Cows Are Potential Spreaders of Bird Flu to Humans
May 10, 2024 — Cow udders have the same receptors for flu viruses as humans and birds, raising concerns that cows could become “mixing vessels” that help the bird flu virus spread between people. That’s according to new research conducted by scientists at the University of Copenhagen and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis and […]
Putting a Hole in Our World
May 10, 2024 – When we’re young, we take our macula for granted. At the center of our retina – the deepest layer of the eye that’s chock-full of photoreceptors and that confers color to our world – the macula is like a high-resolution camera. As light hits our eyes, the retina’s macula recasts our […]
A Healthy Lifestyle Can Add Years to Life, Despite ‘Bad’ Genes
May 9, 2024 – Were you born with family genes that predict a short life? Fear not; it turns out that having such genes is not a death knell but an opportunity. In fact, new findings suggest that adopting and sticking to a combination of lifestyle changes may be one of the most important ways […]
Taking Racism out of the Kidney Disease Equation
The first sign something was wrong with Curtis Warfield came in 2005, when a lab test found protein in his urine during a routine checkup. In 2012, Warfield was diagnosed with stage 3 kidney disease. Two years later, he started dialysis. “When you get diagnosed, you’re sitting there kind of like a deer in headlights. […]
Vegan, Vegetarian Diets Unlock Extra ZZZs
May 8, 2024 — Want to sleep better and longer? Ditch the meat. At least that’s what some experts are saying. Vegans and vegetarians sleep around 30 more minutes per night than average, and up to 90% of them report good or excellent sleep quality, according to a recent survey published by the Sleep Foundation. “Poor sleep […]
Anorexia: The Body Neglected
Anorexia nervosa takes an enormous toll on the body. But that’s not all. It has the highest death rate of any mental illness. Between 5% and 20% of people who develop the disease eventually die from it. The longer you have it, the more likely you will die from it. Even for those who survive, […]
Right Diagnosis Can Help Mothers and Babies
May 6, 2024 –Megan Tavares was at the grocery store when her doctor called to tell her to get to the hospital immediately. Blood tests had shown that Tavares, who was 39 weeks pregnant, had a rare condition linked to preeclampsia. Her baby needed to be delivered right away. Nine hours later, Tavares, a social […]
Living With Major Depressive Disorder
By Elena Sledge, as told to Kara Mayer Robinson I’ve been living with depression for almost 12 years. I’m 31 now and I found out I had major depressive disorder when I was 19. I had a miserable freshman year of college, but I didn’t really know what was wrong. I saw a therapist and […]