Health & Safety

STAR-certified physical therapist Jennifer Goyette works with cancer patients at South County Physical Therapy in Westborough, Mass.

Cancer Rehab Begins To Bridge A Gap To Reach Patients

6:42am February 18, 2013

by Rachel Gotbaum

Cancer patients often have to deal with side effects from their treatments. They may need speech therapy or help rebuilding their strength. The STAR program is helping break down the barriers to rehabilitation services.

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Some sports supplements contain the ingredient DMAA. The FDA has warned that DMAA may not be safe.

Popular Workout Booster Draws Safety Scrutiny

4:18pm February 15, 2013

by Rob Stein

Exercise buffs who take dietary supplements with the ingredient know as DMAA say the stimulant gives them a boost of energy. But some researchers and the Food and Drug Administration are worried that these products could be dangerous.

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Perch exposed to the anxiety drug oxazepam were more daring and ate more quickly than fish that lived in drug-free water.

Traces Of Anxiety Drugs May Make Fish Act Funny

5:40pm February 14, 2013

by Richard Harris

Small amounts of the drugs that people take end up in wastewater and then in streams and rivers. It's usually not enough to harm the health of humans who swim in or drink the water. But there is growing evidence that pharmaceuticals in wastewater may affect wildlife.

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Notice anything unusual about this lung scan? Harvard researchers found that 83 percent of radiologists didn't notice the gorilla in the top right portion of this image.

Health & Safety

Why Even Radiologists Can Miss A Gorilla Hiding In Plain Sight

9:37am February 14, 2013

by Alix Spiegel

An attention researcher wanted to find out how radiologists would fare in a version of the famous Invisible Gorilla study. He found that 83 percent of the radiologists failed to spot an image of a gorilla on slides they were told to inspect for cancer. It's just one example of how, when people are asked to perform a challenging task, their attention can narrow and blocks things out.

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John David, 73, teaches fitness classes to help older people stay healthy and fit. Here he teaches an hourlong class at the 92nd Street Y in New York City.

For One Senior, Working Past Retirement Age Is A Workout

8:29pm February 13, 2013

by Ina Jaffe

John David, 73, is one of the many faces of a growing group of Americans: seniors who work. The former TV producer switched careers in his 50s, becoming a fitness instructor. "This turned out to be the real calling," he says.

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Health & Safety

Governor Says NC Not Ready for Health Exchanges

11:24am February 12, 2013

Governor Pat McCrory issued a statement this morning, in which he said that, after reviewing the advantages and disadvantages of expanding Medicaid, he does not think North Carolina is ready to operate the health exchanges mandated by the Affordable Care Act.

Brad McDonald and his 14-year-old daughter, Madalyn, are working to understand each other during her teenage years.

Health & Safety

How Parents Can Learn To Tame A Testy Teenager

11:41am February 11, 2013

by Patti Neighmond

Whether fighting about texting or curfew, the key to resolving parent-child disputes is by helping them understand why they're angry in the first place. It usually turns out to be another stress like trouble at school or fear of embarrassment.

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Science of Slumber: How Sleep Affects Your Memory

3:55pm February 08, 2013

We spend a lot of time sleeping (roughly one-third of our lives, according to the National Institutes of Health). But how much downtime do our brains really need? Experts discuss the links between sleep, memory and cognition, and why our sleep patterns change as we age.

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Bonnie Brown with her daughter, Myra, 15. Despite Bonnie's disability, Myra says her mom is everything she needs from a parent.

A Life Defined Not By Disability, But Love

12:28pm February 08, 2013

by NPR Staff

When she was younger, Myra didn't realize her mom, Bonnie Brown, was "different" than most. Her mother's intellectual disability was only something she realized later when her mother told her, "I know I am not like your friends' mothers, but I'm doing the best I can."

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Home Care Aides Await Decision On New Labor Rules

4:11pm February 07, 2013

by NPR Staff

The industry has changed rapidly, but amendments exempting the workers from minimum wage and overtime pay have not. The Obama administration has yet to formally approve new rules, though the president has come out in favor of them.

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