A sudden appendectomy as a child made Heather Smith curious about what the appendix is for and why it gets inflamed. Now as an anatomy researcher, she's finding answers.
Longevity research is booming. Scientists are looking for ways to target the basic biology of aging. And here's the exciting part: Our biological age appears to be malleable.
It's not just for weight loss. Patients and doctors alike are having success using the diet for illnesses like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. And research is taking off.
From neonatal and primary care to emergency medicine, kids got lower-quality care than their white peers, researchers found. Disparities include longer waits and less pain medication for broken bones.
Despite the lack of medical evidence for doing so, fertility clinics bar women over a certain BMI from their services. One writer makes the case such limits are unfair and unscientific.
Reading the same books, playing the same games, asking the same questions. Kids' fascination with repetition can be exhausting for parents, but researchers say it's key to brain development.
A new generation of blood tests can help doctors diagnose Alzheimer's without a brain scan or spinal tap. But only a few perform as well as traditional tests.
Annie Liontas experienced three brain injuries in the span of one year, which led to dizziness, memory fog and anger — and impacted Liontas' marriage and sex life.
If you made a New Year's resolution but are struggling to get started or are already wavering, you may need to refine your goal and nail down a plan to get there. Try this evidence-based approach.
Soda taxes are meant to discourage people from drinking too much sugar, which is linked to a host of bad health outcomes. Cities that imposed the taxes saw a 33% decrease in the sale of sugary drinks.
Flu is rising, and COVID levels are higher than last season's peak. But COVID hospitalizations and deaths are down. Nonetheless, COVID is still the most dangerous virus circulating.
Roughly 40 million adults in the U.S. have hearing loss, but most don't use hearing aids. This increases the risk of social isolation, physical and cognitive decline and may lead to premature death.
Last year, NPR's health reporters dug into the science of healthy living. Here are nine things they learned that can help you embrace small shifts with big payoffs in the year ahead.
Whether it's once a year or once a week, more people are plunging into cold water for fun and health benefits. NPR spoke to researchers about what's true and what's not on this wellness trend.
