Daniel Craig with new 007 movie"Quantum of Solace" hits Paris

British actor Daniel Craig arrives for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig arrives for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

Actress Melanie Bernier arrives for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris, October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

Actress Agnes Soral arrives for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig and Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrive for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig (L-R), Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko and French actor Mathieu Amalric arrive for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris, October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig (L-R), Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko, French actor Mathieu Amalric and director Marc Forster arrive for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

TV host Karine Ferri arrives for the premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" in Paris, October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

Taken From : http://www.chinadaily.com.cn


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Vigorous exercise protects against breast cancer

Chinese women practice ballet at a university for senior citizens in Tianjin March 10, 2005.
REUTERS/Reinhard Krause

LONDON (Reuters) - Plenty of vigorous exercise can cut a healthy, older woman's breast cancer risk by 30 percent, researchers said on Friday.

A study of more than 30,000 post-menopausal women showed that strenuous activity -- ranging from housework such as scrubbing floors to running -- protected against breast cancer even among those who do not have a higher risk, the researchers said.

The effect was clearest among lean women.

"We know that being overweight puts women at increased risk of breast cancer," said Michael Leitzmann, who led the study while at the National Cancer Institute of the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

"What our study shows is that even among women without this increased risk, if they exercise they can get some benefit."

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among women worldwide, according to the American Cancer Society. The group estimates about 465,000 women died of breast cancer globally in 2007, and 1.3 million new cases were diagnosed.

A number of studies have shown that regular strenuous exercise can help people avoid heart disease, cancer and a range of other conditions.

Leitzmann and colleagues used questionnaires to determine how often the women exercised vigorously. All were healthy when the study began.

After 11 years the researchers found that overall the volunteers who exercised most were 13 percent less likely to have developed breast cancer.

The reduced risk was even higher -- 30 percent -- when the researchers compared only women of normal weight, Leitzmann, now working at Germany's University Hospital in Regensburg, said in a telephone interview.

"The relationship was much stronger among leaner women," he added.

Interestingly, non-vigorous activity such as light housework, walking, hiking and easy jogging, did not seem to offer any protection against breast cancer, the team reported in BioMed Central's Breast Cancer Research journal.

The researchers did not look at why exercise may help but Leitzmann noted other studies have shown that working out reduces estrogen levels -- a known risk factor for the disease -- and protects the body's general immune system.

(Reporting by Michael Kahn; Editing by Maggie Fox)



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Too much weight in pregnancy can make baby fat

By Julie Steenhuysen

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Women who gain more than 40 pounds (18 kg ) during pregnancy have nearly twice the risk of delivering a heavy baby as those who gain less, U.S. researchers said on Friday.

The study of more than 40,000 U.S. women and their babies found as many as one in five women gains too much weight during pregnancy, doubling the chances her baby will weigh 9 pounds (4 kg) or more.

And they found women who gain more than 40 pounds during pregnancy are more likely to have a heavy baby even if they do not have gestational diabetes, a short-term form of diabetes linked with pregnancy that is known to increase the risk of having a big baby.

"Because there are so many women who are gaining more than 40 pounds during pregnancy, it's an important health message for most women to avoid excessive weight during pregnancy," Dr. Teresa Hillier of Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research in Portland, Oregon, whose study appears in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, said in a telephone interview.

Hillier said gaining extra weight during pregnancy increases the risk for having heavy babies, and studies suggest these babies are programed to become overweight or obese later in life.

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, babies who weigh more than 9 pounds at birth are considered heavy.

A large baby can pose risks for a difficult delivery -- increasing the chances of vaginal tearing, bleeding, and Caesarian-sections for the mother and the risk of stuck shoulders and broken collar bones for the baby.

In the study, Hillier and colleagues examined the medical records of 41,540 women who gave birth in Washington, Oregon and Hawaii from 1995-2003. All had been tested for gestational diabetes and 5.4 percent were treated for it with a program of diet, exercise and insulin, if needed, to control blood sugar.

Overall, 20 percent of the women in the study who gained more than 40 pounds -- the upper limit of pregnancy weight gain recommendations in the United States -- gave birth to heavy babies.

Fewer than 12 percent of women in the study with normal weight gain delivered heavy babies, she said.

The group at greatest risk were those who gained more than 40 pounds and had gestational diabetes. Nearly 30 percent of these women had heavy babies, compared with 13.5 percent of women with gestational diabetes who had normal weight gains during pregnancy.

The researchers said the findings suggest all women should avoid excessive weight gain during pregnancy. And women who are being treated for gestational diabetes should also strive to keep weight gain below 40 pounds.

"You can't treat the glucose and ignore the weight gain issue," Hillier said.

