By Coco Ballantyne Desperately seeking a good night's sleep, insomniacs spend more money on alcohol than medical help and sleep aids combined, according to a study published today in the journal Sleep. But experts say turning to the bottle is the last thing you should do if you can't fall asleep at night. The study, led by Meagan Daley, a professor of psychology and business at Laval University in Quebec, found that insomniacs in that Canadian province spend an annual $275 million ($340 million Canadian) on alcohol to lull them to sleep at night compared with $14.7 million on over-the-counter and prescription sleep meds and $69.4 million on insomnia-related health care consultations. Simply put, the sleepless in Quebec spend over three times more on alcoholic "sleeping aids" than on medical interventions specifically designed to promote z's—even though alcohol is more expensive. "Generic versions of sleep medications are a few cents a pill," Daley says. "Even the regular main brand sleep medications are cheaper than taking a drink or two." What's more, alcohol doesn't help you snooze. Quite the contrary. It actually exacerbates symptoms of insomnia, says Maher Karam-Hage, an addiction psychiatrist at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. For most people, drinking a glass of wine with dinner will not compromise a good night's sleep, but three to four drinks before bed can cause you to wake up in the middle of the night, he says. © 1996-2009 Scientific American Inc.

Keyword: Sleep; Drug Abuse
Link ID: 12403 - Posted: 06.24.2010

by Jack Penland The idea of giving your brain a workout isn’t a new one, but the stumbling block has been to find a way to train your brain that actually shows improvement in other, unrelated mental tasks. Susanne Jaeggi and Martin Buschkuehl, post-doctoral fellows at the University of Michigan, have been putting volunteers through an intense computer-based mental workout that is showing promise. Jaeggi says they gave the volunteers basic intelligence tests both before and after the training and found that, “After training … people actually got smarter in these (intelligence) tests.” She says, “In other training programs that are on the market, people get (better at a) particular task, so they form very task-specific strategies." However, she adds, “Their ability does not transfer to domains other than the training task, itself.” For example, she says, people have been able to train themselves to remember long sequences of numbers, but if the sequence changes to letters or shapes, people have to start over and re-train with the new material. ©2009 ScienCentral

Keyword: Intelligence; Learning & Memory
Link ID: 12402 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By Laura Sanders It seems preposterous that thrill seeker James Bond would have too few of anything, but new research suggests he may have a deficit of dopamine receptors. Earlier work has suggested that a propensity for risky behaviors, like driving fast cars, gambling and drinking, is influenced by dopamine, one of the brain’s chemical messengers. Now a team of researchers led by neuroscientist David Zald has confirmed in humans a link between “novelty-seeking personality traits” and dopamine receptors. The team’s results appear in the Dec. 31 Journal of Neuroscience. “Risk seeking is a basic characteristic that varies widely among people,” says Zald, of Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Of risk seekers, Zald says: “They get bored quickly with the same old, same old and turn to things like drug use, whiskey and sex. These exciting things have a lot of pull for them.” Nerve cells excrete and detect dopamine to communicate with the rest of the brain. The chemical controls diverse brain functions — motor control, sleep and pleasure have all been linked to dopamine signaling. A nerve cell detects dopamine released from other nerve cells or from itself through proteins on the outside of the cell called dopamine receptors, which come in many varieties. Many of the first experiments linking dopamine and thrill seeking were in rodents. The brains of novelty-seeking rodents — so named because the rats and mice spend more time exploring a new environment than do their complacent littermates — are less able to regulate the amount of dopamine in the brain. But equating a rodent sniffing around a new home to a person engaging in high-risk behavior like cocaine use is a stretch, the researchers point out. © Society for Science & the Public 2000 - 2009

Keyword: Drug Abuse; Emotions
Link ID: 12401 - Posted: 06.24.2010

by Ewen Callaway Some put forward France's decadent sauces or Spain's creative tapas as evidence of Europeans' delicate taste for food, while Asian gourmands would sing the praises of sushi. But they might all be wrong. New research suggests that Africans have more sensitive palettes than Europeans and Asians – at least for bitter tastes. A survey of numerous African populations in Kenya and Cameroon found a striking amount of diversity in a gene responsible for sensing bitter tastes. "If they have more genetic diversity, there's more variation in their ability to taste," says Sarah Tishkoff, a geneticist at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, who presented the findings at a recent conference. Europeans and Asians typically have only one of two forms of a gene called TAS2R38, which detects a bitter-tasting compound called PTC and similar chemicals in vegetables such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts. The gene makes the difference between people tasting a weak dilution of the compound or not, with little nuance in between. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd

