This week’s new events [ BeritaTerkini ]

Fright Night. Photograph: Christopher Thomond

Fright Night, Sheffield

This decidedly family-friendly spook-fest is expected to draw 40,000 revellers, and Fright Night’s mildly macabre attractions include a zombie-infested Winter Gardens, whose 20 undead residents will be periodically released from their cages to dance. Over at Tudor Square, meanwhile, University of Sheffield scientists will be making pumpkins erupt and revealing the secrets of fire-eating. Day of the Dead-themed samba bands, a T rex dinosaur and the city’s 14-foot processional giants will all be on the loose, while the fairground rides on offer include – naturally – a ghost train.

City Centre, Sun

AB

Avalon Faery Fayre And Ball, Glastonbury

While most of the country will be getting ready for ghoulish pumpkin-oriented Halloween events, this festival shuns the American influence and goes with a celebration of the Gaelic and altogether more pagan festival of Samhain. No trick-or-treating here, but still plenty of fun, with a largely crafts-based day of creativity/entertainment that features faery artists Jasmine Becket-Griffith, Josephine Wall, Linda Ravenscroft and Terry English. A faery royalty-themed ball takes over the venue in the evening, with Samhain-friendly mediaeval and Celtic music from the Dolmen and Rapalje, and there’s a photo booth for you to be snapped in wearing your faery finery.

Glastonbury Town Hall, Sat & Sun

IA

Homotopia, Liverpool

The liberating explosion that 1970s music detonated in teenage bedrooms echoes throughout Liverpool’s LGBT arts fest Homotopia. England’s Erotic Dream charts queerness in punk via items drawn from Jon Savage’s collection, while Boy George and TradeMark’s art show The Way Out features portraits of Lou Reed and Iggy Pop. Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe are among the characters making their own rules in Earthfall’s dance piece Chelsea Hotel; a more elegantly poised icon is offered by April Ashley: Portrait Of A Lady, which combines the model’s story with those of other transgender people.

Various venues, to 25 Nov

AB

Out & about

Bring To Light, Birmingham, to Sun

Avant garde music and mutterings from luminaries such as Dinos Chapman and Shangaan Electro.

Various venues

Dark Circus Halloween Ball, London, Sat

This shindig is more spectacular than spooky with fire breathing and a “belly dancing sword performance”.

Grand Hall At St Pancras, NW1

Halloween Week, nr Keswick, Sat to Fri

The haunted halls of Muncaster Castle welcome intrepid visitors for a week of scaring.

Muncaster Castle

Halloween At Holkham, nr Wells-next-the-Sea, Sun to 3 Nov

Norfolk gets spooky via spiders with this fest featuring a webbed maze and arachnid hunt.

Holkham Hall

Sonica, Glasgow, Thu to 3 Nov

Visitors to this sonic art fest can take in installations including the unnerving “singing mosquitoes”.

Various venues

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Allergy Sufferers Rejoice! Non Filtered Air Purification System Brings Relief To Pet Parents Across The Country! [ BeritaTerkini ]

Who doesn't love having a pet as a member of the family?!  Some of us don't have to worry about our cuddly fur balls giving us the sniffles, but many people aren't so lucky.  Allergies or not, a lot of families in the U.S. own pets, and about 2 million allergic pet parents live with at least one cat!  In fact, according to the Humane Society, there are an estimated 78.2 million dogs and 86.4 million cats owned in the United States. That's a lot of fur and dander floating around the air inside our households! The bottom line, pets are part of our families and part of the fabric of our lives. The benefits of companionship seem to far outweigh the drawbacks of pet allergies for many owners. Thanks to our friends at Airocide, we have a solution to all of your furry problems!

Living comfortably with a pet is different for everyone, and for those with allergies, it's a constant battle between the upside of being a pet parent, and managing the symptoms that come with being exposed to the fur and dander pets bring into your home. And up until now, allergy sufferers have had only a few tools in their arsenal to battle allergies– including creating a pet-free zone in their homes, regular allergy shots and air purifiers, all of which have varying degrees of efficacy, costs, and ease of use.

Sounds fun right? Not surprisingly shots and pet-free zones aren't the answer for many. Instead, many allergy suffering pet parents turn to air purification systems, with varying degrees of success, because unfortunately, there are drawbacks to most traditional air purification methods on the market.

HEPA filters can capture particles as small as 0.1 micrometers in diameter, but can't filter out the smaller gas and odor molecules. So if you need to filter volatile organic compounds (VOCs), chemical vapors, cigarette smoke, and pet odors, activated (charcoal) filters are needed in addition to a HEPA filter. And both these types of filters need to be changed frequently. HEPA filters trap particles and need to be changed or washed and charcoal filters cannot be reused once they are full, and at worst become so quickly saturated with toxins that they begin to leak. So in using these two methods together, pet parents find that they not only have to change the HEPA filter, but must also replace the charcoal filter, the cost of which varies widely according to market prices. Whew! That sounds like a complicated hassle to us!

Enter Airocide. A completely different kind of air purifier. It's different because it doesn't use filters to trap toxins in the air, nor does it need frequent and costly replacements. Instead, Airocide uses technology developed by NASA to completely obliterate and remove virtually 100% of harmful toxins from the air in your home. Not only does Airocide remove allergy triggers like mold, fungi, bacteria, viruses, dust mites and pollen, but it removes pet dander and the odors it causes plus the super bad, super small particles called VOCs – the harmful gasses emitted by products in your home like paint, furniture, aerosol sprays, building supplies and dry-cleaned clothing.

So, how does it work? Airocide draws in harmful airborne pathogens and forces them into a densely packed matrix of highly reactive catalysts that are activated by a high intensity 254-nanometerlight. When any organic particle comes into contact with the reactive catalysts, it is completely destroyed on contact. Nothing is captured or trapped like with traditional filters, so there is nothing to clean. All that exits is crisp, clear air, with no ozone emissions that can come from using ionic air purification systems. If you use Airocide in your home, it will eliminate all allergy triggers like pet odors and dander with one unit – and you'll only have to change the reaction chamber about once a year!

