Do Your Ears Ring? How to Deal with Tinnitus
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 4 minutes
| 774 words
| Arica Deslauriers
About one in 10 American adults has a persistent ringing or roaring in the ears or head, a condition called chronic tinnitus, a new study suggests.
The study also found that the rates of tinnitus are higher among Americans who are regularly exposed to noisy environments, either at work or during their free time. The findings were published today (July 21) in the journal JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
The analysis showed that approximately 10 percent of people in the U.
[Read More]Does Lou Gehrig’s Disease Only Affect Old People?
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 506 words
| Patria Henriques
Q. Is ALS an old-person’s disease, or does it affect every age group?
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) usually strikes between the ages of 40 and 70, but there have been cases of it in young adults, children and older people. The average age for getting ALS is 55.
ALS is known as Lou Gehrig’s disease in the USA. Gehrig, who played baseball for the New York Yankees, died of the disease in 1941.
[Read More]Drugs in Early Americas Included 'Magic' Mushrooms and Toad Skins
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 922 words
| Patria Henriques
From hallucinogenic mushrooms and cacti to alcohol-infused enemas and psychoactive dried toad skins, the array of consciousness-altering substances that people in the early Americas used was wider than thought, a new report suggests.
People living in Mesoamerica before the arrival of Europeans used such psychotropic drugs primarily in medicine and religious rituals, said study author Francisco Javier Carod-Artal of Hospital Virgen de la Luz in Cuenca, Spain. (Mesoamerica is a region defined more by shared cultures than by geographical boundaries, but it can roughly be considered as the southernmost region of North America.
[Read More]Feel the Pain? Don't Blame Lactic Acid
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 456 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
Runners and other athletes have long been told their muscles ache because they're full of lactic acid. But new research questions this locker-room wisdom.
Scientists have discovered that lactic acid actually helps muscles keep firing when the main pathways tire out.
Misconceptions about lactic acid began with a 1929 experiment by Nobel laureate Archibald Hill. Hill observed that a buildup of lactic acid - a byproduct of anaerobic respiration - correlated with a decline in muscle performance in isolated frog muscle.
[Read More]Killer Cave May Have Inspired Myth of Hades
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 964 words
| Trudie Dory
A giant cave that might have helped serve as the inspiration for the mythic ancient Greek underworld Hades once housed hundreds of people, potentially making it one of the oldest and most important prehistoric villages in Europe before it collapsed and killed everyone inside, researchers say.
The complex settlement seen in this cave suggests, along with other sites from about the same time, that early prehistoric Europe may have been more complex than previously thought.
[Read More]More Than 200 Reindeer Found Dead in Norway, Starved by Climate Change
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 432 words
| Fernande Dalal
Researchers recently found more than 200 dead reindeer on the island of Svalbard in Norway; the animals starved to death due to climate change, which is disrupting their access to the plants that they typically eat.
Every year, ecologists with the Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI) survey reindeer populations in Svalbard, an archipelago of glaciers and frozen tundra that lies between Norway and the North Pole.
The findings from the scientists' 10-week investigation were grim: Reindeer population numbers were down, and the individual animals were much thinner than they should have been.
[Read More]Pregnant Mom's Meth Use Shows Up in Baby's Moods
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 4 minutes
| 687 words
| Trudie Dory
Studies of children who had been exposed to methamphetamines in the womb suggest the drug can stunt fetal growth, increase newborn stress and cause problems with motor development. Now new research reveals that meth takes a toll on a child's mood and behavior, as well.
The new research is part of a study that tracks the babies of meth-using mothers starting at birth. Children exposed to meth in the womb are more likely to suffer from anxious and depressed moods by age 3, the researchers found.
[Read More]Protein Supplement Myth Revealed by Body of Work
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 4 minutes
| 805 words
| Trudie Dory
Most health stores are tainted with the irony that so few of their products are actually healthy, from herbal potions of unknown purity and utility to dietary supplements capitalizing on recent trends in weight loss or hair gain.
Now, two more studies question a longstanding staple at the health store, protein powder(opens in new tab) supplements, usually sold as a powder with testosterone-fueled names like Muscle Max 500 or Mega Monster Mass.
[Read More]Respiratory virus spreads in the southern US
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 551 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Parts of the southern U.S. are seeing off-season spikes in a respiratory virus called RSV after the lifting of public health measures put into place to slow COVID-19 spread, public health experts warn.
RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, is typically more active in the fall and winter. This summer spike is a "deviation" from normal, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory issued on June 10 for clinicians and health care workers.
[Read More]WATCH: Harrowing Flight into Irma Captured in Time-Lapse Video
Posted on December 17, 2022
| 2 minutes
| 345 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
Footage shot by USAFR pilot Maj. Kendall Dunn and shared on Twitter and Facebook on Sept. 6 shows the view from the cockpit of their aircraft — a WC-130J Super Hercules — as the squadron navigates through Irma. At the time, the hurricane was a Category 5 storm, with maximum sustained winds of 185 mph (298 km/h). [Inside Irma's Eye: Hurricane Hunters Capture Jaw-Dropping Photos]
The Hurricane Hunters are part of the 403rd Wing, a USAFR unit that oversees airborne missions related to weather.
[Read More]