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In nutrition, bashing sugar is all the rage. Over roughly the last 20 years, many researchers and health commentators have moved beyond implicating sugar as a cause of life-threatening disease, to blaming it for more mild concerns, even acne. Is it true? Let's find out.

Paradoxically, for scientists, the more you express your uncertainty, the more likely you are to be trusted ... that is, to a point.

Well, it's official. Scientific American, the once-reputable publication, will publish absolutely anything. Just like The Huffington Post or InfoWars.

Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is more than a bad cold. Seasonal outbreaks cause not only tremendous misery but huge numbers of hospital admissions and fatalities. Although the "holy grail" – a universal flu vaccine that recognizes all strains, including newly-arising ones – is not yet available, this does not mean that you should not get the seasonal vaccine. You should, and soon.

Not that we needed it, but there's now even more evidence that prescription analgesic opioids play a very small part in fatal overdoses that continue to plague America. How small? According to a new study published in Public Health Reports, let's just say: get out your magnifying glass.

Why do teaching hospitals feel the need to write articles justifying why they are better? It makes you believe they have an inferiority complex. Do they?

The Navy has filed a patent that could allow for the creation of portable nuclear fusion reactors. The scientist behind this is thinking big. He's also responsible for dreaming up ways to propel aircraft, like UFOs.

Followers of the opioid crisis know that nothing much makes sense. And if you follow Proposition 65 madness in California, you know that doesn't add up either. So if you're in the mood for something that puts the Crazyometer® needle in the red, here it is. You will not be disappointed. 

Here's what's on tap: Is tackle football the "New Smoking?" ... Private equity investment + healthcare = SURPRISE Billing. ... Is there an evolutionary role for parasites? ... And time: Is it subjective, fleeting or agonizingly long? A look at the underlying neurobiology.

Surgeons have been cutting back (pun intended!) in their prescription of opioids for pain relief after surgery. Is it affecting patient satisfaction? Evidently not.

The media has played a big part in disseminating false information about the causes of the opioid crisis, and it has done tremendous harm in the process. Addiction specialist Dr. Wolfgang Vogel gives his opinion on inaccurate reporting and its consequences.

A new study looks at factors for surgical residents not passing the Board exams, which serve as the national measure of surgical competence. Being married with children decreases the pass rate for women, but not men. What's up with that?

"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy." That quote, wrongly attributed to Benjamin Franklin, could still be true, but not for the reason most of us would think. Scientific research suggests that it is the flavor, not the presence of alcohol, that makes drinkers happy.

It's open enrollment when those with Medicare can adjust the supplemental programs, those involving the cost of their medications as well as out-of-pocket spending. Here's a quick guide. (And we're betting you can find a way to reduce your spending before Congress gets to it.)

What's more effective when it comes to debunking science? Turns out that ad hominem attacks work as well as disproving the "facts" of a given argument.

If you're driving around the southwest and find yourself in the middle of nowhere, pay attention. That's because you never know when you might be near a place of historic significance. There's just such a place in the Arizona desert called Chloride, and here's how it got its name. And a little chemistry lesson (at no extra charge).

Acai breakfast bowls are available in nearly every trendy smoothie and juice bar. But if you haven’t indulged in this particular "superfood" fad yet, you haven’t missed out. Turns out acai bowls don’t actually provide a healthy start to the day after all. That's because they're nutritionally equivalent to three bowls of Froot Loops.

If you're a consumer of science news, or just a curious person looking for information on nutrition or medicine, you have to learn how to spot junk science. Especially from sources that are typically reliable. Here are a few guidelines that can help separate sound research from sneaky misinformation.

The giant supermarket chain is long on marketing but short on science; this is hardly news. However, its officials apparently can't fathom the irony of selling nitrate-free meat in addition to nitrate dietary supplements. But we do.

A long campaign season might make American politicians uniquely incentivized not to solve problems. It's easier to raise money and scare up enough votes to get elected by promising change, rather than actually delivering it. This harms public health.

Four sips from the firehose that is Internet content: Spicy and bitter are ways plants tried to dissuade you from eating them; CRISPR, in service of animal welfare, hits a snag; a podcast contrasts Nathan's Hot-Dog Eating Contest to chemotherapy, and good news science is alive and beautifully well.

Some parents are reluctant vaccinators. That's because of the sheer number of immunizations recommended for their infant in the first year of life. Anti-vaxxers have broadened that argument, suggesting and that there's no scientific basis for the schedules. Now, it's more complicated than their alarmist memes, but why let facts get in the way of a viral meme, right? Spoiler alert: the anti-vaxxers are wrong.

Instead of getting a flu shot, a Columbia University professor who believes in natural remedies chose a "tincture of elderberry." Her effort was rewarded with cyanide poisoning.

The use of self-reported behavior has been an Achilles heel of sorts, regarding the certainty of research outcomes. A new study shows not only that "self-reports" may be incorrect, but the degree of uncertainty introduced by them varies with the self-reporter's age, education and nationality.

A new study estimates that 25% of our healthcare spending is wasted. Physicians, the most easily squeezed, account for about a third. Market failures -- a term for opaque, high prices for pharmaceuticals and the high cost of administrative "complexity" -- account for the other two-thirds.