiffening of arteries is associated with increased risk of heart failure, most likely due to the heart having to work harder against the resistance caused by these stiffer arteries. “It is an important signal that whenever we detect such changes in the carotid arteries, we should also be thinking of the potential impact on the heart and an increased risk of heart failure, which we have treatment strategies to prevent.” A separate study, also led by UCL, suggests a 10-minute scan could help millions of people with hard-to-treat high blood pressure. It targets those who have a problem with their adrenal glands producing too much of the hormone aldosterone, which regulates levels of salt in the body. This issue is estimated to affect about a quarter of people with high blood pressure. The scan, developed by UCL, is designed to detect overactivity in the adrenal glands that might be missed by traditional tests. The following information is not intended for publication pa dpa coh

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London (PA Media/dpa) – People with chronic insomnia could benefit from tai chi as an alternative to talking therapies, a study has suggested. Researchers writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) said their study “supports the use of tai chi as an alternative approach for the long-term management of chronic insomnia in middle-aged and older adults”. Guidelines for doctors to treat people with insomnia often include managing issues such as anxiety, as well as short-term courses of sleeping pills and cognitive behavioural talking therapy (CBT) for more severe cases. In the new study, 200 people aged 50 and older with chronic insomnia were split into two groups to either undertake tai chi or have CBT. All of the people in the study were free of other chronic conditions that may affect sleep, were not taking part in regular aerobic or mind-body exercise, had not received previous CBT treatment and were not working shifts. They either did tai chi or CBT for one-hour sessions twice a week, for a total of 24 sessions. People scored their symptoms such as difficulty falling and staying asleep, waking up too early and being unable to go back to sleep, and impact on daily life. After the three-month period was up, the CBT group had better scores on improvements to their insomnia than those undertaking tai chi. However, in the longer-term, 15 months after the start of the study, tai chi seemed to match CBT and even slightly outperformed it. Tai chi and CBT were found to also have comparable benefits in areas such as quality of life, mental health and physical activity level. The authors, from the University of Hong Kong, acknowledged some people in the study may have continued tai chi after the three-month period, which may have skewed the results. But they said: “Our findings suggest that tai chi can lead to substantial improvements in insomnia severity after a three-month intervention while the long-term efficacy of tai chi is non-inferior to that of CBT, the gold standard treatment for chronic insomnia.” The following information is not intended for publication pa dpa coh

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London (PA Media/dpa) – A monthly injection could help people with severe asthma come off daily steroid tablets entirely without any impact on symptoms, a trial has found. Tezepelumab – also known as Tezspire and made by AstraZeneca – works by binding to and blocking a protein that drives airway inflammation. The injection is recommended as an additional maintenance treatment for patients over 12 when the usual medications have not worked well enough. Severe asthma can be treated with steroid tablets. However, taking steroids for long periods can have side effects such as mood changes, stomach problems or weight gain, as well as issues that develop over time such as steroid-induced diabetes or osteoporosis. A new trial, known as Wayfinder and led by King’s College London, included almost 300 people with severe, uncontrolled asthma on a maintenance dose of between 5mg and 40mg of steroid tablets a day. Patients were recruited from 11 countries including the UK, US, France, Germany, Mexico and Spain. The trial found treatment with tezepelumab helped 90% of patients reduce their daily steroid dose. More than half who had the injection were able to stop daily steroids altogether after 12 months. Meanwhile, two thirds of patients stopped having asthma attacks, which was observed as early as two weeks into the trial and lasted for the duration of the year-long study. Professor David Jackson, respiratory medicine expert at King’s College London, and clinical lead of the asthma services across Guy’s and Royal Brompton Hospitals, said: “The Wayfinder study is an important step forward for patients with the most severe form of asthma who require daily oral steroids in order to achieve reasonable disease control. “In this international, multi-centre clinical trial of more than 300 patients, the Nice-approved asthma treatment tezepelumab, a biologic therapy that targets asthma-related inflammation but without all the side effects of steroids, was capable of allowing the vast majority of patients to wean their steroids down to a low dose with over half able to stop their steroids altogether. “As tezepelumab also suppresses allergy-related symptoms and improves chronic rhinosinusitis as well, the results are particularly exciting for patients with severe asthma who suffer with both upper and lower airway symptoms.” Reacting to the study, Dr Samantha Walker, director of research and innovation at Asthma + Lung UK, said: ”This is an incredibly encouraging development for the future of asthma care that could transform the lives of people with severe asthma. “It’s vital that research into new types of treatment continues but we know current funding for lung health research is on life-support, despite lung conditions remaining the third biggest cause of death in the UK. “Studies like this show the positive impact that research can make on providing potentially life-changing treatment for people with asthma and other lung conditions.” The findings of the Wayfinder trial are published in the Lancet Respiratory Medicine and will be presented at the British Thoracic Society Winter Meeting 2025 on Thursday. The following information is not intended for publication pa dpa coh

