As the U.S. Food and Drug Administration weighs banning the sale of menthol cigarettes, a new study strengthens the tie between mint-flavored tobacco and teen smoking. According to the survey, adolescents who began smoking using menthols tended to smoke an average of nearly three days more during a 30-day period than their peers who took…  read on >  read on >

Moderna announced Wednesday that its updated COVID-19 booster shot does a better job at thwarting the Omicron variant than the original version does. “We are thrilled to share the preliminary data analysis on mRNA-1273.214, which is the second demonstration of superiority of our bivalent booster platform against variants of concern and represents an innovation in…  read on >  read on >

After adding, and then deleting, a recommendation that U.S. travelers wear masks to protect themselves from monkeypox, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still says that those traveling to countries where the disease is spreading and “other people who may be in close contact with a person who has been confirmed with monkeypox”…  read on >  read on >

There’s more good news for coffee lovers who already reap its other health benefits — your favorite beverage may also help protect your kidneys. “We already know that drinking coffee on a regular basis has been associated with the prevention of chronic and degenerative diseases including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and liver disease,” said…  read on >  read on >

High-tech devices and communication helped ease the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on children with type 1 diabetes, researchers said in a new study. Pandemic shutdowns caused significant disruptions in health care, and previous studies have shown that diabetes patients had worse blood sugar (glucose) control and more difficulty accessing care during the early days of…  read on >  read on >

Obesity is a well-known risk factor for type 2 diabetes. Now, a large new study adds to evidence that it also contributes to the much less common type 1 diabetes. The study, of nearly 1.5 million Israeli teenagers, found that those who were obese were twice as likely to develop type 1 diabetes by young…  read on >  read on >

It’s a good idea to get children outside every day, but especially on Kids to Parks Day, a national day of outdoor play on May 21. “Even as the COVID-19 pandemic continues, outdoor time and nature exploration are safe for most kids,” pediatrician Dr. Danette Glassy said in an American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) news…  read on >  read on >

Folks who take their coffee with a little cream and sugar have reason to rejoice, health-wise. A new study shows that coffee’s potential health benefits persist, even if you add a bit of sugar to your java. People who drink any amount of unsweetened coffee are 16% to 21% less likely to die early than…  read on >  read on >

The number of known U.S. monkeypox cases has increased to 21 in 11 states, federal health officials announced Friday. The cases are also concentrated largely among gay or bisexual men, with the virus apparently transmitted as a result of intimate skin-to-skin contact, according to a new report published June 3 in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly…  read on >  read on >