Health + Medicine – The Conversation

Blue-gloved hands holding a slide under a laboratory microscope

Proposed cuts to NIH funding would have ripple effects on research that could hamper the US for decades

Mohammad S. Jalali, Harvard University and Zeynep Hasgül, Harvard University

Beauty sleep isn’t a myth – a sleep medicine expert explains how rest keeps your skin healthy and youthful

Joanna Fong-Isariyawongse, University of Pittsburgh

Drugged driving – including under the influence of cannabis and prescription drugs – is quietly becoming one of the most dangerous road hazards

Andrew Yockey, University of Mississippi

Black and white image of sunglasses, spilled pills and keys sitting on a counter

Doctors are joining unions in a bid to improve working conditions and raise wages in a stressful health care system

Patrick Aguilar, Washington University in St. Louis

A female doctor waves a megaphone aloft while standing among a group of doctors outside a hospital.

Detroit is the most challenging place in the country for people with asthma − here’s how to help kids in the Motor City breathe easier

Rhonda Conner-Warren, Michigan State University

Tall buildings in a city skyline are grayed out

Federal subpoenas for transgender care records raise medical privacy concerns and put providers in a legal bind – a health law expert explains what’s at stake

Margaret Riley, University of Virginia

A red binder labeled "protected health information" with a stethoscope on it

News in context

Kennedy hearing deepens crisis over dismantling of CDC leadership - health scholar explains why the agency’s ability to protect public health is compromised

Jordan Miller, Arizona State University

Bullet holes shown in windows of the CDC headquarters

FDA approves updated COVID-19 vaccines with new restrictions, potentially limiting access for healthy children

David Higgins, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Blue-gloved hand drawing COVID-19 vaccine from a syringe

Pediatricians’ association recommends COVID-19 vaccines for toddlers and some older children, breaking with CDC guidance

David Higgins, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Gloved hand drawing COVID-19 vaccine out of a vial, with child in the background

RFK Jr.’s plans to overhaul ‘vaccine court’ system would face legal and scientific challenges

Anna Kirkland, University of Michigan

gloved hand squeezes syringe but the needle is bent

Health Policy

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sits at a microphone in a hearing room

How RFK Jr.’s misguided science on mRNA vaccines is shaping policy − a vaccine expert examines the false claims

Deborah Fuller, University of Washington

Pregnant women face tough choices about medication use due to lack of safety data − here’s why medical research cuts will make it worse

Almut Winterstein, University of Florida and Sonja Rasmussen, Johns Hopkins University

Headless doctor holds pill bottle while talking with headless patient

How stripping diversity, equity and inclusion from health care may make Americans sicker

Abigail Folberg, University of Nebraska Omaha and Brittany Givens Rassoolkhani, University of Kentucky

A graphic showign a crowd of different people of different races, body types, abilities.

Fears that falling birth rates in US could lead to population collapse are based on faulty assumptions

Leslie Root, University of Colorado Boulder; Karen Benjamin Guzzo, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Shelley Clark, McGill University

Crowd of people walking through a well-lit office building

Employers are failing to insure the working class – Medicaid cuts will leave them even more vulnerable

Sumit Agarwal, University of Michigan

An elderly doctor with glasses places a stethoscope to a baby in a doctor's office.

Healthy lifestyles

As wrestling fans reel from the sudden death of Hulk Hogan, a cardiologist explains how to live long and healthy − and avoid chronic disease

William Cornwell, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

With his hand cupped to his ear, Hulk Hogan listens to the cheers of the crowd as he leans against the ropes of the wrestling ring.

Pregnancy brings unique challenges for people with autoimmune diseases – but with early planning, pregnancy outcomes can be greatly improved

Kristen Demoruelle, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

High-angle shot of a pregnant person holding an ultrasound scan photo in front of their baby bump.

Are you really allergic to penicillin? A pharmacist explains why there’s a good chance you’re not − and how you can find out for sure

Elizabeth W. Covington, Auburn University

The Penicillium mold which produces the penicillin antibiotic

How germy is the public pool? An infectious disease expert weighs in on poop, pee and perspiration – and the deceptive smell of chlorine

Lisa Cuchara, Quinnipiac University

Aerial shot of several people on rafts and pool donuts in clear blue pool water

Reproductive health

A naked newborn baby sleeping on its side on a soft off-white blanket

Fetal autopsies could help prevent stillbirths, but too often they are used to blame mothers for pregnancy loss

Jill Lens, University of Iowa

3 years after abortion rights were overturned, contraception access is at risk

Cynthia H. Chuang, Penn State and Carol S. Weisman, Penn State

Rear view of a woman taking a pregnancy test at home

How abortion laws focusing on fetal viability miss the mark on women’s experiences

Katrina Kimport, University of California, San Francisco and Tracy A. Weitz, American University

A couple looks anxiously at an ultrasound screen.

Hormone therapy may cut cardiovascular risk in younger menopausal women

Matthew Nudy, Penn State

Colorado and other states have expanded access to abortion, but not for adolescents

Kate Coleman-Minahan, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

An abortion clinic with an ultrasound machine and an empty clinic bed.

COVID-19

Children stick their heads out of a stopped yellow school bus and waving.

