Body & Mind

Watching a video of a therapy dog for just five minutes can meaningfully lower stress levels, a new study shows, offering a simple, stigma-free option for those reluctant to seek traditional mental health support.

Alternating between a calorie-restricted plan and one high in fat and sugar, resulting in weight gain, is not just down to psychology and behavior. This kind of weight-loss-gain cycle – yo-yo dieting – has a surprising biological driver: The gut.

The findings of a new study suggest that the age-old belief that eating cheese before bed can give you nightmares might actually be true. But it’s not just cheese; other foods, and when you eat them, can make a difference to sleep and dream quality.

Researchers have found that newborns have high levels of the tau protein, which is elevated in older people with Alzheimer’s disease, but that it causes them no harm. The discovery opens the door to developing new ways of treating the condition.

Many persistent sinus infections involve biofilms – colonies of bacteria that group together to resist efforts to kill them. Now, researchers have developed biofilm-blasting bots that could handily deal with these, and other, bacterial infections.

Remarkable new findings about the sugar stores in neurons have unlocked an entire new method of treating cognitive decline, and it furthers our understanding of why GLP-1 weight loss drugs appear to provide a shield against Alzheimer's disease.

The fungus thought to have claimed the lives of several excavators at Tutankhamun's burial site has had an image makeover, with scientists discovering that it holds potent cancer-fighting properties. It opens the door to new fungi-based medicines.

Honey produced by some species of Australian stingless bees possesses impressive bacteria- and fungi-killing properties, according to new research. The honey has the potential to be used alongside or in place of existing antibiotics.

For the first time, scientists have unraveled how high levels of fructose flip a genetic switch that primes your immune system to overreact to things it would normally ignore. In this "trigger happy" state, the immune system becomes the enemy within.

Eating one extra serving of leafy greens a day could help protect your heart, according to a new long-term study that found that a higher intake of vitamin K1, found in spinach, kale and broccoli, was linked to a lower risk of dying from heart disease.

A study found that psychopaths have structural changes in particular areas of the brain that deal with impulse control and emotional regulation. This improved understanding may help to formulate targeted treatment and rehabilitation strategies.

For the first time, Cortical Labs' mini-brain system has shown how its breakthrough biological computer system can, in response to drug intervention, alter activity and improve performance. It's a huge milestone for synthetic biological intelligence.

A clinical trial has shown that Ozempic improves blood glucose levels and weight loss in overweight type 1 diabetics who use an automated insulin delivery system. It’s hoped this will lead to the approval of Ozempic for this patient population.

A new drug from pharma company Amgen shows promise as a powerful treatment for obesity. With just a once-monthly shot of 'MariTide,' participants in the study lost as much as 16% of their body weight over the course of a year.

We've seen surfaces that kill microbes on contact, but scientists in the UK have recently gone a potentially more effective route. They've created maze-like surface patterns that keep bacteria from sticking around to establish biofilm colonies.