Ward: Environment

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Cold-water swimming has benefits for the brain as well as the body

There is a growing body of research on the physical benefits of going for a dip in chilly water, but now researchers are starting to find that cold-water swimming may also be reshaping our brains for the better in lasting ways

109

Gene therapy for Huntington’s disease showed great promise in 2025

An experimental gene therapy seems to slow the progression of Huntington’s disease by about 75 per cent, and researchers are working to make its complicated delivery much more practical

109

How worried should you be about spending too much time on your phone?

Screen time has been linked to all sorts of problems, from depression and obesity to poor sleep. But how worried should you really be? Jacob Aron sifts through the evidence

220

How I learned to keep my brain in better repair this year

Neuroscience columnist Helen Thomson on how she discovered a host of evidence-based ways to keep her brain healthier in 2026

218

Chronic fatigue syndrome seems to have a very strong genetic element

The largest study so far into the genetics of chronic fatigue syndrome, or myalgic encephalomyelitis, has implicated 259 genes – six times more than those identified just four months ago

109

Prognostic tool could help clinicians identify high-risk cancer patients

Using a versatile problem-solving framework, researchers show how early relapse in lymphoma patients influences their chance for survival.

111

Young adults are using cannabis to sleep at alarming rates

More than 20% of young adults say they use cannabis or alcohol to fall asleep, with cannabis leading by a wide margin. Researchers warn this strategy can backfire, disrupting sleep quality and increasing the risk of long-term sleep and substance-use problems.

218

Deaths of despair were rising long before opioids

Long before opioids flooded communities, something else was quietly changing—and it may have helped set the stage for today’s crisis. A new study finds that as church attendance dropped among middle-aged, less educated white Americans, deaths from overdoses, suicide, and alcohol-related disease bega…

111

I Thought My Daughter Was a Good Kid, but a Certain Habit of Hers Disturbs Me

How can we nip this in the bud?

109

This Texas Family Was Part of the Biggest U.S. Measles Outbreak in a Generation

The measles outbreak in the United States is now in its 11th month, with almost 2,000 cases. The Timmons family were some of the first people to get sick.

313

Illinois Health Officials Report First Dog Rabies Case in 31 Years

The affected dog, less than one-year-old, was euthanized last week.

109

Eating high-fat cheese could lower dementia risk, study suggests

An observational study found people who ate 50 grams or more of high-fat cheese enjoyed a lower risk of dementia compared with people eating less than 15 grams.

111

Freed Israeli Hostages Still Had Shrapnel in Their Bodies From Oct. 7 Attack

Some of the women were held alone for extended periods and spent eight months in tunnels, an Israeli medical official said.

120

‘I Feel Like I’ve Been Lied To’: When a Measles Outbreak Hits Home

From a lone clinic in Texas to an entire school district in North Dakota, the virus is upending daily life and revealing a deeper crisis of belief.

109

Ben Sasse, Former Nebraska Senator, Shares Terminal Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis

Mr. Sasse, a former senator from Nebraska, announced that he had received a diagnosis last week for Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

112

Take our quiz on the year in health and biotechnology

In just a couple of weeks, we’ll be bidding farewell to 2025. And what a year it has been! Artificial intelligence is being incorporated into more aspects of our lives, weight-loss drugs have expanded in scope, and there have been some real “omg” biotech stories from the fields of gene therapy, IVF,…

109

Gaza patients facing death as Israel continues to block medical supplies

More than 1,000 Palestinian patients have died while awaiting treatment abroad, amid collapse of Gaza healthcare sector.

220

He ate a hamburger and died hours later. Doctors found a shocking cause

A rare tick-borne allergy linked to red meat has now been confirmed as deadly for the first time. A healthy New Jersey man collapsed and died hours after eating beef, with later testing revealing a severe allergic reaction tied to alpha-gal, a sugar spread by Lone Star tick bites. Symptoms often app…

109

Sugar-free sweeteners may still be harming your liver

Sorbitol, a popular sugar-free sweetener, may not be as harmless as its label suggests. Researchers found it can be turned into fructose in the liver, triggering effects similar to regular sugar. Gut bacteria can neutralize some of it—but too much sorbitol or glucose can overwhelm that defense. The …

208

4 reasons Americans aren’t drinking as much alcohol this holiday season — or any at all

The growing use of weight-loss drugs is one factor behind the decline in alcohol consumption.