More Kids Seeking Anxiety Help at Routine Doctor Visits, Study Finds

TUESDAY, May 19, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Children are showing up at routine doctor visits with mental health concerns at much higher rates than they were a decade ago — especially for anxiety.

A new study of nearly 1.8 million children in Massachusetts, published May 18 in JAMA Network Open, found anxiety-related visit...

Weed/Opioid Combo Doesn't Help Knee Arthritis Pain

TUESDAY, May 19, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Adding a synthetic weed-derived drug to opioid painkillers brings no relief to people with excruciating knee pain, a new study says.

Neither the cannabis drug dronabinol nor the opioid hydromorphone alone provided significant pain relief for people with knee arthritis, and combining them did n...

Losing A Parent Can Dent An Adult's Earning Power

TUESDAY, May 19, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Losing a parent in adulthood not only breaks your heart, but can put a sizable dent in your bank account, a new study says.

Adults’ earning power persistently declines following the death of a parent, researchers report in the May issue of the American Economic Review.

The...

Ticks Can Creepy-Crawl Your House For Weeks Before Dying, Study Shows

TUESDAY, May 19, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Here’s a creepy-crawling fact as summer fun approaches – ticks can survive indoors for up to three weeks on hard-surface or carpeted floors, according to a study.

This means folks can have a tick latch onto them despite taking proper precautions outdoors, if one of the pests hitchh...

Short, Intense Radiation Therapy Safe For Prostate Cancer Patients

TUESDAY, May 19, 2026 (HealthDay News) — A shorter, more intense course of radiation therapy can safely treat prostate cancer, a new study says.

Men given two larger doses of radiation had about the same side effects as others treated with the standard five-dose course, researchers reported Sunday at a meeting of the European Society...

Rapid Weight Loss Beats Slow and Steady in New Clinical Trial

MONDAY, May 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) — When it comes to weight loss, is slow and steady really the winning strategy? Or could a rapid drop actually lead to better long-term results?

New research presented in Istanbul last week at the European Congress on Obesity is challenging the long-held belief that losing weight too quickly lead...

Pregnancy Safe For Women With Myasthenia Gravis, Study Concludes

MONDAY, May 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Women suffering from the muscle weakness disease myasthenia gravis can become pregnant without any ill effects, a new study says.

Pregnancy is not linked with an increased risk of serious flare-ups or worse symptoms for women with myasthenia gravis, researchers reported May 13 in the journal

Smog Linked To Lewy Body Dementia Risk, Major Study Finds

MONDAY, May 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Long-term exposure to smog might increase the risk of Lewy body dementia, the brain disease that CNN founder Ted Turner battled for several years before his recent death, a new study says.

Even small increases in particle pollution and nitrogen dioxide are linked to increased risk of Lewy body ...

NYC Mold Removal Program Cut Asthma ER Cases By A Quarter, Study Says

MONDAY, May 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) — A New York City mold removal program cut asthma-related ER visits by a quarter among residents of public housing, a new study says.

The city created “Mold Busters” in 2019 in response to a class-action lawsuit filed by residents suffering from asthma due to mold in their apartments,...

Single Psilocybin Dose Provides Rapid Relief From Depression, Small Clinical Trial Finds

MONDAY, May 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Just a single dose of psilocybin can provide rapid relief from depression, a new small-scale clinical trial has shown.

Within a week, people treated with one psilocybin dose had four times the decrease in their depression symptoms compared to a control group given the vitamin niacin, researcher...

FDA Approves AI Sepsis Tool That Detects Infection Hours Earlier Than Doctors

FRIDAY, May 15, 2026 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved an AI-powered early warning system to detect sepsis, one of the deadliest infections for hospital patients.

The tool, developed at Johns Hopkins University (JHU), detects sepsis hours faster than doctors. It has already reduced death...

PCOS Gets a New Name in Landmark Women's Health Shift

FRIDAY, May 15, 2026 (HealthDay News) — A major women’s health condition is getting a new name—and experts say it could change how millions are diagnosed and treated worldwide.

Polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS, will now be known as polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, or PMOS.

The condition affects more than ...

New Wearable Polygraph Tracks Hidden Stress In Babies, Adults

FRIDAY, May 15, 2026 (HealthDay News) — A new wearable polygraph might be able to help infants and adults not by detecting lies, but instead by monitoring their stress levels, researchers say.

Instead of falsehoods, this polygraph is designed to sense underlying stress that’s hidden deep within the body, researchers reported Ma...

Major Review: Antidepressants Safe in Pregnancy, No Added Risk of Autism or ADHD in Kids

FRIDAY, May 15, 2026 (HealthDay News) — There’s no clear link between antidepressant use during pregnancy and autism or ADHD in children, according to a new evidence review spanning more than half a million pregnancies.

Pooled data from three dozen studies found no significant association between antidepressants and development...

How Gun Violence News Coverage Is Harming America's Mental Health

FRIDAY, May 15, 2026 (HealthDay News) — The steady stream of news regarding U.S. gun violence is having a serious effect on Americans' mental health, a new study says.

Greater exposure to media coverage of gun violence is associated with an increased risk of depression and poor mental health days, researchers reported recently in

AI Chatbots Lure U.S. Teens With Fun, Romance and Hidden Dangers

FRIDAY, May 15, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Three out of five U.S. teens have tried AI chatbots, turning to the programs for entertainment, advice, friendship – and even romance, a new study says.

Further, about 1 in 10 teens say they talk to AI almost daily, researchers found.

But AI also can be a bad friend, with some teens...

U.S. Overdose Deaths Fell to Pre-Pandemic Levels in 2025

THURSDAY, May 14, 2026 (HealthDay News) — The number of Americans dying from drug overdoses has dropped for the third year in a row.

Nearly 70,000 Americans died of drug overdoses last year, according to a report released May 13 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That’s down 14% from 2024. 

Too Little or Too Much Sleep Ages Every Organ in Your Body

THURSDAY, May 14, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Your sleep habits may be affecting more than just your energy level. A new study says they could also impact how quickly every organ in your body ages.

Researchers analyzed data from nearly a half-million people in the United Kingdom to examine how sleep duration relates to aging across diffe...

School Recess Key To Learning, Says The American Academy of Pediatrics

THURSDAY, May 14, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Recess is not a luxury for school children, but a necessary part of how they learn, grow and stay healthy, according to a policy statement released May 11 from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

Not all students have daily recess at school, but such unstructured time is exactly what th...

Naming Emotions Can Help Autistic People Cope With Anxiety, Study Finds

THURSDAY, May 14, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Naming feelings of anxiety can help autistic people better manage emotions prompted by uncertainty and dread, a new study says.

People with autistic traits sometimes cope with uncertainty by labeling their feelings, according to findings published May 12 in the journal Scientific Reports<...