Keyword: Chemical Senses (Smell & Taste); Genes & Behavior
Link ID: 12400 - Posted: 06.24.2010

DESPITE many people’s best intentions they simply won’t be able to keep their New Year’s resolutions – especially giving up activities that involved risky behaviour such as bingeing on alcohol, drugs, sex or food. According to researchers, some brains are wired to seek a dopamine rush, a brain chemical that is usually released when we are engaged in risky behaviour. Nashville’s Vanderbilt University neuropsychologist David Zald said: “That's not an excuse for failure (in keeping resolutions), but does make the burden harder for some people.” Professor Zald reported in the Journal of Neuroscience yesterday that the brains of impulsive thrill-seekers had few so-called dopamine auto-receptors controlling the amount of the neurotransmitter. “When dopamine is released at high levels, people experience euphoria,” Professor Zald said. “In high novelty-seekers, who have less regulation of their dopamine (level), this may make the experiences of novelty or excitement all the more rewarding.” Professor Zald and his colleagues conducted brain scans of 34 volunteers, who ranged from high to low on the “novelty-seeking” scale. The results showed clearly that high risk-takers had fewer auto-receptors. Copyright 2008 News Limited.

Keyword: Drug Abuse; Emotions
Link ID: 12399 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By MALCOLM RITTER NEW YORK – It's almost New Year's Eve, a time for plunging into boisterous crowds bathed in loud music. And for some of us, that means turning to an old friend and hearing things like this: "Did you know (BOOM-da-da-BOOM) went over (Bob! You look wonder-) so she said (clink-clink) and then I (Here, have another one) what would you do?" Huh? Too noisy to hear! But wait — how come these younger people understood what she said? What's wrong with your ears? Actually, part of the problem may be your brain. In fact, it may lie in your brain's dimmer switch for controlling the input from your ears. That bit of brain circuitry appears to falter with age, and scientists are getting some clues about why. If you have trouble understanding conversation in a noisy room, you're experiencing what's sometimes called the cocktail party problem. That can be one of the first signs of an age-related hearing loss — a more general problem that can creep in during middle age, and affects one-third of adults ages 65 to 75. Scientists are still trying to piece together why our hearing goes downhill with age, with the goal of trying to slow it or even reverse it. When it comes to the cocktail party problem, the dimmer switch is a piece of that story, though it's not clear just how big a factor. © 2008 The Associated Press

Keyword: Hearing; Attention
Link ID: 12398 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By Felicia Mello While women with curvy figures might enjoy more attention from men in Western culture, and find it easier to become pregnant, new research suggests they may also face some evolutionary disadvantages compared to women with thicker waists. That's because the same hormones that increase fat around the waist can also make women stronger, more assertive, and more resistant to stress, according to a new study published in the December issue of Current Anthropology. Given those findings, it makes sense that the slim-waisted body has not evolved to become the universal norm, said the study's author, Elizabeth Cashdan, an anthropologist at the University of Utah. Her study takes aim at a theory popular in evolutionary psychology and medicine: that men universally prefer women with narrow waists and larger hips because their higher levels of estrogen make them more likely to conceive a child, and less vulnerable to chronic diseases. These preferences, the theory goes, have defined women's ideal body shape over time. The idea took root in the 1990s when psychologists showed men drawings of women's silhouettes and asked them which were most sexy. Researchers found that men gravitated toward images with a waist-to-hip ratio of 0.7 - in other words, with a waist about a third narrower than the hips. Those same hourglass proportions are reportedly shared by stars such as Marilyn Monroe and Jessica Alba, and linked in medical studies with a lower risk of heart disease. © 2008 NY Times Co.