Airocide is FDA approved, and has been tested with great results by governmental agencies and at major universities. Plus, Airocide has been used by grocery store chains and florists to remove the ethylene gas that causes fruits, vegetables and flowers to go bad more quickly.  Airocide has also been used for years in hospitals, daycare centers and prisons to stop the spread of infectious diseases.

Airocide is truly a revolution in air purification, and thousands of pet parents have been getting great results from this recently launched air solution! Airocide will give you a breath of fresh air, even with your furry friends running around all over the house!

Visit airocide.com to hear testimonials from allergy sufferers about how Airocide has changed their lives, and how it could do the same for you!

For the Best that Pet Lifestyle and Animal Welfare has to offer follow Wendy Diamond on Facebook, Twitter, and right here at AnimalFair.com!

Bark about it!

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Tags: Air Purification, airocide, allergies, animal fair, Animal Fair Magazine, Animal Fair Media, animalfair.com, animals, cats, Clean Air, dogs, Filter, health, pet advice, pet parents

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Allergy Sufferers Rejoice! Non Filtered Air Purification System Brings Relief To Pet Parents Across The Country! [ BeritaTerkini ]

Who doesn't love having a pet as a member of the family?!  Some of us don't have to worry about our cuddly fur balls giving us the sniffles, but many people aren't so lucky.  Allergies or not, a lot of families in the U.S. own pets, and about 2 million allergic pet parents live with at least one cat!  In fact, according to the Humane Society, there are an estimated 78.2 million dogs and 86.4 million cats owned in the United States. That's a lot of fur and dander floating around the air inside our households! The bottom line, pets are part of our families and part of the fabric of our lives. The benefits of companionship seem to far outweigh the drawbacks of pet allergies for many owners. Thanks to our friends at Airocide, we have a solution to all of your furry problems!

Living comfortably with a pet is different for everyone, and for those with allergies, it's a constant battle between the upside of being a pet parent, and managing the symptoms that come with being exposed to the fur and dander pets bring into your home. And up until now, allergy sufferers have had only a few tools in their arsenal to battle allergies– including creating a pet-free zone in their homes, regular allergy shots and air purifiers, all of which have varying degrees of efficacy, costs, and ease of use.

Sounds fun right? Not surprisingly shots and pet-free zones aren't the answer for many. Instead, many allergy suffering pet parents turn to air purification systems, with varying degrees of success, because unfortunately, there are drawbacks to most traditional air purification methods on the market.

HEPA filters can capture particles as small as 0.1 micrometers in diameter, but can't filter out the smaller gas and odor molecules. So if you need to filter volatile organic compounds (VOCs), chemical vapors, cigarette smoke, and pet odors, activated (charcoal) filters are needed in addition to a HEPA filter. And both these types of filters need to be changed frequently. HEPA filters trap particles and need to be changed or washed and charcoal filters cannot be reused once they are full, and at worst become so quickly saturated with toxins that they begin to leak. So in using these two methods together, pet parents find that they not only have to change the HEPA filter, but must also replace the charcoal filter, the cost of which varies widely according to market prices. Whew! That sounds like a complicated hassle to us!

Enter Airocide. A completely different kind of air purifier. It's different because it doesn't use filters to trap toxins in the air, nor does it need frequent and costly replacements. Instead, Airocide uses technology developed by NASA to completely obliterate and remove virtually 100% of harmful toxins from the air in your home. Not only does Airocide remove allergy triggers like mold, fungi, bacteria, viruses, dust mites and pollen, but it removes pet dander and the odors it causes plus the super bad, super small particles called VOCs – the harmful gasses emitted by products in your home like paint, furniture, aerosol sprays, building supplies and dry-cleaned clothing.

So, how does it work? Airocide draws in harmful airborne pathogens and forces them into a densely packed matrix of highly reactive catalysts that are activated by a high intensity 254-nanometerlight. When any organic particle comes into contact with the reactive catalysts, it is completely destroyed on contact. Nothing is captured or trapped like with traditional filters, so there is nothing to clean. All that exits is crisp, clear air, with no ozone emissions that can come from using ionic air purification systems. If you use Airocide in your home, it will eliminate all allergy triggers like pet odors and dander with one unit – and you'll only have to change the reaction chamber about once a year!

Airocide is FDA approved, and has been tested with great results by governmental agencies and at major universities. Plus, Airocide has been used by grocery store chains and florists to remove the ethylene gas that causes fruits, vegetables and flowers to go bad more quickly.  Airocide has also been used for years in hospitals, daycare centers and prisons to stop the spread of infectious diseases.

Airocide is truly a revolution in air purification, and thousands of pet parents have been getting great results from this recently launched air solution! Airocide will give you a breath of fresh air, even with your furry friends running around all over the house!

Visit airocide.com to hear testimonials from allergy sufferers about how Airocide has changed their lives, and how it could do the same for you!

For the Best that Pet Lifestyle and Animal Welfare has to offer follow Wendy Diamond on Facebook, Twitter, and right here at AnimalFair.com!

Bark about it!

comments

Tags: Air Purification, airocide, allergies, animal fair, Animal Fair Magazine, Animal Fair Media, animalfair.com, animals, cats, Clean Air, dogs, Filter, health, pet advice, pet parents

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Herbal Remedies To Cure Epilepsy – BoldSky [ BeritaTerkini ]

What is Epilepsy? Epilepsy is the most common neurological disorder that affects the nervous system. This brain disorder causes people to suffer persistent and repeated seizures called ‘fits‘. Usually seizures are caused when there is an abnormal gush of electrical activities in the brain. This electrical activity creates a sequence of disarray in the messaging systems among the brain cells which stalls or halts the person’s brain.

