Health & Wellbeing

Type 2 diabetes can take years to develop, but caught early is an entirely preventable disease. A new study is suggesting a particular blood biomarker could be used to identify those on the way to diabetes but yet to display symptoms of disease.

New research has offered interesting new insights around the most efficient forms of exercise, demonstrating that even very brief dumbbell workouts each day can lead to a significant boost in muscle strength.

Regulators in the UK have approved Moderna’s new Omicron-specific COVID-19 vaccine for an upcoming nation-wide autumn booster program. The approval makes the UK the first region in the world to move forward with an improved variant-targeting vaccine.

A striking study has found eggs from hens in urban backyards can contain up to 40 times more lead than eggs from commercially farmed hens. The researchers recommend those in inner-city locations test their soil before raising chickens or growing food.

A polio vaccine booster program has been announced in the UK targeting all London children under the age of 10. The program comes after more detections of poliovirus in London’s wastewater indicate the virus is spreading undetected through the city.

New research reports some natural supplements contain high levels of levodopa, used in drug treatments for Parkinson’s disease. The research found levels of levodopa in some supplements can be higher than what's found in common pharmaceutical formulations.

A new Lyme disease vaccine is about to enter its final phase of human trialling. If all goes well it could be available by 2025, making it the first vaccine for Lyme disease to reach the market in nearly a quarter of a century.

New research has reported a link between elevated blood levels of perfluooctane sulfate (PFOS) and increased risk of liver cancer. The study is the first to directly associate exposure from this “forever chemical” to liver cancer in humans.

An innovative new rapid test promises to give people the ability to easily measure their COVID-19 immunity. The test tracks levels of neutralizing antibodies in a drop of blood, helping a person evaluate their susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

For decades, doctors have noticed men seem more likely to develop cancers compared to women, and while it was often waved away as due to lifestyle, a new study suggests biological factors may be the biggest player in the different cancer risk.

A study testing time-restricted eating has delivered positive results, indicating greater weight loss compared to calorie counting but researchers are still unsure whether the benefits are due to anything more than participants simply eating less.

A striking new article argues the global spread of certain hazardous chemicals is so pervasive that unsafe levels of PFAS chemicals can be found in rainwater all over the world, including remote areas such as Antarctica and the Tibetan Plateau.

A new study has found people with elevated blood levels of a protein called prostasin face a significantly higher risk of developing diabetes or dying from cancer. It’s unclear at this point whether the protein plays a causal role in either disease.

Like many highly addictive drugs, ketamine causes a rush of dopamine in the brain. But new research in mice from the University of Geneva shows ketamine also blocks the brain process that leads to neuroplasticity, habit formation and compulsion.

Sodium nitrite is often added to cured meats, in order to prevent spoilage and provide flavor. It can also cause health problems in large amounts, however, which is why a color-changing film has been created to indicate nitrite levels.