Health Tip: Leaving Your Children Alone

(HealthDay News) -- It's important for a child to learn to be independent and care for himself. But how do you know when a child is old and mature enough to stay alone?

 Health Tip: Using a Dietary Supplement

(HealthDay News) -- More than half of Americans take a dietary supplement of some kind, the Cleveland Clinic says.

 Study Links Spanking to Physical Abuse

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Compared to mothers who don't spank their children, mothers who've spanked their child in the past year are three times more likely to use harsher forms of punishment.

 Angioplasty Scoring System Predicts Risk of Death

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- A new scoring system for assessing patients' risk of in-hospital death after angioplasty has been confirmed to be effective, according to Mayo Clinic researchers who developed the system.

 Mental Skills Can Decline Years Before Dying

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- In their golden years, men and women who remain free of dementia will nonetheless undergo an accelerated drop in key mental skills as much as 15 years before their death, a new study reveals.

 Tools Test Debunks 'Dumb Neanderthals' Theory

TUESDAY, Aug. 26 (HealthDay News) -- Homo sapiens' long-extinct cousins, the Neanderthals, weren't the slow-witted losers in the evolutionary race they've been made out to be, new research suggests.

 Pancreatic Cells Turned Into Insulin-Producing Beta Cells

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Scientists have succeeded in transforming pancreatic cells from adult mice into insulin-producing beta cells, a feat they call an "extreme makeover."

 Mistaken Beliefs About Cancer Abound

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- People throughout the world have major misconceptions when it comes to what causes cancer, new research suggests.

 4 More Deaths Reported Among Byetta Patients

TUESDAY, Aug. 26 (HealthDay News) -- The makers of the type 2 diabetes drug Byetta reported Tuesday the deaths of four more people who'd been taking the medication.

 Fat Cells in Obese People Are 'Sick'

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Fat cells in obese people are "sick" compared to those in lean people, a new study shows.

 Health Highlights: Aug. 27, 2008

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

 Clinical Trials Update: Aug. 27, 2008

(HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of CenterWatch:

 Combination Therapy Helps to Combat Myeloma

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Patients with multiple myeloma who could not tolerate high dose chemotherapy lived longer and better by adding the drug Velcade to standard treatment, a new study found.

 New Test Identifies Heart Transplant Rejection

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved AlloMap, a non-invasive test that helps doctors identify heart transplant recipients who are rejecting the new organ.

 Low Levels of Brain Chemical May Control Appetite

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- A chemical produced in the brain may play a role in regulating appetite and the likelihood of becoming obese, according to a new study.

 Newer Blood Pressure Drug No Better Than Placebo in Preventing Stroke

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- The blood pressure drug telmisartan does not lower the rate of stroke, cardiovascular events or diabetes better than a placebo in patients who have had a stroke, a new study finds.

 Magnesium Sulfate Reduces Threat of Cerebral Palsy

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Magnesium sulfate, given to mothers at risk of preterm delivery, cut the rate of cerebral palsy in their babies by nearly half, a new study found.

 Gene Linked to 'Dry' Macular Degeneration

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Scientists from the United States and China have identified the first gene directly associated with the onset of severe "dry" macular degeneration, one of two forms of age-related macular degeneration that currently threatens the vision of up to nine million older Americans.