Health
Discover facts about health. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Health
How ultramarathons can damage your gut barrier
During an ultramarathon, working muscles need more blood, so the body sends less to the digestive tract. With less oxygen reaching the gut lining, its barrier…
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Why doctors treat postpartum bladder leaks through the ankle
The electrical pulses stimulate the tibial nerve near the ankle, which feeds into sacral nerve pathways involved in bladder control. The treatment works…
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Parkinson's can change a voice as well as a person's movements
Speech depends on coordinated breathing, vocal-fold movement, and articulation. Parkinson's can make a voice softer or speech less clear, affecting how easily…
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An eye-pressure medicine can permanently change iris color
Latanoprost can increase brown pigment in the iris, gradually darkening the eye. Treating just one eye can therefore leave a visible color difference between…
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When bad internet blocks rural mental health care
Telepsychiatry depends on a stable internet connection for a conversation that needs to happen in real time. In rural areas with weak broadband, a video visit…
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Scabies can come back for more than one reason
A treatment may fail because mites survive, an application misses areas, or a person is exposed again through untreated contacts. Researchers are…
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A newborn can experience withdrawal before ever taking a drug
Opioids used during pregnancy can reach a baby through the placenta. After birth, that exposure ends, and withdrawal can disrupt feeding, sleep, and the…
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Why food deserts complicate diabetes treatment
Managing diabetes often means coordinating meals with medication, but that becomes harder when nutritious food costs too much or isn’t nearby. A person may…
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Why pulse oximeters can miss danger in dark skin
The device measures oxygen indirectly, using light that passes through a fingertip. In people with darker skin, the reading can overestimate blood oxygen, so…
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Why surgery can leave patients hallucinating
After surgery, the strain on the body can disrupt how the brain handles attention and interprets what is happening. In older patients, that temporary…
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How play helps toddlers eat without fear
A feeding aversion can start when swallowing becomes linked with pain or frightening medical experiences, such as feeding tubes. Therapists use gentle,…
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How the right bacteria may stop recurrent BV
Researchers have explored restoring Lactobacillus crispatus, a bacterium that makes the vaginal environment more acidic. That acidity can make it harder for…
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A food allergy can cause severe vomiting hours after a meal
FPIES is a food-triggered immune reaction affecting the gut, often without the immediate hives people expect from an allergy. Repetitive vomiting commonly…
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Could healthy skin bacteria help treat eczema
Some skin bacteria make antibiotics that can attack other bacteria. Lotions containing Staphylococcus hominis are being tested because it may help counter…
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Why a grip test can affect transplant eligibility
Grip strength offers a quick clue about a person’s overall strength and physical reserve. Transplant teams use it as one piece of a broader picture of whether…
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When white webs in your mouth need watching
Oral lichen planus happens when the immune system inflames the lining of the mouth, sometimes leaving a lacy white pattern. Most of the concern is not the…
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A large trial tested whether blood-pressure pills needed a bedtime
The TIME study followed more than 21,000 people assigned to morning or evening dosing and found no significant difference in major cardiovascular outcomes. An…
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Your pancreas can become fatty too
The pancreas is not immune to fat storage: fat can build up within the organ and may affect its insulin-producing beta cells. Because insulin helps control…
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When acne-like inflammation forms tunnels under the skin
When hair follicles become blocked and inflamed, the problem can extend beneath the surface instead of staying like a spot on top of the skin. In hidradenitis…
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How sweat can turn metal tools into a rash hazard
Sweat can dissolve tiny amounts of nickel from a tool and carry the metal ions into the skin. In someone sensitive to nickel, that contact can trigger an…
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An immune reaction can make food get stuck on the way down
Eosinophilic esophagitis brings inflammatory cells into the lining of the esophagus. Over time, swelling and scarring can narrow the passage, so swallowing…
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Frozen gloves may help protect nerves during chemotherapy
Frozen gloves cool the hands enough to constrict nearby blood vessels. With less blood flowing through the area during chemotherapy, less of some drugs may…
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Why choline matters during pregnancy
Choline helps build and support a developing baby’s brain, including the hippocampus, a region involved in memory. Egg yolks are a rich source, yet many…
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Why a toothache doesn't always need antibiotics
Antibiotics can treat certain spreading bacterial infections, but they don’t remove decay or repair an inflamed tooth. That’s why many toothaches call for…
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