Germs Turn Deadly After Space Flight

Deadly germs from outer space attack Earth! It may sound like the ridiculous plot of 1950s B movie, but it could happen.

In an experiment to see how space affects germs, scientists sent some salmonella germs along on a 2006 space shuttle trip -- carefully sealed, of course. Salmonella is the germ that causes food poisoning. When the space-borne germs were fed to mice back on Earth, the mice were three times more likely to get sick and died faster than mice fed earthbound salmonella.

The act of being in space caused the germs to mutate, making them stronger and more virulent. Researchers found 167 gene changes in the salmonella sent into space. Of the mice who received the space germs, only 10% survived, compared to 40% of the mice who received the earthbound salmonella.

"Wherever humans go, microbes go, you can't sterilize humans," said Cheryl Nickerson, associate professor at the Center for Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology at Arizona State University. "Wherever we go, under the oceans or orbiting the earth, the microbes go with us, and it's important that we understand ... how they're going to change."

Even Fake Acupuncture Relieves Back Pain!

A recent German study on acupuncture yielded startling results. For chronic lower back pain, acupuncture performed better than traditional care, even when it was faked!

Nearly half of the patients treated with acupuncture needles felt relief that lasted for months. Only a quarter of the patients who received medication or other traditional Western treatments felt better. Even fake acupuncture -- inserting the thin needles less deeply and in no particular location -- provided more relief for longer periods than traditional medicine. Researchers speculated that either the body found relief from any thin needle pricks or a placebo effect was in operation.

"Acupuncture represents a highly promising and effective treatment option for chronic back pain," said study co-author Dr. Heinz Endres of Ruhr University Bochum in Germany.

In the study, more than 1,100 German patients were treated for chronic lower back pain. Pain relief was assessed six months after treatment. Of those who received real acupuncture, 47% still felt improved at six months. In the sham acupuncture group, 44% had less pain; in the traditional care group, only 27%.

Playgrounds for Grownups

You won't find swings or seesaws, but you will find lots of interesting and fun activities that stimulate both the body and the brain at new grownup playgrounds springing up in Nuremberg, Germany. Called Seniorenspielplatzen -- playgrounds for grownups --the new parks feature giant chessboards and padded badminton courts.

The city of Nuremberg got the idea from a Finnish study that showed playground activities helped older Finns improve balance, dexterity and speed. It's a new way of putting the old use it or lose it advice to work. As we age it's important to use our physical and mental "muscles" every day. Studies show that those who do enjoy greater mental acuity, stave off short-term memory loss, and maintain body flexibility and strength longer than their sedentary peers.

Oh, another thing you won't find on the new playgrounds -- children. The new parks are open only to seniors 60 years old and older!

Seniors Still Sexy After All Those Years

Most of America's seniors are still sexually active and enjoying life, according to a comprehensive survey on the sexuality of older adults. More than 3,000 seniors, ages 57 to 85, confided that sex still matters to them well into their 70s and 80s. The more healthy and physically fit they were, the more it mattered.

"The majority of those surveyed said they were in some type of
relationship, and most of those had engaged in sexual activity in the previous 12 months," said Dr. Stacey Lindau, University of Chicago assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology and lead author of the report.

America's seniors are definitely holding their own. "Interestingly, the average frequency of sex among those who said they were active was two or three times a month, which is about the same reported in previous surveys of adults 18 to 59. What this suggests to us from a medical standpoint is that sexuality and sexual activity is less a function of age than a person's health status," Lindau said.

Since health does decline as people move into their 70s and 80s, the nature of sexual activity changed as people aged. Most seniors said they engaged in traditional intercourse with their partner, but reported more emphasis on cuddling, kissing and snuggling as they aged. Of seniors 75 to 85, only 38% of men and 16% of women reported sexual activity during the past year.

Enthusiasm for sex seemed to be a Mars/Venus affair. Of the men surveyed, 87% said sex was important in their lives, compared to 65% of the women. Of those who remained sexually active, half reported experiencing at least one sexual problem. For women, lack of desire was the most common complaint; for men, 37% cited erectile dysfunction.

Is Drinking Diet Soda a Health Risk? Say It Isn't So!

Just when we thought diet news couldn't get worse, now researchers are saying that even diet sodas can be bad for our health. Is nothing sacred?

According to a new study, drinking as little as one can of soda a day -- either regular or diet -- increases the risk of metabolic syndrome by 48% Metabolic syndrome is a key predecessor of heart disease and diabetes and includes excessive abdominal fat, high blood-glucose levels, high blood pressure, high blood triglycerides and low levels of high-density lipoprotein, the "good" cholesterol.

Previously only regular soda was thought to contribute to heart disease and diabetes. This is the first study to implicate diet soda. Researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine who conducted the study had no idea why diet soda would pose the same risk as regular, sugared soda.

Study leader Dr. Ramachandran Vasan said it is unlikely that an ingredient in diet soda is to blame. He suggested that the consumption of sweet sodas may change dietary patterns or may be simply indicate general poor eating habits.

Naturally, the soda industry was incensed by the new findings. Susan Neely, president of the American Beverage Associations, said, "...it is scientifically implausible to suggest that diet soft drinks -- a beverage that is 99 percent water -- cause weight gain or elevated blood pressure."

Just to be safe, guess I'll start stocking up on green tea.

Years of Rock Music Take Toll on Boomers' Hearing

Remember cranking up the radio while you cruised with your friends in the family station wagon? Remember rocking out at ear splitting concerts, screaming along with the band? Remember spinning the stereo dial until you could feel the bass thumping in your bones? Ah, youth.

Baby boomers are paying the price for all those hours of stereophonic rock. Now they're pumping up the volume not to dance to the music, but just to hear it. Years of high-decibel music have taken a toll on the ears of adults moving into their 60s and even 40s and 50s. One in six boomers has suffered a hearing loss, according to the Better Hearing Institute, a nonprofit education group.

More people ages 45 to 64 report hearing difficulties (10 million) than people older than 65 (9 million), according to AARP studies. With the advent of earphones and earbuds, more people are losing their hearing earlier, says the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders.

Hearing loss caused by aging generally begins to affect people in their 60s. But noise-induced hearing loss caused by continuous loud noise over an extended time period (rock concerts typically measure 115 decibels) can have an effect much earlier. Some aging rockers report problems hearing the television or following conversations in crowded restaurants as early as their 40s and 50s.

Boomers "are the first of that rock 'n' roll generation," said Sharon Beamer, of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, "the first to really grow up with loud music, personal stereo systems."

"None of us protected our ears at all," said Pat Benatar. Now 54, the well-known rock singer and guitarist campaigns for hearing loss prevention. "I'm still a junkie," she said of rock music. "I still want it so loud." But when her dishwasher is running, she admits, "I can't hear any conversation at all."

With 78 million boomers poised to enter their senior years, hearing aids are undergoing a major overhaul. No longer the big, dorky, pink plastic gizmos your father forever fiddles with, state of the art hearing aids are as tiny as iPod nano earbuds and come in a variety of shades to match your hair color. Unobtrusive yet powerful, manufacturers hope they will appeal to self-conscious, age-phobic, style-conscious boomers. Currently, only 150 people of every 1,000 who suffer diminished hearing wear a hearing aid.