Is It Better to Walk or Run?
Gretchen Reynolds on the science of fitness. Walking and running are the most popular physical activities for American adults. But whether one is preferable to the other in terms of improving health has long been debated. Now a variety of new studies that pitted running directly against walking are providing some answers. Their conclusion? It depends More...
WHO issues interim guidance TB drug
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has issued “interim policy guidance” for the use of bedaquiline in the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The interim guidance provides advice on the More...
This is your brain on coffee
Illustration by Ben Wiseman For hundreds of years, coffee has been one of the two or three most popular beverages on earth. But it’s only recently that scientists are figuring out that the drink has notable More...
Is barefoot-style running best? New studies cast doubt
Barefoot-running enthusiasts long have believed that running without shoes or in minimalist footwear makes running easier, speedier and less injurious. But a surprisingly large number of new studies examining More...
Scientists map key memory protein
Scientists have discovered more about the role of an important brain protein which is instrumental in translating learning into long-term memories. Writing in Nature Neuroscience, they said further research into More...
World’s largest cancer database launched
The world’s largest database of cancer patients is being set up in England in an attempt to revolutionise care, Public Health England has announced. It will collate all the available data on each of the More...
Vitamins: stop taking the pills
Everyone loves vitamins. Derived from the Latin word vita, meaning “life”, vitamins are necessary for the conversion of food into energy. Millions of people believe that taking daily vitamins makes More...
Early Down’s test ‘more sensitive’
A more accurate test for Down’s syndrome which can also be given earlier in pregnancy than current checks has been developed, say experts. A study of 1,000 pregnancies found the test of foetal DNA in maternal More...
US girl put on adult lung donor list
A US federal judge has allowed a severely-ill 10-year-old girl a prime spot on the list to receive an adult lung transplant, despite her young age. Sarah Murnaghan has been in hospital for three months with end-stage More...
Nutrition ‘must be global priority’
Good nutrition is critical in the first two years of life Malnutrition is responsible for 45% of the global deaths of children under the age of five, research published in the Lancet medical journal suggests. Poor More...
