A-Fib Risk Drops Soon After Quitting Smoking

Smokers who make the decision to quit will see almost immediate health benefits, including a quick drop in their risk for atrial fibrillation, new research shows.

“The findings provide a compelling new reason to show current smokers that it’s not too late to quit and that having smoked in the past doesn’t mean you’r...

'Self-Medicating' Gorillas Are Leading People to New Medicines

Humans could learn a few medical tips from their gorilla cousins, a new study says.

Four plants used by wild gorillas in Gabon have antibacterial and antioxidant properties, researcher reported Sept. 11 in the journal PLOS One.

Wild great apes often self-medicate, consuming medicinal plants that can treat their ailments, res...

In Every U.S. State, at Least 1 in 5 People Is Now Obese

Statistics from 2023 on U.S. obesity rates bring no good news: In every state in the nation, 1 in every 5 people is now obese, the new tally shows.

In 2013, not one state had an adult obesity rate topping 35%, but 10 years later 23 states had achieved that dubious distinction, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Dis...

Twice-Yearly Injection Cuts HIV Risk by 96%, But Will Cost Cut Access?

It could be a real breakthrough for people at risk for HIV infection: A shot given every six months that reduces their risk by a whopping 96%.

That's according to new trial results released Thursday by Gilead Sciences, which is repurposing its HIV treatment, the antiviral lenacapavir, as a twice-yearly preventive shot.

There's a catc...

Ingredient in Hair Dye Led to Woman's Vision Loss

An ingredient in the hair dye a French woman used caused her to develop a vision-robbing retinopathy, researchers report.

When she switched to a dye without these ingredients, called aromatic amines, her vision troubles resolved, according to a team led by Dr. Nicolas Chirpaz, an ophthalmologist at Edouard Herriot Hospital, in Lyon.

High Doses of ADHD Meds Could Trigger Psychosis

Prescriptions for amphetamine stimulants to treat ADHD have increased significantly in recent years, particularly during the pandemic.

Unfortunately, high doses of stimulants like Adderall can increase the risk of psychosis or mania by more than fivefold, a new study finds.

Patients had a nearly 63% increased risk of psychosis or man...

A-Fib May Be 3 Times More Common Than Thought

The number of Americans with a potentially dangerous heart rhythm condition is three times greater than previously thought, a new study claims.

An estimated 5% of the population -- 10.5 million U.S. adults -- have atrial fibrillation, according to new estimates from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

Previous estimat...

Weight-Loss Drug Zepbound May Work Better in Women Than Men

The injectable weight-loss drug Zepbound appears to work better in women than in men, according to a new analysis of the clinical trials that led to its approval.

All doses of tirzepatide consistently reduced weight in both women and men, researchers found.

But women lost up to 25% of their initial body weight when treated with tirze...

Many Americans Wary of Vaccines as Fall Flu, COVID Season Looms: Survey

A lot of Americans are on the fence regarding annual flu and COVID shots, a new survey finds.

More than one-third of those polled (37%) said they’d gotten vaccines in the past but don’t plan to this year, according to results from a nationwide Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center survey.

Just a slight majority -- 5...

Alzheimer's Drugs May Work in Whole New Way, Study Finds

Two monoclonal antibody treatments to slow Alzheimer's disease, lecanemab (Leqembi) and donanemab (Kisunla), have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration over the past two years.

It's thought the drugs curb Alzheimer's by reducing levels of toxic amyloid protein plaques in the brain.

But what if another neurological ...

Black Stroke Patients More Likely to Arrive Late at Hospital, Without Prior ER Notification

Black stroke victims are arriving at emergency rooms much later than white patients, greatly increasing their risk of death or lifelong disability, a new study finds.

Every second counts when it comes to treating a stroke, experts say.

Any moment’s delay allows for more brain damage to occur, and patients could arrive too late ...

Ozempic Can Prevent Heart Trouble in Folks With Kidney Issues

Ozempic and Wegovy can prevent heart problems in overweight and obese people, particularly if they also suffer from kidney disease, a new clinical trial shows.

The drugs’ active ingredient, semaglutide, reduced heart health risk by 20% in heavyset people who took it for more than three years, researchers reported Wednesday at the Eur...

Sleep Changes Common for Stroke Survivors

Less than half of people who've survived a stroke will go on to have a healthy, normal sleep pattern, new research shows.

Normal sleep is defined as six to eight hours of shuteye nightly. However, a majority of the nearly 1,600 stroke survivors in the new study got either too much or too little sleep.

“Sleeping the right amoun...

More Women Underwent Surgical Sterilization After Fall of Roe v. Wade

As fears of the consequences of an unintended pregnancy rose after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, rates of surgical sterilization rose in those states most affected by the decision, new research shows.

Rates of tubal sterilization -- tying, cutting or removing the fallopian tubes -- rose by an average 3% per month in states where abor...

FDA to Investigate Safety of Toxic Metals in Tampons

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday that it will launch an independent review into any possible effects of toxic metals found in tampons.

The announcement follows the release of a study in July that found traces of lead and other metals in 30 tampons from 14 brands obtained from major online retailers and stores in the ...

Weight-Loss Pill Saxenda Helps Kids as Young as 6

The weight-loss drug liraglutide helped obese children lower their BMI and reach a healthier weight, researchers report.

The findings, published Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented simultaneously at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes annual meeting in Madrid, are the first to demonstr...

Daily Pill Helps People Lose Weight, Combines GLP-1 With Other Drug

An experimental weight-loss pill appears to help people quickly shed pounds, a new study says.

People who took the drug amycretin lost up to 13% of their body weight over three months, according to early clinical trial results presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes annual meeting in Madrid.

Amycretin mimics t...

Good Maternity Care Increasingly Tough to Find in U.S.

In the two years since the March of Dimes' last report on the state of U.S. maternity care, more than 100 hospitals nationwide have shuttered their obstetric units, leaving more new moms with literally "Nowhere to Go" for care.

The March of Dimes' 2024 report, titled "Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts Across the U.S.," finds hospital c...

Weekly Insulin Injections As Effective for Diabetes as Daily Shots, Studies Show

Weekly insulin shots can help control both type 1 and type 2 diabetes as well as daily injections do, a pair of clinical trials have found.

A new class of insulin called efsitora alfa has been designed to require injections only once a week, researchers said.

Two phase 3 trials presented Tuesday at the European Association for the St...

CAR-T Therapy Won't Raise Odds for a Second Cancer, Study Finds

Contrary to a warning placed on labels for CART-T cancer therapies, use of these treatments does not appear to boost the odds for a secondary cancer later, a new study shows.

Researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKC) in New York City believe CAR-T may be safer in that regard than is now assumed, and warning labels may ne...