Epilepsy seizures tend to occur when a bunch of nerve cells or neurons in the brain try to send wrong signals. People who suffer with seizures experience abnormal behaviour and sensations. Due to these symptoms, they also lose consciousness when thumped with violent muscle spasms. In reality, there are various kinds of epileptic seizures, but the symptoms also vary among people. Some people affected by epilepsy just blankly gaze for a few seconds, while others simply tic their arms and legs continuously. Yet it doesn’t mean that a solitary seizure is epilepsy. Even though you may go through mild epilepsy, it is imperative to get treated since it can attack a patient bound in activities like swimming or driving. Usually treatment for epilepsy depends on medications or surgery. Conversely even complimentary therapies like homeopathy and herbal remedies do promote well being, and they also help prevent epilepsy.

Here are some of the herbal remedies that can help in controlling the intensity of epilepsy.

False pepper
Known to be a small yellow green flower, false pepper is a creeping vine found in most parts of India. Bark, leaves and fruit of the plant are being used to treat various kinds of ailments. These herbs have a desirable effect for the treatment of a range of disorders like epilepsy, rheumatism, fever, abdominal problems, skin diseases etc. Embelin, an active ingredient found in this herb has convulsant properties that can bring down the level of seizure in patients.

BO tree
It is also referred to as Bodhi tree. Bodhi tree is Ficus religiosa or fig tree that is fondly called as Peepal or Pippa in India. The BO tree is an effective natural remedy used for different types of disorders like asthma, diabetes, diarrhoea, epilepsy, gastric problems, inflammatory disorders, infectious and sexual disorder. Mainly Ficus religiosa is being used to lessen seizure in epilepsy.

Violent Tree
The small and pungent scented Violent tree’s health properties exist on the roots which are readily used for medical conditions ranging from prevention of seizures to mental and physical disorders. The primary benefit of this plant is, its use in the treatment of psychological and physical disorders such as spirit possession, headache, inflammation, anxiety, pain and epilepsy.

Valerian
Valerian is better known to be a sedative herb that is widely used for the treatment of insomnia and anxiety. The valerian root has a long history of health benefits and it helps to achieve sound sleep. It is used as a herbal remedy by herbalists for the treatment of seizures since it possesses anti-convulsant properties.

Bupleurum
Known as “chai hu” in Chinese medicine, Bupleurum is popularly found in China. Bupleurum is used as an active ingredient in Chinese herbal medicine shosaiko-to and saiko-keishi-to, which is used to treat epilepsy and chronic hepatitis.

Kava
Kava is also known as Piper methysticum. The root of Kava has active components called “kavalactones” that has a range of medicinal uses. This medicinal South Pacific plant is a natural alternative used for the treatment of chronic anxiety. Kava can be consumed only after consulting with the medical practitioner as it causes liver failure for some people. Also referred to as Piper methysticum, Kava is a plant that is predominately used as a sedative for seizure disorders.

Passionflower
Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) has all the sedative properties to treat and prevent seizures. This plant is known to be a potent herbal remedy since it helps to relieve muscle tensions and emotional turmoil. This herb has been used for anxiety, insomnia, hysteria, asthma, restlessness, palpitations, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, fibromyalgia, pain relief and epilepsy.

Magnesium
Magnesium is known to be an essential component for the recovery of epilepsy. However it is medically found that magnesium deficiency can develop and cause epileptic seizures or fits in some individuals. One of the herbal reemdies to reduce magnesium deficiency is, consume almonds cashews and spinach.

Skullcap
It is a traditional medicinal herb which is used as a herbal remedy to treat epilepsy. Skullcap has high flavonoids antioxidant that is used as a supplement to reduce anxiety and nervous tension. It is also called Scutellaria lateriflora, Skullcap has a long history of herbal medication that is utilised to treat seizures, ease stress, spasms and induce sleep.

Bacopa
Known as Bacopa monnieri or Brahmi, Bacopa is a herb that helps to restore nerves and brain cells and develops mental ability. Famous to have natural antioxidant properties, Bacopa is also an ayurvedic medicine used for the treatment of epilepsy, bronchitis and asthma, irritable bowel syndrome, and gastric ulcer.

These ten are some of herbal remedies that can help treat epilepsy.

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Drug maker Dendreon seeking a buyer: report [ BeritaTerkini ]

(Reuters) – Drug maker Dendreon Corp is looking for a suitor after sales for its lead product, prostate cancer drug Provenge, were weaker than expected, according to a Bloomberg report.

The Seattle-based company is working with JPMorgan Chase & Co to help it find a buyer, Bloomberg said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Dendreon’s troubles began in 2011 after the company withdrew its sales forecast for the drug. Questions have also emerged about the veracity of the clinical trials that led to Provenge’s approval.

The company had said over the years that physician uncertainty about reimbursement and the need for added manufacturing capacity have contributed to slow sales for the drug.

Since Provenge’s 2010 approval, easier-to-use and more effective prostate cancer treatments have also entered the market.

(Reporting by Olivia Oran; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)

• Health
• Pharmaceuticals & Drug Trials
• Provenge
• Dendreon

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Kanye West Teaming Up With Vogue Italia [ BeritaTerkini ]

von






Marc Malkin






| Übersetzt von Michael Vulpo

25. Oktober 2013 – 17:00

How Kim Kardashian and Kanye West will find the time to plan a wedding, we do not know.

Just last night we learned that West is hard at work on yet another art project to debut in 2014.

“We just [figured] out a new project for next year,” Vogue Italia Editor-in-Chief Franca Sozzani teased on the red carpet before she was  honored for her humanitarian work by the Dream For Future Africa Foundation at Spago in Beverly Hills. “It’s about Africa, art and music. He’s more than music. He’s not only about music.”

PHOTOS: Keeping up with Kimye’s romance 

Sozzani had been with West earlier in the day to discuss their collaboration. There wasn’t much talk about his proposal extravaganza. “I just saw the pictures of the kid,” Sozzani said, referring to baby North. “He’s proud of the kid and happy for the engagement.”

While Kimye was attracting a lot of the spotlight last night, Sozzani’s rare appearance in Los Angeles had all the fashionistas buzzing.

