The Korea Herald

Seoul to tighten safety control of postpartum clinics

Jan 10, 2013

The Ministry of Health and Welfare said on Thursday that it will strengthen the safety management of postpartum centers across the country, to improve their sanitation and prevent possible infection from spreading in the facilities.Postpartum care centers or clinics are non-medical businesses that offer full-time services to new mothers for a week or more to help them recuperate after giving birth. The number of these clinics has surged rapidly in recent years, despite prices for the services ra
‘Apollo’ eye infection spreads fast

Jan 10, 2013

The highly contagious “Apollo” eye infection is rapidly spreading across the country as people are more exposed to viruses indoors during the winter, health authorities warned on Thursday.The number of patients with acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis surged nearly 65 percent in the third week of December last year from the average number of patients reported during the four weeks before that, Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. The number of patients is also higher than the same
A low-salt diet

Jan 10, 2013

A low-sodium diet is one with a limited amount of salt taken in with food. The sodium component in salt is a risk factor for high blood pressure, edema, kidney diseases and cardiac disease, as sodium is a mineral that draws in and retains moisture, affecting the balance of body fluids. In this case, reducing the intake of salt helps to control blood pressure, ease edema, and reduce stress on the heart.How to follow a low-salt diet 1. Things to be aware of when choosing food: On a preferential ba
‘Standing up helps lose weight’

Jan 10, 2013

For busy office workers, standing while working can help you burn extra calories, U.K. physiotherapist said.A person can burn off about 3.6 kilograms of fat each year -- or 144 calories a day -- by standing on one’s feet for three extra hours a day, according to exercise scientist John Buckley from the University of Chester.Buckley, from the department of clinical science and nutrition, said a person’s metabolic rate “crashes to an absolute minimum” when he or she is sitting down. “It isn’t natu
High-tech fork can help with dieting

Jan 10, 2013

A high-tech fork its developers say can help people diet was introduced at the Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas.The HapiFork that pairs itself to a smartphone using Bluetooth will vibrate if the user is eating too fast, developers HapiLabs said.The fork contains a capacitive sensor that determines how long it has been since the user has taken the last bite, and will gently vibrate to tell the user they are eating too fast.Though there is no set or recommended time between bites in most die
1 in 3 elderly dementia patients live alone: report

Jan 9, 2013

More than one-third of elderly patients with severe dementia in Korea are living alone without family support, a report found Wednesday.According to a research team at St. Mary’s Hospital in Seoul, about 36 percent of a group of patients with severe cognitive impairment or with a score of 2 on the clinical dementia rating said they were on their own. The CDR is a scale that assesses the severity of dementia. “Patients with a CDR score of 2 can only do simple housework. They are in the severe sta
Nearly 100 doctors caught for abusing propofol, other drugs

Jan 9, 2013

Nearly 100 doctors have been caught for misusing narcotics and psychotropic drugs such as propofol, police said Wednesday.Police have uncovered 98 medical workers -- mostly doctors -- and eight hospitals in a two-month nationwide crackdown on illegal use of drugs by hospitals.The crackdown, conducted jointly with the health authorities, came after a local obstetrician was arrested in August on charges of injecting his girlfriend with an anesthetic that caused her death and then abandoning her bo
Anxiety found as Koreans’ top mental illness: report

Jan 9, 2013

Anxiety disorder ranked No. 1 on a list of mental illnesses in Korea, according to a study by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.In “The Epidemiological Survey of Mental Disorders in Korea,” 6,022 randomly selected Koreans were asked if they have suffered from 25 major mental illnesses for the past year. Among them, 16 percent said they suffered from anxiety disorder.About 6.8 percent of respondents answered that they have experienced anxiety disorder, which surpassed the percentage of alcohol a
Two die of H1N1 flu in Beijing

Jan 7, 2013

Two people died of H1N1 flu in Beijing recently, but Chinese health officials said the situation is not as threatening as it was in 2009.The deaths occurred since late December after the patients contracted the virus, previously called swine flu, China Daily reported.The report quoted the Beijing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that despite its potential to cause harm, the virus is not as threatening and can be contained.The report said both the victims of influenza A, or H1N1, virus
Bedbugs no reason to skip library books

Jan 7, 2013

Despite recent reports speculating on bed bugs in library books, a U.S. entomologist and bed bug experts says there is no need to skip library books.Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, a Cornell University entomologist and New York state Integrated Pest Management Program field expert, said since bed bugs are transported by humans, on belongings and clothes, it made sense borrowed books could be a method or vehicle of bed bug movement.“Bed bugs will not stay on books on the shelf for very long -- they need
Protein early in the day keeps fat away

Jan 7, 2013

Eating a high-protein breakfast with nuts may lead to being leaner and less hungry during the rest of the day, a fitness expert says.　Charles Poliquin said his single best dietary tip for optimal leanness, energy and sustained mental focus, is the meat-and-nuts breakfast, which allows for a gradual rise in blood sugar and results in decreased cravings throughout the entire day, AskMen.com reported.　Examples of Poliquin’s high-protein breakfast are one to two lean turkey burgers and a handful of
Brain image study: Fructose may spur overeating

Jan 3, 2013

This is your brain on sugar ― for real. Scientists have used imaging tests to show for the first time that fructose, a sugar that saturates the American diet, can trigger brain changes that may lead to overeating.After drinking a fructose beverage, the brain doesn’t register the feeling of being full as it does when simple glucose is consumed, researchers found.It’s a small study and does not prove that fructose or its relative, high-fructose corn syrup, can cause obesity, but experts say it add
Influenza viruses on rise as winter deepens

Jan 3, 2013

As the cold spell tightens its grip on the country, reports of flu-like illnesses have grown in the last few weeks. Health authorities advised Thursday that people maintain personal hygiene and consider flu shots to avoid illness.The number of people suspected of having influenza per 1,000 outpatients was 2.8 in the third week of December, a slight increase from 2.7 surveyed a week before, Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report. If the rate reaches more than 4, the hea
Get your new year off to a healthy start

Jan 3, 2013

People often make New Year’s resolutions to quit smoking or start regular exercise to improve their health. However, many fail to keep to their resolutions for even a month. Everyone knows how to keep healthy, but it is no simple task to hold back on things you want and do things you do not like. It is very difficult to keep to your goals without a special motivation when you are tired or busy. If a friend of the same age as you dies suddenly or is diagnosed with a serious disease unexpectedly,
How to escape from the grip of an approaching attacker

Jan 2, 2013

1. A bulky adult is approaching with arms wide open to grab a child in picture 1. We already know that children are inferior to full grown adults in terms of strength, height, weight and more. Therefore, there is no good way when it comes to a child confronting an adult. When an opponent is approaching with arms wide open in an attempt to grab you, you should crouch as low as possible to make it difficult for the adult to grab you. This is to turn the opponent’s advantage in height to your advan