A round-up of today's other health stories in brief
Their intake of these nutrients was higher than that of dieters who cut calories but did not eat wholegrain cereal.
The implication is that fibre-rich cereals can help people cut calories while maintaining or improving the quality of their diet. The study is published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
DEPRESSION IN CHILDREN: The Lucena Foundation in Dublin is holding an information session for parents of children suffering with depression on October 10th to mark World Mental Health Day. The speaker will be Dr Michael Sweeney, assistant professor of clinical psychology at Columbia University, New York.
He will address the topic:"What can you do to help your child suffering with depression?"Admission is free but booking is essential. For more information e-mail marie.mccourt@sjog.ie or call 01 4923596 or 01 4999349.
NEW FSAI BOARD MEMBER: The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has appointed Anne Nolan, chief executive of the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association, to its board. Ms Nolan has more than 25 years' experience in healthcare, with particular expertise in the pharmaceutical sector.
Ms Nolan is currently serving on the board of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries Association and the Association of the European Self-Medication Industry. She is also a council member of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland and the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations. In addition to her commitments in healthcare, she serves on the board of the Irish Aviation Authority, Smurfit Business School and KPL.
She is also a lecturer in the school of pharmacy at Trinity College Dublin.
SMOKING CLINIC COVER: Vivas Health has announced that it will provide cover for Allen Carr's Easy Way to Stop Smoking Clinics for its members. Vivas Health says it is the "first and only health insurer" to cover smoking cessation clinics in Ireland and will pay more than one-third of the cost of the treatment.
WHOLEGRAIN GAINS: High-fibre wholegrains may help dieters lose weight while gaining nutrients, new research suggests. In a six-month study of 180 overweight adults, researchers found wholegrain cereals helped people lose weight while boosting their consumption of fibre, magnesium and vitamin B6.
The smoking clinics are held in five-hour group sessions with a qualified therapist. Most people need just one session, but short booster sessions are available within a three-month period and are free for those who need them. More than 20,000 smokers have attended the clinics in Ireland since they started in 1998.
The cost of attending a clinic is €295 and Vivas Health will cover €100 of the cost.
HOME CARE FOR ELDERLY: Home care for older people in Ireland needs to be taken seriously and prioritised by policy makers, according to the director of Trinity College Dublin's social policy and ageing research centre (Sparc).
Speaking at the launch of the centre's first book last Thursday, Dr Virpi Timonen said: "Now is the time to develop guidelines for ensuring the provision of high-quality home care. The recent focus on in-home care is welcome, but much work needs to be done to develop policies which prioritise such care."
The report, entitled No Place Like Home, argues that home care must be central to the care policy for the older population and that increased investment is necessary in order to ensure that high-quality home care is available.
ACUPUNCTURE BENEFITS: Treating lower back pain with acupuncture is cost effective for the NHS, according to a new study. Research published online in the British Medical Journal showed that a short course of acupuncture compared with usual treatment was cost effective in the long term for persistent low back pain. Those given acupuncture recorded higher levels of satisfaction than patients treated with conventional medicines such as painkillers and anti-inflammatories.
Evidence of acupuncture's benefits is largely inconclusive, but 2 per cent of people in Britain use it in any one year.
The annual cost of lower back pain to the NHS is an estimated €480 million and the the cost of lost productivity and sickness benefits is estimated to be €10 billion.