Medi watch

China's generic drugs to flood market

The so-called world's factory is fast becoming the world's laboratory, with forecasts that a wave of cheap Chinese generic drugs will drive down prices around the world. Pharmaceutical-information group IMS Health says the US Food and Drug Administration's approval in July last year of a Chinese copy of Aids drug nevirapine is a sign of things to come. China is already the biggest producer of the raw materials used to make medicines and is now moving into finished generic pills, Reuters reports. IMS Health says that at least 10 other Chinese companies are set to release generic drugs.

Alzheimer's risk a weighty issue

Being obese significantly increases the risk of developing dementia in people over the age of 40, say Johns Hopkins University researchers - and being underweight appears to increase the risk as well. Their conclusions are based on analysis of 10 studies from around the world, including the US, France and Japan, from 1995 to last year, WebMD reports. Obese people of either sex were 42 per cent more likely than those of normal weight to develop cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer's, and those who were underweight were 36 per cent more likely to develop dementia.

Sleeping patterns linked to obesity

Meanwhile, a major study by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has found a link between obesity and sleeping too little or too much. The findings are based on surveys of about 87,000 adults from 2004 to 2006, AP reports. Too little sleep is defined as less than six hours a night; too much as more than nine. Light sleeping was also linked to higher levels of smoking, less exercise and greater alcohol use.

Stimulating work staves off dementia

People with mentally challenging jobs appear to be less likely to develop dementia in old age, say Duke University researchers who since 1990 have been studying more than 1,000 second world war veterans, more than half of whom are a twin. Those whose work entailed problem-solving, planning, organising and thinking flexibly seem to build up what the researchers call a 'cognitive reserve' - a level of mental function that helps them avoid age-related mental decline. The effect was most marked in men who had low or average scores in intelligence tests administered when they joined the armed forces, WebMD reports.

Salmonella risk from dry dog food

An outbreak of salmonella infections in people has been traced to contaminated dry dog food, the first time such a link has been uncovered, say US officials, who suspect salmonella infections from the food may be an under-recognised source of illness in people. 'This is the first time human illness has been linked to dry dog food,' says US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention epidemiologist Casey Barton Behravesh. The CDC isn't sure how the salmonella bacteria got into the dog food, HealthDay reports. An estimated 70 Americans were infected by dog food in 2006 and 2007 produced by Mars Petcare. About 40 per cent of those infections involved infants. No pets became ill.