vital signs

Enjoy your flight

People who are prone to air sickness should eat a low-fat, high-carbohydrate meal before flying, say researchers from the University of North Dakota. Their study of 59 airline pilots found that eating dairy products just before a flight increased the incidence of air sickness. Foods high in sodium, such as preserved meats and crisps, and those high in thiamine, such as pork, beef, eggs and fish, were also more likely to induce vomiting than other foods.

The researchers also found that having meals more frequently was likely to boost the incidence of attacks. Three out of four pilots with air sickness said they had consumed three meals or more in the past 24 hours: less than half of those who were free of the problem had eaten the same amount.

An orange a day

A diet rich in vitamin C can reduce the risk of stroke by a half in elderly people, say researchers from Southampton University. A 20-year study of 730 men and women, whose diets were analysed, concluded that low vitamin C intake is as important a risk factor for stroke as high blood pressure. It also found that the risk of death from stroke was twice as high among those with a daily Vitamin C intake of less than 28mg - roughly equivalent to about half an orange.

The researchers, writing in the British Medical Journal, say that the antioxidant effect of vitamin C may protect against the development of atherosclerosis, thickening of the artery walls.

Young blades at risk

Rollerblading has replaced skateboarding as the fashionable activity among the urban young - and has the same potential for injury. A report in a Canadian journal of public health points out that more than 30,000 people, both participants and passers-by, are injured by the sport each year in North America. Those taking part should wear protective clothing and learn the basic skills, it argues.

Bungee running, another sport gaining in popularity, can also be dangerous. A report published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine describes two cases of serious injury and one death when competitors tried to stretch the bungee to grasp a pint of beer as a prize, and were catapulted backwards. Injuries included fractures of bones in the legs, arm and skull.

From hoof to tooth

A chemical extract from the sweat glands of a deer could provide a new treatment for conditions such as athlete's foot, tooth decay and acne. The chemical has been discovered in glands near the hooves of the black- tailed deer, which roams the western US and Canada. Thought to be used for marking trails and sending messages to other deer, it was tested on a range of bacteria and fungi, many of which stopped growing as a result.

Micro-organisms that were stopped in their tracks included those responsible for toxic shock syndrome, tooth decay, acne, dandruff, athlete's foot and fungal infections of the groin, says a report in New Scientist.