Top Health News

October 18, 2025

Top Headlines

Surgery Beats Ozempic for Long-term Health, Cleveland Clinic Finds

Oct. 18, 2025 — Weight-loss surgery dramatically outperformed GLP-1 medications in improving longevity and reducing heart, kidney, and eye complications for people with obesity and diabetes. Over 10 years, patients lost far more weight and required fewer ...

Scientists Just Debunked the Calcium and Dementia Myth

Oct. 18, 2025 — A long-term Australian study found that calcium supplements do not raise dementia risk in older women, countering previous fears. The research followed more than 1,400 participants for nearly 15 years and revealed no harmful cognitive effects. ...

Scientists Finally Read the Hidden DNA Code That Shapes Disease

Oct. 18, 2025 — EMBL researchers created SDR-seq, a next-generation tool that decodes both DNA and RNA from the same cell. It finally opens access to non-coding regions, where most disease-associated genetic variants lie. By revealing how these variants affect gene ...

This Common Liver Supplement Could Boost Cancer Treatment Success

Oct. 17, 2025 — Salk Institute scientists discovered that bile acids in the liver can weaken immune cell function, making immunotherapy less effective against liver cancer. They pinpointed specific bile acids that suppress T cells and found that supplementing with ...

From Poison to Power: How Lead Exposure Helped Shape Human Intelligence

Oct. 16, 2025 — Long before humans built cities or wrote words, our ancestors may have faced a hidden threat that shaped who we became. Scientists studying ancient teeth found that early humans, great apes, and even Neanderthals were exposed to lead millions of ...

Tiny Brain Nanotubes Found by Johns Hopkins May Spread Alzheimer’s

Oct. 16, 2025 — Johns Hopkins scientists uncovered microscopic “nanotube” channels that neurons use to transfer toxic molecules. While this process clears waste, it can also spread harmful proteins like amyloid-beta. Alzheimer’s-model mice showed more ...

This Type of Meat Supercharges Muscle Growth After Workouts

Oct. 15, 2025 — Scientists discovered that lean pork builds muscle more effectively post-workout than high-fat pork, even with identical protein levels. Using advanced tracking techniques, they found that fat content blunted the body’s muscle-building response. ...

This European Treatment for Joint Pain Just Passed a Major Scientific Test

Oct. 15, 2025 — Korean researchers found that low-dose radiation therapy eased knee pain and improved movement in people with mild to moderate osteoarthritis. The treatment, far weaker than cancer radiation, showed real benefits beyond placebo. With no side effects ...

Supercharged Vitamin K Could Help the Brain Heal Itself

Oct. 14, 2025 — Researchers have synthesized enhanced vitamin K analogues that outperform natural vitamin K in promoting neuron growth. The new compounds, which combine vitamin K with retinoic acid, activate the mGluR1 receptor to drive neurogenesis. They also ...

A Simple Fatty Acid Could Restore Failing Vision

Oct. 14, 2025 — Scientists at UC Irvine have found a way to potentially reverse age-related vision loss by targeting the ELOVL2 “aging gene” and restoring vital fatty acids in the retina. Their experiments in mice show that supplementing with specific ...

Your Brain’s Power Supply May Hold the Key to Mental Illness

Oct. 14, 2025 — Groundbreaking Harvard research is exposing hidden energy failures inside brain cells that may drive major psychiatric conditions. By studying reprogrammed neurons, scientists are revealing how cellular metabolism shapes mood, thought, and ...

Oct. 13, 2025 — Finasteride, a common hair-loss drug, has long been tied to depression and suicide, but regulators ignored the warnings. Prof. Mayer Brezis’s review exposes global data showing psychiatric harm and a pattern of inaction by Merck and the FDA. ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:15pm EDT

Can Ozempic Help You Cut Back on Alcohol? Researchers Think So

Oct. 18, 2025 — Semaglutide, tirzepatide, and other GLP-1 drugs appear to slow alcohol absorption and blunt its intoxicating effects, according to new research. The study found participants on these medications felt ...

