A study sponsored by the National Institutes of Health found a 7-week acupuncture treatment helped many ease their chronic lower back pain. The patients volunteering for the study ranked their pain at least a 3 on a scale of 0 to 10 and were divided into groups. Some groups received usual care - medicine and doctor checkups. Other groups received usual care plus acupuncture. About 40% of volunteers receiving usual care improved. About 60% of those receiving usual care plus acupuncture improved. In acupuncture needles are inserted in specific points to get energy flowing. Unfortunately, acupuncture won't work on the economy.
In May 2009 the Institute of Medicine issued new guidelines for how much weight women should gain during pregnancy. More than half of pregnant women don't follow these guidelines; and unfortunately, more of them are heavier, older and have more pre-existing conditions than a decade ago - making extra pounds riskier. According to the guidelines, women with normal body mass indexes should gain 25 to 35 pounds; overweight women should gain 15 to 25 pounds; and for the first time there's a recommendation for obese women. They should gain 11 to 20 pounds. Having a baby can be a weighty decision in more than one way.
A study published in the "Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry" found vitamin D may help to reduce mental decline later in life. Researchers compared the cognitive performance of more than 3,000 European men aged 40 to 79. After adjusting for education level, depression, physical activity and physical performance, those with low levels of vitamin D did less well on a task designed to test mental agility. Vitamin D is produced by the body when skin is exposed to sunlight, is present in some foods and is available in supplement form. It seems the "sunshine vitamin" could brighten futures.
Finally, the Dandelion School is Beijing's only government-approved middle school for children of migrant workers. In 2006, in cooperation with China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the school gave students 3 fortified meals daily for 8 months. Migrant workers' children come to school on average 4 inches shorter and 22 pounds lighter than average children their age. Blood tests before and after the 8-month experiment showed major improvements in the students' nutrient levels. Before the fortified food experiment the passing rate was less than 1%. In 2008 it was 98% - fortifying the program's permanence.
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