On September 1, Texas became the sixth state in the U.S. pass legislation prohibiting minors from using indoor tanning salons. Joining Arizona, Michigan and North Carolina, Texas will now require that anyone under the age of 18 be prohibited from visiting a tanning facility; even if that minor has a note of parental consent. This tanning law may come as a surprise to Americans who know…

When serious floods roll in, great damage can occur to health and health care systems. This August, for example, monsoon season in Pakistan has resulted in flooded villages, lost livestock and forced evacuations – and along with the damage to physical structures, people in many regions of Pakistan are still contending with a lack of access to health care services, and facing the risks…

Doctors and nurses have always known the importance of treating a stroke as soon as possible, but a new study from the medical journal, Stroke, has shown just how important it is to diagnose and offer care to stroke victims as soon as possible. 

Published in August 2013, the study demonstrated that in order to greatly minimize…

This year, award-winning starlet Angelina Jolie underwent a double mastectomy, after genetic testing showed an 87 percent chance that the actress would develop breast cancer. In light of Jolie's very public medical announcement, many women with a family history of cancer considered taking a similar genetic test.

Available…

In the majority of its work, the World Health Organization focuses on physical health care: chronic disease, childhood disability, communicable illness and so on. However, in the past few years, WHO has put more and more focus upon mental health issues. In 2008, WHO created the Mental Health Global Action Programme, and just this August,…

Autism is a well known disorder without any known cure. Affecting neural development, autism is usually diagnosed in early childhood, when toddlers with the disorder display impaired skills in social and verbal interaction. The good news is that although there is no cure, many people with autism are able to cope thanks to therapy and sometimes medication. The bad news, however, is that…

Medical care in the United States is expensive. The International Federation of Health Plans reports that in 2010, the United States' health spending as percent of GDP was a whopping 17.6 percent - this compared to 11.4 percent in Canada, 10.1 percent in New Zealand and 9.6 percent in the United Kingdom. And health expenditures are only expected to grow; this thanks to expensive technology…

When the novel coronavirus first came about in 2012, doctors and medical researchers feared that the SARS-like virus might turn into a pandemic. Now, one year later, the disease is in many senses under control - there has been…

Late last month, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force released new recommendations regarding lung cancer screening. At the moment, most lung cancer detection programs rely on chest C-rays and mucus tests; however,…

From August 1st to August 7th every year, the World Health Organization spearheads celebrations of World Breastfeeding Week. During this year's World Breastfeeding Week, going on now, WHO has chosen to put special emphasis one health issue in particular: the marketing of infant formula and other breast milk substitutes.

WHO is…