The Weight Game: How Body-Size Bias Can Hold Back Health Science

In December 1994 then former U.S. surgeon general C. Everett Koop launched a national weight-loss campaign at a White House press conference, stating that obesity had become the country’s second-largest cause of death, “resulting in about 300,000 lives lost each year.” This marked the beginning of a long, influential life for the statistic. Pundits and … Read more

Why Aren’t All Calories Created Equal? A Dietitian Explains

A calorie is a calorie is a calorie, at least from a thermodynamic standpoint. It’s defined as the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water by 1 degree Celsius (2.2 pounds by 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit).   But when it comes to health and your body’s energy balance, not all … Read more

Mindfulness Can Improve Your Attention and Health

Scientific American Mind March 2013 A focus on the present, dubbed “mindfulness,” can make you happier and healthier. Training to deepen your immersion in the moment works by improving attention Pulling into a parking spot at work, you realize you have no recollection of the drive that got you there. While reading a news story, … Read more

There’s Something About Eating Mushrooms That Seems to Lower Depression Risk

A large-scale analysis of people who eat mushrooms suggests they have a lower risk of developing depression. The association is still a mystery, and for now, the authors say the data should be interpreted with caution. There’s always a chance the results are a mere correlation, especially since eating more mushrooms didn’t seem to lower … Read more

Racism in Health Care Isn’t Always Obvious

Editor’s Note (12/21/21): This article is being showcased in a special collection about equity in health care that was made possible by the support of Takeda Pharmaceuticals. The article was published independently and without sponsorship. As physicians from three distinct racial minorities, our lives are defined by an innate tension. On one hand, we experience … Read more

Astronomers See Black Hole Jets Blaze 16x Wider Than The Full Moon in Our Sky

Astronomers have captured a breathtaking radio wave image, showing our closest radio active black hole spewing out massive jets of plasma that span more than 16 times the size of the full moon in our sky.   The supermassive black hole in question is located in the center of the galaxy Centaurus A around 12 … Read more

Australian wildlife: Reintroductions help threatened mammals recover

Conservationists are reintroducing threatened mammals to their former ranges with fences to keep out cats and foxes Environment 29 December 2021 By Alice Klein A greater bilby scavenging at night cbstockfoto / Alamy Stock Photo Australia has the worst mammal extinction rate in the world, having lost 34 mammal species in the past 200 years. … Read more

We Must Enhance–but Also Decolonize–America’s Global Health Diplomacy

Editor’s Note (12/21/21): This article is being showcased in a special collection about equity in health care that was made possible by the support of Takeda. The article was published independently and without sponsorship. COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc across the world, accounting for more than 2.7 million deaths so far; prolonged economic shutdowns; and … Read more

Inequality before Birth Contributes to Health Inequality in Adults

Editor’s Note (12/21/21): This article is being showcased in a special collection about equity in health care that was made possible by the support of Takeda. The article was published independently and without sponsorship. The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately hurt members of minority communities in the U.S. As of July 2020, 73.7 Black people out … Read more

Some People in Greenland Metabolize Sugars Differently

For millennia, populations in Greenland enjoyed a relatively sugar-free diet. Without the need to rapidly process certain carbohydrates, many lost the function of a key sucrose-processing enzyme.   To learn what this loss means for the health of today’s populations, a team of researchers led by scientists from the University of Copenhagen analyzed the health … Read more