March 19, 2025
(Aeon) – Millions are turning to an unregulated herbal extract to curb their opioid addiction. But do the risks outweigh the benefits? Harm reduction is a contested and evolving concept that was first used in the 1980s as a shorthand … Read More
March 18, 2025
(KFF Health News) – Kratom, which originates from the leaves of a tree native to Southeast Asia, is also touted for helping relieve pain and opioid withdrawal symptoms. But it can have wide-ranging mental and bodily effects, according to the … Read More
March 18, 2025
(Wired) – Since Amazon announced plans for a generative AI version of Alexa, we were concerned about user privacy. With Alexa+ rolling out to Amazon Echo devices in the coming weeks, we’re getting a clearer view of the privacy concessions … Read More
March 18, 2025
(NBC News) – State legislators want greater oversight of the wellness industry after 5-year-old Thomas Cooper was killed in a hyperbaric chamber fire in January. Thomas Cooper was killed Jan. 31 when a fire broke out in a hyperbaric chamber … Read More
March 17, 2025
(New York Times) – Ms. Delano is not a doctor; her main qualification, she likes to say, is having been “a professional psychiatric patient between the ages of 13 and 27.” During those years, when she attended Harvard and was … Read More
March 17, 2025
(New York Times) – THE TELEPHONE CALL that interrupted Brendan’s death was about extending lives, though not his. Just as he had planned. The caller was from LiveOnNY, the nonprofit organization federally designated to coordinate organ donations in the New … Read More
March 14, 2025
(Wall Street Journal) – Psychiatrists and primary-care doctors regularly prescribe the drugs for everything from mild anxiety to insomnia, making benzodiazepines some of the most commonly prescribed psychiatric medications in America. The pills’ omnipresence has left a mark on pop … Read More
March 13, 2025
(Axios) – As teen tobacco use experiences historic declines, new evidence suggests vaping is giving kids the same level of nicotine exposure. Why it matters: The findings could undercut arguments that vaping and e-cigarettes are less harmful than traditional cigarettes … Read More
March 13, 2025
(Wall Street Journal) – Hims and other telehealth firms make finasteride easy to get and don’t have to disclose side effects in ads Finasteride, the generic name for Propecia, is a popular hair-loss treatment that has been on the market … Read More
March 12, 2025
(New York Times) – Prescription drugs like lorazepam — used to treat anxiety, panic attacks and sleep disorders — play a role in popular TV shows like “The White Lotus” and “The Pitt.” This isn’t a case of Hollywood taking … Read More
March 12, 2025
(KFF Health News) – About 93 million CT scans are performed every year in the United States, according to IMV, a medical market research company that tracks imaging. More than half of those scans are for people 60 and older. … Read More
March 10, 2025
(Washington Post via MSN) – The “placebo effect” is a phenomenon that occurs when a person’s physical or mental health improves after taking what is essentially a sham treatment with no clear therapeutic benefits. “The placebo effect is not magic, … Read More
March 10, 2025
(Wall Street Journal) – Despite a child’s death, residents say personal choice—not public-health policy—should guide their decisions Gaines County exemplifies pockets of America where antivaccine sentiment has surged, fueled by deepening distrust in the U.S. government after the pandemic. With … Read More
March 6, 2025
(Associated Press) – Utah on Wednesday became the first state to pass legislation requiring app stores to verify users’ ages and get parental consent for minors to download apps to their devices. The bill headed to the desk of Gov. … Read More
March 6, 2025
(New York Times) – The state’s insurance regulator has demanded detailed information about patients and their medications, raising privacy concerns. Florida’s insurance regulator has demanded an unusually intrusive trove of data on millions of prescription drugs filled in the state … Read More
March 5, 2025
(CBS News) – A dozen children became ill after ingesting marijuana gummies at a New York middle school. The students, ages 12 to 13, started vomiting after taking the edibles Monday morning at William Floyd Middle School in Moriches. A … Read More
March 4, 2025
(NBC News) – Anxious parents are begging for early vaccinations while others are refusing the shot. Many holdouts are unfazed by the deadly measles outbreak in Texas. As virus cases rise and the U.S. recorded its first measles death in … Read More
March 4, 2025
(Nature) – From China to Brazil to Germany, huge numbers of people are addicted to shopping, driven in part by companies that use gaming strategies. German psychiatrist Emil Kraepelin described krankhafte Kauflust — the pathological desire to buy — as … Read More
March 4, 2025
(The Cut) – Inside the shiny new brick-and-mortar med spas trying to capitalize on receding hairlines. Somewhere in the depths of Reddit, Daniel got interested in PRP, the shorthand for platelet-rich plasma therapy, in which the platelets from a person’s … Read More
March 4, 2025
(MedPage Today) – A boxed warning for testosterone on major adverse cardiovascular events is out and a new blood pressure warning is in, the FDA announced late last week as part of a class-wide labeling update for all testosterone products. … Read More
March 3, 2025
(Science) – Innovative trial designs aim to separate participant expectations from drug effects This “functional unblinding” is not unique to psychedelics, but it’s especially pronounced in this drug class. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has expressed concern about … Read More
February 27, 2025
(New York Times) – The sickest patients are supposed to get priority for lifesaving transplants. But more and more, they are being skipped over. For decades, fairness has been the guiding principle of the American organ transplant system. Its bedrock, … Read More
February 26, 2025
(NPR) – “I think it helped,” says her husband, Ken Bell. “But I’m not sure.” That sort of uncertainty is common when it comes to Leqembi and Kisunla, two new Alzheimer’s drugs approved since 2023. Both drugs clear the brain … Read More
February 25, 2025
(New York Times) – Chatbots posing as therapists may encourage users to commit harmful acts, the nation’s largest psychological organization warned federal regulators. The nation’s largest association of psychologists this month warned federal regulators that A.I. chatbots “masquerading” as therapists, … Read More
February 25, 2025
(Nature) – Armed with an influx of cash and public enthusiasm, researchers are looking to improve how ageing is measured. Mixed feelings of enthusiasm and apprehension were common among researchers who spoke to Nature about efforts to develop tests that … Read More
