'Biggest Loser' results: Better than weight-loss surgery?

Contestants on the reality TV program "The Biggest Loser"not only lost weight fast, they "rapidly and substantially" lowered their blood...

Magnesium infusions provide no benefit after bleeding stroke

The common practice of infusing magnesium sulfate into patients who have suffered a hemorrhagic (bleeding) stroke provides no discernible...

Smoking prevention efforts get short shrift from states, CDC says

Every day, about 3,800 American kids try a cigarette for the first time. A thousand of them will grow up to to have a daily smoking habit,...

Will doctors follow new PSA test advice? Signs aren't great

Is the routine PSA test to screen for prostate cancer going to fade away now that the U.S. Preventive...

Consumer Reports rates sunscreens; drugstore brand a best buy

With the unofficial start of summer just days away, it’s time to stock up on sunscreen. Does it matter which one you buy? Consumer...

Fevers during pregnancy linked to autism, but medication helps

Women who reported having had a fever during pregnancy were more likely to give birth to a baby who would later be diagnosed with autism...

PSA test: The real problem is the rush to treatment, doctor says

The PSA test should not be a routine screen for men of any age, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force declared earlier this week. The...

Long-acting contraceptives are best at preventing pregnancy

Health experts estimate that half of all pregnancies in the U.S. are unintended. That adds up to about 3 million accidental pregnancies...

Calcium supplements increase risk of heart attacks, study finds

Taking calcium supplements increases the risk of having a heart attack, Swiss and German researchers reported Wednesday. The finding adds to...

For consumers, taste counts more than healthfulness, poll finds

Half of Americans say it’s easier to do their taxes than it is to figure out how to eat healthfully – and 23% described their...

Stem cell treatment for heart failure takes small step forward

Researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel, reported Tuesday that they had removed skin cells from two...

Which American cities are fittest?

Minneapolis-St. Paul is the nation's fittest metropolitan area, with Washington, Boston, San Francisco and Hartford right behind it,...

Sleepy surgical residents impaired, study says

Surgical residents were more fatigued than expected, especially on night rotations, according to a new study. A quarter of their waking...

Death rate for diabetics drops sharply, CDC study finds

Better management of blood sugar levels and improved tools for managing heart disease have led to a sharp drop in the death rate for...

Beginning statins in the hospital after a stroke increases odds of going home

Giving stroke victims cholesterol-lowering statins while they are still in the hospital increases the likelihood that they will survive...

Future heart-health alarm rises with new statistics on kids

American adolescents already carry a heavy burden of future heart disease risk, and while obesity has contributed mightily to their poorer...

Prostate cancer and the PSA test: It's hard to understand risk

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has released new guidelines for prostate cancer screening — urging doctors not to use the...

Listening to loud music linked with pot use, unsafe sex, study says

Warning: Music may be hazardous to your health.

Want to lower breast cancer risk? Lose a little weight

For postmenopausal women who are obese, breast cancer is more likely. That's because fat tissue seems to behave essentially as an organ of...

Inexpensive arthritis drug may treat dysentery, giardiasis

An inexpensive arthritis drug called auranofin has been shown in lab and animal tests to kill the parasites that cause amoebic dysentery and...

HDL, the good cholesterol, may not be so good after all

A new genetic study suggests that high-density lipoprotein, the so-called good cholesterol commonly known as HDL, may not actually be as...

Fructose makes rats dumber. What sugars should we avoid?

Rats fed fructose-laced drinking water for six weeks performed more slowly in a maze-navigating task, UCLA researchers have found. (Read...

Donna Summer: Lung cancer leading cause of cancer death

Disco legend Donna Summer, 63, died Wednesday night, reportedly of lung cancer. As of press time, her family hadn’t released details...

Supermarket intervention prompted shoppers to buy more produce

We’re fat, in case you hadn’t heard. And as we learned last week, 42% of American adults will be obese by 2030, according to...

Breast cancer study reveals 'substantial genetic diversity'

A new study of the protein-coding genes in 100 breast cancer tumors revealed vast differences among the cancers and highlights how...