Keyword: Sexual Behavior; Evolution
Link ID: 12397 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By STEPHANIE NANO NEW YORK -- Obesity surgery can reverse diabetes in teens, just as it does in adults, according to a small study. All but one of the 11 extremely obese teens studied saw their diabetes disappear within a year after weight-loss surgery, the researchers reported. The 11th patient still had diabetes, but needed much less insulin and stopped taking diabetes pills. Previous studies have shown the diabetes benefits of obesity surgery for adults. Dr. Thomas Inge, a pediatric surgeon at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, and his colleagues wanted to find out if the same was true for adolescents. Although more research is needed, Inge said the study "opens the door" to weight-loss surgery as a treatment option for severely obese teens with Type 2 diabetes. The results are in the January issue of Pediatrics and are being released Monday. About a third of U.S. youngsters are either overweight or obese. Increasing numbers of obese children are being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of the disease and the one linked to obesity. It was seldom seen before in kids. "It's marching south through the generations, which is very scary," said Dr. Larry Deeb, a former president of the American Diabetes Association and a spokesman for the group. © 2008 The Associated Press

Keyword: Obesity
Link ID: 12396 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By Stephen Smith Nearly three years after federal regulators sounded an alarm about dangerous diet pills imported from Brazil, doctors in Massachusetts continue to treat patients stricken with heart problems, headaches, and insomnia linked to the powerful drugs. Just yesterday, a Cambridge Health Alliance internist saw two patients who told him they are taking the medications, typically a brew of speed, tranquilizers, and other chemicals mixed into a capsule. One of the patients, who gets the pills from a doctor in Brazil, has heart palpitations and high blood pressure, well-recognized side effects of the weight-loss regimen. Another, hooked on the pills for four years, plunges into bouts of depression when she tries to stop using them, said Dr. Pieter Cohen. And a police bust in May suggests there remains a robust market for the drugs: Detectives in Marlborough confiscated nearly 46,000 illegal diet pills, which, they said, were peddled in plastic bags from a convenience store catering to Brazilian emigres in neighboring Hudson. The term "Brazilian diet pill" refers to multiple formulations that cannot be sold in the United States but are legal in Brazil, where they are touted as an all-natural method for shedding unwanted pounds rapidly. © 2008 NY Times Co.

Keyword: Obesity
Link ID: 12395 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By DIANA MICHÈLE YAP In my dreams, I can walk. Awake, I lie in bed because I have to — on my back, or on my side. I shift positions. I’ve learned I’m lucky I can do that. Sometimes I’m so tired that simply lying in bed is not restful enough. Can I be any more horizontal? Can my atrophied limbs sink any lower into the sheets, the mattress that molds to my form? I imagine falling through the mattress, but realize it would probably hurt when I hit the floor. I never get bored, lying there. Just sad. Last year I lost my ability to walk. By the time I finally learned I had osteosclerotic myeloma, part of POEMS syndrome (a rare blood disorder whose initials stand for five of its features, including polyneuropathy, or nerve damage), I was weaker than I’d ever been. I was nearly unable even to use my hands. None of it registered as suffering, until this past spring, as I began to write these words. Perhaps I’ve been in shock. I recognize that I don’t live in a war zone, that there are more aggressive cancers. I’m told about others locked in their disabled bodies who produce great work, and even play sports. But I am not extraordinary; I’m no hero. The horror of my situation is the opposite of the happy ending I wished for in high school, half a lifetime ago. At 35, I’m mostly confined to the bed and the wheelchair. Twice a week I go to physical therapy. Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Movement Disorders; Neuroimmunology
Link ID: 12394 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Four animal rights activists have been convicted of orchestrating a blackmail campaign against firms that supplied an animal testing research centre. They used paedophile smears, criminal damage and bomb hoaxes to intimidate companies associated with Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS) in Cambridgeshire. The four, members of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC) from Hampshire and London, had denied the charges. A fifth defendant was cleared by the Winchester Crown Court jury. During a six-year campaign the group falsely claimed managers of the companies were paedophiles. They also sent hoax bombs parcels and made threatening telephone calls to firms telling them to cut links with HLS. One of the features of intimidation included sending used sanitary items in the post to the firms and daubing roads outside managers' homes with slogans such as "puppy killer". The court heard the defendants were part of SHAC, which was based near Hook, Hampshire, and targeted companies in the UK and Europe between 2001 and 2007. It was told Nicholson, from Eversley in Hampshire, was a founder member of SHAC, who managed the "menacing" campaigns against the firms. Selby, Wadham and Medd-Hall were released on conditional bail, while Nicholson was remanded in custody. A man who worked for a company which transported animals for HLS said he still fears reprisals after being sent obscene packages. We received a lot of phone calls and letters [which] contained things like used condoms, used sanitary towels, razor blades and syringe needles claiming to be from people who are infected with AIDS," he added. (C)BBC

