Health & Safety

Health & Safety

Delving Into What Kind Of Person Carries Out Mass Shootings

6:56am February 20, 2018

Steve Inskeep talks to Dr. William Reid, who's spent time with the man who killed 12 people at a movie theater in Aurora, Colo. He explains the extent to which mass shooters share personality traits.

U.S. Gun Sales Reach Record Levels In 2012

Why The AR-15?

12:37pm February 19, 2018

After every mass shooting, a few words are repeated over and over: Thoughts. Prayers. AR-15.

The image of a normal upper arm (top) shows the delicate network of healthy lymph vessels. In the lower image of a patient with lymphedema, a collection of lymph fluid, in white, has made the arm swell.

She Survived Breast Cancer, But Says A Treatment Side Effect 'Almost Killed' Her

12:19pm February 19, 2018

by Patti Neighmond

When many lymph nodes are removed along with a tumor, some patients develop painful and debilitating swelling — lymphedema. More doctors should recognize and help prevent the problem, surgeons say.

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Abraham Vidaurre, 12, checks his arm after receiving an HPV vaccination at Amistad Community Health Center in Corpus Christi, Texas, in 2016. Though gender differences in vaccine rates have narrowed, more girls than boys tend to get immunized against HPV.

This Vaccine Can Prevent Cancer, But Many Teenagers Still Don't Get It

9:33am February 19, 2018

by Allison Aubrey

The HPV vaccine can prevent cervical cancer in women and some cancers in men. It's most effective when given early in adolescence. But a new analysis finds only 29 percent of teens get it by age 13.

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Health & Safety

Examining How Constant Exposure To Mass Tragedy Effects People

7:22am February 19, 2018

NPR's Rachel Martin talks Dr. Sandro Galea, dean of Boston University School of Public Health, about how people can be affected by constant exposure to mass tragedy.

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UMass food scientists Lynne McLandsborough, left, and Lili He are researching ways to use your smartphone to detect bacteria in food.

Scientists Develop A Way To Use A Smartphone To Prevent Food Poisoning

7:00am February 19, 2018

by Karen Brown

A microscope that clips on to your phone's camera can detect bacteria, such as salmonella or E. coli, even in tiny amounts. But the technology can't yet distinguish between good and bad bacteria.

A Rohingya refugee carries a bag of food in the Hakimpara camp in Bangladesh.

Kites, Prayers, A Snake Show: Reporting From The Rohingya Camps

7:00am February 18, 2018

by Marc Silver

NPR correspondent Jason Beaubien talks about his trip to the teeming refugee settlements in Bangladesh.

This light micrograph of a part of a brain affected by Alzheimer's disease shows an accumulation of darkened plaques, which have molecules called amyloid-beta at their core. Once dismissed as all bad, amyloid-beta might actually be a useful part of the im

Scientists Explore Ties Between Alzheimer's And Brain's Ancient Immune System

5:00am February 18, 2018

by Jon Hamilton

Their first epiphanies came during musings over beer, and evolved into a decade of teamwork. Two Harvard researchers explain why they think Alzheimer's disease may be traced to an immunity glitch.

Smallpox virus, colorized and magnified in this micrograph 42,000 times, is the real concern for biologists working on a cousin virus — horsepox. They're hoping to develop a better vaccine against smallpox, should that human scourge ever be used as a bi

Did Pox Virus Research Put Potential Profits Ahead of Public Safety?

1:05pm February 17, 2018

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Privately funded scientists made a virus related to smallpox from scratch, hoping their version might lead to a better smallpox vaccine. But critics question the need — and worry about repercussions.

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Health & Safety

A Dr. Seuss-Like Poem About The Woman Who Pulled 14 Worms From Her Eye

7:00am February 17, 2018

by Michaeleen Doucleff

Her story was so inspirational to readers that they literally sprung into verse, with a Dr. Seuss-inspired poem. What they created is the most joyful poem about eye worms ever written.