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Radiation, extreme cold, dust storms, not mention a lack of oxygen: There are plenty of things that can kill an astronaut on Mars. Now, researchers have added lightning to the list. Paris (dpa) – Thunderstorms aren't just an earthly phenomenon. Scientists have long known that electrical discharges occur in the atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn. Now, for the first time, researchers have directly detected similar electrical activity on Mars. Measurements from NASA's Perseverance rover show that swirling dust on the Red Planet can generate static charge through friction. On Wednesday, scientists reported in the journal Nature that lightning risks will need to be considered when planning future crewed missions. On Earth, and likely on Jupiter and Saturn as well, thunderstorms form when water droplets and ice crystals collide, separating electrical charges. Mars is far too dry for that process. Instead, scientists suspect that dust particles rubbing against each other in the planet's frequent whirlwinds, known as dust devils, could create electrical charges. Massive dust storms, sometimes spanning thousands of kilometres, could also play a role. Suspicions dating back years "On Mars, the existence of electrical activity has long been suspected, but never directly demonstrated," Baptiste Chide and his colleagues from the University of Toulouse wrote. But until now, the evidence was only indirect. In 2006, US researchers picked up unusual radio signals from Mars and later suggested they might be caused by lightning, though other explanations couldn't be ruled out. Orbital missions also failed to detect clear signs of discharges. To settle the question, Chide's team analysed data gathered on the ground by Perseverance, which has been exploring Jezero Crater since 2021. Rover captures the rumble of Martian thunder The breakthrough came from the rover's onboard microphone, which picked up 55 events consistent with electrical discharges near Perseverance. Researchers said the device recorded not only the faint rumble of "thunder" on Mars, but also a brief, non-acoustic signal just beforehand – an electrical jolt triggered when the discharge's magnetic field briefly interfered with the microphone's electronics. It also emerged that 54 of the events occurred during strong winds, showing that swirling dust plays a key role in generating electrical discharges on Mars. Sixteen events were recorded during two close encounters of the rover with dust devils. Chide and his colleagues suspect that lightning is more likely to occur during such localized events than during large-scale dust storms. The lightning could have a significant influence on the chemistry in the atmosphere and on the surface of Mars. Electrical discharges, for example, promote the formation of highly oxidizing substances such as hydrogen peroxide. As such substances act as cytotoxins, they worsen the prospects of finding microorganisms on Mars. The following information is not intended for publication dpa fm zlw xxde mls coh

