Fasting may help protect heart

People who fast for one day per month may have healthier hearts, suggests a Utah study presented at a recent American Heart Association conference, the Associated Press reported.

The study of 515 people found that 59 percent of those who skipped meals one day a month were diagnosed with heart disease, compared with 67 percent of those who did not regularly fast. The researchers calculated that people who fasted once a month were about 40 percent less likely to develop heart disease than those who never took a break from eating.

The study, partly funded by the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, doesn't provide proof that periodic fasting is good for everyone, the researchers emphasized."It might suggest these are people who just control eating habits better," and this type of discipline extends into other lifestyle habits that benefit their health, study leader Benjamin Horne, a heart disease researcher at the Intermountain Medical Center and the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, told the AP.

Mormons account for about 70 percent of Utah's population. Religious practice dictates that they abstain from eating on the first Sunday of every month.

Heavy cell phone use boosts tumour risk

Regular use of cell phones for more than 22 hours a month increases a person's risk of developing a parotid gland tumour by about 50 percent, according to an Israeli study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

The parotid gland is located near the ear. The study said the tumour risk was even greater among people who always put the phone to the same ear, who didn't use hands-free devices, or who lived in rural areas, Agence France-Presse reported.

For this study, the researchers looked at cases of 402 benign and 58 malignant parotid gland tumours diagnosed in people age 18 or older in Israel from 2001-2003.

"Analysis restricted to regular users or to conditions that may yield higher levels of exposure (eg. heavy use in rural areas) showed consistently elevated risks," according to an abstract of the study, AFP reported.

(HealthDay News)