Healthy food doesn't have to be expensive, USDA insists

Healthy food, we’ve often heard, is pricey food. Fruits and vegetables -- they’re expensive! We can’t afford to eat that...

Chain restaurants don't meet U.S. nutrition guidelines, study says

Plenty of restaurants have been advertising their efforts to offer healthful choices, and it’s possible to eat carefully just about...

Two paralyzed people successfully use robot arm

After years of work with primates and able-bodied humans, researchers have successfully demonstrated in paralyzed humans that an implanted...

National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025

Asserting "we are at an exceptional moment" in the hunt for an Alzheimer'sdiseasetreatment, National Institutes of Health director Dr....

Parkinson's disease may be diagnosed by studying colon, reports say

Parkinson's disease is a disorder of the brain, but it may be possible to diagnose it at an early stage by examining the bowel,...

U.S. asthma rates at all-time high, CDC says

The proportion of Americans with asthma increased from 7.3% in 2001 to 8.4% in 2010, marking the highest level ever, the U.S. Centers for...

Smoking pot for multiple sclerosis? Study finds it helps

Smoking marijuana to relieve the symptoms of multiple sclerosis is a practice with a fair number of adherents, though it has not been...

Could patients with COPD breathe easier with acupuncture?

A new study offers some promising evidence that acupuncture may improve quality of life for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary...

Sleepwalking: More common than you might think

Ever sleep-walked? I have. At the age of 12, I woke up to find myself in a bedroom where a visiting kid was staying over, my head gently...

Laxative-free colonoscopy may soon be possible

This post has been corrected. See note at the bottom for details.

Kids' ER visits resulting from battery exposure have doubled in two decades

Emergency room visits resulting from children swallowing batteries or sticking them into other orifices doubled between 1990 and 2009,...

My kid's pacifier could hurt him. It's worrying -- to a point.

Some of the longest-lasting relics of my kids’ infancies and toddlerhoods have been their pacifiers and their sippy cups.  Even...

Egg producers fund study confirming the health benefits of eggs

News flash: Eggs are really good for you. This message was brought to you by the American Egg Board.

For defibrillators to save lives, people have to use them

Chances are, if you’re out and about, you’ll pass by an automated external defibrillator, or AED. 

Weight-loss drug Lorcaserin: Definite maybe in 2nd run at FDA's OK

The proposed weight-loss drug Lorcaserin, rebuffed in its bid for Food and Drug Administration approval last October, on Thursday won a...

Legalizing gay marriage is good for public health, studies show

Drug delays progression in myeloma, but is it worth the cost?

Lenalidomide, sold under the tradename Revlimid, significantly improves progression-free survival in patients with myeloma, according to...

Contaminated reusable grocery bag causes gastric illness outbreak

A reusable grocery bag left in a hotel bathroom caused an outbreak of norovirus-induced diarrhea and nausea that struck nine of 13 members...

1 of 6 cancer deaths worldwide caused by preventable infections

One in every six cancer deaths worldwide is caused by preventable infections, a total of 1.5 million deaths yearly that could be halted by...

Nation's obesity problem demands sweeping changes, panel says

They sifted through about 800 programs to prevent and fight obesity--to find the ones most likely to counter the nation's growing girth....

HBO's 'The Weight of the Nation' is a wake-up call for America

Next week, the combined efforts of an entertainment giant, a health insurance titan, a group of academic heavyweights, a technology...

Teens in California, which patrols school food, eat less fat, sugar

Anyone who’s gone on a diet knows: It’s easier to avoid potato chips if you don’t have any.

Should Obama ban photo ops with foods like burgers and fries?

What could be more American than hot dogs and apple pie? Perhaps it’s no wonder that politicians spend much of their time on the...

Probiotics can blunt diarrhea caused by antibiotics, report says

Nearly a third of the people who take antibiotics to cure an infection develop diarrhea when good bacteria in the intestines are killed...

U.S. ranks 25th of best places for mothers; Norway 1st, Niger last