A vitamin allergy? Sounds strange, but some people are really allergic to Vitamin B12, which is necessary for all cells in the human body. What's going on? There is a hint in an alternate name for B12 - cyanocobalamin. The allergy to B12 is really an allergy to cobalt.
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Results of a study about soccer and the effects that "heading" the ball has on the brain delivered one key message: women's brain matter appears to be more sensitive than men's. While this may be true, it's important that we be somewhat cautious in making too much of this, given the many limitations of the study.
Obstetrical Violence refers to the coerced treatment of a mother during childbirth, without an informed, voluntary consent. But the coercion is by the State, not a physician. And the words will inflict unnecessary violence on the doctor-patient relationship.
There are signs that the devastating opioid crisis we're experiencing here is spreading to other nations – including the United Kingdom. Germany had the closest rates to those in the U.S., while in the U.K. doses per million people, per day, more than tripled.
Probability and odds play a large role in explaining the results of medical studies. Yet, they are not the same, and knowing how to understand odds will make it easier to separate the signal from the noise.
Aging at home rather than in a nursing home can be more satisfying for individuals and their family and may reduce the cost of care. But what to do when Mom and Dad are not at the top of their game? Passive monitoring will play an increasingly larger role.
The pain relief counter in your pharmacy can be a confusing place ... enough so to give you a headache. But actually, it can all be very simple. There are four over-the-counter painkillers, some of which can be taken together and some of which can't. Here's the scoop, presented in a way that's easy to swallow.
GM crop adoption has been facilitated in developing countries through the development of biosafety frameworks, allowing for thorough risk assessments to be completed. Significant benefits from these crops have come in the domain of socio-economics.
Causing trouble keeps Russia relevant. It's as if nihilism and cynicism are the two guiding principles of Russia's foreign policy. And if that's not enough, as part of its global mischief-making Russia is assaulting American science and technology.
In 2017, more than 72,000 Americans died from drug overdoses. That's a staggering number -- almost double the number of car crash fatalities and nearly quadruple the number of homicides. Most drug overdoses involved some type of opioid.
For those looking for another way to sculpt their bodies, there's a new, high-tech device that has great promise. But to use it, you'll need to get naked in front of a full-length mirror-scanner-computer that sends all your measurement data to the Cloud. Is this amazing – or is the idea so intrusive that, in the name of getting in better shape, this has really gone too far?
Just when you think it's reached its peak, WebDumB comes through once again. The folks there have taken a look at places where germs lurk. Unfortunately, their "wisdom" is nowhere to be seen.
A recently-released study touting how preoperative oral treatment can lower the risk of suffering postoperative pneumonia appears to have bitten off more than it can chew.
You're athletic. You run regularly. You swim, cycle or lift weights to keep your muscles strong. And you watch what you eat for the purposes of remaining lean – and so that you can remain athletic. So you have all the bases covered, right? Well, almost, because a new study says "you still can’t outrun your risk factors” for cardiovascular disease, making doctor's visits essential.
Probiotics are one of the recent darlings of the supplement world. But do they do anything? A small human study says yes. But what they do isn't good.
In seeking to nail down an exact day when chemophobia – an irrational fear of harmless trace chemicals – came into existence, one must consider a singular government act that occurred on Sept. 6, 1958.
Superhyped: superfoods. The concept is ridiculous, yet wealthy Americans are buying into it -- big time. Depending on how you define them, superfoods either don't exist at all ... or we're surrounded by them. One ACSH advisor, the Director of Medical Nutrition at Columbia University Medical Center, weighs in.
With a growing number of teenage pitchers having surgery because of elbow-joint overuse, the former Major Leaguer can no longer observe this trend without wincing. And he has an urgent message for parents whose kids concentrate on playing one sport nearly year-round. Spare your still-developing teen a lifetime of pain and discomfort: Stop focusing on a single sport.
Some chemicals are nasty. Some are plain evil. Then, there's methyl fluorosulfonate, aka "Magic Methyl." It's so bad that you have to be out of your mind to use it. Unless you want to dissolve a chicken breast.
Like a broken clock that accidentally gets the time right, California has finally stumbled upon the correct approach to coffee. Sort of. After widespread mockery and condemnation, the Golden State has had an epiphany: Maybe coffee doesn't cause cancer. The FDA agrees.
Sleep is governed by the circadian rhythm, which is typically entrained to the 24-hour solar day. As the sun rises and sets the human body's metabolism responds accordingly. But in this case study, the circadian rhythm of a patient with bipolar disorder was also linked to the 24.8-hour lunar cycle, which contributed to his manic-depressive episodes.
Contrary to wide-eyed speculation and fearmongering, coffee is not going extinct. Coffee bean production is up, and prices are down.
Marketing executives at General Mills insisted that if their personal Twitter feeds were evidence, people were in a panic about GMOs. Then they discovered the awful truth.
The chemophobia-for-profit crowd has a very good trick up their sleeve and they play it constantly because it works. Let's use this trick against them and show why a very scary chemical may not be scary at all.
Surgeons are frequently the first to prescribe opioids to patients. Of course, surgery usually hurts. After a year of government agencies and legislators practicing "medicine," it's time to hear from the actual physicians. They have practical solutions we can use today.
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