COVID-19 vaccines for kids are mired in uncertainty amid conflicting federal guidance

David Higgins, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

5 years on, true counts of COVID-19 deaths remain elusive − and research is hobbled by lack of data

Dylan Thomas Doyle, University of Colorado Boulder

A wall painted with hearts of varying sizes, with a person leaning against it, looking forlorn.

5 years of COVID-19 underscore value of coordinated efforts to manage disease – while CDC, NIH and WHO face threats to their ability to respond to a crisis

Katherine A. Foss, Middle Tennessee State University

Inside a white tent, doctors wearing masks test a patient for COVID-19.

5 ways schools have shifted in 5 years since COVID-19

Rachel Besharat Mann, Wesleyan University and Gravity Goldberg, Wesleyan University

Four green pop up tents are arranged in a classroom with students seated inside them.

COVID-19 is the latest epidemic to show biomedical breakthroughs aren’t enough to eliminate a disease

Powel H. Kazanjian, University of Michigan

person enters city pharmacy advertising COVID-19 vaccinations

Caregiving

Colorado has one of the nation’s highest suicide rates − an ER doctor explains how to bring it down

Emmy Betz, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

A man's hand is on the back on another man in a yellow sweatshirt.

Parenting strategies are shifting as neuroscience brings the developing brain into clearer focus

Nancy L. Weaver, Saint Louis University

A little boy pouts next to a row of shopping carts.

How federal officials talk about health is shifting in troubling ways – and that change makes me worried for my autistic child

Megan Donelson, University of Dayton

Headless man in suit jacket holding an army green baseball cap that says "MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN"

The 3 worst things you can say after a pet dies, and what to say instead

Brian N. Chin, Trinity College

Frame of a dog's face and front end sitting on a table next to an urn and a dog collar.

Mental health

With green trees in the background, a young woman lies on the grass while working on her laptop.

Adding more green space to a campus is a simple, cheap and healthy way to help millions of stressed and depressed college students

Chanam Lee, Texas A&M University; Li Deng, Texas A&M University, and Yizhen Ding, Texas A&M University

Why religious groups are pushing for psychedelics as sacrament

Pardis Mahdavi, University of La Verne

People reclining on couches in a room with one wall painted green and decorated with several plants.

The growing fad of ‘microdosing’ mushrooms is leading to an uptick in poison control center calls and emergency room visits

Joshua Kellogg, Penn State

An illustration of amanita mushrooms, characterized by a white stem and red and white cap.

Grief feels unbearable, disorienting and chaotic – a grief researcher and widow shares evidence-based ways to face the early days of loss

Liza Barros-Lane, University of Houston-Downtown

A broken heart drawing on a cracked wall.

Youth athletes, not just professionals, may face mental health risks from repeated traumatic brain injuries

David B. Sarwer, Temple University

A group of high school age football players in white sports uniform and protective helmets

Mind and body

A tubular object with lots of carpet-like protrusions.

How does your body make poop?

Brian Robert Boulay, University of Illinois Chicago

Balancing kratom’s potential benefits and risks − new legislation in Colorado seeks to minimize harm

David Kroll, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

A yellow pill bottle labeled 'kratom' sits next to its cap full of green capsules.

A toxicologist’s guide to poison ivy’s itch and bee stings’ burning pain – 2 examples of nature’s chemical warfare

Christopher P. Holstege, University of Virginia and Sandra H. Nixon, University of Virginia

A little girl bending down on a grassy field to look at a leaf closely with a big mangifying glass.

I’m an expert in crafting public health messages: Here are 3 marketing strategies I use to make Philadelphia healthier

Sarah Bauerle Bass, Temple University

A page of a comic book that shows two Black women having a conversation about sex

Ticks carry decades of history in each troublesome bite

Sean Lawrence, West Virginia University

Technology in health care

How 3D printing is personalizing health care

Anne Schmitz, University of Wisconsin-Stout and Daniel Freedman, University of Wisconsin-Stout

a girl with brightly colored prosthetic hands walks beside a woman pushing a baby in a stroller

Are you one of the millions about to have cataract surgery? Here’s what ophthalmologists say you need to know

Allan Steigleman, University of Florida and Elizabeth M. Hofmeister, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Several companies are testing brain implants – why is there so much attention swirling around Neuralink? Two professors unpack the ethical issues

Nancy S. Jecker, University of Washington and Andrew Ko, University of Washington

Brightly colored threads in the outline of a brain shape float against a dark background with constellation-like patterns.

A blood test that screens for multiple cancers at once promises to boost early detection

Colin Pritchard, University of Washington

Research insights

New report ranks Philadelphia and Allentown among toughest cities in America for people with asthma

Ana Santos Rutschman, Villanova University

Nurse in blue scrubs helps little girl patient with asthma inhaler

Infant mortality rises in states with restrictive abortion laws – new research

Brad Greenwood, George Mason University; Gordon Burtch, Boston University, and Michaela R. Anderson, University of Pennsylvania

A pregnant woman in silhouette stands against a red and white background.

Most air cleaning devices have not been tested on people − and little is known about their potential harms, new study finds

Amiran Baduashvili, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and Lisa Bero, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

An air purifier sits in the foreground while a mother and child spend time together on a couch in the background

Vaccines hold tantalizing promise in the fight against dementia

Anand Kumar, University of Illinois Chicago and Jalees Rehman, University of Illinois Chicago