BREAKTHROUGHS OF THE WEEK

WE SEEM to be hard-wired for certain oddities in taste.

The authors of a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research have discovered that likings for specific products seemed to be genetically related.

Some of these include chocolate, mustard, hybrid cars, science fiction movies, and jazz.

Women could be spared the misery of premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, with small doses of Prozac.

The antidepressant has been shown to protect against the effects of a sharp drop in the levels of a natural sex hormone that is thought to cause the symptoms of PMS, research from the University of Birmingham, in the UK, suggests. - © The Times, London

WHAT YOU MUST DO FOR YOUR HEALTH THIS WEEK

As walking strides ahead in the fitness popularity stakes, is it likely to give jogging a run for its money?

There has been an unexpected fitness boom in 2010: plain old walking. Everywhere, people are putting one foot in front of the other in the name of fitness.

Last week, former aerobics queen, Jane Fonda, announced the release of a walking work-out DVD.

Walking offers all the benefits of running without hammering the joints, and they point to research that has shown a regular stroll to be a panacea for everything from depression to osteoarthritis.

A study by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine found that walking helped cut the risk of early death substantially. - © The Times, London

NUTRITION BITE

Indian researchers have developed a genetically modified potato packed with up to 60% more protein and increased levels of amino acids. The spud was created using a gene from the high protein amaranth seed. - Reuters