Sugar and artificial sweeteners might increase the risk of early puberty in children, a new study says. Sugar, aspartame (Equal), sucralose (Splenda) and glycyrrhizin (licorice root) are all significantly associated with a higher risk of early puberty, particularly in genetically predisposed children, researchers reported Sunday at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting in San Francisco. Further,… read on > read on >
Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine has received full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in children with medical conditions that put them at higher risk of severe illness. The move makes Moderna’s vaccine, called Spikevax, the first COVID shot for kids in the U.S. to be fully approved, rather than used under… read on > read on >
Folks who breathe in more air pollution have a higher risk of developing a common non-cancerous brain tumor, a new study says. Several different types of air pollutants, including particle pollution and nitrogen dioxide, appear to increase risk of meningiomas — tumors that form in the layers of tissue that cover the brain and spinal… read on > read on >
Even low levels of lead exposure can harm kids’ working memory, potentially affecting their education and development, according to a new study. Exposure to lead in the womb or during early childhood appears to increase kids’ risk of memory decay, accelerating the rate at which they forget information, researchers reported July 9 in the journal… read on > read on >
Agency says these fees place an additional burden on taxpayers who already fund the underlying research read on >
A healthy plant-based diet might protect people from inflammatory bowel diseases, a new study says. People noshing healthy plant-based foods had a 14% lower risk of Crohn’s disease and an 8% lower risk of ulcerative colitis, researchers found. On the other hand, an unhealthy diet containing more animal fats and vegetable oils was associated with… read on > read on >
AI programs can exhibit racial bias when evaluating patients for mental health problems, a new study says. Psychiatric recommendations from four large language models (LLMs) changed when a patient’s record noted they were African American, researchers recently reported in the journal NPJ Digital Medicine. “Most of the LLMs exhibited some form of bias when dealing… read on > read on >
AAP maintains RFK Jr. violated federal law by unilaterally changing COVID-19 vaccine recommendations without scientific evidence read on >
Two drugs used in lung cancer treatment appear to be tripping over each other, reducing patients’ chances for a cure, a new study says. Corticosteroids are commonly prescribed to alleviate cancer-related symptoms in patients with non-small cell lung cancer, researchers said. But these steroids appear to dampen the effectiveness of immunotherapy against lung cancer, researchers… read on > read on >
A single mood disorder might have driven a rapid increase in Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana program, a new study says. Enrollment dramatically spiked after officials added anxiety to the list of conditions that could be treated with medical weed, researchers reported July 7 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Chronic pain had been the condition most… read on > read on >
