Health & Medicine

  1. Health & Medicine

    Tea compound aids dying brain cells

    A constituent of green tea rescues brain cells damaged in a way that mimics the effect of Parkinson's disease.

    By Janet Raloff
  2. Health & Medicine

    Malaria’s sweet spot

    The malaria parasite's reliance on a sugar in the gut of mosquitoes may offer a way to block the disease's transmission.

    By Patrick Barry
  3. Health & Medicine

    Exhaust fumes might threaten people’s hearts

    Nanoparticles in diesel fumes thwart proteins that dissolve blood clots, perhaps increasing the risk of heart attacks.

    By Sarah Williams
  4. Health & Medicine

    Fattening Carbs—Some Promote Obesity and Worse

    Easily digestible carbohydrates induce obesity and liver disease in a test on rodents.

    By Janet Raloff
  5. Health & Medicine

    The Breast Solution

    Reversing earlier advice, health authorities now say that babies of HIV-positive mothers in poor countries have a better chance of avoiding infection if they feed only on breast milk that's not supplemented with other food.

    By Carolyn Barry
  6. Health & Medicine

    Warming to a Cold War Herb

    Benefiting from decades of research that took place behind the Iron Curtain, Western physicians are discovering Rhodiola rosea, a cold-weather herb that purportedly fights fatigue and boosts energy.

    By Brian Vastag
  7. Health & Medicine

    Brain Sabotage: Alzheimer’s protein may spawn miniseizures

    Amyloid-beta, a protein implicated in Alzheimer's disease, causes misfiring of neurons and minor brain seizures in mice.

    By Nathan Seppa
  8. Health & Medicine

    Debate Renewed: Diabetes drug ups heart risk

    A popular diabetes drug significantly increases the risk of heart failure and heart attack in those who take it.

    By Brian Vastag
  9. Health & Medicine

    Blood vessel growth factor also does housekeeping

    A growth factor that promotes blood vessel development also maintains normal blood vessel health, perhaps explaining the vascular side effects of some cancer drugs.

    By Sarah Webb
  10. Health & Medicine

    How platelets help cancer spread

    A tumor cell protein influences blood platelets in a way that helps a cancer spread through the body.

    By Sarah Webb
  11. Health & Medicine

    Curry Power

    A component of the spice turmeric, the color-giving ingredient in yellow curries, may help prevent and possibly treat Alzheimer's disease.

    By Patrick Barry
  12. Health & Medicine

    Aura origins show the way in epilepsy surgery

    Epilepsy patients who experience multiple auras before a seizure, usually considered poor candidates for corrective brain surgery, might benefit from by a new brain scan procedure.

    By Nathan Seppa