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Coffee drinkers had fewer repeat blood clots in a Norwegian study

A Norwegian study involving 2,071 patients found that those who reported drinking 1 to 2 cups of coffee daily before their first venous thromboembolism had a 51% lower estimated risk of recurrence than non-drinkers. The association was strongest among patients whose initial blood clot was provoked, although the observational study could not establish that coffee consumption prevents recurrence.

14 Oct 2026

Your diet may have more to do with your sense of smell than you think

Researchers analyzed dietary patterns and odor identification in 6,690 adults in Italy, finding that healthier plant-rich diets, particularly those emphasizing fruits and vegetables, were associated with better olfactory function and lower odds of hyposmia. Diets emphasizing less healthy plant foods showed the opposite association, although the cross-sectional study could not establish whether diet influences smell or impaired smell affects food choices.

14 Oct 2026

Scientists studied diet and lung cancer in 95,612 adults. One eating pattern stood out

A prospective study of 95,612 U.S. adults found that those with the highest sulfur microbial diet scores had a 23% higher adjusted lung cancer incidence hazard and a 19% higher lung cancer-related mortality hazard than those with the lowest scores. However, the associations weakened after accounting for overall dietary quality and competing causes of death, and the findings do not establish a causal relationship.

13 Oct 2026

Doctors avoided two common words when talking about weight with patients

Researchers analyzed 123 recorded primary care consultations involving adults with type 2 diabetes and elevated BMI, finding that weight was discussed in just 39% of visits. Clinicians avoided potentially stigmatizing terms such as "overweight" and "obesity," while weight-related conversations occurred more frequently among patients taking GLP-1 receptor agonists.

13 Oct 2026

Nearly 400,000 adults, six body measurements, and a surprising result for heart attack risk

A UK Biobank study involving 395,831 adults found that a higher body roundness index (BRI) was associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction over a median follow-up of 13.3 years. BRI showed slightly better predictive performance than BMI and four other anthropometric measures, although the improvements were modest and require independent validation before clinical adoption.

13 Oct 2026

Study finds a surprising downside to having favourite foods

In a study of 279 adults, researchers found that initially reinforcing existing food preferences reduced learning flexibility when associations between foods and outcomes changed. Participants learned positive associations more readily than negative ones, while associations involving disliked foods were more adaptable than those involving liked foods.

12 Oct 2026

Who moves first at night, you or your dog?

Researchers monitored 25 adults and 38 dogs and found no significant association between bedsharing and objectively measured human sleep duration or efficiency, although owners of multiple dogs reported poorer sleep quality in an analysis requiring cautious interpretation. Human and dog movements were positively correlated, with human activity more often preceding canine activity among pairs with identifiable associations, although the study could not determine which species drove the other's movements.

12 Oct 2026

Three months of yoga before surgery revealed a surprising difference in stress hormones

In a non-randomized study of 40 adults with severe obesity awaiting bariatric surgery, researchers found significantly lower plasma noradrenaline levels in yoga participants than in controls after adjusting for baseline measurements. The researchers detected no significant DNA methylation changes in three inflammatory genes and found no clear psychological or metabolic benefits.

12 Oct 2026

HPV vaccines protect against cancer. Could they benefit pregnancy?

Findings from a nationwide study suggest HPV vaccination may reduce adverse pregnancy outcomes, emphasizing its importance in reproductive health strategies.

12 Oct 2026

Diet drinks showed no clear weight-loss edge over water after two years

In a two-year randomized trial combining assisted weight management with an unassisted follow-up year, completers maintained average weight losses of 4.8 kg with diet drinks and 3.7 kg with water. Researchers found no significant difference between groups, but fewer than half of the 493 participants completed follow-up.

11 Oct 2026

What people ate at the start of a 20-year study was linked to their heart failure odds

Researchers linked higher baseline diet quality to lower odds of developing heart failure over 20 years among 2,159 Greek adults initially free of cardiovascular disease. Healthy-food consumption showed the most consistent association, but the observational study cannot establish that dietary changes prevent heart failure.

11 Oct 2026

Cutting sugary drinks helps reduce childhood obesity, study finds

While the adult obesity rate appears to be slowing in the United States, childhood obesity remains historically high, affecting nearly 1 in 5 school-aged children.

9 Oct 2026

Body fat distribution may influence hunger hormones more than daily diet

Body fat distribution may reveal more about hunger hormones than recent diet.

9 Oct 2026

Gut bacteria may help explain why endometriosis pain varies

A study of 50 women with surgically confirmed endometriosis found that differences in gut bacterial composition were associated with menstrual pain, urinary symptoms, and infertility.

9 Oct 2026

Excess adiposity may alter the immune environment of airways to promote lung cancer

In a recent study of more than a thousand individuals, greater adiposity, or excessive body fat or fatty tissue, specifically in the abdomen, was associated with lung cancer.

8 Oct 2026

Nutritionally similar meals might not affect your body the same way

Ultra-processed foods trigger distinct metabolic and brain responses, influencing insulin release and nutrient processing despite similar nutritional content.

8 Oct 2026

Study finds age and body composition may explain gut bacteria differences between milk drinkers

A study of 265 adults suggests that gut bacteria differences between cow's milk and plant-based drink consumers may reflect individual characteristics rather than milk choice.

8 Oct 2026

HPV vaccination may protect against adverse pregnancy outcomes

Having received the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine before pregnancy is associated with a lower risk of major pregnancy complications including preterm birth, with the greater reduction in risk seen among women vaccinated at an earlier age, finds a large Swedish study published by The BMJ today.

8 Oct 2026