Smoking and drinking often go hand-in-hand, stimulating pleasure centers in the brain. But there’s even more to this unhealthy relationship than meets the eye. Researchers have found that nicotine in cigarettes cancels out the sleepiness caused by alcohol, basically allowing people to keep drinking … and smoking. The two vices feed off of each other.… read on >
Childhood is the perfect time to start healthy eating habits, the American Academy of Pediatrics says. While children need fat in their diets to get the daily energy they need, too much fat can lead to health problems, especially if it’s in the form of saturated fat that can lead to heart disease later in… read on >
Temper tantrums are a way of getting attention and expressing displeasure among younger kids who can’t express their needs or control their emotions, the U.S. National Library of Medicine says. Tantrums tend to be worst between ages 2 and 3, and rarely occur after age 4. Being tired, hungry or sick can make them worse,… read on >
The diabetes drug Farxiga might do double-duty for patients, helping to ward off another killer, heart failure, new research shows. Type 2 diabetics who took Farxiga (dapagliflozin) saw their odds of hospitalization for heart failure drop by 27 percent compared to those who took a placebo, according to a study funded by the drug’s maker,… read on >
A lifelong approach to lowering cholesterol, starting in some kids as young as 2, is the United States’ best bet to lower everyone’s risk of heart attack and stroke, according to updated guidelines released Saturday by the American Heart Association (AHA). “Personalized” cholesterol-fighting tactics recommended by the guidelines include: More detailed risk assessments, to help… read on >
Eating more fish or taking a fish oil supplement can reduce your risk of a heart attack, according to a pair of Harvard-led clinical trials. Heart benefits from omega-3 fatty acids were found both in healthy people and in people with conditions that put them at increased risk of heart attack, stroke or heart disease,… read on >
A simple pop-up alert on a computer screen could help save the brains and hearts of many hospital-bound people with an irregular heartbeat, a new clinical trial reveals. Rates for heart attack and stroke plunged by close to 90 percent in people helped by the new program, the study found. The computer alert warns doctors… read on >
If the last flu season is any indication, you need to take steps now to protect yourself against infection, an infectious diseases expert warns. The 2017-2018 flu season in the United States was the worst since the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began tracking the severity of annual flu seasons. There were nearly… read on >
Age-related eye disease is a worldwide problem that costs people not only their vision, but also hundreds of billions of dollars globally. So an international research team decided to look into ways to prevent or treat this type of vision loss. The investigators discovered that calcifications in the retina — the thin layer of tissue… read on >
The antidepressant fluoxetine (Prozac) is ineffective in treating a rare, polio-like disorder that can cause muscle weakness and paralysis in children, researchers are reporting. In the United States, there have been 219 possible cases of acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) reported so far this year, and 80 have been confirmed, according to the U.S. Centers for… read on >
