BEIJING, Oct. 27 (Xinhuanet) — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended Thursday that anyone over the age of 60 should be vaccinated with the FDA approved Zostavax vaccine for shingles. Shingles is a viral disease caused by the reactivated chicken pox virus. Zostavax, approved last May, was shown to reduce the incidence of shingles by 50 percent and to reduce the pain in those that did get the disease. “The virus that causes chickenpox stays in your…

By Nigel Hawkes, Health Editor HALF an hour’s exercise a day cuts the risks of catching colds in half, a new trial suggests. Brisk walking is all that is needed, and the longer that you continue to exercise daily the greater the benefit. The trial recruited 115 older women from Seattle, Washington state. All were sedentary and either overweight or obese. For a year they were asked either to exercise daily or take part in a 45-minute stretching class once…

R.J. Reynolds pushes allowing smoking in bars; funding lopsided on many props By Howard Fischer CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES PHOENIX — One of the nation’s largest tobacco companies is spending more than $1.40 for every man, woman and child in Arizona on its campaign to let bar owners decide whether patrons may smoke. New campaign finance reports show R.J. Reynolds has contributed more than $1.4 million in just the last seven days. That is on top of nearly $7.1 million the…

California’s health officials said on Thursday that they are investigating whether wild boars may have played a role in the E. coli outbreak in September that killed three people and sickened some two hundred. Since Sept. 15, the E. coli-contaminated spinach produced in California’s Salinas Valley has sickened 204 people in 26 U.S. states and one Canadian province, the investigators told a press conference. They said that nine samples of the bacteria found on one ranch in the Salinas Valley…

Researchers in Austria have found a way for people to quit smoking. They say using a combination of either nicotine gum or transdermal patches and exercise makes it more likely that smokers will quit. The combo they say offers a better chance of smokers kicking the habit and even those who failed to quit completely managed to cut down on the number of cigarettes they smoked. In a study conducted at the Otto Wagner Hospital and the Lainz Hospital in…

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s biggest retailer, said Thursday it is extending its $4 generic prescription drug plan to another 12 states, bringing to total to 27 states. The move brings 1,008 more stores under the program, under which Wal-Mart charges $4 for a one-month supply of 314 different prescriptions. That number includes 143 drugs in a variety of dosages and solid or liquid forms. Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart rolled out the program in Florida three…

ATLANTA — An influential government advisory panel has voted to recommend routine vaccines to protect older adults against shingles. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted to recommend the vaccine for adults 60 and older. The committee’s recommendations usually are accepted by federal health officials, and they influence insurance coverage for vaccinations. Shingles is a painful, blistering skin rash that is most common in people 60 and older. It usually goes away after four weeks, but one in five shingles…

The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) is warning the public not to consume any ready-to-eat or smoked meat products purchased from the Bellville Meat Market on or after Oct. 6. The market is at 36 South Front St. in Bellville, about 60 miles northwest of Houston, in Austin County. DSHS laboratory testing detected Listeria monocytogenes in summer sausage from the market. The testing was done as part of a routine DSHS inspection. Other products in the warning include…

Epidemiologist – A Salary The salary range for this position is $18.35 min, $25.50 mid, $32.63 max, Pay Ban 75 . Offered salary is determined based on education and experience qualifications. Purpose of Position This position will serve as the principal investigator for the Department of Health’s Minority Health Grant. This position will direct, organize and supervise the research, design, development and analytical work associated with the grant’s work products: Health Disparities Report Card, Standardized Minority Health Data Categories, CLAS…

NEW DELHI: With four cases of polio coming to light here in the Capital, the Delhi Government on Tuesday went into damage control mode and claimed that Delhi continued to remain in the “high risk polio zone” as it had a rogue neighbour in Uttar Pradesh which remains a major source of the polio virus despite several rounds of the Pulse Polio vaccination programme. Speaking about the cases, Principal Secretary (Health) D.S. Negi said: “Preliminary investigations into three new polio…