Latest update: 15/01/2013 

- communication - health - Moon - Switzerland


Does the moon make us mad?

Why do people who suffer a near-death experience often describe seeing a bright light? Why does the moon seem to affect people in bizarre ways? This week on Health we explore some of the most common unexplained medical mysteries.

By Juliette LACHARNAY / Lara MELLOUL / Mairead DUNDAS / Marina BERTSCH

We start in Geneva, where one woman has set up a research centre to examine the science behind a near-death experience (NDE), a phenomenon that has divided researchers for decades. Our reporter Anne-Sophie Pellegry investigates.

Next, a full moon has been linked to sleep deprivation, a higher birth rate and even hair growth. The most enduring theory, however, was that the lunar cycle is associated with mental health problems. Even though the word lunatic is derived from the Latin word ''luna'' for moon, a Canadian study now claims to have finally debunked this myth. France24's correspondents Fabrice Hoss and Thomas Ledwell report from Quebec.

Staying in Canada, we finish in Ontario where researchers have been able to communicate with a patient believed to be in a vegetative state for twelve years. The scientists say their research may require a rewriting of medical textbooks.


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