Hold the Beer, Please

A new study published Monday in the Archives of Dermatology points to an interesting link between psoriasis and beer.  The study indicates that women who drink beer on a regular basis may be more likely to develop psoriasis.  Psoriasis is an auto-immune disease that causes scaly lesions, redness and inflammation of the skin.  The study found that just five regular brews a week can increase a woman’s risk of psoriasis 2.3 times when compared with non-drinkers.

Interestingly, the researchers did not find a link between psoriasis and any other types of alcohol including light beers, wines or spirits.  People with psoriasis tend to be more sensitive to gluten than do those without the disease, and researchers believe that the gluten in regular beer, which comes from the barley used to ferment the beer, could be the culprit.

Choosing the Right Phone


All students need a good cellphone these days.  In fact, pretty much most people require such mobility for their everyday lives in today’s modern world.  But what is a student supposed to look for in terms of features?  First, since most students are on quite a budget (or at least should be), a pay as you go plan is a good idea.  In this same vein, ensure that any unused minutes for the month can be “rolled over” to the next month.  You might also want to get a phone with at least a 3 megapixel (relatively good quality) camera to capture all those not-to-be-forgotten student memories; the first time you went to the student bar; your first lecture hall; even your first college date.  Next, since students are often attempting to be great social butterflies, look for a phone featuring one click access to Facebook and Twitter so that all your followers know exactly what you’re doing and where, any time of day or night.  Check out the different prices of phones offering these features and you’ll be well on your way to a great cellphone purchase.

Monsoon Rains Create Crisis in Pakistan

Trying to avert a disaster, The World Food Program has appealed to the international community to make good on their pledges of aid totaling 460 million dollars which the Program asked for last week to provide relief to the people of Pakistan who are facing unprecedented flooding as a result of monsoon rains. So far the nations of the world have contributed about 35% of the aid requested, which is only about half of what the World Bank has said it would provide to fund the relief, about $900 million.

The people of Pakistan are experiencing washed out roads, and bridges, making food deliveries difficult, and some areas can only be reached by helicopter. According to the United Nations only a small fraction of those in need have actually received any help so far. Due to the monsoon rains already 1,600 people have died from the floods, and an additional 20 million have been adversely affected by the much worse than normal rains. According to the World Bank, they are planning on using a percentage of the funds to strengthen infrastructure along the River Indus which will hopefully in the future help to prevent such devastating floods.

Science Museums are More for Fun Than for Learning

I was just at the Science Museum with my kids the other day. Even though it’s noisy and crowded the kids still seemed to have a lot of fun. They had fun for the simple reason that they could touch just about everything in sight. There were so many levers, buttons and things that make noise to keep them busy for hours, and all in pursuit of knowledge. Remembering my own experiences as a child in similar places, I always doubt the actual educational benefits of exhibits that show that, when you press this button, that thing over there lights up. All the child knows is that, “Wow, I pressed a button and the light lit up.” It’s up to the mom to actually explain that, “The reason the light comes on is because there is a magnet which turns on when you press this button and then off when you press another, making an alternating current…” and on and on, and when Mom looks up from reading the explanation she discovers that she has been reading to the thin air, and on top of that, the two year old twins are nowhere to be found! Help!

Not to worry. I found the twins. They were stuffing small plastic leaves into the bottom of a tube which had air blowing upwards, which carried the little leaves high up and out of the tube, until they fluttered back down to earth again. It was really fun to watch, but the science of wind propelled objects and the physics of aviation I am afraid was lost on their cute little minds. And the older kids were long gone, running all over the place, pushing and pressing, but never stopping too long to wonder. I wonder where “wonder” happens.  Maybe at home, on a quiet walk in the park, or at night while looking at the stars.

Maintaining Healthy Calcium Levels


As a student, it’s so easy to forget to eat properly.  But for optimum health, it’s so important.  What’s good to look at (even at a relatively young age) is your family history.  If you have a mother and grandmother for example who suffered from osteoporosis then you want to keep your calcium levels elevated.  Even if you have no symptoms of brittle bones or problem teeth, chances are, as you age, you will.  So in this case, you can enrich your diet with calcium in a relatively easy way.  Good sources of the mineral include: dairy produce, tahini, sesame seeds, spinach, broccoli.  No matter what your taste buds enjoy, there are dozens of recipes on the Internet these days that will tempt them somehow.  Taking a calcium supplement isn’t a bad idea either, but do not think it is in place of the calcium-enriched diet.  Take notes from a proper physician on what the best supplement would be. You can even do an early detection test for osteoporosis if it is in your family, but the best thing to do is take preventive measures, like adding it to your diet earlier rather than later.

UT Warns About Funds for Physicians

Leaders of the University of Texas’ six health science centers put out a serious warning this week.  They are concerned that federal health overhaul plans could dry up the funds that the stat’s medical centers use and need to produce doctors.

At the moment, the Legislature provides state funds to cover about 25% of the cost for educating a physician. The rest of the money has come from hospital patients’ insurance payments and from additional federal funds for treating low-income patients.  Under the new federal legislation, these hospital payments will be drastically cut under Medicaid and Medicare, starting in 2014.


Certainly, the six schools are working hard to try to save money, but these cuts will be felt by the state and by potential physicians as well.