The common food additives altered mice microbiomes to encourage gut inflammation and overeating. Dina Fine Maron reports  

60-Second Health

Emulsifiers in Food Linked to Obesity in Mice

Although clinical guidelines assume just two years for hot flashes and night sweats, a large study finds a median symptom duration of more than three times that length. Dina Fine Maron reports   

Menopause Symptoms Have Unappreciated Staying Power

High-tech pedometers do a decent job of counting steps accurately. Dina Fine Maron reports.

Wearable Step Counters Offer Exercise Leg Up

Some 42 percent of U.S. adults who drink have been prescribed a drug that may interact negatively with alcohol. Dina Fine Maron reports

Millions Risk Alcohol–Medication Interactions

Strains of the lab workhorse roundworm C. elegans that lived longer added more time being frail and had the same portion of their lives being healthy as normal worms. The work has implications for life-extension ideas such as caloric restriction. Dina Fine Maron reports  

Life Extension May Add Just Bad Time

Researchers tracked 70,000 for decades to find lifestyle clues for better cardiovascular condition. Dina Fine Maron reports

6 Steps to Women’s Heart Health

Volunteers who read from an iPad before bed took longer to fall asleep and had less restful nights than when they read from a printed book. Dina Fine Maron reports.  

Avoid Back-Lit Reading before Bed

Nonpasteurized milk is fueling more outbreaks and hospitalizations. Dina Fine Maron reports

Raw Milk Sicknesses Rise

Careful tracking of more than 50,000 women during the six weeks after the procedure finds that serious adverse effects are rare. Dina Fine Maron reports  

Abortions in Medical Settings Rarely Have Major Complications

People with type 2 diabetes in middle age had greater cognitive impairment in the following decades than did their nondiabetic counterparts. Dina Fine Maron reports  

Diabetes Prevention in Midlife Helps Protect Aging Brain

The World Health Organization issues a new report on the neglected public health issue of drowning

Drownings Kill 140,000 Kids Annually

A 10-second makeout session can also transfer some 80 million oral bacteria. Dina Fine Maron reports

Steamy Smooches Share Batches of Bacteria

A first-of-its-kind study finds it’s possible to analyze snake DNA left in a bite victim’s wound to identify the species—and thus the correct antivenom. Dina Fine Maron reports  

Snake DNA Left in Bite ID's Serpent Assailant

Diagnostics, vaccines and new drugs could vastly improve the way future Ebola outbreaks manifest in Africa, according to emerging infectious disease expert Jeremy Farrar. Steve Mirsky reports  

Plan Now for Future Ebola Outbreaks

Should Ebola continue to crop up in the U.S., having fewer people coming to emergency rooms with the similar symptoms of flu will help the public health system respond. Steve Mirsky reports  

Ebola Efforts Helped by Flu Shots

Scientific American reporter Dina Fine Maron gives a weekly one-minute report on the latest health and medical news. To view all of our archived podcasts please go to www.scientificamerican.com/podcast