A new study of the popular injectable contraceptive Depo-Provera shows that teenagers’ bone density recovers after they stop using the drug. Several previous studies have linked Depo-Provera to bone loss, raising concerns about its use among teens, a population in their peak bone-building years.

“These findings are reassuring for those concerned about future risk of fractures,” said Delia Scholes, PhD, senior investigator at Group Health Cooperative’s Center for Healt

Columbia University Medical Center research illustrates connection between periodontal disease and atherosclerosis

A new study by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center provides the most direct evidence to date that preventing gum disease could significantly improve your chances of avoiding vascular problems.

The study, which appears in the February 8 edition of the American Heart Association’s publication Circulation, shows that people with gum disease ar

New findings, made by researchers studying the outcome of a decades-long fox-breeding experiment, suggest that some aspects of social intelligence in animals are correlated with genetically selected “tame” behavior–for example, fearlessness and non-aggression toward humans. Understanding how intelligence evolved in humans and other animals remains one of the central evolutionary questions yet to be answered by behavioral scientists. Of particular interest is how social problem solving evolves; m

Findings press need for early treatment to help prevent strokes

A UC Irvine Stroke Center study reveals how plaque in the main neck artery plays a critical role in creating blood clots that greatly increase the risk of stroke.

Dr. Mark Fisher, director of the UCI Stroke Center, and colleagues found that in the carotid artery, the primary source of blood to the brain, plaques form lesions that support the growth of the stroke-causing blood clots, which can either block t

Researchers report this week that older adults who have higher proportions of four periodontal-disease-causing bacteria inhabiting their mouths also tend to have thicker carotid arteries, a strong predictor of stroke and heart attack. The study, published in the current issue of the journal Circulation, was supported by four agencies of the National Institutes of Health.

According to the authors, these data mark the first report of a direct association between cardiovascular dise

What influences a child to choose a career on the family farm, and when is that decision made? A new University of Illinois study of pre-teen farm youth suggests that the foundations for this life choice are set early and that maternal influence, rather than paternal expectations, may be key.

Although previous studies have focused on high-school-aged youth, Angela Wiley’s training in child development led her to believe farm kids would be influenced toward or against farmin

In recent years, studies of the euro area business cycle have flourished. However, national statistics have only recently been harmonized and aggregate statistics have only been available for a short period of time. Clearly, there is a need to establish stylized facts for the euro area economies and European Monetary Union gives an opportunity to analyse questions such as whether the loss of independence in the conduct of monetary policy has affected national business cycles. A new Volume publis

Making New Labour’s multi-agency teamwork approach to modernising government effective is a complex challenge, and training to make it work must be planned and funded, warns important new ESRC-sponsored research into delivering children’s services.

Joined-up delivery, involving both public and voluntary organisations, is a central tenet of the Government’s aim to make services more efficient and effective. But, says the study led by Professor Angela Anning, of Leeds University

A new study suggests that people with autism may perform unusually well on some tests of visual processing.

The researchers found that autistic people were less likely than others to have false memories about images they had seen earlier. The researchers had previously demonstrated this kind of effect with verbal material, but not with visual material. In this case, the results suggest that the autistic people had trouble seeing the images in context – a hallmark of the disord

In its destructive effect on rural families and their children, methamphetamine may be in a class of its own, based on the first study from an ongoing research project in seven Central Illinois counties, conducted by researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

If the children of alcoholics often find themselves in a “thunderstorm” of family problems, then the drug methamphetamine brings a “tornado” by comparison, says one of the researchers. The professional

University of Central Florida study seeks to determine whether women who follow weight-loss and exercise programs at home fare as well as those who go to a center to work out and meet with counselors

Joy Ungerer has improved her health and lost excess weight by walking on a treadmill at an exercise center. Janet Brewer walks, too – either at a mall or in her neighborhood – and has watched the readings on her bathroom scale drop as well.

The two women are among the first p

Study shows larger babies have higher risk of certain cancers in adulthood

Babies who weighed more at birth had higher rates of digestive and lymphatic cancers in adulthood, according to a new study published February 7, 2005 in the online edition of the International Journal of Cancer, the official journal of the International Union Against Cancer (UICC). The study, available online at Wiley InterScience, also found that women who weighed more at birth had significantly h

Twice as many boys as girls are referred to medical specialists for evaluation of short stature or poor growth, according to a new study.

The imbalance may reflect society’s gender biases about stature, and may have serious health consequences: girls whose growth failure is caused by an underlying disease may be overlooked, or experience unnecessary delays in receiving a proper diagnosis. The results may also suggest that short but healthy boys are more likely to be subjected

Obese children who get kidney transplants tend to be younger, shorter and on dialysis longer than their leaner peers, according to a study in the February issue of the journal Pediatrics.

A review of 6,658 children age 2-17 receiving transplants in the United States, Mexico and Canada between 1987 and 2002 showed that obese children age 6-12 had a five-year mortality rate more than double that of non-obese children the same age: 12.1 percent compared to 5.4 percent respectivel

DFG awards initial funding for three years

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) is establishing six new Research Units in order to promote cooperation between outstanding scientists and researchers in innovative research projects. This decision was made by the Grants Committee on General Research Support at its meeting on 21 January.

DFG Research Units are distinguished by scientific cooperation in a manageable number of individual proje

Senior social scientists and policy-makers meet in Belfast today (Friday, February 4) to explore how far the government is succeeding in abolishing child poverty, reducing social exclusion, and improving equal opportunities in Northern Ireland.

Brought together by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the UK’s biggest funder of social research, the seminar will examine the distribution of income, benefits and tax in Northern Ireland.

The starting point for the