One investment Malaysia did not need

Credit: malaysiakini

“…..it should be clear that any such arrangement would be fraught with safety considerations and controversy when the plant was not built next to the Australian mining facility already owned by Lynas. Was the investment so necessary for Malaysia that it could pretty much ignore some of these considerations and the controversy it was likely to generate?”

“Any which way you look at it, Malaysia has been diddled and saddled with a burden it did not really need. The government needs to investigate how it ended up making such a bad deal and to determine if there was any wrongdoing here.”

P Gunasegaram writing in Malaysiakini of January 3, 2013

Kindness Key to Happiness and Acceptance for Children

Credit: www.cbc.ca

Children who make an effort to perform acts of kindness are happier and experience greater acceptance from their peers, suggests new research from the University of British Columbia and the University of California, Riverside.

Kimberly Schonert-Reichl, a professor in UBC’s Faculty of Education, and co-author Kristin Layous, of the University of California, Riverside, say that increasing peer acceptance is key to preventing bullying.

In the study, researchers examined how to boost happiness in students aged 9 to 11 years. Four hundred students from Vancouver elementary schools were asked to report on their happiness and to identify which of their classmates they would like to work with on school activities. Half of the students were asked by their teachers to perform acts of kindness – like sharing their lunch or giving their mom a hug when she felt stressed – and half were asked to keep track of pleasant places they visited – like the playground or a grandparent’s house.

After four weeks, the students again reported on their happiness and identified classmates they would like to work with. While both groups said they were happier, kids that had performed acts of kindness selected higher numbers of classmates to work with on school activities.

“We show that kindness has some real benefits for the personal happiness of children but also for the classroom community,” says Schonert-Reichl, also a researcher with the Human Early Learning Partnership at UBC.

According to Schonert-Reichl, bullying tends to increase in Grades 4 and 5. By simply asking students to think about how they can act kindly to those around them, “teachers can create a sense of connectedness in the classroom and reduce the likelihood of bullying.”

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The above story is reprinted from the December 26, 2012 news release by University of British Columbia.

The research has been published in PLoS ONE, a peer-reviewed, open-access online resource reporting scientific studies from all disciplines:

Kristin Layous, S. Katherine Nelson, Eva Oberle, Kimberly A. Schonert-Reichl, Sonja Lyubomirsky. Kindness Counts: Prompting Prosocial Behavior in Preadolescents Boosts Peer Acceptance and Well-Being. PLoS ONE, 2012; 7 (12):

Click HERE to read the full paper.

Why You Should’nt Feed Your Baby In Front of the TV

Credit: cdn4.blogs.babble.com. Illustrative purpose only

Moms, especially those who are obese, are more likely to use TV to entertain and soothe infants who are more fussy and active, according to researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The finding adds to the growing body of knowledge that may help explain the escalating rate of obesity and inactivity in U.S. children, and has led to behavioral and educational strategies that may help mothers combat these effects.

"In the past, studies have focused on maternal factors for obesity and TV watching, but this is the first time anyone has looked at infant factors and the interaction between maternal and infant characteristics in shaping TV behavior across infancy," said Amanda L. Thompson, a biological anthropologist in the College of Arts and Sciences and first author of the study. "And that's important," she added, "because mom and infant behaviors are inextricably linked."

Bentley's team looked at 217 first-time, low-income black mothers and babies from central North Carolina who were part of a five-year study looking at obesity risk in infants. The researchers followed the mothers and babies in their homes at 3, 6, 9 12 and 18 months of age, looking at TV exposure, sociodemographic and infant temperament data. They asked how often the TV was on, if a TV was in the baby's bedroom, and whether the TV was on during meal times. Researchers also interviewed the mothers about how they perceived their children's mood, activity levels and fussiness.

The researchers found that mothers who were obese, who watched a lot of TV and whose child was fussy were most likely to put their infants in front of the TV. By 12 months, nearly 40 percent of the infants were exposed to more than 3 hours of TV daily -- a third of their waking hours. Households where infants were perceived as active and whose mothers did not have a high school diploma were more likely to feed their infants in front of the TV.

"Feeding infants in front of the TV can limit a mom's responsiveness in terms of examining infant cues, such as when an infant is telling mom he is no longer hungry," said Bentley, principal investigator and a professor of nutrition in UNC's Gillings School of Global Public Health. "This work has helped us design intervention strategies that will help teach moms how to soothe their babies, without overfeeding them or putting them in front of a TV."

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The above story is based on the January 08, 2013 news release by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The research appears in the January 6 online issue of the journal Pediatrics:

Amanda L. Thompson, Linda S. Adair, and Margaret E. Bentley. Maternal Characteristics and Perception of Temperament Associated With Infant TV Exposure. Pediatrics, January 6, 2013 DOI: 10.1542/peds.2012-1224

Zestzfulness says:

Parental stress can play a role in increased fussiness among their children. It is also possible that busy parents are more likely to plant fussy children in front of a TV set to calm them. It is therefore appropriate to limit TV watching of infants and limiting this to children’s programmes appropriate for their age.

