Complications during pregnancy can mean a woman’s future heart health is at risk, particularly if she is overweight or obese, a new study says. Women who are carrying excess weight prior to pregnancy are more likely to develop complications like gestational diabetes and high blood pressure while expecting, researchers said. These complications act as a…  read on >  read on >

Fewer Americans traveled out of state for an abortion in 2024, according to a new report from the Guttmacher Institute, a group that supports abortion rights. The report found that about 155,000 people crossed state lines for abortion care last year, down 9% from 2023.  The total number of abortions stayed steady, however, with 1,038,100…  read on >  read on >

Children who spend more time playing outdoors or participating in different sports tend to develop better motor skills as they advance through elementary school, a new study says. Even a half-hour of independent outdoor play after a day at childcare makes a difference in kids’ motor skill development, researchers reported in the Journal of Sports…  read on >  read on >

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will launch a “massive testing and research effort” to explore the causes of autism, Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Thursday. Kennedy, a longtime critic of vaccines, shared the plan with President Donald Trump during a televised Cabinet meeting, The Associated Press reported.  He said hundreds…  read on >  read on >

Early symptoms of menopause will first appear when many women least expect them, a new Ohio State University poll reports. Hot flashes, mood swings, weight gain and insomnia are all symptoms of the hormone changes related to menopause, researchers say. Sixty-one percent of women (3 in 5) think they will hit menopause and start experiencing…  read on >  read on >

How children respond to movement could provide an early means of detecting autism, a new study says. Children with autism are known to prefer watching repetitive movements over random movements, researchers said. Using eye-tracking methods, a research team found that children with suspected autism spent longer watching repeated movements than random ones, when both were…  read on >  read on >

Pregnancy might offer women some protection from developing long COVID, a new study says. Women infected with COVID-19 during pregnancy were 14% to 30% less likely to develop lasting symptoms from their illness, researchers reported recently in the journal Nature Communications. “Though we observed that pregnant women have a significant risk of long COVID, it…  read on >  read on >

A non-intoxicating extract of cannabis appears to help children and teenagers with autism, a new study says. Cannabidiol (CBD) enhanced social responsiveness, reduced disruptive behavior and alleviated anxiety among kids with autism, researchers reported today at the European Congress of Psychiatry in Madrid. “The global population prevalence of autism spectrum disorder diagnosis amongst children and…  read on >  read on >