Nearly one-third of seniors who take thyroid hormone also take drugs known to interfere with tests of thyroid function, a new study finds. It’s common for older adults to take a thyroid hormone (levothyroxine) to treat low levels of natural thyroid hormone. But tests used to determine the dose and effectiveness of treatment can be… read on > read on >
Black American women are more likely to gain weight after menopause than white women, and a number of factors may underlie the difference, researchers say. They analyzed data from nearly 71,000 American women who had gone through menopause and were enrolled in a long-term health study. The analysis found that Black women were more than… read on > read on >
For people hoping to prevent the heart rhythm disorder known as “a-fib,” new research shows that taking vitamin D or fish oil supplements won’t help. A-fib, also known as atrial fibrillation, affects more than 33 million people worldwide and is the most common type of abnormal heart rhythm. It can cause symptoms that affect a… read on > read on >
If you saunter and shuffle instead of scurry when you walk, you are at higher risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19, British researchers warn. For the study, the investigators analyzed data from more than 412,000 middle-aged Britons and found that among those whose weight was normal, slow walkers were more than twice as… read on > read on >
A new tissue infection has been identified in Crohn’s disease patients, and researchers say their finding could ultimately lead to better treatment of the common inflammatory bowel disease. Areas of unhealed wounds in the intestines of Crohn’s patients have elevated levels of a type of yeast widely found in cheese and processed meat, the new… read on > read on >
The same lifestyle habits that protect the heart can also curb the risk of a range of cancers, a large new study confirms. The study of more than 20,000 U.S. adults found both bad news and good news. People with risk factors for heart disease also faced increased odds of developing cancer over the next… read on > read on >
A commonly prescribed component of the life-saving antiretroviral drug cocktails used to treat HIV may trigger weight gain, new research warns. The concern stems from tracking patients taking antiretroviral therapy (ART). Since the mid-1990s, the therapy has relied on various drug combinations to essentially outwit HIV, controlling viral loads and turning a once-deadly infection into… read on > read on >
Screening for prediabetes or type 2 diabetes in people who are overweight or obese should start at age 35 instead of 40, an expert panel now says. Such screening should continue until age 70, according to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, an independent, volunteer panel of national experts in prevention and evidence-based medicine. “Health… read on > read on >
Humans sweat more and move more than chimpanzees and other apes, but new research shows people are actually more water-efficient than their primate cousins. For the first time, scientists say they measured precisely how much water humans lose and replace each day compared with their closest living animal relatives. The investigators found that the human… read on > read on >
About 7 out of 10 Alzheimer’s patients wound up free of the brain plaques that are a hallmark of the disease after treatment with a potentially breakthrough experimental drug, clinical trial results show. The drug, donanemab, also significantly slowed the patients’ brain decline, according to findings published March 13 in the New England Journal of… read on > read on >
