The US birth rate has been declining since the Crash of 2008, but it took an even larger decline during the pandemic to levels unseen since the Great Depression. Today fertility rates are below replacement levels, which could have big impacts on education, employment, and the tax base years down the road. Experts discuss how people make fertility decisions and the impacts they can have on the nation.
Colon cancer is striking much younger people than it used to, leading experts to lower the age on screening recommendations. A noted colon surgeon discusses screening and treatment options, and the way COVID-19 has changed patients’ approach to getting screened.
A look at the top medical headlines for the week of May 16, 2021 including: A study showing that even Covid survivors who were never sick enough to be hospitalized have a 60 percent higher risk of death from other diseases. Then Most people assume that smoke from wildfires affects mostly the heart and lungs, but a new study finds that it increases the odds of eczema as well. And finally… more than a year after the first reports of “zoom fatigue,” we’re getting more insight on who’s most affected and why.
Many of those who’ve had COVID-19 have suffered from a temporary loss of their sense of smell, but some have had what seems to be an even worse symptom weeks or months later—a distorted sense of smell, where everything, from coffee to flowers, smells sickeningly awful. An expert and a former sufferer discuss how disruptive to life this can be and what people can do to make it through to recovery.
In the mid-1960’s, many Ivy League and Seven Sister colleges as well as prestigious prep schools allowed researchers to photograph incoming students naked as part of work on a now-discredited theory linking physical characteristics to leadership potential. A former student who went through it, now a physician and writer, discusses how research ethics have changed in the last 50 years.
A look at the top medical headlines for the week of May 9, 2021 including: The injection of nanoparticles deep into the brain can produce relief for those with chronic pain and depression. Then, diagnoses for the four most common cancers take a big jump when people hit age 65. And finally, a new study shows that narcissistic people pump themselves up only because deep down inside, they don’t believe they’re any good.
Bottled water sales have skyrocketed, in part because many people believe it is safer than tap water. Actually, bottled water faces few of the safety regulations that tap water does. The disconnect, according to a new study, comes from society’s pervasive distrust in all governmental institutions. The lead researcher discusses how restoring faith in water could begin to restore faith in all American institutions.
Studies show that as many as a third of people who were very ill with COVID-19 later develop PTSD. Caregivers and health care workers may be afflicted as well. An expert discusses how this develops and what people can do to get better.
A look at the top medical headlines for the week of May 2, 2021 including: Doctors are preparing for the possibility of COVID-19 variants that vaccines don’t prevent. Then, a new drug that shows promise against Pancreatic and triple-negative breast cancers. And finally… mindfulness and meditation apps are good for reducing stress and anxiety, but they can also make you selfish.
Millions of Americans cannot afford the medications they’ve been prescribed. Many skip doses, split pills or don’t fill prescriptions at all as a result, with sometimes even fatal consequences. But doctors are often unable to consider cost very well in prescribing, as the same drug often costs patients vastly different amounts due to insurance differences. Experts discuss the problem and what patients can do to save.
Brain aneurysms—bulging in a brain blood vessel, like an inflated balloon—affect 1 in 50 people and are generally without symptoms until they burst. This occurs in about 30,000 people per year in the US, accounting for 3-5 percent of all new strokes. Here is the story of one survivor in her own words.
A look at the top medical headlines for the week of April 25, 2021 including: New research shows that reopening schools can be safe. Then, The brain cancer glioblastoma has no cure… but that may be changing. And finally, as air pollution from cars declines, scientists in Los Angeles say another polluter is becoming more important—palm trees.
Scientists are testing hundreds of different kinds of animals as well as waste and storm water for COVID-19, looking for reservoirs for possible mutation. They’ve learned even pets can possibly harbor the virus but probably aren’t a threat. An expert discusses how the knowledge will combat COVID variants.
Homelessness continues to be a stubborn problem despite many well-intentioned programs. A new experimental study finds that giving homeless people thousands of dollars in cash helps get many of them off the streets for good, calling into question many assumptions about the homeless and how they got that way. Experts discuss the new program and its implications for ending homelessness.
A look at the top medical headlines for the week of April 18, 2021 including: A new study finds COVID-19 was likely circulating undetected for nearly two months before late December 2019. Then, a study indicating weight loss surgery significantly cuts the risk of cancer in people with severe obesity and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. And finally, a small study finds that early in the lockdown, a weight gain of two pounds a month was pretty typical.
