Health, features and articles | Educational Science

Dec 31, 2017

Here's a Perfect Example of Why You Shouldn't Stifle Your Sneeze

Before you try to stifle your sniffle to avoid a loud, snotty sneeze, heed some advice from a 34-year-old man in England who ruptured his throat while trying that trick: Don't do it. The man ended up hospitalized and barely able to speak or swallow after he tried to stop...

Dec 31, 2017

How Getting the Flu May Put You at Risk of a Heart Attack

The flu can be a serious illness itself, but it may also increase the risk of having a heart attack, a new study from Canada finds. The study found that patients' risk of a heart attack was six times higher during the first week following a flu diagnosis, compared with...

Dec 31, 2017

Does Coffee Contain a Carcinogen? Here's What the Science Says

Update (March 30, 2018): A California judge ruled on March 29 that coffee shops in the state must include a cancer warning label each cup of joe. Here's more about the ruling and the possible coffee-cancer link. If a lawsuit in California is successful, Golden State stores that sell coffee...

Nov 30, 2019

'Crazymothers' Want You to Stop Calling Them 'Anti-Vaxxers'

A group of people opposed to vaccinations has requested that media stop referring to them as anti-vax. Instead, they would prefer to be called vaccine risk aware. On Dec. 1, an anti-vaccine group called the Crazymothers raised its plea on Twitter and Instagram, asserting that the term anti-vaxxer is derogatory,...

Nov 30, 2019

Puppy Licks to a Woman's Feet May Have Caused Serious Skin Infection

Dogs can bring a person happiness, love, laughter ... and sometimes strange infections. Case in point: A woman in Israel was diagnosed with a bacterial infection that she likely contracted from innocent puppy licks, according to a new report. Last year, the 86-year-old woman went to the hospital with a...

Nov 30, 2019

What Was the Black Death?

The Black Death of the 14th century is well known. When historians discuss the plague they are usually referring to this epidemic of bubonic plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. In his book, The Black Death, 1346-1353: The Complete History (Boydell Press, 2018), Ole Jørgen Benedictow estimates that 50-60%...

Nov 30, 2019

The Fascinating History of Crisco, the Famous Tub of 'Lard'

Perhaps you'll unearth a can of Crisco for the holiday baking season. If so, you'll be one of millions of Americans who have, for generations, used it to make cookies, cakes, pie crusts and more. But for all Crisco's popularity, what exactly is that thick, white substance in the can?...

Nov 30, 2019

Take That Back: The Top Scientific Retractions of 2019

If it disagrees with experiment, it's wrong. That's all there is to it. So said famed physicist Richard Feynman at a lecture about the scientific method at Cornell University in 1964. Feynman appears to be only half correct, though. Yes, one's proposed theory is wrong if it doesn't agree with...

Oct 31, 2019

DNA Just One of More Than 1 Million Possible 'Genetic Molecules,' Scientists Find

DNA and its cousin RNA store genetic information and enable life as we know it — but what if millions of lesser-known chemicals could do the exact same thing? A new study suggests that more than 1 million chemical look-alikes could encode biological information in the same way that DNA...

Oct 31, 2019

These Two Drug-Resistant Microbes Are New 'Urgent Threats' to Americans' Health

The U.S. faces two new urgent threats to public health: a couple of drug-resistant germs called Candida auris and Acinetobacter, health officials announced today. These microbes have built up resilience against the drugs designed to kill them, meaning they can be incredibly dangerous and difficult to treat. In fact, drug-resistant...

Oct 31, 2019

Here's What Sugar Does to Your Brain

We love sweet treats. But too much sugar in our diets can lead to weight gain and obesity, Type 2 diabetes and dental decay. We know we shouldn't be eating candy, ice cream, cookies, cakes and drinking sugary sodas, but sometimes they are so hard to resist. It's as if...

Oct 31, 2019

A Man Develops 'Feather-Duvet Lung' After Switching His Bedding

A soothing pillow and warm duvet might not always lead to better rest. A 43-year-old-man, after having switched to feather bedding, began feeling extreme fatigue and breathlessness, and was diagnosed with feather-duvet lung, according to a new case report. The patient went to his doctor after experiencing three months of...

Oct 31, 2019

Malaria: Causes, Symptoms & Treatment

Malaria is a disease caused by a parasite that gets passed into the bloodstream of humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. Only the Anopheles species of mosquito can transmit malaria, and mosquitoes pick up the parasite from biting a person already infected with the illness. People with malaria...

Oct 31, 2019

'Designer Baby' Technology to Make Smarter, Taller Kids Doesn’t Work Yet

Will parents soon have the power to decide how tall or intelligent their children will be? Probably not, new research suggests. Ethical debate surrounds the concept of so-called designer babies — offspring whose embryos are either selected for certain traits or genetically engineered to boast chosen genetic traits. Once the...

Oct 31, 2019

Is it Safe to Eat Roadkill?

Each year, vehicles kill hundreds of thousands of animals on roads in the U.S, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration. That number could actually be much higher because not all accidents involving animals may be reported. Rather than seeing those animals spoil and go to waste...