Human Quirks: Living Well
September 24, 2026
Top Headlines
Sep. 15, 2026 Simply smelling chocolate helped men complete more leg extension repetitions without making the workout feel harder, with dark chocolate producing the strongest effect. The researchers think familiar food aromas may influence appetite and motivation ...
Sep. 14, 2026 Cancer rates are rising in adults under 55, and new research suggests accelerated biological aging may be one piece of the puzzle. Scientists found that people from more recent generations tended to ...
Sep. 12, 2026 A natural compound found in foods such as spinach, almonds, and sweet potatoes may aggravate gut inflammation in people with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis because their intestines appear to handle it differently. Researchers say the ...
Sep. 11, 2026 Long-lived bats appear to combine powerful immune defenses with unusual strategies for eliminating damaged cells, potentially helping them avoid cancer and disease for decades. Researchers hope these genetic tricks could eventually reveal new ways ...
Sep. 11, 2026 A remarkably detailed study of Maria Branyas, who lived past 117, reveals that extreme longevity may involve both intense aging and powerful biological protection at the same time. Researchers found signs of advanced aging, but also low ...
Sep. 8, 2026 Scientists found that caffeine activates an ancient cellular energy system involved in stress resistance, DNA repair, and growth. The discovery could help explain caffeine’s links to healthier aging and may point toward new ways to target the same ...
Sep. 7, 2026 A large study of nearly 74,000 men suggests that long-term use of tadalafil, best known as Cialis, may be linked to a higher risk of glaucoma and other eye pressure problems. Men prescribed the drug for urinary symptoms caused by an enlarged ...
Sep. 4, 2026 A substance found in edible sea squirts appeared to reverse several signs of aging in older mice. Plasmalogen supplements improved memory and learning, strengthened connections between brain cells, reduced inflammation, and even helped the mice grow ...
Sep. 2, 2026 Following nearly 10,000 older women for 10 years, researchers found that tea drinking was associated with slightly higher hip bone density. Moderate coffee consumption did not appear harmful, but drinking more than five cups a day was linked to ...
Sep. 1, 2026 Mindfulness, gratitude, and optimism training may improve blood pressure, inflammation, and other heart-health measures within just eight to 12 weeks. The strongest programs paired daily practice with regular reinforcement, suggesting that improving ...
Aug. 26, 2026 Britain’s postwar sugar rationing created a rare natural experiment that let researchers examine how early sugar exposure might affect health decades later. People who experienced more rationing during their first 1,000 days had lower rates of ...
Aug. 24, 2026 Common medications may reshape the gut microbiome long after the last dose is taken. In a study of more than 2,500 people, researchers found lasting microbial changes linked not only to antibiotics, but also to antidepressants, beta-blockers, ...
Latest Headlines
updated 12:04am EDT
Sep. 7, 2026 Could math help explain why some relationships survive life’s inevitable stresses while others slowly fall apart? Researchers have spent decades developing mathematical models that treat romantic ...
Sep. 4, 2026 Slow breathing with a prolonged exhale made people more willing to take risks by changing heart activity and increasing the brain’s sensitivity to rewards. The findings suggest that something as ...
Aug. 22, 2026 Greenland sharks may live for 400 years without suffering the kind of retinal decline normally associated with aging. Researchers found healthy eye tissue and active proteins specially adapted for ...
Aug. 21, 2026 Scientists have linked a specific gut bacterium, Roseburia inulinivorans, to stronger muscles in both humans and mice. Older adults who carried it had 29% greater handgrip strength, while treated ...
Aug. 15, 2026 COVID-19 can reactivate dormant viruses hiding in the body, including Epstein-Barr, cytomegalovirus, and several herpes viruses. One poorly understood viral family was strongly associated with long ...
Aug. 15, 2026 Gut microbes need something to eat, and when fiber is limited, they may begin consuming proteins from the mucus lining that protects the gut. Researchers found that fiber can suppress this process, ...
Aug. 12, 2026 Ozempic-like drugs appear to weaken more than hunger—they may also reduce cravings for alcohol and other addictive substances. Scientists are increasingly tracing this effect to the lateral septum, ...
