Author: healthadmin

Adult men who view pornography report decreased sexual function and lower overall satisfaction with their intimate lives compared to women who view similar content. These findings are a broad synthesis of existing research and were recently published in The Journal of Sex Medicine. The data perfectly highlights the contradiction, showing that higher levels of explicit media engagement among men correlates with worse sexual health outcomes. Erotic depictions have existed in various civilizations since ancient times. The integration of technology into everyday life, especially smartphones and high-speed internet, has made explicit content more accessible than ever. This rapid increase in accessibility…

Listen to the audio version of this article (generated by AI).Large-scale intensive pig farms that pump manure pollution into local waterways are not only impacting human health, but also threatening the existence of more than a dozen endangered species, according to a new study. Researchers examined the overlap between endangered species and intensive hog feeding operations (CAFOs) in the top three hog producing states (Iowa, Minnesota, and North Carolina) and found that 17 aquatic species that are threatened, endangered, or under review for listing share watersheds with hog CAFOs. For 10 of these species, shared watersheds are listed as “critical…

A new study funded by the National Institutes of Health could help answer important questions about how exposure to so-called permanent chemicals affects children’s long-term health. Dr. Abby Fleisch, a pediatric endocrinologist at Maine Health, received a grant from the NIH to study whether exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) early in life increases the risk of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. PFAS are found in everything from nonstick cookware to food packaging. They don’t break down easily in the environment or in the body, and rising levels in waterways and the ground have led to dozens of dietary…

New research published in journal neuron We provide evidence that giving people immediate, real-time feedback about their success during a motor task significantly improves their ability to control machines. This real-time enhancement tends to be particularly useful when users have limited visual or physical sensations to guide their movements. This study suggests a promising strategy to enhance rehabilitation techniques and improve functional use of advanced prosthetics in stroke patients. Scientists and engineers are actively developing clinical interventions to help individuals restore or replace lost physical capacity. These interventions often rely on human-machine interfaces. Human-machine interfaces are systems that allow humans…

A US study found that when pregnant women follow nutritional guidelines, their exposure to many environmental chemicals from food and household products can be reduced. However, the authors warn that following a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables can also increase exposure to pesticides, and urge policy makers to include exposure to chemicals as a component of dietary guidelines. Diet exposes consumers to environmental chemicals, which can enter food through farming, processing, packaging, storage, and preparation.”What we found is that following the U.S. Dietary Guidelines may have two benefits: It helps meet nutritional needs during pregnancy, and it provides…

Get the health information and medications you need every weekday with STAT’s free newsletter Morning Rounds. Sign up here. Good morning everyone. Having barely survived a weekday without a World Cup, we can finally get back to our new normal this afternoon with France 3-1 against Morocco. A father’s quest to cure his daughter Matt Wilsey has spent 10 years of tireless work and nearly $70 million trying to find a cure for his daughter’s ultra-rare genetic disease. Through his scientific adventures, Wilsey is painfully close to achieving his goal. His next challenge, convincing a skeptical Food and Drug Administration,…

The explosion in our use of semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy) after its FDA approval for chronic weight management in 2021 was accompanied by another trend that caught the attention of researchers. That’s a dramatic increase in the number of calls to poison control centers across the United States. Jordan Miller, then an undergraduate at the University of Texas at San Antonio, wanted to know whether the spike in poison control cases was directly related to the FDA’s expanded approval of semaglutide, or whether the timing was simply coincidental. Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA), originally introduced as a treatment for type…

Forus, a health tech startup that uses artificial intelligence to automate prescription workflows, is partnering with the American College of Gastroenterology to improve access to medicines for patients with gastrointestinal conditions. Forus, formerly known as Tandem, has built an artificial intelligence-powered network that connects physicians, pharmacies, payers, and biopharmaceuticals to automate the prescription-to-patient path. Forus’ technology handles the tedious back-end administrative tasks that often create friction points and make it difficult for patients to get the medications they need. The company automates prior authorizations, appeals, financial assistance, and pharmacy routing between various parties. It is free for both doctors and…

A specific extract from the roots of the American ginseng plant protects brain connections and improves memory in older rats. Researchers have found that this botanical supplement strengthens the brain’s natural cellular waste disposal system, helping neurons survive the physical stress of aging. The study was published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia. As organisms age, cells gradually lose the ability to repair damaged or misfolded proteins. This biological decline is particularly problematic in the brain, where cells must last a lifetime. Neurons rely heavily on microscopic waste management systems to maintain structural integrity and process information without interruption. Consistent removal of…

Trees won’t continue to grow as long as they continue photosynthesizing, according to new research published in . scientific progress. Researchers found that oak trees continue to absorb carbon dioxide even after they have finished their annual growth, suggesting that forests may store less carbon in wood than many climate models currently show. This finding challenges the long-held assumption that high rates of photosynthesis naturally promote tree growth. If trees continue to capture carbon without converting much of it into new wood, less carbon may remain locked up in the long term. Trees continue to absorb carbon even when they…