London, Oct 26 : Couples opting for IVF would soon be able to know whether their child is suffering from any genetic disorder, courtesy British researchers, who have developed a gene-mapping test t

Washington, Oct 26 : A new study has revealed that being overweight, particularly if one has a higher than average body mass index, may increase the person’s risk of developing severe osteoarthritis in hips and knees.

Osteoarthritis, or OA as it is commonly called, is the most common joint disease affecting middle-age and older people.

It is characterized by progressive damage to the joint cartilage, the slippery material at the end of long bones, and causes changes in the structures around the joint.

London, Oct 26 : They say ‘eyes are windows of ones heart’. Well, it may be true with the new range of high-tech eye scans that can help detect brain tumours to heart disease.

According to health experts, the new generation of high-tech eye scans are capable enough to tell to you about potential health risks.

Tests offered to detect eye diseases such as glaucoma, cataracts and macular degeneration, and some other conditions such as diabetes can also provide an insight into the patients’ health problems.

The eye has a huge potential as a means of diagnosing illness early where internal blood vessels and nerves can be viewed working undisturbed.

London, Oct 25 : British nursery Langham Pre-School, near Colchester, Essex, has banned kids from bringing in broomsticks and pitchforks or other such objects during Hallowe''en.

Due to health and safety fears, the pre-school’s committee decided upon the ban, especially after a child was hurt last year.

However, it did not sit well with the parents, who have criticised it as health and safety gone too far.

Sally Cowley, a 39-year-old mother-of-two who runs the nearby Boxted mother and toddler group, finds the decision sad.

“I think it''s sad it has come to this. It''s the same as banning conkers,” the Telegraph quoted her as saying.

New Delhi, Oct 25 : Chinese nuclear physicists have developed a new treatment for cancer that uses heavy ion beams to kill malignant tumours more than 2.1 cm below the skin''s surface.

Zhan Wenlong, the leading nuclear physicist in the country, has claimed that heavy ion beams score over light ion beams, such as gamma rays and X-rays used in traditional radiotherapies.

High ion beams can accurately moderate the amount of radiation and minimize the damage done to healthy cells, reports China Daily.

Bangkok - Thailand's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ordered a nationwide ban on the sale of three snack products imported from China and Malaysia after they were found to contain excessive levels of melamine, reports said Saturday.

The banned items included Chinese-made Hajuku brand strawberry cream stick biscuits, Chinese-made Koala chocolate cream biscuits and Malaysian-made Julie's peanut cream crackers, all of which contained more than the safety limit of 2.5 milligrams per kilogram, Thai News Agency reported.

FDA secretary general Pipat Yingseri ordered retailers to remove the items from their shelves nationwide.

Melamine is typically used as a bonding agent for particle board, and as a pesticide.