The hearing habits worth changing before it is too late
Hearing loss was once considered an inevitable feature of aging, something that arrived quietly in the later decades of life and was simply accepted as part of getting older. That picture has shifted considerably. Audiologists and public health researchers are now tracking a troubling rise in noise-induced hearing loss among people in their twenties and […]
Fitness experts are rethinking everything about how long you exercise
For a long time, the logic seemed airtight. More time in the gym meant more progress. More sessions per week meant faster results. Push harder, go longer, rest less. That belief shaped decades of workout culture, and it sent a lot of people in the wrong direction. Fitness science has been quietly dismantling that assumption […]
High blood pressure treatment linked to worse kidney outcomes
For millions of people managing type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure is a near-constant companion. The two conditions overlap so frequently that treating one without accounting for the other is nearly impossible. That intersection is now drawing fresh scrutiny after researchers flagged a potential problem with one of the most commonly prescribed drug classes in […]
Are these the intimacy gaps behind most relationship problems?
Intimacy is one of the most misunderstood forces in a long-term relationship. The initial phase of romance is a well-studied neurological event. The brain floods with dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin, producing the exhilarating, obsessive focus of early love that pop culture has catalogued endlessly. That chemistry is real, but it is also temporary. What couples […]
Chronic kidney disease rarely announces itself early on
The kidneys are doing more than most people give them credit for. Positioned on either side of the spine just below the rib cage, these two fist-sized organs filter roughly half a cup of blood every minute, removing waste, excess fluid, salt, and minerals and sending them out of the body as urine. They also […]
All women deserve great sex and doctors are finally saying it
Sexual health has long occupied an awkward space in medicine, discussed in hushed tones if at all, treated as secondary to what gets called “real” health concerns. Nicole Cirino, M.D., is a reproductive psychiatrist, certified sex therapist, and co-director of the Menopause and Sexual Medicine Program at OHSU’s Center for Women’s Health, which is recognized […]
Heart attack risk is higher than most people want to admit
A heart attack is not a singular event so much as a cascade. It begins when blood flow to the heart is suddenly cut off or severely reduced, starving the heart muscle of oxygen. Without that steady supply, muscle tissue starts to die. The longer the blockage stays in place, the more damage accumulates and […]
Lung inflammation and the treatments that work
The lungs are not passive organs. They are constantly exposed to whatever moves through the air — bacteria, viruses, allergens, pollutants, smoke — and the tissue responds accordingly. When that exposure tips into something the body can’t easily clear, inflammation sets in. Medically, this condition is called pneumonitis or pneumonia depending on the cause, and […]
Leukemia is more common than most people realize
Leukemia is a cancer that begins not in an organ or a tumor, but in the bone marrow itself, the soft tissue buried inside bones where every blood cell in the body gets its start. When the DNA of a single developing cell mutates, something breaks in the system. That cell starts multiplying without stopping, […]
Shingles vaccine linked to lower dementia risk in new research
For years, the shingles vaccine has been recommended to older adults as protection against a painful viral flare-up that can follow anyone who has had chickenpox. New research now suggests that protection may extend well beyond nerve pain. A study published this week in the peer-reviewed journal Annals of Internal Medicine found that elderly nursing […]