Public Health News and Research

RSS

Researchers validate Mpox antibody test during outbreak in Rwanda

An antibody test for the infectious disease Mpox was successfully developed during the new clade 1b outbreak in Rwanda, the first time that an assay of its kind has been validated within this setting.

9 Mar 2026

UH psychology professor questions claim that multilingualism protects against brain aging

University of Houston professor of psychology Arturo Hernandez is disputing a high-profile study published in the journal Nature Aging claiming that people who live in multilingual countries show healthier brain aging.

9 Mar 2026

Most pandemic viruses show little adaptation before infecting humans

A new University of California San Diego study published in Cell challenges a long-standing assumption about how animal viruses become capable of sparking human epidemics and pandemics.

9 Mar 2026

Women face higher liver fibrosis risk from cardiometabolic factors than men

Women with certain cardiometabolic risk factors, including type 2 diabetes and high waist circumference, face a greater increase in risk for liver fibrosis than men with the same risk factors.

9 Mar 2026

American Heart Association ranked as a top trusted health information source

At time when trust in health information is at unprecedented risk, the American Heart Association today welcomed new findings from the independent Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) at the University of Pennsylvania suggesting that Americans consider the Association the most trusted source of public health information after their personal physician.

9 Mar 2026

Recreational drugs significantly increase the risk of stroke

The recreational drugs cannabis, cocaine and amphetamines significantly increase the risk of stroke – including among younger users – Cambridge researchers have concluded after analyzing data from more than 100 million people.

9 Mar 2026

Newsom picks a dogfight with Trump and RFK Jr. on public health

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has positioned himself as a national public health leader by staking out science-backed policies in contrast with the Trump administration.

9 Mar 2026

Report highlights gaps in cancer care access for tribal citizens

The University of Oklahoma's Native Nations Center for Tribal Policy Research recently released a new Sovereign Report titled "Purchased/Referred Care and Cancer: Overview and Options for Tribal Consideration."

6 Mar 2026

State bans on prior authorization show limited impact on buprenorphine treatment retention

State laws that ban insurance prior authorization for buprenorphine-a leading medication for opioid use disorder-may not help more patients stay in treatment for the recommended minimum of 180 days, Weill Cornell Medicine researchers report.

6 Mar 2026

Biomimetic smart insole system enables accurate gait monitoring

With the increasing aging population, high incidence of chronic diseases, and the growing number of congenital or acquired foot deformities, lower limb dysfunction and abnormal gait problems are becoming increasingly common, posing a significant threat to public health and quality of life.

6 Mar 2026

Buck Institute launches a new initiative to measure and extend human healthspan

The Buck Institute for Research on Aging today announced the launch of Healthspan Horizons, a new initiative designed to address one of the most urgent challenges in modern medicine: how to measure, understand, and extend healthspan-the years of life spent in good health.

6 Mar 2026

Seniors defy stereotypes of decline through positive mindsets

Aging in later life is often portrayed as a steady slide toward physical and cognitive decline. But a new study by scientists at Yale University suggests an alternate narrative - that older individuals can and do improve over time and their mindset toward aging plays a major part in their success.

6 Mar 2026

This doctor-senator who backed RFK Jr. now faces a fight for his job — and his legacy

The ambitious liver doctor would go just about anywhere in his home state to give people the hepatitis B vaccine.

6 Mar 2026

Six federal scientists run out by Trump talk about the work left undone

Marc Ernstoff, a physician who has pioneered immunotherapy research and treatments for cancer patients, said his work as a federal scientist proved untenable under the Trump administration.

6 Mar 2026

Study tracks surge in leucovorin after White House promotion

A White House briefing in September 2025 that raised concerns about acetaminophen use during pregnancy and promoted the drug leucovorin as a potential autism treatment was followed by sharp changes in how doctors prescribed those medications nationwide, according to a new study.

6 Mar 2026

Virtual mental health visits show little impact on rural care access

During the COVID-19 pandemic, mental health specialists started using telemedicine much more frequently.

5 Mar 2026

Study finds toddlers who eat more ultra-processed foods show slightly higher behavioral symptoms

A prospective analysis of 2,077 children in the Canadian CHILD Cohort Study found that higher intake of ultra-processed foods at age three was associated with slightly higher behavioral and emotional symptom scores by age five. Modeling showed that replacing 10% of calories from ultra-processed foods with minimally processed foods was associated with modestly lower symptom scores.

5 Mar 2026

Understanding wellness among Indigenous population

The study is among the first to examine strengths-based indicators of well-being in a large, population-level Indigenous sample.

5 Mar 2026

Investing in food fortification provides excellent value in fighting global hidden hunger

A comprehensive new systematic review published in The Journal of Nutrition provides the latest evidence that large-scale food fortification is a highly cost-effective intervention for reducing global malnutrition.

5 Mar 2026

Youth football accounts for nearly one in five sports-related brain injuries

Youth football accounts for the largest share of sports‑related traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) in children and young adults, nearly one in every five TBIs, according to a preliminary study released March 4, 2026, that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 78th Annual Meeting taking place April 18-22, 2026, in Chicago and online.

5 Mar 2026