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More Americans are surviving cancer. But the mental health challenges can persist

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

The cancer diagnosis came as a shock, disrupting Morgan Newman’s plans for launching her life. It was 2015, and she was working as a dental assistant in Des Moines, Iowa, while studying to become a social worker.

After an abnormal result on her Pap smear, her doctor brought her back in to check the tissue for signs of cancer. Newman wasn’t ...Read more

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Commentary: The looming threats to abortion access in 2026

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

In recent years, antiabortion groups and lawmakers have seeded a number of challenges to medication abortion. This year, several are coming to fruition.

In 2026, decisions from either the courts, Food and Drug Administration or Department of Justice could end telehealth for medication abortion.

Roughly two-thirds of Americans who end their ...Read more

Michael Blackshire/Los Angeles Times/TNS

This plant extract can make a lethal drug cocktail. Can it also treat opioid addiction?

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

LOS ANGELES -- A plant extract that's gaining popularity as a pain cure-all and has been associated with multiple California deaths in its concentrated, synthetic form has been approved for research as a treatment for opioid addiction by the federal government.

Kratom is derived from the leaves of Mitragyna speciosa, a tree native to Southeast ...Read more

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Mayo Clinic Q&A: How is hip impingement affecting young adults?

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My nephew is in his 20s and has been complaining about ongoing hip pain, especially after working out. When it didn’t improve, he saw an orthopedic specialist and was diagnosed with hip impingement. What is that?

ANSWER: Hip impingement, also called femoroacetabular impingement, is a condition that often affects young, ...Read more

Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune/TNS

Chicago health officials warn of potential measles exposure at O'Hare airport

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Chicago health officials are investigating a case of measles in a traveler who arrived at O’Hare International Airport on June 17.

The person likely caught the measles outside of the U.S., according to the Chicago Department of Public Health. It’s possible members of the public may have been exposed to the illness at O’Hare in terminal 5 ...Read more

It's important to discuss overall sleep health with your child's doctor. Jacob Wackerhausen/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Melatonin can be a safe and effective sleep aid for all ages – but product inconsistencies and improper dosing lead to real harms

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Melatonin – a go-to sleep aid for kids and adults alike in many households in America – continues to create media buzz, with conflicting messages that leave people uncertain about its safety.

Some headlines point to melatonin’s supposed immunity boosting power, while others point to unestablished links between melatonin and ...Read more

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Kenya halts construction work on US Ebola quarantine facility

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Kenyan Health Secretary Aden Duale has frozen the construction of an Ebola isolation facility for U.S. citizens, after he was found guilty of contempt for ignoring a court directive to halt the work.

“I have directed the immediate and complete cessation of any intended construction site preparations or related activities concerning the ...Read more

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Mayo Clinic Q&A: Block some time out for health screenings

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: Since I turned 40, my clinic has been sending me a slew of reminders about men's health screenings. Are they really necessary?

ANSWER: Yes! Blocking out some time for these important health screenings is one of the most important things you can do for yourself.

Historically, men have been hesitant to seek medical attention ...Read more

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Tennessee pharmacies sell potent ivermectin, led by anti-vaccine doctor who's taken 'bucketloads'

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Four years ago, Tennessee became the first state to allow adults to buy the antiparasitic drug ivermectin from a pharmacy without first seeing a doctor. Pharmacies can use a pre-written, blanket prescription to sell to just about anyone who walks through their doors.

The drug is now marketed and sold across the state in ...Read more

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Indiana takes on powerful hospitals by capping prices they charge employers

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Tired of watching its employers struggle to afford the cost of healthcare, Republican-controlled Indiana is trying a traditionally liberal tactic to control costs: setting government price controls on hospitals.

Under a law enacted last year, five of Indiana’s largest nonprofit hospital systems cannot charge patients covered by job-based ...Read more

Trust in medical research has tanked. This hospital might have the answer

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

ST. PAUL. Minn. -- Gillette Children’s in St. Paul is trying to boost public confidence in medical research by doing something long considered taboo in U.S. health care: paying patients and their families to get involved.