They Found the Switch That Makes the Body Attack Cancer

Oct. 16, 2025 — Scientists have found a way to transform hard-to-treat tumors into targets for the immune system. Using two protein stimulators, they activated strong T-cell and B-cell responses and built immune ...

A Little Stress Could Be the Secret to Healthy Aging

Oct. 15, 2025 — Scientists discovered that specific nutrients in nematodes' diets activate stress defenses that keep their cells healthier over time. These RNAs prevent toxic protein buildup, promoting longevity and ...

Scientists Grow Mini Human Livers That Predict Toxic Drug Reactions

Oct. 15, 2025 — A new human liver organoid microarray developed by Cincinnati Children’s and Roche recreates immune-driven liver injury in the lab. Built from patient-derived stem cells and immune cells, it ...

Exercise Might Be the Key to a Younger, Sharper Immune System

Oct. 14, 2025 — Endurance exercise may train the immune system as much as the muscles. Older adults with decades of running or cycling had immune cells that functioned better and aged more slowly. Their inflammation ...

Scientists Find the Brain’s Hidden Pulse That May Predict Alzheimer’s

Oct. 14, 2025 — Researchers at USC have created the first method to noninvasively measure microscopic blood vessel pulses in the human brain. Using advanced 7T MRI, they found these tiny pulsations grow stronger ...

This New Blood Test Can Catch Cancer 10 Years Early

Oct. 13, 2025 — Scientists at Mass General Brigham have created HPV-DeepSeek, a blood test that can detect HPV-linked head and neck cancers nearly a decade before diagnosis. By finding viral DNA in the bloodstream, ...

A Single Protein Could Stop Sudden Death After Heart Attacks

Oct. 13, 2025 — A team at Massachusetts General Hospital uncovered that an immune defense protein, Resistin-like molecule gamma, attacks heart cells after a heart attack—literally punching holes in them. This ...

C-Section Births Linked to Sleepless Nights and Painful Recoveries

Oct. 13, 2025 — Women who undergo C-sections are more likely to experience debilitating pain and sleep disorders in the months after giving birth. Researchers found both qualitative and large-scale data supporting ...

Your Skin Could Warn of Hidden Mental Health Trouble

Oct. 13, 2025 — People experiencing their first psychotic episode who also have skin conditions such as rashes or itching are at greater risk of depression and suicidal thoughts, according to new research presented ...

Earlier Headlines

Fentanyl Overdoses Among Seniors Surge 9,000% — A Hidden Crisis Few Saw Coming

Oct. 13, 2025 — Overdose deaths from fentanyl mixed with stimulants have skyrocketed among seniors, increasing 9,000% in just eight years. Once thought to affect mainly the young, the opioid epidemic’s fourth wave ...

Your Type of Depression Could Shape Your Body’s Future Health

Oct. 12, 2025 — Different types of depression affect the body in different ways. Atypical, energy-related depression raises the risk of diabetes, while melancholic depression increases the likelihood of heart ...

Keto Diet Shields Young Minds from Early-Life Trauma

Oct. 12, 2025 — Young rats given a ketogenic diet were largely protected from the mental and behavioral issues caused by prenatal stress. The high-fat, low-carb diet appeared to safeguard brain development and ...

Stanford Scientists Grow Thousands of Mini Human Brains Using Common Food Additive

Oct. 18, 2025 — Stanford scientists have solved a long-standing challenge in growing brain organoids by using a simple food additive to keep them from sticking together. The breakthrough enables the production of ...

New Research Reveals How ADHD Sparks Extraordinary Creativity

Oct. 13, 2025 — Researchers have discovered that ADHD’s hallmark mind wandering might actually boost creativity. People who deliberately let their thoughts drift scored higher on creative tests in two large ...

