Patients who lose the ability to speak after suffering a stroke may be able to regain their speech using a novel technique that effectively reroutes the way the brain processes language, according to research presented this past weekend at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The technique, known as
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Much time and effort has been dedicated to researching the mental health benefits of flexible work environments, but can the ability to leave work early to watch your son’s soccer game, or arrive at the office a bit later in the morning in order to see to some personal errands, have broader physical health benefits beyond making you feel
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Vacation is always something you look forward to—dreaming of sandy toes, sunscreen and sleeping in as you plod through those final days of work before the holiday starts. Yet, according to a new study from a team of Dutch researchers, it may be the anticipation that makes us happiest. In an analysis of 1,530 people, 974 of whom took a
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There are all sorts of products out on the market made to wean smokers off a dangerous habit—the patch, the lozenge, and the gum, for example. Yet, what about the e-cigarette?
Holding on to the belief that children will shed their “baby fat” as they get older may be perpetuating the childhood obesity epidemic, and laying a foundation for obesity later in life among overweight tots. According to 2006 data from the Centers for Disease Control, 16% of American children were obese, and 32% overweight, with a
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In response to First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move initiative to combat childhood obesity, the American Beverage Association (AmeriBev) announced this week that it will voluntarily add calorie counts to the front of soda cans, bottles, vending machines and soda fountains to better enable consumers to make informed choices. AmeriBev,
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Adding Asperger’s syndrome to the autism spectrum, eliminating the terms “substance abuse” and “dependence” in favor of “addiction and related disorders,” introducing the condition “hypersexual disorder” and introducing an assessment of mental illness based on severity are among the proposed changes for the new edition of the Diagnostic
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Dietary silicon can help maintain bone strength and keep connective tissues in good shape, and is found in grains such as oats and barley—which also happen to be key ingredients to brewing beer. Previous studies suggest that, as a rich source of silicon, beer, in moderate amounts, might help fight the bone degradation of conditions
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A moving public service announcement from the Sussex Safer Roads Partnership in the U.K. has quickly become a viral phenomenon—with views in at least 89 countries and a Facebook group of 1,500 members and counting. The “Embrace Life” ad was launched on January 20, and added to YouTube on January 29, where it’s since been seen nearly
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Generally speaking, past research has shown that children who are highly sensitive to stress tend to be at higher risk for health and behavioral problems compared with their less delicate peers. Yet, a new study finds that sensitivity in of itself may not necessarily be what primes children for struggles. According to new research
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Though sperm are generally considered pretty wriggly little guys, before they are launched into action, so to speak, they aren’t racing around. While researchers have long known that what gets them swimming is a change in internal pH level—the more alkaline their pH, the more aggressively they swim—until now, the mechanism by which
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According to a report from a Fort Worth, Texas newspaper, a previously healthy 26-year-old woman may now be permanently handicapped because long-term exposure to zinc in denture cream eroded her health. At age 26, Elizabeth Gilley, was rushed to the hospital after her unexpected symptoms—numbness in her feet and legs, labored
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Using a newly developed brain scan technique, researchers in the U.K. and Belgium revealed that some patients in vegetative states or states of minimal consciousness show signs of awareness, and in one exceptional case, could even answer yes/no questions posed by doctors during a visualization exercise. The findings, published online
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