Scientists develop sensor to sniff out cancer cells

Washington: Scientists claim to have developed a sensor array system which can "smell" different cancer types in the same way a human nose can identify and remember different odours.

Researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst have developed a sensor array system of gold nanoparticles and proteins to detect microscopic levels of many different metastatic cell types in living tissue.

In a pre-clinical non-small-cell lung cancer metastasis model in mice developed by Frank Jirik and colleagues at the University of Calgary, Vincent Rotello`s team at UMass Amherst used the array sensor system to "smell" different odours.

The new work builds on Rotello and colleagues` earlier development of a "chemical nose" array of nanoparticles and polymers able to differentiate between normal cells and cancerous ones.

"With this tool, we can now actually detect and identify metastasised tumour cells in living animal tissue rapidly and effectively using the `nose` strategy," researchers said.

"We were the first group to use this approach in cells, which is relatively straightforward. Now we`ve done it in tissues and organs, which are very much more complex. With this advance, we`re much closer to the promise of a general diagnostic test," researchers said in a statement.

Until now the standard method for precisely identifying cancer cells used a biological receptor approach, a protein binding to a cancer cell wall.

Its major drawback is that one must know the appropriate receptor beforehand. Rotello used an array of gold nanoparticle sensors plus green fluorescent protein (GFP) that activates in response to patterns in the proteins found in cancer cells within minutes, assigning a unique signature to each cancer.

"We can tune or teach our nanoparticle array to recognise many healthy tissues, so it can immediately recognise something that`s even a little bit `off,` that is, very subtly different from normal," Rotello said.

The study was published in the journal ACS Nano.
News BY:india.com

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US approves new once-a-day pill to treat HIV

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A new pill to treat HIV infection -- combining two previously approved drugs plus two new ones -- has been approved for adults living with the virus that causes AIDS, US regulators said Monday.

The single daily dose of Stribild provides a complete treatment regimen for HIV infection, the US Food and Drug Administration said in a statement, and is meant for people who have not already received treatment with other HIV drugs.
"Through continued research and drug development, treatment for those infected with HIV has evolved from multi-pill regimens to single-pill regimens," said Edward Cox, director of the Office of Antimicrobial Products in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.
"New combination HIV drugs like Stribild help simplify treatment regimens."
The new pill, previously called Quad, is made by Gilead Sciences in California and "should be available to patients by the end of the week," company spokeswoman Erin Rau told AFP.
The company said it tested the pill in two double-blind clinical trials of more than 1,400 patients.
Results showed that Stribild performed as well or better than two other treatment combinations, and brought virus readings down to undetectable levels in around nine of 10 patients after 48 weeks.
"Therapies that address the individual needs of patients are critical to enhancing adherence and increasing the potential for treatment success," Gilead chief John Martin said in a company statement.
But some advocates say the new pill is priced far too high.
"We wanted to see (a price of) no more than the current drug," said Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, referring to Gilead's previously approved three-in-one pill, Atripla. But he said the price will be about a third higher than the three-pill combo.
The new drug "is not a significant improvement over existing therapies," Weinstein told AFP, adding the cost will "severely limit access" to the new medication.
Gilead is charging wholesalers $28,500 a year for the drug, but said it will provide discounts to state assistance programs and has created a patient financial-assistance program, Rau said.
This is Gilead's third single-tablet anti-HIV combination therapy, the company noted, adding it is still seeking approval for the newest offering in Australia, Canada and the European Union.
To get the drug to HIV patients in the developing world, where millions lack access to effective treatment options, generic versions are being developed -- with permission and help from Gilead -- by a number of Indian manufacturers and the Medicines Patent Pool, a non-profit that helps facilitate generic drug-making.
The drug combines Truvada -- another Gilead offering approved in 2004, that combines emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate to fight an enzyme that HIV needs to replicate -- with elvitegravir, another enzyme-fighting drug, and cobicistat, which enhances the effects of elvitegravir.
The FDA said further study is required to determine the quad-drug's safety for women and children, how resistance may develop, and whether the drug interacts with other drugs.
Stribild will also be required to carry a label warning patients and health care providers the drug can cause fatal side effects, including severe liver problems, and a build-up of lactic acid in the blood. The FDA said the label is also required for many other HIV-fighting drugs.
But Gilead said that during the studies, "most adverse effects were mild to moderate." The FDA said patients commonly experienced nausea and diarrhea.
The drug also weakened bones and caused or worsened kidney problems -- both of which will be mentioned in a warning on the drug's label.
Truvada was previously approved as a treatment for people infected with HIV to be used in combination with other antiretroviral drugs.
In July, it was also approved for use by healthy at-risk adults to prevent HIV, the first-ever daily pill approved for that purpose.
This year, the FDA also approved the first rapid HIV test that can be bought without a prescription and taken at home.
nss/vlk
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Lilly Alzheimer's drug trial yields promising sign

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A treatment for Alzheimer's disease from drugmaker Eli Lilly yielded promising signs in late-stage research, even though the drug failed to slow mental decline in two separate studies of patients with mild-to-moderate cases of the mind-robbing condition.

The Indianapolis drugmaker's shares climbed nearly 6 percent, or $2.50, to $44.90 Friday in pre-market trading.

Alzheimer's disease has no cure, and many patients typically live four to eight years after diagnosis, as the disease gradually erodes their memory and ability to think or perform simple tasks.

Eli Lilly and Co. said Friday its treatment, solanezumab, failed to slow mental or cognitive decline in two late-stage studies. But combined data from both trials showed a statistically significant slowing of cognitive decline, as did a subgroup of patients with mild cases of the disease. Cognitive function involves memory.

Lilly said it will discuss the results with regulators and plan the next steps.

Current Alzheimer's treatments only temporarily ease symptoms such as memory loss, confusion and agitation. They don't slow, stop or reverse mental decline.

Drugmakers have tried and failed for years to develop successful treatments for the disease, and patients and doctors are anxious for any signs of promise. Analysts have said an approved treatment that slows the disease's progression could be worth billions of dollars in sales.

Earlier this month, Pfizer Inc. and Johnson & Johnson said they will end development of an intravenous version of their potential Alzheimer's treatment, bapineuzumab, after two late-stage studies showed it worked no better than a placebo in patients with mild-to-moderate cases.

News By:yahoonews.com

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Fewer circumcisions could cost the US billions: study

As debate rages over the ethics of infant circumcision, a study published Monday said falling rates of the once-routine procedure in the United States could cost billions of dollars in health costs.