Weight gain during pregnancy has been rising over the past two decades, and some researchers suspect this may be fueling an epidemic of childhood obesity.

(Editing by Maggie Fox)



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A purrfect stress buster

Having a pet helps improve many aspects of your health.

(China Daily) The body of evidence supporting the notion that pet ownership is good for your health grew even fatter this month. A new study, published in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention, found that keeping animals could cut the risk of developing the relatively common cancer of the immune system, non-Hodgkins lymphoma, by almost one third.

"The idea that pets and good health are associated goes back 20 years or more," says Dr June McNicholas, a psychologist who has researched the relationship between people and their pets. The catalog of health plusses can't all be attributed to regular dog-walking, however.

When a study suggested that people who own pets have better cardiac health, says McNicholas, "one of the significant factors in people recovering well from a heart attack was owning a pet, but it wasn't just dogs. It applied equally to cats." Here are some of the many ways in which pets have been found to strengthen our constitutions.

Pets are good for cardiac health

The Baker Medical Research Institute in Australia studied 6,000 people and found that those who kept animals had lower blood pressure and lower cholesterol - and therefore, a lower risk of heart attack.

Another study, conducted at the University of Minnesota and published earlier this year, concluded that cat owners were 40 percent less likely to suffer a fatal heart attack than people who didn't have a cat. Adnan Qureshi, the neurology professor who led the study of nearly 4,500 people, said he believed that people who stroked their cat experienced less stress and anxiety and therefore were at a lower risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.

Pets boost the immune system

This month, a study by researchers from Stanford University and the University of California found that regular exposure to a cat or a dog could reduce one's chance of developing non-Hodgkins lymphoma. It is thought that exposure to allergens - from cats and dogs - could boost the immune system.

The immune-boosting power of pets is something that McNicholas has also investigated. In 2002, she studied 256 primary school children and found that children aged from 5 to 7 from pet-owning households attended school for three weeks more than those who didn't.

Meanwhile, a study in Japan found that pet owners over the age of 65 made almost a third fewer visits to their doctor than people the same age who didn't have pets.

Dogs can act as a health warning

After 20 years working for the charity, Hearing Dogs for the Deaf, Claire Guest was struck by the story of a colleague whose dog had repeatedly sniffed at a mole on her leg before it was diagnosed as a malignant melanoma. Guest went on to work with researchers at Amersham hospital in Buckinghamshire, UK, to discover whether dogs could be trained to detect bladder cancer in urine samples, and found that they could.

Similarly, in 2006, a cancer research center in California published a study which found that ordinary household dogs could be trained to detect early breast and lung cancer between 88 percent and 97 percent of the time, by sniffing people's breath - it is thought that these particular cancer cells give off miniscule traces of volatile odors that dogs can smell.

The idea is that, once they have worked out which odors dogs are detecting and which cancers emit them, a diagnostic machine can be developed.

Guest also trains dogs to warn owners with Type 1 diabetes of an impending hypoglycaemic, or low blood sugar, episode - they usually alert their owners by jumping up.

Pets help improve self-esteem

"There have been studies that have suggested pet owners are more likely to have higher self-worth and are less likely to suffer loneliness and depression," says Dr Deborah Wells, senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Belfast, Northern Ireland, who has conducted several studies on the benefits of pet ownership. "Dogs seem to bring people the biggest benefits - you have to get out and walk them every day, and they can act as a social catalyst."

Wells says pets are particularly useful for children. "If children are bullied at school, or their parents are getting divorced, children will often tell their pets their problems whereas they wouldn't always talk to a person."

The charity, Pets As Therapy, has been running for 25 years and has 4,000 dogs and 106 cats, which visit 120,000 people in hospitals, hospices, care homes, day-care centers and schools for children with special needs every week.

"We started taking dogs into nursing homes, because elderly people had had to give up their pets when they went in and it was making them depressed and in many cases ill," says Maureen Fennis, the chief executive.

The routine and "normality" of having a pet can help people suffering a traumatic event, such as bereavement or a diagnosis of terminal illness. In one study, McNicholas found that people with animals to care for adjusted far better after the death of someone close than those without pets.

"We live in a society where we do not like to cry in front of people," she adds, "but there are a large number of people who can cry in front of their pets."

