health

Extreme heat can increase levels of specific proteins, known as shock proteins, in the blood of pregnant women. These proteins can trigger inflammation by activating the body’s immune response. High temperatures may also reduce blood flow to the placenta, limiting the oxygen and nutrients the baby receives.

Gloves used by scientists in the lab may be skewing our understanding of the plastic crisis. New research reveals that these gloves can shed tiny particles that look identical to microplastics under a microscope. By accidentally mistaking these for pollution, researchers may have unintentionally inflated global microplastic estimates.

While epigenetic clocks are highly effective research tools to study ageing at the population level, they aren’t designed to make claims about the health of individuals.

People who lose their sight later in life, or whose blindness is caused by damage to the eyes rather than the brain, can still develop the condition. This makes it clear that blindness itself isn’t the deciding factor. Something specific about the visual brain is.

The most effective prevention method for congenital syphilis is universal screening of all pregnancies at three points: during the first trimester, the third trimester and at delivery.

She explained that guidelines on the topics are already formulated by many institutions, including stating, "Screen time should not be given to children under the age of 18," she said.

Doing some physical activity improves the ability to think and process information. A research has shown this to be true for both primary school and secondary school pupils.

Blood and urine analyses from vapers confirmed they had absorbed chemicals from e-cigarette chemicals that researchers know are linked to cancer.

Placebo treatments can trigger measurable changes in the brain, immune system and hormone function. In studies on pain, placebos cause the brain to release endorphins, the body’s natural opioids. In Parkinson’s disease, placebo injections increase dopamine activity in the brain. The placebo effect isn’t magic. It’s biology.

It is undeniable that causal-aware AI systems have the potential to accelerate drug discovery, optimise personalised treatment recommendations, and even offer novel mechanistic solutions across the breadth of biomedical science and medicine.

Pregnancy makes large-scale changes to a mother’s body. But as soon as the baby is delivered, these changes usually reverse back to baseline – often quicker than they happened during pregnancy. This sometimes means the body fails to adapt, leading to various health conditions.

In a landscape where medicines are often judged by how familiar they feel, codeine is a reminder that common does not always mean simple. Used carefully, it can help. Used carelessly, it can cause problems that last long after the pain itself has passed.