"We find that each circumcision not performed will lead to $313 of increased expenditures over that lifetime," said senior investigator Aaron Tobian, of the Johns Hopkins University team that did the study.

The number pits health care costs if the boy is circumcised -- about $291 for the procedure -- against the projected cost of treating infections or cancers that studies have shown are more likely if he is not.

In all, the nearly 25 percent drop in circumcisions since the 1980s could run up a tab of about $2 billion in health care costs, the study found.
And if US circumcision rates were to drop as low as one in 10, the average across Europe, the research team estimated the associated rise in medical expenses would total $4.4 billion over the lifetimes of a decade of babies.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, about 79 percent of all baby boys were circumcised in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
But in 2010, that number dropped to just below 55 percent.
The decrease comes amid an outcry from so-called "intactivists" who argue that circumcision is an unnecessary mutilation of baby boys who have no ability to consent.
And circumcisions may become even more rare as a number of states stop covering the procedure in their Medicaid programs -- the public health insurance programs for low income Americans.
Most recently, Colorado and South Carolina joined 16 other states that decline to fund infant circumcision.
In a memo announcing the change in December 2010, South Carolina said it was part of a package to save money, adding that "medically-necessary circumcisions" will still be covered with prior approval.
In California, where the Medicaid program has declined to pay for circumcisions for more than a decade, activists recently tried to get a measure on November's election ballot that would ban circumcision entirely -- a move blocked by the state's governor, with a law outlawing the ban.
-- Keep circumcision routine --
But Tobian said that science indicates all circumcisions are medically "very beneficial and valuable."

"If there were a vaccine to prevent HIV acquisition, genital herpes, HPV, penile and cervical cancer, bacterial vaginosis and trichomoniasis, the medical community would rally behind this intervention as a game-changing tool to reduce sexually transmitted infections."

And that is just what circumcision, a procedure to remove the foreskin, does, according to three randomized trials, "the gold standard of medical evidence," he maintained.
Critics argue circumcision is medically invasive and less effective than safe sex practices, such as using condoms, at reducing sexually transmitted infections.
Tobian agreed that condoms are highly effective, but contended they are not used enough.
"In the United States, we've had three decades of safe sex education, but just last year, there were 19 million new sexually transmitted infections that cost our health care system $17 billion."
He could not say whether Europe, with its long-standing lower rates of male circumcision, has a correspondingly higher rate of the sexually-transmitted infections and their associated medical costs.
It is too difficult a comparison because "we have very different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds and different transmission dynamics," he said.
He also took issue with opponents who argue the procedure is a form of genital mutilation.
He cited a study in Kenya that asked men who were circumcised as adults to compare their sexual satisfaction before and after the procedure. More than half said they noticed "increased penile sensation and enhanced ease of reaching an orgasm with a circumcision."
Tobian and his team urge all state Medicaid programs and private insurers to cover male circumcision. They also suggest that the American Academy of Pediatrics should include a recommendation that all infant boys be circumcised.
The World Health Organization has recommended male circumcision as an "efficacious intervention for HIV prevention in countries and regions with heterosexual epidemics, high HIV and low male circumcision prevalence," according to its website.
The study was published Monday in the "Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine."
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EU to Consider Plain-packaging Law for Tobacco

The European Commission could shortly make legislative proposals to move towards plain packaging for tobacco products.

After a ground-breaking Australian court ruling requiring cigarettes and other tobacco products to be sold in un-branded uniform packaging with graphic health warnings from December 1, a spokesman for the EU executive said "the Commission is following this development in Australia closely."

"We are working on a proposal to revise the (EU) tobacco products directive" later in the year, Antony Gravili told a regular news briefing, underlining that "many things are being discussed including the possibility of plain packaging."

He added, referring to graphic health warnings currently required on the reverse of branded packets in Europe: "One of the things we're looking at is for example making the image on the package larger."

Australia said Thursday it has no plans to ban smoking after the High Court of Australia ruling in response to a manufacturers' challenge.

However, the World Health Organization, which blames smoking for six million deaths per year, expressed its hope that the decision taken in Australia would trigger a global "domino effect."

States including Canada and New Zealand are already looking at similar measures.

The autonomous government in Scotland, after Ireland one of the first to ban smoking in public places in Europe, was already due to outlaw all tobacco product display at point-of-sale in October last year.

Edinburgh is hoping to be able to announce a new date soon, having been forced to delay its plans amid legal challenges from big manufacturers.

Australia is still facing action at the World Trade Organization over the plan from Ukraine, Honduras and the Dominican Republic, as well as an investment treaty lawsuit filed by Philip Morris Asia in Hong Kong.

Legal experts warned that the Hong Kong case was "particularly concerning" because Australia's bilateral investment treaty with the Chinese territory did not have special clauses for public health measures as seen in WTO agreements.
News BY:medindia.net

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Chocolate can be good for you: EU regulator

 

 

SUMMARY: The Swiss group, Barry Callebaut, which supplies food companies such as Nestle and Hershey with cocoa and chocolate products, said on Tuesday it had provided evidence to EFSA that eating 10 grammes of dark chocolate or its equivalent in cocoa that were high in flavanols helped blood flow.

 

 

ZURICH (Reuters) - The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has ruled that cocoa powder and dark chocolate can help people improve blood circulation - a claim made by Barry Callebaut, the world's largest maker of chocolate products.
The Swiss group, which supplies food companies such as Nestle and Hershey with cocoa and chocolate products, said on Tuesday it had provided evidence to EFSA that eating 10 grammes of dark chocolate or its equivalent in cocoa that were high in flavanols helped blood flow.
If the European Commission signs off on the EFSA ruling, the company and its customers would have the right to use the health claim on packaging for products such as chocolate drinks, cereal bars and biscuits, the company said.
"As the first company receiving such a health claim, we see new market potential both for us and for our customers," Chief Executive Juergen Steinemann said in a statement.
For the clinical studies it conducted to back up the claim, Barry Callebaut said it used a special process to make cocoa products that maintains the flavanols, which are usually mostly destroyed during conventional chocolate-making.
In an opinion posted on the EFSA website, a scientific panel concluded that a cause and effect relationship had been established between the consumption of cocoa flavanols and the maintenance of normal vasodilation, which aids blood flow.
A string of scientific studies in recent years have shown the potential for health benefits from eating chocolate. Research last year suggested it might be associated with a one-third reduction in the risk of developing heart disease.
The European Union has been clamping down on health claims for food products, approving only some 200 out of over 2,500 applications earlier this year and giving food companies until the end of 2012 to remove any rejected claims.

