Latest Stories

Until someone finds a “fountain of youth,” aging will continue to take a toll on all of us. There are ways to slow the aging process through diet and exercise, but no way to reverse it — until now. For the first time, and in humans — not mice, researchers were able to reverse two key biological elements of aging…

With age may come wisdom, but it can also bring a number of health problems, including some that require surgery. But surgery in our senior years is especially risky, and new findings show some common medications can make it much worse. Here’s what you need to know…

Carotenoids make fruits and vegetables colorful. But more than that, carotenoids are powerful antioxidants with a serious capacity to scavenge free radicals and protect your body’s cells and tissues from oxidative damage and these three major health threats…

Thanks to the fact that the over 60s age group is growing faster than any other, research is focused on how those living longer into old age can do so without succumbing to years of frailty and disability. And they may have found at least one of the secrets to living better longer…

Americans are not fans of eye exams. The American Academy of Ophthalmologists reports most of us won’t see an eye doctor even when problems develop. That’s a mistake: an exam could find signs you’re headed for stroke or heart attack even before your doctor can…

Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s are both brain disorders. And while Parkinson’s symptoms are more physical, they share symptoms, including dementia and disease progression. New research shows they also may share a common enemy that worsens brain destroying proteins.

There’s no doubt avocados are high in fat and calories. But can eating them actually help you lose weight? Smaller studies have suggested that’s the case. What did the largest and longest study to date on the health impacts of avocados find?

Foot ulcers are a major complication of unmanaged blood sugar. And they should be taken seriously. Severe ulcers can lead to amputation. That’s why to avoid them, doctors recommend proper management of blood sugar and weight loss. Add an important vitamin to that list…

Certain types of cancer have been found to increase a survivor’s risk for diabetes. And survivors who develop diabetes don’t fair as well as those who don’t. Could maintaining healthy blood sugar levels be the key to better odds and longer survival after cancer?

Some of the biggest medical studies to date, responsible for medication and procedures, have been conducted without a single female subject. But is that holding the medical community back from using protocols designed for men on women? Not at all and not without consequence…

No one likes to exercise. But every day 2,200 Americans die from a heart attack. But you know what? There are about 335,000 recurrent heart attacks each year, too. That means a lot of people survive. But is exercise a good idea after the fact, can it keep you from another, and what kind’s best?

For the longest, I was stuck with an extra 10 or 15 pounds that I felt I needed to lose. I can’t count how many times I’ve wished for a magic pill that would turn me into a fat burning machine. Well, thanks to researchers in Kyoto, Japan, we may have gotten a little closer to that magic pill.

If a close family member had Alzheimer’s, you know that fear of one day developing the disease yourself. On the other hand, no family history could give you a false sense of security. That’s because a trifecta of three common health conditions has been found to carry a much higher risk than genetics…

Aging is still a difficult subject to talk about. Maybe that’s why the aging process is surrounded by myths that many people believe. Here are seven of them we’d like you to stop falling for. You’ll improve your health, live longer and enjoy life more!

Prostate cancer is a leading cause of cancer death in American men, and the most heritable cancer. If your father had it, there’s a high chance you will, too. If you are at increased genetic risk, recent research spells out exactly what you can do to dramatically decrease the odds it will take your life.

There are a number of things that can cause your blood pressure to go up. But two of the most common contributors are age and weight. A new study has found a two-step system can significantly lower blood pressure even if you’re over the age of 55, overweight or obese…

Scientists discovered that loneliness can actually be ‘seen’ in our blood. While it sounds crazy, they saw that people who live with loneliness have very specific compounds in their blood, plus a nutrient deficiency that helps explains their condition and specific heart dangers…

While a higher risk of heart disease can be inherited, lifestyle can outweigh even these genetic tendencies. In a first ever study measuring specific factors that affect heart health, the news is grim for most of us, based on that simple fact, unless…

Many people don’t realize that COPD is actually an umbrella term that includes chronic bronchitis, emphysema and sometimes asthma. Nor do they realize how widespread and dangerous it is — especially if you’re a woman…

Need a good reason to take extra care of your thyroid? Here’s a good one: If something goes wrong — surgery is risky. But if you absolutely must have it removed, there is one very important thing you must ask your surgeon…

Study after study has shown the health benefits of apples give credence to the saying, an apple a day keeps the doctor away. But, there are many ways to enjoy apples, and they’re not all created equal when it comes to reaping their nutritional value…

