Top Health News

September 20, 2026

Top Headlines

Scientists Solve a 50-year Mystery and Discover a New Human Blood Group

Sep. 19, 2026 Scientists have identified the genetic cause behind the mysterious AnWj blood group antigen, solving a puzzle that began in 1972 and establishing a new blood group system called MAL. The discovery could make it much easier to find extremely rare ...

Scientists Discover Cells That Cheat Death and Rebuild Damaged Tissue

Sep. 18, 2026 Scientists discovered a population of cells that can start the process of programmed cell death, survive it, and then help rapidly rebuild damaged tissue. Their descendants become far more resistant to future damage, revealing a mechanism that could ...

These Blood Thinners May Have an Unexpected Benefit for Alzheimer’s Patients

Sep. 18, 2026 Newer blood thinners may do more than prevent strokes in people with Alzheimer’s disease and atrial fibrillation. Researchers found that patients taking NOACs experienced a slower decline in ...

Scientists Restore a Brain Protein and Reverse Signs of Aging in Mice

Sep. 18, 2026 Scientists found that declining levels of the brain protein Menin may help drive aging, with lower levels in mice linked to inflammation, cognitive decline, weaker bones, and thinner skin. Restoring Menin reversed several age-related changes, while ...

Ozempic Can Change Your Body. Can It Change Your Life?

Sep. 17, 2026 Ozempic and other GLP-1 medications can improve blood sugar, weight, and cardiovascular health, but researchers found little evidence that they also improve mental health, employment, marriage, or overall well-being. The findings suggest the ...

Textbooks May Have Misdrawn This Basic Brain Structure for 100 Years

Sep. 17, 2026 Scientists discovered that brain-cell axons may not be smooth tubes as textbooks have shown for more than a century, but instead naturally resemble strings of tiny pearls. Those pearl-like structures can change with neural activity and may help ...

New Mesothelioma Drug Turns Cancer’s Own Defenses Against It

Sep. 17, 2026 Scientists are testing a counterintuitive way to fight mesothelioma, an aggressive asbestos-linked cancer with few effective treatments. A new experimental mesothelioma drug kills cancer cells by disabling PRX3, an antioxidant defense that tumors ...

Hidden “Immune Organ” in the Skull May Help Fight Brain Cancer

Sep. 16, 2026 Scientists discovered a hidden “immune organ” inside the skull that acts as a rapid first responder against brain cancer in mice. Strengthening this local immune defense improved tumor rejection and survival, raising the possibility of new ...

Scientists Find an Immune “False Alarm” That May Drive Rapid Aging

Sep. 16, 2026 Scientists have discovered that some severe genetic disorders linked to rapid aging may be driven not just by damaged DNA, but by the body’s overreaction to that damage. When broken DNA fragments leak into the wrong part of a cell, an immune ...

Smelling Chocolate Helped Men Complete More Reps Without Feeling More Tired

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 ...

Scientists Discover a Major Brain Shift Between Ages 50 and 75

Sep. 15, 2026 Scientists have uncovered sweeping changes in how the human brain controls and organizes its genome beginning in midlife, offering new clues to why aging sharply increases the risk of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. One of the ...

Nearly 10,000 Patients Reveal What Works Best for Knee Arthritis Pain Relief

Sep. 14, 2026 A major analysis of 139 clinical trials involving nearly 10,000 people suggests that some of the simplest treatments may work best for knee osteoarthritis. Knee braces ranked highest overall for ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:30am EDT

Hidden Gut Defect That May Explain Why IBD Keeps Coming Back

Sep. 19, 2026 Researchers have uncovered a hidden molecular warning sign of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that can linger even when patients feel well and appear to be in remission. By studying around 900 human ...

A Deadly Ebola Relative Is Surging After Years in the Shadows

Sep. 19, 2026 A growing Bundibugyo virus outbreak is showing how a little-known relative of Ebola can become a major threat when diagnosis and treatment options are limited. Experts warn that preparing only for ...

Sep. 17, 2026 A kimchi-derived bacterium can bind to nanoplastics under gut-like conditions and may help carry them out of the body. In mice, the probiotic more than doubled the amount of nanoplastics detected in ...

Scientists Find a Natural Gut Compound That Helps Heal the Intestine

Sep. 17, 2026 A natural compound produced by gut bacteria after digesting foods such as pomegranates, walnuts, and berries may help repair and protect the intestinal lining. The discovery reveals a surprising ...

Scientists Find a Hidden Health Advantage in Black and Green Rice

Sep. 16, 2026 Scientists found that black and green Japanese rice contain unusual, potentially beneficial fats and may be digested more slowly than ordinary white rice. The combination could make these colorful ...

Scientists Find the Whole Grain “sweet Spot” for Better Heart Health

Sep. 16, 2026 Eating four to six servings of whole grains a day may deliver meaningful benefits for heart health, according to a large review of 87 clinical trials. Researchers found improvements in body weight, ...

Ultra-Processed Foods Linked to Hidden Muscle Fat That May Threaten Your Knees

Sep. 15, 2026 Eating more ultra-processed foods was linked to greater fat buildup inside thigh muscles, according to MRI scans of 615 adults at risk for knee ...

Scientists Find a Hidden Retinal Defense Against Vision Loss

Sep. 15, 2026 A naturally occurring molecule called erucamide may help the retina fight back against diseases that cause progressive vision loss. Restoring the molecule activated protective immune responses that ...

Scientists Reversed Biological Age in Older Adults in Just 4 Weeks

Sep. 15, 2026 Older adults who changed the balance of fat, carbohydrates, and animal protein in their diets showed signs of reduced biological age after just four weeks. The strongest result appeared in ...

