Behavior sciences: Why do men pay for sex?

Darkfrog submitted, created time 1 month 3 days (www.sciam.com)

Scientific American describes men's motives for patronizing prostitutes. Historically, the debate has been over whether prostitution is caused by the choices prostitutes make or by their patrons' appetites.

According to this article, johns (prostitutes' male patrons) span all socioeconomic classes and don't have any signature pathology.

One of the two points of view displayed in the article is that many johns are interested in romance as well as sex and go to prostitutes for what they see as emotionally risk-free, if illusory intimacy

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HPV infection rates similar in men and women

sea-maid submitted, created time 2 months 4 weeks (www.reuters.com)

Although men are at high risk of acquiring human papillomavirus (HPV) infections, most last no more than a year, about the same time this sexually transmitted disease persists in women, researchers report in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.

2 comments | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: STIs viruses STDs sexually transmitted diseases human papillomavirus HPV men's health women's health men women HPV infection rates

Combined impact of lifestyle factors on mortality: prospective cohort study in U.S. women

sea-maid submitted, created time 3 months 3 weeks (www.bmj.com)

Objective: To evaluate the impact of combinations of lifestyle factors on mortality in middle aged women.
Design Prospective: cohort study.

Setting: Nurses’ health study, United States.

Participants: 77,782 women aged thirty-four to fifty-nine years and free from cardiovascular disease and cancer in 1980

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C-sections might affect a new mother's ability to bond

Darkfrog submitted, created time 3 months 4 weeks (well.blogs.nytimes.com)

This is interesting. It's a New York Times writeup of a study in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry showing that women who deliver their children vaginally as opposed to by C-section are more responsive to the sound of infants crying a short time after the birth takes place.

There are some flaws in this study. First off, it only involved a small number of women, which increases the likelihood of statistical errors. Second, it does not show how whether this is a case of delayed attachment or stunted attachment. C-section moms might well catch up as time passes

2 comments | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: post-partum depression C-section caesarian section infants babies mothers womens health childbirth delivery natural childbirth attachment neurohormones hormones human behavior human reproduction bonding women

Sniffing for Mr. Right

jerry submitted, created time 4 months 3 weeks (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)

Weight gain and moodiness top the list of the unpleasant side effects of birth control pills. But could the pill also desensitize a woman's sniffer? New research suggests that oral contraceptives can reduce a woman's ability to smell the best mate. Although birth control can't be blamed for every bad relationship, the findings could help explain how people find their ideal love.

Most guys splash on a little cologne before a first date, but past research shows that their natural scent may be the better attractant

1 comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: families birth control the pill marriage love human behavior olfaction contraception women's health women major histocompatibility complex MHC Birth Control Pill

Ovulation-blocking gene found

Early Stage Bone Cells Produce Potential Estrogen Substitute,

kavin submitted, created time 5 months 3 weeks (www.medicalnewstoday.com)

Cells on their way to forming bone also produce an estrogen-like substance that mimics the naturally occurring female sex hormone estradiol, investigators at the Yale School of Medicine reported Monday in the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Researchers hope such a molecule might provide some of the benefits but, hopefully, not the health risk of traditional hormonal therapies for menopause and bone loss.

Researchers in the laboratories of Thomas L

Submit comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: estradiol bone loss osteoblasts menopause women Estrogen Estrogen Receptors women's health women menopause bone marrow stem cells bone-forming cells

Sleep and menopause

kavin submitted, created time 5 months 4 weeks (www.news-medical.net)

Difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep increases as women go through menopause, according to research by Rush University Medical Center. Waking up earlier than planned also increases through late perimenopause but decreases when women become postmenopausal. The study is published in the July 1 issue of the journal SLEEP.

"Sleep difficulties, especially problems staying asleep, are relatively prevalent concerns among women going through the menopausal transition," said Dr

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Intake of Fruit, Vegetables, and Fruit Juices and Risk of Diabetes in Women

Smart Girls Eat Fish

kavin submitted, created time 6 months 2 weeks (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)

Girls who eat more omega-3 fatty acids outsmart those who eat higher amounts of omega-6 fatty acids, according to new research. As a result of this and other studies, government dietary recommendations--especially those aimed at pregnant women--should emphasize fish over soy and corn oils, which are respectively high in these fatty acids.

Women who accumulated more fat on their hips than on their waists--and who, therefore, had low waist-hip ratios like many movie stars--had higher cognitive test scores, as did their children

3 comments | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: fish intelligence women girls cognition omega-3s dietary fat fatty acids n-3 fatty acids omega-3 fatty acids

"Gay genes" may be good for women

sea-maid submitted, created time 6 months 2 weeks (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)

As gay couples race to the altar in California this week, scientists may have found an answer to the so-called gay paradox. Studies suggest that homosexuality is at least partly genetic. And although homosexuals have far fewer children than heterosexuals, so-called gay genes apparently survive in the population. A new study bolsters support for an intriguing idea: These same genes may increase fertility in women.

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Case-control study of self-reported genitourinary infections and risk of gastroschisis

sea-maid submitted, created time 6 months 3 weeks (www.bmj.com)

This rare abnormality, commonest among babies of teenage mothers, is increasing: this US study (findings from the national birth defects prevention study, 1997-2003) found a significant association with self-reported infections in early pregnancy. The accompanying editorial agrees that genitourinary infection in early pregnancy can be added to the existing list of risk factors.

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Malaysian women urged to carry condoms

kavin submitted, created time 7 months 1 week (hosted.ap.org)

Malaysia's deputy health minister urged every woman in the country to carry a condom to protect against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and declared that this is not to debase them but to protect them. Women are the first ones to get exploited by their (HIV-positive) partners.

3 comments | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: stigma science and culture sex contraception birth control condoms women human immunodeficiency virus HIV AIDS HIV

Mutation Spells Bad News for Breast Cancer Patients

The relationship between low levels of vitamin D and breast cancer

sea-maid submitted, created time 7 months 3 weeks (www.washingtonpost.com)

The study shows us that women with breast cancer who have a vitamin D deficiency at the time of diagnosis are more likely to have a recurrence or to die from their disease. This study found that vitamin D deficiency is very common among women with breast cancer, and it suggests that vitamin D deficiency is linked to poorer outcomes in these women

3 comments | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: vitamin D remission women nutrition Breast Cancer