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London (PA Media/dpa) – Living in the spotlight comes with the glitz and glamour of showbiz but it could shorten a celebrity’s life, a new study suggests. Researchers found that life in the limelight can shorten lives by around 4.6 years. Previous studies have found that famous singers tend to die earlier than the general public, but academics from Germany wanted to see whether fame played a role. The latest research, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, examined data on 648 singers. Half of the group were deemed to be famous while the other half had not achieved stardom. The group of famous singers was drawn from the Top 2,000 Artists of All Time on acclaimedmusic.net. The average age of the singers was 67. The research, known as a retrospective matched case control study, saw academics match each famous singer to a less famous singer based on certain characteristics, including their gender, nationality, ethnicity and their genre of music as well as whether they were in a band or a solo artist. The academics studied 99 famous solo artists compared with 90 less famous solo singers. Some 207 famous people studied were in a band while 175 less famous singers were in a band. The rest of the people involved in the study had worked as soloists and as part of a group. The researchers examined data from people across various musical genres including rock, pop, R&B, rap, electronica and new wave. They found that famous singers lived to an average age of 75 while less famous singers lived to 79. “The results showed that famous singers had a 33% higher mortality risk compared with less famous singers,” the authors wrote. They added: “The result offers new evidence linking fame with higher mortality risk. “The increased mortality risk associated with fame is comparable to other well known health risks such as occasional smoking. “Given that these conditions are widely recognised as serious health threats requiring preventive measures, the similar impact of fame on mortality suggests that being famous is an important factor influencing longevity and underscores the need for targeted interventions to mitigate its detrimental effects on longevity.” They said that their study suggests that the elevated risk emerges “specifically after achieving fame”. They said this “highlights fame as a potential temporal turning point for health risks including mortality”. But the research team point out that solo artists appeared to carry a higher risk of early death compared to singers in a band. “Possible explanations for this include increased individual exposure to the public with the accompanying higher emotional strain,” they said. “Being in a band may offer emotional and practical support, while solo artists may face more isolation and stress.” The 10 top artists on the acclaimedmusic.net include The Beatles; Bob Dylan; The Rolling Stones; David Bowie; Bruce Springsteen; Radiohead; Neil Young; Led Zeppelin; The Beach Boys and Prince. Among these stars, John Lennon died aged 40; George Harrison died when he was 58 and three members of the Rolling Stones have died – founding member Brian Jones died aged 27, co-founder and keyboardist Ian Stewart died aged 47 and drummer Charlie Watts died aged 80. David Bowie died when he was 69; John Bonham drummer of the rock band Led Zeppelin died when he was 32; among The Beach Boys, Brian Wilson died earlier this year aged 82, Carl Wilson died age 51; Dennis Wilson drowned when he was 39 and Prince died aged 57. The following information is not intended for publication pa dpa coh

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Everyday life must go on, perhaps even your workouts do too. That's how many of us feel when a cold tries to slow down our daily routine. And so we often don't allow ourselves the time to recover. What can the consequences be and when is it time to see a doctor? Berlin (dpa) – "I'm not going to let a bit of a cough and runny nose slow me down!" Have you ever told yourself this, then pressed on with a scratchy throat, feeling tired and unwell, perhaps because you thought you had to? Believe it or not, what your body needs most when you have a cold is rest so that your immune system can better fight the virus. If you don't take it easy, you risk a lingering infection that can land you two weeks later in a doctor's surgery with a bad case of sinusitis, or sinus infection. How do lingering colds occur? And how can you prevent them? Here are answers to five pertinent questions: 1. First of all, what happens in your body when you catch a common cold? "It usually involves inflammation of the upper respiratory tract, in other words the mucous membranes in your nose, throat and bronchial tubes in your lungs, for example," says Dr Torben Ostendorf, chairman of the Saxony (Germany) Association of General Practitioners. Many different viruses can cause a cold. You feel unwell because your immune system is busy fighting the pathogen: "The body responds with multiple defence mechanisms that can result in various symptoms," says Jakob Maske, spokesman for the Cologne-based Professional Association of Paediatricians (BVKJ). Typical among them are a cough, sore throat, runny nose and fatigue. The immune system destroys cells infected by the virus. It also produces antibodies specific to the virus along with a number of "memory cells" that remain after the infection is over, enabling a rapid response if the same virus attacks again. In short, fighting a cold is a lot of work for your body, so you should make it as easy as possible. 2. How does an infection become prolonged? "When you have a cold, it's important not to put your body under additional strain," Ostendorf says. This means refraining from strenuous physical activity and shifting down a gear, so to speak. "Otherwise you risk your body not being able to concentrate on fighting the infection," which can prolong it. The advice also applies to colds with only mild symptoms, says Maske. If your immune system isn't working as well as it should, the virus can spread and cause complications. "This can result in a runny nose becoming sinusitis, and a cough escalating to bronchitis or even pneumonia," warns Ostendorf. It's even possible that your initially "innocuous" infection develops into myocarditis, which is "no laughing matter," he says. Myocarditis [inflammation of the heart muscle, called the myocardium] can namely be caused when a virus attacks heart muscle cells. The body's immune response can also damage the cells. The condition can reduce the heart's ability to pump blood, with symptoms including a rapid or irregular heartbeat. 3. What are warning signs of a prolonged cold? You normally recover from a cold in about a week. Symptoms that persist can indicate a lingering infection. "Typical warning signs are continuing to feel weak or having a fever that lasts longer than four days," Maske says. Worsening symptoms are a further sign. Common symptoms of sinusitis include a feeling of strong pressure in your forehead, nose, cheek or upper jaw. "The pressure is generally much stronger when you bend over," Ostendorf says. A typical sign of bronchitis is a cough that brings up mucus. "Many sufferers also have a fever," he adds. Myocarditis symptoms are quite varied. Frequent among them are fatigue and lightheadedness. Shortness of breath, an irregular heartbeat and chest pain can also be caused by myocarditis. 4. When should you see a doctor? "You should get medical attention whenever the aforementioned warning signs appear, or when you experience unusual signs of illness," Maske says. "A fever above 39 degrees Celsius can be an alarm signal as well and should be checked by a doctor," advises Ostendorf. This applies particularly to high-risk patients with chronic illnesses, a group that should be more careful in general and consult their GP earlier. 5. How much can you take on when you've got a cold? In most cases it's possible to get through your daily routine with few limitations. And there's nothing wrong with taking walks if you feel like it. "Moderate physical exertion is allowed, but not sport, of course," says Maske. "Nor should you engage in competitive sport at full intensity for up to two weeks after having had a cold" – in order to give your body enough time to recuperate. A general rule for anyone with a cold: "Rest as much as possible," says Ostendorf. This means that intensive workdays, too, are out. The following information is not intended for publication dpa/tmn paj yyzz a3 bzl rid tsn ob

