Health & Medicine
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Health & MedicineHerbal Lottery
Many herbal-product makers aren't maintaining adequate quality control, prompting the Food and Drug Administration to propose rules that mandate good manufacturing practices.
By Janet Raloff -
Health & MedicineGene therapy thwarts hepatitis C in mice
Gene therapy that induces infected liver cells to self-destruct slows hepatitis C dramatically in mice.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineFlawed Therapy: Hormone replacement takes more hits
Elderly women taking estrogen and progestin are more likely to develop dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, and stroke than are women not taking the hormones.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineBreathe Easier: Lung surgery aids some emphysema patients
Surgery to remove diseased portions of the upper lungs can help emphysema patients breathe more efficiently, depending on the patient's health and where the damaged tissues are.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineNovel tack against diabetes
Thwarting the production of immune proteins that induce inflammation prevents diabetes-prone mice from developing the disease.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineEating right early might reduce premature births
Malnutrition around the time of conception may promote early delivery of offspring.
By John Travis -
Health & MedicineSchool Lunches Are Struggling to Earn High Marks
In the nation’s schools, the presence of sweet, high-fat snacks in vending machines and on cafeteria lines is undercutting efforts by those institutions to improve the nutrition of U.S. youngsters. Or so conclude a pair of May 9 reports by the General Accounting Office (GAO), an investigative arm of Congress. More schools are offering healthy […]
By Janet Raloff -
Health & MedicineBone Builder: New drug could heal hard-to-mend fractures
A synthetic compound can heal broken bones that are so damaged they don't knit on their own, a study in rats and dogs shows.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineBoosting the TB vaccine
A new vaccine for tuberculosis outperforms the current one in tests on animals.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineFecal glow could improve meat safety
Workers who process animal carcasses into meat might soon use a novel type of laser scanner to identify products that have been contaminated with feces.
By Ben Harder -
Health & MedicinePreeclampsia Progress: Blood test for predicting pregnancy problems
A natural compound called asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) may play a role in preeclampsia, a pregnancy complication.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineUnproven Elixir
For aging men with low testosterone, hormone replacement may stall or counteract some common declines that come with age, but it'll take years to determine whether the treatment is doing most men more good than harm.
By Ben Harder