Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Aerobic exercise may improve thinking skills in adults of all ages

Numerous studies have shown that aerobic exercise can improve cognition in seniors, but a small new study finds that vigorous workouts boost thinking skills in younger adults as well. After a six-month aerobic regimen, adults aged 20 to 67 showed improvements in executive function - the cognitive processes important for reasoning, planning and problem solving - and expanded gray matter in the brain region central to those functions. Polish firms sold nearly 10 tons of suspect meat, a third exported to EU

Polish companies at the heart of a food safety scandal sold nearly 10 tonnes of suspect meat to food processing plants, with around a third exported to European Union countries, Poland's chief veterinarian Pawel Niemczuk said on Thursday. Niemczuk said police have launched a criminal investigation into two companies after an undercover reporter filmed sick cows being taken for slaughter. Roche, AC Immune drop Alzheimer drug trials after setback

Roche Holding and partner AC Immune SA called a halt to two late-stage clinical trials of their crenezumab drug for early Alzheimer's, the latest in a string of failures to find a treatment for the progressive brain disease. The announcement from Roche and its Swiss-based partner AC Immune came after an interim analysis indicated it was unlikely to be effective, the Swiss drugmaker said on Wednesday. Nasdaq-listed shares of AC Immune fell 65 percent in response. FDA approves Mylan's generic of Advair asthma treatment

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Mylan NV's generic version of GlaxoSmithKline-developed blockbuster asthma treatment Advair, driving shares of Mylan 7 percent higher on Wednesday. Mylan received approval to market its generic inhaler in three dosages for the twice-daily treatment of asthma in patients aged four years and older, the FDA said. As we age, sexual activity still important for wellbeing

The benefits of a healthy sex life aren't limited to young adults, according to a UK study that found intimacy and sexual activity are important for older adults' well-being, too. In the study of nearly 7,000 men and women, ages 50 to 89, quality of life was higher in those who reported any kind of sexual activity in the past year, such as kissing, researchers found. E-cigarettes help more smokers quit than patches and gum, study finds

E-cigarettes are almost twice as effective at helping smokers quit as nicotine replacement treatments like patches, lozenges and gum, according to the results of a major clinical trial. The study, involving almost 900 smokers, found that 18 percent of e-cigarette users were smoke-free after a year, compared to 9.9 percent who tried quitting using other products. Exclusive: Sri Lanka halts imports of Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder pending asbestos tests

Sri Lanka has halted imports of Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder until the company proves its product is free from cancer-causing asbestos, two government officials and the product's local distributor told Reuters. Stocks of the product already in Sri Lanka can still be sold, but there will be no new imports of the talc, a popular healthcare product across Sri Lanka and much of Asia, until J&J India, from where Sri Lanka imports the product, provides fresh test results. Other factors may explain preterm births associated with IVF

Women are more likely to have preemies when they use reproductive technologies like in vitro fertilization (IVF), but a new study comparing outcomes for these babies to siblings conceived naturally suggests that other factors may be the cause of these early arrivals. Infertility has long been linked to an increased risk of premature deliveries and underweight babies, and the current study offers fresh evidence of this. Compared to babies conceived naturally, infants born after women used assistive reproductive technology (ART) were slightly more likely to be born preterm and weighed an average of 60 grams (2.1 ounces) less, the analysis of more than 65,000 births found. U.S. lawmakers request info from insulin makers on rising prices

Two powerful U.S. lawmakers sent letters to the three leading insulin manufacturers on Wednesday requesting information on why its cost has skyrocketed in recent years and how much the companies profit from the life-sustaining diabetes treatment. Democratic Representatives Frank Pallone and Diana DeGette, the chairman and a top-ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, respectively, wrote to the heads of Eli Lilly and Co, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi, the long-time leading manufacturers of insulin. The drugmakers have all raised the price of insulin at similar rates over the last several years. Tyson recalls chicken nuggets on possible rubber contamination

Tyson Foods Inc is recalling some chicken nuggets it manufactured because of possible contamination with rubber, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) said late on Tuesday. About 36,420 pounds of Tyson's 'White Meat Panko' chicken nuggets will be recalled after several consumers complained of extraneous material in the purchased product, the FSIS said.