Even a slight rise in a specific type of beneficial gut bacteria can help people ward off serious infections, a new study reports. For every 10% increase in butyrate-producing bacteria in a patient’s gut, their risk of hospitalization for infection drops between 14% and 25%, researchers are scheduled to report at a major European medical… read on > read on >
It’s well-known that dogs can learn words for spoken commands like “sit,” “stand” and “heel.” But a new study has found they also can tell their “ball-ball” from their “dolly,” “teddy,” “chewy” or “squeaky squeak.” Brain scans reveal that dogs generally know that certain words stand for certain objects, researchers reported March 22 in the… read on > read on >
Vitamin supplements are a big business, with Americans spending roughly $45 billion out of more than $177 billion worldwide on pills, gummies and powders meant to boost health. About 59 million Americans regularly use some type of vitamin or supplement, spending an average $510 each year. But most folks are wasting that money, experts say.… read on > read on >
Medicare will now cover the popular weight-loss drug Wegovy if patients using it also have heart disease, U.S. officials announced Thursday. The move comes after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved drugmaker Novo Nordisk’s application to add cardiovascular benefits to the medicine’s label earlier this month. As a result, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid… read on > read on >
A surgical treatment used to treat conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome and back sciatica might also help relieve the pain of patients with diabetic neuropathy, a new study finds. Surgical nerve decompression significantly eased pain among a small group of people with diabetic neuropathy for up to five years, researchers report. In the surgery, researchers… read on > read on >
Some people diagnosed with schizophrenia might instead be suffering from a rare visual condition that can cause other people’s faces to appear “demonic,” a new study argues. The condition, called prosopometamorphopsia (PMO), can cause others’ facial features to appear horrific — drooped, larger, smaller, out of position or stretched in disturbing ways. “Not surprisingly, people… read on > read on >
Working stiffs in the United States are dying at higher rates than those in other wealthy nations, a new study finds. Death rates among working-age Americans are 2.5 times higher than the average of other high-income countries, researchers report in the March 21 issue of the International Journal of Epidemiology. These deaths among people ages… read on > read on >
The weight room is becoming an increasingly dangerous place for folks trying to get into shape, a new study discovers. Head and facial injuries related to weightlifting have increased sharply during the past decade for both men and women, researchers found. Between 2013 and 2022, the annual rate of exercise- and weightlifting-related head and facial… read on > read on >
Many teens – especially girls – are affected by body dysmorphic disorder, a condition in which they become obsessed with perceived flaws in their personal appearance, a new study shows. BDD affects about two in every 100 teens (1.9%), according to a report published March 17 in the Journal of the American Academy of Child… read on > read on >
If you’re in your 60s, 70s or even older, you might think your days of productively pumping iron are behind you. That’s just not true, said Dr. Adil Ahmed, an assistant professor in the Joseph Barnhart Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Building and maintaining muscle is a great way to… read on > read on >
