A weekly round-up of news affecting your health.
LONELY HEARTS
Loneliness and social isolation are linked to around a 30 per cent increased risk of having a heart attack or stroke, say UK researchers.
They analysed studies involving more than 181,000 adults.
The data included 4628 coronary heart disease events - heart attacks, angina attacks and death - and 3002 strokes recorded during monitoring periods ranging from three to 21 years.
Loneliness/social isolation was found to be associated with a 29 per cent increased risk of a heart or angina attack and a 32 per cent heightened risk of having a stroke.
The size of the effect is comparable to that of other recognised risk factors, such as anxiety and a stressful job, say the University of York researchers.
Loneliness has already been linked to a compromised immune system, high blood pressure, and ultimately, premature death.
"Our work suggests that addressing loneliness and social isolation may have an important role in the prevention of two of the leading causes of morbidity in high income countries," the researchers wrote.
The study was published in The BMJ.
ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT PERIODS
Girls and women of all ages and cultures can get the rundown on their periods through a new animated video.
The simple 2 minute 20 second animation was developed after the Jean Hailes for Women's Health organisation identified a gap in understanding the menstrual cycle in some multi-cultural communities and among some adolescents.
The animation appeals to young women as well as older women where menstruation might not be widely discussed, says chief executive Dr Mandy Deeks.
"Women whose levels of English might be low can also easily understand the messages."
STALKING STUDY
Participants are being sought for a large study investigating the rates and effects of stalking.
"It will explore the victim-offender relationship in stalking cases and examine the physical and psychological effects of stalking on the victims," said study leader Dr Lorraine Sheridan, of Curtin University.
"Findings from this study are expected to inform counselling and other social service practices to allow them to offer adequate and tailored intervention strategies to victims."
The study is seeking participants of both genders who have and who have not been stalked, aged
18 to 40 years.
RESEARCH BOOST
The Children's Medical Research Institute (CMRI) can expand its work on serious diseases after a $5 million donation from poker machine business magnate Len Ainsworth.
His contribution has been recognised by naming the Stage One building, at the Westmead complex in Sydney, the Ainsworth Tower.
"It stands to reason that the serious diseases which still blight the lives of far too many children around the world will only be solved by research," he said.
CMRI's director Professor Roger Reddel welcomed the support.
"Major technological innovations are opening up the possibility of treatments for diseases which currently cannot be treated effectively," he said.
SHIFTWORK MAY AFFECT WOMEN MORE
Women are more likely to be affected by nightshift work than men, says a new study.
Researchers placed 16 male and 18 female participants on 28-hour days in a controlled environment without natural light-dark cycles, at the UK's Surrey Clinical Research Centre.
This effectively desynchronised the sleep-wake cycle from the brain's 24-hour clock, similar to jet lag or a shiftwork scenario.
The participants performed cognitive tasks and self-assessments every three hours when they were awake.
The women were "more cognitively impaired" during the early morning hours, which in the real word typically coincides with the end of a night shift, the researchers said.
They said their research has significant implications for female nightshift workers such as nurses, security guards and police officers.
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