Microplastics could be contributing to clogged arteries, increasing people’s risk of heart attack or stroke, a new study says. Fatty plaques in neck arteries can contain more than 50 times as much microplastics as are found in arteries free of plaques, researchers reported Tuesday at a meeting of the American Heart Association in Baltimore. These… read on > read on >
Recreational use of “magic mushroom” psilocybin skyrocketed in the U.S. during the early 2020s, as states began toying with legalization of the psychedelic drug, a new study says. The number of adults 30 and older who had used psilocybin in the past year increased by 188% between 2019 and 2023, researchers reported April 21 in… read on > read on >
Depression and anxiety have been increasing steadily among children and teenagers in recent years, a new study says. More than 1 in 10 children (10.6%) suffered from anxiety in 2022, up from 7.1% in 2016, researchers reported April 21 in JAMA Pediatrics. During the same period, depression among children increased to 4.6% from 3.2%, results… read on > read on >
The prevalence of depression decreased with older age and with increasing family income read on >
The Trump administration is expected to take new steps to remove artificial food dyes from the U.S. food supply, officials say. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary are expected to share more details on Tuesday, CNN reported. This follows a major move by the U.S. Food… read on > read on >
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) will provide private health data to researchers for U.S. health chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s new autism study. NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya told advisers the aim is to help researchers study autism by giving them access to “comprehensive” health records. These records will cover a wide range of… read on > read on >
Women are OK with having an AI program help doctors review mammograms performed for breast cancer screening, a new study says. About 7 out of 10 women (71%) said they’re fine with an AI program providing backup for a radiologist’s review of their breast X-ray, researchers report in the journal Radiology: Imaging Cancer. But women… read on > read on >
The Talk. It’s an anxiety-producing proposition for just about every parent — and as you might expect, opinions vary widely about when and how to have The Talk with a child nearing puberty. Parents are evenly split in thinking it’s best to start talking about puberty before age 10, at age 10, or when children… read on > read on >
Kids struggle with asthma as much at school as they do at home — possibly even more so, since it can be tough for them to access their medicine. So why aren’t all schools offering them asthma therapy? A new study says that school-based asthma therapy is effective in helping kids breathe easier while away… read on > read on >
Babies and toddlers could be exposed to harmful chemicals while they sleep, due to compounds found in their mattresses, two new studies say. Air samples taken from 25 children’s bedrooms revealed elevated levels of more than two dozen phthalates, flame retardants and other potentially hazardous chemicals, one of the studies says. The highest levels of… read on > read on >