“She is so important to our industry,” model-actress Amber Valetta saod. “I don’t think people realize, because she’s so humble and quiet, how much she’s really changes and had an impact on pop culture…She has inspired so many great artists to do great work.”

“We wanted to come out and support Franca, who has been a good friend of Kanye’s,” Kardashian told me. “She’s stunning. She looks like a Dolce & Gabbana ad, a classic beauty.”

Rachel Zoe added, “It’s a huge deal. I don’t know the last time she was in L.A…She is one of the chicest women in the world. She’s one of my idols. I’m pretty excited.”

VIDEO: Exclusive footage of Kim and Kanye’s engagement

PHOTOS: Check out Marc Malkin’s exclusive red carpet pics for more from last night’s big gala

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Celeb Halloween Costumes: What Olivia Munn, Josh Lucas and More Will Wear for the Scary Holiday [ BeritaTerkini ]

von






Nicole Adlman






| Übersetzt von Nicole Adlman

25. Oktober 2013 – 16:01

Halloween is just around the corner and some of our favorite celebs are already looking to what they might wear for the fright night festivities!

We caught up with Josh Lucas, Karlie Kloss, Olivia Munn and Anthony Mackie at the Montblanc Madison Avenue boutique opening in New York City to get the scoop on their costume plans.

Josh Lucas reminisced on one of his best costumes in years’ past: “Years ago I won best costume as Matthew McConaughey. And the reason why is because I literally had a toothbrush and a pair of shorts on and multiple people got in arguments with me for not recognizing him because they thought I was him. I literally painted a six-pack of abs on and I won best costume.”

This Halloween, Lucas’ costume will be family-oriented (he welcomed son Noah with wife Jessica Ciencin Henriquez in 2012).

“Well, this year, my little one-year-old wants to go as a lion,” he said. “So I think like a lion, sort of like the Lion King family or something would be great.”

Some celebs are repeat costume offenders: actor Anthony Mackie spilled that he would be the Tin Man this year, as he has been for many Halloweens. 

NEWS: How to create Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and Vampire Diaries Halloween makeup looks

Supermodel Karlie Kloss—who attended the event in a black top and printed skirt combo shared her Halloween-away-from-home plans with us: “I’ll be in Brazil over Halloween,” Kloss said. “It’s summer down there and I don’t know how festive they get, so I’ll have to pack a Halloween costume in my suitcase.”

The model already has an idea of what get-up could be suitcase friendly.

“Well, an easy one is [to] just be a football player. Put on a big jersey, put on some big pads, sort of do some black marks,” she said. “I always throw something together at the last minute.”

Meanwhile, Olivia Munn—wearing a white Viktor & Rolf frock with strappy Armani heels—might be going in Julie Andrews garb this year.

“I actually just talked to my best guy friend the other day and I said that if one year we get our schedules together we should go as Dick Van Dyke from Mary Poppins and then I’d be Mary Poppins, because I love that movie,” Munn said.

—Reporting by Jennifer Cooper

PHOTOS: How to dress as a celeb for Halloween

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‘Charmed’ Netflix Success Prompts CBS Reboot [ BeritaTerkini ]

Witch drama finds new life after fans binge-watch online

Netflix has proven powerful once more: its second-most-binged show, Charmed, has been given a second life on a new network.

The witch drama originally ran on the WB from 1998-2006 but it will fly over to CBS for a brand-new reboot, Vulture reports. The first run starred Shannen Doherty, Alyssa Milano, Holly Marie Combs and Rose McGowan (who replaced Doherty in Season Four) and was produced by Aaron Spelling of Beverly Hills, 90210 fame.

Check Out All the Hottest New Rock Pictures

CBS is currently in the early stages of returning the show to the air, reports Vulture. Party of Five creator Chris Keyser and partner Sydney Sidner will deliver a pilot script that will potentially set the new season. Charmed continues to have an avid fanbase from which they can mine ideas; the franchise has spawned a mobile video game and graphic novels.

Netflix famously revived Arrested Development to the delight of its cult fanbase; it seems the Charmed devotees have made their presence felt just as strongly on the streaming site, which boasts over 40 million subscribers worldwide. The company has a goldmine of data regarding which programs people are watching and what will make for a success. This reboot also follows a current upswing in reworked shows; NBC recently announced that they are planning a reboot of Murder She Wrote.

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Nordic drama: downhill and cross-country skiing [ BeritaTerkini ]

Maria’s son, Victor, and mother, Anna, on a cross-country trail. Photograph: Maria Westerståhl

‘It’s really all about speed, isn’t it?” My husband has come to a breathless stop beside me, at the bottom of the red Slalombacken slope in the resort of Ramundberget, close to the Norwegian border in western Sweden.

“I was on rails!” He beams, face flushed with adrenaline and wind-chill. It dawns on me that the moment has arrived. After a good decade of capable but stiffly cautious downhill skiing, my gracefully maturing life partner has unlocked the elusive secret of “the flow” – the exhilarating harmony of movement, gravity and control that we are on the slopes to pursue.

But the irony of the timing of my husband’s eureka moment is quite enjoyable in itself. This trip was conceived as an escape from the trappings and expense of downhill skiing. Ostensibly, we had had enough of the risks and thrills of the slope, and had come to the Funäsfjällen ski area to explore the vast and varied network of Nordic ski trails for which it is famous.

What you expect from Nordic, or cross-country, skiing is hours of hypnotic gliding through the stark, silent beauty of forest and fell, bathed in slanted light and interrupted only by the left-right swishy rhythm of effort and the occasional nod to a lone fellow enthusiast. This is the sport in its original form, pure and virtuous.

“Let’s do Slalombacken again,” shouts my husband over the din of the T-bar lift as it drags us towards the summit.

The truth is that we love both meditation and adrenaline, and that Funäsfjällen is the perfect place to have it all. Its five small downhill resorts are both exciting and manageable, and linked by 300km of beautifully prepared trails that comprise the Nordic Ski Centre – and a further 450km of marked touring trails.

