EurekAlert! News by Subject: Medicine & Health - News by Subject: Medicine & Health

Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 11-Oct-2025 09:11 ET (11-Oct-2025 13:11 GMT/UTC)

Mediterranean diet with fewer calories and exercise lowers diabetes risk by 31%

Universidad de Navarra
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A major Spanish trial, in which the University of Navarra participates, finds that a calorie-reduced Mediterranean diet combined with moderate exercise lowers type 2 diabetes risk by 31%. The PREDIMED-Plus study, involving nearly 5,000 older adults with overweight or obesity, shows that modest lifestyle changes deliver powerful prevention benefits—supporting a scalable, sustainable strategy to combat the global diabetes epidemic.

Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine
Funder: European Research Council, Instituto de Salud Carlos III

Generative AI uncovers undetected bird flu exposure risks in Maryland emergency departments

University of Maryland School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine developed a new and highly effective application of an artificial intelligence (AI) tool to quickly scan notes in electronic medical records and identify high-risk patients who may have been infected with H5N1 avian influenza or “bird flu”, according to new findings published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Journal: Clinical Infectious Diseases
Funder: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Having a sense of purpose may protect against dementia

University of California - Davis Health
Peer-Reviewed Publication

People who reported a higher sense of purpose in life were about 28% less likely to develop cognitive impairment, according to a new UC Davis study. The research shows that psychological well-being may play a vital role in healthy aging.

Journal: American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry
Funder: NIH/National Institutes of Health, Department of Veterans' Affairs, Department of Veterans' Affairs, NIH/National Institutes of Health

GSA welcomes Capitol Hill policy veteran Khasawinah as visiting scholar

The Gerontological Society of America
Business Announcement

Sarah Khasawinah, PhD, MHS, has joined GSA as part of its Visiting Scholar and Executive Program. In this role, Khasawinah will contribute to GSA’s work in the policy arena. She brings extensive experience in health and aging policy, including a decade-long role in crafting bipartisan aging policies as a key staff member on the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging.

Scientists discover how cells use a secret weapon to fight off some pathogens

University of California - Los Angeles
Peer-Reviewed Publication

UCLA research shows that mitochondria detect invading pathogen Toxoplasma gondii and ramp up competition for vitamin B9, also known as folate, depriving it of the nourishment it needs to grow. This new discovery came about when a researcher noticed that the amount of mitochondrial DNA in a mitochondrion increased during an infection. The new discovery raises the possibility that a vitamin regimen could rewire mitochondrial metabolism to make it even more effective at preventing infections, such as toxoplasmosis, in people.

Journal: Science

Mount Sinai scientists create AI-powered tool to improve cancer tissue analysis

The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have developed a powerful new computational tool that could transform how cancer tissues are analyzed and help pave the way for more personalized treatments. The study, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, introduces MARQO, a next-generation image analysis process that extracts detailed cellular and spatial information from tumor tissue slides with unprecedented accuracy and scalability.Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have developed a powerful new computational tool that could transform how cancer tissues are analyzed and help pave the way for more personalized treatments. The study, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, introduces MARQO, a next-generation image analysis process that extracts detailed cellular and spatial information from tumor tissue slides with unprecedented accuracy and scalability.

Journal: Nature Biomedical Engineering

Polysubstance involvement in youth opioid overdoses increases with age

Boston University School of Public Health
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study published in the journal Pediatrics examined trends in overdose mortality and found that, among youth, opioid overdoses more commonly involved multiple substances than opioids alone, starting at age 21. Polysubstance-involved overdose deaths occurred among youth as young as 15 years old, and rose steadily with age. The findings also demonstrated that fentanyl and other synthetic opioids were involved in more than 93% of overdose deaths, while stimulants such as methamphetamine and cocaine were the primary contributors to polysubstance-involved deaths.

Journal: PEDIATRICS
Funder: NIH/National Institute on Drug Abuse