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VR and AR simulations help people practice stress relief in realistic scenarios

Everyday situations can sometimes feel like big stressors, whether it's delivering an important work presentation, attending a party full of strangers or confronting a partner. Talking to a friend or a therapist can help. But so can practice.

18 Apr 2025

Toxins in kids’ mattresses and bedding raise health concerns, study shows

A Canadian in-home study found that young children are significantly exposed to semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) in their sleeping environments. Mattresses, bedding, and bedroom furnishings were identified as key sources, with several compounds exceeding expected levels.

17 Apr 2025

Safe and simple ways to dispose of unused medicines

Is your medicine cabinet full of expired drugs or medications you no longer use? The best way to dispose of most types of expired, unwanted or unused medicines is through a drug take-back program.

16 Apr 2025

Multidimensional sleep health linked to better cardiometabolic outcomes

Healthy sleep includes multiple components, such as number of hours of sleep per night, how long it takes to fall asleep, daytime functioning and self-reported sleep satisfaction, and addressing these different dimensions of sleep may help to reduce cardiometabolic health and related risk factors, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement published today in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

14 Apr 2025

Capturing the true meaning of quality in health services

Research shows that despite frequent evaluations, a lot remains unknown about the quality of municipal health and care services.

10 Apr 2025

Study reveals brain circuit behind apathy in advanced cancer

The fatigue and lack of motivation that many cancer patients experience near the end of life have been seen as the unavoidable consequences of their declining physical health and extreme weight loss.

10 Apr 2025

What happens if you significantly increase dietary folic acid intake?

Increased dietary folic acid intake may lead to adverse health effects, including inflammation and neurotoxicity, highlighting the need for optimal levels.

9 Apr 2025

New data highlights urgent need for better asthma care – How FeNO testing can help reduce hospitalizations

Bedfont® calls for wider FeNO testing adoption to improve asthma care, reduce emergency visits, and ensure timely treatment for better respiratory health.

From NObreath 9 Apr 2025

New drug compound prevents long COVID symptoms in mice

Researchers have shown a new drug compound can prevent long COVID symptoms in mice – a landmark finding that could lead to a future treatment for the debilitating condition.

8 Apr 2025

Babies as young as three months can sense their own heartbeat

Body signals such as heartbeat and breathing accompany us constantly, often unnoticed as background noise of our perception. Even in the earliest years of life, these signals are important as they contribute to the development of self-awareness and identity. However, until know little has been known about whether and how babies can perceive their own body signals. A recent study from Wiener Kinderstudien Lab at the University of Vienna demonstrates for the first time that babies as young as 3 months can perceive their own heartbeat. In addition, the team, headed by researchers from the University of Vienna, together with colleagues from the University of Potsdam and Royal Holloway University of London, also investigated for the first-time infants' perception of their own breathing and found developments during the first two years of life. The results are now published in the prestigious journal eLife. The perception of internal body signals is closely linked to emotional awareness, mental health, and self-perception. Early in life the ability to perceive one's own body signals may be particularly important, as it often forms the basis for interactions with caregivers - for example babies rely on their caregivers to respond appropriately to signs of hunger or discomfort. Moreover, the development of self-awareness and identity partly depends on the perception and experience of one's own body. The study shows that even 3-month-old babies can perceive their own heartbeat and that this ability remains relatively stable during the first two years of life. At the same time, the findings indicate that the perception of breathing improves significantly during the second year. Interestingly, the ability to perceive the heartbeat and breathing does not appear to be related - much like in adults. Measuring body awareness in babies is challenging, as, unlike adults, you cannot simply rely on verbal report. Therefore, the research team used innovative methods by tracking the infants' eye movements as they watched child-friendly figures. These figures moved either in synchrony with the child's heartbeat or breathing, or with a slight time delay. Results showed that even at an early age, babies recognize the correspondence between their own heartbeat or breathing rhythm and the animated figures. They looked longer at the screen when the figures were in synchrony than when they were delayed. "The babies must have recognized that the figures moved simultaneously with their heartbeat or breathing, and then they paid more attention," said the study's lead author, Markus Tünte from the University of Vienna. These findings open up exciting perspectives for future developmental psychology research. In particular, it is important to explore how early body awareness relates to the development of emotional and social skills, as well as the role parents play in shaping early body perception. In the long term, such research could be used to promote healthy body awareness and, consequently, the mental health of children.

8 Apr 2025

Public health risks of urban wildfire smoke prompt push for more monitoring

When the catastrophic Los Angeles fires broke out, John Volckens suspected firefighters and residents were breathing toxic air from the burning homes, buildings, and cars, but it was unclear how much risk the public faced.

8 Apr 2025

New guidelines aim to improve diagnosis and treatment of mycoplasma pneumoniae in children

The Chinese Medical Association has released new guidelines for diagnosing and treating Mycoplasma pneumoniae in children.

7 Apr 2025

Laughing gas can potentially transform treatment for tough-to-beat depression

Nitrous oxide-better known as "laughing gas"-can potentially transform treatment for tough-to-beat depression.

3 Apr 2025

Clinical trial demonstrates safety of targeted treatment approach for deadly brain tumor in children

A Phase I clinical trial demonstrated that a targeted approach to treating a deadly brain tumor in children called diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) is safe, reported Weill Cornell Medicine and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center investigators.

3 Apr 2025

‘If they cut too much, people will die’: Health coalition pushes GOP on Medicaid funding

Tina Ewing-Wilson remembers the last time major Medicaid cuts slashed her budget.

3 Apr 2025

New cystic fibrosis newborn screening guidelines aim for equitable detection

The United States Cystic Fibrosis Foundation released the first guideline on newborn screening for cystic fibrosis (CF), in order to improve timely detection of CF in infants from all racial and ethnic backgrounds.

3 Apr 2025

Bedfont® Scientific Limited highlights FeNO testing’s role in childhood asthma for World Health Day 2025

As the world prepares to observe World Health Day on April 7th, 2025, Bedfont® Scientific Limited highlights the importance of early and accurate asthma diagnosis with its innovative NObreath® Fractional exhaled Nitric Oxide (FeNO) device.

From NObreath 2 Apr 2025

Research challenges traditional oxygen practices in trauma care

When a critically injured patient is admitted to the hospital, how much supplemental oxygen should they receive? New research published this week in JAMA Network Open led by investigators at the University of Colorado School of Medicine suggests it's often less than the current standard.

31 Mar 2025

Atrial fibrillation elevates early-onset dementia risk in younger adults

New research presented at the EHRA 2025, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology, shows that the presence of atrial fibrillation (AF) increases the risk of future dementia by 21% in patients diagnosed with AF under 70 and the risk of early-onset dementia (diagnosed before age 65 years) by 36%.

31 Mar 2025

Blocking Piezo2 may offer a new therapeutic approach for pulmonary fibrotic diseases

Researchers have found a potential new way to slow the progression of lung fibrosis and other fibrotic diseases by inhibiting the expression or function of Piezo2, a receptor that senses mechanical forces in tissues including stress, strain, and stiffness.

25 Mar 2025