Public Health News

December 21, 2025

Top Headlines

Deaths of Despair Were Rising Long Before Opioids

Dec. 20, 2025 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 ...

Global Surge in Ultra-processed Foods Sparks Urgent Health Warning

Nov. 24, 2025 Ultra-processed foods are rapidly becoming a global dietary staple, and new research links them to worsening health outcomes around the world. Scientists say only bold, coordinated policy action can counter corporate influence and shift food systems ...

This 14th Century Story Fooled the World About the Black Death

Nov. 11, 2025 Historians have traced myths about the Black Death’s rapid journey across Asia to one 14th-century poem by Ibn al-Wardi. His imaginative maqāma, never meant as fact, became the foundation for centuries of misinformation about how the plague ...

A Gene from 100-year-olds Could Help Kids Who Age Too Fast

Nov. 3, 2025 Scientists have discovered that a “longevity gene” found in people who live beyond 100 can reverse heart aging in models of Progeria, a devastating disease that causes children to age rapidly. By introducing this supercentenarian gene into ...

Your ZIP Code Could Reveal Your Risk of Dementia

Oct. 31, 2025 People living in socially and economically disadvantaged neighborhoods may face higher dementia risks, according to new research from Wake Forest University. Scientists found biological signs of Alzheimer’s and vascular brain disease in those from ...

90% of Science Is Lost. This New AI Just Found It

Oct. 13, 2025 Vast amounts of valuable research data remain unused, trapped in labs or lost to time. Frontiers aims to change that with FAIR² Data Management, a groundbreaking AI-driven system that makes datasets reusable, verifiable, and citable. By uniting ...

Fentanyl Overdoses Among Seniors Surge 9,000% — A Hidden Crisis Few Saw Coming

Oct. 13, 2025 Overdose deaths from fentanyl mixed with stimulants have skyrocketed among seniors, increasing 9,000% in just eight years. Once thought to affect mainly the young, the opioid epidemic’s fourth wave ...

When Men Drink, Women and Children Pay the Price

Oct. 11, 2025 Men’s heavy drinking is fueling a hidden crisis affecting millions of women and children worldwide. The harms, from violence to financial instability, are especially severe where gender inequality is high. Experts warn that alcohol policies must ...

Viral Apple Cider Vinegar Weight Loss Study Retracted for Flawed Science

Oct. 1, 2025 BMJ Group has pulled a widely reported apple cider vinegar weight-loss study after experts uncovered major flaws in its data and analysis. Attempts to replicate the results failed, and irregularities raised questions about the trial’s reliability. ...

Tylenol in Pregnancy Linked to Higher Autism Risk, Harvard Scientists Report

Sep. 24, 2025 Researchers reviewing 46 studies found evidence linking prenatal acetaminophen (Tylenol) exposure with higher risks of autism and ADHD. The FDA has since urged caution, echoing scientists’ advice ...

AI Breakthrough Finds Life-saving Insights in Everyday Bloodwork

Sep. 23, 2025 AI-powered analysis of routine blood tests can reveal hidden patterns that predict recovery and survival after spinal cord injuries. This breakthrough could make life-saving predictions affordable and accessible in hospitals ...

Scientists Reveal the Everyday Habits That May Shield You from Dementia

Sep. 21, 2025 New studies reveal that lifestyle changes—such as exercise, healthy eating, and social engagement—can help slow or prevent cognitive decline. Experts say this low-cost, powerful approach could transform dementia care and reduce its crushing toll ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:37pm EST

Ancient Sewers Expose a Hidden Health Crisis in Roman Britain

Dec. 21, 2025 Sediments from a Roman latrine at Vindolanda show soldiers were infected with multiple intestinal parasites, including roundworm, whipworm, and Giardia — the first time Giardia has been identified ...

A Backwards Bible Map That Changed the World

Nov. 30, 2025 Five hundred years ago, a Bible accidentally printed with a backwards map of the Holy Land sparked a revolution in how people imagined geography, borders, and even nationhood. Despite the blunder, ...

A Strange Ancient Foot Reveals a Hidden Human Cousin

Nov. 28, 2025 Researchers have finally assigned a strange 3.4-million-year-old foot to Australopithecus deyiremeda, confirming that Lucy’s species wasn’t alone in ancient Ethiopia. This hominin had an ...

Why Did Ancient People Build Massive, Mysterious Mounds in Louisiana?

Nov. 24, 2025 Hunter-gatherers at Poverty Point may have built its massive earthworks not under the command of chiefs, but as part of a vast, temporary gathering of egalitarian communities seeking spiritual ...

Archaeologists May Have Finally Solved Peru’s Strange “Band of Holes” Mystery

Nov. 10, 2025 In Peru’s mysterious Pisco Valley, thousands of perfectly aligned holes known as Monte Sierpe have long puzzled scientists. New drone mapping and ...

Most Americans Don’t Know Alcohol Can Cause Cancer

Nov. 5, 2025 Most U.S. adults don’t realize alcohol raises cancer risk, and drinkers themselves are the least aware. Scientists say targeting these misbeliefs could significantly reduce alcohol-related cancer ...

Scientists Find Mind Trick That Unlocks Lost Memories

Nov. 3, 2025 Researchers found that embodying a digital, childlike version of one’s own face helps unlock vivid childhood memories. This illusion strengthens the connection between bodily self-perception and ...

Life Expectancy Gains Have Slowed Sharply, Study Finds

Oct. 26, 2025 Researchers found that life expectancy growth in wealthy nations has dramatically slowed since 1939. Once driven by major reductions in child mortality, longevity gains are now limited by slower ...

