U.S. Life Expectancy Makes Post-Pandemic Rise

With fewer Americans dying from COVID in 2022, U.S. life expectancy rebounded a bit from declines experienced during the pandemic.

According to provisional data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on deaths for 2022, the average American can now expect to live 77.5 years, "an increase of 1.1 years from 2021."

How...

Cold Weather Running May Be Even Healthier

Dreary, chilly winter days might cause some year-round runners to think twice about their jog, but recent research suggests the benefits of cold weather running outweigh those of running in warmer conditions.

Specifically, cold weather can help runners burn more bad fat, lose more weight and feel healthier overall.

“Cold weather do...

U.S. Suicide Numbers Hit New Record High in 2022

U.S. suicide numbers reached a grim new high in 2022.

The increase was most acute among women over the age of 24, according to provisional data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Overall, almost 49,500 people lost their lives to suicide in 2022, the report found, a 3% rise from the nearly 48,200 deaths record...

Mounjaro Beats Ozempic for Weight Loss in Early Trial

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 29, 2023 (Healthday News) -- The diabetes drug Mounjaro prompted more weight loss among overweight and obese adults than Ozempic did in a real-world setting, researchers report.

Both Mounjaro (tirzepatide) and Ozempic (semaglutide) mimic the effects of the gut hormone GLP-1, which triggers insulin production, helps control ...

Commuting on a Highway? Your Blood Pressure May Pay a Price

It's not just bumper-to-bumper highway traffic that's causing your blood pressure to spike during your daily commute.

New research shows that the exhaust fumes spewing from all those vehicles triggers a significant increase in car passengers’ blood pressure.

The observed increase is comparable to the effect of a high-salt diet, res...

Brain Inflammation May Trigger Alzheimer's-Linked Anger, Anxiety

Alzheimer’s patients are notoriously irritable, agitated and anxious – and researchers now think they know why.

Brain inflammation appears to influence the mood problems of Alzheimer’s patients, rather than traditional markers of the disease like amyloid beta or tau proteins, researchers report in the Nov. 27 issue of the journal

Your Walking Speed Influences Your Risk for Diabetes

People can walk away their risk of developing type 2 diabetes – but only if they walk fast enough, a new report finds.

Folks who walk at least 2.5 miles an hour appear to have a significantly lower risk of type 2 diabetes, according to a study published Nov. 28 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

That’s the equiva...

Misinformation Is Everywhere. Experts Offer Tools to Counter It

The world is being flooded with internet-driven misinformation, but there are ways to counter fake news with the facts, a new report says.

These include aggressive fact-checking, preemptively debunking lies before they take root and nudging people to be more skeptical before sharing information, the American Psychological Association analy...

Could the Neck Be to Blame for Common Headaches?

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 29, 2023 (Healthday News) -- Your neck muscles could be giving you headaches, claims new German research that used special MRI scans to spot the connection.

“Our imaging approach provides [the] first objective evidence for the very frequent involvement of the neck muscles in primary headaches, such as neck pain in migrain...

New COVID Variant Takes Hold in the United States

TUESDAY, Nov. 28, 2023 (Healthday News) -- The prevalence of a highly mutated COVID variant has tripled in the past two weeks, new government data shows.

Now, nearly 1 in 10 new COVID cases are fueled by the BA.2.86 variant, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Monday.

The variant is sprea...

Internet Poses No Threat to Mental Health, Major Study Finds

It might seem that surfing the web could cause a person’s mental health to suffer, but a landmark new study has concluded that internet use poses no major threat to people’s psychological well-being.

Researchers compared country-level internet and broadband use to the mental well-being of millions of people in dozens of countries, and ...

Early Promise for Stem Cell Therapy to Curb MS

Stem cells injected into the brains of multiple sclerosis patients appear to protect them against further damage from the degenerative disease, a new study shows.

MS occurs when the body’s own immune system attacks and damages the protective sheath around nerve fibers, called myelin. This disrupts messages sent around the brain and spina...

Could a 'Brain Coach' Help Folks at Higher Risk for Alzheimer's?

Personal trainers can help people increase their strength and their fitness.

Could a “brain coach” be just as useful in preventing Alzheimer’s’ disease?

A new study suggests that personalized health and lifestyle changes can delay or even prevent memory loss for older adults at high risk of Alzheimer’s or dementia.

Pe...

COVID Vaccines Curbed Pandemic-Linked Surge in Preemie Births

COVID vaccines saved the lives and health of countless babies by preventing their premature births, a new study shows.

COVID-19 initially caused an alarming surge in premature birth rates, but those returned to pre-pandemic levels following the introduction of vaccines, researchers found.

These findings should help allay vaccine hesi...

Smoking Tobacco Plus Weed Greatly Raises Odds for Emphysema

Folks who smoke weed along with cigarettes are doing serious damage to their lungs, a new study warns.

People who do both are 12 times more likely to develop emphysema than nonsmokers, due to the damage they’re doing to the lung’s air sacs, researchers report.

“There is a common public misconception that marijuana smoking is no...

Soccer 'Heading' Tied to Declines in Brain Function

Evidence that soccer heading -- where players use their heads to strike a ball -- is dangerous continues to mount.

Research to be presented at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting in Chicago on Tuesday points to a measurable decline in brain structure and function as a result of the practice.

"There is eno...

Black Patients Wait Longer Than Whites for Alzheimer's Diagnosis

TUESDAY, Nov. 28, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Medical imaging for thinking and memory issues happens much later in Black patients than in their white and Hispanic counterparts, new research shows.

A study to be presented Thursday at a meeting of radiologists also revealed that Black patients were less often tested with MRIs, a preferred way...

Testosterone Therapy for Transgender Patients May Be Safer Than Thought

Transgender people transitioning to male (transmasculine) identity typically take testosterone therapy as part of the process.  

There have been worries that the treatment might spur erythrocytosis, an abnormally high concentration of red blood cells in blood that could prove dangerous.

But new research should help allay those f...

After Salmonella Cases Double in a Week, Cantaloupe Recall Expanded

MONDAY, Nov. 27, 2023 (Healthday News) -- Three more brands of cantaloupe have been recalled by U.S. health officials after salmonella infections linked to the fruit more than doubled in just a week.

The case count now includes nearly 100 people in 32 states, with Arizona, Missouri, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ohio having the highest number o...

Long COVID Now Common in U.S. Nursing Homes

MONDAY, Nov. 27, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Repeated COVID-19 outbreaks in nursing homes have had a stark and lasting impact on vulnerable older residents, a new study reports.

Long COVID has left many residents of these facilities relying more and more on staff to help them months later with basic, everyday activities such as bathing and u...