Health & Medicine

  1. Health & Medicine

    Measure blood sugar with a grain of salt

    Continuous glucose monitors are now readily available. With guidance, they can help people make small dietary and lifestyle changes for better health.

    By Sujata Gupta
  2. Health & Medicine

    Could babies get bird flu through breast milk? Maybe, a study hints

    H5N1 bird flu might infect human mammary glands, potentially allowing the virus to show up in breast milk.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  3. Humans

    These female divers spend more time underwater than any other humans

    At an average age of 70, these women divers in South Korea still forage in the sea up to 10 hours a day and spend more than half of that time underwater.

    By Brianna Randall
  4. Humans

    Stopping menopausal hormones may require more bone monitoring

    Women face a small rise in fracture risk within 10 years of stopping therapy, suggesting the need for additional monitoring.

    By Sofia Caetano Avritzer
  5. Health & Medicine

    The sugar substitute sucralose makes immunotherapy less effective

    Found in Splenda, sucralose reduces immunotherapy efficacy via its effects on the gut microbiome, but arginine supplements might counter the outcome.

    By Payal Dhar
  6. Health & Medicine

    How flossing a mouse’s teeth could lead to a new kind of vaccine

    Flu viruses often enter the body through mucous tissue in the nose. Researchers are developing new ways to protect such areas.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  7. Health & Medicine

    New clues emerge on how foods spark anaphylaxis

    In two studies of mice, a molecule called leukotriene helped trigger food-induced anaphylaxis. A drug approved for asthma — zileuton — diminished it.

    By Laura Sanders
  8. Genetics

    This snail may hold a secret to human eye regeneration

    Golden apple snails can regrow full, functional eyes. Studying their genes may reveal how to repair human eye injuries.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  9. Health & Medicine

    What is the best exercise to improve sleep?

    An analysis of 30 trials delivered a surprising twist: One exercise outperformed walking, resistance training and aerobic exercise in the treatment of sleep disorders such as insomnia.

    By Kamal Nahas
  10. Health & Medicine

    Higher colon cancer rates may reflect earlier screening success

    The recommended age for starting colorectal cancer screening is now 45. That shift may explain a rise in early cases.

    By Aimee Cunningham
  11. Health & Medicine

    Some probiotics could feed, rather than fend off, infections

    Probiotics containing Lactobacillus gasseri Lg-36 prevented C. difficile infections in mice, but L. acidophilus probiotics made infection more likely.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  12. Health & Medicine

    Some U.S. newborns still get HIV despite efforts to screen for it. Here’s why

    Routine tests in the third trimester may catch missed cases and flag the need for treatment that reduces a baby‘s risk of getting HIV to near zero.

    By Sara Novak