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Trim Your Holiday Stress This Season: Experts Offer Tips

SATURDAY, Dec. 2, 2023 (Healthday News) -- The holidays are typically a happy whirlwind of gift-buying, house decorating, party planning and family gatherings, but all that work can also stress people out.

Luckily, experts at UT Southwestern Medical Center say there are things you can do to keep your stress levels under control and help ma...

Identical Twins Study Shows Vegan Diets Helping the Heart

A new study of identical twins has provided fresh evidence that a vegan diet can vastly improve a person’s heart health.

Twins assigned a vegan diet for two months had significant improvements in cholesterol, insulin and body weight compared to their siblings, who ate a healthy diet that included animal protein.

“Based on these r...

Your Personality Might Help Shield You From Dementia

Got a naturally sunny disposition? It might protect you from dementia as the years advance, new research shows.

A team at Northwestern University in Chicago report that certain personality traits -- being conscientious, outgoing and positive -- appear to lower a person's odds for a dementia diagnosis.

On the other hand, being neurot...

Respiratory Illnesses in China Not Caused by New Virus, CDC Director Testifies

FRIDAY, Dec. 1, 2023 (Healthday News) -- In testimony provided Thursday to members of Congress, the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that a surge in respiratory illnesses in China is not being fueled by a new virus.

Instead, the spike can be linked to existing viruses and bacteria, including COVID-19, the fl...

Couch Potatoes, 'Squatting Breaks' Could Keep Your Mind Sharp

Doing some squats during commercial breaks or between YouTube videos can help couch potatoes keep their minds sharp, a new study suggests.

Young volunteers who did short sets of squat exercises every now and then while relaxing performed better in brain games than when they simply sat around for hours, researchers report.

Short burs...

As Salmonella Outbreak Widens, Avoid Cantaloupes if Brand Is Unknown, CDC Warns

FRIDAY, Dec. 1, 2023 (Healthday News) -- Shoppers should steer clear of any pre-cut cantaloupe if the brand is unknown, as a salmonella outbreak linked to the fruit continues to widen, U.S. health officials warned Thursday.

Eighteen more illnesses have been reported since Nov. 24, the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention said in ...

Persistent Inflammation Could Drive Brain Issues in Former Football Players

The repeat head injuries suffered by football players, boxers and other athletes appear to affect brain health long after players have given up their sport.

New research from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore could explain why: The persistence in the brain of inflammation tied to the original injury or injuries.

“The findings ...

Watch or Remove? Study Finds One Option May Be Better for Abnormal Cervical Lesions

When abnormal cervical cells are detected during a gynecological exam, it may be safer to remove them right away rather than "actively survey" the lesions and leave them in place, new research suggests.

In a study of over 27,500 Danish women, those who opted for active surveillance had higher long-term risks for cervical cancer, compared t...

Treatment Used on Donated Hearts May Be Useless, Even Harmful: Study

A technique doctors use to preserve donated organs is actually doing no good, and might even be harming the organs, a new study reports.

Physicians routinely dose deceased organ donors with thyroid hormones, in a bid to preserve heart function and keep the donors’ organs healthy and viable.

But thyroid hormone treatment made no sig...

Baseball Puts Kids' Elbows at Risk, Study Shows

FRIDAY, DEC. 1, 2023 (Healthday News) -- Millions of American kids and teens love to play the game of baseball, but the sport can leave many with elbow pain and injuries, new research finds.

“When we look at the forces that baseball players, even Little League baseball players, deal with during routine practice and games, it becomes appa...

U.S. Gun Suicides Keep Rising; Now Make Up Half of All Suicides

The latest national data show that when it comes to suicide, Americans are increasingly resorting to firearms as their method of choice. 

An analysis by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds that of the nearly 50,000 suicides recorded in the United States in 2022, more than half (27,000) involved a g...

New Clues to What Might Drive Tinnitus

Tinnitus, or "ringing in the ears," affects up to 1 in every 10 people and can be disabling for some.

Now, scientists at the Massachusetts Ear and Eye Infirmary believe they may have discovered a key cause of the condition: A degeneration of nerves crucial to hearing.

“We won’t be able to cure tinnitus until we fully understand t...

Does Social Media Raise Teens' Odds for Drug Use, Risky Sex?

Teens glued to Instagram, TikTok and other social media are more likely to drink, take drugs, smoke and engage in risky sexual behaviors, a new review warns.

For example, spending at least two hours a day on social media doubled the odds of alcohol consumption, compared with less than two hours daily use, researchers report in the Nov. 29 ...

EPA to Require Removal of All Lead Pipes From U.S. Water System

THURSDAY, Nov. 30, 2023 (Healthday News) -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday that it plans to require the removal of all lead pipes from the country's water systems.

The proposed rule, an ambitious effort that will cost up to $30 billion over the next decade, would affect about 9 million pipes that send water to ...

Day Cares Aren't COVID 'Super Spreaders,' Study Finds

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More Evidence That Regular Mammograms Save Lives

A woman who gets her regular mammograms as scheduled is much less likely to die from breast cancer than if she skips screenings, a new study shows.

Women with breast cancer who underwent all her scheduled mammograms had a survival rate of 80%, compared with survival rates as low as 59% for women who didn’t participate in any screenings, ...

Could an Overactive Thyroid Harm the Aging Brain?

Elevated levels of thyroid hormone appear to harm the aging brain, increasing seniors’ risk of dementia or other cognitive disorders, a new study finds.

High levels of thyroid hormone -- a condition called thyrotoxicosis -- was associated with thinking problems whether they came from an overactive thyroid gland or from taking thyroid med...

Early Onset Heart Disease Is Key Factor in Later-Life Dementia

Minding your heart health when you're young could spare your brain from dementia decades later, new research confirms.

Chinese researchers looked at data on more than 450,000 older Britons. They found that people who'd already been in poor cardiovascular health before they reached the age of 45 had a 25% higher odds of developing dementi...

Migraine? Reach for Prescription Meds, Not Ibuprofen

Migraine sufferers would do better to talk to their doctor about a prescription drug than reaching for a bottle of ibuprofen, a new study finds.

Drugs like triptans, ergots and anti-emetics can be two to five times more effective for treating migraines than ibuprofen, according to a report published Nov. 30 in the journal Neurology