Multiple sclerosis has had doctors and scientists stumped ever since it was first identified. While they could put up theories of what might cause the crippling autoimmune disease, the proof was elusive, until a solid connection was linked to a common virus…

While stomach cancer is only the sixth most common type of cancer worldwide, it’s the third most common cause of cancer death. Because it’s so dangerous, it’s important to know the signs, risks and best prevention…

No one is sounding loud alarms about monkeypox yet, but cases have started to rise. An interesting thing is that most of them are in people under 50. Unlike the last virus that made older adults a target, if you’re 51 or over, you may have little to be concerned about…

A Western-style diet is linked with a higher risk of colorectal cancer. And separate studies have indicated colorectal cancer could be influenced by a certain type of bacteria. Now, scientists are looking closely at the connection between these two colorectal cancer risk factors…

The pain of knee osteoarthritis can be excruciating, and the stiffness can really slow you down. For many people, the solution is a total knee replacement. But science is stacking up for a simple way to slow damage and reduce your pain risk by 40 percent…

Many changes come with menopause. And most of them we’re very familiar with. But one symptom has left experts wondering if it’s the result of out-of-whack hormones or if actual physical changes occur in the brain. Researchers recently explored this and what they discovered is concerning…

The microorganisms that dwell in your gut impact vitals such as blood pressure, immune system development and your risks for more than two dozen other diseases, that they know of at this point. But most of us are running around with an “impoverished microbiome.”

Remember when high-intensity interval training became popular? I wondered how anyone but a seasoned athlete could stand up to those intense bursts of exercise. If you’re looking for cardio you can keep up with, that elevates your heart rate with less risk of injury, welcome to low-intensity steady state workouts…

There are a lot of symptoms of low thyroid function. You may experience cold hands and feet, fatigue, headache, stiff or painful joints and depression, among other effects. But there’s another thyroid symptom affecting men and women we don’t talk about…

In a previous report I pointed out some of the scientific literature evidence of the harmful effects of aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal), saccharin, and sucralose (Splenda). Now let’s look at the new and improved aspartame called Neotame, and then a quick look at the others: acesulfame-K, cyclamate and alitame.

Just like my family, hoards of vacationers still flock to the beach, opting for ocean spray over time in the hotel pool, even though ocean water holds something we all should be concerned about… dangerous bacteria.

When you have a chronic disease like MS, you devote a lot of energy to keeping your symptoms in check… You work to get your meds right. You eat healthy. You keep stress levels low. But something serious can happen while you’re running defense against MS… You can get blindsided by cancer.

It took the FDA 36 years to get this chemical out of our soaps and hand sanitizers. So why has it remained in other products when study after study shows that this chemical is far scarier than the germ it’s meant to protect us from. And, most recently, for the first time, it’s been linked to osteoporosis.

After the age of 55, your stroke risk more than doubles with each passing decade. Acne, on the other hand, is generally thought of as a problem faced by the young. What do the two have in common? An accidental discovery that could have your doctor prescribing acne meds instead of statins.

We tend to think more in terms of nutritional supplements for health than we do food, let alone the herbs and spices we use to flavor our favorite dishes. And we think even less of food as a pain reliever. Yet, some flavor profiles play a major role in pain relief. Here are the best…

If you develop joint pain and stiffness as you get older, it’s easy to assume you have osteoarthritis, a common condition. But before you write off a sudden case of stiff, achy joints as a sign you’re not the spring chicken you once were, ask yourself a question — What’s my tick exposure like?

A stroke is a scary thing. The blood is cut off to an area of your brain and the cells in that area die. And because of the unique nature of a stroke and the physical and chemical changes it causes, the damage can continue — killing more brain cells even days after.

If you live with a chronic pain condition like fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis or TMJ, you know how difficult it can be to get relief. Worse, even, is getting your doctor to listen to you without thinking he believes the pain is all in your head. But researchers now have proof where this pain comes from…

There really isn’t much doubt that the standard American diet is killing a lot of us slowly. And some, very quickly. And, as if this weren’t bad enough, these dietary choices are killing our planet at the same time. But the planetary health diet could solve all of these problems. Good news is that it’s pretty flexible…

Sometimes, caffeine makes you feel like Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic… king of the world! But drink too much, and you get anxious, jittery and it feels like your heart’s beating out of your chest. It’s common knowledge that coffee increases heart rate. But how does a daily cup impact your ticker over the long term?