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Tokyo (dpa) – A type of lactic acid bacteria found in dairy has been shown to ease hay fever symptoms, even during the peak of pollen season. A bacterium called Lacticaseibacillus paracasei KW3110 appears to reduce the impact of the condition when taken as part of a regular diet, according to scientists at Kirin Holdings, a Japanese company best known for its beer of the same name. The results show a "relief of nasal symptoms," with those given the bacterium finding "a significant improvement in the degree of daily life impairment" and able to return to the outdoor activities they typically can enjoy at other times of the year, according to Kirin. The researchers ran a 12-week trial in which 120 male and female hay fever sufferers were given either a placebo or food containing the bacterium. "Compared to the placebo, consumption of food containing L. paracasei KW3110 significantly improved subjective symptom scores," Kirin said, with changes kicking in by week four. The participants were described as people who "experienced nasal and ocular discomfort in early spring and did not regularly use medications for allergic rhinitis symptom relief." Ingesting the bacterium "mitigates the decline in quality of life  associated with difficulties in outdoor activities," Kirin said of the trial findings, published in October. According to Yoshitaka Okamoto, a Chiba Rosai Hospital doctor and emeritus professor at Chiba University, the bacterium is "readily taken up by immune cells, where it elicits a unique response that may help suppress allergic reactions." The following information is not intended for publication dpa spr coh

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Do wet hair make you ill? Does a cold shower ward off a cold? As winter bites, this fact check will help you separate persistent myths from science. Berlin (dpa) – Not everything we say about our health in cold weather is true. Time to sort the myths from the science. Belief: Wet hair in the cold makes you ill False.Colds are always caused by viruses, not by cold alone or wet hair in chilly weather. Without contact with a pathogen, there is no infection. Studies do show that strong cooling of the body surface, for example through wet clothing or cold air, can reduce blood flow in the mucous membranes. This can weaken local defences and allow existing viruses to multiply more easily. Keeping warm can sometimes help, but a cold always requires a pathogen. Belief: Cold showers prevent illness Unclear.A Dutch study with around 3,000 participants found that people who took daily cold showers of 30 to 90 seconds felt fitter and reported fewer sick days, but were not objectively signed off sick less often. Cold showers can stimulate circulation and briefly increase blood flow, but proven protection against colds is lacking. Experts advise starting slowly if you want to try it, for example with contrast showers that cool the body step by step. Belief: Women feel the cold more quickly than men True.Women perceive cold more intensely for biological reasons. Men have more muscle mass and burn more energy, generating heat, while women typically have a higher proportion of body fat. Hormonal fluctuations also influence temperature perception. Studies indicate women find around 24 degrees Celsius comfortable, while men feel at ease at about 22 degrees. The difference is measurable, not imagined. Belief: Alcohol warms the body from within False.A glass of whiskey or a mug of mulled wine may create a fleeting sensation of warmth, but it actually cools the body. Alcohol dilates the skin’s blood vessels so warm blood flows to the surface, producing a cosy feeling. This is deceptive because heat is lost to the environment more quickly, which lowers core body temperature. Alcohol can disrupt the body’s natural thermoregulation. Doctors recommend avoiding alcohol in the cold and warming up by being active or drinking hot non-alcoholic drinks. Belief: Blood pressure is higher in cold weather True.Blood pressure varies over the day, rising sharply after waking and increasing through the morning. Sex, age, lifestyle and environment all play a role. Temperature differences matter too: In winter blood pressure is higher than in summer, because the blood vessels constrict in the cold, which causes a rise in blood pressure, health experts say. Persistently high blood pressure can seriously damage the brain, heart and kidneys over time, the Heart Centre at Berlin’s Charité said. High blood pressure is defined as values consistently above 140 over 90. The following information is not intended for publication dpa mfl yyzz a3 hu