Each resort offers enough for many days’ varied skiing, and a comprehensive lift pass gives access to the lot. A car-free week is possible, but it would involve some thought and planning as the ski-bus service between resorts is infrequent. For us, a group of six aged between two and 64, the week would have been a struggle without the 4×4 monster that brought us on the mountainous journey from Oslo. Either way, it’s sensible to choose a base to adventure from. We settled on Ramundberget, northernmost of the five, a low-key, friendly and well-established resort with offerings for all ages and inclinations.

Maria (left) and family take a hot chocolate break

The eponymous mountain rises like a whale out of a shallow forest sea, and though the slopes down its flanks are relatively short, so are the lift queues. Forest trails weave between ravines, black moguls and easy traverses. Toddlers learn the ropes on the gentle incline of LillRamis, while older children are well-looked-after in finely graded group lessons. Then families do lunchtime child swaps in the spacious warming hut, where packed lunches mingle with a basic hot food menu and toddlers jump on piles of jackets. (More refined options are available in the charming Fjällgården hotel, or in the striking circular Tusen – Thousand – restaurant near the summit.)

Cross-country novices can explore the gentle valley landscape before setting off on more adventurous highland trails. The summit waffle hut at Kariknallen is a good place to aim for, best reached via a ridgetop touring ski trail. For the faint of heart there is also a daily tow tractor.

For all the daytime options, there’s not much nightlife in Funäsfjällen, which is modelled on a well-established Swedish tradition of family skiing: self-catered chalets in quiet clusters among the trees. Revellers are better off a few hours north in Åre, Sweden’s most extensive and lively resort, where timber-slatted bars cater to a steady stream of urbanites.

More often than not, Swedish ski chalets are a bit anonymous and charmless, facilitators of a week’s inhabitation without excess or fuss. But PS Arkitektur, a small Stockholm-based architecture firm, is working to change that. We are luxuriating in a Fjällhuset (Fell House), one of a handful of types of simple, prefabricated barn-style chalet – with stylish wood and monochrome interiors – built here by the company.

The cool Fjällhuset interior

Deceptively simple in form, it is an understated declaration of love to the landscape that puts the extensive commercial competition to shame. And its location, a mere 20m from the nearest trail, is perfect – Fjällhuset will make you want to go cross-country skiing. As we watch dusk fall over the glowing mountains through the chalet’s picture window, we find the pull of a more subtle adventure gradually replacing the instant thrill of the slopes.

Our lift passes expired, we shove a grumbling toddler into a baby sleigh and get our anoraks on for a whole-family outing. The forecast is quite fierce, so we forgo the open fell and opt for a long loop around the forest’s edge in Ljusnedal, 20km to the south. The plan is to turn back early to prevent overexertion, but as the wind dissipates into an exquisite, sunny day, we are lulled into a hypnotic rhythm of movement. A singing eight-year-old leads our single file along the wavy edge of the high fell, and a gruelling final climb is rewarded by several thrilling miles of the gentle, wobbly descent so particular to Nordic skiing. In a race against the dark, we spend our last energies in a final sprint to the car.

It is impossible to know whether the first skis humans invented – they are thought to predate the wheel – instilled their users with the same collective unity of purpose and connection to the landscape: the notion of the sublime was more probably born of leisure than necessity. For their sake, though, I hope it did.

• Norwegian Airlines (norwegian.com) flies from Gatwick to Trondheim in Norway, about a three-hour drive from Funäsfjällen, from £57 return. A week at the Bruksvallarna 724 chalet, which sleeps seven, costs from £650. For bookings and information on ski passes, hire and lessons, call +46 684 15580 or visit funasfjallen.se/vinter/english

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Herbal remedy can’t be recommended – STLtoday.com [ BeritaTerkini ]

Dear Dr. Roach • I am a woman who just turned 75, and I have a chronic dry cough. I visited my pulmonary doctor, and he diagnosed bronchiectasis. There is no cure, but there are herbal products, such as Creseton. They claim to have a 90 percent cure rate, which is better than no cure at all. Can you give me any suggestions or have you heard about the herbal products? — P.N.

Answer • Bronchiectasis is an uncommon lung condition in North America. It is a reaction to previous infection with a scarring process in the small airways. It is similar to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It’s more common in women and certain ethnic groups, or in conjunction with conditions like cystic fibrosis or alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency. There is no way to reverse the scarring in the lungs once it occurs, but exacerbation of the disease can be both treated and sometimes prevented with antibiotics.

I looked up Creseton, and the company reported good results from its own, unpublished study. I can’t recommend the product on the basis of what the maker reported. I would like to believe it, but if something sounds too good to be true, it might be.

Dear Dr. Roach • I recently read that many doctors and nurses have low-frequency hearing loss, resulting in a falsely elevated blood pressure measurement compared with an automated blood pressure machine. Please comment. — P.I.

Answer • Accurately measuring blood pressure is very important, and there are several concerns. For the best accuracy, the blood pressure should be taken seated, with a manual mercury device using a properly sized cuff, three times, and the average recorded (as I learned years ago: thanks, Dr. William Elliott). Only very advanced automated models, costing up to thousands of dollars, can approach the accuracy of a trained clinician.

I couldn’t find the news piece you read, but it makes some sense. Health-care providers aren’t immune to losing hearing as we get older, and hearing loss can lead to inaccuracy in blood pressure measurement. Hearing loss can mean an error of several points.

There is abundant evidence that in the vast majority of cases, home and inexpensive office machines are not as accurate as humans.

Dear Dr. Roach • There is much controversy circulating about the healthiest choices available today for butter and margarine spreads made with canola oil, coconut oil, flaxseed oil, grapeseed oil and olive oil.

There are so many choices that it is almost mind-boggling to the average consumer. I keep receiving emails from friends and relatives with articles that state margarine was developed to fatten up turkeys, and when that did not fly, it was marketed to people as a healthy substitute for butter. Yet, I read labels on products claiming much lower saturated fat than real butter contains.

