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Explained

Photo shows a 2016 image of a woman who lives with chronic pain laughing with friends at her dining table while creating Zen tangle art.
The Mind

Living with chronic illness: Why some cope and others don’t

What helps some people diagnosed with cancer, heart disease or diabetes stay relatively happy and healthy, while others are devastated? Psychologist Vicki Helgeson explains the traits and mindsets that can make the difference.

A colored light micrograph shows plaques and tangles in brain tissue
Health & Disease

Alzheimer’s holds science at bay

A summary of “Update on Alzheimer’s Disease Therapy and Prevention Strategies” by W. Vallen Graham and coauthors, in the 2017 issue of the Annual Review of Medicine

A conceptual illustration shows an elderly person with a walker looking at a vital version of themselves hiking reflected in the side of a giant pill bottle. Aging cells on the ground give way to healthy cells.
Health & Disease

Could getting rid of old cells turn back the clock on aging?

Researchers are investigating medicines that selectively kill decrepit cells to promote healthy aging — but more work is needed before declaring them a fountain of youth

Photograph of the greater Indian fruit bat, Pteropus giganteus, flying at dusk in Yala National Park, Sri Lanka.
Living World

Betting on bats for genetic treasures

Bat genomes are full of clever tricks that are treats for biology and medical science — it’s why scientists want to sequence them all

Photograph older adults working out in a gym on exercise machines.
Health & Disease

What’s the fittest fitness for the oldest old?

Even for 60ish youngsters, researchers reaffirm that exercise is essential. But just walking won’t cut it — break out the weights and go for strength training too.

Conceptual illustration showing the silhouettes of an old man and woman comprised of pills of various shapes and colors.
Health & Disease

Tackling the growing problem of overmedication

Polypharmacy — taking five or more meds at a time — leads to side effects, unnecessary hospitalizations and premature deaths. Researchers and pharmacists are seeking solutions to this serious public health problem that disproportionately affects older adults.

Illustration shows a physician analyzing MRI brain scans.
Health & Disease

Seeking a better test for Alzheimer’s

New blood assays and brain scans are among the biomarkers revolutionizing clinical trials and changing the way researchers think of the disease. They may soon change the way patients are treated as well.

Thickening lenses and other eye changes that come with age contribute to declining vision over a lifetime.
Health & Disease

Twilight of the eye

Our bodies and abilities deteriorate with age, and sight is no exception. Physical changes to the visual system cloud it in multiple ways.

Conceptual illustration showing a man’s head and a brain that appears to be having problems, as well as flames (to indicate inflammation).
Health & Disease

Could the immune system be key to Alzheimer’s disease?

Increasing evidence suggests that chronic inflammation takes a toll on the brain over the course of a lifetime

A microscope picture shows streaks and speckles in red, yellow, dark blue and bright green on a gray background.
Health & Disease

Amyloidosis: Beyond Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s

Amyloid plaque can build up in body organs other than the brain. The resulting diseases — AL amyloidosis, ATTR amyloidosis and more — cause much suffering.

Artwork showing neurons along with the tangles of tau protein and clumps of amyloid-beta plaques that are typically found in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Investigating when and how these proteins form might lead to new therapies.
Health & Disease

Watching Alzheimer’s in action

A look inside the brains of engineered mice suggests therapies might need to target two key proteins — tau and amyloid-beta — at the same time

A conceptual illustration shows heads of a girl (left) and a boy (right) viewed side on, as silhouettes. Their brains are depicted as colored swirls in blue (girl) and green (boy). Various molecules and cells are layered on the two brains to indicate differing immune-related functions and risks.
Health & Disease

Sex, immunity and the brain

Differences between the immune systems of males and females — in particular, ones involving cells called microglia — might help explain why the risk for conditions such as autism and Alzheimer’s varies between the sexes

Close-up colored photograph of a side-view of the eye shows structural details such as the cornea, lens, eyeball and optic nerve. Glaucoma is a common cause of blindness.
Health & Disease

Putting the squeeze on glaucoma

The eye disease causes millions to go blind. New treatments aimed at protecting nerve cells — or generating new ones — may slow or even stop the damage.

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The Mind

The mature mind: Aging resiliently

VIDEO: Connect with brain health experts about the best ways to cultivate resilience as we age, and how to support loved ones with memory loss and dementia

Photograph of an elderly woman lying in bed. Standing and sitting around her are family members, two of them holding her hands. A hospice aide and a bottle of lotion are seen at the foot of the bed.
Health & Disease

Going gentle

A sociologist explains how to get the most out of the final months of life

Photograph of two elderly men sitting outdoors. They are enjoying a good joke or tale. The man on the left has his arms around the shoulders of his friend. He ls laughing. The man on the right has his arms out in front, slightly raised, as if he is relating a story. He is grinning.
The Mind

Emotions get better with age

As people grow older, they gain greater control of their feelings. How do they do that — and can they teach young whippersnappers a thing or two?

A photo illustration showing a younger woman assisting a senior in a wheelchair with colored lines to signify emotional stress.
Health & Disease

Caring for the carers

More than 17 million Americans are looking after disabled elders they love, and many of them pay a steep price in stress, frustration and depression. What can be done to improve their lives?

An illustration conveys the idea that with age, immune cells may fade in power.
Health & Disease

An old problem: How immune responses weaken with age

The body’s defenses lose flexibility and diversity over time, and protective responses to vaccines weaken as well. Scientists are working on ways to boost seniors’ protections against influenza, the novel coronavirus and other pathogens.

Conceptual illustration shows lab-coated scientists attempting to kick a field goal but missing by many yards.
Health & Disease

Why a diabetes drug fell short of anticancer hopes

Population and animal studies suggested it could treat cancer, but the clinical trials were a bust. Here’s what happened and what potential may remain.

Collage showing a close-up of an eye, a farmworker in the sun, rising heat waves, cataracts, and a pair of sunglasses
Health & Disease

How climate change threatens eye health

Cataracts, pink eye and other ocular disorders are linked to heat, air pollution and higher UV exposure

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