The effects of pollution on human health are often subtle yet wide-reaching. Case in point, a new study out Tuesday seems to show that heavy exposure to certain automobile fumes can raise the risk of developing a degenerative disease that steadily erodes eyesight.

Families detained along the U.S.-Mexico border in cramped holding centers are being left completely vulnerable to the flu, CNBC reported Thursday. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is currently not vaccinating detainees against the viral disease, nor do they plan to before the upcoming flu season this fall.

Progress in fighting measles in Europe has taken a substantial step back. This week, the World Health Organization stripped the UK of its measles-free status, just two years after it commended the country for eradicating the virus locally. The UK’s fate could very well be a harbinger of what will happen to the United…

Supplementing psychotherapy with small doses of MDMA could be an effective strategy to prevent relapses of alcohol addiction in patients, an ongoing small clinical trial suggests. The research is yet another example of how scientists and doctors are finding or rediscovering therapeutic uses for recreational and…

A young woman in India unknowingly lived with one of the rarest and most unsettling medical conditions for nearly two decades, her doctors say. According to a case report out this week, the woman had a sac containing her still-growing “twin” lodged in her abdomen for 17 years. The twin had hair, teeth, and even a…

The number of people afflicted and hospitalized with serious lung disease connected to vaping continues to grow. This week, multiple states reported similar cases, and the toll of confirmed and possible victims has climbed into the dozens. Right now, health officials and outside experts still seem to be in the dark as…

The federal government wants to scare the living hell out of you—at least if you’re thinking about smoking. This week, the Food and Drug Administration previewed a series of new warnings that it plans to have plastered on all cigarette products and advertisements. And they’re a doozy.

It’s not common that researchers discover what could be an entirely new part of the human body. But a team in Sweden claims to have uncovered an intricate network of cells underneath skin that helps process certain kinds of pain. The find could broaden our conceptions of how we feel pain, as well as how to relieve it.

Exosuits—wearable robotic technologies that enhance our physical abilities—are slowly but steadily leaving the world of comic books and becoming a practical reality. This week, scientists introduced an exosuit that seems to reach a new milestone, helping users both walk and run with less effort.

People unjustly kept away from feline companionship due to an allergy are rejoicing this week, after news resurfaced of a potential vaccine that makes cats less able to cause allergies. But while this research is promising, a finished product won’t be available at least until 2022.

A vaccine for the most commonly reported sexually transmitted infection in the U.S.—the bacterial disease chlamydia—is now a substantial step closer to reality. On Monday, researchers reported that two of their vaccine candidates were found to be safe in a phase 1 clinical trial of 35 women. Though the trial wasn’t…

A rare, sometimes fatal viral infection spread by mosquitoes has resurfaced in Massachusetts—and has likely sent at least one man into a coma. Over the weekend, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health reported that a local resident contracted the Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) virus. Dozens of communities…

Here’s a story that’ll haunt you into your golden years. Doctors say their elderly patient endured a nightmarish week of his throat bleeding out and weeks more of surgeries and hospital care, all because surgeons had forgotten to remove his dentures—dentures that then became lodged in his throat.

A pair of tragic stories reported this past weekend are raising awareness of a threat to both people and animals in the water: algae. At least four dogs in two states along the Southeast U.S. have reportedly died from swimming in freshwater lakes and ponds filled with toxic blue-green algae. And as the climate warms,…

A real-life horror tale that’s gotten renewed media attention this week is sure to make you think twice about digging earwax out of your ears. An Australian woman says she developed a life-threatening infection that ate away parts of her skull after years of swabbing her ears with cotton. But how likely is that…

A 62-year-old Canadian woman ended up with painful second-degree burns on her genitals after she attempted an at-home vaginal steaming, according to a case report. Ultimately, it delayed the reconstructive surgery she needed to treat an earlier vaginal injury.

People who live with chronic migraines but also love coffee might be in luck. A new study by Harvard researchers seems to show that it takes a lot of caffeine to actually set off a painful episode. They found that people who drank fewer than three caffeinated beverages in a day weren’t more likely to have a migraine…

An outbreak of a rare infection at a western New York hospital in 2018 was sparked by a nurse’s opioid use disorder, a new case report out Thursday seems to confirm. The nurse is alleged to have taken intravenous opioid painkillers for her own personal use, replacing the fluid she took with water—water that turned out…

There are few things that can set off the paranoid-minded faster than talking about fluoride in the drinking water. But a new study out Thursday cautiously suggests that even low levels of fluoride in teens could be linked to changes in their kidney and liver function. It’s still unclear whether these changes are…

There have been few glimmers of hope when it comes to the opioid crisis. But a new report this week from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that many more people are now getting access to the opioid overdose antidote naloxone—and that may have helped slightly reduce the number of opioid-related…