Health Headlines - January 31

Additive May Help Chips Lower Cholesterol

Tortilla chips might not be health food anytime soon, but science may have found a way to make them lower your cholesterol. Researchers are frying chips in oil spiked with an ingredient from plants called phytosterol, which can soak up cholesterol without harming the taste.

Scientists Turn Stem Cells Into Neurons

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin, Madison reported Sunday that they've whipped up an exciting — but intricate — new recipe that could someday treat spinal cord injuries or provide a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Kaiser Halts Prescriptions of Bextra

Kaiser Permanente, the nation's largest not-for-profit managed-care provider, has stopped prescribing Bextra until tests show whether the painkiller is safe.

Bone Marrow Matches Hard for Multiracial

Luke Do was a lively 18-month-old awaiting the birth of his first sibling when he was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia. The hopes of his parents, both doctors in San Jose, Calif., immediately turned to a bone marrow transplant, but they soon learned some distressing news — Luke's ethnic heritage made him a tough match.

Sarah Gaskins, Luke's mother, has Japanese and European ancestors and his father, Lam Do, is Vietnamese-American. Because bone marrow matches usually are made with a relative or someone with the same racial or ethnic background as the patient, multiracial people rarely have success.

Marine, Iraq Veteran, Receives New Liver

With little time left before his organs would likely fail, a U.S. Marine received a new liver Sunday for a mysterious ailment doctors said would kill him if he didn't get a transplant.

Bird Flu Kills 12th Vietnamese in a Month

A 10-year-old girl from southern Vietnam has died of bird flu, the 12th human victim from the virus in a month, a health official said Monday.

Blacks More Prone to Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease is a silent epidemic striking black Americans, who seem more susceptible to the brain-wasting condition than any other group of Americans, new research finds.

Exercise Can Ease Depression

Aerobic exercise alone can have a significant impact on mild to moderate depression, says a study by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Obesity posing heavyweight problem for health, food sectors

Concern over growing levels of obesity has sparked a lively debate among food sector professionals and health experts about how to halt a trend that is medically and economically harmful.

Leprosy blights lives even in the 21st century

Leprosy, which has blighted mankind for thousands of years, is still far from being eradicated, afflicting half a million people every year even though the disease is completely curable.