Why Gen X Women Can’t Stop Eating Ultra-Processed Foods

Sep. 29, 2025 Researchers found that middle-aged adults, especially women, are far more likely to be addicted to ultra-processed foods than older generations. Marketing of diet-focused processed foods in the 1980s ...

Doctors Warn of a Stealth Opioid 20x More Potent Than Fentanyl

Sep. 18, 2025 Nitazenes, a powerful and largely hidden class of synthetic opioids, are quickly becoming a deadly factor in the overdose crisis. Over 20 times stronger than fentanyl, these drugs often go undetected ...

Science Says We’ve Been Nurturing “gifted” Kids All Wrong

Dec. 21, 2025 A major international review has upended long-held ideas about how top performers are made. By analyzing nearly 35,000 elite achievers across science, music, chess, and sports, researchers found that ...

How 1 in 4 Older Adults Regain Happiness After Struggling

Oct. 10, 2025 A University of Toronto study found that nearly one in four adults aged 60+ who reported poor well-being were able to regain optimal wellness within three years. The research highlights that physical ...

Why So Many Young Kids With ADHD Are Getting the Wrong Treatment

Sep. 16, 2025 Preschoolers with ADHD are often given medication right after diagnosis, against medical guidelines that recommend starting with behavioral therapy. Limited access to therapy and physician pressures ...

The Midlife Crisis Is Over, but Something Worse Took Its Place

Sep. 2, 2025 Once a universal feature of human psychology, the “unhappiness hump” in midlife has disappeared, replaced by a new trend: mental health is worst in youth and improves with age. Data from the ...

Ancient DNA Finally Solves the Mystery of the World’s First Pandemic

Aug. 30, 2025 Scientists have finally uncovered direct genetic evidence of Yersinia pestis — the bacterium behind the Plague of Justinian — in a mass grave in Jerash, Jordan. This long-sought discovery ...

Maui’s Fires Drove a 67% Jump in Deaths. Most Went Uncounted

Aug. 25, 2025 Researchers uncovered that the Maui wildfires caused a spike in deaths far higher than reported, with hidden fatalities linked to fire, smoke, and lack of medical access. They warn that prevention ...

Why Listening May Be the Most Powerful Medicine

Aug. 20, 2025 In a health system where speed often replaces empathy, researchers highlight the life-changing power of listening. Beyond simple questions, values-driven listening—marked by presence, curiosity, ...

How Cats With Dementia Could Help Crack the Alzheimer’s Puzzle

Aug. 14, 2025 Cats can naturally develop dementia with brain changes strikingly similar to Alzheimer’s disease in humans, including toxic amyloid-beta buildup and loss of synapses. A new study shows these ...

1 in 8 Americans Have Already Tried Ozempic and Similar Weight Loss Medications

Sep. 14, 2025 GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic have transformed weight loss in the U.S., with nearly 12% of Americans having tried them, according to a new RAND report. Usage is especially high among women aged 50 to 64, ...

Unwanted Pregnancies Surge With Alcohol, but Not With Cannabis, Study Finds

Aug. 1, 2025 Women who drank heavily, even though they strongly wished to avoid pregnancy, were 50% more likely to become pregnant than those who drank little or not at all, according to new research. ...

The Foods That Delay Dementia and Heart Disease. Backed by a 15-Year Study

Sep. 9, 2025 What we eat as we age may determine how many chronic illnesses we face later in life. A 15-year study of more than 2,400 older adults reveals that diets rich in vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and ...

Researchers Discover Key Social Factors That Triple Long COVID Risk

Aug. 4, 2025 New research led by Mass General Brigham reveals that people facing social challenges—like food insecurity, financial strain, and limited healthcare access—are two to three times more likely to ...

COVID Vaccines Saved 2. 5M Lives Globally—a Death Averted Per 5,400 Shots

July 27, 2025 Between 2020 and 2024, COVID-19 vaccines saved 2.5 million lives globally, preventing one death for every 5,400 doses. A groundbreaking worldwide study led by researchers from Università Cattolica ...

Even Without Catching COVID, the Pandemic May Have Quietly Aged Your Brain

July 24, 2025 Even people who never caught Covid-19 may have aged mentally faster during the pandemic, according to new brain scan research. This large UK study shows how the stress, isolation, and upheaval of ...

Why Trump’s Leg Swelling Could Be a Warning Sign for Millions

July 18, 2025 President Trump s diagnosis of Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI) has brought renewed attention to a frequently overlooked yet dangerous condition. CVI affects the ability of veins especially in the ...

Three-Person DNA IVF Stops Inherited Disease—eight Healthy Babies Born in UK First

July 18, 2025 In a groundbreaking UK first, eight healthy babies have been born using an IVF technique that includes DNA from three people—two parents and a female donor. The process, known as pronuclear ...

Cognitive Collapse and the Nuclear Codes: When Leaders Lose Control

July 17, 2025 A shocking study reveals that many leaders of nuclear-armed nations—including US presidents and Israeli prime ministers—were afflicted by serious health problems while in office, sometimes with ...

It’s Not That You Look—it’s When: The Hidden Power of Eye Contact

July 17, 2025 A groundbreaking study from Flinders University reveals that it's not just making eye contact that matters, but precisely when and how you do it. By studying interactions between humans and ...

Deadly Disguise: How Candy-Like Nicotine Pouches Caused a 763% Spike in Child Poisonings

July 14, 2025 A massive spike in young children accidentally ingesting nicotine pouches has alarmed poison control researchers, with a 763% rise reported between 2020 and 2023. Unlike other nicotine products, ...

Not All Exercise Boosts Mental Health — It’s the Why That Matters Most

July 13, 2025 Movement helps your mood, but it's not one-size-fits-all. Exercising for fun, with friends, or in enjoyable settings brings greater mental health benefits than simply moving for chores or ...