Focus

The ones who need little sleep

Short sleepers cruise by on four to six hours a night and don’t seem to suffer ill effects. Turns out they’re genetically built to require less sleep than the rest of us. Everyone has heard that it’s vital to get seven to nine hours of sleep a night, a recommendation repeated so often it has become gospel. Get anything less, and you are more likely to suffer from poor health in the short and...

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How Lincare Cashed In on the Disastrous Recall of Philips Breathing Machines — at the Expense of Patients

ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox. For users of breathing machines made by Philips Respironics, recent years have been a nightmare in multiple acts. First came complaints of illnesses and injuries caused by the devices. Then came reports of deaths. Then came a large-scale recall that...

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Studies of migraine’s many triggers offer paths to new therapies

One class of drugs has already found success in treating the painful, disorienting and common attacks. Excitement is building about a slew of additional drug targets. For Cherise Irons, chocolate, red wine and aged cheeses are dangerous. So are certain sounds, perfumes and other strong scents, cold weather and thunderstorms. Stress and lack of sleep, too. She suspects all of these things can...

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Not Medically Necessary: Inside the Company Helping America’s Biggest Health Insurers Deny Coverage for Care

ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox. Series: Uncovered - How the Insurance Industry Denies Coverage to Patients More in this series Every day, patients across America crack open envelopes with bad news. Yet another health insurer has decided not to pay for a treatment that their doctor...

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Halloween candy binges can overload your gut microbiome – a gut doctor explains how to minimize spooking your helpful bacteria

It’s probably best to enjoy your Halloween spoils in moderation. Jupiterimages/The Image Bank via Getty Images ~~~~~ Each October, as the days shorten and the air grows crisp, millions of Americans prepare for the beloved – and often sugar-fueled – tradition of Halloween. From jack-o’-lanterns glowing on porches to costumes ranging from the whimsical to the gory, Halloween is a time of playful...

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A Hospital Kept a Brain-Damaged Patient on Life Support to Boost Statistics. His Sister Is Now Suing for Malpractice.

ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox. In 2018, Darryl Young was hoping for a new lease on life when he received a heart transplant at a New Jersey hospital after years of congestive heart failure. But he suffered brain damage during the procedure and never woke up. The following year, a...

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