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Gut-friendly diet linked to lower mortality risk in coronary heart disease

Using NHANES 2005-2018 data, researchers found that adults with coronary heart disease who had higher Dietary Index for Gut Microbiota scores had lower all-cause mortality risk. The association was nonlinear, strongest when scores reached 5 or higher, and remained observational rather than causal.

9 Jul 2026

New Italian data show extreme longevity is spreading beyond the blue zones

A nationwide ecological analysis of Italian regions found that aging and extreme longevity indicators rose steadily from 1982 to 2025, with northern and central regions generally leading. Regional patterns linked higher longevity indices to lower diabetes and cerebrovascular mortality and healthier contemporary nutrition profiles, while Cilento emerged as a notable southern hotspot.

9 Jul 2026

Cleaner transportation could prevent thousands of premature deaths

A shift to cleaner transportation could prevent more than 3,600 premature deaths in Montreal and Toronto by reducing ultrafine particle pollution, finds a new study led by McGill researchers.

8 Jul 2026

Study advances understanding of mixed protein pathologies in dementia

The aging brain frequently harbors multiple protein pathologies that contribute to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases.

8 Jul 2026

Study identifies new target for Parkinson's disease neuroprotection

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common form of neurodegenerative disease and afflicts more than ten million people worldwide. While current therapies address disease symptoms, they do not prevent the underlying neurodegeneration that drives the disease.

8 Jul 2026

Study links PTSD to accelerated biological aging and chronic disease

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) remains a common condition affecting World Trade Center (WTC) responders 25 years after the attack on the Twin Towers.

8 Jul 2026

Paternal postpartum depression affects more fathers than widely recognized

Postpartum depression in mothers is a widely recognized condition that affects 1 in 7 women. But less known is that 1 in 10 new fathers also experience depression.

8 Jul 2026

Dominant hand excels through practice rather than brain advantage

Why is a person's dominant hand so much better at writing, throwing or using tools? A new study from UCLA Health researchers suggests the answer isn't a hardwired brain advantage - the dominant hand has simply had more practice.

8 Jul 2026

Study finds growing burden of diabetes-related chronic kidney disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is common, largely silent, and serious. Most people who have the condition do not realize they have it, while it sharply raises the risk of heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure and early death.

8 Jul 2026

LEAP2 hormone may predict anorexia nervosa relapse risk

People with anorexia nervosa have unusually high levels of a hormone called LEAP2 in their blood when they are in the acute phase of the disorder, according to research presented today (Thursday) at the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) Forum 2026.

8 Jul 2026

Antihistamines show modest benefits for long Covid fatigue treatment

Over-the-counter antihistamines and a prescription anti-inflammatory drug both have a small benefit in reducing long Covid fatigue among people receiving care from specialist long Covid clinics, according to new findings from a large clinical trial led by UCL and UCLH.

8 Jul 2026

Global groundwater maps reveal hidden manganese risk for 220 million people

Machine learning maps suggest that about 180 to 220 million people may rely on untreated groundwater with manganese above the WHO’s updated 80 µg/L guideline. The study places manganese exposure on a similar global scale to arsenic and fluoride, yet shows it remains far less visible in groundwater monitoring.

8 Jul 2026

Customized fetal growth charts could reduce avoidable stillbirths across the NHS

One-size-fits-all fetal growth charts used in the NHS to monitor babies' growth before birth often misclassify babies as being either too small or too large, which can lead to missed cases at risk of stillbirth or unnecessary interventions, finds a study of over 3 million NHS births across England published by The BMJ today.

8 Jul 2026

Hypoxia therapy shows promise for treating mitochondrial brain disorders

Oxygen isn't always a good thing. Of course, people-and most organisms-cannot live without it. But oxygen can also be quite toxic and lead to profound health consequences.

8 Jul 2026

Smoking shows no major impact on the eye microbiome in small study

A small study found no evidence that smoking causes large or consistent shifts in the ocular surface microbiome or tear proteome. The authors caution that subtle smoking-related effects cannot be ruled out, given the small cohort and the ocular surface's low-biomass, contamination-sensitive microbial niche.

8 Jul 2026

Cosmetic microneedles deliver actives where creams struggle

This review shows how microneedle-based cosmetic systems bypass the stratum corneum to deliver poorly penetrating actives, including peptides, retinoids, vitamins, niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, and hair-growth compounds, into viable skin layers.

8 Jul 2026

Socioeconomic status brings unequal metabolic disease reductions across racial, ethnic groups

Higher socioeconomic status is not associated with equal reductions in rates of type 2 diabetes and obesity across all racial and ethnic groups in the United States, according to a new study published July 8, 2026, in the open access journal PLOS One by Sara Cromer of Harvard Medical School, USA, and colleagues.

8 Jul 2026

Criminal legal involvement history linked to higher emergency department visits

People with a history of criminal legal involvement have higher odds of visiting an emergency department (ED), particularly for substance use and mental health reasons, according to a new study published July 8, 2026 in the open access journal PLOS One by Vidya Eswaran of Washington University in St. Louis, US, and colleagues.

8 Jul 2026

Mcmaster researchers develop targeted phage therapy for inflammatory bowel disease

A research team at McMaster University has developed a targeted approach to treating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) using bacteriophages, viruses that infect specific bacteria, to disarm harmful microbes without disrupting the broader gut ecosystem.

8 Jul 2026

Early detection of congenital cerebral ventriculomegaly can help prevent developmental disabilities

Early detection and treatment of congenital cerebral ventriculomegaly (CCV)-when a fetus's fluid-filled brain ventricles swell due to a condition called hydrocephalus-can help clinicians prevent developmental or neurological disabilities in affected infants.

8 Jul 2026