Reader\'s Digest Australia - 06.2019

June• 2019 | 23

NEWS FROM THE

World of Medicine

HEALTH

Staying Hydrated Prevents

Bladder Infections

Approximately half of all women

experience urinary-tract infections.

A 2018 trial enrolled Bulgarian

subjects who had a history of

repeated bladder infections and who

normally drank less than 1.5 litres

of fluid per day. Half of them were

asked to add an additional 1.5 litres

of water to their usual daily intake.

Over the following year, this group

had only around half the number of

infections compared to the women

who continued with their previous

habits. The scientists speculated that

fluids flush bacteria and hamper

their ability to attach to the bladder.

Losing Weight May

Reverse Arterial

Fibrillation

Encouraging new

evidence from Australia

shows that people who

have arterial fibrillation

(AF) may be able to

reverse the progression

of the heart condition by

adjusting lifestyle factors

and shedding excess weight.

In a s tudy of patients with a body

mass index of 27 or higher, the

majority of those who lost ten per

cent or more of their body weight

went from persistent AF to shorter-

term episodes – or even stopped

experiencing an irregular heart

rhythm altogether.

Antibiotics Can Replace
Appendicitis Surgery
If you have abdominal pain that
gradually grows severe, see a doctor
as soon as possible. It could be
appendicitis (an inflamed appendix),
a dangerous problem that requires
treatment. If you catch it before
your appendix ruptures or causes
other complications, you may not
need surgery, according to a
Finnish trial published
in the peer-reviewed
medical journalJAMA.
It tracked 257 people
with uncomplicated
appendicitis who took
antibiotics for ten
days. Over the next five
years, only 100 of them
wound up getting their
PHOTO: ADAM VOORHES appendix removed.