Features in July-December 2006
Australian gun laws led to fewer deaths
14 December 2006
The risk of dying by gunshot has halved since Australia destroyed 700,000 privately owned firearms, according to a new study published today in the international research journal, Injury Prevention.
(more)
Epidurals linked to lower breastfeeding rates
11 December 2006
Epidurals given during labour are associated with decreased rates of breastfeeding, a study involving a University of Sydney researcher has found.
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TV's health risks to children
8 December 2006
A study undertaken by the University's NSW Centre for Overweight and Obesity has found that as many as two thirds of NSW children are spending more than the recommended maximum of two hours per day in front of a small screen.(more)
Heart attack prevention gets new lease of life
19 November 2006
For the first time, known triggers for heart attacks - including sexual activity, cocaine use, pollution, heavy meals, and stressful major events like September 11 - have been analysed to develop a whole new approach to prevention.(more)
Prevention program linked to halving of male suicides
17 November 2006
The suicide rate among young Australian men halved between 1997 and 2003, and a major government youth suicide prevention program may be at least partly responsible for the dramatic drop.
(more)
One binge drink is one too many
10 November 2006
Binge drinking by young women is on the increase and drinking during pregnancy is common. But the effect of this changing social behaviour on unborn children can be catastrophic, says a Sydney University researcher. (more)
Toddlers hopping on the extra foods gravy train
10 November 2006
Sweetened drinks, biscuits, cakes, chips and other low-nutrient, high energy snacks are contributing up to one-quarter of toddlers' energy needs, a University of Sydney researcher has found. (more)
A solution to Australia's medical workforce shortage
3 November 2006
With Australia in grip of a national medical workforce shortage, a Sydney academic has received funding for a project this week to investigate ways of attracting and retaining health professionals into primary care. (more)
Head for the red to beat the bulge
2 November 2006
An antioxidant called resveratrol, which is common in red wine, has been shown by a team of Sydney University researchers to produce striking health improvements in mice which have been fed a fatty diet. (more)
New generation cancer treatments
19 October 2006
A new generation of anti-cancer drugs being trialed by University of Sydney researchers is showing promising signs of being more effective than traditional chemotherapy treatments, with potentially fewer side-effects. (more)
Cres Eastman: Averting a human disaster in Tibet
18 October 2006
Two decades ago, endocrinologist Creswell Eastman journeyed into the mountain villages of the remote Tibetan Plateau. What he saw horrified him: more than one in ten babies was born with the stunted mental and physical growth of cretinism, caused by a lack of iodine in the food chain. (more)
University receives $46 million for health and medical research
18 October 2006
The University of Sydney has received more than $46 million for health and medical research in the latest round of funding from the NHMRC. The University's funding allocation, announced this week, is the biggest in New South Wales. (more)
Obesity: Should there be a law against it?
27 September 2006
"Theoretically, law can do any number of things (both wise and unwise) to reduce obesity," says conference organiser Associate Professor Roger Magnusson, from University of Sydney law school."Law can tax junk food, prohibit food advertising during children's TV programs, require town planners to upgrade footpaths and bike paths, and require restaurants to include healthy menu options." (more)
Sydney medics identify a test for "poppy eyes"
27 September 2006
A team of researchers from the University of Sydney has developed an antibody test to aid the diagnosis and management of patients with "poppy eyes", a debilitating symptom of Graves' disease. (more)
Program provides healthy hearts for online shoppers
25 September 2006
New research has seen online grocery shoppers improve their diets at the click of a button. The world's first study of Internet shopping was conducted by researchers from the University of Sydney's George Institute for International Health. The trial showed that offering simple dietary advice to online consumers can lead to significantly healthier food choices. (more)
Orgasm study's stimulating findings
18 September 2006
A major study of the sexual encounters of heterosexual men and women has shed new light on the relationship between sexual repertoire and orgasm.
Researchers from the University of Sydney, University of New South Wales, La Trobe University and University of Sussex (UK), surveyed more than 19,000 Australians between the ages of 16 to 59. (more)
Stem cell transparency
8 September 2006
As Australia prepares to discuss the controversial issue of stem cell research, one University scientist says there are lessons to be learnt from the experience of California. (more)
450 of the world's top alcohol experts meet in Sydney
7 September 2006
How social drinking can turn into addiction, whether alcoholism can be inherited and the latest cutting edge alcoholism research are just some of the topics that will be discussed when 450 of the world's leading alcohol experts gather in Sydney from 10 September. (more)
Professor Oates: The children's champion
1 September 2006
Professor Oates developed and established the Child Development and Child Protection Units at the Children's Hospital to provide state-wide assessment and treatment services for previously neglected groups. (more)
Sydney ranked among world's top 50
28 August 2006
The University of Sydney has been ranked as one of the world's top 50 universities in the latest survey of global universities.
The Newsweek global top 100 published this month has ranked universities from around the world taking into account openness and diversity, as well as distinction in research. (more)
Sick cities just one symptom of larger health problem
16 August 2006
Research does not support the view that the urban environment is the thing above all else that should attract our attention when it comes to preventing and reducing chronic disease. (more)
Third World poverty "exacerbated by tobacco companies"
2 August 2006
Sydney University researcher Mary Assunta has used the world's biggest smoking and health conference to attack tobacco companies for prolonging the "vicious cycle of poverty" in developing nations.
Speaking at the opening session of the World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Washington DC, Miss Assunta said hunger and malnutrition were exacerbated by tobacco use. (more)
College audience gets first glimpse of cervical cancer vaccine
27 July 2006
The first vial of a life-saving cervical cancer vaccine developed by Australian scientists was displayed at the University's Women's College by Professor Ian Frazer, the Australian of the Year. (more)
Health experts study Australia's way of tackling emerging diseases
25 July 2006
In a pattern repeated throughout the developing world, health services in Mongolia are struggling to cope with a dramatic rise in the number of cases of diabetes.
Dr Bayasgalan Tumenbayar, from the University of Mongolia's School of Medicine, has seen the condition spread to an extent where an estimated 10 per cent of the adult population show symptoms, although 90 per cent of cases are undiagnosed. (more)
Health Minister visits Hoc Mai House in Vietnam
20 July 2006
Tony Abbott, the Australian Minister for Health and Aging, has visited Sydney University's Hoc Mai House, an Australian-Vietnamese project at Viet Duc Hospital in Hanoi.
Mr Abbott was in Vietnam to discuss avian influenza prevention, preparedness and response. (more)
Fatal consequences: India counts the cost of its economic boom
7 July 2006
Chronic diseases such as diabetes are becoming an epidemic in India and are likely to trim approximately 1 per cent from the country's gross domestic product, according to new research from the University's George Institute for International Health.
A study on the prevalence and management of diabetes in rural India, led by Associate Professor Bruce Neal and his team, found 13 per cent of adults aged 30 or older have the disease, with a further 16 per cent exhibiting features of pre-diabetes. (more)