Health

The Twitter trend has found its way into operating rooms, but not everyone is comfortable with doctors revealing surgical details via the social networking tool.

Recent studies have discovered a relationship between lack of sleep and susceptibility to colds, highlighting the delicacy of the immune system machinery.

Organic farming isn’t a perfect practice free of chemicals or questionable animal treatment. Some believe that getting to know your local farmers may be the healthiest strategy.

MIT researchers have shown that the brain appears to react more to success than failure, supporting previous evidence that we learn more from a positive outcome than a negative one.

In difficult times, parental stress can impact children’s health. Teaching and modeling the right behavior and coping strategies can reduce worry and lighten the burden of stress.

Germ cells, the cells that compose eggs and sperm, could provide insight into the earliest stages of human development, and maybe even prevent infertility, birth defects and genetic diseases.

After a study revealed that several people seeking assisted suicide in Switzerland didn’t have a terminal illness, the Swiss cabinet is reconsidering assisted suicide laws.

Using teeth collected from donors in the St. Louis-area in the 1960s, a new study has uncovered a link between strontium-90 levels and cancer, calling attention to other environmental carcinogens.

Three participants in the 2009 Detroit Marathon died within minutes of one another. Though running-related deaths are rare, they cause other runners to ask, “Is marathon running dangerous?”

Even though the new swine flu vaccine is now available in most U.S. states, many parents are not sure that vaccination would be a safe option for their children.

A recent study suggests there may be a link between prenatal exposure to the chemical and increased aggression in little girls, but many find the association to be unfounded.

Everyone has gene NRG1, but in many breast cancer cells the gene is “broken.” How will the newfound link between the gene and cancer change the future of medicine?

With many adults expected to receive the swine flu vaccine/H1N1 influenza vaccine this year, those with a history of allergies to thimerosal may wonder if it’s safe for them.

Gain a better understanding of the Nobel prize-winning discovery that will aid in the development of new cancer therapies.

A CDC report found that deaths caused by opioid analgesics such as methadone and OxyContin more than tripled between 1999 and 2006. The federal government is trying to cut down on the prescribed use of opioids, which began to be used widely as painkillers in the 1990s.

An NFL-commissioned study found that retired players suffer from dementia and other memory-related diseases at many times the normal rate. The findings support prior independent research that the NFL has tried to discredit.

Through stimulus funding, the Obama administration is encouraging the adoption of e-health records by 2014, but programming issues and privacy concerns may be a stumbling block.

The Senate rejected two public option amendments to the health care bill, but Democrats are not ready to give up the fight to reform the health care system.

Many school districts around the country have few or no school nurses to deal with the latest surge of swine flu outbreaks.

A clinical trial found that an experimental HIV vaccine moderately reduced the risk of infection. It is the first successful large clinical trial of an HIV vaccine.

Created by a mother in memory of her son, National Gordie Day aims to educate students, parents and teachers about the hazards of binge drinking and fraternity hazing.

As the flu season begins, college administrators worry about the spread of the swine flu virus, but students remain largely unfazed by the risks.

Chef Ann Cooper is leading the movement for healthier school lunches, launching a Web site devoted to the cause and lobbying on Capitol Hill.

The sharp increase in teenage heroin use, both in big cities and small towns, has become a grave concern for parents and educators as kids return to school.

A new study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association found that black patients are at greater risk of dying from cardiac arrest than white patients while hospitalized.

Drug-resistant staph bacteria similar to the strains found in hospitals have been detected on beaches in Washington state, surprising researchers who believed there was no chance of finding the “superbug” there.

The University of Houston has created a class for students to earn credit for 20 to 30 minutes a week of Wii Fit, Nintendo’s exercise-specific add-on for the Wii console.

NFL Pro Bowlers Matt Birk, Lofa Tatupu and Sean Morey will donate their brains to a program studying chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a neurological disorder caused by blows to the head.

Researchers at UCLA diverged from tradition, examining sleep as an adaptive strategy that has more than one distinct purpose, instead of studying the brain’s relation to sleep.

Two recently released studies have moved science closer to discovering the cause of prostate cancer; one strengthened the link between prostate cancer and a virus, while the other discovered a stem cell in the prostate.