Health & Medicine
- Health & Medicine
Checkmate for a Child-Killer?
If a new generation of vaccines pans out, the days of rotavirus, which kills at least 450,000 infants and children every year by causing severe diarrhea, may be numbered.
By Ben Harder - Health & Medicine
The Risks in Sweet Solutions to Young Thirsts
Babies seem to be born with a sweet tooth–one that many adults retain. However, parents and caregivers who indulge a child’s appetite for sugary drinks may be fostering cavities in their children’s teeth, a new study finds. Sugary beverages, especially soda pop, caused more cavities than juice or juice-containing drinks did. That idea may seem […]
By Janet Raloff - Health & Medicine
Early Warning? Spinal fluid may signal Alzheimer’s presence
Spinal-fluid concentrations of two compounds already linked to the disease may reveal whether a person has Alzheimer's disease.
By Nathan Seppa - Health & Medicine
To Your Health?
Doctors are divided on whether the value of screening the torso with X-rays to find symptomless disease outweighs the costs.
By Janet Raloff -
- Health & Medicine
Insulin inaction may hurt even nondiabetics
Flawed insulin activity may lead to blood changes that foster atherosclerosis, even in people who don't have diabetes.
By Janet Raloff - Health & Medicine
Gene Tied to Heightened Diabetes Risk
People with three particular variations within the gene that encodes the protein calpain-10 face triple the risk of getting type II diabetes.
By Nathan Seppa - Health & Medicine
Another Green That Might Prevent Breast Cancer
Many studies have indicated that diets high in produce–including broccoli and other veggies–may lower a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer. Now, California researchers report data suggesting that drinking green tea does the same thing. Bad news for women who–like me–prefer black tea: The study failed to identify a similar advantage from such brews, much […]
By Janet Raloff - Health & Medicine
Paper Chased: Cancer-vaccine study is retracted
Researchers in Germany have retracted a paper that reported promising results for a vaccine that elicited immune responses against cancer cells.
By John Travis - Health & Medicine
Sweet Relief: Comfort food calms, with weighty effect
Chronic stress might drive people to consume comfort foods that can soothe the brain.
- Health & Medicine
Damage Patrol: Enzyme may reveal cancer susceptibility
People with lung cancer show less DNA-repair activity by a certain enzyme than people without the disease do.
By Nathan Seppa - Health & Medicine
Control of animal epidemic slowed human illness
Control measures implemented in response to the devastating animal epidemic of foot-and-mouth disease can apparently help curtail the spread of the cryptosporidium parasite, which sickens people.
By Ben Harder