News By : healthnews.com

 

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How to lose belly fat: Diet Plans

Diet plays a vital role in shaping our bodies, be it a maintaining a sleek belly or maintaining the right physique. Following a well planned dieting structure accelerates the result of losing belly fat by a good margin. The tips which we are going to share with you can be practiced as a standalone practise or can be integrated with your fitness schedule. Over and above these tips should be a part of your general diet plan to maintain a clean and healthy lifestyle. Let’s hit to the tips section now.
1.Eat several small meals
We call these meals as break meals. Remember eating in small regular intervals leads to better absorption of the food and does not cause dizziness as opposed to eating heavy mealy 3 times a day. Prepare a schedule where you have food intake in small amount multiple times a day. This way you are not only putting lesser load on your stomach but also making sure the food is well absorbed without any symptoms of dizziness.
2.Increase your intake of fluids
A well hydrated body is the key to a healthy and active lifestyle. Water acts as the local transporter of nutrient and other vital minerals to various part of the body. Any decrease in the fluid levels and your liver starts suffering. In order to lose belly fat make sure you drink at least 3.5 litres of water every day. Just to make sure what we mean by the right fluid is water and fresh juices. Make sure you don’t count soft drinks, alcohol and other rich sugar content drinks as healthy fluids and try to avoid including them in your diet list.
3.Consume fat burning foods
If you are serious about burning fat of your body then fibre rich food and protein rich food should be your best friends. All three of them are important for your body and accelerates in burning the extra fat of your body. Hence make sure you include them in your diet plans. Fibre rich food like berries and oatmeal helps in managing a healthy stomach but at the same time helps in burning the fat of your body. Protein rich food such as seafood, lean meats, eggs and others builds your body and burns a lot of fat.
4.Include salad and fruits in your dieting plan
Salads and fruits are very important source of fibre and acts in maintaining a healthy stomach so please include them in your diet plan. We will not suggest you to have breakfast or lunches based out of just salad and fruits but rather include them with your normal diet and you will observe the difference in your health quickly and hopefully it will be better than your expectations. Green salad and fiber rich fruits like berries and bananas are very helpful in achieving your goal of a flat stomach.
5.Avoid junk foods, soft drinks and alcohol
If the above items were ‘yes’ then these are definitely a ‘no’; in fact, a big ‘NO’ to junk foods and soft drinks. Junk foods and soft drinks are rich sources of carbohydrates and lead to piling of fat in your belly. They put a lot of load on your stomach and leads to the chances of decreased hydration levels in your body.
More - Lose Belly Fat

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Fat Lose :: Top 5 best exercises to lose belly fat

Who doesn't want flat abs? People desperate to lose weight will willingly starve themselves, take expensive supplements or do the latest fad diet that promises to give them that flawless figure in 30 days. Thankfully, belly fat is metabolically active and easier to lose. However, if proper nutrition is not observed and the resort is made to low calorie diets, weight loss may not happen within the desired time frame. Hunger and calorie deprivation will eventually kick in and dieters confronted with that favorite food they have been avoiding will have the tendency to binge at the first opportunity. The likelihood of gaining more weight than they originally lost is not far-fetched.

According to Christine Rosenbloom, a nutrition professor at Georgia State University, eating a calorie-controlled diet and 60 minutes of daily moderate exercise activity will result to weight loss and can even help with the desired weight maintenance. In fact, according to Professor Michael Jensen of the Mayo Clinic, intense aerobic exercise will result to being leaner around the abdomen.

It is important to remember that keeping the body's metabolism up and running so that the body continuously burns calories prevents it from going into the fat-storing mode that causes unnecessary weight gain.

Why exercise is necessary

Most people involved in weight loss believe that it's all about the calories. If you burn calories more than you take in, you lose weight. If you take in more calories than you can burn, the body gains fat. While this piece of logic may make sense, it is only partly true. What burns calories nonstop is actually the lean muscle mass underneath body fat that allows more intake of calories without weight gain.

The body actually adapts to the changes it undergoes. Losing weight without exercising increases the risk of losing lean body mass, slowing the metabolism and putting the body into fat-storing mode. People who have lost body fat and muscle mass may notice that they don't have the muscle mass they once had. Worse yet, once they overeat even a little bit, they start filling up on body fat once again.

Building up muscle mass

An important thing to remember when undergoing a weight loss program is to understand what needs to be done. Realistic and achievable goals can help in building the confidence needed to make the necessary leap for the achievement of a desired weight.

Researchers at the Biomechanics Lab at San Diego State University took a look at some popular abdominal exercises and ranked them. Results of the study revealed that exercises that require constant abdominal stabilization and body rotation resulted in the most muscle activity in the abdomen.

Below are the top five belly exercises as ranked by the study:

1. The Bicycle Exercise - best for targeting the six pack muscles and the obliques. To do this exercise, get into a supine position with hands at the back of your head. Bring knees to the chest while lifting shoulders off the floor. Slowly bring your right elbow towards your left knee as you straighten your right leg. Switch sides and continue in a pedaling motion. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

2. The Captain's Chair Leg Raise - This exercise requires a captain's chair, a rack with padded arms allowing for the legs to hang free that is commonly found in gyms or health clubs. To do this exercise, stand on the chair and grip hand holds. Press back against the pad then raise knees to the chest to contract the abs then lower them back down. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

3. Exercise Ball Crunch - For this exercise, an exercise ball is necessary. In this routine, the abdomen does more exerting but will still need the entire body to stabilize it throughout the routine. To do this exercise, lie on the ball with your lower back fully supported. Place hands behind the head. To lift the torso off the ball, contract the abs to pull the bottom of the rib cage towards the hips. Keep ball stable as you curl up, then lower back down to stretch the abs. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

4. Vertical Leg Crunch - Performing this exercise is similar to doing a leg crunch except that the legs are straight up, forcing the abs to work and adding intensity to the routine. To do this, lie on the floor with the legs straight up, knees crossed, and place the hands beneath the head for support. Contract abs lifting the shoulders off the floor and keep legs in a fixed position to crunch. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

5. Long Arm Crunch - This is a variant of the traditional floor crunch where the arms are held straight behind you, adding a lever to the move and making for a challenging exercise. To do this, lie on the floor or a mat then extend arms straight behind, keeping them clasped and next to the ears. Slowly contract abs and lift shoulders off the floor carefully to keep the arms straight. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

The best strategy to weight loss is to observe a healthy diet coupled with exercise of at least an hour a day. Although there is no sure fire way to deal with belly fat, there are a number of activities from which to choose and enjoy. As long as you're having fun, you can lose weight without realizing it. It is important to look for an exercise you enjoy. If the suggested exercises above do not suit your taste, taking a hike, swimming or biking are just as effective in burning fat and toning muscles.

