Nathan Seppa

Biomedical Writer (retired September 2015)

All Stories by Nathan Seppa

  1. Health & Medicine

    Diabetes drug helps shed pounds

    The diabetes drug pramlintide facilitates year-long weight loss in obese volunteers, a new study shows.

  2. Health & Medicine

    Lo-Cal bones hold up

    One study of many recent investigations of how calorie restriction affects people shows that bone density does not necessarily suffer when a person loses weight quickly.

  3. Health & Medicine

    Calcium clue

    Excess calcium in the blood might signal an increased risk of fatal prostate cancer, a new study finds.

  4. Health & Medicine

    Older, not better

    Having an older father might increase a person’s risk of developing bipolar disorder, a large population survey finds.

  5. Health & Medicine

    Eye protection

    A variant form of a gene called TLR3 offers some protection against the eye disease known as dry macular degeneration.

  6. Health & Medicine

    It’s all just roughage

    People at risk of the colon disorder known as diverticulitis don’t need to avoid nuts, corn and popcorn, as previously recommended.

  7. Humans

    Wake-up call for sleep apnea

    A large, long-term study of sleep apnea links the breathing disorder to increased risk of death.

  8. Health & Medicine

    Statins versus dementia

    Statins, developed to fight cholesterol, may also prevent some dementia, a study of older Hispanics finds.

  9. Health & Medicine

    Statin snag

    A gene variant explains why some people get muscle pains from cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins.

  10. Health & Medicine

    Viagra and women

    Viagra eases some sexual problems for women taking antidepressants

  11. Health & Medicine

    Against the grains

    People on either a low-carbohydrate or Mediterranean diet fared better over two years than those on a low-fat diet.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Asthma oddity

    Helicobacter pylori, a common microbe that colonizes the stomach, might protect against asthma.