Last Word

Insulin resistance links MASLD to several other metabolic diseases. Kateryna Kon/Science Photo Library via Getty Images ~~~~~ Liver disease is frighteningly common worldwide. Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease, or MASLD, is an umbrella term describing conditions related to a buildup of fat in the liver. Formerly known as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, this condition...

Pharmacist Mark Mikhael has lost 50 pounds over the past 12 months. He no longer has diabetes and finds himself “at my ideal body weight,” with his cholesterol below 200 for the first time in 20 years. “I feel fantastic,” he said. Like millions of others, Mikhael credits the new class of weight loss drugs. But he isn’t using brand-name Wegovy or Zepbound. Mikhael, CEO of Orlando, Florida-based...

Everyone is biased, she says; it's built into the way we experience the world. But that doesn't mean that we are slaves to our instincts. We all have a natural tendency to view the world in black and white—to the extent that it's hard not to hear "black" and immediately think "white." Fortunately, there are ways to activate the more subtle shadings in our minds. Kristin Pauker is a professor of...

Fresh off the back of Anthony Fauci and his former agency being accused of lying to lawmakers and covering up the origins of Covid-19, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is embroiled in another scandal. This time, an explosive report by US congressional investigators found the NIAID tried to hide plans to conduct gain-of-function (GOF) research on a lethal strain...

Research shows nicotine exposure results in long-term changes to the brain. smartboy10/DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images ~~~~~ About 37 million children ages 13 to 15 around the world use tobacco, according to a 2024 report from the World Health Organization. In 2023, e-cigarettes were the most commonly used tobacco product in the U.S., with 7.7% of middle school and high school students...

The latest science on how blood levels of HDL, LDL and more relate to cardiovascular health When C. Michael Gibson of Boston saw his doctor in the spring of 2023, the blood test results were confusing. His cholesterol levels were decent — he was already taking statins to keep the “bad” cholesterol low — but the arteries delivering blood to his heart were nonetheless crammed with dangerous...