Many articles forwarded to me have a product to sell, and so their claims are used push these products, whether valid or not. — M.P.

Answer • Today’s margarine is not the margarine of the 1950s. Margarines with plant sterols and stanols (sold as Benecol and Smart Balance) reduce LDL cholesterol, although it’s not clear whether they reduce the risk of heart disease. The main advice I give is to completely avoid trans-saturated fatty acids (on food labels as “trans fat”). Most food companies have received that message, and it’s easy to find high-quality margarine. The vast preponderance of the evidence is that margarines are healthier for you than butter.

That doesn’t mean you can’t have butter occasionally. We all make choices that affect our health. The harm you do from a little butter is small. Too much isn’t harmless, though.

Dr. Keith Roach is a physician at Weill Cornell Medical College and New York Presbyterian Hospital.Readers may email questions to ToYourGoodHealth@med.cornell.edu or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, Fla. 32853-6475.

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AbbVie beats forecast as Humira sales surge [ BeritaTerkini ]

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Can Herbal Remedies Treat Back Pain? – American News Report [ BeritaTerkini ]

If your back is killing you but you’re afraid of surgery and worried about getting hooked on prescription painkillers, a Florida researcher says a topical herbal remedy may be a better alternative.

In a commentary published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Charles Hennekens, MD, a senior academic advisor at the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University, says an ointment made with capsaicin, wintergreen oil and peppermint oil can provide pain relief with few side effects.

Capsaicin , the active compound in cayenne pepper, strikes the first blow in Hennekens’s double-fisted herbal remedy. Capsaicin acts as a powerful local stimulant that, with repeated applications to the skin, reduces the body’s sensitivity to pain.

Peppermint and wintergreen oils deliver the knockout blow to lower back pain. The essential oil from wintergreen leaves contains about 98% methyl salicylate, a compound similar to the pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory properties of aspirin. In addition, the combination of both oils may enhance the effects of each individually, enabling the use of lower doses that reduce the risk of side effects.

“If these alternative medications were equivalent or superior to the existing therapies, their lower risks may favor their more widespread use,” said Hennekens.

In the U.S., low back pain affects eight out of 10 people at some point during their lives. Treatment varies depending on the degree of the pain and includes ice packs, exercise, prescription drugs, injections, and in some cases, surgery. Hennekens says drugs such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors (COXIBS), offer only limited benefits for the treatment of low back pain and have both cardiovascular and gastrointestinal side effects.

Hennekens and his colleagues say healthcare providers should compare the benefits and risks of potentially promising and safer alternative treatments to conventional therapies.

“Dr. Hennekens and his colleagues are raising important issues about the efficacy and safety of different treatments for this common clinical problem,” said David J. Bjorkman, MD, a gastroenterologist and dean and executive director of medical affairs in FAU’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine.

Tags: back pain, capsaicin, peppermint, wintergeeen

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Can Herbal Remedies Treat Back Pain? – American News Report [ BeritaTerkini ]

If your back is killing you but you’re afraid of surgery and worried about getting hooked on prescription painkillers, a Florida researcher says a topical herbal remedy may be a better alternative.

In a commentary published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Charles Hennekens, MD, a senior academic advisor at the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University, says an ointment made with capsaicin, wintergreen oil and peppermint oil can provide pain relief with few side effects.

Capsaicin , the active compound in cayenne pepper, strikes the first blow in Hennekens’s double-fisted herbal remedy. Capsaicin acts as a powerful local stimulant that, with repeated applications to the skin, reduces the body’s sensitivity to pain.

Peppermint and wintergreen oils deliver the knockout blow to lower back pain. The essential oil from wintergreen leaves contains about 98% methyl salicylate, a compound similar to the pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory properties of aspirin. In addition, the combination of both oils may enhance the effects of each individually, enabling the use of lower doses that reduce the risk of side effects.

“If these alternative medications were equivalent or superior to the existing therapies, their lower risks may favor their more widespread use,” said Hennekens.

In the U.S., low back pain affects eight out of 10 people at some point during their lives. Treatment varies depending on the degree of the pain and includes ice packs, exercise, prescription drugs, injections, and in some cases, surgery. Hennekens says drugs such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors (COXIBS), offer only limited benefits for the treatment of low back pain and have both cardiovascular and gastrointestinal side effects.

Hennekens and his colleagues say healthcare providers should compare the benefits and risks of potentially promising and safer alternative treatments to conventional therapies.

“Dr. Hennekens and his colleagues are raising important issues about the efficacy and safety of different treatments for this common clinical problem,” said David J. Bjorkman, MD, a gastroenterologist and dean and executive director of medical affairs in FAU’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine.

Tags: back pain, capsaicin, peppermint, wintergeeen

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Top Golden Joystick gong for GTA V [ BeritaTerkini ]

Press Association – 

Controversial video game Grand Theft Auto V has taken the top honour at the annual Golden Joystick Awards.

The fastest-selling title of all time, GTA V scooped the prestigious gong at the ceremony in central London, while there were also awards for Call Of Duty and the man behind the BioShock franchise.

A key date in the gaming industry’s calendar, the Golden Joystick Awards celebrate the best video-gaming creations of the past 12 months.

Now in its 31st year, the event, which was held at the Westminster Park Plaza Hotel, saw cult shooter game Call Of Duty pick up a Hall of Fame accolade, while Naughty Dog’s The Last Of Us also took home awards for Best Newcomer and Best Storytelling.

Set in the familiar fictional city of San Andreas, GTA V’s open-world freedom and mission-led gameplay have garnered rave reviews from fans worldwide, but critics claim the Rockstar-developed game glorifies violence, torture and crime.

Costing an estimated £170 million to make and market, GTA V’s release last month saw chaotic scenes across the UK as avid fans queued up to get a copy of the fifth instalment of the series.

