Many babies--especially Caucasian infants--have blue eyes when they enter the world, even though most of them will not have blue eyes when they grow up. Through a quirk of gene regulation and pigment production, a baby's eyes may change or darken...
The human body cannot synthesize or manufacture vitamins. Vitamins are vital for your body to develop cells, grow properly and supply adequate energy for daily activity. Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D reports at Mayo Clinic that nutrition labels...
Biotin is a member of the vitamin B-complex family and is additionally known as vitamin B-7 and vitamin H. The National Institutes of Health and Holistic Online documents that biotin supports healthy hair by helping to form fatty acids in your...
The function of the gallbladder is to concentrate and store bile during the fasting state and then release bile to aid in the digestion of fat in the small intestines. Bile is not actually produced by the gallbladder, but by the liver. This is why...
Almonds are beneficial to your health for the multiple nutrients found in the nut, according to The World's Healthiest Foods. Almonds also feature a high level of protein, like many nuts, and are a good source of the mineral manganese. While a...
Biotin attaches to five different enzymes in the body and is essential to the activities those enzymes are responsible for. Your body needs this coenzyme to both break down and build up protein, which impacts hair growth. Hair is made of a protein...
Amino acids are substances you rely on to form all the proteins in your body. In turn, you rely on these proteins for vital functions that include gene regulation, formation of cellular structures and transportation of oxygen in your bloodstream....
"You have to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather was," said Abraham Lincoln, the 16th U.S. president, who brought about the emancipation of the slaves. Lincoln, of course, was speaking metaphorically, but taken literally, some...
With the number of vitamin and mineral supplements available, it can be confusing to figure out what to take and how much. Additionally, supplements have various combinations and trying to determine what you need and what is safe is hard. Calcium...
The United States Department of Agriculture, or USDA, classifies the Milk group of the Food Guide Pyramid as any fluid milk product or food made from milk that contains calcium, including cheese and yogurt. Milk products are part of a healthy diet...
Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, also known as non-Hodgkin lymphoma, is a kind of cancer caused by the uncontrolled growth of immune cells called lymphocytes. Normally, lymphocytes growth or death depends on a complicated system of genetic regulation. When...
The causes of depression and anxiety disorders are not fully known, but it is believed that electrochemical processes in the brain are involved along with the psychological factors. Depression may be involved in an abnormal process delivering...
Almonds have multiple uses in the world of nutrition. They are eaten as-is for a quick snack, chopped up and placed in salads and blended with other nuts and fruits to make trail mixes. Emerald produces almonds that come in sealed packages and...
The thyroid is a small butterfly-shaped gland that sits at the front of your throat. Your thyroid uses the mineral iodine and the amino acid tyrosine to produce two primary thyroid hormones known as T3 and T4. These hormones influence the rate at...
People with panic disorder experience many symptoms, including shortness of breath, chest pain, and fear of losing control or dying. The Healthy Place says that panic disorder has several biological causes, but also states that environment and...
In cases of leukemia, white blood cells do not mature properly, yet they still reproduce. Healthy blood cells only reproduce if there is space for them. As the abnormal blood cells accumulate, the reproduction of the healthy cells is inhibited. ...
Soymilk is a lactose-free alternative to dairy milk found chilled in the dairy case, as well as in aseptic containers on grocery shelves. Available in fat-free and full-fat forms, it comes in chocolate, vanilla, and other flavors. While soymilk is...
Chemotherapy, or chemo, is a form of treatment that uses medication to destroy cancer cells located both at the cancer site and any cells that might have spread throughout the body, according to BreastCancer.org. In the case of breast cancer,...
Cancer cells are cells that no longer have control over their rate of growth or death. All cells of the body grow and die at a rate determined by genetic instructions. Normal cells may become cancer cells if a change occurs in the genes that...
Vitamin B12 and folic acid are water-soluble vitamins. The body can metabolize water-soluble vitamins without the presence of lipids, or fats, and usually excretes excess water-soluble vitamins through urination. Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin...
Vitamins help maintain growth, prevent disease and avoid internal damage from free radicals. There are a total of 13 vitamins: vitamins A, C, D, E, K and the B complex vitamins. Fruits contain a number of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and...
Almost 75 percent of women will have one or more benign uterine growths called fibroids during their reproductive lifetime, according to MayoClinic.com. The size of these non-cancerous growths can vary from the size of a seed to tumors that fill...
MayoClinic.com states that about 15 percent of couples are infertile and that about half of the cases originate with the man. For normal fertility, a man must produce sperm that can swim up the female reproductive tract to fertilize the egg....
Sociopathy, also known as psychopathy, is a personality disorder in which an individual lacks empathy and caring for people or societal norms. It is diagnosed as anti-social personality disorder or ASP, by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of...
L-arginine is a chemical building block called an amino acid. The "L" in the name refers to the left-handed configuration of the molecule. As an amino acid, arginine helps form the molecular foundation of proteins. It also plays an important role...
The secrets to having fast-growing hair may start with your parents. In a 2009 study published in the journal "PLoS Genetics", researchers identified the gene responsible for hair growth. Referred to as Lhx2, this gene regulates hair formation and...
Phenylketonuria, commonly referred to as PKU, is a genetic disorder that leads to the build up of the amino acid phenylalanine in the blood. Untreated, PKU can cause metal retardation and serious health effects. According to the March of Dimes,...
The electrolyte potassium is an essential mineral. Your body needs it in small amounts for proper skeletal, heart, muscle and digestive function. Dietary sources of potassium include bananas, some types of fish, meat, dairy products, avocados,...
When you need to lose weight, you may turn to any herbal supplement that holds even a slender promise of helping you shed unwanted pounds or prevent weight gain. However, many supplements have no effect on weight loss and may even harm you. Milk...