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London (dpa) – Everybody sits on it and some people are said to talk out of it, but one thing a rear end is not associated with in most minds is disease risk – no ifs or buts about it. But according to University of Westminster health researchers, changes to the shape of a person’s behind "may reflect underlying metabolic differences" that in turn could signal how likely someone is to develop type 2 diabetes. Drawing on health data covering over 80,000 people in the UK, the team found indications that there are "distinct, sex-specific patterns in the gluteus maximus that were associated with type 2 diabetes." Going from pert to bony or bubbly to wobbly could be a bad sign, it turns out. Of those found to have developed diabetes, "men showed muscle shrinkage, while women showed enlarged muscle that was likely due to infiltration of fat within the muscle," the researchers said. The findings "suggest that men and women have very different biological responses to the same disease." For those worried about having a big booty, diabetes risk should not be among the reasons for concern. The team suggests that what counts is the shape and not the size. "Unlike past studies that mainly looked at muscle size or fat, we used 3D shape mapping to pinpoint exactly where the muscle changes, giving a much more detailed picture," said study co-author Marjola Thanaj of the University of Westminster’s Research Centre for Optimal Health. "People with higher fitness, as measured by vigorous physical activity and hand grip strength, had a greater gluteus maximus shape, while ageing, frailty and long sitting times were linked to muscle thinning," Thanaj said, before presenting the findings at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). The following information is not intended for publication dpa spr coh

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Children who start using their fingers early are more likely to become better at calculating later, a Swiss study has found. Should parents and teachers rethink the stigma around finger counting, and when might it signal a problem? Geneva (dpa) – Counting on fingers in primary school is not a sign of weakness but an important tool for learning mathematics, according to a long-term study by researchers in Switzerland published in Developmental Psychology. The team found that children learn arithmetic better when they use their hands. Parents and teachers should not stop children from counting on their fingers, said study author Catherine Thevenot of the University of Lausanne. "Children should never be ashamed to use their fingers. They should be proud to use them to solve calculations." Last year, Thevenot published a study on pre-school children showing that their arithmetic performance can be improved if they are taught to count on their fingers. Previous research had suggested that from about age seven, children who do not use their fingers perform better than finger counters. Thevenot and colleague Marie Krenger examined what lies behind this.They tracked the longer-term development of around 200 Swiss children aged 4 and a half to 7 and a half, this time without instruction on finger counting, and observed them adding at regular intervals. The results showed that the earlier children called on their fingers, the more likely they were to become some of the best at calculating later on. Children who never counted on their fingers over the years showed the weakest performance, the researchers reported. According to the authors, the reason children without finger help do better from about age seven is that they had previously learned to calculate with their hands, then moved on to mental arithmetic. Former finger counters outperformed both children who had never used their fingers and those who continued to rely on them. If children over age eight still need their hands to calculate, this could be a sign of difficulties, Thevenot said. But even then, she added, they should not be scolded, because using their fingers likely helps them reach the next developmental stage, only a little later than others. The following information is not intended for publication dpa al xx n1 hu

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