A 23-year-old man in north London was stabbed and robbed of his copy minutes after it went on sale. Three teenagers have been charged over the incident.

The GTA series has also shifted around 150 million copies since it started in 1997.

The game’s victory at the Golden Joystick Awards, which saw a record 10 million voters for 2013, came as BioShock creator Kevin Levine was recognised for his work with the inaugural Lifetime Achievement award.

Levine also picked up the Best Visual Design award for BioShock Infinite and the innovative creator believes the future is bright for the gaming industry.

He said: “The great thing about the still-maturing nature of video games is you get to be inspired by the work of novices and veterans alike. We’re all figuring out day by day exactly what the medium is capable of.”

Other winners included Payday 2 which scooped Best Multiplayer, while Oculus Rift – a next-generation virtual reality headset – picked up the Innovation of the Year in association with T3 award.

Andy Robinson, editor of Golden Joysticks, said that this year’s awards had proved to be the ‘most thrilling’ ever.

He said: “This year’s Golden Joystick Awards have seen a record-breaking 10 million votes, proving that even after 31 years they’re still the awards that best represent the voice of gamers worldwide. This year’s ceremony has been the most thrilling yet.”

The awards were held in association with Green Man Gaming.

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Brett Favre Says He Has Memory Loss [ BeritaTerkini ]

Brett Favre talks at a post game press conference after a 13-20 loss to the Detroit Lions at Ford Field, Jan. 2, 2011 in Detroit, Michigan.

Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Brett Favre has become the latest former National Football League player to reveal he is suffering memory problems after spending 20 years on the playing field.

On ESPN Radio the former star quarterback said that he had become worried about the state of his memory in recent years.

“I think after 20 years God only knows the toll,” said Favre, who was sacked 525 times, more than any other NFL quarterback. “This was a little shocking to me, that I couldn’t remember my daughter playing youth soccer.”

New research about the effect of repeated head injuries on pro-football players has only recently revealed how devastating the longterm toll can be. As a result, the NFL has come under fire for putting players in unsafe conditions.

Football Head Injuries Increasing with Bigger, Faster Players

Of the 34 former NFL players who have died and donated their brains to research, the percentage of them who have pathologically confirmed chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease, is over 90 percent, according to a 2009 University of Michigan report.

In August the league paid $ 765 million to players and their families who sued the league over head injuries that they blamed on their time playing pro football.

There is no data on how many hits it takes to bring on symptoms of CTE, but experts caution no head injury is safe.

“There is still a pervasive belief that only a concussion serious enough to knock the athlete out will do damage, but that’s not the case,” Harvard neurologist, Dr. Marie Pasinski. “Any blow to the head that leaves a person slightly dazed or not quite right may cause harm to the brain.”

There’s no proof that Favre is suffering from CTE, which can only be diagnosed after death.

However, patients with CTE display symptoms “such as impulsivity, forgetfulness, depression, [and] sometimes suicidal ideation,” according to Dr. Russell Lonser, chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery at Ohio State University.

Brain of Linebacker Has Signs of CTE

Favre’s admission about his memory came just days after the St. Louis Rams called the retired quarterback to see if would return to the field and play for the team. Favre, 44, retired from the sport in 2010.

“I want to live a long time, I want to live healthy, as close to normal life as I can,” said Favre.

ABC News’ Liz Neporent contributed to this report.

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Bulgarian Roma couple are parents of ” Maria” found in Greek camp -DNA tests [ BeritaTerkini ]

SOFIA (Reuters) – A Bulgarian Roma couple are the biological parents of a 4-year-old blonde girl found in a Roma camp in Greece last week, DNA tests showed on Friday, solving a mystery that had captured global attention.

Bulgarian prosecutors are investigating whether the mother, Sasha Ruseva, 35, agreed to sell her child in Greece. Ruseva denies this, saying she left a 7-month old baby in Greece – where she worked as an olive-picker – in 2009 because she could not look after the child and needed to return to Bulgaria.

The case has come to illustrate the plight of Roma gypsies in Bulgaria, many of whom have spent their lives in poverty, are illiterate and have been marginalized by society.

The four-year-old, called Maria and dubbed the “blonde angel” by Greek media, was found last week hiding under a blanket at a Roma settlement in central Greece. DNA tests showed the Roma couple she was with were not her real parents.

Maria, whose case has reminded some of the disappearance of 3-year-old Briton Madeleine McCann in Portugal in 2007, is being looked after by a Greek charity, which says it has received over 10,000 calls with leads or from parents of missing children.

Thousands of calls poured in from as far as the United States to Sweden with leads on Maria’s possible identity, with the search narrowing to a poverty-stricken Bulgarian Roma couple – Sasha Ruseva and her husband, Atanas Rusev – this week.

“DNA analysis proved that Sasha Ruseva is the biological mother of the girl named Maria,” Interior Ministry Chief Commissioner Svetlozar Lazarov told reporters. “It also showed Atanas Rusev as the biological father.”

Ruseva and her 37-year-old husband, parents of nine other children aged between 2 and 20, live in extreme poverty in a ramshackle house with a mud floor and partially finished roof in the town of Nikolaevo, some 280 km east from Sofia.

“We all live in one room – my husband, I and all the kids,” Ruseva told reporters late on Thursday, holding her naked two-year-old boy Atanas.

There are an estimated 10 million Roma living across Europe, and they are one of its oldest minorities. The Council of Europe, which monitors human rights, says they are also the most discriminated-against.

(Reporting by Tsvetelia Tsolova; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

• Society & Culture
• Bulgarian Roma

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EU agency backs new drugs from Actelion and Lundbeck [ BeritaTerkini ]

LONDON (Reuters) – European regulators have recommended approval of Swiss firm Actelion’s new pulmonary arterial hypertension drug Opsumit and a novel antidepressant called Brintellix from Denmark’s Lundbeck.

The green light for Opsumit comes hard on the heels of its approval in the United States last week and buttresses Actelion’s position as a leading player in treating pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).

