Health & Medicine

  1. Health & Medicine

    McDonald’s Cutback in Antibiotics Use Could Reduce Drug-Resistant Bacteria

    The fast-food chain McDonald’s announced on June 19 that it will stop its farms under contract from feeding chicken, cattle, and pigs certain antibiotics intended to accelerate the animals’ growth. That step might slow or reverse the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can infect people, scientists say. HAPPIER MEAL. Coming soon to a McDonald’s near […]

    By Ben Harder
  2. Health & Medicine

    Double Duty: Diabetes drug protects reopened heart vessels

    A drug normally prescribed to hold blood sugar in check provides an unexpected benefit to heart patients.

    By Nathan Seppa
  3. Health & Medicine

    MRI detects missed breast cancers

    Magnetic resonance imaging detects breast cancer better than does mammography and might be preferable for certain women at high risk.

    By Nathan Seppa
  4. Health & Medicine

    Cancer vaccine gets first test in patients

    The first clinical test of a cancer vaccine that targets a protein called carcinoembryonic antigen shows promise.

    By Nathan Seppa
  5. Health & Medicine

    Early cancer therapy and heart problems

    Pediatric cancer treatment with chest radiation or anthracyclines can cause a heightened risk of heart disease at an earlier age than previously believed.

    By Nathan Seppa
  6. Health & Medicine

    Gene profiles might guide chemotherapy

    Profiles of genetic variations in cancer patients could help oncologists predict the outcome of chemotherapy.

    By Nathan Seppa
  7. Health & Medicine

    Target: Celiac Disease

    With the aim of releasing people with celiac disease from a strict, lifelong diet that lacks the wheat protein gluten, researchers are working to identify molecular targets that could block the disease’s hallmark, the degeneration of the lining of the small intestine.

    By Ben Harder
  8. Health & Medicine

    Domestic Disease: Exotic pets bring pathogens home

    The potentially deadly monkeypox virus has spread from Africa to people in several states via infected pet prairie dogs.

    By Ben Harder
  9. Health & Medicine

    Full-Length Pregnancy: Progesterone product may reduce premature births

    A drug related to the female hormone progesterone helps some pregnant women who are prone to premature birth extend their pregnancies.

    By Nathan Seppa
  10. Health & Medicine

    Oh Boy—Is Mom Hungry!

    At birth, boys tend to weigh about 100 grams (3.5 ounces) more than girls. An international research team wondered whether that meant that boys’ moms ate more during pregnancy. In data published this week, the scientists now confirm that’s exactly what happens. Though women eat more when carrying a boy, they don’t gain more weight […]

    By Janet Raloff
  11. Health & Medicine

    Cancer Advance: Treatment combinations stall colorectal cancer

    Two experimental drugs can induce remission in colorectal cancer patients and extend their survival.

    By Nathan Seppa
  12. Health & Medicine

    Skipping Meals Might Offer Health Gains

    People assume that the ideal meal schedule spreads calorie intake over the course of the day: Never skip breakfast, keep your blood sugar on an even keel, and all that. But Mark Mattson, a neuroscientist at the National Institute on Aging in Baltimore, suspects that conventional wisdom may be due for an overhaul. Skipping breakfast? […]

    By Ben Harder