New sex position no help

CONFUSION over the safety of butter intensified last week after a major study claimed it does raise the risk of fatal heart disease.

Harvard research involving 120 000 adults found that those who ate the most saturated fat were up to eight percent more likely to die.

The findings come shortly after another study found that one tablespoon of butter had no impact on the risk of death, heart disease or strokes.

One leading cardiologist even claimed butter and other saturated fats may actually help in weight loss.

The latest research found that slashing the intake of saturated fats by just five percent reduced the overall risk of mortality by more than a quarter.

Foods high in saturated fats include butter, cream and cheese, red meat as well as biscuits, cakes and pies.

They are thought to increase the levels of cholesterol in the blood, leading to the build up of plaque in the arteries which in turn cause heart attacks and strokes.

Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health in Boston also found that replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats – which include lowfat vegetable spreads, fish, nuts and seeds – lowered the risk of dying from heart disease, cancer, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. The study, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, said that switching from butter to unsaturated alternatives would yield substantial health benefits and should continue to be a key message in dietary recommendations.

– Daily Mail TRYING a new sexual position is unlikely to help a woman get pregnant, a fertility expert advised recently.

Allan Pacey, professor of andrology at Sheffield University, in the UK, who advises couples on how best to conceive, said when it comes to trying to get pregnant any position will do.

“People get into their heads a specific idea... and it’s hard to shift it,” he said at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology conference in Helsinki, Finland.

“Then if their baby-making doesn’t follow that process, they feel guilt or don’t have sex because it’s not the right time, or not had the right thing beforehand. They should just get on with it. I don’t think there is any evidence to suggest one is better.”

Dr Stuart Lavery, consultant gynaecologist at Hammersmith Hospital, London, agreed there was no evidence that any one position improved the chance of conception. He said all studies showed was “it was just having more sex that got you pregnant”.

Professor Adam Balen, a reproductive medicine expert, said: “The important thing is if you want to get pregnant, have lots sex, however you want – and enjoy it.’ – Daily Mail