Punishing regimens of facial exercises. Intentional starvation. Reshaping the jawline or cheekbones by smashing them with a hammer or chisel. These are some of the more extreme behaviors in a…
Category: Anthropology
Reduced health insurance payments for hospital births had a bigger impact on sterilization rates than correcting an injustice
For decades, female sterilization has been one of the most common forms of birth control in the U.S.: 11.5% of U.S. women, ages 15-49, use female sterilization as their primary…
How does your body lose weight? An obesity doctor explains why one size doesn’t fit all in weight loss
For decades, people have been told that their weight problems can be solved by math: Calories in, calories out. If weight were a simple math equation, more people would likely…
Long COVID will cost the US an estimated $8 billion over just 3 years due to healthcare burden, managing symptoms and loss to the workforce
The Conversation, CC-BY-ND. Headlines on long COVID have become much more rare than during the first few years of the COVID-19 pandemic. But that doesn’t mean the more than 44…
Transgender youth and their families struggle to find gender-affirming care – even in states where it’s still legal
Imagine this scenario: In late 2025, a social worker sits down with a transgender teenager and his parents. The family is trying to decide whether, and when, to begin gender-affirming…
Special courts helps veterans stay out of jail
Memorial Day is an apt time to reflect on the long-term consequences of war. Among them are substance use, mental health problems, homelessness and jail time for those who served…
Special courts helps veterans stay out of jail
Memorial Day is an apt time to reflect on the long-term consequences of war. Among them are substance use, mental health problems, homelessness and jail time for those who served…
Ebola strain spreading in Congo and Uganda has no approved vaccine
As a deadly outbreak of Ebola virus spreads in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on May 17, 2026, that…
Flavored vapes led to a major shake-up at the FDA – 3 health policy analysts explain the science behind the controversial products
The resignation of Marty Makary, commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, on May 12, 2026, brought to the forefront a heated controversy over fruit-flavored nicotine vapes. Rumors had…
Supreme Court preserves access to mifepristone via telehealth – at least for now
The U.S. Supreme Court has decided that patients can continue to get mifepristone, one of the two drugs used for medication abortion, via telehealth and by mail. At least for…