Keyword: Animal Rights
Link ID: 12393 - Posted: 12.29.2008

By Carl Yapp John and Sue Day jokingly refer to themselves as the "shakers". It is the physical sign that is one of the most recognisable symptoms of Parkinson's disease. But they can now add "incredibly rare" to their nickname, because according to experts they are one of only a handful of married couples who both have the condition. Parkinson's attacks the part of the brain that controls our movements, and affects activities we take for granted, such as talking, walking, swallowing and writing. Repetitive shaking, known to sufferers as tremors, slowness of movement, muscle stiffness, insomnia and lethargy are just some of the symptoms. In recent years awareness has increased about Parkinson's as a result of the likes of boxing legend Muhammad Ali and Hollywood actor Michael J Fox both acquiring the condition. Mr and Mrs Day, who have three grown-up children, and are from the Powys village of Bwlch y Fridd, near Newtown, have lived with Parkinson's for the past few years. They have learned to cope with it, and they say humour is one way of dealing with the debilitating effects. But it hasn't been easy and humour was the last thing on Mr Day's mind when he was diagnosed in 2005, three years after his wife. Unlike most people confronted with a disease, Mr Day, 59, knew some of the symptoms as not only his wife had the illness, but his brother, and his father before his death. "We've heard of brothers and sisters, but not husband and wife. It's very unusual for husband and wife to have it," he said. "I think people think shaking is the only symptom really and don't realise the fatigue that comes with it and the other things - stiffness of joints and things like that." Mrs Day, 63, said: "There's also your facial expressions. You don't express emotions - smiling, anger, things like that because the muscles don't respond." (C)BBC

Keyword: Parkinsons
Link ID: 12392 - Posted: 12.29.2008

By Nicole Branan, Melinda Wenner, Rachel Mahan and David Dobbs In the sci-fi movie Minority Report “Precrime” police units stop murders before they happen by relying on the visions of people who can see the future. Clairvoyants who possess precognition will likely remain fiction. But the idea of preventing individuals from committing crimes may be on the threshold of becoming reality, according to Northeastern University criminologist Nicole Rafter. Recent scientific advances, such as the decoding of the human genome and, growing out of that, studies that examine gene-environment interactions, have opened new avenues to explore the biological bases of character traits, including the propensity to commit crimes. As a result, Rafter says, criminologists are now shifting their attention toward biological reasons for delinquent behavior after decades of trying to define crime mainly on the basis of sociological factors. In The Criminal Brain, Rafter warns of the potentially dangerous consequences of this trend: “We already have genetically modified crops; maybe gene policing and genetically modified criminals are not far behind.” Whether we will head toward such a brave new world scenario, however, depends on how specialists and the general public evaluate research and policy in the booming field of biocriminology, she explains. Rafter provides the tools to do just that. The book takes readers on a fascinating journey through the history of criminology and details where the field stands today. Even though we still do not know what exactly a “criminal brain” is, current research suggests that some people are more genetically predisposed to offend than others, Rafter says. Still, “no one is destined to commit crime,” because environmental factors also play a role, even for those who are most at risk. © 1996-2008 Scientific American Inc.

