Health

After 277 consecutive days at work, Dr. Joseph Varon received a very special gift Monday: one of the first public doses of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine. “This is like having gold,” Varon said, holding a box of doses shortly before he was vaccinated. “I don’t cry, but I came very close … You know how

The overwhelming amount of loss we’ve experienced during this pandemic is in stark contrast to what is supposedly the happiest time of the year. Nine months to a year into the crisis, depending on where you live, nearly 2 million people around the world have died from Covid-19. And that’s in addition to the thousands

As many people face the prospect of being alone for the holidays, new science is showing how loneliness might actually help build structures in the brain tied to imagination. Lonely people were more likely to have increased activity in areas of the brain tied to reminiscing, thinking about others and future planning, according to a

Crown roast of pork? Pass. Beef Wellington? Boring. Clam dip? Well … maybe we’ll keep the clam dip on the menu. In a year that’s been upside down and inside out, why stick with the same old dishes for Christmas dinner? This season, it’s time to lighten up a bit and bend the rules on

First, the good news: The Moderna vaccine will likely be going into people’s arms Monday, boosting the number of Americans who will start getting inoculated against Covid-19. Now, the bad news: Most Americans can’t get vaccinated until next year. In the meantime, new infections, hospitalizations and deaths keep soaring, prompting health officials to urge the

With two Covid-19 vaccines given the greenlight from health agencies, officials are accelerating the distribution of doses to patients over the coming holiday week. Moderna’s candidate is the most recent vaccine to receive an emergency use authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration. The first doses are expected to be administered to patients Monday

The next time you get your blood pressure taken at the doctor, you might consider asking the nurse to take it in both arms. A significant difference in the systolic, or top blood pressure reading between the two arms could be a warning sign of a future heart attack or stroke, according to a new

With two Covid-19 vaccines given the greenlight from health agencies, officials are accelerating the distribution of doses to patients over the coming holiday week. Moderna’s candidate is the most recent vaccine to receive an emergency use authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration. The first doses are expected to be administered to patients Monday

It’s another day of self-isolating, which means it’s potentially another day of sitting indoors restlessly taking yet another Zoom meeting. Prolonged sitting is an unavoidable reality for many. And with lots of us spending more time inside, as the pandemic continues, it’s inevitable that we’re spending even more time being sedentary. The irony is that

Scientists at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research expect to know in the next few days if there’s a concern that the coronavirus vaccines might not work against a mutated variant of the virus that’s rapidly spreading in parts of England, according to the institute’s top vaccine researcher. While there’s always a worry that

Vaccine advisers to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention voted 13-1 on Sunday to recommend that both older adults, ages 75 and older, and “frontline essential workers” including first responders be next in line to receive Covid-19 vaccines. That would put those people in “Phase 1b” of allocating the vaccine nationwide. That committee

Every time Dr. Paul Bradley goes into an exam room, he wonders: Will today be the day he gets Covid-19? “I work every day in a petri dish,” said Bradley, an internist in Savannah, Georgia, who’s treated more than a hundred coronavirus patients. “I am at great risk.” Since his work places him in harm’s

Dr. José Romero says he’s received a few letters. As chairman of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, Romero may be the single most influential person deciding who will get a coronavirus vaccine — and when — in the coming months. People know it, and they’ve been lobbying Romero, and other members of the committee,

During the holidays, people are much more prone to sedentary behavior — like eating, sleeping or watching TV — to manage their stress, according to research. To counteract all that feasting and couch potato inactivity, many of us know that regular aerobic exercise, like running or going for a walk, is ultimately more effective at