Health, features and articles | Educational Science

Feb 28, 2011

Mental Fallout from Japan Disaster Hits Elderly Hard

In the aftermath of the Japan earthquake and tsunami, pictures and videos tell hundreds of tragic stories: A young man sobbing after learning his wife and child are dead; rescue workers combing through leveled towns, turning up many bodies and few survivors; gray-haired seniors, made homeless by the tsunami, sleeping...

Feb 28, 2011

Weight Loss Surgery May Help Treat Migraines

People who undergo weight loss surgery may experience a beneficial side effect. Besides helping reduce a person's weight, the procedure may also mitigate migraine pain, a new study suggests. Among severely obese participants in the study, the surgery was able to decrease the severity and frequency of migraines. Close to...

Feb 28, 2011

Smoking Ups Risk for Diabetics, Study Suggests

Smokers already face a slew of health risks, but the habit may be particularly hazardous for those with diabetes, according to a new study. Nicotine — the addictive substance found in cigarettes — may increase blood sugar levels for diabetic smokers, putting them at risk for further complications of the...

Jan 31, 2011

How to Speak Genetics: A Glossary

Ever get confused about what's what when it comes to genetics? We've defined the main terms. Nucleotide Commonly called the building blocks of DNA, nucleotides consist of a nitrogen-containing chemical base either adenine, guanine, thymine or cytosine attached to a sugar and a phosphate group. One nucleotide's sugar group will...

Jan 31, 2011

What's the Difference Between Brown and White Eggs?

I have plans to cook an egg quiche thing and enough cinnamon rolls for 10 people this weekend, so I'm going to need a lot of eggs. Normally I'm not too discerning with my egg selection -- they all scramble just as well to me. But, standing in the grocery...

Jan 31, 2011

13-Pound Baby Part of an Alarming Trend

On Feb. 3, a 13-pound boy was born to Amanda Byron and fiancé Eric Rozzi in a Massachusetts hospital. At almost twice the weight of an average newborn, Jonathan Rozzi was the largest baby his doctor had ever delivered naturally. As big as he was, Jonathan was barely more than...

Jan 31, 2011

Teens View Oral Sex as Safer, but It Brings Cancer Risks

WASHINGTON, D.C – Teens tend to view oral sex as less risky than real sex, but it's far from inconsequential, researchers say. There is growing evidence that oral sex increases the risk of some head and neck cancers. Studies have shown that the more oral sex partners a person has,...

Jan 31, 2011

Marijuana's Active Ingredient Improves Cancer Patients' Appetites

The active ingredient in marijuana, called delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), increases the appetites of advanced cancer patients and improves their sense of taste, according to a new study. Seventy-three percent of cancer patients who took THC pills every day for 18 days reported an increased appreciation for food, compared with 30 percent...

Jan 31, 2011

The Bitter Side of Diet Soda: Strokes

Drinking diet soda is associated with a 50-percent increase in stroke risk, according to a study presented earlier this month at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference in Los Angeles. Not surprisingly, reaction to the news among dieters has been disparaging and defensive, as each person cycles through the...

Dec 31, 2010

Is Suspected Wikileaks Source's Solitary Confinement Torture?

For the past five months, U.S. Army Pvt. Bradley Manning has spent 23 hours a day in solitary confinement in the brig at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Va., as punishment for allegedly handing over top-secret documents to Wikileaks . Now, Bradley is being brought out of confinement for...

Dec 31, 2010

Nutrition Labels on Menus Don’t Alter Habits

Letting consumers know exactly how many calories are in their food might do little to change their eating habits, a new study suggests. The results show that, in the case of one fast-food chain in Washington, adding nutritional information to menus did not change consumer behavior after one year. The...

Dec 31, 2010

Study: Genes Influence Who Your Friends Are

You may have more in common with your friends than a shared sense of humor or a penchant for the same bar. A new study finds that friends often resemble each other at the level of their genomes – though certain genes may influence people to bond with others who...

Dec 31, 2010

Film 'Matchstick Men' Preps Smokers to Light Up

Many things can trigger a craving for cigarettes in smokers, and Nicolas Cage apparently is one of them. Watching an actor light up onscreen activates the part of the brain that plans hand movements in smokers, a new study finds, just as if the smokers were about to light a...

Dec 31, 2010

After Brain Injury: Giffords' Recovery Likely Lifelong

As plans progress to move U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) from Tucson's University Medical Center to a rehabilitation hospital in Houston, brain injury experts warn that her road to recovery is long and uncertain. Giffords, who was shot in the head on Jan. 8 in an attack that killed six,...

Nov 30, 2012

How Many Cells are in the Brain?

An enchanted loom is how Charles Sherrington described the interconnected net of cells that makes up our three-pound control center. Indeed, there is something almost magical in the notion that all our mental processes, from perception to memory to consciousness itself, can be described entirely by cellular activity in the...