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Obama increases Alzheimer's research funding

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 17:22:36 GMT

The Obama administration announced Tuesday it is increasing spending on Alzheimer's research — planning to surpass half a billion dollars next year — as part of a quest to find effective treatments for the brain-destroying disease by 2025.

College vending machine offers 'morning-after' pill

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 23:27:14 GMT

Students at a Pennsylvania university can obtain the "morning-after" pill from an unusual source — a vending machine at the campus health center.

Distraction reduces pain, study finds

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 23:31:34 GMT

By Joseph BrownsteinMyHealthNewsDailyWhen you distract yourself from pain, you actually hurt less, a new study suggests.

Paternity questions plague 1 in 10, firm says

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 13:41:18 GMT

The company that made its name peddling drugstore paternity tests to uncertain parents now says that more than 1 in 10 adults in the U.S. has had reason to ask the question: Who’s your Daddy? Gary Garner finally confirmed he's the real father of Skyler, 14.

Sex-ed less effective in red states, study says

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 23:47:37 GMT

By Christopher WanjekLiveScience Sex education is failing to reduce adolescent birthrates in conservative states, according to a new study. Perhaps paradoxically, states with a majority conservative population and higher degree of religiosity tend to have higher teen birthrates.

Doctors diagnose Harry Potter's headaches

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 15:24:21 GMT

After years of studying, experts think they've figured out what was ailing Harry Potter all those years -- a  nummular headache.

11 instant mood-boosting foods

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 15:11:07 GMT

Dark chocolate, blue potatoes and lemon macaroons! Find out what other surprising foods can help feed your brain and improve mood.

Sickening decor: Scientists study rug that makes people seasick

Sat, 4 Feb 2012 01:26:00 GMT

Take a look at this - but not too hard. Researchers with a little time on their hands found that this black-and-white striped rug gives people symptoms of nausea and motion sickness.

Is social media spreading twitching hysteria?

Fri, 3 Feb 2012 19:31:08 GMT

In the case of nearly 20 teenagers with a twitching disorder in upstate New York, doctors say the symptoms may be spreading faster through the girls' own use of Facebook and other forms of social media.

Maine girl bouncing back after 6-organ transplant

Fri, 3 Feb 2012 00:17:03 GMT

A 9-year-old Maine girl is home from a Boston hospital healthy, active and with high hopes — and a new stomach, liver, spleen, small intestine, pancreas, and part of an esophagus to replace the ones that were being choked by a huge tumor.

CDC: 9 in 10 Americans eat too much salt

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 19:10:21 GMT

Despite public health messages telling Americans to lower the amount of salt in their diets, 90 percent of people in the U.S. older than age 2 consume more than the recommended amount of sodium each day, a new report says.

Facebook takes a toll on your mental health

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 23:39:09 GMT

By Stephanie PappasLiveScience Facebook's initial public offering of stock is likely to make a lot of developers and designers of the site very wealthy.

Study: Child abuse bigger threat than SIDS

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 15:14:15 GMT

In the first national estimate of serious injuries due to child abuse, Yale University researchers say 4,600 U.S. children were hospitalized with broken bones, traumatic brain injury and other serious damage caused by abuse. Babies younger than one were the most common victims.

Is it Alzheimer's, or mild cognitive impairment?

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 22:00:10 GMT

Almost everyone currently diagnosed with a mild form of Alzheimer's disease would be downgraded to not having the condition, if new proposed criteria for the diagnosis of cognitive problems were applied, a new study shows.

CDC: 1 in 5 kids exposed to secondhand smoke in cars

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 14:59:15 GMT

Texting while driving, speeding and back-seat hanky-panky aren't all that parents need to worry about when their kids are in cars: Add secondhand smoke to the list.

Surprising reasons you're tired all the time

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 17:06:13 GMT

If you feel tired all the time, don’t blow it off. Give yourself time to make some lifestyle changes — but if you're still exhausted, it could be a sign of something more serious.

More mystery illness cases reported in upstate NY

Thu, 2 Feb 2012 21:33:14 GMT

Three more teens and a 36-year-old nurse have been stricken by the same symptoms first observed in 12 teenage girls.

Komen's Karen Handel quits after funding dispute

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 21:26:47 GMT

Karen Handel, an executive with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast-cancer charity has resigned after a dispute over funding for Planned Parenthood.

Have we met? Face blindness prevents recognition

Tue, 7 Feb 2012 22:49:49 GMT

Some people are better at recognizing a face. Now a study of individuals who have prosopagnosia, a disorder rendering them unable to distinguish another's mug, suggests a possible cause: a breakdown in a brain pathway used to process faces.

Study: Green tea could be secret to healthy old age

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 03:12:15 GMT

Elderly adults who regularly drink green tea may stay more agile and independent than their peers over time, according to a Japanese study that covered thousands of people.

Spanking linked to more aggression in kids

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 18:25:06 GMT

A review of 20 years of research finds that physically disciplining a child has long-term, harmful effects on their development.