ArcaMax

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have been suffering from strong pain on my left knee for a long time. An MRI was performed, which showed an "extensive degenerative tear throughout the body and a posterior horn of the medial meniscus." It also showed a "flap tear of the body and an anterior horn of the lateral meniscus, with meniscal tissue displaced ...Read more

We're learning more and more about the far-reaching benefits of the new weight loss GLP-1 drugs, such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound. For example, a study in JAMA Oncology shows that folks taking these medications have a 17% lower risk of developing 12 of 13 obesity-related cancers, plus lung cancer, than folks who don't take them. ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: A cardiologist recently suggested that I should consider taking a statin because of my "borderline" cholesterol level. So, I took a dive into the details of statin therapy. I learned that although statins are thought to reduce the chance of a cardiovascular event by up to 50%, the actual reduction is very small.

I presented ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a reasonably healthy 81-year-old retired man, although I wear a pacemaker and have bad arthritis. My daughter insists that I'd be much healthier and happier if I eliminated gluten from my diet. I don't even know what gluten is or which foods it's in. So, am I flying blind into a storm about all this? -- Prof. G

ANSWER: ...Read more

It may seem counterintuitive, but a new study in the journal Psychology of Sport and Exercise indicates that kids ages 9-12 do better on school tests when they are allowed to have 9 minutes of high-intensity interval exercise (HIIE) in the classroom before they pick up their pencils and take an exam. Not only does their elevated heart rate ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: In a recent column, you answered a question regarding weight loss. You stated that you do not recommend weight-loss drugs unless the person is very overweight or has medical complications. I'm curious to know your reasoning behind this. Can you please elaborate on your answer? -- J.S.

ANSWER: In my opinion, being overweight is...Read more

If you -- like 84 million of your fellow Americans -- frequently get only fair or poor-quality sleep, it's time to turn back the clock on the health risks associated with sleep problems. They include difficulty with short-term memory and hand-eye coordination; trouble with alertness and the ability to learn; moodiness; and a significantly ...Read more

Typically, less than 1% of intravenous drugs reach the target tissue. Researchers at the University of Oxford and University of Michigan hope to change that using drug-carrying microrobots and magnets.

The microrobots are two-sided particles composed of a gel that can carry medicines and magnets that enable their control. In an experiment ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: Our son passed away at 38 years old this past December with an end-stage alcohol-related liver disease. He had been sober for four years prior to this, but blood tests revealed that he had started drinking again. These same tests showed copper level readings in the 500s and liver deterioration in accordance with someone twice ...Read more

In January of 2025, there were more than 18 million folks in the U.S. living with a history of cancer. That includes 4.3 million folks who have battled breast cancer and 3.5 million who have survived prostate cancer. About half were diagnosed in the past 10 years and nearly 80% are 60 or older. That's a lot of folks who are breathing a sigh of ...Read more

Almost 50% of U.S. adults have high blood pressure, putting them at risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), stroke, heart attack and dementia. Unfortunately, even though their hearts are physically older than their chronological age, until disaster strikes, it's easy to overlook -- or never check for -- signs of high blood pressure and CVD.

Now,...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I wonder if we can trust the health guidelines coming from government agencies. How will doctors make recommendations if the guidelines may not be scientifically rigorous? -- T.D.

ANSWER: For many decades, the recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, the United States Food and ...Read more

Conventional wisdom suggests that higher levels of education directly protect against cognitive decline and brain aging. That is, if you're a college graduate, you're less likely to experience dementia compared to people with less formal education.

A new international study puts that thinking in doubt. Researchers analyzed longitudinal data ...Read more

All water is fundamentally composed of hydrogen and oxygen atoms -- two of the former, one of the latter. But you might think otherwise when perusing grocery store shelves where you can purchase alkaline water, electrolyte water, water with special enhancements and even water associated with being smart.

They all purport to offer specific ...Read more

Human activities like coal burning and gold mining can cause mercury pollution in the air, which eventually settles into water, where it is absorbed into the food chain, resulting in the risk of mercury poisoning in apex predators like bluefin tuna -- and people who eat tuna.

Mercury poisoning can cause birth defects, particularly ...Read more