Ed Cara
When meditation goes wrong: Some people find it distressing, survey shows
One of the most stereotypical relaxing things to do—meditation—may actually cause distress for some people, according to the findings of ...
Reproducibility crisis: Is scientific research ‘fundamentally flawed’?
A new report released [May 2019] by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is weighing in on a contentious debate ...
Social skills in people with autism could be improved through 2 new drug treatments
New research seems to show encouraging progress in helping treat the complex neurodevelopmental disorder autism. Two unrelated clinical trials, involving ...
Chronic fatigue syndrome could soon be diagnosed with a blood test
Researchers at Stanford University and elsewhere say they’ve taken an important step in potentially helping people with a barely understood ...
Pot-smoking study suggests CBD plays key role in protecting a stoned brain
Cannabidiol—the ingredient of cannabis that doesn’t make you high, commonly called CBD—might be the angel to THC’s devil, a new ...
An hour of exercise a week might be enough to stave off brain shrinkage, study shows
Staying fit could help keep your brain from shrinking and aging in your older years, suggests a new study out ...
CDC says autism is on the rise—and why it may be worse than we think
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s new report on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) ... offers little good news. It ...
After another failed clinical trial, new Alzheimer’s treatment attacks disease from ‘different angle’
The field of Alzheimer’s research is one filled with disappointment. [Recently], yet another drug failed its Phase 3 clinical trial, ...
Technological ‘leap forward’ moves artificial wombs closer to reality
In 2017, a team of Australian and Japanese scientists announced a breakthrough that could someday save the lives of countless babies. They ...
Using ketamine for depression or recreation: What’s the difference?
[G]iven ketamine’s long-standing reputation as a recreational drug—so notorious that users talk about entering a “K-hole” after taking it—you might ...
Esketamine touted as ‘game changer’ for depression—but who gets to use it?
[Recently,] the Food and Drug Administration approved Johnson & Johnson’s Spravato, the nasal spray version of a ketamine-like sedative, for ...
Are we closer to determining what a ‘conscious brain’ looks like?
Most of the time, it’s easy to tell when someone is consciously aware. But there are many tragic cases when ...
Fighting depression: Nasal-based ketamine spray clears key FDA hurdle
One of the largest hurdles to ketamine becoming a mainstream depression treatment may have just been cleared. On [February 12], ...
Is breakfast really important for weight loss? New study says no
Breakfast is often said to be the most important meal of the day, but according to a new review out [January 30] ...
Could ‘aggressively’ attacking high blood pressure prevent cognitive decline?
Some five million Americans live with dementia, most often Alzheimer’s disease. And it’s almost certain that as the general population ...
‘Perfect’ replicas of human blood vessels grown in lab
An international team of scientists claim to have pulled off a first: Three-dimensional replicas of human blood vessels that are ...
Even just a bit of exercise might help you live longer, study shows
Yet another study highlights the importance of getting up and doing something—anything!—to be physically active. It suggests that sedentary people ...
What the bulldog’s distinctive tail can tell us about this rare human genetic disorder
One of the most distinctive body parts of your typical English bulldog, French bulldog, or Boston terrier—their coiled screw tail—might ...
Are we ready for the ethical issues surrounding newborn genetic screening?
In the not-too-distant future, it will be possible to get a complete readout of a person’s genetics with ease, even ...
Do you really have a food allergy? Only 10 percent of Americans do, study claims
Millions of Americans might be mistaken about their self-professed food allergy, suggests a new survey. It found that while nearly ...
Childhood antibiotics use linked to higher risk of mental illness in study
[Antibiotic] overuse can help create bacterial superbugs resistant to future antibiotics. But a new study published [December 5] in JAMA Psychiatry suggests ...
Treating depression with brain-stimulating implants
[A] new study out of the University of California, San Francisco, published [November 29] in Current Biology, seems to offer an intriguing ...
Transplanted uterus leads to successful birth of baby girl
A team of doctors in Brazil have announced a medical first that could someday help countless women unable to have ...
‘Scarier than we knew’: Dementia-causing prions can spread through the eyes
One of the strangest things that can sicken us—a rogue misfolded protein that destroys the brain, known as a prion—is ...
The stuff that ‘makes magic mushrooms so magic’ moves closer to FDA approval for treating depression
The active ingredient that makes magic mushrooms so magic—the psychedelic drug psilocybin—is one step closer to becoming a legal treatment for ...
‘First drug of its kind’ flu medication gains approval
The flu vaccine remains the best proactive way to protect yourself and your loved ones from the influenza virus. But ...
Does the internet ‘mess with your brain’? New international project aims to find out
As anyone who has spent any amount of time on Twitter can tell you, the internet can bring out the ...
Erectile dysfunction? If you carry this gene, you have a 26% increased risk
A group of scientists believe they’ve uncovered at least some of the genetic risk factors that can contribute to a ...
