The recent study done by researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has shown that chickenpox vaccination programes have drastically reduced the occurrence of this disease. This study also raised some concerns regarding chickenpox. Researchers found out that parents don’t take this disease seriously. That’s why a large number of kids are not vaccinated against this disease.

Chicken pox leads to itching bumps on the skin all over the body, scaling off and on, red in colour. The patient is forced to stay in isolation for15 days. Eventually bumps die leaving scars on the body. It should not be treated as mere childhood disease. It can lead to serious ailments like- pneumonia, encephalitisdefine, bacterial infections and bleeding disorders.

Some people feel low during winter season. A recent research has found association between seasonal changes and brain activity. The team of researchers led by Nicole Praschak-Rieder and Matthaeus Willeit of Canada's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto found out that winter season can be gloomy for some people due to low-sunlight surge of brain protein.

Cases of childhood asthma have been increasing drastically. Asthma is the one of the most common aliments in children. It is one of the major reasons behind hospitalization of children. A recent research has found a direct link between physical abuse and childhood asthma. Previous studies have shown a clear relationship between stress, trauma and asthma both in children as well as adults. Studies have also shown that stress can increase the probability of asthma attack in children by almost five times.

Based upon two significant discoveries to fight hepatitis C, researchers from Stanford University say that an old drug may be effective against hepatitis C.

In their findings protein NS4B actively binds some of the genetic material RNA which allows the virus to duplicate.

It has also been discovered that an obsolete anti-itching drug clemizole hydrochloride could hinder the protein and decrease the virus replication many times.

Dr. Jeffrey Glenn, associate professor of gastroenterology and hepatology, has been quoted in Nature magazine as saying, "We're excited about this and we're actively moving forward toward clinical trials."

A study says that people who use stairs mostly instead of elevator at work are more likely to live longer. This has been found by the University of Geneva.

Philippe Meyer, the main author of the study, said death risk could be decreased by 15% if people walk from floor to floor in an office building. He himself had been using stairs instead of elevator at his work.

Meyer also said that utilizing stairs helps in improving in blood pressure, lipid profiles, body composition and fitness.

He further said, “The challenge remains to develop successful population-based interventions, which promote physical activities that can be easily integrated into everyday life.”

Scientists have discovered the gene FOXO3A which is known for increasing life span in other species and now may also be responsible for good health in the humans and thus increase the life span beyond 100 years.

In the humans, FOXO genes are present in four forms but its form FOXO3A is associated with giving better health and longevity.

“We screened 213 of the long-lived participants' DNA and 402 of the average lived focusing on five genes in the insulin pathway. We calculated how the DNA bases found at three locations of each gene were correlated with health criteria including chronic diseases, disability and insulin levels,” said National Academy of Science scientist Bradley Willcox.