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Swimming lessons may boost children's learning and social development

With family budgets stretched ever-tighter, swimming lessons can be one of the first expenses to be cut back – but with research showing swimming helps children not just physically but developmentally, researchers are calling for greater government support.

29 Oct 2026

Review highlights indoor greenery’s benefits and evidence gaps

Indoor plants and green walls can reduce certain air pollutants by around 10-30 per cent, while some indoor greening systems could cut the energy needed to cool buildings in certain office zones by up to 27 per cent, according to an international review led by the University of Surrey.

29 Oct 2026

Is AI changing what gives our lives meaning?

A rapid review of 18 publications examines how artificial intelligence, immersive technologies, and other digital tools influence identity, existential inquiry, and the search for meaning. The findings suggest that digital literacy and knowledge management may support more reflective engagement with technology, although the evidence remains varied and does not establish causation.

29 Oct 2026

Worried nuts will cause weight gain? A large review puts that concern in perspective

A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials found that eating nuts modestly reduced body fat and improved cholesterol levels without significantly changing body weight. The review did not establish that nuts rich in monounsaturated fats offered greater body-composition benefits than those rich in polyunsaturated fats.

29 Oct 2026

Can broccoli sprouts help with insulin resistance? New review offers clues

A review published in the British Journal of Nutrition examines how carotenoids and bioactive compounds in Brassicaceae microgreens may influence obesity, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes through metabolic and inflammatory pathways. Small human trials involving broccoli sprouts have reported improvements in selected metabolic markers, but larger, longer-term studies are needed to establish their clinical benefits.

29 Oct 2026

Fish, shellfish or seaweed? A Korean study found striking differences in chemical exposure

A national study of 4,279 Korean adults found that higher finfish consumption was associated with increased blood concentrations of PFAS, PCBs, and mercury, while shellfish showed narrower associations with three PFAS. Persistent chemical mixtures were also associated with modest increases in liver health biomarkers, and mediation analysis identified a positive PFAS-related pathway, although finfish intake was not significantly associated with GGT overall.

29 Oct 2026

Ending emergency food benefits linked to higher child maltreatment rates

A new study has found that in US counties that ended COVID-19 pandemic-era Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Emergency Allotments, child maltreatment rates went up.

29 Oct 2026

Study redefines picobirnavirus as a bacteria hunting virus

Thriving alongside trillions of bacteria in the human digestive tract is a vast population of viruses. Ever since one such denizen of the gut microbiome, known as picobirnavirus, was first spotted decades ago, researchers thought it directly infected human tissue and played a role in gastrointestinal illness.

29 Oct 2026

Researchers find simple way to boost engineered T-cell therapies

Researchers at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have identified a promising new strategy to make cancer-fighting immune cells stronger and potentially longer-lasting, a discovery that could help improve the effectiveness of immunotherapies that use a patient's own immune cells to attack cancer.

29 Oct 2026

New study identifies potential targets for KRAS-related treatment resistance

Decoding of messenger RNA (mRNA) occurs during translation, the vital cellular process that builds proteins. Errors in this process are known to lead to cancer growth.

29 Oct 2026

New host target identified to block hepatitis E virus

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major cause of acute viral hepatitis, yet antiviral treatment remains largely limited to the off-label use of ribavirin. Ribavirin can cause substantial toxicity, is contraindicated during pregnancy and does not reliably benefit every patient.

29 Oct 2026

After-school programs double the activity levels of children

Many children go straight home after school, whilst others stay on at the after-school club, known as SFO. In addition, sports clubs, abbreviated to IFO, have become increasingly common. But how does this affect how much children move?

29 Oct 2026

New mechanism helps cancer cells selectively produce proteins that drive tumor growth

A previously unknown mechanism helps cancer cells selectively produce proteins that drive tumor growth - such as KRAS - in common cancers, according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

29 Oct 2026

Understanding the mechanisms of multilineage coordination during craniofacial development

The human face is one of the most complex structures formed during embryonic development. Its formation requires different cell populations to produce bones, muscles, nerves, blood vessels, teeth, and glands, all arranged in the correct positions and connected to perform their functions.

29 Oct 2026

Study highlights the hidden dangers of permanent daylight saving time

In July 2026, the US House passed legislation to make daylight saving time (DST) permanent. But a new analysis of the consequences of the "Sunshine Protection Act," reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on October 29, finds that this legislation would come with serious safety consequences for millions of schoolchildren across the US who would have to leave for school before sunrise, when fatal crashes with pedestrians are more likely, for much of the school year.

29 Oct 2026

Two rounds of prenatal STI screening lower preterm birth risk

Screening and treating pregnant patients for three common sexually transmitted infections (STIs) twice during pregnancy was associated with a 23 percent lower risk of preterm birth compared with standard care, according to a randomized clinical trial published in Clinical Infectious Diseases from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and University of Southern California.

29 Oct 2026

Hospital sewers promote antibiotic resistant bacteria, new study finds

Antibiotics excreted by patients promote antibiotic-resistant bacteria in hospital sewers, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

29 Oct 2026

Amino acid restores power to last-resort antibiotics

Worldwide, antibiotic resistance is associated with millions of deaths every year, and the World Health Organization warns that the number of resistant infections is rising.

29 Oct 2026

Large genetic study uncovers new risk factors for Alzheimer's

A large-scale international study, led by Ole Andreassen at University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, in collaboration with international consortium, offers new insights for understanding the disease and developing future treatments.

29 Oct 2026

New study reveals why colorectal cancer is more aggressive in youth

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers, along with Mass General Brigham researchers from the Gene Lay Institute of Immunology and Inflammation, and the Broad Institute, have uncovered biological clues to why colorectal cancer can behave more aggressively in younger people.

29 Oct 2026