Nudges improve food choices and cut calories when shopping for groceries online
A team of Duke-NUS Medical School researchers designed and tested a new digital toolkit that helps consumers make healthier grocery choices online — an innovation that could play a major role in the global fight against chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke and diabetes. In their study, published in the American Journal of Preventive […]
Exercise-mimicking drug sheds weight, boosts muscle activity in mice
A brand-new kind of drug, tested in mice, shows promising new results that could lead to the development of a new weight-loss drug that mimics exercise. The new compound, developed and tested by a University of Florida professor of pharmacy and his colleagues, leads obese mice to lose weight by convincing the body’s muscles that […]
Screen All Adults for Hepatitis B, CDC Says
All adults should be tested for a hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection at least once in their lifetime, and a wider range should get periodic retesting, according to new CDC recommendations. The report recommended moving from a risk-based approach to a universal approach in order to increase awareness of infection and reduce chronic disease and […]
High-Dose Flu Vaccine Promising for Mortality Benefits in Older Adults
BARCELONA – A Danish feasibility study that tested a high-dose quadrivalent influenza vaccine versus a standard dose hinted at morbidity and mortality benefits, researchers reported. In the DANFLU-1 study, there was a 48.9% reduction in the risk of all-cause mortality and a 64% reduction in the incidence of hospitalization for influenza or pneumonia for high-dose […]
Biden Tests Positive for COVID a Second Time, But Is Asymptomatic
WASHINGTON — President Biden tested positive a second time for COVID-19 on Saturday, a little over 2 days after announcing he had tested negative following his first brief bout with COVID. “Acknowledging the potential for so-called ‘rebound’ COVID positivity observed in a small percentage of patients treated with Paxlovid [the antiviral nirmatrelvir/ritonavir], the president increased […]
Only alcohol — not caffeine, diet or lack of sleep — might trigger heart rhythm condition
New research from UC San Francisco that tested possible triggers of a common heart condition, including caffeine, sleep deprivation and sleeping on the left side, found that only alcohol use was consistently associated with more episodes of the heart arrhythmia. The authors conclude that people might be able to reduce their risk of atrial fibrillation […]
My Journey to the Root of Empathy
“Are there specific ways empathy will be tested in the standardized patient exam?” a medical school classmate of mine earnestly asked following a lecture years ago. I laughed, thinking that teaching empathy was impossible. As an optimistic and naive medical student, I had thought of myself as naturally empathetic. During those days, I was able […]