How quickly a straight woman can determine whether that guy across the bar is trying to catch her eye — or just trying to read the ESPN ticker on the TV above her head — may depend on how typically masculine his facial features are, according to new research published in the journal Psychological Science. And, the research from a
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New research published in the journal Pediatrics finds that giving children the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) and chicken pox vaccines in two separate shots reduces the risk for febrile seizures, or fever-related convulsions that are not associated with conditions such as epilepsy. The analysis was based on data for 459,000 children
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New research from Belgium and the U.K. suggests that women may increasingly be considering freezing their eggs as a way to prolong fertility as they pursue a career — or find the right romantic partner. A survey of nearly 200 female students found that half of those pursuing degrees in sports or education would consider freezing their
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A new study from researchers at the University of Arizona and Loma Linda University finds that reusable shopping bags can harbor potentially harmful bacteria if they aren’t cleaned — and 97% of people surveyed said they’d never washed theirs. Yet the study, funded by the American Chemistry Council, also found that washing the reusable
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A new report from the U.K.’s Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) concludes that, before 24 weeks, nerve endings in the brains of fetuses aren’t sufficiently developed to experience pain. The findings, based on a review of recent studies examining fetal development and capacity for pain, undermine the argument for a
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In the ongoing effort to better understand, diagnose, treat and hopefully one day even prevent the devastating mental decline of Alzheimer’s disease, researchers are taking a broad range of approaches — and some are even finding clues in unlikely places. As the New York Times reports, a new technique that combines a dye and brain scan
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Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab have come up with a way to test vision that doesn’t involve any hefty optometry equipment or even a visit to the eye doctor. A small, simple plastic device they’ve developed, when attached to the screen of a cell phone, can scan the eye and determine the appropriate
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Less than two months after a California county voted to ban toys from children’s meals at fast food restaurants, the chain known for the Hamburgler and Ronald McDonald may face a lawsuit over the the trinkets it tosses into Happy Meals. Public health research and advocacy group, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), sent
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Using stem cell therapy, a team of Italian researchers was able to restore sight for patients who had been blinded or suffered severely impaired vision after suffering a chemical burn. In a study of 106 patients treated between 1998 and 2007, researchers were able to extract adult stem cells from healthy eye tissue, grow additional stem
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A new report from the Commonwealth Fund once again highlights the discrepancy between U.S. spending on healthcare and the quality of that care. The new analysis compares spending and health outcomes of seven industrialized nations: the U.S., U.K., Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Australia. And the authors find that,
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Fear of lawsuits often prompts emergency room doctors to order tests that they may feel are unnecessary, the Associated Press reports. In the fast paced environment of an emergency department, making quick decisions that can have life-altering implications is a standard aspect of treatment — and the pressure not to miss anything is …
A new study published in BMJ (formerly the British Medical Journal) adds to a growing body of research dedicated to understanding cancer risk potentially posed by cell phone use and proximity to cell phone towers. Researchers from Imperial College London set out to determine whether mothers whose children developed conditions such as
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Exactly one year after Congress passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act that gave the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to regulate tobacco, a new set of rules is taking effect to curb the use of deceptive marketing terms and limit children’s access to tobacco products. Among the new regulations that
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