It’s not just sagging that ages a face, but loss of fat under the skin as well, according to a new study. The findings could help plastic surgeons give their patients a more natural look, the study authors said. For the study, researchers analyzed CT scans of the faces of 19 people, taken at least…  read on >  read on >

There have been good and bad changes to U.S. children’s diets during the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers say. “Providing healthy meals and snacks to our kids can be a challenge even when we’re not experiencing a pandemic,” said senior study author Susan Carnell. She’s an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Johns Hopkins…  read on >  read on >

People who are hesitant about getting the COVID-19 vaccine don’t have to work hard to find internet rumors and theories that will fuel their fears regarding the vaccine’s safety. That’s because anti-vaccine groups and individuals are working overtime to promote frightening, false theories about the two COVID-19 vaccines that have now been administered to more…  read on >  read on >

Heart surgery can be stressful, but researchers may have found a way to reduce patients’ anxiety and postoperative pain — without any extra side effects. A team from the Netherlands found that the simple act of listening to music around the time of surgery may help patients as they recover. “This is a fascinating question…  read on >  read on >

Why does one person take a lot of risks and another proceed with more caution? Researchers came closer to that answer with a new study that shows risk-taking behavior may be related to characteristics in the brain. The study found there is no one risk area in the brain. Instead, there are many regions where…  read on >  read on >

While pandemic lockdowns may have initially triggered feelings of isolation and worry, stay-at-home stress dissipated with time as people adjusted to their “new normal,” research suggests. In the study, scientists did a state-by-state analysis of Google search trends between January and June of 2020, covering topics such as COVID regulation policies, mental health concerns and…  read on >  read on >

There have long been theories that women’s menstrual cycles align with the moon, and now a new study suggests there’s some truth to that. Using years of records kept by 22 women, researchers found that for many, menstrual cycles “intermittently” synced up with the phases of the moon. The link happened only about one-quarter of…  read on >  read on >