Keep flossing: A study just out suggests gum disease can increase your odds for severe COVID-19. Previous research showed that it’s blood vessels, rather than airways, that are affected initially in COVID lung disease. Now, new research finds that high concentrations of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in saliva and gum disease (periodontitis) are linked with an…  read on >  read on >

If you’ve ever scoffed at warnings that too much red or processed meat is bad for the heart while oily fish is good for you, there’s now some visual evidence to support that advice. British researchers used heart imaging to see how these foods affected volunteers’ heart health. The images revealed that those who ate…  read on >  read on >

Meatpacking plants were the source of an estimated 334,000 COVID-19 cases in the United States, according to a new study. It puts the economic toll stemming from those cases at $11.2 billion. And study author Tina Saitone, a livestock and rangeland economics cooperative extension specialist at the University of California, Davis, said those numbers are…  read on >  read on >

People who eat plenty of vegetables, fish and fiber may have more inflammation-fighting bacteria in their guts, but fast-food lovers may be feeding inflammatory microbes. That’s the conclusion of a new study that looked at people’s diet habits and the makeup of their gut “microbiome.” The term refers to the vast collection of bacteria and…  read on >  read on >

Black people experience more severe courses of multiple sclerosis (MS), and now new research suggests that drugs commonly used to treat this disease may not work as well or for as long in these folks. “I was amazed,” said study researcher Dr. Gregg Silverman, a professor of medicine at NYU Langone Health in New York…  read on >  read on >

Energy drinks provide millions with a quick, caffeinated boost, but one young man’s story could be a warning about overconsumption, experts say. In the case of the 21-year-old, daily heavy intake of these drinks may have led to life-threatening heart and kidney failure, British doctors reported April 15 in BMJ Case Reports. The young man…  read on >  read on >

The magic ingredient in “magic mushrooms” may be at least as effective as standard medication for depression, an early clinical trial suggests. The study of 59 patients with major depression tested the antidepressant escitalopram (Lexapro) against psilocybin, which is the psychedelic substance in hallucinogenic mushrooms. Over six weeks, it appeared that just two doses of…  read on >  read on >