A new hormonal gel could one day be a potential form of birth control for men, researchers reported Sunday. “The development of a safe, highly effective and reliably reversible contraceptive method for men is an unmet need,” senior study author Diana Blithe, chief of the Contraceptive Development Program at the National Institutes of Health, said…  read on >  read on >

While going through menopause, many women who gain weight head to the gym for intense workouts, but new research suggests that too much exercise may help trigger another side effect: hot flashes. In a report published May 29 in the journal Menopause, investigators found that working out too vigorously may raise the risk hot flashes.…  read on >  read on >

In just one year, U.S. deaths linked to the use of all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) jumped by a third, according to the latest report from the Consumer Product Safety Commission. With another summer set to begin and ATVs brought out of storage, the agency is warning of the dangers from ATVs, also known as off-highway vehicles…  read on >  read on >

Caffeine has been associated with a reduced risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, but a new study says a coffee jolt might not be good for people already diagnosed with the brain disorder. Consuming caffeine appears to blunt the brain’s ability to use dopamine, the hormone that lies at the heart of Parkinson’s symptoms, researchers reported…  read on >  read on >

The old joke holds that fatherhood causes a man’s hair to go prematurely gray. Whether or not that’s true, being a father does appear to put men at greater risk of poor heart health later in life, a new study finds. Dads tended to have worse heart health than men without kids, based on factors…  read on >  read on >

U.S. girls are getting their periods at younger ages, a new study has found. Girls born between 2000 and 2005 started their periods at an average age of 11.9 years — a half year earlier than the average age of 12.5 years for girls born between 1950 and 1969, researchers reported May 29 in the…  read on >  read on >

Weighted blankets are trendy items, largely based on the idea that the pressure of a heavy blanket will help a person more easily slip into slumber. But they do little to help troubled children sleep better, a new study has found. There was no difference in sleep between weighted and normal blankets among a group…  read on >  read on >

Women who get an epidural during delivery appear to have a marked reduction in serious complications the first few weeks after giving birth, a new study shows. A painkilling epidural can reduce risk by 35% in women for complications like heart attack, heart failure, blood infection and hysterectomy that can occur as a result of…  read on >  read on >