health

  1. Maciamo

    Society 3 out of 4 Americans are now overweight, including nearly 1 in 2 obese

    It will come as no surprise to anybody that there are more fat people in the US than in any other developed country. It's not a new phenomenon, but it keeps getting worse year after year. 20 years ago I was already shocked that one third of Americans were obese. Now the latest data points to...
  2. Maciamo

    Health Cancer maps of Europe

    I have made maps showing the death rate from various types of cancer in and around Europe. Some types of cancer are clearly linked to the lifestyle. Lung cancer rates do not only depend on the percentage of smokers, but also on air quality. As you can see here, the Balkans have the worst...
  3. Maciamo

    What do the anti-vaxxers share in common?

    Vaccination is a topic that is as likely to divide people and families as politics and religion. It has been exacerbated by the Coronavirus pandemic, but the rift was already present long before in some countries. According to Our World in Data, 33% of French people don't believe that vaccines...
  4. Maciamo

    SNP identified as doubling risk of lung failure and death from Covid-19

    Here is the study. Nature Genetics: Identification of LZTFL1 as a candidate effector gene at a COVID-19 risk locus Abstract The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) disease (COVID-19) pandemic has caused millions of deaths worldwide. Genome-wide association studies...
  5. Maciamo

    Health The pandemic's true death toll is about 3.5 times higher than official figures

    The Economist has been monitoring since last year the gap between official Covid deaths and excess deaths in various countries. They have now compiled statistics for almost every country in the world and a map to show which countries are really more impacted. In Africa the excess deaths are...
  6. Archetype0ne

    Looking for Autosomal Analysis Services: ideal diets, health risks etc.

    Basically title. Has anyone used any of these services. I mainly wanted to get back in a Ketogenic diet, however being vegetarian in my country, trying to accommodate both is going to be really challenging. So before I do anything that drastic, I wanted to use my Autosomal file for...
  7. Maciamo

    Childhood exposure to lead linked to less agreeable and conscientious adults

    The abundance and malleability of lead has made it a prime material to use as pipes since ancient times. The word plumbing itself comes from the Latin word for lead (plumbum, hence Pb for the chemical symbol). Yet it has been known for decades that lead was toxic, especially for the brain, and...
  8. Maciamo

    Health Anti-vaxxer movement strongest in France

    The French like to do things differently from everyone else. In the last few months they have made the headlines around the world for the dogged refusal to get vaccinated against Covid-19. The reasons are varied. Some people believe in the wildest conspiracy theories, claiming that the...
  9. Maciamo

    Vitamin D supplements protect against coronavirus

    As I mentioned at the beginning of the pandemic, one of the few supplements that work in warding off Covid is vitamin D. The Guardian just published an article mentioning several studies (in the UK, Spain and South Korea) that confirm that vitamin D deficiency is linked to a higher mortality...
  10. Maciamo

    New maps of the USA

    Over the years I have created dozens of maps of Europe to help visualise the cultural, political, socio-economic, legal or lifestyle differences between countries. I thought it would be interesting to make similar maps for the United States, using the same scales and colours to facilitate...
  11. Maciamo

    Society Maps of life expectancy by US State by racial group and gender

    Using data from Wikipedia for 2018, I have created maps of life expectancy by US State. I first compared overall male vs female life expectancy, as it did for Europe (also for 2018). I used the same colour scale for all maps so that the differences are immediately apparent. Let's first compare...
  12. Maciamo

    Sustainability How to choose the best chocolate for your health and for the planet?

    In 2015, 3 million tonnes of cocoa beans were harvested to produce chocolate, and demand has been increasing by 2 to 5% each year. The global consumption of chocolate in 2019 reached 7.7 million metric tonnes (i.e. 7.7 billion kg - approximately 1 kg for each person in the world). Cocoa is...
  13. Maciamo

    Does regular physical exercice really increase life expectancy?

    The World Health Organization says that insufficient physical activity is one of the leading risk factors for death and recommends that adults should do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week. They go even further, claiming that for additional health benefits...
  14. Maciamo

    Nature Microplastic particles now discoverable in human organs

    The Guardian: Microplastic particles now discoverable in human organs "Microplastic and nanoplastic particles are now discoverable in human organs thanks to a new technique. Microplastics have polluted the entire planet, from Arctic snow and Alpine soils to the deepest oceans. People are also...
  15. Maciamo

    Health New Health & Lifestyle Maps of Europe

    Over the last few weeks I have been working on 20 new maps (more coming soon) showing indicators of health, activity, food and drink consumptions in and around Europe. Please visit the link. I will just post three of them here to illustrate. I was inspired in part by the discussion about the...
  16. Maciamo

    Health Do you monitor your daily steps?

    It's increasingly common to keep track of one's physical activity to keep fit. Walking enough everyday can help reduce your risk of these common health problems: Heart disease Obesity Diabetes High blood pressure According to Healthline, to lose weight one should aim for at least 10,000 steps...
  17. Maciamo

    Religion Correlation between obesity and religiosity

    In the USA, fundamentalist Christians and most people who consider themselves very religious tend to reject many biological facts (evolution of species, existence of genetic predispositions, genetics playing a major role in intelligence or temperament, etc.). I was wondering if this ignorance...
  18. Maciamo

    Tea, coffee and chocolate: which is better for health?

    I long wondered about which of these three caffeine-rich substances conferred the most health benefits, so I did a little research. Coffee Coffee is rich in antioxidants, notably: - chlorogenic acid : known to slightly reduce blood pressure - cafestol : found especially in unfiltered coffee...
  19. Maciamo

    Calendar of new secular and scientific holidays

    Have you ever felt annoyed by the fact that national holidays in your country are often religious holidays? In many European countries Epiphany, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Ascension Day, Whit Monday, Assumption, All Saints' Day, Christmas and/or St Stephens' Day (aka Boxing Day in the UK) are...
  20. Maciamo

    Gut bacteria enzyme can turn A, B and AB blood types into O type

    It's not just interesting from a biological point of view, but that discovery could increase the supply of usable blood available for transfusions. LiveScience: Gut Bacteria Enzyme Can Transform a Blood Cell's Type "The key to changing blood types may be in the gut. Enzymes made by bacteria...
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