Trying to help a deeply upset teenager — perhaps one undone by a social slight or flipping out about an upcoming test — is among the most common and stressful challenges in all of parenting. Amid all that stress, it’s easy for well-meaning adults to make missteps. More often than not, we jump in with…
According to numerous recent studies, human gut bacterial populations are capable of influencing various aspects of our physical and mental health. Despite this, many bacteria remain “unmapped” by scientists. A new study has now uncovered approximately 2,000 previously unknown gut bacteria. A new study has uncovered just under 2,000 new species of gut bacteria. Recent…
HONG KONG — Like many across East Asia, North Koreans have been exchanging presents this month to celebrate the Lunar New Year. But rather than tea, sweets or clothing, some in this impoverished, isolated country are giving the gift of crystal meth. The gifting and use of methamphetamine, a powerful stimulant that has been blamed…
Mahendra Agrawal never imagined he would have a heart attack. He followed a vegetarian diet, exercised regularly and maintained a healthy weight. His blood pressure and cholesterol levels were normal. But when Mr. Agrawal experienced shortness of breath in June 2013, his wife urged him to go to a hospital. There, tests revealed that Mr.…
Forget free wine hours and on-demand workout videos. An increasing number of hotels around the world are now providing guests the option to book rooms with filtration and purification systems that minimize threats of air pollution and offer cleaner air. “Interior air quality can be abysmal,” said Beth McGroarty, research director for The Global Wellness…
A large review of studies confirms that exercise can be a good way to help reduce the frequency of falls in the elderly. The analysis, in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, included 108 randomized controlled trials with more than 23,000 participants. Their average age was 76, and 77 percent were women. As controls, the…
HONG KONG — It was after dark on a Tuesday evening in December 2017 when the vans pulled onto Island House Lane, a placid side street of residential complexes and community garden plots in the suburban Tai Po district. High-rises gave way to lush forest as the street wound down to a pebble beach. Across…
New research that features in the journal Frontiers in Neuroscience suggests that women who use oral contraceptives are less able to recognize facial expressions of complex emotions. Researchers are uncovering new psychological side effects of oral contraceptives. Over 60 percent of women aged 15–44 years are currently using a form of contraception, according to the…
IMAGE: Left: Image of a soft hydrogel with normally developing cell cultures (filled triangles). Right: Image of a stiffened, tumor-like hydrogel with transformed cells (open triangles). view more A study provides new insight into how the stiffening of breast tissue plays a role in breast cancer development. By examining how mammary cells respond in a stiffness-changing…
IMAGE: A stylized microscopy image of forebrain neural progenitor cells from chimpanzees described in the publication. The image represents the work’s potential for offering insights into the evolution of the primate… view more Credit: Salk Institute/Carol Marchetto/Ana P.D. Mendes LA JOLLA–(February 12, 2019) What makes us human, and where does this mysterious property of “humanness” come…