Solid 2019 US auto sales underscore consumer strength

US auto sales in 2019 dipped slightly from the prior year, but still demonstrated an underlying resilience as large vehicles strengthened their stranglehold over the market.

JetBlue says to go carbon neutral by July 2020

The no-frills US air carrier JetBlue will go carbon neutral for all domestic flights starting the summer of this year, the company announced Monday.

Maximizing bike-share ridership: New research says it's all about location

The popularity of bike-share systems has grown in popularity thanks to the younger, more environmentally conscious generation. While they have garnered considerable attention in cities from Paris to Washington, D.C., their promise of urban transformation is far from being fully realized.

New study suggests cautions about antipsychotic medications for hospitalized older adults

Delirium (sudden confusion or a rapid change in mental state) remains a serious challenge for our health care system. Delirium affects 15 to 26 percent of hospitalized older adults and can be particularly problematic because those experiencing the condition may interfere with medical care or directly harm themselves or others. Besides behavioral therapy and physical restraints, antipsychotic medicines are among the few therapeutic options healthcare providers can use to ease delirium and protect patients and caregivers—but antipsychotics also come with risks of their own.

Patients with VA coverage less likely than other insured Americans to skip medication

The rising price of prescription drugs has led to a slew of proposals to lower costs and expand access to medications. However, a new study from researchers at Harvard Medical School and the City University of New York at Hunter College suggests that an effective reform model already exists: the pharmacy benefit of the Veterans Health Administration, commonly known as the VA. Researchers found that VA patients are significantly less likely than other insured Americans to go without needed medications, skip doses, or delay filling prescriptions because they are unable to afford them. The study found that VA coverage also reduced racial and economic disparities in prescription drug access.

Blood pressure control for people aged 80 and older: What's the right target?

The number of people who are 80-years-old and older is on the rise, and will account for nearly 10 percent of the whole U.S. population by 2050. Since the lifetime chance for developing high blood pressure is at least 70 percent by age 80, more and more people will be at risk for the health problems that high blood pressure can cause.

In a nearby galaxy, a fast radio burst unravels more questions than answers

For more than a decade, astronomers across the globe have wrestled with the perplexities of fast radio bursts—intense, unexplained cosmic flashes of energy, light years away, that pop for mere milliseconds.

Shutdown of coal-fired plants in US saves lives and improves crop yields

The decommissioning of coal-fired power plants in the continental United States has reduced nearby pollution and its negative impacts on human health and crop yields, according to a new University of California San Diego study.

Nerve stimulation may benefit women with fibromyalgia

A treatment involving electrical nerve stimulation helped women with fibromyalgia in a recent clinical trial. The findings are published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

Vaping lung injury symptoms have been reported online for at least seven years

A team of researchers at the University of California, Riverside, used automated computer methods to mine a large online discussion forum for electronic cigarette users and found this group reported numerous adverse health effects for at least seven years.

New research may lead to increased use of available hearts for transplant

A new study provides hope that the number of children dying on the transplantation list while waiting for a new heart could potentially be reduced dramatically.

New study unravels the complexity of childhood obesity

The World Health Organization has estimated more than 340 million children and adolescents ages 5-19 are overweight or obese, and the epidemic has been linked to more deaths worldwide than those caused by being underweight.

Engineers design on-skin electronic device providing a personal air conditioner without needing electricity

One day, soldiers could cool down on the military battlefield—preventing heat stroke or exhaustion—by using "wearable air conditioning," an on-skin device designed by engineers at the University of Missouri. The device includes numerous human health care applications such as the ability to monitor blood pressure, electrical activity of the heart and the level of skin hydration.

Music evokes 13 key emotions. Scientists have mapped them

The "Star-Spangled Banner" stirs pride. Ed Sheeran's "The Shape of You" sparks joy. And "ooh là là!" best sums up the seductive power of George Michael's "Careless Whispers."

Cumulative overweight pregnancies increase risk of maternal midlife obesity

Not only is excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) associated with increased long-term maternal weight, but a new study has shown that there is a cumulative effect of excessive GWG over multiple pregnancies. The study, which analyzed the effect of the number of excessive GWG pregnancies on body mass index (BMI) at midlife, is published in Journal of Women's Health.

NASA finds heavy rain potential in Tropical Cyclone Blake

NASA's Aqua satellite provided a near visible image and analyzed the cloud top temperatures in Tropical Cyclone Blake, located along the northern coast of Western Australia. Tropical Cyclone Blake is just north of Broome, a coastal town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Genes controlling mycorrhizal colonization discovered in soybean

Like most plants, soybeans pair up with soil fungi in a symbiotic mycorrhizal relationship. In exchange for a bit of sugar, the fungus acts as an extension of the root system to pull in more phosphorus, nitrogen, micronutrients, and water than the plant could on its own.

Specifying irrigation needs for container-grown plants

A study at the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences examined the efficiency of irrigation schedules used for container-grown plants to determine if they could be improved with specific daily adjustments.

Technique is almost 86 percent effective in preventing maternal death from hemorrhaging

According to the World Health Organization's latest statistics, from 2017, more than 800 women around the world die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth—the vast majority of them in resource-poor areas. The leading reason is postpartum hemorrhage (PPH), which accounts for 27 percent of maternal mortality and occurs to some degree in five to seven percent of all deliveries.

JUUL delivers substantially more nicotine than previous generation e-cigs and cigarettes: study

JUUL delivers substantially more nicotine to the blood per puff than cigarettes or previous-generation e-cigarettes (e-cigs) and impairs blood vessel function comparable to cigarette smoke, according to a new study by researchers at UC San Francisco.

Progesterone from an unexpected source may affect miscarriage risk

About twenty percent of confirmed pregnancies end in miscarriage, most often in the first trimester, for reasons ranging from infection to chromosomal abnormality. But some women have recurrent miscarriages, a painful process that points to underlying issues. Clinical studies have been uneven, but some evidence shows that for women with a history of recurrent miscarriage, taking progesterone early in a pregnancy might moderately improve these women's chances of carrying a pregnancy to term.

Study finds 80% of medical students feel low sense of personal achievement

Despite the prestige of becoming a physician, 80 percent of medical students report a low sense of personal achievement, according to a new study in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.

Having a baby may cost some families $4,500 out-of-pocket

One of the most expensive parts of having a baby may involve the birth itself, a new Michigan Medicine study suggests.

Power dressing: Electricity-generating, stretchy, self-mending materials for wearables

Wearable electronics could be perpetually powered by stretchy, self-mending materials that use body heat to generate electricity. Three carefully curated organic compounds have been combined to develop a prototype thermoelectric material that is both stretchy and self-healing, can generate its own electricity, and is robust enough to withstand the stresses and strains of daily life.

* This article was originally published here