Health Highlights: Aug. 10, 2022​

FDA authorizes smaller doses of monkeypox vaccine to stretch supply. The new two-dose regimen will administer one-fifth of the dose just beneath the skin. One trial showed it produces an immune response that’s similar to what’s seen with a full-dose injection. Read more

Only a third of Americans with potentially deadly hepatitis C infection get treatment. Left untreated, the virus can cause liver disease, liver cancer and death — but new medicines can wipe out the infection, experts at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stressed. Read more

Most COVID patients who lose sense of smell regain it within two years. Tracking about 170 Italians who’d all lost their sense of smell or taste due to the illness, researchers found that those senses had returned in 89% within two years. Read more

Switching to a salt substitute could slash your heart risks. Swapping sodium for the common salt substitute potassium chloride lowers blood pressure, and thereby the risk of heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular disease, research showed. Read more

FDA warns consumers about unapproved skin tag removal products. The agency on Tuesday issued warning letters to three companies, including Amazon, for selling unapproved products for removing moles and skin tags. The big danger to consumers: the lesions being treated are actually potentially deadly skin cancers. Read more