Health & Medicine
- Psychology
As gambling addiction spreads, one scientist’s work reveals timely insights
Psychiatrist Robert Custer spent his life convincing doctors that compulsive gambling was not an impulse control problem. Today, his research is foundational for diagnosis and treatment.
- Health & Medicine
Polar plunges aren’t just for the daring
Bragging rights and an adrenaline rush aren’t the only reasons to start the year with a frigid swim. A dip in icy water builds resilience.
- Humans
‘Black Religion in the Madhouse’ examines psychiatry and race post-Civil War
In the aftermath of slavery, white psychiatrists diagnosed Black people with “religious excitement” and claimed they were unfit for freedom.
- Animals
Bats might be the next bird flu wild card
Finding that vampire bats along Peru’s coast carried H5N1 antibodies raises concerns that multiple bat species could become reservoirs for the virus.
- Psychology
Some irritability is normal. Here’s when it’s not
Irritability is a normal response to frustrations, but it can sometimes signal an underlying mental health disorder, like depression or anxiety.
- Health & Medicine
GLP-1 drugs failed to slow Alzheimer’s in two big clinical trials
Tantalizing results from small trials and anecdotes raised hopes that drugs like Ozempic could help. Despite setbacks, researchers aren’t giving up yet.
- Health & Medicine
A CDC panel has struck down universal newborn hepatitis B vaccination
A reshaped vaccine committee voted to scale back newborn hepatitis B shots despite decades of data showing the birth dose is safe, effective and vital.
- Health & Medicine
How a bacterial toxin linked to colon cancer messes with DNA
A closeup look at colibactin’s structure reveals chemical motifs that guide its mutation-wreaking “warheads” to specific stretches of DNA.
- Health & Medicine
Self-hypnosis with cooling mental imagery could ease hot flashes
Postmenopausal women who listened to self-guided hypnosis recordings daily for six weeks saw meaningful improvements in hot flash symptoms.
- Health & Medicine
Personalized ‘prehabilitation’ helps the body brace for major surgery
A small study finds that individualized prehab can dampen harmful immune responses and may reduce complications after an operation.
- Humans
A therapeutic HPV vaccine shrank cervical tumors in mice
An HPV vaccine delivered into the nose can treat cervical tumors in mice. The vaccine targets a cancer protein produced by the virus.
- Health & Medicine
Canada just lost its measles elimination status. Is the U.S. next?
Canada has had more than a year of continuous measles transmission. The United States has until January to limit cases before losing status.
