Piercings can be a fun way to express yourself, but they can also cause complications — particularly in areas that aren’t the earlobes — and need proper care. “The first step to caring for your piercing is choosing a qualified piercer,” said Dr. Steven Daveluy, an associate professor and program director at Wayne State Dermatology…  read on >  read on >

New research underscores the harms of e-cigarettes, showing that vaping increases the risk of asthma in teens who have never smoked cigarettes. Although e-cigarettes have fewer toxins than regular cigarettes, they still contain a mixture of harmful chemicals and raise the risk of respiratory diseases, researchers say. “Increasing knowledge about the harmful effects of e-cigarette…  read on >  read on >

Americans will once again be able to get free at-home COVID tests. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Wednesday that it will spend $600 million to buy and offer the tests, produced by 12 domestic manufacturers, and it will begin accepting orders for those tests on Monday through covidtests.gov. “The Biden-Harris…  read on >  read on >

Substance abuse and pregnancy may be a dangerous combination. New research finds that pregnant women with a history of substance abuse had a dramatically increased risk of death from heart attack and stroke during childbirth compared to women with no drug history. “This telling research shows that substance use during pregnancy doubled cardiovascular events and…  read on >  read on >