Sources for this article include:

http://exercise.about.com/od/weightloss/u/weightlossbasics.htm
http://exercise.about.com/od/abs/ss/abexercises_10.htm
http://www.naturalnews.com/011285.html
http://www.acefitness.org/getfit/studies/BestWorstAbExercises.pdf

Learn more: Natural News

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Vitamin D and calcium slashes risk of skin cancer by 50 percent

(NaturalNews) Another study has verified the outstanding health benefits of taking vitamin D and calcium, this one showing that the supplements can reduce a womans risk of developing skin cancer by as much as 50 percent.

"It looks like there is some promising evidence for vitamin D and calcium for prevention of melanoma in a high-risk group," lead researcher Dr. Jean Tang, an assistant professor of dermatology at Stanford University School of Medicine told USA Today.

The researchers said women most at risk for developing the cancer are those who have prior non-melanoma forms of skin cancer. That would include basal cell or squamous cell cancer, they said.

And while calcium and vitamin D have long been known to aid in the growth of bones, researchers increasingly are finding that they also affect other cells. For instance, prior studies have found that calcium and vitamin D can help lower incidences of prostate, colon, breast and other cancers.

Dr. Tang speculated that cancer cells may have been present in the skin of women who have had prior non-melanoma cancer but that taking "calcium and vitamin D... reduces the risk of developing and actual tumor.


She said taking as little as 400 IU (international units) of vitamin D every day could be preventative, though the U.S. Institute of Medicine currently recommends 600 IU daily.

And while she said she wasn't sure which - the calcium or vitamin D - was most effective, the two seemed to work well in combination. It could be that calcium plays a role because it's been shown to reduce the growth of tumors in patients with colon cancer.

This latest study is just more proof of vitamin D's positive effects on overall health.

One recent study found that low vitamin D levels tend to be linked to more aggressive breast cancers, as well as a higher risk of recurrence.


"Many oncologists are already following vitamin D levels in their breast cancer patients and recommending supplements for low levels," said Dr. Laurie Kirstein, a breast surgeon at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City. "To link vitamin D levels to the aggressiveness of a particular type of breast cancer is an interesting finding."

Besides cancers, vitamin D has also been found to help control and prevent depression, osteoporosis and can even have positive effects on obesity and diabetes.

As for vitamin D deficiency, that, too, has been an ongoing subject of study. A growing body of research has shown that deficiencies of this valuable supplement can lead to a variety of problems.

Low vitamin D levels, for instance, can affect newborns as well. A Dutch study has found that low vitamin D levels in newborns makes them six times more likely to develop RSV, or Respiratory Syncytial Virus, which is the primary cause of serious lung infections during a baby's first months of life.

Vitamin D deficiency is also linked to childhood obesity, according to a University of Pittsburgh study that tracked 200 white, black, obese and non-obese patients from age eight through 18.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/033073_vitamin_D_skin_cancer.html#ixzz20sOmFTjp

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Healthy Diet :: 10 ways to makeover your diet

Tips to improve your diet

Keeping a balanced diet is essential for a healthy lifestyle - choosing enough of each of the different food groups will mean that you will look and feel better, and have more energy for day-to-day life.  We are not talking strict regimes; you can make your diet healthier with a few little changes. We've come up with 10 rules to follow that will improve your diet - without you even noticing...

Rule 1 - Always eat breakfast

After fasting all night, kick-start your body's engine with some good quality food. If you ever feel lethargic in the morning, or skip breakfast and are ravenous by 10am, you will feel 100 per cent better if you have some food when you get up. Top of the breakfast options is porridge, perhaps topped with some fresh or dried fruit. Porridge will provide you with sustained energy and cancel out the 10am 'munchies'.

Rule 2 - Go for '20 per day'

Try and eat 20 different, healthy foods each day to ensure that you are fuelling your body with a broad range of different nutrients. A diet rich in variety will guarantee that you are getting the full complement of vitamins, minerals and trace elements - and will make your meals more interesting too. Try introducing two new foods to your shopping trolley every week.

Rule 3 - Stay hydrated

Symptoms of dehydration include unusual fatigue, dizziness, hunger, dry skin, dark urine and general lethargy. When you consider that the majority of our bodies are made up from water, topping up your body's fluid intake with water and natural fluids (for example: fruit juice) is extremely important.

Rule 4 - Plan your meals

Write a shopping list and stick to it - this aims to banish your bad eating habits and stops you from giving into your cravings. Also, never shop when you're hungry, as this is a fatal error that inevitably leads you to stuffing your shopping trolley full of junk!

Rule 5 - Eat protein with complex carbohydrates

Combining these food groups in the correct proportions will ensure you receive a steady flow of energy, as the body converts foods relatively slowly into glucose. You can then avoid triggering insulin production therefore minimising the potential for your body to store food as fat.

Rule 6 - Use the 80:20 approach

It would take a superhuman to follow a perfectly healthy diet all of the time and its absolutely acceptable to 'stray' every now and then. Try to keep up your good habits at least 80 per cent of the time, allowing you to stray for 20 per cent. This approach allows you the flexibility to enjoy life without being too restrictive, but still helps you to adopt healthy habits for the majority of the time.

Rule 7 - Add some exercise

Like it or not, exercise and a healthy diet do need to go hand-in-hand if you want to get results. As a minimum you should be aiming for 30-minutes of exercise three times a week.  But remember cleaning the car, the house or even the dog can contribute to your daily quota; if it makes you slightly out of breath and sweaty - you are working your heart and lungs.

Rule 8 - Make time to eat

If you allow the time to savour and enjoy your meal it's not only more beneficial to your digestive health, but it will also allow your body the time to recognise that it's full. It takes around 20 minutes of eating before the body begins to feel signs of satiety, so make sure you take the time at every meal.

