Here are today’s most important updates from the realm of Science and Space.
Experts Warn: Early Smartphones, Lifelong Struggles
A massive global study of over 100,000 young people reveals that owning a smartphone
before age 13 is strongly tied to poorer mind health and wellbeing in adulthood. The most common issues reported were suicidal thoughts, aggression, detachment from reality, poorer emotional regulation, and low self-worth. The data also shows evidence that these effects of smartphone ownership at an early age are in large part associated with early social media access and higher risks of cyberbullying, disrupted sleep, and poor family relationships by adulthood.
Invisible Fat, Visible Risk: What’s Lurking Around Your Heart
Excessive amounts of visceral fat, the hidden fat surrounding organs is linked with faster aging of the heart, a new study has found. Aging is the biggest risk factor for heart disease, but why some people age faster than others isn't fully understood. The scientists leading the research say that visceral body fat could play an important role in accelerating aging of the heart and blood vessels. This type of fat is known to be harmful to health and this study now links it to faster heart aging. The researchers found that faster heart aging was linked to having more visceral adipose tissue. Visceral adipose tissue is fat found deep inside the abdomen around organs such as the stomach, intestines, and liver. This type of fat cannot be seen from the outside, and some people can have large amounts of visceral fat despite having a healthy weight.
Twin Dangers: Humanity’s Double Impact on Oceans
A new study warns that the human impact on the oceans could double by 2050 if current trends continue. The research highlights how mounting pressures including ocean warming, loss of fisheries biomass, rising sea levels, acidification, and nutrient pollution are pushing marine ecosystems toward a dangerous threshold. More than 90 per cent of global trade moves through sea routes, highways of commerce that are increasingly vulnerable to pollution and climate stress. Rising global temperatures are heating oceans at an accelerating pace, while unregulated fishing and maritime trade further intensify the strain. Both tropical and polar regions are reaching limits beyond which ecosystems may not recover.
Ancient DNA Holds Key to Gout Relief
In a groundbreaking development, scientists have revived a gene that vanished from the human genome over 20 million years ago, and it could hold the key to treating gout and related health issues. Gout, a painful condition caused by a buildup of uric acid in the blood, affects millions of people worldwide. Excess uric acid can form sharp crystals in the joints, leading to severe pain and inflammation. It can also contribute to kidney disease and liver problems. This gene is responsible for producing an enzyme that breaks down uric acid in the body, something modern humans no longer naturally do, as the gene was lost through evolution.
