When a baby is born, the mother’s body provides a pathway into the world, but the journey also exposes them to beneficial bacteria that live in and on their mom. But that critical exchange doesn’t happen during a cesarean section delivery. Now, researchers report that swabbing babies delivered via C-section with gauze that has been… read on > read on >
One dose of a two-dose mRNA COVID-19 vaccine is enough to protect previously infected people, but it’s likely they and everyone with two doses will still require booster shots at a later date, a new study suggests. That’s because antibodies triggered through either natural infection or vaccines decline at about the same rate, the University… read on > read on >
The pandemic not only cost hundreds of thousands of American lives, but it also appears to have triggered a deep drop in births, U.S. health officials reported Wednesday. Until 2020, the birth rate had been declining about 2% a year, but that rate dropped to 4% with the start of the pandemic, researchers from the… read on > read on >
As vaccination rates among young Americans lag, the White House acknowledged on Tuesday that it will miss two key benchmarks in its nationwide campaign to stop the spread of coronavirus. The first missed goal will be vaccinating 70% of all American adults with at least one shot by July 4, but officials stressed that threshold… read on > read on >
Women battling infertility are often given medications to help them conceive, and potential side effects are always a concern. Now, research suggests use of the drugs won’t raise a woman’s odds for breast cancer. Researchers at King’s College London in the United Kingdom analyzed studies from 1990 to January 2020 that included 1.8 million women… read on > read on >
Pollen is tough enough for allergy sufferers, but a new study suggests it also helps spread the new coronavirus and other airborne germs. Researchers had noticed a connection between COVID-19 infection rates and pollen concentrations on the National Allergy Map of the United States. That led them to create a computer model of all the… read on > read on >
Teaching has always been a stressful job, and now a new survey suggests the pandemic could be driving even more teachers from the time-honored profession. “Teacher stress was a concern prior to the pandemic and may have only become worse,” said study author Elizabeth Steiner, a policy researcher at RAND Corp. “This raises the concern… read on > read on >
The good news: Levels of lead in the air that Londoners breathe are far lower today than they were in the 1980s, when leaded gas was an automotive staple. The bad news: Decades-old lead particles still pollute the city’s air, a stubborn and potentially hazardous leftover of a now banned product. The findings might have… read on > read on >
Young adults who use marijuana appear to have an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and attempted suicide, according to a new study from the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). In fact, the risk that someone between 18 and 34 will think about, plan for or attempt suicide increases with the amount of marijuana… read on > read on >
Cost and lack of time are among the reasons parents don’t enroll their kids in swimming lessons, a new survey finds. “Swimming is one of the most important life-saving skills that children and adults should master. Whether for fun or for exercise, swimming will serve them well for the rest of their lives, and it’s… read on > read on >
