There’s fungus among us, and it might be making allergies and asthma worse. People with allergy sniffles and asthma have different fungal colonies in their noses than folks who don’t suffer respiratory allergies, researchers report Dec. 16 in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology. “We showed that allergic rhinitis samples displayed a significantly higher fungal diversity and… read on > read on >
Taxi and ambulance drivers need to have quick wits and nimble reflexes to cut through traffic effectively. Turns out that these traits might also protect them from Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study published Dec. 16 in the BMJ. “The same part of the brain that’s involved in creating cognitive spatial maps — which… read on > read on >
Can you literally step away from depression? A new global review of data found that “increasing the number of daily steps, even at modest levels, was associated with a reduction in depressive symptoms.” The Spanish study found that up to a level of about 10,000 steps per day, the odds for depression decline as daily… read on > read on >
A New York doctor has been sued by the state of Texas for prescribing abortion pills via telehealth to a Dallas woman. In a news release announcing the filing of the lawsuit, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton claims that Dr. Margaret Daly Carpenter violated state law by illegally providing abortion drugs across state lines. “In… read on > read on >
Do parents use Santa Claus to help guide kids to better behavior? It happens often, a new poll shows. One-quarter of parents of kids ages 3 to 5 said they’ve threatened misbehaving kids with no Santa or gifts if they don’t shape up, according to results from the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s… read on > read on >
Close friendships are incredibly important to the mental health of middle-aged folks and seniors, a new study finds. Older adults with worse mental or physical health were twice as likely to say they don’t have any close friends, according to results from the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging. “With growing understanding of… read on > read on >
Head lice can be a wintertime headache for families and schools, but simple precautions can stop the spread of these pesky parasites. Every year, 6 million to 12 million children in the United States, ages 3 to 11, experience head lice infestations, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Contrary to popular… read on > read on >
Have you been boozing more often than usual? A new blood test might be able to tell if you’re damaging your liver from too many beers, margaritas or belts of scotch, researchers report. A blood-borne byproduct of alcohol consumption called phosphatidylethanol (PEth) can give doctors a fair idea of how much liver scarring has occurred… read on > read on >
Breathing in smoggy air over time can significantly raise a person’s chances for dangerous blood clots, new research shows. “What’s striking from our study is the increase in serious blood clotting disease with exposure to some of the most common types of pollutants in the air we breathe,” said study lead author Pamela Lutsey. “It’s… read on > read on >
The same technology behind COVID vaccines might be able to protect both the mother and child from a dangerous complication of pregnancy. A new mouse study published Dec. 11 in the journal Nature shows that injections based on that vaccine platform reduced the risk of preeclampsia in lab mice. Preeclampsia is persistent high blood pressure… read on > read on >
