Virtual Singing Programs Boost Mood, Well-Being Of Isolated Seniors

Singing can be a balm for the soul, but does it still soothe if a person is singing alone in a virtual crowd?

Yes, says a pandemic-era study that tested whether seniors received any emotional or mental benefit from participating in a virtual choir during COVID-19 lockdowns.

Isolated seniors said they felt less anxiety, better social ...

Some OB/GYNS Stay in States With Abortion Bans, Despite Legal Risks

WEDNESDAY, April 23, 2025 — Three years after the U.S. Supreme Court ended the federal right to abortion, doctors who specialize in obstetrics and gynecology are still dealing with tough decisions about where to live and work.

A new study published in JAMA Network Open shows that most OB/GYNS didn’t immediately leave s...

Teen Cannabis Use Rises in Canada After Edibles Are Legalized

WEDNESDAY, April 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Teen cannabis use rose significantly in parts of Canada after edibles were legalized, a new study shows.

The study found a 26% increase in teen cannabis use in provinces that began selling cannabis edibles and extracts in October 2019. Use of edibles alone jumped 43%, researchers reported ...

Federal Prosecutor Questions Medical Journals Over Alleged Bias

WEDNESDAY, April 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) — At least three medical journals have received letters from a top federal prosecutor questioning whether they mislead readers or allow political bias to influence what they decide to publish.

The letters were signed by Edward Martin Jr., a Republican activist who now serves as interim U.S. ...

Antibiotics Might Increase Risk of Childhood Asthma, Allergies

Overuse of antibiotics might increase kids’ risk of developing asthma and allergies, by disrupting their gut bacteria during a crucial stage of child development, a new study says.

Exposure to antibiotics prior to age 2 is associated with a 24% increased risk of asthma and 33% increased risk of food allergies in later childhood, rese...

Muscle Quality Could Be Key To Successful Hip Replacement

Folks are less likely to recover successfully from a total hip replacement if they have poor muscle quality going into the procedure, a small-scale study says.

Patients whose MRI scans revealed fatty hip muscle prior to surgery were more likely to perform poorly on movement tasks following hip replacement, researchers reported today in the...

Early Menopause Might Mean Greater Age-Related Brain Decline

Early menopause could be a warning sign for future age-related brain decline, a new study says.

Women who entered menopause before 40 had a greater cognitive decline than women who entered menopause after 50, according to a study published recently in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia.

Early menopause also was ass...

Microplastics Could Be Contributing To Clogged Arteries

WEDNESDAY, April 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Microplastics could be contributing to clogged arteries, increasing people’s risk of heart attack or stroke, a new study says.

Fatty plaques in neck arteries can contain more than 50 times as much microplastics as are found in arteries free of plaques, researchers reported Tuesday at...

Psilocybin Use Dramatically Increasing In U.S.

WEDNESDAY, April 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Recreational use of “magic mushroom” psilocybin skyrocketed in the U.S. during the early 2020s, as states began toying with legalization of the psychedelic drug, a new study says.

The number of adults 30 and older who had used psilocybin in the past year increased by 188% betwe...

Mood Disorders Have Increased Among Kids, Teens

Depression and anxiety have been increasing steadily among children and teenagers in recent years, a new study says.

More than 1 in 10 children (10.6%) suffered from anxiety in 2022, up from 7.1% in 2016, researchers reported April 21 in JAMA Pediatrics.

During the same period, depression among children increased to 4.6% fro...

Federal COVID Websites Now Promote Lab Leak Theory

TUESDAY, April 22, 2025 — The Trump administration has replaced two major federal websites for COVID information with a new page that promotes the theory that the virus came from a lab in China.

Covid.gov and Covidtests.gov, which once helped people order COVID tests and find public health information, now redirect to a new page titl...

Trump Administration Plans Ban on More Synthetic Food Dyes

TUESDAY, April 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The Trump administration is expected to take new steps to remove artificial food dyes from the U.S. food supply, officials say.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary are expected to share more details on Tuesday, CNN reported...

RFK Jr.'s Major Autism Study To Use Private Health Records

TUESDAY, April 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The National Institutes of Health (NIH) will provide private health data to researchers for U.S. health chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s new autism study.

NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya told advisers the aim is to help researchers study autism by giving them access to "comprehensive" health ...

Immune Therapy Works As Well In Senior Cancer Patients As In Younger Adults

TUESDAY, April 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) — It’s well-known that a person’s immune system wears down over time, becoming less effective as folks progress through middle age and become seniors.

But that doesn’t appear to hinder the effectiveness of immunotherapy for cancer in seniors, a new study says.

Seniors w...

Most Women Are Comfortable With AI-Assisted Mammography

Women are OK with having an AI program help doctors review mammograms performed for breast cancer screening, a new study says.

About 7 out of 10 women (71%) said they’re fine with an AI program providing backup for a radiologist’s review of their breast X-ray, researchers report in the journal Radiology: Imaging Cancer...