With implications for research around postpartum depression and other health issues, scientists have tracked the changes pregnancy brings to the female brain. These changes weren’t subtle: Big shifts in what’s known as the brain’s “white matter” versus “gray matter” were observed, according to a team from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). “The maternal… read on > read on >
Fatty liver disease linked to diabetes and obesity can easily progress to liver cirrhosis, but new research suggests that GLP-1 medicines like Ozempic can help stop that. In a new decades-long study, veterans with diabetes and what’s known as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) were 14% less likely to progress to cirrhosis if they’d… read on > read on >
For the first time, scientists have detected microscopic microplastics lodged in the human brain. Researchers in Germany and Brazil say that 8 out of 15 autopsied adults had microplastics detected within their brain’s smell centers, the olfactory bulb. The particles were likely breathed in over a lifetime, since tiny floating microplastics are ubiquitous in the… read on > read on >
People with rare genetic variants linked to degenerative brain disorders like Parkinson’s disease are at increased risk of developing ALS, a new study finds. Further, having these genetic variants increases the risk of a person having faster-progressing ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) and dying earlier, researchers found. The strongest link was with Parkinson’s disease, results show.… read on > read on >
Vaping may look cool when you’re young, but it appears to be dulling the brains of college students, a new study warns. College students who vape have lower cognitive function scores than those who don’t, researchers reported Sunday at the American Neurological Association’s annual meeting in Orlando, Fla. And the more students vape, the lower… read on > read on >
Tiny puffs from asthma inhalers could be causing big climate problems for Mother Earth, a new study warns. Each inhaler dose contains some of the most potent greenhouse gases known, and they are adding up, researchers reported recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association. By the time some inhalers are empty, they have… read on > read on >
Newfangled designs intended to make football helmets more protective have overlooked one key component, a new study suggests. Nearly a third of concussions in pro football involve impacts to the facemask, a part of the helmet that has remained mostly unchanged during the past decade, researchers say. Facemask enhancements could help protect players and minimize… read on > read on >
People should prepare for the fall cold and flu season by getting the updated influenza and COVID-19 vaccinations, an infectious diseases expert says. “When my patients ask me if they should be getting a COVID vaccine this year, yes, essentially anybody over the ages of 6 months, I’m recommending it,” Dr. Nicholas Turner, an assistant… read on > read on >
One third of cinnamon products tested by Consumer Reports contained elevated levels of lead, the watchdog agency warned Thursday. The finding follows concerns about metals in foods after tainted cinnamon applesauce poisoned hundreds in 44 states last year, most of them children. In the new study, Consumer Reports tested 36 cinnamon products and discovered high levels of… read on > read on >
Over 5 million Americans could benefit if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves the “magic mushroom” psychedelic psilocybin as a treatment for depression, researchers estimate. “While our analysis is a crucial first step, we’ve only scratched the surface in understanding the true public health impact psilocybin therapy may have,” said study co-author Dr. Charles Raison.… read on > read on >