Keyword: Aggression; Genes & Behavior
Link ID: 12391 - Posted: 06.24.2010

The facial expressions we make to show or hide our emotions are hardwired into our brains rather than learned during life, a study has concluded. Blind and sighted athletes made the same expressions when they won and lost, US researchers found. This, the study reported in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology study suggests, meant the expressions were not picked up by watching others. The researchers believe they could be remnants of evolutionary history. The idea that facial expressions are in-built is not new - scientists have suggested it since the 1960s. However, the study at San Francisco State University provides some of the strongest evidence yet to support it. Professor David Matsumoto and his team compared 4,800 photographs, capturing the expressions of sighted and blind judo athletes at medal ceremonies at the 2004 Olympic and Paralympic Games. In each case, the faces of gold and silver medal winning athletes were scrutinised. While the winners frequently showed genuine joy at their victory, those in the lesser medal positions often produced "social smiles" - smiles involving only mouth movement, indicating that they may be artificial rather than spontaneous. The researchers concluded that sighted and blind competitors showed or controlled their expressions in exactly the same way. Professor Matsumoto said: "The statistical correlation between the facial expressions of sighted and blind individuals was almost perfect. A sighted athlete shows a very similar expression after losing "This suggests something genetically resident within us is the source of facial expressions of emotion. "Losers pushed their lower lip up as if to control the emotion on their face and many produced social smiles - individuals blind from birth could not have learned to control their emotions in this way through visual learning, so there must be another mechanism. (C)BBC

Keyword: Emotions; Evolution
Link ID: 12390 - Posted: 12.29.2008

By Rob Stein Teenagers who pledge to remain virgins until marriage are just as likely to have premarital sex as those who do not promise abstinence and are significantly less likely to use condoms and other forms of birth control when they do, according to a study released today. The new analysis of data from a large federal survey found that more than half of youths became sexually active before marriage regardless of whether they had taken a "virginity pledge," but that the percentage who took precautions against pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases was 10 points lower for pledgers than for non-pledgers. "Taking a pledge doesn't seem to make any difference at all in any sexual behavior," said Janet E. Rosenbaum of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, whose report appears in the January issue of the journal Pediatrics. "But it does seem to make a difference in condom use and other forms of birth control that is quite striking." The study is the latest in a series that have raised questions about programs that focus on encouraging abstinence until marriage, including those that specifically ask students to publicly declare their intention to remain virgins. The new analysis, however, goes beyond earlier analyses by focusing on teens who had similar values about sex and other issues before they took a virginity pledge. © 2008 The Washington Post Company

Keyword: Sexual Behavior
Link ID: 12389 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Rogue immune cells entering the brain may contribute to the development of Parkinson's disease, say scientists. A French study in diseased mice revealed the cells accumulating in brain tissue, and mice bred to lack them did not fall ill as quickly. The researchers suggested that the cells could be targeted using drugs. A UK charity said the findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, did not yet prove that this approach would work. About 120,000 people in the UK have Parkinson's disease, a progressive brain condition which causes symptoms such as tremor and difficulty moving. This is caused by the death of nerve cells which produce the chemical dopamine, which helps coordinate movements. Previous research had suggested a link between inflammation in the brain and the condition, pointing the finger at one of the body's own immune responses. The researchers from the INSERM institute in Paris looked for the presence of a particular type of immune cell called a "T-cell" in the brain tissues directly affected by Parkinson's. They found the cells gathering both in human brain samples taken from Parkinson's patients after death, and at an earlier stage in mice bred to develop the disease. When mice lacking these immune cells were studied, the rate of nerve cell death was significantly slower. The researchers said that this was enough evidence to start considering the possibility of using drugs to reduce this kind of immune response in patients with Parkinson's, in the hope that this might slow the progress of the disease. (C)BBC

Keyword: Parkinsons; Neuroimmunology
Link ID: 12388 - Posted: 12.29.2008

A strong cup of coffee has a greater effect on men than women, research shows. In a study on 668 healthy volunteers, an espresso pepped up men after just 10 minutes. Women also became more alert after the beverage, but less so. The University of Barcelona researchers say some of this effect might be psychological because decaffeinated coffee also worked to some extent. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry reports the work. The volunteers were asked to drink either a classic espresso containing 100mg of caffeine or a decaffeinated espresso containing 5mg of caffeine. Then the researchers looked for changes in alertness over the following minutes and hours. Both men and women saw an improvement in their activity levels after drinking the classic espresso and these effects began after as little as 10 minutes. According to the investigators, 45 minutes is the time needed for maximum caffeine concentration to be reached in the blood, but levels reach half this concentration after just a few minutes. And the effect appeared to be greater in the men. The decaf coffee had a similar, but weaker effect and tended to be more potent in the women rather than in the men. Lead researcher Ana Adan said: "Numerous studies have demonstrated the stimulant effects of caffeine, but none of these have looked at their effects in terms of the consumer's gender." Anna Denny of the British Nutrition Foundation said: "This study provides an interesting insight into how the effects of specific foods and nutrients may differ between men and women. Research into 'gene-nutrient' interactions is moving forward quickly and we are finding out more about how our genetic make-up affects our requirements for certain foods and nutrients, and how our bodies react to these." (C)BBC

