Hollywood to Kids: Smoking Isn’t Cool
Were they still alive today, John Wayne and Humphrey Bogart might have been given a serious image makeover. The message from Hollywood last year: smoking in movies is not cool anymore.
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Spock at 65: Five Ideas That Changed American Parenting
Sixty-five years ago today, one of the most revolutionary books in American history was published. True, Dr. Benjamin Spock’s Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care probably didn’t look like much when it first came out in 1946 — just in time for the baby boom. But with his conversational tone and his concise, practical tips on …
FDA Warns: ‘Serious Complications’ Arise From Vaginal Mesh Implants
Surgical mesh implants used to treat weakening in the pelvic region, a particularly common problem after childbirth, may actually do more harm than good, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports Wednesday.
Almost Every Type of Cancer Kills More Men Than Women, Study Shows
Men die at higher rates than women from almost every kind of cancer, a new study finds.
‘Plant from Hell’: Giant Hogweed Can Scar, Burn and Blind
A towering weed with sap that causes blisters and burns is blooming this month across the U.S.
Study: Pets Give Us the Same Warm Fuzzies That Friends Do
A dog is man’s best friend, the old adage tells us — and, indeed, new research shows that when it comes to fulfilling our basic psychological needs, humans do benefit from their pets in much the same way they do from their friends.
Salt: How Bad Is It, Really?
Much like cell phones and eggs, salt is one of those things that studies say is bad for you one day, but O.K. the next.
Scientists Discover Drug-Resistant Gonorrhea ‘Superbug’
A new, untreatable strain of the sexually transmitted disease gonorrhea has been discovered in Japan, according to an international team of infectious disease experts. The strain, named H041, is resistant to all known forms of antibiotics.
Secondhand Smoke Linked to Learning Disabilities, ADHD in Kids
Kids who grow up among smokers are more likely than kids in smoke-free homes to suffer from a number of neurobehavioral disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning disabilities and conduct disorders.
Where Have All the Women Gone? Why Sex Selection Persists
Greater and greater numbers of boys are being born for every girl. In her new book, Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys Over Girls and the Consequences of a World Full of Men, Beijing-based journalist Mara Hvistendahl investigates …
Making Sense of Medical Statistics: What Patients Should Do
Seung Kang died in a Philadelphia hospital in 2005. He was only 59, and just a week before his death he’d been feeling quite healthy. But a heart catheterization showed blocked vessels to his heart, and a cardiothoracic surgeon …
Electronic Health Records: Helpful, But We’ll Still Need to Wait For Them
For years now, people have expected electronic health records to be the next big thing in healthcare. Digitization is supposed save us time and money. It should speed up routine tasks, like booking appointments. It should help prevent duplication of work — stopping doctors from running tests that have already been run in another …
U.S. Birth Rate Hits a New Record Low
America’s birth rate was lower in 2009 than at any other time in the past century, the AP reports — and many experts feel that the economic downturn is to blame.
In 2009, the total number of births across the country fell for the second year in a row — from 4,247,000 in 2008 to 4,136,000, according to provisional data released …