A weekly round-up of news affecting your health.
AGED-CARE ANTIBIOTIC CONCERN
One in five antibiotic prescriptions given to residents of aged-care facilities is inappropriate, according to new Australian research.
And one-third of them were prescribed for six months or more, putting residents at a high risk of antimicrobial resistance.
The 2015 Aged Care National Antimicrobial Prescribing Survey pilot study investigated the prescribing behaviours and frequency of infections in 186 aged-care facilities around Australia.
Twenty per cent of prescriptions related to residents with no clear infection, while 65 per cent didn't have a review or stop date and one-third did not have a specific reason for use.
"We need to improve the documentation associated with prescriptions, including justification for their use and a review or stop date," University of Melbourne professor Karin Thursk said.
"And importantly, infections need to be correctly identified before medications are prescribed."
DRIVING TOWARDS OBESITY?
People who drive an hour or more a day are heavier and have a wider waist than those who spend 15 minutes or less in their cars, says new research.
An inactive person with a height of 1.7m was found to be 2.3kgs heavier and 1.5cm wider.
The research, published in the Preventive Medicine journal, was led by Professor Takemi Suglyama from the Australian Catholic University's Institute of Health and Ageing.
It assessed the driving habits of 2800 adults from the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle study against health measures including body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, fasting plasma glucose, and a range of cardio-metabolic risk factors.
As well as weighing more and having wider waists, those who spent prolonged time sitting in their cars had a more-adverse cardio-metabolic risk profile.
"Transport sectors have been trying to promote active travel mainly to reduce congestion, air
pollution, and the proliferation of automobile related infrastructure," he said.
"Such efforts can be further supported by producing a compelling body of evidence on the adverse health impact of prolonged time spent in cars."
CUT DOWN SCREEN TIME AT MEALS
Eating meals in front of an electronic device can harm your health, experts warn.
Australians need to cut down the screen time, sit down to dinner with family or friends, be aware of portion sizes, and enjoy and savour every meal.
Cancer Council's Everyday Health Survey found a third of Queenslanders eat a meal in front of a TV, computer, phone or tablet every day, while more than half do it at least four times a week and eight per cent for every meal.
"Mindless eating increases the risk of being overweight or obese, which leads to the development of a range of chronic diseases, including some cancers," said spokeswoman Katie Clift.
People may be eating larger portions than necessary if they're not paying attention to their food while sitting down to a meal.
Children need to learn from a young age to eat slowly and recognise when they are full to avoid overeating, Ms Clift said.
STROKE RISKS
Air pollution has emerged as a leading risk factor for stroke worldwide, says a NZ-led study.
It was associated with about a third of the global burden of stroke in 2013.
But the analysis also found that modifying behaviours such as smoking, poor diet and low physical activity would prevent about three-quarters of all strokes.
The analysis of global trends of risk factors for stroke between 1990-2013 was published in The Lancet Neurology journal.
Every year, approximately 15 million people worldwide suffer a stroke.
Nearly six million of them die and five million are left with permanent disability such as loss of vision and/or speech, paralysis and confusion.
