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While obesity has been reliably linked to many serious health problems – such as diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers – there's a minority of obese people who are metabolically healthy. A new study points to physical fitness as being a key component in these folks' avoidance of some of the usual obesity-linked health issues.

Some dopey teenagers are creating a social media firestorm by posting their adverse reactions to intentionally ingesting laundry detergent pods. Is this stupidity a new worry?

The news website took issue with a predictive algorithm, which is used in sentencing criminal defendants, charging that it produced racially-biased results. A recent study suggests that particular narrative is wrong.

This award needs to go to a media outlet that has credibility (in some people's eyes, anyway), yet consistently gets the science wrong, likely for ideological reasons. Using those criteria, the Times was the runaway winner. There isn't even a close second.

Why people respond differently to infections of the same bacterial species has been a long-standing question. Work has traditionally focused on the variations in those infected, but new research suggests that the important factors may lay in the bacteria themselves. 

There are those who believe that Ph.D's are still useful. Others might agree -- but with this gigantic caveat: It's only useful to those who are 100% certain that a life at the research bench is what they want to do.

We've been seeing news reports about runs on Imodium. The FDA has the anti-diarrheal medicine in its sights because it is being abused and is also really dangerous. How dangerous? You have a 4.6 times greater chance of dying from a coconut hitting you on the head. 

State officials across the country are extremely worried about the flu. They tell us that we have to do "everything in our power to fight this virus" and stay safe. But after a staggering 37 childhood deaths so far, are we? Shouldn't "everything" include adding the flu shot to the list of vaccinations needed for kids to attend school?

Sometimes spoiled foods smell bad, warning us not to eat them. But sometimes contamination with bacteria or degradation because of being held too long or at the wrong temperature aren't obvious. And thus consuming raw foods can be a bit like Russian roulette. A new method —a bioelectronic nose — of testing raw seafood, especially oysters, has been devised and could help prevent at least some cases of food-borne illness.

It is immoral and reckless to leave drugs within the reach of children. That five kids were poisoned makes grandpa, who had a medical marijuana prescription, an irresponsible pothead.

Two physicians studied the effect of Thunder Mountain, a Disney World roller coaster, on kidney stones. They wanted to know whether these crystals, that form in the organ, would move due to forces outside the body. Here's what they found.

A Florida orthopedic surgeon charged with possession and distribution of an analog of fentanyl called furanylfentanyl, which resulted in the death of a young woman, has had his trial postponed until April. 

It sounds like something right out of a horror movie, but it's real life. Parents in the United Kingdom — desperate to cure their children of autism — fall prey to snake oil, and to the con men that sell it. But this type of snake oil — doing away with autism by drinking bleach, is deadly. 

Late last year, when Germany unexpectedly voted in favor, European Union member states agreed to a five-year renewal period for glyphosate – instead of the originally proposed 15 years. This illustrates the “Era of Post-Truth” on scientific questions in the EU in general, and in France in particular.

Exposure at an early age might increase the likelihood of developing an allergy to the family kitty, according to some researchers. But according to others, it could be protective against such an allergy. So which is it? A recent study indicates it depends on the age at which the allergy is assessed.

American snowboarder slash Superwoman Chloe Kim just won her first Olympic gold medal in the Women's Snowboarding Half-pipe. But even she isn't immune to getting hangry — hungry + angry. We feel you, girl.

We can do a lot of things in under 24 hours. Now, we can add to that list sequence a human genome and diagnose a genetic disease. This amazing feat was done recently and shows just how quickly personalized genetic information is revolutionizing medicine.  

Biosimilars are less expensive generic versions of expensive biologic medicines. Rheumatologists, who prescribe a lot of these medications, have a few concerns about how they're approved. Namely, if these meds provide identical treatment as biologics, and that they're expensive. A position paper and accompanying editorial have been written focusing on these issues.

Given the countless books written on babies – month-to-month pregnancy guides, labor and delivery primers, and others particularly on sleeping and feeding – information overload is very real. But then again, there are books like The Baby Whisperer that make you glad you added it to your family library.
 

A new law passed by a slim margin in the Netherlands reflexively making anyone over the age of 18 an organ donor, compelling them to have to take specific action to opt out. Should the U.S. follow suit?

Romanian researcher Istvan Mathe has answered that burning question — "Is it safe to eat snow?" — with a nuanced answer. Yes, it's safe, but only for half a day. That is if you're talking about freshly fallen snow in Transylvania--it may not apply to Central Park.

Errors in our scientific beliefs are not always due to Big Industry and its evil intent. Science is a human enterprise, constrained by human foibles. Sometimes we just get it wrong.

No, I'm not speaking of Jonathan Goldsmith, the guy who just pretended to be The Most Interesting Man in the World. I'm speaking of the real deal, my grandfather, Dimitri Berezow -- a man who survived Stalin and Hitler, cheated death on multiple occasions, and went on to live the American dream. His was an impossibly unique story – one that seems too extraordinary to be true (and yet is) – capped with a cautionary tale about modern healthcare.

We have yet another tragic flu story in the news. This time it's a 38-year old mother who died because she thought the flu drug she was prescribed was too expensive. The only problem? The media got everything wrong. The flu drug would not have made any difference. 

Last year, Italy had more than 5,000 cases, for an incidence of 8 per 100,000 people. Meanwhile, the United States had 118 cases, for an incidence of roughly 0.04 per 100,000 people. The populist politicians and anti-vaxxers are to blame.