The hospital for disabled children and adults is one of the first in the U.S. to hire “lived experience” partners who ...Read more

Difficult experiences you had as a child may be putting a wedge between you and your partner. Dmytro Betsenko/Moment via Getty Images

Childhood experiences of LGBTQ+ stigma can harm romantic relationships decades later – psychologists explain how to reconnect with yourself and your partner

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Childhood rejection, discrimination and bullying can affect your well-being as an adult. If your friends, family or community pushed you away because of your sexuality or gender, these childhood experiences of prejudice can also affect your future relationships.

Many LGBTQ+ people encounter difficult experiences as children, including...Read more

Healing after a fracture is just one way your bones contribute to your body's overall health. seksan Mongkhonkhamsao/Moment via Getty Images

Bones communicate with the rest of the body to support overall health – here’s the science behind your skeleton

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Each year, doctors treat more than 6 million bone fractures in the United States. And while it takes only a few seconds for a bone to break, the processes that keep your bones strong and allow them to heal are taking place continuously throughout your life.

Beneath their hard surface, your bones are alive with activity, continuously ...Read more

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Arrests of immigrant parents create mental health crisis for children

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

LOS ANGELES — Damian Zermeño, 15, sensed something was wrong the moment he got home from school.

His aunt sat at the dining table, sobbing. His father, who'd walked him to the bus stop that morning and promised to take him to dinner when he got back, wasn't there.

Saúl Zermeño, a 45-year-old single dad, had gone to a routine check-in ...Read more

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Trump changes pregnancy-prevention program to promote childbearing

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

A federal poverty-fighting program focused on reducing unintended pregnancies is about to undergo a major overhaul.

Reproductive health clinics use Title X federal grant money to provide birth control, cancer screenings and testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections to people with little or no health insurance. Title X money ...Read more

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Ask the Pediatrician: Are baby neck floats safe to use in the tub or pool?

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Baby neck floats have become a popular accessory on social media, often shown as a cute and convenient way to let infants bob around in the tub or pool. While these inflatable rings may look fun and relaxing, their growing popularity has also sparked serious safety concerns.

As a parent, it's natural to wonder whether baby neck floats provide ...Read more

Australia detects H5 bird Flu as virus reaches every continent

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Australia reported its first mainland case of H5 bird flu, marking the spread of the deadly virus to every continent on the planet.

The strain was found in a dead migratory seabird in remote Western Australia, Julie Collins, the country’s agriculture minister, said at a press conference in Canberra on Saturday. There’s no evidence of any ...Read more

Legionnaires wait to testify before a special congressional inquiry in November 1976 into the cause of the mysterious disease.  Bettmann/Bettman Collection via Getty Images

Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Philadelphia in 1976 was mysterious and deadly – 50 years later, scientists know the cause but outbreaks continue

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Soon after Philadelphia hosted America’s bicentennial celebrations in late July 1976, more than 200 attendees of the American Legion Convention at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia fell ill with pneumonia symptoms, including fever, cough and trouble breathing.

Thirty-four of them died.

One of us was a newly minted...Read more

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New hospital program brings amputations to zero for at-risk diabetic patients

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

LOS ANGELES -- More than three decades after a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes, Michelle Caldwell says her disease is better controlled than ever.

She keeps regular appointments with her endocrinologist, primary care provider, dietician and pharmacist at MLK Community Medical Group, the outpatient arm of MLK Community Healthcare.

She picks up ...Read more

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High-deductible health plans are being sold as a cure. They aren't

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Recently, during rounds, I met a patient who almost missed her own heart attack. She'd had chest pain for hours before she finally came in. Clinicians know what those hours cost. When asked why she had waited, her answer made my own heart sink. She had a high-deductible health plan — an HDHP — which meant she would owe thousands of dollars ...Read more