Healthnotes Newswire (July 19, 2007)—The thought of cod liver oil may not make you smile—but taking it might, as a new study suggests that it can prevent depression.
Healthnotes Newswire (July 19, 2007)—The thought of cod liver oil may not make you smile—but taking it might, as a new study suggests that it can prevent depression.
Q: I was on antidepressants (SSRIs) for a few years, but I feel like I am ready to go off of them. This is my idea, and I haven’t spoken to my doctor about this yet. Throughout my time taking the antidepressants I have gained weight. I think this is a side effect of the pills I was taking. Along with the weight gain, my most bothersome side effects were abdominal pain and loss of sexual interest. What do you recommend I do when weaning of the pills to ensure that I will balance back to my weight prior to taking these drugs?
A: Congratulations on your progress! This is definitely something that you will want to discuss with your doctor and do under his supervision. As you have discovered, SSRIs have some tough side effects including weight gain, apathy, low sex drive and insomnia. Some of the side effects may be more difficult to deal with than the initial mood disorder.
Healthnotes Newswire (March 29, 2007)—Women whose diets are low in vitamin B12 around the time of conception are at higher risk of having babies with congenital heart defects, according to a new study. Worldwide, 1 million children are born with congenital heart defects each year, contributing to infant death and illness. The new research suggests that many of these cases are preventable.
“The mother serves as the environment of the child as the embryo forms,” said Régine Steegers-Theunissen, MD, PhD, of the Erasmus MC University Medical Center Rotterdam in the Netherlands and the study’s project leader. “Both genetic and environmental factors, such as nutrition and lifestyle, play important roles in the prevention or development of congenital heart defects.”
Healthnotes Newswire (March 15, 2007)—A vitamin found in typical B-complex and multivitamin supplements might play a role in preventing or slowing one aspect of aging: a new study found that supplementing with folic acid can slow age-related hearing loss in seniors.
Hearing loss is one of the most common ailments of older people, and most hearing loss is related to aging and the cumulative effects of environmental exposures and physiologic changes that occur over a lifetime.