Rule 9 - Avoid eating late at night

Many people have an 'end-of-day load' approach to their food intake, sometimes eating a large evening meal at 9pm, having eaten very sparingly throughout the day. Effectively they have starved themselves during their period of maximum activity and when they get home they are extremely hungry and eat a very large meal before going to bed.

Rule 10 - Avoid sugar

Where possible try to avoid sugary foods. The best way to reduce your sugar intake is to do so gradually, weaning yourself off so that your cravings subside. By taking simple steps and being vigilant about ingredients, you'll see the benefits in no time and seriously reduce the risks of disease, weight gain and tooth decay. Pretty sweet, eh?

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Must-eat foods for a healthy diet

Foods to boost your health

Many people believe that the crux of a healthy diet is the exclusion of unhealthy foods. However, a good diet should also incorporate an increased intake of nutritious, health-boosting foods. Here are 10 of the best foods for healthy eaters to stock up on.

Beans

From the macrobiotic to the student, many diets rely on the humble bean in its dry, tinned or baked form - and this could be great news for our health. Studies have found that beans are not only excellent weight-loss and energy foods, but they are a great source of antioxidants, protein and nutrients (such as iron, manganese and B vitamins). Beans are also an excellent source of soluble fibre, which can help to reduce cholesterol, stabilize blood sugar and improve the digestive system, while a study by scientists at the University College of London showed that beans can also help prevent cancer.

Tomatoes

With many people turning to expensive "superfoods" to safeguard their health, basic salad ingredients such as the tomato are often overlooked for their health-giving properties. However, a 2008 publication of collated research findings - The Red Bodyguard by Ron Levin and Gerald Cheshire - demonstrated the health properties of this common fruit. Some benefits attributed to eating the tomato included a strengthened immune system, better heart health, the neutralising of free radicals and safeguarding of disease (including cancer) and the prevention of blood clots.

Nuts

Although nuts are high in calories and so should be eaten in moderation, the calories in nuts come mainly from their high levels of monounsaturated fats, which are extremely good for health. Eating foods rich in these fats can help reduce bad cholesterol and lower your risk of heart disease and stroke. As well as their heart benefits, nuts are also a great source of protein and are packed with fibre, antioxidants, fatty acids and vitamins and minerals. It is worth noting that peanuts are actually legumes and have different nutritional properties from tree nuts, but there are many other good options to pick from including Brazil nuts, cashews, walnuts, pecans and pistachios.

Oily fish

Oily fish - such as salmon, mackerel, sardines and trout - are renowned for their health benefits when eaten in moderation (between two and four portions a week). Not only are they a great source of vitamins and minerals - including immune-boosting vitamins A and D - but they are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. These super healthy unsaturated fatty acids have many health benefits, having been linked to a lowered risk of heart disease, brain damage, stroke, dementia and prostate cancer. Research findings published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology also suggest that omega-3 fatty acids can benefit eye health by halting the progress of age-related macular degeneration.

Beetroot

Beetroot is one of the latest vegetables to be hailed as a 'superfood', and looking at its reported health benefits it is easy to see why. Various studies have suggested that drinking beetroot juice can improve stamina when exercising, lower cholesterol and blood pressure, improve heart health and liver function, reduce risk of dementia, and fight against cancer. The versatile vegetable is also a good source of many vitamins and minerals, including vitamin C, which is important for tissue growth and repair, and folate, which helps to reduce the risk of birth defects in unborn babies, as well as helping to prevent anaemia.

Onions

The onion family (part of the genus Allium) contains many foods that may do wonders for our health including onion, garlic, leeks and chives. Studies have suggested that both onions and garlic can help lower cholesterol, while findings published in the Journal of Nutrition showed that onions could help lower blood pressure.  Onions and garlic also have antiviral and antibacterial properties, so can help to fight against bacteria and illness in the body, while a study by researchers at the King's College London and the University of East Anglia found that eating foods from the onion family could help prevent hip osteoarthritis.

Dark, leafy greens

Dark, leafy greens such as spinach, watercress and kale are automatically associated with healthy eating for many due to the "eat your greens mantra" that has been drummed into our heads over the years. However, this faith in the health properties of green veg is well-founded, as these vegetables are bursting with nutrients including iron, calcium, potassium and vitamin C, and packed with health-boosting phytonutrients. Some of the reputed health benefits of eating your greens include lowered blood pressure, improved eye health and a reduced risk of cognitive decline.

More healthy diet 

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Death toll of gas reservoir blast in Afghan capital rises to 8

Kabul, July 5 (Xinhua-ANI): The death toll from Wednesday's propane gas reservoir explosion has risen to eight, a health official said Thursday.

"The death toll of a gas reservoir explosion which broke out in Pul-e-Charkhi industrial park east of Kabul late Wednesday has raised to eight killed and 83 other injured," a spokesman for the Afghan Public Health Ministry, Ghulam Sakhi Gargar, told Xinhua.

He said the number of the deaths could further go up as some 20 injured remain in critical conditions with severe burns.

Meantime, General Mohammad Zahir, head of Criminal Investigation Department of Kabul Police, told local media that 155 people were injured in the incident.

The fire also damaged several industrial buildings and companies and residential houses around the area.

An electrical short circuit is believed to be the cause of the explosion, police said.

The tragedy was considered one of the worst fire incidents in Kabul in recent years.

It is the second fire in Kabul within a week. In the previous incident a gas cylinder explosion caused a huge fire in a market in Khir Khana area leaving three people dead and injuring 28 others on Tuesday. (Xinhua-ANI)

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Diseases from animals hit over 2 billion people a year

LONDON (Reuters) - A global study mapping human diseases that come from animals like tuberculosis, AIDS, bird flu or Rift Valley fever has found that just 13 such diseases are responsible for 2.4 billion cases of human illness and 2.2 million deaths a year.

The vast majority of infections and deaths from so-called zoonotic diseases are in poor or middle-income countries, but "hotspots" are also cropping up in the United States and Europe where diseases are newly infecting humans, becoming particularly virulent, or are developing drug resistance.

And exploding global demand for livestock products means the problem is likely to get worse, researchers said.

"From cyst-causing tapeworms to avian flu, zoonoses present a major threat to human and animal health," said Delia Grace, a veterinary epidemiologist and food safety expert with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Kenya and lead author of the study.

She said targeting these diseases in the hardest hit countries is crucial to protecting global health, and failing to tackle them would allow demand for meat products to "fuel the spread of a wide range of human-animal infectious diseases."

