Environmental News Network

Mice, Men and Exercise
To exercise or not to exercise, that is the question. Perhaps it is not a question. Working on mice in the lab, researchers have found that activity level can be enhanced with "selective breeding" - the process of breeding plants and animals for particular genetic traits. Their experiments showed that mice that were bred to be good runners produced good running offspring, indicating that the offspring had inherited the trait for that activity which may be called exercise. >> Read the Full Article
High Blood Pressure and Dementia
Blood is obviously important for the body well being. Blood flow through the brain is essential for the delivery of nutrients such as glucose and oxygen that are needed for nerve cells to function. During the early stages of Alzheimer's disease patients can suffer from high blood pressure and blood flow through the brain is reduced: the greater the reduction, the worse patients' dementia may become. >> Read the Full Article
Study Finds Effective Method for Fighting Kidney Stones
One of the most painful things in life is a kidney stone. That hard jagged chunk of calcium, if it grows to a sufficient size, can completely clog up the works, leaving blood in the urine and intense pain. But for those with chronic kidney stone pain, there is new reason to hope. A recent study has found that eating a diet designed to prevent high blood pressure can also ward off kidney stones. >> Read the Full Article
Cure for Insomnia: Get Moving
You've been tossing and turning all night. Rolling over, the clock says 2:30 am. Instead of reaching for the bottle of Nyquil, or something even stronger, researchers from Northwestern University (NWU) have a much healthier alternative to falling asleep â€“ aerobic exercise. Regular cardiovascular exercise can improve the quality of sleep, overall mood and vitality of insomniacs. >> Read the Full Article
Toxic Algae Killing Sea Otters
A toxin produced by a type of cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, has been devastating a colony of sea otters off the coast of California. In a paper published in the journal, PLoS ONE, by the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) and the University of California (UC), Santa Cruz, researchers link the deaths of over 21 California sea otters to toxic chemicals from algae flowing into the ocean. >> Read the Full Article
How Physical Ability Affects Death
There has been much already said about how being physically fit promotes better health and long life. Apparently such positive benefits can be seen in much smaller every day activities. People who are better at simple physical acts such as gripping, walking, rising from a chair and balancing on one leg are more likely to live longer, according to a new study published on bmj.com today. >> Read the Full Article
4 Reasons To Eat Pomegranate During the Jewish New Year
With Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashana) around the corner, certain traditional foods are expected to appear at the table. There are many different recipes, but there are several which are universal, including honey cake and certain fruits. One of these fruits, originating in the Middle East, is the pomegranate. >> Read the Full Article
Tropical Storm Hermine slams into far northeastern Mexico
Tropical Storm Hermine slammed into northeastern Mexico near the Texas border on Monday, dumping heavy rain on a region still recovering from Hurricane Alex's visit in June. Hermine, the eighth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, was expected to weaken as it moved ashore but could trigger deadly flooding and tornadoes, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Authorities in Tamaulipas state where the storm made landfall evacuated 3,000 people from high-risk areas but had no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The storm's forecast path kept it away from major oil and natural gas installations in the Gulf of Mexico, and energy companies said there had been no affect on their operations. >> Read the Full Article
Diverse water sources key to food security
Increasingly erratic rainfall patterns related to climate change pose a major threat to food security and economic growth, water experts said on Monday, arguing for greater investment in water storage. In a report by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), experts said Africa and Asia were likely to be hardest hit by unpredictable rainfall, and urged policymakers and farmers to try to find ways of diversifying sources of water. The IWMI research estimates that up to 499 million people in Africa and India could benefit from improved agricultural water management. >> Read the Full Article
Sunny Delight Achieves Zero Waste in U.S.
Sunny Delight Beverages Companyâ€™s recently released 2009 Sustainability Report outlines the companyâ€™s accomplishments over the past year, the most significant being the achievement of their Zero Waste to Landfill Goal by all U.S. and Spanish manufacturing plants more than 3 years ahead of schedule. The zero waste goals were achieved at Sunnyâ€™s Anaheim, Mataro and Littleton plants in 2009, 4 years ahead of the companyâ€™s 2013 goals. >> Read the Full Article