EurekAlert! In the Spotlight - Infectious Diseases

This month, we’re focusing on infectious diseases, a topic that affects lives and communities around the world. Here, you’ll find the latest research news, insights, and discoveries shaping how infectious diseases are being studied, prevented, and treated globally.

A diet rich in vegetable protein and fiber helps maternal and infant health during pregnancy and breastfeeding

University of Barcelona
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A Mediterranean-style diet, rich in fibre, vegetable proteins and healthy fats, benefits maternal health during pregnancy and breastfeeding. In addition to improving intestinal function and mucosal immunity, it also prevents fat accumulation and optimizes the composition of the microbiota in the digestive system. In babies, this maternal dietary pattern helps to reduce the incidence and severity of infections.

Journal: EBioMedicine

9-Sep-2025

Keto diet linked to reduced depression symptoms in college students

Ohio State University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study shows an association between at least 10 weeks of following a well-formulated ketogenic diet and a roughly 70% decrease in depression symptoms among a small group of college students.

Journal: Translational Psychiatry

9-Sep-2025

Beyond weight loss: How healthy eating cuts chronic pain

University of South Australia
Peer-Reviewed Publication

We all know the benefits of a healthy diet. But new research from the University of South Australia shows that eating nutritious food is about far more than ticking off the five food groups – it can also significantly reduce chronic pain.

Journal: European Journal of Nutrition
Funder: Almond Board of California

9-Sep-2025

Mitcham receives funding to strengthen food as medicine pathways in southwest Virginia

George Mason University
Grant and Award Announcement

MB Mitcham, Director of the Online MPH Program and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Global and Community Health, College of Public Health, received funding for: “Strengthening Food as Medicine Pathways in Southwest Virginia.”

Funder: Health Resources and Services Administration

9-Sep-2025

Long COVID and food insecurity in US adults, 2022-2023

JAMA Network
Peer-Reviewed Publication

About The Study: The findings of this study suggest that food insecurity may be an important and modifiable risk factor for long COVID and that strengthening access to programs like Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), raising awareness, and simplifying enrollment could help reduce the health burden of long COVID.

Journal: JAMA Network Open

9-Sep-2025

Microbiome instability linked to poor growth in kids

WashU Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers at WashU Medicine found a link between an unstable, fluctuating gut microbiome and poor growth in children in a study that sequenced the genomic material from fecal samples collected over nearly a year from eight toddlers in Malawi.

Journal: Cell

9-Sep-2025

Can a healthy gut microbiome help prevent childhood stunting?

Salk Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers at the Salk Institute, UC San Diego, and Washington University have gathered novel details on undernourished children’s gut microbe populations in the largest study of its kind to-date, identifying dozens of new microbes to form an unprecedented database. They found that gut microbiome diversity and genome stability may be a powerful marker for whether children thrive or suffer. Their findings pave the way for diagnostic and preventative solutions for undernourished children around the globe, while also opening the opportunity for innovations across other public health crises from obesity to malaria to COVID-19.

Journal: Cell

Welcome to In the Spotlight, where each month we shine a light on something exciting, timely, or simply fascinating from the world of science.

Latest News Releases

A diet rich in vegetable protein and fiber helps maternal and infant health during pregnancy and breastfeeding

Keto diet linked to reduced depression symptoms in college students

Beyond weight loss: How healthy eating cuts chronic pain

Mitcham receives funding to strengthen food as medicine pathways in southwest Virginia

Long COVID and food insecurity in US adults, 2022-2023

Microbiome instability linked to poor growth in kids

Can a healthy gut microbiome help prevent childhood stunting?