The study, conducted by the ILRI, the Institute of Zoology in Britain and the Hanoi School of Public Health in Vietnam, mapped livestock-keeping and diseases humans get from animals, and drew up a list of the top 20 geographical hotspots.

It found that Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Tanzania, as well as India have the highest zoonotic disease burdens, with widespread illness and death.
It also found the United States and Europe - especially Britain - Brazil and parts of Southeast Asia may be becoming hotspots of "emerging zoonoses", which are infecting humans for the first time, are especially virulent or are becoming drug resistant.

The report studied so-called endemic zoonoses which cause the vast majority of illness and death in poor countries.

One such disease is brucellosis, also known as Bang's diseases or Mediterranean fever, which is a highly contagious zoonosis people catch by consuming unsterilised milk or meat from infected animals.

The researchers estimated that about one in eight livestock in poor countries are affected by brucellosis. As well as threatening people with disease, this also reduces milk and meat production in cattle by around 8 percent.

The study also looked at epidemic zoonoses, which typically occur as outbreaks - such as anthrax and Rift Valley fever - and at the relatively rarer emerging zoonoses like bird flu. A few of these, like HIV/AIDS and H1N1 swine flu, have shown the ability to spread to cause pandemics.

While zoonoses can be transmitted to people by either wild or domesticated animals, most human infections are acquired from the world's 24 billion livestock, including pigs, poultry, cattle, goats, sheep and camels.

The study initially looked at 56 zoonoses that together are responsible for around 2.5 billion cases of human illness and 2.7 million human deaths per year.

It then zoomed in on the 13 most important, and found high levels of infection with these in livestock in poor countries.

Some 27 percent of livestock in developing countries showed signs of current or past infection with bacterial food-borne disease - a source of food contamination and widespread illness.

The researchers estimated at least a third of the world's cases of diarrhoeal disease are caused by animal-human diseases and said this was the biggest zoonotic threat to public health.

John McDermott, director of the CGIAR research program on agriculture for nutrition and health led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), said that in booming livestock sectors in developing nations the fastest growing areas are poultry and pigs - putting the potential disease risk emphasis on flu.

"Historically, high-density pig and poultry populations have been important in maintaining and mixing influenza populations," he said in a statement accompanying the study.

"A major concern is that as new livestock systems intensify, particularly small- and medium-sized pig production ... more intensive systems will allow the maintenance and transmission of pathogens. A number of new zoonoses ... have emerged in that way."

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Scientists develop new animal model to tackle liver disease

Washington, July 5 (IANS) Scientists have developed lab opossums as the new animal model to tackle the most common liver disease afflicting up to 15 million Americans for which there is no cure.

These animals were selectively bred for high and low responsiveness to dietary lipids to study the liver disease condition known as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

NASH resembles alcoholic liver disease, but occurs in people who drink little or no alcohol. The major feature of NASH is accumulation of fat in the liver, along with inflammation and functional damage, the American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology reports.

Jeannie Chan of Texas Biomed, who led the study said: "The opossum is a new animal model for investigating the mechanism by which cholesterol mediates liver injury, which will lead to a better understanding of the role of dietary cholesterol in the development of NASH," according to a Texas statement.

Most people with NASH feel well and are not aware that they have a liver problem. Nevertheless, NASH can progress to cirrhosis, in which the liver is permanently damaged and no longer able to work properly. NASH-related cirrhosis is the fourth most common indication for liver transplantation in the US.

NASH affects roughly six million to 15 million people. An additional 15 to 30 percent have excess fat in their livers, but no inflammation or liver damage, a condition called "fatty liver" or the non-progressive form of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Both NASH and NAFLD are becoming more common, possibly because of the greater number of Americans with obesity and its important health complications, type 2 diabetes, high blood cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and other risk factors for heart attack and stroke.

High responding opossums developed elevated cholesterol and fatty liver disease when fed a high cholesterol and high fat diet, whereas low responding opossums did not.

"We showed that the fatty livers of high responders contain a tremendous amount of cholesterol," said Chan.

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Titillating tips to seduce women to bed

New York, July 5 (ANI): Cosmopolitan magazines have offered some terrible sex tips for men, ranging from identifying women on birth control pill to how sweat can arouse women for sex.

Figuring out whether a woman is on the pill or not may help guys avoid unwanted pregnancy.

According to Men's Health, women on birth control blink 32 percent more than those who aren't, Jezebel reported.

During this time men are advised to put on their toughest, most confident mug as they look at women. Because of the shift in hormone levels, research says, women on the Pill are more attracted to men with rugged features, such as strong, wide jaws."

"Stroke her forearm first. This area of the arm is packed with pleasure nerves that respond best to a touch travelling 1 to 10 centimetres per second... [to stimulate] an area of the brain associated with trust and affection," the mag suggests.

Men who sweat can make use of this opportunity to turn a woman on, as your post-run sweat has androstadienone, which spikes her arousal when she smells it.
If you want to know whether she is ready for sex or not, slowly and firmly flick your tongue against the palm of her hand. If she wipes it off down her skirt, your chance is gone.
You can also guess from the position of her feet. If she moves her feet away from her body, adopting a more open-legged stance, you're golden. But if she crosses her legs or tucks them under her body, then you better clear up your intention.
As in case of foods, "According to new research, the smell of toast is a serious mood booster."
Eat some chocolate - it's caffeinated and so "can jolt the sex drive." It's packed with phenylethylamine, which can "activate the brain's pleasure centers."

Another interesting and easiest tip is sexting. "Girls like explicit texts, too. So next time you're bored waiting in a queue for lunch, text her the rudest, naughtiest thing you can possibly think of and inform her of when exactly you plan to do it."ast but not the least: girls are as turned on by taking pictures as you guys are from receiving them. (ANI)

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Diet Plan :: Three day diet plan to slim your waist and get you healthy

US women have always battled the old waistline, but new findings show we're all creeping over the healthy mark and need to get those tummies in check for the good of our health.

-- The average waist size for women in the UK is 4.9cm larger than recommended as healthy, the new research has found.
The survey of 54,000 women carried out by Britain’s largest healthcare charity Nuffield Health shows that the vast majority of women assessed had a waist size in the ‘high health risk’ category.
Not only does this not look great in your bikini, but carrying weight around your middle significantly increases the risk of breast cancer, infertility, not to mention heart and liver disease and type 2 diabetes. Cripes!
So, what’s the key to a trimmer tummy?