The Guardian


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Thailand Princess arrives for the opening of Russian Fashion Week

Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana of Thailand arrives for the opening ceremony of the Russian Fashion Week and presentation of her collection in Moscow October 28, 2008. The princess sashayed along a red carpet on Tuesday before launching her new clothes collection and kick-starting Russian Fashion Week with the snip of a ribbon. Russian Fashion Week which usually invites foreign designers opened on Tuesday in Moscow and will last till November 4.[Agencies]

Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana of Thailand arrives for the opening ceremony of the Russian Fashion Week and presentation of her collection in Moscow October 28, 2008.[Agencies]


Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana of Thailand arrives for the opening ceremony of the Russian Fashion Week and presentation of her collection in Moscow October 28, 2008.[Agencies]


Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana of Thailand cuts a ribbon during the opening ceremony of the Russian Fashion Week and presentation of her collection in Moscow October 28, 2008.[Agencies]


Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana of Thailand arrives for the opening ceremony of the Russian Fashion Week and presentation of her collection in Moscow October 28, 2008.[Agencies]

Taken From : http://www.chinadaily.com.cn


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Erin O'Connor present at the opening of a new London mall

Model Erin O'Connor models during the opening of the new Westfield London shopping centre in west London October 30, 2008. The centre covering 150,000 square meters is now London's largest shopping mall.[Agencies]

British model Erin O'Connor walks down the catwalk wearing a dress during Naomi Campbell's Fashion for Relief 2008 charity fashion show as part of London Fashion Week September 17, 2008.[Agencies]

Executive Chairman Stuart Rose and model Erin O'Connor open the new Marks and Spencer outlet at the new Westfield shopping centre in west London October 30, 2008.[Agencies]

British model Erin O'Connor smiles as she arrives for the 30 Days of Fashion and Beauty Gala party in London September 16, 2008.[Agencies]

Taken From : http://www.chinadaily.com.cn


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Albania holds supermodel contest

Dorela Hysa, 15, poses during Albania's Supermodel contest in Tirana October 29, 2008. Hysa from Tirana won and will attend the Supermodel of the World contest held in Budva, Montenegro in January 2009.[Agencies]

A model presents a creation during Albania's Supermodel contest in Tirana October 29, 2008. Supermodel of the World contest will be held in Budva, Montenegro in January 2009.[Agencies]

A model presents a creation during Albania's Supermodel contest in Tirana October 29, 2008. The winner, Dorela Hysa, will attend the Supermodel of the World contest in Budva, Montenegro in January 2009.[Agencies]

A model presents a creation during Albania's Supermodel contest in Tirana October 29, 2008. The winner, Dorela Hysa, will attend the Supermodel of the World contest in Budva, Montenegro in January 2009.[Agencies]

A model presents a creation during Albania's Supermodel contest in Tirana October 29, 2008. Supermodel of the World contest will be held in Budva, Montenegro in January 2009.[Agencies]

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Fast way to getting fat

People who gobble down their food and eat until they feel full are three times more likely to get fat compared with people who eat slowly and modestly.

Changing patterns of behavior, driven by the advent of fast food and cheap food, are widely to blame for the obesity pandemic, according to Japanese researchers.

The Osaka University study recruited 1,122 men and 2,165 women aged between 30 and 69 and asked them to closely track their eating habits and body mass index (BMI), a benchmark of obesity.

Around half of each gender said they ate until they were full, while just under half of the men, and just over a third of the women, said they ate quickly.

Those who ate until they were full were twice as likely to be overweight and those who both ate quickly and until they were full were three times likelier to be overweight.

"The combination of the two eating behaviors had a supra-additive effect on being overweight," the study reported in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).

The study distinguished between people who ate until full and those who reported binge eating. Intriguingly, it found those who ate until full had in fact a higher calorie intake than those who gorged.

In a commentary, also carried by the BMJ, Australian nutritionists Elizabeth Denney-Wilson and Karen Campbell suggested that the drive to eat quickly was a genetic survival mechanism - humans are hardwired to over-consume energy when it is available.

This mechanism has run into problems, though, with food that is cheap and instantly available and eaten swiftly, they argued.

"It may be that the changing sociology of food consumption, with fewer families eating together, more people eating while distracted (for example, while watching television), and people eating 'fast food' while on the go all promote eating quickly," said Denney-Wilson and Campbell.

"Furthermore, the increased availability of relatively inexpensive food, which is more energy-dense and served in substantially larger portions, may promote eating beyond satiety."


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A great drink - but beware the pitfalls

Three cups of tea contain the equivalent amount of anti-oxidants found in six apples.

(China Daily) Tea is my cure-all: Earl Grey when I need soothing; green tea as a mid-afternoon pick-me-up: pu'er tea if I'm feeling a bit posh and a good strong cup of English Breakfast tea (in fact from India or Africa) to wake me up first thing.

Of course there is a huge variety of teas available both in China and internationally, but all of these true teas are made from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant in one form or another.

Infusions made with different plants (ie chrysanthemum, jasmine, chamomile) are not technically "tea" but instead should really be referred to as a "tisane".

True tea is split into three categories.