Keyword: Drug Abuse; Sexual Behavior
Link ID: 12387 - Posted: 12.25.2008

Scientists have found that when the brain is slowly starved of glucose over time, some forms of Alzheimer's disease may result. Researchers used human and mice brains to study how a reduction in blood flow deprives the brain of energy. The chronic starvation eventually leads to sticky clumps of a protein linked to Alzheimer's, the leading cause of dementia in the elderly, they found. "This finding is significant because it suggests that improving blood flow to the brain might be an effective therapeutic approach to prevent or treat Alzheimer's," said the study's lead author, Robert Vassar, a professor of cell and molecular biology at Northwestern University in Chicago. It's possible that preventive strategies such as getting exercise, reducing cholesterol and managing blood pressure could help prevent Alzheimer's by improving blood flow to the brain. "If people start early enough, maybe they can dodge the bullet," Vassar added in a release. In the Dec. 26 issue of the journal Neuron, Vassar and his colleagues said they discovered a protein called elF2alpha that is changed when the brain fails to get enough energy in the form of glucose. © CBC 2008

Keyword: Alzheimers
Link ID: 12386 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By Paul Patton We were talking about politics. My housemate, an English professor, opined that certain politicians were thinking with their reptilian brains when they threatened military action against Iran. Many people believe that a component of the human brain inherited from reptilian ancestors is responsible for our species’ aggression, ritual behaviors and territoriality. One of the most common misconceptions about brain evolution is that it represents a linear process culminating in the amazing cognitive powers of humans, with the brains of other modern species representing previous stages. Such ideas have even influenced the thinking of neuroscientists and psychologists who compare the brains of different species used in biomedical research. Over the past 30 years, however, research in comparative neuroanatomy clearly has shown that complex brains—and sophisticated cognition—have evolved from simpler brains multiple times independently in separate lineages, or evolutionarily related groups: in mollusks such as octopuses, squid and cuttlefish; in bony fishes such as goldfish and, separately again, in cartilaginous fishes such as sharks and manta rays; and in reptiles and birds. Nonmammals have demonstrated advanced abilities such as learning by copying the behavior of others, finding their way in complicated spatial environments, manufacturing and using tools, and even conducting mental time travel (remembering specific past episodes or anticipating unique future events). Collectively, these findings are helping scientists to understand how intelligence can arise—and to appreciate the many forms it can take. © 1996-2008 Scientific American Inc.

Keyword: Evolution; Intelligence
Link ID: 12385 - Posted: 06.24.2010

by Andy Coghlan Are gay people hard-wired that way? Rooting around in the brain is an obvious way to tackle this provocative question, but it has been fraught with difficulty. A 1990s study seemed to show that the brains of gay men were more like those of women than men, but the science was questioned in the ensuing furore. This June, controversial brain scans gave us probably the best evidence yet that our brains are hard-wired before birth to be gay or straight, suggesting that nature not nurture governs sexual orientation. The startling study by Ivanka Savic and Per Lindström of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, showed that lesbians have asymmetric brains like straight men, while gay men have symmetric brains like straight women. So far, so clinical. But sexuality is as much about emotions as it is about biology. Enter the amygdala, the area of the brain that governs our every emotion, especially fear and anxiety. The amygdala of straight women and gay men connects mainly to areas of the brain that manifest fear as anxiety. In straight men and gay women though, the amygdala connects more to areas that trigger a fight-or-flight response. So if we are hard-wired to be gay or straight, how could that arise? Perhaps our brains get too much or too little of a crucial hormone in the womb. Or maybe the answer lies in our genes. Gay and bisexual men, for example, often have unusually fertile female relatives - this could be how "gay genes" get passed on, even though few gay men have babies themselves. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd

Keyword: Sexual Behavior
Link ID: 12384 - Posted: 06.24.2010