Nutritional Therapist, Alison Stork from Nuffield Health recommends a diet that delivers a full range of important vitamins and minerals, which will help keep you full and regulate fat storage.

Lose Belly Fat

Try Alison’s three day tummy trimming plan to kick start that waist weight loss:
Day 1
Breakfast
Porridge with a tablespoon of crushed, mixed seeds (pumpkin, linseed, sunflower)

10 Foods for Fabulous Abs

Yogurt is magic for the tum. Nutritionist Rania Batayneh recommends yogurt, “The probiotic bacteria in most yogurts help keep your digestive system healthy, which translates into a lower incidence of gas, bloating, and constipation, which can keep your tummy looking flat." Ideally go for the plain-flavoured yogurts, that don’t contain added sugars.

Lunch
Vegetable and Lentil Soup
Dinner
Grilled Salmon with salad and new potatoes
Snacks
Plain yoghurt with fresh fruit Day 2
Breakfast
Boiled Egg with a slice of wholemeal toast
Lunch
Jacket sweet potato with hummus and mixed salad
Dinner
Stir fry chicken & vegetables with brown rice
Snacks
Fresh Fruit and a small handful of unroasted, unsalted nuts
Day 3
Breakfast
Fresh fruit with plain yoghurt and a dessertspoon of mixed nuts & Seeds
Lunch
Sardines on toasted rye or wholegrain bread with grilled tomato and a sprinkle of herbs & green salad
Dinner
Lentil Dahl with mixed steamed vegetables
Snacks
Oatcake with cottage cheese
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Early full-term babies may face later school woes

CHICAGO (AP) — Even for infants born full-term, a little more time in the womb may matter.

The extra time results in more brain development, and a study suggests perhaps better scores on academic tests, too.

Full-term is generally between 37 weeks and 41 weeks; newborns born before 37 weeks are called premature and are known to face increased chances for health and developmental problems.
The children in the study were all full-term, and the vast majority did fine on third-grade math and reading tests. The differences were small, but the study found that more kids born at 37 or 38 weeks did poorly than did kids born even a week or two later.

The researchers and other experts said the results suggest that the definition of prematurity should be reconsidered.

The findings also raise questions about hastening childbirth by scheduling cesarean deliveries for convenience — because women are tired of being pregnant or doctors are busy — rather than for medical reasons, the researchers say.

Women should "at least proceed with caution before electing to have an earlier term birth," said lead author Dr. Kimberly Noble, an assistant pediatrics professor at Columbia University Medical Center.

The study involved 128,000 New York City public school children and included a sizable number of kids from disadvantaged families. But the authors said similar results likely would be found in other children, too.

Of the children born at 37 weeks, 2.3 percent had severely poor reading skills and 1.1 percent had at least moderate problems in math. That compares to 1.8 percent and 0.9 percent for the children born at 41 weeks.

Children born at 38 weeks faced only slightly lower risks than those born at 37 weeks.

Compared with 41-weekers, children born at 37 weeks faced a 33 percent increased chance of having severe reading difficulty in third grade, and a 19 percent greater chance of having moderate problems in math.

"These outcomes are critical and predict future academic achievement," said Naomi Breslau, a Michigan State University professor and sociologist. Her own research has linked lower IQs in 6-year-olds born weighing the same as the average birth weights at 37 and 38 weeks' gestation, compared with those born heavier.
The study was published online Monday in Pediatrics.

The research "will cause quite a stir," said Dr. Judy Aschner, a pediatrics professor and neonatology director at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

"There are still a lot of babies who are being delivered more or less electively at 37 and 38 weeks, with people thinking, 'This is no big deal — these babies are full-term.' I think this is a big deal," Aschner said. She was not involved in the study.

Aschner said no one is recommending trying to delay childbirth for women who go into labor at 37 weeks or 38 weeks.

"I don't want to panic moms whose babies come at 37 weeks," she said. "But those elective early deliveries really need to stop."

Some hospitals including Vanderbilt require obstetricians planning elective C-sections to complete a checklist and if appropriate boxes aren't checked, the operation can't be performed, Aschner said.

In the study, 15 percent of children were born in C-section operations but there was no information on how many of these were elective or medically necessary procedures. C-sections can cause birth complications that also increase chances for developmental delays. But the researchers took that into account, along with other risk factors including low birth weight, lack of prenatal care, smoking during pregnancy and neighborhood poverty — all of which could contribute to academic difficulties. And they still found that birth at 37 weeks and 38 weeks was an additional risk.

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GlaxoSmithKline to pay $3B for health fraud

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline will pay $3 billion in fines — the largest health care fraud settlement in U.S. history — for criminal and civil violations involving 10 drugs that are taken by millions of people.

The Justice Department said Monday that GlaxoSmithKline PLC will plead guilty to promoting popular antidepressants Paxil and Wellbutrin for unapproved uses. The company also will plead guilty to failing to report to the government for seven years some safety problems with diabetes drug Avandia, which was restricted in the U.S. and banned in Europe after it was found in 2007 to sharply increase the risks of heart attacks and congestive heart failure.

In addition to the fine, Glaxo agreed to resolve civil liability for promoting Paxil, Wellbutrin, asthma drug Advair and two lesser-known drugs for unapproved uses. The company also resolved accusations that it overcharged the government-funded Medicaid program for some drugs, and that it paid kickbacks to doctors to prescribe several drugs including Flovent for asthma and Valtrex for genital herpes.
Sir Andrew Witty, Glaxo's CEO, expressed regret Monday and said the company has learned "from the mistakes that were made."

This is the latest in a string of settlements related to drug companies putting profits ahead of patients. In recent years, the government has cracked down on drugmakers' tactics, which include marketing medicines for unapproved uses. While doctors are allowed to prescribe medicines for any use, drugmakers cannot promote them in any way that is not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

"Let me be clear, we will not tolerate health care fraud," Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole said Monday during a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington.

Glaxo is scheduled to plead guilty to the criminal charges and have the settlement approved at a hearing Thursday in U.S. District Court in Boston. In addition to the $3 billion penalty — which includes a $1 billion criminal fine and forfeiture and $2 billion to resolve civil claims — Glaxo agreed to be monitored by the government for five years to ensure that it complies with marketing and other rules.

The case against Glaxo was originally brought in January 2003 by two whistleblowers, former Glaxo sales representatives Greg Thorpe and Blair Hamrick. In January 2011, the federal government joined in the case.

