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Climate change intensifies global health risks, Lancet Countdown report warns

The 2026 Report of the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change finds that many of the health risks and harms of climate change grew faster in the decade since the Paris Agreement was introduced (2016–2025) than in the decade before it (2006–2015).

27 Oct 2026

Amyloid fibers help sperm deliver RNA to mouse embryos

Researchers identified RNA-associated amyloid fibrils in human seminal fluid and demonstrated that synthetic PAP fibrils could enter mammalian sperm. In mouse IVF experiments, these fibrils helped sperm deliver RNA to embryos, where the detected reporter-protein signal was at least tenfold higher than without fibril exposure.

27 Oct 2026

More Americans now know alcohol increases future cancer risks

Nearly 6 in 10 Americans (58%) know that regularly consuming alcohol increases the chances of later developing cancer, according to a nationally representative survey in October by the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC), a statistically significant increase of five percentage points since February 2026.

27 Oct 2026

Rutgers study links prenatal wildfire smoke exposure to autism risk

A Rutgers-led analysis of health insurance records found that exposure to fine particles from wildfire smoke during pregnancy was associated with a higher risk of autism diagnosis in children, with the strongest associations during the second and third trimesters.

27 Oct 2026

Heated tobacco products cause immediate cardiovascular and genetic damage

Just one session of heated tobacco product use results in measurable damage to the blood vessels, according to a study published today (Tuesday) in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.

27 Oct 2026

Could a few days of annual extreme heat raise dementia risk?

Extreme outdoor heat is associated with higher dementia risk, especially in socially vulnerable areas, emphasizing the need for targeted community strategies.

27 Oct 2026

Rising heat and humidity increase pregnancy termination risks in Nigeria

New research led by the University of Michigan contains valuable insights for public health officials and communities in Nigeria as they navigate pregnancies through increasing heat and humidity.

26 Oct 2026

Reddit discussions could help improve public health messaging on heat

Two years ago, Robbie M. Parks, an environmental health scientist at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and Nathaniel Matthews-Trigg, director of climate and disaster resilience at Americares, founded an online community on Reddit, r/heat_prep, where members share information and advice about coping with extreme temperatures.

24 Oct 2026

Stem cell therapies may need new protein quality control standards

Current Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards for cell therapies assess identity, viability, sterility, and genetic stability. For extracellular vesicle (EV) products, Minimal Information for Studies of Extracellular Vesicles (MISEV2023) guidance adds particle size, concentration, markers, morphology, contaminants, endotoxin, and assays.

22 Oct 2026

Early heart rhythm control linked to fewer recurrent strokes

For people hospitalized with ischemic stroke and atrial fibrillation (AFib), restoring the heart's normal rhythm within eight weeks after stroke is associated with a lower risk of having another stroke, according to a new study published October 21, 2026, in Neurology®, the official medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

21 Oct 2026

Researchers call for coordinated action to protect European sleep health

A new paper from the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the Early Career Network of the European Sleep Research Society warns that sleep health is becoming a growing public health challenge across Europe and is calling for coordinated action to protect it.

21 Oct 2026

Cold-water immersion lacks superiority for recovering muscle strength

Cold-water immersion is a popular post-workout recovery strategy, but new research suggests it may offer no greater benefit to muscle strength recovery than heat-based methods.

21 Oct 2026

Could eating whey protein before meals help reduce blood sugar spikes?

A narrative review of 57 randomized trials found that milk and dairy products have inconsistent effects on long-term blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes. Whey protein consumed before meals more consistently reduced short-term blood sugar spikes, but further research is needed to establish whether these benefits persist over time.

19 Oct 2026

Blood pressure drug losartan boosts metabolism by stimulating brown fat

Losartan, a drug commonly prescribed for high blood pressure, boosts brown adipose tissue or "brown fat" activity and enhances its metabolism, according to a preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine, Rockefeller University and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center researchers.

19 Oct 2026

Hospitals can lower surgical emissions through greener anesthesia choices

Hospitals can sharply reduce the climate impact and cost of surgery without compromising patient safety by changing routine anesthesia practices, including reducing the use of high-emission anesthetic gases, suggests a new study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2026 annual meeting.

19 Oct 2026

Residential greenery linked to lower dementia risk in older adults

Urban residents with more greenery within 100 meters of their homes have a lower risk of developing dementia over time.

19 Oct 2026

AI study of 101,000 patients links brown fat to heart and mental health

In a retrospective analysis of PET-CT records from 101,243 patients, researchers found that detectable brown fat was associated with lower prevalence of cardiometabolic and psychiatric conditions, while greater activity, particularly in the axillary region, was linked to more favourable metabolic outcomes. Medication screening identified losartan, which increased brown fat thermogenic activity in laboratory experiments and energy expenditure in mice, although its effects on human brown fat remain unproven.

15 Oct 2026

Highly sensitive people react to social cues over physical environments

Environmental sensitivity may be a misleading name for a personality trait that appears to have less to do with how people respond to their physical environments and more to do with how they are affected by social experiences and perceived threats.

15 Oct 2026

Scientists expand global climate scenarios to include public health

About a decade ago, a group of climate scientists described five scenarios for the future. Called the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs), these scenarios suggest how socioeconomic development could evolve in worlds with differing challenges to climate adaptation and mitigation.

15 Oct 2026

Opioid use disorder diagnoses spike among commercially insured Americans

Commercially insured patients with diagnoses of opioid use disorder increased 32.7 percent nationally from 2022 to 2025, according to FAIR Health's Opioid Tracker.

14 Oct 2026