Did you start the year with lofty fitness goals but slip back to your old, sedentary habits? Come January, you may find yourself filled with regret that you let another year slip by. You’ve still got six months — and luckily, the researchers at University of British Columbia found a way to make exercise easier…

Been told you need a statin and questioning whether it’s the right step for you? You’re not alone: According to the Mayo Clinic Proceedings every man over 65 and every woman over 70 qualifies to be on statin drugs. But should everyone take a drug just because they reach a certain age? This doc says no…

By the time the warning signs of elevated blood sugar show up, the damage has often been progressing silently for years. That’s a shame considering diabetes can be prevented, even reversed. What if more people at-risk could be identified sooner to prevent diabetes and its deadly complications?

Damaged or dead brain stem cells are never a good thing. They’re the cells that repair your brain tissue. In fact, fewer brain stem cells mean more brain aging and neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. And there’s a popular habit that does just this…

More than three million US adults live with irritable bowel disease from either Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, and the toll can be devastating. But there’s new hope… A case study found that just giving up foods that most Americans eat in excess led to complete disease remission.

If you’re a pet owner, you probably know there are certain foods and plants that can kill your dog or cat if they swallow them. And, if you’re a parent, you definitely have a list of foods that your child should never eat. But as a healthy adult, there are also foods that are surprisingly toxic to you. Avoid these 10…

You’ve probably heard for decades that antioxidants reduce cancer risk because they counteract free radicals and prevent DNA damage. But what if the antioxidant-cancer relationship wasn’t as straightforward as it seems? What if sometimes antioxidants fought cancer… and other times they fueled it?

Excess iron can reduce your risk of high cholesterol… which is great. That means it could help prevent heart disease and strokes. But this benefit comes with some baggage… Too much increases your risk of some potentially dangerous skin infections. So how do you get just enough?

I’ve read conflicting information about the safety of artificial sweeteners. Still, I have always told my patients that diet sodas are worse for them than anything. Let me share why I still say this, and which fake sweeteners you should always avoid based on what the science shows about their safety. 

Age is one of the most accurate risk factors for death. An 80-year-old has a much higher risk of dying than a 30-year-old. We all know that. It’s just the way nature works. But did you know there’s a factor that predicts longevity better than age? And if you know it, you can dial it back…

When a medical device, procedure or drug is found to be no better than previous alternatives or even dangerous, it becomes known as a “medical reversal,” and may be taken off market. But how does an inferior treatment pass muster in the first place? I’m all for do-overs, but not when lives hang in the balance…

Whenever I try to stop eating added sugar, I fail. After a few weeks of doing without the sweet stuff, I decide to reward myself. That’s when my resolve crumbles faster than the delicious brown sugar and oatmeal topping on my apple crisp. But there’s hope for me (and you, too, if you share my angst) on the horizon…

You might already have Amazon’s Alexa in your house — at least have seen the TV commercials. The technology is helpful for everything from making phone calls and turning on our lights to discovering a new recipe and keeping up to date on the latest news. But Alexa may be good for more than just making your life easier… it could save your life too.

Seniors represent a growing population at special risk of cancer. In fact, more than two-thirds of all new cancers are diagnosed in adults age 60 and up. That means of all the cancer diagnoses that will occur this year, over 67 percent will be in in people over 60.

Eating an entire bag of your favorite chips may not seem like a big deal.. especially if stress is driving your actions. You deserve these guilty pleasures, right? But if you’re social distancing and dealing with anxiety, the detrimental effects of stress eating is the last thing you need…

I’m all about thinking age-positive… I don’t think older people are senile and feeble. I don’t freak out about every fine line or gray hair. And I absolutely hate when anyone tries to put you in a box based on your age… whether you’re 30, 60 or 90. That being said, I want to age as best I can.

It makes continental breakfasts bearable. Plus, it’s just an all-around good snack in a pinch (ask Jerry Seinfeld). And it’s fortified. But there is a serious problem with our cereal that goes beyond its sugar, carb or grain content… Too many popular cereals are chock-full of a health-compromising chemical.

One of the common characteristics of people who live long well is that they move their bodies every day. And there are many documented benefits of a regular fitness routine, including decreasing your risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes. But there are other benefits that may surprise you…

Psoriasis is a chronic skin disease caused by an autoimmune dysfunction. Now, though, thanks to a new study, there might be an effective way for at least some people living with psoriasis to find relief. In fact, it worked for me years before this research made the connection…