Men with Belly Fat at Risk for Osteoporosis

Credit: bodylasespaformen.com

Not all body fat is the same. Subcutaneous fat lies just below the skin, and visceral or intra-abdominal fat is located deep under the muscle tissue in the abdominal cavity. Genetics, diet and exercise are all contributors to the level of visceral fat that is stored in the body. Excess visceral fat is considered particularly dangerous, because in previous studies it has been associated with many health problems including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, high cholesterol, asthma, sleep apnea and joint diseases.

Dr. Miriam Bredella, a radiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital and associate professor of radiology at Harvard Medical School in Boston had in 2010 shown that young premenopausal women with excessive amounts of visceral fat²are at increased risk for osteoporosis. Source: Zestzfulness, December 14, 2010 

A new study by Dr Bredella and colleagues finds that that "visceral fat," which is located deep under the muscles in the abdomen, is also linked to bone loss and decreased bone strength in men.

Level of 'visceral fat' seemed to have an effect regardless of man's overall weight.

"Most studies on osteoporosis have focused on women. Men were thought to be relatively protected against bone loss, especially obese men," Dr. Bredella.

"It is important for men to be aware that excess belly fat is not only a risk factor for heart disease and diabetes, it is also a risk factor for bone loss," Bredella added.

The study revealed that the men with more visceral and total fat in their abdomen had less bone strength than those with less abdominal fat. The researchers noted that the men's age and total BMI did not have an impact on their bone strength.

"We were not surprised by our results that abdominal and visceral fat are detrimental to bone strength in obese men," noted Bredella. "We were, however, surprised that obese men with a lot of visceral fat had significantly decreased bone strength compared to obese men with low visceral fat but similar BMI."

The results also showed that muscle mass was positively associated with bone strength.

The researchers pointed out that genetics, diet and exercise all play a role in the amount of visceral fat stored in the body.

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The above story is based on the November 2, 2012 news release by the Radiological Society of North America.

The research is published online August 29, 2012 in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism:

Bredella MA, Lin E, Gerweck AV, Landa MG, Thomas BJ, Torriani M, Bouxsein ML, Miller KK. Determinants of bone microarchitecture and mechanical properties in obese men. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2012 Nov;97(11):4115-22. doi: 10.1210/jc.2012-2246.

More information

The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about osteoporosis.

Membantu Mencegah Tabiat Berbahaya

Credit: www.lssi.org

Adalah penting untuk mendidik anak-anak dan remaja tentang bahaya merokok untuk membantu menghalang mereka daripada mengamalkan tabiat maut.

Badan The American Lung Association menyenaraikan garis panduan ini untuk membantu ibu bapa berkomunikasi dengan anak-anak mereka tentang tidak merokok:

• Memberitahu anak-anak anda, secara jelas dan konsisten, bahawa anda tidak mahu mereka untuk merokok. memulakan perbualan ini masa mereka sekitar umur 5 atau 6 dan melanjutkan nasihat ini sehingga mereka ke sekolah tinggi.
• Terangkan bahawa merokok akan membahayakan kesihatan mereka dan menyebabkan kesan sampingan yang tidak menyenangkan seperti nafas berbau.
• Jika anda merokok, berhentilah. Jangan biarkan anak-anak anda berada di sekitar perokok dan tidak membenarkan sesiapa merokok di dalam rumah anda.
• Ajar anak anda bagaimana untuk mengatakan “tak nak” apabila seseorang menawarkan rokok.
• Jika anda mengetahui bahawa anak anda merokok, mengajukan pertanyaan untuk mengetahui mengapa dia mula. Elakkan mengancaman dan mengeluarkan ultimatum.
• Menyokong anak anda berhenti merokok, dan berbincang dengan anak anda tentang kuasa ketagihan rokok

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UCSF Pharmacy Style (Gangnam Style Parody)

                                     

Uploaded by Tony Huynh, recommeded by Cynthia Foo, Point Cook, Victoria

Credit: humourjokesoneliners.files.wordpress.com

After experiencing the discomfort and embarrassment of a prostate test by the National Health Service, a bloke decided to have this next test carried out while visiting friends in Thailand, where the beautiful nurses are allegedly much more gentle and accommodating.

As he lay naked on his side on the table and the nurse began the examination.

"Don't worry, at this stage of the procedure it's quite normal to get an erection" said the nurse.

"I haven't got an erection" said the man.

"No, but I have" replied the nurse.

Seriously, what if you become aroused?  

It is important to note that it is not uncommon to become aroused during a prostate exam. Regardless of your sexuality or your doctor’s gender, stimulation of the prostate can lead to erection. Unfortunately, many men get embarrassed or ashamed about this natural reaction, but the truth is that stimulation of the prostate can cause feelings of arousal whether or not the man is in the mood. In fact, during oral sex many men enjoy having their prostate stimulated and some even do so during masturbation, so it is no wonder that a prostate exam can sometimes lead to an erection or feelings of arousal.

If this occurs, try not to get upset and instead focus on staying relaxed. Your doctor has likely had a number of other patients who have experienced this exact same reaction, so don’t feel embarrassed. It’s an important test that can help your doctor catch early warning signs, so a few moments of awkwardness and discomfort are certainly worth it.

Dr Laura Berman offers valuable advice on

How to Manage Your Prostate Exam