Many clinical trials (and blockbuster diet plans, from Scarsdale to South Beach to The China Study) have supported the idea that reducing the intake of simple carbohydrates — white breads, pasta, rice and sugar — leads to …
Declines in U.S. Smoking Rates Remain Stalled at 20%
For the fifth year in a row, the decline in smoking rates among adult Americans remains stalled. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 20% of adults still smoke, a figure that hasn’t changed since 2005.
‘Like Crack for Babies’: Kids Love Baby Einstein, But They Don’t Learn From It
When scientific studies first began suggesting that “Baby Einstein” videos might make children more like Einstein himself — as a child, he was taciturn and not especially verbal — rather than creating literary prodigies, …
Boy or Girl? Change Your Diet, Micromanage Sex — and Other Pregnancy Myths
After I had my son, I desperately wanted a girl. When I got pregnant again, I was so convinced another XY was on the way that when the doctor delivered our daughter (XX, that is) and announced as much, I asked my husband: “Is …
The Daily Dose: Superbug Hits Japan, Magic Mushrooms and Fancy Sneaker Smackdown
Custom Running Shoes Don’t Lower Injury Risk: Sporting goods stores that evaluate foot shape to help customers buy running shoes may have it wrong. A study of Marine recruits who had running shoes customized to their arch heights showed that nice shoes didn’t lower the instance of injury during basic training.
Training Your Brain to Learn Better (Even Without Drugs)
I’m excited to be starting my “new school year” as a blogger here on Healthland — and what better way to begin than with news about boosting your ability to learn, using neuroscience! One of the hottest articles flying around the Web today is Benedict Carey’s great New York Times science story headlined “Forget What You Know …
Using Videos to Help Diagnose Autism in Babies
The causes of autism are still unclear, but evidence is building that early intervention — before age 1 — may help mitigate or even prevent the developmental disorder from occurring in the first place. Making such early treatment more possible, researchers now report a promising new way of detecting autism in infants as young as 14 months.
How Much Happiness Can Money Buy? About $75,000 Worth
People say money doesn’t make you happy. Except, according to a new study by Princeton University researchers, it actually sort of does — at least up to about $75,000 a year. In an article published on Time.com on Monday, Belinda Luscombe reports: “The lower a person’s income falls below that benchmark, the unhappier he or she
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The Daily Dose: Pill Popping, Hand Transplants and How Unemployment Makes You Sick
RxAmerica: Nearly half of all Americans have taken a prescription drug in the last month, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center of Health Statistics. So what are we on?
What’s Sizzurp? Ask T.I. or the FDA
What’s syrupy sweet, deep purple and entirely hazardous? No, it isn’t this guy. It’s sizzurp, a popular drink made with cough syrup (usually the prescription-strength kind with codeine), 7-Up and Jolly Ranchers candies.
Rapper T.I. (real name Clifford Harris Jr.) and his wife Tameka “Tiny” Cottle were arrested late Wednesday night …
Lack of Sleep Linked With Depression, Weight Gain and Even Death
A collection of studies published Wednesday in the journal Sleep tackled some important questions: What are the health effects of not getting enough sleep? How does sleep deprivation affect teens? Does insomnia have long-term consequences?
As Flu Season Approaches, Some Health-Care Workers Say ‘No’ to the Flu Shot
As summer comes to a close and the influenza virus starts calling open season on our immune systems, one would hope that health-care workers have gotten their CDC-prescribed yearly flu shot by now — especially given their high rates of job-related exposure to infectious disease and their easy access to the vaccine. Guess again.
Botox Manufacturer: $600 Million Poorer, But closer to New Uses
Allergan, the maker of Botox, will pay $600 million in fines and civil settlements after pleading guilty to marketing their product for uses for which it hasn’t been FDA approved. The Justice Department accused Allergan of …