TikTok Videos Mislead On Epilepsy Care, Experts Say

MONDAY, Dec. 8, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Fake clickbait TikTok videos about epilepsy treatments are receiving more views than accurate, evidence-based offerings, a new study says.

More than half of TikTok videos regarding epilepsy featured claims that were false, misleading and potentially harmful, researchers reported Friday at the a...

Want To Save Rural Hospitals? Send Patients Home To Recover, Study Argues

MONDAY, Dec. 8, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Discharging hospital patients early to recover at home might be key to saving rural health care, a new study says.

Rural patients cost a good deal less to care for during recovery at home than in a hospital, researchers recently reported in JAMA Network Open.

What’s more, t...

One Million More U.S. Kids Became Obese During COVID Pandemic

MONDAY, Dec. 8, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Roughly 1 million American kids became obese during the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study says.

Childhood obesity rates in the U.S. rose from around 21% pre-pandemic to nearly 23% during the global health crisis, researchers reported Dec. 2 in the journal Pediatrics.

That totals up ...

Depression Increases Epilepsy Risk, Makes It Harder To Treat

MONDAY, Dec. 8, 2025 (HealthDay News) — People with depression have a more than doubled risk of developing epilepsy, a new study says.

Worse, depression then makes epilepsy more difficult to treat, according to results of a second study.

Both papers, presented Friday at the annual meeting in Atlanta of the American Epilepsy Soc...

Healthy Routines Can Stay on Track — Even During Holiday Chaos

SUNDAY, Dec. 7, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The holidays can bring travel, busy schedules and family events, and for many people, that means healthy habits slip. But experts say staying well during this time doesn’t require perfection.

It’s not just the schedule that gets in the way, it’s the expectations we put on ours...

New GLP-1 Implant May Help Overweight Pets, Study Underway

SATURDAY, Dec. 6, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Weight loss drugs aren’t just for people anymore; They may soon be available for your furry friend.

A California company, Okava Pharmaceuticals, has launched a clinical trial testing a GLP-1–based weight loss treatment in 50 cats. The treatment uses a small under-the-skin implant,...

Breaking: CDC Panel Votes to No Longer Recommend Hepatitis B Shot for Newborns

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — A federal vaccine advisory committee has voted to change a long-standing recommendation that all newborns in the United States receive the hepatitis B vaccine on the day they are born.

The group, known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), voted 8 – 3 on Friday morni...

From AI to Wearables: WHO Outlines Global Plan for Digital Health Tools

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Make way for digital health. Smart watches and health apps aren’t just for fitness enthusiasts and people with access to advanced care — the World Health Organization (WHO) is looking to these and other digital tech devices to enhance health and wellness across the globe.

As the wor...

U.S. Stillbirth Rate Falls 2%, but Nearly 20,000 Losses Still Reported

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. stillbirth rate dropped slightly last year, offering some hope after several years of uncertainty, according to new data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The report, released Dec. 3, found a 2% decline in stillbirths in 2024. Even with that improvement, n...

Self-Swab HPV Tests Now Supported for Cervical Cancer Screening

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Routine cervical cancer screening is getting a new option: Self-swab HPV tests, according to updated guidance released Dec. 4 by the American Cancer Society (ACS).

Experts say offering a test that women can collect themselves — sans speculum exam — could make screening less stressfu...

San Francisco Sues Food Giants Over “Addictive” Processed Foods

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — San Francisco is taking some of the country’s biggest food companies to court, claiming they knowingly sold ultraprocessed foods that harm health and are designed to keep people eating more.

The lawsuit, announced Tuesday, argues that products like sugary drinks, packaged snacks and proce...

Germophobes Can Breathe Easy On Airplanes, In Hospitals, Experts Say

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Germophobes can breathe a little easier when visiting a hospital or taking an airplane trip, a new study says.

The ambient air on planes and in hospitals mostly contains harmless microbes typically associated with human skin, researchers reported Dec. 4 in the journal Microbiome.<...

Weed Extract Might Lower Dog Aggression

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — A marijuana extract appears to help soothe the nerves of aggressive dogs, a new study says.

Canines given cannabidiol (CBD) supplements long-term wind up less aggressive than other dogs, researchers reported recently in Frontiers in Veterinary Science.

“This long-term ...

Fewer Opioids Needed After "Needle" Knee Surgery

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) —  Knee surgery patients use fewer opioids and recover more quickly following an innovative “needle” surgical technique, a new study says.

Patients who underwent knee surgery using minimally invasive “needle arthroscopy” needed half the opioids to manage pain the day ...