New! Sign up for our free email newsletter.
Reference Terms
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gastroenteritis

Gastroenteritis involves diarrhea or vomitting, with noninflammatory infection of the upper small bowel, or inflammatory infection of the colon, both part of the gastrointestinal tract. Usually this is caused by an infection, but this is not always the case. It usually is of acute onset, normally lasting less than 10 days and self-limiting. Sometimes it is referred to simply as 'gastro'. It is often called the stomach flu or gastric flu even though it is not related to influenza.

Related Stories
 


Health & Medicine News

September 3, 2026

Scientists discovered that more than 500 species of vesper bats possess two separate sets of antibody genes, an immune arrangement never before found in mammals. The surprising system could help explain how bats tolerate so many viruses without ...
Aging may be partly fueled by immune cells losing their ability to clear away damaged, inflammation-promoting cells. Blocking a single receptor restored that cleanup process in mice, reducing inflammation and helping their organs, muscles, and ...
Some of the attention patterns that make ADHD challenging may also help spark creativity by allowing the brain to explore more ideas and unexpected connections. Researchers think creative activities could potentially channel this “defocused ...
Sitting for long, uninterrupted stretches may carry greater health risks than sitting the same amount of time in shorter bouts. Researchers found that each extra hour of prolonged sedentary behavior was associated with a 9% higher risk of cancer ...
“Broken heart syndrome” can mimic a heart attack so closely that patients often need invasive testing to tell the difference. Researchers have now developed the BioTAK score, which combines ...
Brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s may begin at least seven years before amyloid plaques become detectable with current PET scans. Researchers uncovered the signal by tracking healthy older adults with repeated brain imaging over nearly 20 ...
Following nearly 10,000 older women for 10 years, researchers found that tea drinking was associated with slightly higher hip bone density. Moderate coffee consumption did not appear harmful, but drinking more than five cups a day was linked to ...
Where you live in early adulthood may quietly shape your heart health for decades. Researchers found that adverse neighborhood conditions were linked to a higher risk of coronary artery calcification in midlife, an early warning sign of ...
Obesity appears to leave a molecular imprint on key immune cells that may persist for 5 to 10 years after weight loss. This long-lasting “obesity memory” could help explain why some obesity-related health risks remain elevated even after body ...
Mindfulness, gratitude, and optimism training may improve blood pressure, inflammation, and other heart-health measures within just eight to 12 weeks. The strongest programs paired daily practice with regular reinforcement, suggesting that improving ...
A study of people over 90 found that dementia risk remains strongly shaped by sex, race and genetics, with women and black participants facing notably higher risks. Intriguingly, some people stayed cognitively healthy despite carrying major risk ...
A once-nightly pill cut breathing interruptions by about 44% in a major phase 3 sleep apnea trial, while improving oxygen levels and disease severity. By strengthening the muscles that keep the airway open during sleep, AD109 could offer a new ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:56 pm ET