Extreme heat from climate change is making it harder for people with mental illness and drug addiction to cope and adding to pressure on pandemic-stretched U.S. emergency rooms. During these severe summer temperature spikes, Americans with depression, anxiety, mood disorders and drug addiction are increasingly flocking to hospital ERs for help, a new study finds.…  read on >  read on >

Add better brain health to the growing list of protections your beloved pet may provide you: New research suggests that older adults with a furry companion showed slower mental declines than those without one. “Prior studies have suggested that the human-animal bond may have health benefits like decreasing blood pressure and stress,” said study author…  read on >  read on >

Dozens of different spray products — deodorants, shampoos, sunscreens, athlete’s foot treatments — have been recalled in recent months due to contamination with the cancer-causing chemical benzene. Most recently, six Brut and Sure aerosol antiperspirants faced recall last week due to benzene contamination. But that’s just the latest in a string of benzene-related recalls that…  read on >  read on >

Despite the crushing challenges of navigating a worldwide pandemic during the past two years, Americans remain as optimistic as ever, a series of surveys shows. The surveys were conducted between 2008 and 2020, and included 2.7 million adults who were asked to use a 10-point scale to rank their current life satisfaction, with 10 being…  read on >  read on >

That daily 6 a.m. walk around the block with your dog may be tough but healthy: New research suggests the exercise and companionship is lowering your odds of developing a disability. However, the good news doesn’t extend to cat lovers, the researchers added. They analyzed data gathered from more than 11,200 Japanese adults, ages 65-84,…  read on >  read on >

Two doses of a new COVID-19 vaccine from Sanofi and GSK were 100% effective against severe disease and hospitalizations, the companies announced Wednesday. The vaccine was also 75% effective against moderate-to-severe disease and 58% effective against symptomatic disease in a Phase 3 clinical trial. And when used as a booster dose after one of the…  read on >  read on >

Early on in the pandemic doctors observed that some children and teens infected with COVID-19 went on to develop a relatively rare, but potentially life-threatening, complication known as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). But new research out of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that COVID-19 vaccines are highly protective against…  read on >  read on >

Microdosing has become trendy in the era of drug legalization, with TV shows like “Nine Perfect Strangers” promoting the potential positives of regularly taking tiny amounts of psychedelics. But a new study finds that short-term microdosing of one hippy-era psychedelic, LSD, doesn’t appear to cause any lasting or dramatic improvements to a person’s disposition or…  read on >  read on >

Devastating wildfires around the world will only grow in number in coming decades as climate change further fuels the chances of out-of-control blazes, a landmark report from the United Nations warns. “The heating of the planet is turning landscapes into tinderboxes,” said the report, which was published on Wednesday by the United Nations Environment Program.…  read on >

A drug that has helped millions of men reinvigorate their sex lives seems to treat a rare, but often deadly, eating disorder in dogs, researchers say. The condition is called megaesophagus. It’s an enlargement of the esophagus and a loss of its ability to move food to the stomach, resulting in food getting jammed in…  read on >  read on >