Health & Medicine

  1. Health & Medicine

    Gender Gap: Male-only gene affects men’s dopamine levels

    A gene found only in men affects the brain's production of dopamine, a finding that may help explain why men are more likely than women to develop Parkinson's disease and other dopamine-related illnesses.

    By Carolyn Gramling
  2. Health & Medicine

    Do Over: New MS drug may be safe after all

    The experimental drug natalizumab, which limits relapses in patients with multiple sclerosis, may get a second chance after being withdrawn from use in 2005.

    By Nathan Seppa
  3. Health & Medicine

    Prescription Strength Chocolate, Revisited

    Studies reported at a recent symposium on chocolate's biological impact are zeroing in on the ingredients that seem to make it good for your heart.

    By Janet Raloff
  4. Health & Medicine

    Birth Deterrent: Stress hormone cited in early miscarriages

    High levels of a stress hormone in newly pregnant women might make them more likely to have miscarriages.

    By Nathan Seppa
  5. Health & Medicine

    Saw palmetto flunks prostate exam

    An herbal supplement used by 2.5 million men in the United States has failed to outperform a dummy capsule taken for urinary problems.

    By Nathan Seppa
  6. Health & Medicine

    Study upgrades protons’ risk to DNA

    Proton radiation causes worse breaks in DNA than researchers had expected.

    By Janet Raloff
  7. Health & Medicine

    Fooling the Satiety Meter (with recipe)

    New studies in portion control reveal that diluted calories are far more effective at satisfying hunger than energy-dense ones are.

    By Janet Raloff
  8. Health & Medicine

    Looking Ahead: Tests might predict Alzheimer’s risk

    Two tests show promise in detecting Alzheimer's disease or other cognitive impairment years before symptoms arise.

    By Nathan Seppa
  9. Health & Medicine

    Not So Sweet: Cancers in rats that consumed aspartame

    A large, new study in rats suggests that the artificial sweetener aspartame may be a carcinogen, but critics question the finding's validity.

    By Ben Harder
  10. Health & Medicine

    Alzheimer’s drug shows staying power

    The drug memantine slowed mental decline in people with moderate-to-advanced Alzheimer's disease in a 12-month trial, the longest test of the drug to date.

    By Nathan Seppa
  11. Health & Medicine

    Of taters and tots

    For each serving of french fries that a preschool girl typically consumed per week, her adult risk of developing breast cancer climbed.

    By Janet Raloff
  12. Health & Medicine

    Flora Horror

    A diarrhea-causing bacterium has developed new resistance to a widely used class of antibiotics and has recently become more transmissible and more deadly.

    By Ben Harder