CNN – Health

By Deidre McPhillips, CNN (CNN) — Federal data shows that overdose deaths in the United States are the lowest they’ve been in three years, and a new analysis suggests that some downward trends indicate “unprecedented” progress in the fight against the drug epidemic. Overdose deaths soared during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, jumping 30%

By Jacqueline Howard, CNN (CNN) — The US spends more on health care than any other high-income country, but a new report suggests that “Americans are sicker, die younger and struggle to afford essential health care.” Compared with nine other high-income nations, the United States ranked last overall this year, with a lower life expectancy and higher

By Sandee LaMotte, CNN (CNN) — Following the MIND diet for 10 years produced a small but significant decrease in the risk of developing thinking, concentration and memory problems, a new study found. The Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay diet combines elements from the traditional Mediterranean diet and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, or

By Deidre McPhillips, CNN (CNN) — Certain blockbuster weight-loss drugs have been found to protect the heart in significant ways, and new research suggests that the cardiovascular benefits could extend to an even broader set of patients than clinical trial data has shown – helping prevent tens of thousands of heart attacks and strokes each

By Katia Hetter, CNN (CNN) — With so many parents wanting their children to get more exercise, a backyard trampoline might seem like a good option. So it might come as a surprise that the nation’s leading group of pediatricians warns that “the home use of trampolines is strongly discouraged.” The American Academy of Pediatrics cites additional

By Madeline Holcombe, CNN (CNN) — A morning cup of coffee may do more than just perk you up, according to new research. Moderate amounts of caffeine intake — defined as about three cups of coffee or tea a day — were associated with a lower risk of developing cardiometabolic multimorbidity, said the study’s lead

By Meg Tirrell, CNN (CNN) — Jared Holz thought about taking one of the new GLP-1 drugs for weight loss for months before he actually filled the prescription. And even when he got the drug, he waited a month before using it. Part of his hesitation: He dislikes needles, and all the drugs in this

By Sandee LaMotte, CNN (CNN) — More than 3,600 chemicals that leach into food during the manufacturing, processing, packaging and storage of the world’s food supply end up in the human body — and some are connected to serious health harms, a new study found. “This is a staggering number and shows that food contact

By Jacqueline Howard, CNN (CNN) — The number of lives lost around the world due to infections that are resistant to the medications intended to treat them could increase nearly 70% by 2050, a new study projects, further showing the burden of theongoing superbug crisis. Cumulatively, from 2025 to 2050, the world could see more

By Sandee LaMotte, CNN (CNN) — Tiny plastic shards and fibers were found in the nose tissue of human cadavers, according to a small new study. The threads and microplastic pieces were discovered in the olfactory bulb, the part of the nose responsible for detecting odors that sits at the base of the brain. “Once

By Kristen Rogers, CNN (CNN) — Researchers have created one of the first comprehensive maps of how the brain changes throughout pregnancy, substantially improving upon understanding of an understudied field. Certain brain regions may shrink in size during pregnancy yet improve in connectivity, “with only a few regions of the brain remaining untouched by the

By Deidre McPhillips, CNN (CNN) — It’s that time of year when any cough or sniffle could be Covid-19, flu or RSV — but there are ways to fend them off. Forecasts from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that this respiratory disease season will be similar to last year’s — which brought

By Riane Lumer, CNN Southampton, Pennsylvania (CNN) — Walking into my grandmother’s house, I watch her hands move in a fast-weaving motion as stitches extend from her knitting needles. Beside her are layered stacks of knit blankets, scarves and ponchos stitched with carefully selected color schemes and patterns made of wool yarn. She donates these

By Brenda Goodman, CNN (CNN) — A patient in Missouri who was hospitalized after an infection with bird flu had the H5N1 strain of the virus, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Friday. The viral sequence was uploaded Friday to the GISAID database, which makes genetic sequences of viruses publicly available for

By Hannah Frances Johansson, CNN Berkeley, California (CNN) — Over a decade before her husband’s death, Linda Tung was already concerned with estate planning. Their daughter, Rachel, was born with cerebral palsy, a neurological condition that can greatly hamper mobility. Planning for Rachel’s financial future, one without the everyday care of a parent, has always

By Jamie Gumbrecht, CNN (CNN) — Boar’s Head will close the Virginia plant that produced deli meat tied to a deadly listeria outbreak, the company said on Friday. The move is part of several changes made following what it called a “dark moment in our company’s history.” Boar’s Head said it will permanently discontinue sales of

By Jacqueline Howard, CNN (CNN) — As a deadly mpox outbreak continues to spread in Africa and other parts of the world, questions are emerging about whether some vulnerable people in the United States may need booster doses of the mpox vaccine. Last month, the World Health Organization declared an mpox outbreak in the Democratic

By Brenda Goodman, CNN (CNN) — With the approach of fall and cooler weather across the United States, officials say the risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus could rise — and they’re taking steps to prevent the creation of a hybrid flu virus that could more easily infect humans. Fall and winter months

By Meg Tirrell, CNN (CNN) — At Tuesday night’s presidential debate, when former President Donald Trump was asked about his stance on abortion access, he offered a now-familiar explanation for his support for gestational abortion limits early in pregnancy and for overturning Roe v. Wade: the idea that, otherwise, after-birth execution of newborns would be

By Deidre McPhillips, CNN (CNN) — A drug currently used to treat HIV has also been found to dramatically reduce the risk of infection, significantly more than the primary option available for pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP. In a Phase 3 clinical trial, 99.9% of participants who took a twice-a-year injection of lenacapavir for HIV prevention