Opsumit is a successor to Actelion’s established medicine Tracleer, which loses patent protection in 2015.

PAH is a condition characterized by high blood pressure in the arteries connecting the heart to the lungs.

Opsumit will compete with, among others, Gilead Sciences’ Letairis, which is sold in Europe by GlaxoSmithKline under the brand name Volibris.

Brintellix is an equally important new drug for Lundbeck, which hopes the antidepressant will provide a new source of revenue as its existing antidepressant, Cipralex, sold as Lexapro in the United States and Japan, comes off patent.

The drug was approved in the United States last month and will be co-marketed with Takeda Pharmaceutical.

The recommendations for marketing approval by the European Medicine Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) were announced on Friday, and its opinions are normally endorsed by the European Commission within a couple of months.

Lundbeck said it expected Brintellix would be available to patients in the first markets in the European Union during the first half of 2014.

(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Editing by Mark Potter)

• Pharmaceuticals & Drug Trials
• Health
• Actelion
• Lundbeck

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Allergy Sufferers Rejoice! Non Filtered Air Purification System Brings Relief To Pet Parents Across The Country! [ BeritaTerkini ]

Who doesn't love having a pet as a member of the family?!  Some of us don't have to worry about our cuddly fur balls giving us the sniffles, but many people aren't so lucky.  Allergies or not, a lot of families in the U.S. own pets, and about 2 million allergic pet parents live with at least one cat!  In fact, according to the Humane Society, there are an estimated 78.2 million dogs and 86.4 million cats owned in the United States. That's a lot of fur and dander floating around the air inside our households! The bottom line, pets are part of our families and part of the fabric of our lives. The benefits of companionship seem to far outweigh the drawbacks of pet allergies for many owners. Thanks to our friends at Airocide, we have a solution to all of your furry problems!

Living comfortably with a pet is different for everyone, and for those with allergies, it's a constant battle between the upside of being a pet parent, and managing the symptoms that come with being exposed to the fur and dander pets bring into your home. And up until now, allergy sufferers have had only a few tools in their arsenal to battle allergies– including creating a pet-free zone in their homes, regular allergy shots and air purifiers, all of which have varying degrees of efficacy, costs, and ease of use.

Sounds fun right? Not surprisingly shots and pet-free zones aren't the answer for many. Instead, many allergy suffering pet parents turn to air purification systems, with varying degrees of success, because unfortunately, there are drawbacks to most traditional air purification methods on the market.

HEPA filters can capture particles as small as 0.1 micrometers in diameter, but can't filter out the smaller gas and odor molecules. So if you need to filter volatile organic compounds (VOCs), chemical vapors, cigarette smoke, and pet odors, activated (charcoal) filters are needed in addition to a HEPA filter. And both these types of filters need to be changed frequently. HEPA filters trap particles and need to be changed or washed and charcoal filters cannot be reused once they are full, and at worst become so quickly saturated with toxins that they begin to leak. So in using these two methods together, pet parents find that they not only have to change the HEPA filter, but must also replace the charcoal filter, the cost of which varies widely according to market prices. Whew! That sounds like a complicated hassle to us!

Enter Airocide. A completely different kind of air purifier. It's different because it doesn't use filters to trap toxins in the air, nor does it need frequent and costly replacements. Instead, Airocide uses technology developed by NASA to completely obliterate and remove virtually 100% of harmful toxins from the air in your home. Not only does Airocide remove allergy triggers like mold, fungi, bacteria, viruses, dust mites and pollen, but it removes pet dander and the odors it causes plus the super bad, super small particles called VOCs – the harmful gasses emitted by products in your home like paint, furniture, aerosol sprays, building supplies and dry-cleaned clothing.

So, how does it work? Airocide draws in harmful airborne pathogens and forces them into a densely packed matrix of highly reactive catalysts that are activated by a high intensity 254-nanometerlight. When any organic particle comes into contact with the reactive catalysts, it is completely destroyed on contact. Nothing is captured or trapped like with traditional filters, so there is nothing to clean. All that exits is crisp, clear air, with no ozone emissions that can come from using ionic air purification systems. If you use Airocide in your home, it will eliminate all allergy triggers like pet odors and dander with one unit – and you'll only have to change the reaction chamber about once a year!

Airocide is FDA approved, and has been tested with great results by governmental agencies and at major universities. Plus, Airocide has been used by grocery store chains and florists to remove the ethylene gas that causes fruits, vegetables and flowers to go bad more quickly.  Airocide has also been used for years in hospitals, daycare centers and prisons to stop the spread of infectious diseases.

Airocide is truly a revolution in air purification, and thousands of pet parents have been getting great results from this recently launched air solution! Airocide will give you a breath of fresh air, even with your furry friends running around all over the house!

Visit airocide.com to hear testimonials from allergy sufferers about how Airocide has changed their lives, and how it could do the same for you!

For the Best that Pet Lifestyle and Animal Welfare has to offer follow Wendy Diamond on Facebook, Twitter, and right here at AnimalFair.com!

Bark about it!

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Tags: Air Purification, airocide, allergies, animal fair, Animal Fair Magazine, Animal Fair Media, animalfair.com, animals, cats, Clean Air, dogs, Filter, health, pet advice, pet parents

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Batches of Novo Nordisk insulin face European recall [ BeritaTerkini ]

LONDON (Reuters) – The European Medicines Agency said on Friday that some batches of Novo Nordisk’s insulin products NovoMix 30 FlexPen and Penfill were being recalled because they might contain the wrong amount of insulin.

Due to a manufacturing problem during the filling of the cartridges, some contained too many or too few insulin units per millilitre, it said.

Only a very small proportion of cartridges – 0.14 percent – contain a wrong amount but in those affected the level of insulin may vary between 50 percent and 150 percent of the labelled dose.

The EU regulator said patients using products from the affected batches should be switched to supplies from unaffected batches or alternative treatments.

(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; editing by Clara Marques)

• European Medicines Agency
• Novo Nordisk

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