Aug. 8, 2026 An intensive seven-day meditation retreat triggered striking changes across the brain and body, including shifts tied to neuroplasticity, immunity, metabolism, and natural pain relief. Participants ...
July 29, 2026 A new cooking method could make French fries crispier in less time while significantly limiting how much oil they absorb. Researchers propose combining microwave heating, which keeps oil out, with ...
July 25, 2026 A prebiotic fiber supplement reduced knee osteoarthritis pain while also improving grip strength and pain sensitivity in a six-week trial. The results hint at a fascinating gut-muscle-pain connection ...
Earlier Headlines
July 21, 2026 Watching television very often in midlife may be linked to troubling brain changes decades later. In a study of about 1,700 adults, frequent TV viewers later showed smaller brain regions involved in ...
July 17, 2026 A large laboratory study found that many commonly used sweeteners can directly change the growth of gut bacteria. Researchers identified more than 100 cases in which sweeteners behaved differently ...
July 13, 2026 Researchers found that bacteria linked to gum disease may help drive the development of calcific aortic valve stenosis by triggering inflammation and calcium buildup in the heart valve. The early ...
June 17, 2026 A Rutgers study suggests GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy may weaken the link between impulsive tendencies and violent behavior. The surprising finding hints that these medications could affect ...
July 15, 2026 An existing constipation drug may have an unexpected new use: helping clear the "brain fog" that often lingers after depression. In a small clinical trial, people with a history of ...
July 1, 2026 What if Sigmund Freud was onto something that modern neuroscience is only now beginning to explain? A new paper argues that today's leading theory of the brain—as a prediction machine ...
July 14, 2026 Researchers found that semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, slowed biological aging markers in adults with HIV, marking the first clinical evidence that the drug may influence ...
May 28, 2026 Feeling constantly drained might not just be about poor sleep or working too hard. Researchers in Japan found that low levels of key vitamins — especially vitamin B12 and folate — may quietly ...
May 30, 2026 A specially formulated tomato-soy juice packed with natural plant compounds may help calm inflammation linked to obesity, according to a new clinical study. Healthy adults with obesity who drank the ...
May 18, 2026 Scientists discovered that eating grapes can actually change how your skin behaves at the genetic level. After just two weeks of daily grape consumption, volunteers showed signs of improved skin ...
May 17, 2026 For years, “yo-yo dieting” has been blamed for wrecking metabolism and causing lasting damage, but a major new review says the fear may be wildly overblown. After analyzing decades of studies in ...
July 22, 2026 A single dose of psilocybin produced measurable changes in brain activity and possible changes in brain structure that lasted for up to a month. Participants who experienced the greatest increase in ...
July 19, 2026 Scientists may have uncovered one reason coffee is repeatedly associated with healthier aging and lower disease risk. Compounds in coffee appear to activate NR4A1, a receptor that helps protect cells ...
May 1, 2026 Scientists have uncovered a surprising link between simple body movement and brain health: every time you tighten your abdominal muscles—even slightly—your brain may gently sway inside your ...
May 9, 2026 Rebooting the gut microbiome with bacteria from youth may help stop aging-related liver damage and even prevent liver cancer, according to new research in mice. Older mice that received their own ...
Apr. 23, 2026 A new minimally invasive procedure may help people keep weight off after stopping popular drugs like Ozempic and semaglutide—something most patients struggle with. In a clinical trial, those who ...
May 3, 2026 Coffee doesn’t just energize—it actively reshapes the gut and mind. Researchers found that both caffeinated and decaf coffee altered gut bacteria in ways linked to better mood and lower stress. ...
May 31, 2026 Melanoma may not become steadily more dangerous with age as scientists once assumed. In a surprising discovery, researchers found that cancer spread was lowest in young mice, surged in middle-aged ...
Apr. 17, 2026 A surprising new study suggests that eating a very healthy diet—packed with fruits, vegetables, and whole grains—might be linked to a higher risk of lung cancer in younger non-smokers. ...
May 9, 2026 Scientists studying axolotls, zebrafish, and mice have uncovered a shared set of genes that may one day help humans regrow lost limbs. By identifying powerful “SP genes” involved in regeneration, ...