A 27-year-old woman, Karolina Krzzak, tragically died in a Bali hotel room after adhering to an extreme “fruitarian” diet. This highly restrictive, fruit-only eating pattern led to severe malnutrition and starvation, resulting in her death. At the time of her passing she weighed a mere 22 kilograms (approximately 48.5 lbs). Her story serves as a...
The International Olympic Committee is getting ready for one of its biggest tests yet. As the world looks toward the trans inclusion 2028 Olympics, the committee is rethinking how transgender and intersex athletes will be allowed to compete. It feels like a turning point, one that might change how fairness and inclusion are seen in...
Gray hair often feels like a simple sign of passing time. It is easy to see it as a cosmetic change and nothing more. Yet new evidence links hair pigmentation to deep cellular decisions that also touch cancer risk. In mice, melanocyte stem cells within hair follicles choose between two fates when stressed. One future...
When Pittsburgh resident AJ Owen placed some bins of food in his front yard, he didn’t expect much. It was just a small act of kindness that came from his heart. But that simple setup, which he later called his front-yard food pantry, became something far bigger than he ever imagined. It turned into a...
Have you ever heard of The Holy Fruit of the Himalayas? How about the Siberian Pineapple? Though it may come with a variety of interesting names, they all refer to the same fruit: Hippophae rhamnoides, or the sea buckthorn berry. This vibrant orange-yellow berry is not just used because it tastes good, either – it...
Creatine is one of the most widely researched and effective supplements available for enhancing high-intensity exercise performance and increasing lean body mass. Despite all of the information that we have on it, there still seems to be much confusion on how to properly incorporate it into your routine. Knowing what to mix and what not...
We live in an era of much misinformation and conspiracy theories. We are also required to have potentially chellenging conversations in the workplace. However, it can often be very difficult to have productive conversations with certain individuals, especially when it comes to divisive topics. People generally tend to get defensive or close off to anything...
Laundry is something we all do, but not everyone thinks about what’s actually in the soap. The safest laundry detergents keep your clothes fresh and clean while also looking out for your skin and the environment. Pick the wrong kind, though, and you’re washing with stuff that can cause itchy skin, rashes, or even pollute...
Some objects from the past look so strange today you might wonder if they even belong in a museum of oddities. Long before sleek modern designs and digital devices, people used clever little gadgets and sturdy vintage tools that leave us scratching our heads now. They were once needed every single day, but today, many...
If you have lived with pain for months, you have likely heard of tramadol. Many people consider it a gentler opioid that feels somewhat safer to use. A large new analysis challenges that idea in a careful, data-driven manner. The researchers pooled randomized trials and then examined if tramadol actually help enough to outweigh its...
Off the coast of Costa Rica, a group of fishers pulled up what’s now being called the rare golden shark. It looked unreal, like something straight from a cartoon. Marine biologist Daniel Arauz Naranjo couldn’t believe it when he saw the photos. A nurse shark, shining like gold, its eyes pale white and eerie. “Wow,...
Public interest has recently turned to the human eye and the Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine. Two peer-reviewed papers have helped drive the latest debate. One Turkish cohort measured the cornea before and after vaccination. Another systematic review catalogued rare ocular events after COVID-19 shots across many reports. Both studies deserve some attention, so we will take...
