Public Health
How the U.S. Lost Years of Life
Many countries saw drops in life expectancy during the pandemic, but some populations have suffered more than others
Stories by Tanya Lewis
Public Health
The Health Risks of Gas Stoves Explained
Gas stoves produce emissions that can harm human health and the environment. Experts answer questions about the dangers and how to limit them
Animals
Your Cats Can Tell When You’re Speaking to Them
Felines recognize their owners’ cat-directed baby talk
Vaccines
The Biggest Health and Biology Breakthroughs of 2022
From reviving dead pig organs to measuring viruses in our poop, here are some of the most intriguing medical advances of the year
Public Health
People in Rural Areas Die at Higher Rates Than Those in Urban Areas
Deaths from heart disease, cancer and COVID are all higher in rural areas than urban ones in the U.S., and the gap is only widening
Vaccines
How Vaccines Saved Money and Lives and China’s Zero-COVID Protests: COVID, Quickly Podcast, Episode 44
Vaccines saved New York City billions of dollars, and China faces public fury over its strict virus-control policies.
Vaccines
Antivirals Could Reduce Long COVID Risk and How Well the New Boosters Work: COVID, Quickly Podcast, Episode 43
In this new episode of our coronavirus podcast, we discuss a study that looked at the effects of Paxlovid on long COVID symptoms, and we also talk new bivalent boosters and immunity...
Public Health
Why Life Expectancy Keeps Dropping in the U.S. as Other Countries Bounce Back
COVID cut average life spans short in many high-income countries, but the U.S. decline has been steeper and longer than most
Sports
Sexist Science in Soccer Harms Women in an Epic Own Goal
As players take the pitch for the men’s World Cup, science supports their safety and equipment more than it does women’s
Reproduction
Abortion Rights Won Big at the Ballot Box
Voters chose to protect abortion rights in all five states with abortion-related measures on their ballots
Vaccines
The Viral Triple Threat and Why You Need a Booster: COVID, Quickly, Episode 42
COVID, flu and RSV are surging. Here’s what you need to know to protect yourself.
Vaccines
The New COVID Booster Shot Could Save Your Life; Get One Now, FDA Expert Says
FDA Chief Medical Officer Hilary Marston explains the importance of getting a booster shot, considers why so few people have gotten them and answers other questions
Policy
The Most Urgent Science, Health and Climate Issues in the 2022 Midterm Elections
The midterm elections have high stakes for issues such as abortion rights, pandemic funding, climate change and other fundamental policies
Artificial Intelligence
One of the Biggest Problems in Biology Has Finally Been Solved
Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis explains how its AlphaFold AI program predicted the 3-D structure of every known protein
Vaccines
New Halloween ‘Scariant’ Variants and Boosting Your Immunity: COVID, Quickly, Episode 41
In a new episode of the COVID, Quickly podcast, we talk about the variants that are likely to be around this winter and how boosters help even if you’ve already had the disease...
Public Health
The U.S. Just Lost 26 Years’ Worth of Progress on Life Expectancy
COVID and overdose deaths have sharply cut U.S. life expectancy, with Indigenous peoples experiencing the biggest decline
Epidemiology
How the Pandemic Shortened Life Expectancy and New Drugs on the Horizon: COVID, Quickly, Episode 40
In this episode of the COVID, Quickly podcast, we talk about why we’ve had years shaved off our average collective life since 2020. Also, we talk about “mabs” and why you might want to know what they are...
Nutrition
New System Ranks Evidence for Health Risks of Eating Red Meat, Smoking, and More—But Critics Say It’s Overly Simplistic
Researchers developed a five-star rating system for the risks of smoking, eating unprocessed red meat and other factors. Some scientists say the findings aren’t surprising—and could be used to cast doubt on decades of health advice...
Anthropology
Discoveries about Ancient Human Evolution Win 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Svante Pääbo’s work on sequencing the DNA of Neandertals and Denisovans, which won the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, revealed surprising interbreeding among human species...
Public Health
What the Disease Feels Like, and Presidents Can’t End Pandemics: COVID, Quickly, Episode 39
On this episode of the COVID, Quickly podcast, Josh Fischman gets COVID, and President Joe Biden says the pandemic is over.