The U.S. Eradicated This Flesh-Eating Parasite. Now It’s Back

Sep. 15, 2026 The flesh eating New World screwworm has returned to the United States, threatening livestock, wildlife, pets and potentially people as it spreads north. A new UC San Diego tracking system aims to ...

Scientists Find That “perfect” Systems May Be Surprisingly Fragile

Sep. 19, 2026 Complex systems may work better when their parts are not perfectly alike. Northwestern physicists found that carefully balanced variation, or “disorder,” can make networks such as power grids, ...

Your Next Prescription Could Be Treating a Side Effect from the Last One

Sep. 11, 2026 A major Ontario study found 24 common medication chains in which one drug’s side effects can be mistaken for a new medical problem, leading to another prescription. Researchers say closer ...

Study of 1.9 Million People Finds a Striking Link Between ADHD and Gut Problems

Sep. 11, 2026 Researchers analyzing data from more than 1.9 million people found that ADHD is associated with substantially higher rates of digestive problems. People with ADHD had nearly double the odds of ...

Too Much Light at Night May Quietly Reshape Your Heart

Sep. 11, 2026 Nighttime light exposure was linked to thicker, stiffer heart chambers and early signs of reduced heart function in a study of more than 11,000 people. The findings suggest that keeping bedrooms ...

UCLA Scientists Turn Cord Blood Into Powerful Cancer-Fighting T Cells

Sep. 10, 2026 UCLA researchers developed ready-made cancer-fighting T cells from cord blood stem cells that can attack solid tumors through two separate detection systems. In mice, a single dose controlled cancer ...

Ozempic and Wegovy Linked to Nearly 40% Fewer Asthma Attacks

Sep. 9, 2026 Semaglutide, the drug found in Ozempic and Wegovy, was linked to nearly 40% fewer asthma attacks in a large real-world study. It was also associated with about 20% fewer COPD flare-ups. Researchers ...

Ozempic and Wegovy May Raise Hair Loss Risk in Some Men

Sep. 12, 2026 GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy, and Zepbound may increase hair-loss risk by 7% in men who are already genetically susceptible to male-pattern baldness. The findings suggest thinning hair may not ...

Scientists Reveal the Hidden Instructions That Build the Human Brain

Sep. 4, 2026 UCLA researchers have discovered two powerful influences that help guide how the human brain forms before birth. Radial glia, stem cells responsible for producing much of the cerebral cortex, change ...

Scientists Find Ozempic May Slow Aging Itself

Sep. 12, 2026 Semaglutide helped older healthy mice live longer while improving memory, muscle function, blood sugar control, and several biological signs of aging. Its effects went beyond those seen with calorie ...

Your Personality May Be More Genetic Than Scientists Realized

Sep. 8, 2026 More than 1,200 genetic variants have been linked to the Big Five personality traits, and many of the same variants are also associated with health, longevity, careers, income, and everyday habits. ...

Scientists Observe Einstein’s Gravity in the Quantum World for the First Time

Sep. 8, 2026 Physicists have directly observed a long-predicted quantum effect of gravity, putting one of Einstein’s foundational ideas to a striking new test. Using ultracold atoms, researchers split an ...

Compound in Blueberries May Help Muscle Cells Burn Excess Fat

Sep. 5, 2026 Scientists in Japan have identified a natural compound found in blueberries, grapes, and other berries that may help muscle cells burn excess fat instead of storing it. The compound, pterostilbene, ...

“Broken Heart Syndrome” Can Look Just Like a Heart Attack. This Test Can Tell Them Apart

Sep. 2, 2026 “Broken heart syndrome” can mimic a heart attack so closely that patients often need invasive testing to tell the difference. Researchers have now developed the BioTAK score, which combines ...

Early Statin Use Linked to 15% Lower Dementia Risk

Sep. 8, 2026 Starting statins soon after a type 2 diabetes diagnosis may do more than protect the heart. In a nationwide Danish study of more than 132,000 people, those who began statin treatment within a year of ...

Heart Disease and Kidney Disease Can Fuel Each Other. New Guidelines Aim to Break the Cycle

Sep. 5, 2026 Heart disease and chronic kidney disease can accelerate one another, but new guidelines say simple screening and early treatment could substantially reduce the risks. Blood and urine tests, combined ...

A Cancer Therapy Put Severe Rheumatoid Arthritis Into Remission

Aug. 29, 2026 CAR T-cell therapy dramatically reduced disease activity in six people with severe rheumatoid arthritis that had resisted other treatments, with three achieving medication-free remission. The ...

Keto Diet Cut Liver Fat by 67% in a Clinical Trial

Aug. 29, 2026 A ketogenic diet outperformed Mediterranean and low-fat diets in several measures of metabolic health during a clinical trial involving people with obesity, prediabetes, and fatty liver disease. All ...

Scientists Find a Hidden Cause of High Blood Pressure That Routine Tests Can Miss

Sep. 14, 2026 A wearable device has revealed nighttime hormone surges that may expose a frequently missed cause of high blood pressure. The discovery could help explain why primary aldosteronism often escapes ...

Most Men Don’t Know Dairy Is Linked to Prostate Cancer Risk

Sep. 13, 2026 Most men may be missing an important dietary clue about prostate cancer. A new survey found that only 20% knew research has linked dairy consumption with increased prostate cancer risk, while 66% ...

Who Really Needs a Heart Calcium Scan?

Sep. 12, 2026 A 10-year study of more than 6,000 adults found that popular coronary calcium scans may add little to standard heart disease risk estimates for many people. But for patients with borderline or ...