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HEALTH WATCH: NEWS & NOTES ( The Atlanta Journal and Constitution ) | |
ROTAVIRUS VACCINE: A new vaccine against the rotavirus, an infection
that kills hundreds of thousands of children worldwide each year,
works in developing countries, a study shows. Rotavirus is the leading
cause of severe diarrhea in childhood. The vaccine has been tested
on nearly 18,000 children and already has been shown to be highly
effective in the United States and other developed countries. Some
experts, however, wondered whether it would do as good a job in poor
countries. The latest study, done in Venezuela on 2,207 infants, used
higher doses of vaccine and showed it works as well as in the United
States. The report is in today's New England Journal of Medicine.
ZYBAN FOR SMOKERS: Taking an antidepressant medicine appears to
double smokers' chances of kicking the habit, says a study published
in today's New England Journal of Medicine. The Food and Drug Administration
approved the marketing of Zyban, also called bupropion, in May to
help smokers. The results of several studies with the drug, including
the one published today, were made public then. RACE AND BIRTH WEIGHT: African-born women living in the United
States have bigger babies than African-Americans, a finding that researchers
say casts doubt on the role of race in birth weight. The researchers
said their study, in today's New England Journal of Medicine, does
not support the theory that genetic differences explain why blacks
are more likely than whites to be born dangerously small. Drug abuse,
poor diet, having babies at a young age and other factors linked
with poverty increase the risk of having small, premature babies.
However, these factors do not entirely explain why low birth weight
is a larger problem among blacks than whites. The most recent study
examining this problem compared the weights of 90,503 babies born
in Illinois from 1980 through 1995. Babies of African-born women weighed
closer to white babies than to U.S. black babies. White women's babies
weighed an average of 7.5 pounds, African-born women's 7.3 pounds
and American blacks' 6.8 pounds. WHY PEPPER BITES: Scientists have discovered a chemical button
that chili peppers push to cause eye-watering, burning pain. Further
work might help scientists develop new treatments for some kinds of
pain, including sunburn, heartburn and rheumatism, experts said. Chili
peppers burn in your mouth because they contain a substance called
capsaicin (pronounced cap-SAY-sun or cap-SAY-uh-sun). Capsaicin causes
pain by grabbing onto structures called receptors on the surface of
nerve cells. Despite more than a decade of looking, scientists hadn'
t found a capsaicin receptor until now. The discovery is reported
in today's issue of the journal Nature. DON'T DO IT YOURSELF: Americans' do-it-yourself impulse may go
too far when it comes to using common over-the-counter drugs. As many
as 8 out of 10 American adults treat themselves with nonprescription
drugs for headaches, colds, upset stomachs and fevers before seeking
medical help, according to a poll of 1,202 adults conducted for Prevention
magazine and the American Pharmaceutical Association. The survey found
that 84 percent had used a nonprescription pain reliever at least
once in the past year; 76 percent a cough or cold medication and 57
percent a heartburn medicine or antacid. The poll also found one-third
of all adults admit they have taken more than the recommended dose
of such drugs because they felt they needed more.
Copyright 1997, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution, All rights reserved. |