Health, features and articles | Educational Science

Jan 31, 2015

What Your Snot Says About You (Infographic)

The paranasal sinuses are air-filled cavities that are lined with mucus-making cells. The mucus serves to keep the nose from drying out and to trap contaminants before they reach the lungs. Mucus (”snot”) is made of water, proteins, antibodies and salts. Its color is an indicator of health: CLEAR indicates...

Jan 31, 2015

Why 'Measles Parties' Are a Bad Idea

Measles parties that intentionally expose unvaccinated children to the illness are not a good idea, health officials said this week. In a statement, the California Department of Public Health said it strongly recommends against the intentional exposure of children to measles, according to the radio station KQED. Such action unnecessarily...

Jan 31, 2015

Why Exercise and Diet Changes May Not Be Enough to Treat Obesity

To treat people who are obese, doctors need to move beyond simply telling their patients to eat less and exercise more, some researchers argue. Instead, doctors should focus on the biological mechanisms that make it hard for obese people to lose weight, these researchers say. When people diet, the body...

Jan 31, 2015

Preschoolers Who Nap May Sleep Worse at Night

For parents of young children, nap time can be the best time of the day: The house is quiet, the kids are sleeping and there's finally an hour or two of personal time. But those daytime naps could make young children less likely to sleep as well at night, at...

Jan 31, 2015

It's Not Just Ice: 10 Tips to Avoid a Bad Fall

Dr. Joe Rosenthal, physical medicine and rehabilitation physician at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, contributed this column to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Every 13 seconds, an older adult is rushed to an emergency room because of a fall. So many older adults are falling that...

Jan 31, 2015

Hold the Sugar, US Nutrition Panel Recommends

Americans should limit the amount of added sugar they consume to no more than 10 percent of their daily calories, or about 200 calories a day for most people, say new recommendations from a government-appointed panel of nutrition experts. If upcoming federal diet guidelines adopt this recommendation, it would be...

Jan 31, 2015

3 Men Get Bionic Hands After Nerve Injuries

Three men who had lost the use of their hands in accidents are now the first people with this type of injury to receive bionic hands controlled by transplanted nerve tissue, a new study reports. During the procedure, known as bionic reconstruction, doctors amputated the useless hand, transplanted nerve and...

Jan 31, 2015

Drop Sugar for Lent? Here's How Your Brain's (Not) Coping

This article was originally published on The Conversation. The publication contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Anyone who knows me also knows that I have a huge sweet tooth. I always have. My friend and fellow graduate student Andrew is equally afflicted, and living in...

Dec 31, 2014

Cholera Bacteria Spear Their Prey to Grab Genes

The bacteria that cause cholera grab genes from other organisms in a particularly predatory way, new research finds. The microbes spear neighboring cells with a kind of poison-tipped spike. Bacteria often grab genes from other organisms and incorporate that DNA into their own genomes. But researchers at the Swiss Federal...

Dec 31, 2014

Bluetooth Pacifiers and Smart Armchairs: CES' Best Health Tech

LAS VEGAS — The largest display of consumer electronics on the planet, CES, kicked off here on Monday (Jan. 6). Among the nearly 20,000 gizmos on display are a huge assortment of technologies designed with health and wellness in mind. As expected, visitors to this year's CES will see an...

Dec 31, 2014

How Dwelling on a Breakup Might Help You Get Over It

After a breakup, your friends might tell you to find distractions — start a new workout regime, go on dates, or basically do anything to keep an ex out of your mind. That might be good advice. But a new study suggests that taking some time to dwell on the...

Dec 31, 2014

Jimmy Carter's Work to Defeat Guinea Worm Highlighted in New Exhibit

NEW YORK — A new museum exhibit will showcase the massive public health effort it took to beat the grisly parasitic infection called Guinea worm disease, and former U.S. President Jimmy Carter was here today at a preview of the exhibit's opening. The number of cases of Guinea worm disease...

Dec 31, 2014

Schizophrenia: Symptoms and Treatment

Schizophrenia is a chronic, debilitating mental disorder characterized by distortions of thinking and perception. A central element of schizophrenia is psychosis, which means having an abnormal perception of reality. People with schizophrenia can have hallucinations and delusions. Hallucinations are often hearing voices or seeing things. People might say that they...

Dec 31, 2014

Best Yoga Apps

One of the nice things about yoga is that it can be done just about anywhere. With a mat (or a pair of sticky yoga socks) and a few minutes of free time, you can get in a mind/body workout. Sometimes, though, a little inspiration helps. Dozens of yoga apps...

Dec 31, 2014

Couples Who Work Together to Get Healthy Have More Success

Couples who work together to change their unhealthy habits appear to have more successful outcomes, a new study suggests. Researchers in the U.K. found that men and women were more likely to stop smoking, exercise more or lose weight if their partner joined them in becoming healthier. For example, a...