This Experimental “super Vaccine” Stopped Cancer Cold in the Lab

Oct. 13, 2025 — UMass Amherst researchers have developed a groundbreaking nanoparticle-based cancer vaccine that prevented melanoma, pancreatic, and triple-negative breast cancers in mice—with up to 88% remaining ...

Scientists Find Gold Hiding in Food Waste

Oct. 12, 2025 — Researchers are finding extraordinary new uses for what we throw away. Beet pulp may help crops resist disease, while composted coconut fibers could replace peat moss. Discarded radish and beet ...

Breakthrough Compounds May Reverse Nerve Damage Caused by Multiple Sclerosis

Oct. 11, 2025 — Researchers have identified two compounds, K102 and K110, that could repair the nerve damage from multiple sclerosis. These drugs help regenerate the protective myelin sheath and balance immune ...

MIT’s “stealth” Immune Cells Could Change Cancer Treatment Forever

Oct. 11, 2025 — MIT and Harvard scientists have designed an advanced type of immune cell called a CAR-NK cell that can destroy cancer while avoiding attack from the body’s own immune defenses. This innovation ...

When Men Drink, Women and Children Pay the Price

Oct. 10, 2025 — Men’s heavy drinking is fueling a hidden crisis affecting millions of women and children worldwide. The harms, from violence to financial instability, are especially severe where gender inequality ...

A Sweet Fix for Baldness? Stevia Compound Boosts Hair Growth

Oct. 10, 2025 — Researchers discovered that stevioside, a compound from the Stevia plant, enhances the skin absorption of minoxidil, the main treatment for pattern baldness. In mice, a stevioside-infused patch ...

Scientists Unlock Nature’s Secret to a Cancer-Fighting Molecule

Oct. 9, 2025 — Researchers have cracked the code behind how plants make mitraphylline, a rare cancer-fighting molecule. Their discovery of two critical enzymes explains how nature builds complex spiro-shaped ...

Scientists Discover Brain Circuit That Can Switch Off Chronic Pain

Oct. 10, 2025 — Scientists have pinpointed Y1 receptor neurons in the brain that can override chronic pain signals when survival instincts like hunger or fear take precedence. Acting like a neural switchboard, these ...

Two Common Drugs Could Reverse Fatty Liver Disease

Oct. 12, 2025 — Researchers at the University of Barcelona found that combining pemafibrate and telmisartan significantly reduces liver fat and cardiovascular risks in MASLD models. The drug duo works better ...

Why Ultra-Processed Foods Aren’t the Real Villain Behind Overeating

Oct. 5, 2025 — Researchers from Leeds found that overeating is driven more by what people believe about food than by its actual ingredients or level of processing. Foods perceived as fatty, sweet, or highly ...

Would You Eat Yogurt Made With Ants? Scientists Did

Oct. 6, 2025 — In a remarkable blend of science and tradition, researchers have revived an old Balkan and Turkish yogurt-making technique that uses ants as natural fermenters. The ants’ bacteria, acids, and ...

Nearly Half of Drivers Killed in Crashes Had THC in Their Blood

Oct. 5, 2025 — Over 40% of fatal crash victims had THC levels far above legal limits, showing cannabis use before driving remains widespread. The rate didn’t drop after legalization, suggesting policy changes ...

Brain Cancer That Eats the Skull Stuns Scientists

Oct. 5, 2025 — A new study shows glioblastoma isn’t confined to the brain—it erodes the skull and hijacks the immune system within skull marrow. The cancer opens channels that let inflammatory cells enter the ...

Why the Brain’s GPS Fails With Age, and How Some Minds Defy It

Oct. 5, 2025 — Stanford scientists found that aging disrupts the brain’s internal navigation system in mice, mirroring spatial memory decline in humans. Older mice struggled to recall familiar locations, while a ...

Hidden Cellular “power Switch” Could Transform Parkinson’s Treatment

Oct. 4, 2025 — Researchers uncovered a key cellular regulator, PP2A-B55alpha, that controls both the cleanup of damaged mitochondria and the creation of new ones. In Parkinson’s disease models, reducing this ...