Prosecutors said Glaxo illegally promoted Paxil for treating depression in children from 1998 to 2003, even though it wasn't approved for anyone under age 18. The company also promoted Wellbutrin from 1999 through 2003 for weight loss, sexual dysfunction, substance addictions and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, although it was only approved for treatment of major depression.
Starting in 2001, Thorpe reported to his district manager, then to Glaxo's human resources department and finally to Glaxo's chief of global compliance about a number of improper marketing practices. The compliance chief began an internal investigation, which confirmed Thorpe's allegations through various ways including marketing materials and interviews with Hamrick and other sales representatives, according to lawyers for the two men.
Brian Kenney and Tavy Deming, attorneys for the two salesmen, said top management did nothing to stop the illegal practices, pressured Thorpe to resign and later fired Hamrick for allegedly not cooperating with the company's investigation of one kickback allegation.
According to Deming, Hamrick reported that at a 2000 regional meeting of sales representatives in Las Vegas, they were directed to promote Wellbutrin as the drug that makes patients happy, skinny and sexually turned on, part of a catchy national slogan repeated to doctors.
Thorpe said in a statement Monday that he was penalized after he reported kickbacks being paid to doctors and sales reps encouraging doctors to promote drugs for unapproved uses, including using Paxil and Wellbutrin in children.
"In the end, I was told that my concerns were not valid. I was put on leave" after a 24-year career, Thorpe said. He added that he was told to either "take a severance package or go back to work for the same people, doing the same things I had reported to management."
Thorpe and Hamrick — and two other sales rep whistleblowers who joined the case shortly after them — will receive an as-yet undecided portion of the $3 billion settlement.

The Glaxo case underscores how aggressive the Justice Department has become in going after similar cases. In a May settlement, Abbott Laboratories pleaded guilty and agreed to pay the government a $700 million criminal fine and forfeiture for promoting Depakote, approved for bipolar disorder and epilepsy, for use in patients with dementia and autism. That was on top of civil settlements with numerous states and the federal government totaling $800 million.

Prior to the Glaxo settlement, the record-setting case involved Pfizer Inc., the world's biggest drugmaker. It paid the government $2.3 billion in 2009 in criminal and civil fines for improperly marketing 13 different drugs, including erectile-dysfunction drug Viagra and cholesterol fighter Lipitor, the top-selling drug in the world for years. Pfizer was accused of encouraging doctors to prescribe its drugs with free golf, massages and junkets to posh resorts.

"For far too long, we have heard that the pharmaceutical industry views these settlements merely as the cost of doing business," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Stuart F. Delery, head of Justice's civil division. "Today's resolution seeks not only to punish wrongdoing and recover taxpayer dollars, but to ensure GSK's future compliance with the law."

___

Associated Press writer Jesse J. Holland in Washington contributed to this story.

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What a drag, Israeli firm grows "highless" marijuana

SAFED, Israel (Reuters) - They grow in a secret location in northern Israel. A tall fence, security cameras and an armed guard protect them from criminals. A hint of their sweet-scented blossom carries in the air: rows and rows of cannabis plants, as far as the eye can see.

It is here, at a medical marijuana plantation atop the hills of the Galilee, where researchers say they have developed marijuana that can be used to ease the symptoms of some ailments without getting patients high.

"Sometimes the high is not always what they need. Sometimes it is an unwanted side effect. For some of the people it's not even pleasant," said Zack Klein, head of development at Tikun Olam, the company that developed the plant.

Cannabis has more than 60 constituents called cannabinoids. THC is perhaps the best known of those, less so for its medical benefits and more for its psychoactive properties that give people a "high" feeling.

But cannabis also contains Cannabidiol, or CBD, a substance that some researchers say has anti-inflammatory benefits. Unlike THC, it hardly binds to the brain's receptors and can therefore work without getting patients stoned.

"CBD plants are available in different forms all over the world," said Klein, adding that the company's plant is free of THC and very high in CBD.

Tikun Olam began its research on CBD enhanced cannabis in 2009 and about six months ago they came up with Avidekel, Klein said, a cannabis strain that contains 15.8 percent CBD and only traces of THC, less than one percent.

CANNABIS AS MEDICINE

Marijuana is an illegal drug in Israel. Medicinal use of it was first permitted in 1993, according to the health ministry.

Today cannabis is used in Israel to treat 9,000 people suffering from illnesses such as cancer, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease and post traumatic stress disorder, according to Israel's health ministry.

Drug companies have also been interested in cannabis as a medicine. Britain's GW Pharmaceuticals, with Bayer and Almirall, sells an under-the-tongue spray called Sativex that is designed to minimize highs by manipulating ratios of active ingredients.

Raphael Mechoulam, a professor of medicinal chemistry at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said Avidekel is thought to be the first CBD-enriched cannabis plant with no THC to have been developed in Israel.

"It is possible that (Avidekel's) CBD to THC ratio is the highest among medical marijuana companies in the world, but the industry is not very organized, so one cannot keep exact track of what each company is doing," he explained.

Although there have been no clinical trials in humans, Mechoulam, who is a leading researcher of cannabinoids, said that Avidekel showed promise as a potent anti-inflammatory.

Ruth Gallily of the Hebrew University who works for the company and has been studying CBD for more than 12 years, said she has found that the substance has impressive anti-inflammatory qualities. She has been testing the effects of Tikun Olam's CBD-enhanced cannabis on mice and expects clinical trials to begin in a few months.

Avidekel is a new strain of a plant that is already permitted for medical use so there is nothing stopping patients who are already being treated with marijuana from trying Avidekel. About 10 patients began using it in the past six months, Klein said.

"The cannabis plant, enriched with CBD, can be used for treating diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, colitis, liver inflammation, heart disease and diabetes," she said, adding there are no side effects.

"It's a huge advantage," said one 35-year-old patient who asked not to be identified, "I can smoke during the day, function with a lot less pain and still be focused, work and drive. It is a great gift."

The woman began suffering chronic pains after a tumor was removed from her spine. She began treatment with regular THC-containing marijuana eight months ago. Two months ago she started smoking Avidekel.

"The difference is huge. Before, I would only smoke at the end of the day and stay in pain." Now, she said, with the highless marijuana "my life is so much better."

Despite Avidekel's highless benefit, Klein does not see regular marijuana disappearing any time soon. THC has its own unique effects that alleviate illness symptoms.

"Don't worry, I think that cannabis with THC will still be (around)," he said.

(Editing by Jeffrey Heller and Paul Casciato)

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