Nursing home groups divided on proposed increase on bed tax
A proposal late in the legislative session to raise the nursing provider assessment, commonly known as the nursing home bed tax, has split the industry.
Small amounts of licorice raise blood pressure, study finds
It is known that large amounts of liquorice cause high blood pressure. A study by researchers at Linköping University, Sweden, now shows that even small amounts of liquorice raise blood pressure. The individuals who react most strongly also show signs of strain on the heart. Liquorice is produced from the root of plants of the […]
Walking This Many Steps Daily Has Huge Benefits — Especially If You Sit All Day
LOADINGERROR LOADING It’s well known that a sedentary lifestyle is bad for your health. It increases your risk of heart disease, decreases your muscle strength and is linked to certain kinds of cancer. Roughly 80% of jobs in the U.S. are sedentary, according to research published by the American Heart Association, meaning, this is a […]
Benzene Can Form in Acne Treatments, Lab Finds
Benzene, a known human carcinogen that has been detected in consumer products like hand sanitizers, sunscreens, spray deodorants, and dry shampoos, has now been found in commonly used acne treatments. The presence of benzene in those consumer products was the result of contamination. But in the case of benzoyl peroxide (BPO) acne treatments — both […]
Epinephrine Nasal Spray Starts Reversing Allergic Reactions in Minutes
WASHINGTON — Although FDA approval has eluded the intranasal epinephrine spray ARS-1 (also known as neffy), it continued to build its case with findings of resolved allergic symptoms in children and teenagers undergoing an oral food challenge, and with a separate study showing that it maintained its potency under extreme temperatures. In a small observational […]
The TikTok Trend That Dentists Are Begging People To Stop Doing At Home
Ittipol Nampochai / EyeEm via Getty Images Teeth scaling, also known as dental scaling, takes things to the next level in terms of tackling plaque buildup. It’s an in-office dental procedure that uses sharp instruments (which are best used by professionals) and careful attention to detail to remove plaque, as seen here (beware, it’s not […]
Xylazine-Laced Fentanyl Overdose: ‘Make Sure They’re Breathing’
With rising reports of the veterinary sedative xylazine — also known as “tranq” — being mixed in with illicit fentanyl, physicians should be aware that the clinical endpoint for “reversing” an overdose should be that the person is breathing, experts said during a CDC call for clinicians. “The idea that people have to wake up […]
Memory helps us evaluate situations on the fly, not just recall the past: Widely known as crucial for long-term memory, hippocampus also supports short-term memory
Scientists have long known the brain’s hippocampus is crucial for long-term memory. Now a new Northwestern Medicine study has found the hippocampus also plays a role in short-term memory and helps guide decision-making. The findings shed light on how the hippocampus contributes to memory and exploration, potentially leading to therapies that restore hippocampal function, which […]
In the visual thalamus, neurons are in contact with both eyes but respond to only one
The visual thalamus is classically known to relay visual stimuli coming from the retina to the cerebral cortex. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology now show that although neurons in the mouse visual thalamus connect to both eyes, they establish strong functional connections only with one retina. These results settle partly contradictory results […]
Common hair loss and prostate drug may also cut heart disease risk in men and mice
The drug finasteride, also known as Propecia or Proscar, treats male pattern baldness and enlarged prostate in millions of men worldwide. But a new University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign study suggests the drug may also provide a surprising and life-saving benefit: lowering cholesterol and cutting the overall risk of cardiovascular disease. The study, published in the […]