For College Students, 'Hookup Sex' More Intimate Than Thought

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- Intimacy plays a larger role in casual sex among college students than previously thought, a new U.S. study reports.

Researchers analyzed the results of an online survey that asked several hundred students at a university in the Northeast about their romantic relationships and casual sex.

Nose Holds Clues to Baby's First Cold

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- When a baby starts sniffling and sneezing, the type of bacteria in their nose may predict how long the cold will last, a new study finds.

Babies with a wide variety of bacteria in the nose recover faster from their first cold than those with less variety, the researchers said.

Could You Be Short on Vitamin D?

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- You'd think vitamin deficiencies would be rare in the United States, but many people are running low on vitamin D, and it's a serious health threat.

Being short on vitamin D not only affects bone density, it's also been linked to conditions such as heart disease, mental decline, some types of cancer, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases and type 2 diabetes.

Insights Into Women and Stroke Risk

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- You might be surprised to learn that stroke is the number three killer of women.

Women and men have many of the same risk factors for stroke, but some -- like high blood pressure, migraine with aura, diabetes and stress -- tend to be stronger or more common in women.

When Heart Attack Strikes, Women Often Hesitate to Call for Help

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- Women often delay calling for emergency help when heart attack symptoms start, a new study finds.

Researchers in Switzerland found that women suffering a heart attack typically waited 37 minutes longer than men before calling an ambulance. And those delays showed no signs of improving over the 16-year study period.

FDA Warns of Raw Cookie Dough Dangers

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- As tempting as it might be to sample some raw dough while you're making a batch of cookies this holiday season, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns that the guilty pleasure could make you very sick.

That's because flour is a raw product that hasn't been treated to kill germs such as E. coli. Those germs are only killed when food made with flour is cooked. Not only that, the raw eggs used to make cookie dough or cake batter can contain salmonella.

Hidden Dangers in Dust

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- An antibacterial called triclosan is common in dust and could result in dust-dwelling bacteria becoming antibiotic-resistant, researchers report.

"There is this conventional wisdom that says everything that's in dust is dead, but that's not actually the case. There are things living in there," said study leader Erica Hartmann, an assistant professor of environmental engineering at Northwestern University in Chicago.

AHA: Exercise After Heart Attack May Improve Survival

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 (American Heart Association) -- Exercising after a heart attack, even a long walk around the neighborhood, can be frightening for survivors. But those fears may be eased by new research that found regular physical activity could help keep them alive.

Many heart attack survivors initially worry that exercise or any type of prolonged activity that increases their heart rate could strain their recovering heart. But a new Swedish study published Dec. 11 in the Journal of the American Heart Association found that even a low level of physical activity within the first year of a heart attack was enough to reduce the odds of dying in the immediate years that followed.

Do Diabetics Really Need to Fast for Blood Tests?

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- Fasting before a cholesterol blood test is just a nuisance for most people, but for those with diabetes, it can be dangerous.

New research shows that up to 22 percent of people with diabetes who fasted for lab tests had a low blood sugar episode (hypoglycemia) while waiting for the test. The researchers also found that only about one-third of those who had a low blood sugar episode had received any education about how to avoid it when they were told to fast for lab tests.

Animal, Bug Bites a Billion-Dollar Burden

TUESDAY, Dec. 11, 2018 -- The bites of insects, spiders and dogs are a $1 billion yearly drain on the U.S. health care system, a new study has calculated.

And climate change is only going to make matters worse, researchers contend.