Consumption of foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids can reduce the risk of age-related macular degeneration, a survey of published research suggests.

University of Melbourne researchers reached this conclusion after reviewing nine published studies that included a total of 88,974 participants, including 3,203 people with AMD

In yet another benefit of the sunshine vitamin, scientists have found that sun exposure and vitamin D helps ward off juvenile diabetes. The findings suggest that a lack of vitamin D, which the body produces when ultraviolet light hits the skin, has a role in the development of type 1 diabetes in children.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, found that children who live in countries at higher latitudes, such as Canada, where there is less sunlight for much of the year, are far more likely to develop juvenile diabetes than kids who live at or near the equator

A possible vaccine against meningitis B has shown "encouraging" results when tested on 150 babies in Britain in the preliminary trial. Pharmaceutical giant Novartis had successfully concluded phase II trials and had moved on to large-scale trials that will show whether the vaccine is protective in everyday life.

In the phase II trials, the babies were injected with the new vaccine at two, four and six months of age, with a booster at 12 months. Blood samples taken a month after the third dose and again a month after the booster showed the children had developed good immune responses against certain strains of meningitis B bacteria

All adults aged 60 and older should be vaccinated against shingles, a skin rash caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended on Thursday.

The ZOSTAVAX vaccine for shingles reduces the chance of developing shingles for those 60 and up, though the odds get worse with increasing age. The vaccination was recommended by an influential government advisory panel in 2006. The CDC officially adopted the recommendation this week

An Australian agency is warning that people around the world are in greater danger of losing their vision because of climate change.

The Fred Hollows Foundation, which works mostly in developing countries to restore sight to people with cataracts, said decreases in the ozone layer could lead to more exposure to ultraviolet rays, one of the most common causes of cataract blindness