Nancy Shute
-
Teenagers aren't always risk-taking gamblers; they put a lot of effort into weighing financial choices, a study finds. Adults are more apt to adopt rules and quickly make choices that are good enough.
-
The widely publicized measles outbreak linked to California theme parks appears to have made parents more confident about vaccine safety and benefits, a national poll finds.
-
If you've got a life-threatening medical condition, your first call might not be to an economist. But Alvin Roth used a theory about matching markets to help connect kidney patients and donors.
-
Long hours in practice might account for the higher concussion risk in high school and college football, a study finds. Some schools are retooling practice to reduce the number of hits.
-
Public health has a way of slipping off the radar when people aren't scared about Ebola or anthrax. But that doesn't mean the threats go away. And most states aren't prepared for the next one.
-
Lipid metabolism may not sound sexy, but it's how you fit into that smaller pair of jeans. And when the fat says farewell, it has to go somewhere. Only some of it winds up in New Jersey.
-
The rare virus is spreading fast, and doctors don't have an instant test to find out who has it. So parents should be ready to seek help quickly if a child has a cold that's rapidly getting worse.
-
There's plenty of evidence that playing with a concussion increases the risk of long-term problems. But athletes, coaches and parents can be reluctant to call a halt. Then how can doctors do no harm?
-
Drinking too much alcohol is a big factor in deaths of adults under age 65, CDC researchers say, from obvious risks like vehicle accidents to more subtle effects like higher rates of breast cancer.
-
It was widely thought that the grunge in inner-city housing was causing high rates of asthma. But now it looks like being exposed to just the right kinds of bacteria and vermin actually helps.