WASHINGTON, (AFP) ― Experts said Monday that regular tests for vitamin D levels were not proven to be beneficial or harmful, despite previous research warning of damaging effects of vitamin D deficiencies in adults. Studies have found that low levels of the vitamin can increase the risk of bone fractures, heart disease, colorectal cancer, diabetes, depression, Alzheimer’s disease and death. But the US Preventative Services Task Force said there was no evidence that getting regularly tested for s

Nov. 27, 2014

LG Electronics Inc., South Korea's home appliance and smartphone maker, on Thursday replaced the head of its mobile division with the marketing chief of its parent company in a reshuffle aimed at further pushing the handset business that has recently gained steam after a slowdown.    Cho Juno, director and chief operating officer at LG Corp., the de facto holding company of LG Electronics, will take the helm of the mobile communications department, succeeding Park Jong-seok, the company said.Par

Nov. 27, 2014

LG Electronics Inc., South Korea's home appliance and smartphone maker, on Thursday replaced the head of its mobile division with the marketing chief of its parent company in a reshuffle aimed at further pushing the handset business that has recently gained steam after a slowdown.    Cho Juno, director and chief operating officer at LG Corp., the de facto holding company of LG Electronics, will take the helm of the mobile communications department, succeeding Park Jong-seok, the company said.   

Nov. 27, 2014

South Korea's communications watchdog said Thursday it will seek criminal charges against local mobile carriers for violating the new handset subsidy payment law that caused problems for buyers of Apple Inc.'s new iPhone 6.   The Korea Communications Commission (KCC) said after a meeting that it is also considering referring the executives of the three mobile carriers to the prosecution to hold them responsible for the illegal subsidies.    The move comes weeks after the KCC warned in early Nove

Nov. 27, 2014

A South Korean food delivery app on Thursday said it has attracted a 40 billion won (US$36.31 million) investment from U.S. financial firm Goldman Sachs as it pushes to expand business overseas.   "With the investment, we can now strengthen our standing in the industry and put our overseas expansion into full swing," said Kim Bong-jin, the founder of the app "Baedal ui Minjok," which roughly translates to "The people of delivery" in English.   Goldman Sachs officials said the food-ordering progr

Nov. 27, 2014

Samsung Electronics Co., South Korea's tech bellwether, rolled out a new Android-based mirrorless camera Wednesday, the latest to join the premium shooter lineup.    The NX1 has a 28 megapixel resolution, the highest in a commercial camera with a Back Side Illuminated (BSI) sensor, allowing a clearer and more natural photo shooting in the dark.    The camera features built-in Wi-Fi that enables users to share images with one another via social networking services (SNS). It provides an interchang

Nov. 26, 2014

South Korea plans to send its first batch of 10 medical personnel to Ebola-hit Sierra Leone in mid-December as part of global efforts to contain the deadly virus, the government said Wednesday.   The team of four doctors and six nurses will depart Seoul on Dec. 13 for Worcestor, north of London, where they will receive safety education from Dec. 15-20, according to a joint statement by the foreign, health and defense ministries.   They will then leave for Sierra Leone a day later and begin full-

Nov. 26, 2014

Local civic groups called on the government Wednesday to expand treatment opportunities for AIDS patients in the country in an effort to alleviate some of the stigma surrounding the disease.   A coalition of 11 human rights groups said, of the 1,300 rehabilitation centers in the country, none currently accepts AIDS patients.  "The health ministry should build a state-run sanatorium where AIDS patients can be hospitalized without discrimination," the coalition said at a press conference in downto

Nov. 26, 2014

Cancer was the leading cause of death among the citizens of Seoul last year, claiming more than 13,000 lives, data from the city government showed Wednesday.   According to the data, 42,063 Seoulites died last year, the highest number of annual deaths since the city government began tracking related data in 1983. Last year also marked the highest death rate of 420.1 per every 100,000 citizens.   A total of 13,028 Seoul citizens died from cancer last year, accounting for 31 percent of the total d

Nov. 26, 2014

LG Electronics Inc., South Korea's No. 2 smartphone maker, has retained its third place in market share for a fourth consecutive quarter ending in September, data showed Wednesday, largely due to robust sales of its marque G3.    Its global market share by revenue stood at 5.4 percent in the third quarter, up from 4.8 percent three months earlier, recent data by Strategic Analytics showed. LG has climbed from 4.1 percent in the last quarter of 2013 and 4.2 percent in the first quarter of this ye

Nov. 26, 2014

South Korea was to unveil the results of a field study on Ebola-hit Sierra Leone conducted by its advance team Wednesday as part of its plan to send medical workers there, the foreign ministry said.   The 12-member advance team has returned from Sierra Leone after completing its 10-day field study for a future dispatch of Seoul's medical personnel.    The foreign, health and defense ministries plan to hold a joint press conference later in the day to explain the outcome of the field study and de

Nov. 26, 2014

South Korea ranked No. 2 in development of its information and communications technologies (ICT), a U.N. agency said Tuesday, giving up its first place to Denmark.The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) said Asia's fourth-largest economy ranked second among 166 countries surveyed.It marked the first time for South Korea to miss the top spot since 2010.   Sweden came in at third, followed by Iceland, Britain, Norway, the Netherlands and Finland. Hong Kong and Luxembourg also made the top

Nov. 25, 2014

South Korea's tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday showcased a mouse for disabled people that tracks the movements of the eyes.   Dubbed EYECAN+, the device allows users to type and perform other functions just by using their eyes. It is an upgraded version of Samsung's previous eye-tracking mouse that had to be worn like glasses.   "EYECAN+ requires the user to be situated between 60cm and 70cm from the monitor, and does not require the user to be in any specific position, as it can be

Nov. 25, 2014

UPS Korea said Monday that together with Korea Post, the country’s state-run postal service, it will offer a premium international mail service for those applying to overseas universities until Feb. 27 next year.UPS and Korea Post, which have provided a premium express mail service for college applicants for the past two years, said they will use the global logistics network of UPS to ensure rapid deliveries of Koreans’ admission applications to some 220 countries, including the U.S. and the U.K

Nov. 24, 2014