DEAR MAYO CLINIC: For my kids, the best part of back-to-school shopping is picking out a new backpack. While I want them to have backpacks they like, I also want to make sure they have features that support their backs. What should I look for?

ANSWER: The backpack is as much a part of school life as homework, pencils and recess. Kids use ...Read more

Q: I’m 60 with $2.8 million saved. I’m miserable working, but I need health insurance until I can get Medicare at age 65. What are my options?

A: By age 60, you may be at the point where you’re unhappy at your job and can’t take the grind any longer. If you have a large pile of savings, you may be perfectly positioned to make an early ...Read more

How do you eat your vegetables? Raw? Cooked? Both? No matter what your answer, odds are good that you’ve heard that it’s “healthier” to eat your veggies raw. Maybe you’re even sold on the idea. But is it the truth?

It is true that cooking vegetables can reduce levels of some nutrients — but it also enhances levels of other nutrients...Read more

Juice has become one of the most prevalent health trends in the last few decades. From detoxifying juice cleanses to immunity shots, juicing has officially made its way into the mainstream. While plenty of health trends aren't as cure-all as advertised, people all around swear by cold-pressed juice and its benefits. We asked an expert to give us...Read more

Before going any further, here’s the main thing parents should know about swimming lessons: all children should have them.

Every year, over 4,500 people die from drowning in the United States — and, in fact, drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4. Swimming lessons can’t prevent all of those deaths, but they can ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: We hear a lot about “heart-healthy” diets, but the guidance seems to always change. It’s confusing to me. What foods are important, and what should we avoid?

ANSWER: One of the most important factors for a healthy heart is to try to follow a healthy diet. We usually recommend a Mediterranean diet, which is mostly based ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: For my kids, the best part of back-to-school shopping is picking out a new backpack. While I want them to have backpacks they like, I also want to make sure they have features that support their backs. What should I look for?

ANSWER: The backpack is as much a part of school life as homework, pencils and recess. Kids use ...Read more

Jonnell Wieder earned too much money at her job to keep her Medicaid coverage when the COVID-19 public health emergency ended in 2023 and states resumed checking whether people were eligible for the program. But she was reassured by the knowledge that Medicaid would provide postpartum coverage for her and her daughter, Oakleigh McDonald, who was...Read more

In nearly every part of modern life, technology works for us. You can check in for a flight with your phone, track your heart rate in real time or get personalized grocery suggestions based on your habits.

But when it comes to managing your health? You’re often stuck printing records, repeating your medical history at every new appointment ...Read more

UnitedHealth Group’s multibillion-dollar pharmacy benefit manager, Optum Rx, is suing five Kentucky counties in an attempt to force them out of national opioid litigation against the company.

Pharmacy benefit managers, often called PBMs, act as middlemen that negotiate prescription drug prices between drug companies, insurance plans, and ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — COVID-19 is once again climbing to troubling levels in California — a worrying trend as health officials attempt to navigate a vaccine landscape thrown into uncertainty by delays and decisions from the Trump administration.

Public health departments in Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties have reported jumps in the coronavirus...Read more

Don’t get Nathan Jones started on xylitol, the active ingredient in his chewing gum, nasal spray, and other products. He’ll talk your ear off about its wondrous powers against tooth decay, as well as its potential to fight COVID, heart disease, Alzheimer’s — you name it.

For now, Jones, the founder of Xlear, can’t make those claims in...Read more

Wary of inflation, Americans have been watching the prices of everyday items such as eggs and gasoline. A less-noticed expense should cause greater alarm: rising premiums for health insurance. They have been trending upward for years and are now rising faster than ever.

Consider that, from 2000 to 2020, egg prices fluctuated between just under ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I received a notice from my health system that I'm due for a colorectal cancer screening. I'm 45. Do I really need to have this done now?

ANSWER: It's easy to be confused or overwhelmed by screening recommendations for common types of cancer. Your health care team is a trusted resource for keeping you up to date on screenings,...Read more

As measles surged in Texas early this year, the Trump administration’s actions sowed fear and confusion among CDC scientists that kept them from performing the agency’s most critical function — emergency response — when it mattered most, an investigation from KFF Health News shows.

The outbreak soon became the worst the United States ...Read more

The ongoing drama in Washington over changes to national vaccine policy has many people wondering just how difficult and expensive it will be to get flu and coronavirus shots this fall. While experts say that the situation is still uncertain, the biggest changes are likely to impact healthy adults under age 65 who are covered by Medicaid, called...Read more

BRISTOL, R.I. — At age 82, Roberta Rabinovitz realized she had no place to go. A widow, she had lost both her daughters to cancer, after living with one and then the other, nursing them until their deaths. Then she moved in with her brother in Florida, until he also died.

And so last fall, while recovering from lung cancer, Rabinovitz ended ...Read more

When you're expecting a baby, you can also expect to have lots of medical tests. Ultrasound imaging, glucose monitoring and other health checks are a routine part of every pregnancy.

There are reasons you might want to consider genetic testing too, especially if you want to know if a health issue that runs in your family may affect your child. ...Read more

On July 17, the option went dead for LGBTQ+ youth to access specialized mental health support from the national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration said a month earlier that it would no longer “silo” services and would instead “focus on serving all help seekers.” That meant the ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The plague — aka the Black Death, aka the Great Pestilence — is rarely contracted today, yet it recently infected a South Lake Tahoe resident. But before you put on your 17th century "air-purifying" beaked mask, let's find out from the experts why this disease is still around and how dangerous it is now.

Most people ...Read more