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Mediterranean diet tied to fertility treatment success
Women who closely adhere to a Mediterranean-style diet rich in vegetables, vegetable oils and fish may have a higher likelihood of becoming pregnant after infertility treatment, a new study suggests. Researchers in the Netherlands found that among 161 couples undergoing fertility treatment at their center, women whose eating habits most closely matched the traditional Mediterranean diet were 40 percent more likely to become pregnant than those with the least Mediterranean-like diets. The study, reported in the journal Fertility and Sterility, does not prove that the diet itself boosts the success of fertility treatment.

FDA issues warning for high doses of Zocor
Patients on the highest approved dose of the cholesterol-lowering drug Zocor may be at increased risk of muscle injury, U.S. regulators warned on Friday. Made by Merck & Co and sold under the brand name Zocor, simvastatin is also sold in combination with ezetimibe as Vytorin, and in combination with niacin as Abbott Laboratories Simcor, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a statement. Simvastatin also is available as a single-ingredient generic medication. The FDA said its review of simvastatin is part of an ongoing effort to evaluate the risk of statin-associated muscle injury.

Acupuncture can spread serious diseases: experts
Bacterial infections, hepatitis B and C, and possibly even HIV are being transmitted via acupuncture through the use of contaminated needles, cotton swabs and hot packs, experts warned on Friday. In an editorial published in the British Medical Journal, microbiologists at the University of Hong Kong said the number of reported acupuncture-related infections worldwide was the tip of an iceberg and they called for tighter infection control measures. “To prevent infections transmitted by acupuncture, infection control measures should be implemented, such as use of disposable needles, skin disinfection procedures and aseptic techniques,” wrote the researchers, led by Patrick Woo, microbiology professor at the University of Hong Kong.

US child obesity problem worse than thought
Extreme obesity among American children is much worse than previously believed, putting them at greater risk of serious health problems as they age, U.S. researchers said on Thursday. A study of more than 700,000 children and teens in southern California found that more than 6 percent, or 45,000, were extremely obese and more boys than girls were far too heavy, the researchers reported in the Journal of Pediatrics. “This study is unique because it is the first time that we’ve had a large up-to-date snapshot of what’s happening with obesity in our children,” co-author Dr. Amy Porter of Kaiser Permanente health care system said in a video statement.

Vitamin D helps fend off flu, asthma attacks: study
In a study of Japanese schoolchildren, vitamin D supplements taken during the winter and early spring helped prevent seasonal flu and asthma attacks. The idea for the study, study chief Dr. Mitsuyoshi Urashima, told Reuters Health, came from an earlier study looking at whether vitamin D could help prevent the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis. The researchers in that study noticed that people taking vitamin D were three times less likely to report cold and flu symptoms. This led Urashima, of Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, and colleagues to randomly assign a group of 6- to 15-year-old children to take vitamin D3 supplements (1,200 international units daily) or inactive placebo during a cold and flu season.