Posts

Showing posts from January, 2014

Oily Fish Consumption Reduces Prostate Cancer Risk

Image
Salmon Oily fish is among the foods that people regularly consume as part of their balanced diet.   It includes fish such as salmon, sardines, herring, and mackerel.  This advice stems from the research that omega 3 acids contain in oily fish is good for health.  In addition to other health benefits, omega 3 acids can help reduce the risk of stroke, heart attack, and dementia. These beneficial effects of of oily fish, however, tend to overshadow the negative aspects of oily fish.  A major negative effect of omega 3 acids on health is related to prostate cancer.  According to research findings published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, omega 3 acids increase the risk of prostate cancer. This conclusion was based on the finding showing that the blood levels of docoshexaeonic acid  (DHA) patients were far too higher than the DHA blood levels of non prostate cancer individuals.  DHA is one of three omega-3 fatty acids derived from oily fish and fish oil supple

Is There Any Difference Between A Bribe And An Incentive?

Image
David Cameron, the United Kingdom prime minister, recently announced that his government would permit oil companies to carry out Fracking in some parts of the United Kingdom.  Fracking is a slang term for hydraulic fracturing. It refers to the process of creating fractures in rocks and rock formations by injecting fluid into cracks to force them further open. The prime minister also promised that local authorities in the affected regions will be allowed to keep 100 % of the business tax rate which may arise from the oil exploration.   According to the government, this will serve as an incentive for further developments in the affected areas.   Critics, however, have argued that the decision is an act of bribery rather than an act of incentivising the local communities for greater good. How can we establish that this decision to allow local authorities to take 100 per cent of business tax rate from companies involved in the oil fracking is an incentive rather than a bribe?   Th

Aspirin: Men Should Avoid It to Reduce Gout Risk

Image
As well as Panadol and Paracetamol, Aspirin is a household name among millions of people around the world.  It is used as a painkiller for minor to moderate pain.  It is also used for treating fever and cold.  Moreover, doctors also tend to prescribe aspirin for patients at risk of heart attack or stroke.  Despite this good news about it, aspirin has also been found to increase the risk of gout. Gout is a medical condition characterised by abnormally elevated levels of uric acid in the blood and recurring inflammation of the joints (arthritis), often causing pain and discomfort to the sufferer.  Men are more at risk of gout than women.  This has led to the suggestion that men should avoid aspirin, if necessary, to minimise their risk of gout. But the evidence that aspirin increases the amount of uric acid in the body and thus increases the risk of gout is not conclusive.  First, a large study by the Department of Rheumatology and Medicine in San Francisco, United States, found

A 32 –Calibre revolver for Indian Women: Is it the Answer to Violence Against them?

Image
On 16 December 2012, a 23 year old Indian woman and her male friend were travelling on a bus when three men robbed them of their belongings before sexually assaulting the women.   The woman later died in hospital as a result of the injuries she had sustained from this attack.   This incident led to strong criticisms of the Indian government for failing to protect Indian women against male violence.   The Indian government has tried to address this concern by making some changes to laws relating to violence against women.   An Indian state-run gun company however felt that these changes in the law did not provide adequate protection for Indian women against violence.   It is now manufacturing a 32- calibre revolver for Indian women.   The gun company claims that vulnerable women can use this gun to protect themselves against male assailants. It is possible that allowing Indian women to carry a 32 – calibre revolver can deter potential assailants from attacking them. Criminals

Banana Consumption Prevents Kidney Stones and Cancer

Image
Kidney stones and kidney cancer are two of the major diseases that affect the kidneys. These diseases do not normally show any symptoms and most sufferers tend to live with them unaware that they have the conditions. Sufferers only tend to discover about the conditions only after they have progressed to unacceptable levels. For fortunate individuals, however, the presence of a kidney disease or kidney cancer can also be picked up during routine blood tests. Treatment for kidney stones and kidney cancer can involve long and painful procedures comprising of the use of medications and/or changes to dietary lifestyle. Individuals at risk of kidney disease or kidney cancer can protect themselves against these diseases by consuming bananas. According to evidence from research including the one published in the International Journal of Cancer, bananas can help prevent kidney stones and kidney cancer. This conclusion was reached after it was found that the risk of kidney diseases faced

Good reasons to drink alcohol.

Alcohol is generally perceived as a dangerous beverage for human consumption.   It is a risk factor, for example, for a host of human diseases including cirrhosis of the liver, hepatitis, and cancer.   Drink driving in which a driver consumes alcohol excessively is also associated with road accidents and heavy fatalities.   Although it is often associated with this cost to consumers, alcohol can provide a number of health benefits to consumers. Alcohol has the potential to decrease mortality rate , which is a measure of the number of deaths (in general, or due to a specific cause) in a population .  A major cause of early mortality is heart diseases such as stroke and artherosclerosis associated with build up of fatty substances (bad cholesterol) on the arteries walls and thickening of these walls.   Consuming alcohol in moderation has been found to decrease mortality rate by inhibiting or preventing the build up of bad cholesterol which is responsible for build up of plaques on t

Freedom of Speech: Does it really exist?

Image
The concept of freedom of speech seems to have a universal value. The United Nations, for example, recognises freedom of speech as one of the universal human rights. Many countries particularly the western nations also view freedom of speech as a fundamental human right which cannot be denied to any individual by their government. An analysis of the concept of freedom of speech, however, shows that the term is an illusion. Let us start by considering the meaning of the word “freedom” in the phrase freedom of speech . The term freedom refers to unrestricted use of something or the state of not being subject to or affected by something. In this context, freedom of speech means an unrestricted use of speech. Do we have the ability to express all our views unrestricted? The simple answer is no. Our freedom of speech is curtailed when it comes to official secret acts. Official secret acts refer to deeds sanctioned by the state and committed on behalf of the state. As thei