A DECADE-LONG study of 135,000 men found that those who did not have children had a higher risk of dying from heart disease than those who did, raising new questions over the links between fertility and overall health, US researchers said.

A DECADE-LONG study of 135,000 men found that those who did not have children had a higher risk of dying from heart disease than those who did, raising new questions over the links between fertility and overall health, US researchers said.

While the findings do not show that not having children causes heart problems in men, they do suggest that infertility may be a potential early warning sign of future heart trouble, the team reported in the journal Human Reproduction.

“There is emerging evidence to suggest that infertility may be a window into a man’s later health,” said Dr Michael.......

VITAMIN D is needed to activate the immune system’s response to tuberculosis, said a US study on Wednesday (October 12) that could lead to new treatments for the lung disease that kills 1.8 million people per year.

VITAMIN D is needed to activate the immune system’s response to tuberculosis, said a US study on Wednesday (October 12) that could lead to new treatments for the lung disease that kills 1.8 million people per year.

Researchers have long known that vitamin D plays a role in the body’s response to TB, but the study in the journal Science Translational Medicine shows it must be present in adequate levels to trigger the immune response.

This finding could be crucial to efforts to treat the disease in parts of the world like Africa, because people with dark skin tend to.......

GREEN tea, taken in a capsule or drunk in a cup, may shave a few points off 'bad' cholesterol readings, according to a US study involving more than a thousand people.

GREEN tea, taken in a capsule or drunk in a cup, may shave a few points off “bad” cholesterol readings, according to a US study involving more than a thousand people.

The findings, published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, showed that green tea trimmed five to six points more from people’s total cholesterol and “bad” LDL cholesterol levels than dummy capsules or other treatments.

The trials tested either green tea itself or capsules containing green-tea compounds called catechins, which are thought to decrease cholesterol absorption in the gut.

Green tea in a cup was more consistently effective.......

CHANDRAKANT Pawar is lucky to be alive. In September, the Indian former textile mill worker was given an artificial pacemaker after his heart rate plunged to just 20 to 30 beats per minute.

CHANDRAKANT Pawar is lucky to be alive. In September, the Indian former textile mill worker was given an artificial pacemaker after his heart rate plunged to just 20 to 30 beats per minute.

On the face of it, his case was not unusual, with the use of pacemakers to correct abnormal heart rates now commonplace around the world. What was more unusual is that his pacemaker was “second-hand”.

Instead of a new device, the 61-year-old from Mumbai was given a free reconditioned pacemaker that had been used previously by a patient in the US and removed after their death.

“I.......