A half-century-old diabetes drug appears to help treat bipolar disorder by reversing patients’ insulin resistance, according to a small-scale clinical trial. Bipolar patients who responded to the drug metformin experienced improvement in their mood disorder as their insulin resistance decreased, said lead researcher Dr. Cynthia Calkin, an associate professor of psychiatry at Dalhousie University in…  read on >  read on >

They are called “forever chemicals” because they linger in the human body and can contribute to the risk of everything from cancer to childhood obesity. Now, new research on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) finds they also exact a huge financial toll, costing the U.S. health system billions every year. “Our findings add to the…  read on >  read on >

Middle-aged people could add years to their lives just by getting off the couch and going for a walk every day — though it wouldn’t hurt to do even more, a large new study suggests. The researchers followed over 100,000 Americans for decades and found what many have shown before: People who exercise as much…  read on >  read on >

Your fitness tracker, pedometer or smartwatch may motivate you to exercise more and lose weight, Australian researchers say. In a large research review, the investigators found that tracking your activity might inspire you to walk up to 40 minutes more a day (about 1,800 more steps). And those extra steps could translate to the loss…  read on >  read on >

Customers buying creams, patches or lotions containing cannabidiol (CBD) to reduce pain or inflammation may get much more or much less than they expected. Topical CBD products are gaining popularity in the United States, and the authors of a new study say the science hasn’t kept up. “Overall, this study and other studies before it…  read on >  read on >

Intermittent fasting might help people with type 2 diabetes better control their blood sugar levels, a new study has found. People with diabetes who restricted their eating to within a daily 10-hour window wound up with blood sugar levels in the normal range for about three hours longer than when they ate whenever they pleased,…  read on >  read on >