MONDAY, April 29, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Patients with a spinal cord injury frequently develop diabetes and heart health problems, and researchers now think they know why. It appears that neuron activity following the injury causes belly fat to break down into compounds that leak and pool in the liverContinue Reading
MONDAY, April 29, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Researchers have conclusively identified the genetic cause of a rare, progressive movement disorder. A rare extra-long version of a gene appears to cause nerve cells to become poisoned by toxic proteins in people with spinocerebellar ataxia 4 (SCA4), researchers report. SCA4 causes muscleContinue Reading
FRIDAY, April 26, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Better heart health can lead to a sharper mind for middle-aged Black women, a new study says. Black women with worse heart health experienced a 10% decrease in their ability to think on their feet over two decades, researchers found. On the otherContinue Reading
FRIDAY, April 26, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Advanced scanning techniques can find hidden inflammation in the brains of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, a new study shows. This “smoldering” inflammation detected by positron emission tomography (PET) brain scans could help explain why patients continue to decline even though imaging shows noContinue Reading
THURSDAY, April 25, 2024 (HealthDay News) — It’s long been known that exposure to agricultural pesticides can greatly raise a person’s odds for Parkinson’s disease. New genetics research now reveals those who might be most vulnerable. A team at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), pored over genetic dataContinue Reading
TUESDAY, April 23, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Many people dogged by depression are turning to the psilocybin found in “magic mushrooms” to ease the condition, and often reporting success. Now, new research suggests much of the credit for that success lies in the relationship between the patient and his orContinue Reading
TUESDAY, April 23, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Soldiers can suffer brain injury if they are repeatedly exposed to explosive blasts, a new study shows. Further, the more frequently a soldier is exposed to explosions, the greater their risk for brain injury, researchers reported April 22 in the Proceedings of theContinue Reading
FRIDAY, April 19, 2024 (HealthDay News) — An early marker of multiple sclerosis could help doctors figure out who will eventually fall prey to the degenerative nerve disease, a new study says. In one in 10 cases of MS, the body begins producing a distinctive set of antibodies in theContinue Reading
THURSDAY, April 18, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Jobs that challenge your mind could help your brain age more gracefully, a new study suggests. The harder your brain works on the job, the less likely you are to have memory and thinking problems later in life, researchers reported April 17 inContinue Reading
THURSDAY, April 18, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Antipsychotics can substantially increase dementia patients’ risk of many serious health problems, a new study warns. Dementia patients prescribed antipsychotics have increased risk of stroke, blood clots, heart attack, heart failure, bone fractures, pneumonia and kidney damage, researchers reported April 17 in theContinue Reading
WEDNESDAY, April 17, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Some people with tough-to-treat epilepsy might benefit if doctors target a brain region newly linked to the disorder, a new study suggests. Seizures declined by 83% after a patient underwent surgery that removed almost all of the fasciola cinereum, a previously overlooked regionContinue Reading
WEDNESDAY, April 17, 2024 (HealthDay News) — In a new study, people living with HIV who got standard meds to keep the virus at bay also had much lower rates of Alzheimer’s disease — suggesting the drugs might also lower risks for the brain illness. It’s early-stage research, but it’sContinue Reading
TUESDAY, April 16, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Want to feel happier? Live in or near a place with a rich diversity of nature, a new study says. Environments with plentiful natural features — trees, birds, plants and rivers — are associated with better mental well-being than the more spartan landscapesContinue Reading
TUESDAY, April 16, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Most folks think of blinking as the eyes’ version of windshield wipers, clearing the eye of debris and maybe lubricating it, too. But blinking is much more than that, researchers report: It also helps the brain process what it’s seeing. That’s perhaps counterintuitive:Continue Reading