First up are both green and white teas which are made from young leaves and buds - these are then steamed or burned to deactivate some of the innate chemicals.

The second category is oolong tea - here, leaves are bruised and crushed, then allowed to oxidise awhile before they are heated and dried.

The final group is black tea, where the leaves are rolled and broken extensively, and allowed to oxidise completely before drying. These are referred to (technically incorrectly) as fermented teas.

Teas from all these groups have a number of extremely beneficial health properties and are a rich source of many different natural compounds called flavonoids. Green tea is much higher in flavanols called catechins, while black tea contains greater amounts of theaflavins and thearubigins. All types of tea contain good amounts of similarly named flavonols like quercetin and rutin.

All you need to know is that these all have potent anti-oxidants which can help to protect you against heart disease, stroke, cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. Of course, tea should not be considered a replacement for fruit and vegetables that contain other nutrients, but a 1999 study showed that three cups of tea contain the equivalent amount of anti-oxidants found in six apples.

Tea plants gather fluoride in their leaves and so may contribute significant amounts to the daily intake of tea drinkers. In the US, the recommended "Adequate Intake" (AI) of fluoride is 3-4 mg per day for adults and 0.7-2.0 mg for children. A cup of tea contains around 0.3mg-0.5mg, and this figure doubles if the water used is already fluoridated.

Fluoride's chief role is in reducing dental cavities, although it also contributes to healthy bones and protecting against osteoporosis. In addition to fluoride, the flavonoids and tannins in tea can reduce the harmful activity of bacteria in the mouth, so all in all, tea (without sugar) can help to keep your teeth healthy.

Camellia sinensis contains caffeine, so all teas (unless they go through a decaffeinating process) will contain caffeine. Green tea tends to have slightly less than oolong and black teas. An average cup of black tea (around 200ml) has about 40mg caffeine - this is compared to a cup of brewed coffee, which has about 100mg. That leaves room for 7-8 cups of tea per day as 300mg caffeine per day is considered a safe intake for adults.

Caffeine can act as a diuretic (causing you to lose water) but only if consumed in large amounts at one time ie 6-8 cups, or 250-300mg caffeine. On the other hand, tea drunk in a lesser quantity can make a valuable contribution to daily fluid intake.

People suffering from anaemia (iron deficiency) should be careful when they drink tea - the tea's tannins heavily reduce iron absorption from the food you are eating. This effect is even greater if you have milk in your tea, as the calcium competes with iron for absorption. Conclusion? Have your cuppa in between meals, not with them.

This nutrition-related column is written by Nina Lenton, a qualified dietitian living and working in Beijing. Contact her at nina_lenton@hotmail.com.


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Warsaw fashion show

Models present part of the women's 2009 collection "For Weronika" by Polish fashion designer Teresa Rosati during a fashion show at Warsaw Polytechnic building in Warsaw, October 28, 2008.[Agencies]

A model presents part of the women's 2009 collection "For Weronika" by Polish fashion designer Teresa Rosati during a fashion show at Warsaw Polytechnic building in Warsaw, October 28, 2008.[Agencies]

A model presents part of the women's 2009 collection by Polish fashion designer Teresa Rosati during a fashion show at Warsaw Polytechnic building in Warsaw, October 28, 2008.[Agencies]

A model presents part of the women's 2009 collection by Polish fashion designer Teresa Rosati during a fashion show at Warsaw Polytechnic building in Warsaw, October 28, 2008.[Agencies]

A model presents part of the women's 2009 collection "For Weronika" by Polish fashion designer Teresa Rosati during a fashion show at Warsaw Polytechnic building in Warsaw, October 28, 2008.[Agencies]

A model presents part of the women's 2009 collection by Polish fashion designer Teresa Rosati during a fashion show at Warsaw Polytechnic building in Warsaw, October 28, 2008.[Agencies]

Taken From : http://www.chinadaily.com.cn


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James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" hits London with premiere

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Britain's Prince William (L) meets Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko at the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Britain's Prince William arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actress Gemma Arterton arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actress Gemma Arterton arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actress Gemma Arterton arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig and his partner Satsuki Mitchell arrive for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig kisses his partner Satsuki Mitchell as he arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008. [Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig and his partner Satsuki Mitchell arrive for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig and his partner Satsuki Mitchell arrive for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actor Daniel Craig and his partner Satsuki Mitchell, arrive for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.

Australian model Elle Macpherson arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British actress Judi Dench arrives for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

British Olympic cyclist Chris Hoy (L) arrives with an unidentified guest for the world premiere of the latest James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" at Leicester Square in London October 29, 2008.[Agencies]

Taken From : http://www.chinadaily.com.cn
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