Health & Medicine

  1. Health & Medicine

    Pill eases craving

    An experimental drug called varenicline helps cigarette smokers kick the habit better than bupropion does, the most effective medicine currently on the market.

    By Nathan Seppa
  2. Health & Medicine

    Endurance cycling tied to lasting heart damage

    Former professional bicyclers have signs of heart problems nearly 4 decades after competing in grueling endurance events.

    By Nathan Seppa
  3. Health & Medicine

    New drug fights heart failure

    The experimental drug levosimendin, in combination with standard drugs, eases heart failure symptoms better than standard drugs alone do.

    By Nathan Seppa
  4. Health & Medicine

    Marrow cells boost ailing hearts

    Extracting cells from a heart attack patient's bone marrow and then inserting them into the person's heart via a catheter can improve pumping capacity.

    By Nathan Seppa
  5. Health & Medicine

    Sleep apnea could signal greater danger

    The nighttime breathing disorder called obstructive sleep apnea might double a person's risk of death or stroke.

    By Nathan Seppa
  6. Health & Medicine

    Staring into the Dark

    Amid a growing array of medications for treating insomnia, sleep researchers point to large gaps in their knowledge about which of these medicines work best and for how long they remain effective.

    By Ben Harder
  7. Health & Medicine

    Novel Approach: Cancer drug might ease scleroderma

    The chemotherapy drug paclitaxel, when given to mice, shows signs of impeding the skin disease scleroderma.

    By Nathan Seppa
  8. Health & Medicine

    Our big fat cancer statistics

    A new analysis of data from a 2002 report shows that obesity is the second-largest cause of cancer in the United States.

    By Katie Greene
  9. Health & Medicine

    Wearing your food

    A broccoli extract, applied to the skin, has been found to reduce the incidence of skin tumors in mice.

    By Katie Greene
  10. Health & Medicine

    Dairy fats cut colon cancer risk

    High-fat dairy foods appear to confer protection against colon cancer.

    By Janet Raloff
  11. Health & Medicine

    Monthly cycle changes women’s brains

    Activity in a brain region that regulates emotions fluctuates over the course of a woman's menstrual cycle.

    By Christen Brownlee
  12. Health & Medicine

    Vitamin D Boosts Calcium Potency

    Women whose diets are rich in vitamin D appear to need less calcium to preserve their bones' health.

    By Janet Raloff