Search

Experts recommend that kids eat no added sugars before age 2. Yet most kids are exposed to added sugars at a very early age, even before birth through their mother’s bloodstream. Scientists studied the long-term health effects of sugar exposure in the womb and early childhood. To do this, they looked at the health of adults in the United Kingdom who were conceived or born around the end of sugar…

Chemicals called PFAS are sometimes in the news. PFAS stands for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances. PFAS are widely used and long-lasting. They’re found in everyday items like carpets, clothes, and cookware. They have many uses. For example, they can help keep food from sticking to packages and prevent stains on fabrics. PFAS are even used in some fire-fighting foams. These chemicals…

Meet Jane the Brain. She’s a super smart and friendly animated character. Like many of us, Jane has big feelings such as sadness, stress, and frustration. And she has tips to help kids cope with these emotions. Watch these brief videos and get other mental health educational resources for students and educators.

Lots of diseases start silently. Conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and even cancer may have no symptoms at the start. Screening refers to looking for signs of disease in seemingly healthy people. Finding problems early can help you start treatment and make helpful lifestyle changes as soon as possible. Some screening tests have been shown to improve health and are widely…

Medical advances are helping people around the world live longer. But longer life is linked to a gradual loss of physical abilities. Strength, balance, and walking skills may weaken. It’s been unclear how each of these features decline with age. To learn more, an NIH-supported research team assessed these abilities in 40 healthy people. Half were between ages 50 and 64. The rest were ages 65 or…

Kidney stones are common. They affect about 11% of men and 6% of women at least once in their lives. A sharp pain in your back, lower abdomen, or groin may be the first sign. Other signs include blood in your urine, pain while peeing, or a constant urge to pee. Kidney stones can arise when high levels of certain minerals are in your urine. These minerals can create pebble-like fragments in one or…

Bones can become less dense as we age or if we develop certain medical conditions. This can lead to weak and brittle bones, called osteoporosis. Learn about medical tests that measure bone mineral density. Find out what the resulting numbers reveal about your bone strength and risk of fractures.

Your liver is one of the most important organs inside your body, and it’s also the largest. But do you know what it does or even where it’s located? One thing’s for sure: You can’t live without it. Your liver carries out hundreds of essential tasks every day. The liver is a reddish-brown wedge-shaped organ about the size of a football. It sits just under your ribs against the right side of your…, Spotting Liver Problems, There are many kinds of liver diseases and conditions. Unfortunately, many disorders go undetected for years because they don’t cause symptoms early on. About 4.5 million adults in the U.S. have been diagnosed with a liver disease. Many more may have one but don’t yet know it. Some liver diseases are caused by viruses. Others can result from drug or alcohol misuse. Some people have inherited…, Fat in the Liver, An increasingly common type of liver disease arises when too much fat builds up in the liver. This condition was known as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. But experts changed the name in 2023 to “, [qtip:metabolic|Having to do with metabolism, or the chemical changes in the body that create the energy and substances you need to grow, move, and stay healthy.], dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease.” Steatotic is a technical term for fat buildup in an organ. The new name highlights the links between fat in the liver and metabolic conditions, like diabetes and obesity. “About 1 in 3 adults and maybe 1 in 5 adolescents in the United States has fatty liver, or steatotic liver disease,” says Dr. Norah Terrault, a physician and liver researcher at…, When Hepatitis Happens, The word “hepatitis” means, [qtip:inflammation|Heat, swelling, and redness caused by the body’s protective response to injury or infection.], or swelling of the liver. Most types of liver disease involve some sort of inflammation. Viruses, or viral hepatitis, is a leading cause of liver disease. “Several different viruses can infect the liver. The main three that cause chronic liver infections are hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and hepatitis D,” Ghany says. These viruses usually spread through contact with an infected person’s blood or…, Preventing Problems, Since many liver diseases have no symptoms until they are very advanced, it’s important to get your liver checked at annual physical exams. Many problems can be detected by blood tests. “Be direct. Even if you have no symptoms, tell your doctor: I want my liver checked out,” Sanyal says. “It’s important that you feel free to ask questions of your doctor.” “If you have a liver disease, we have…

Starting at age 30, our bodies naturally start to lose muscle mass. We lose about 3–5% every 10 years. You might not notice the effects at first. But over time, the reduced muscle mass leads to decreased strength. After a while, it can lead to a condition called sarcopenia. “With aging, you start losing muscle mass, muscle strength, and have some limitations with your activities,” says Dr. Rosaly…

Researchers are developing ways to create an artificial sense of touch in bionic limbs. They hope this will help people control and “feel” robotic arms and hands. Experts have already developed ways to help people sense the intensity and location of a touch. In a new study, scientists aimed to replicate more complex experiences, such as edges and motion. The team tested their new system in two…