Even if you’ve already had COVID-19, you can still benefit from a vaccine that can help prevent another infection, a new study shows. Danish patients gained between 60% and 94% protection against reinfection, depending on the COVID variant wave, the researchers found. The findings were published Nov. 22 in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine. “In…  read on >  read on >

The whole family — even the youngest members — can take part in Thanksgiving’s hours of food preparation by following some safety tips. The nation’s leading pediatrics organization offers some holiday advice for families with young children. “There’s a lot of excitement and joy surrounding meal preparation at this time of year, but it also…  read on >  read on >

Research in wild bats is reinforcing a notion crucial to stopping future pandemics: When wildlife populations stay healthy, the odds of “crossover” viruses infecting humans subsides. In Australia, deforestation has caused a deadly respiratory virus to pass from fruit bats to humans, by forcing the two species into closer contact, a new study reports. Robbed…  read on >  read on >

Exposure to even low levels of alcohol while in the womb can change the structure of the fetus’ brain, according to Austrian researchers. The study results suggest that pregnant women should strictly avoid alcohol, one author said. “Unfortunately, many pregnant women are unaware of the influence of alcohol on the fetus during pregnancy,” said lead…  read on >  read on >

With U.S. health officials calling childhood obesity a public health crisis, conversations about weight are important. But what you say to your kids can be challenging, and even counterproductive, a new study found. “Body weight is a sensitive issue and the way we talk about it matters,” said lead author Rebecca Puhl, deputy director of…  read on >  read on >