Eight out of ten people who took part in a study carried out by a specialist headache centre felt they were much less effective at work and 91 per cent said they felt hampered by headaches on a daily basis, according to the March issue of Cephalalgia.

Chronic kidney disease is common in Western countries for example, it is estimated that 10 percent of older adults in the U.S. suffer from it. The incidence of kidney disease is also increasing in many developing countries as more people develop obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes, all of which increase the risk of kidney problems. If kidney disease progresses, a person can develop end-stage disease, treatable only with dialysis or a kidney transplant.

A new study being published by the American Physiological Society (www.The-APS.org) finds that the body responds differently to colitis (inflammation of the colon) based on whether the disease is acute (sharp and brief) or chronic (long-term). Researchers, using an experimental mouse model of colitis, discovered that the effects of acute colitis were associated with decreased body weight, food intake, and body fat content.

Cigarette smoke (CS) is the most preventable cause of death and chronic disease in the United States. In addition to being a risk factor for atherosclerosis and cancer, recent epidemiologic studies suggest that cigarette smoke promotes the progression of kidney disease.

A significant number of young survivors of childhood cancers smoke, are physically inactive and/or don't use sunscreen, according to researchers at Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. While these behaviors can be a future cancer risk to adolescents who have not had cancer, they can pose special peril to those who have been treated for the disease, investigators say.

Low doses of steroids can inhibit joint damage when used in the early phase of rheumatoid arthritis, according to a new review of evidence.

Could a handful of nutrient-rich dried plums each day help keep the doctor away by actually reversing bone loss in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis or osteoarthritis? A unique clinical study under way in the Florida State University College of Human Sciences means to find out.