GOOD NEWS

Turmeric power

Indian curry to combat cancer? The idea may not seem preposterous if a study, published in the journal Cancer, is to be believed. It shows that curcumin, the yellow pigment found in the spice turmeric, kills and so stops the growth of melanoma skin cancer cells in laboratory tests. Melanoma is the most difficult-to-treat form of skin cancer. The scientists who conducted the study report that the curry spice inhibited cancer cell viability and triggered cell death in three different melanoma cell samples.

Acupuncture cure

A report in The Lancet quotes the results of a trial that suggests acu-puncture can reduce pain and improve joint functioning in the short term for people with osteoarthritis of the knee. Osteoarthritis affects the knee joint and patients are increasingly turning to acupuncture to avoid steroids with side effects. Lead investigator Claudia Witt, from the Charite University Medical Center, Berlin, says, “Acupuncture treatment had clinically relevant effects when compared to no acupuncture treatment in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee.”

BAD NEWS

Gambling chemical

A group of Mayo Clinic scientists have found a link between habitual, compulsive gambling with losses up to $200,000 within six months by those who previously never or only occasionally gambled recreationally, and Parkinson’s disease drugs called dopamine agonists. In a report, to be published in the Archives of Neurology, the scientists say that pathological gambling induced by a drug is quite unusual. But they also think that this gambling behaviour occurs in a small number of patients given the drugs, and it can be stopped as suddenly as it came on.

Shoe hazard

Some shoes may not be healthy for you, says a paper in the journal Mayo Clinic Women’s HealthSource. According to researchers, over time our feet become wider and longer and the natural padding under the heel and forefoot thins. Wearing shoes that are too short or too narrow may lead to foot deformities, calluses or corns and even pinched nerves between the toes. The paper suggests that while buying, one should try on shoes later in the day since the feet can swell as the day wears on.