TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Americans covered under the Affordable Care Act could see their premiums jump 20 percent if President Donald Trump follows through on a promise to cut federal subsidies to insurance companies.

That's the conclusion of a report released Tuesday by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Kids in violent neighborhoods often do worse in school. Now, a new study helps explain why.

U.S. researchers found that exposure to violent crime changed kids' sleep patterns, which increased their levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

"Both sleep and cortisol are connected to the a... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- As if people newly diagnosed with cancer don't have enough to worry about, a new study suggests the diagnosis may put their hearts at risk, too.

The study found that newly diagnosed cancer patients are at increased risk for a condition called arterial thromboembolism, which occurs when blood f... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- When it comes to type 2 diabetes management, a new study finds that more is definitely better for lowering blood sugar levels.

The study showed that adding intensive lifestyle management to standard diabetes care (diabetes medication and usual lifestyle change advice) brought blood sugar into... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Children who get too little sleep may be more likely to have risk factors for type 2 diabetes, new research suggests.

The study of more than 4,500 British kids found a link between kids' sleep habits and certain diabetes "risk markers." Children who slept fewer hours each night tended to be a ... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Smile and the world smiles with you. But send a smiley emoji at work, and people might think you're incompetent.

So suggests a new study that found the email use of emoticons such as the smiley face don't convey a positive impression and may even make it more difficult to share information in ... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Light to moderate drinking can lower your overall risk of premature death and, specifically, your odds of dying from heart disease, a new study reports.

Moderate drinkers -- men who have one or two drinks a day, and women who have one drink a day -- have a 29 percent decreased risk of heart-re... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- The number of Americans who say they've taken an antidepressant over the past month rose by 65 percent between 1999 and 2014, a new government survey finds.

By 2014, about one in every eight Americans over the age of 12 reported recent antidepressant use, according to a report released Tuesday... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Many cutting-edge drugs and updated medical devices are not receiving the rigorous scientific scrutiny needed to ensure their safety and effectiveness, two new studies contend.

Medications fast-tracked to market under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's "accelerated approval" process are n... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Generosity really is its own reward, with the brain seemingly hardwired for happiness in response to giving, new research suggests.

Scientists in Switzerland used brain scans to track activity in brain regions associated with socializing, decision-making and happiness.

They found tha... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Stem cells from young hearts might breathe new life into aging ones, research in rats suggests.

In the study, a special type of stem cells was taken from the hearts of newborn rats and injected into the hearts of old rats, average age 22 months. Other rats from the same age group were given sa... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- If parents are afraid of local crime, kids spend less time hanging out in their neighborhoods, according to a new study that used smartphone tracking.

Where residents perceived a higher threat of crime, children spent over an hour less per day outside in their own neighborhood, the researcher... Full Page

TUESDAY, Aug. 15, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- You might not think it's possible to squeeze a date night into your hectic schedule, especially if your family includes young children.

But "The Date Night Opportunity" report from the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia states that making time for just the two of you is a ... Full Page

MONDAY, Aug. 14, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Marijuana may be slightly effective at reducing chronic nerve pain known as neuropathy. But there's little evidence on whether or not pot helps treat other types of pain or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a pair of new studies suggests.

The findings on neuropathy "fit generally well wit... Full Page

MONDAY, Aug. 14, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Rates of knee osteoarthritis have doubled in the United States since the 1940s, but it's not just because Americans are living longer and weigh more, a new study suggests.

To come to this conclusion, Harvard University researchers examined more than 2,000 skeletons from across the United States... Full Page

MONDAY, Aug. 14, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- No amount of extra weight is good for your heart, no matter how fit you are by other measures, new British research shows.

"Our findings suggest that if a patient is overweight or obese, all efforts should be made to help them get back to a healthy weight, regardless of other factors," said stu... Full Page

MONDAY, Aug. 14, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- High levels of air pollution can harm heart health, but air purifiers may protect against the threat, according to a small study from China.

The study included 55 healthy college students who used real or fake air purifiers in their dormitory rooms. Researchers measured the students' indoor and... Full Page

MONDAY, Aug. 14, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Smoking during pregnancy is on the rise among American women with depression, a new study finds.

Researchers analyzed data from more than 8,500 mothers-to-be who took part in an annual government health survey. It found a 2.5 percent rise in smoking rates among pregnant women with depression be... Full Page

MONDAY, Aug. 14, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Adults infected with the Zika virus can develop a number of serious neurological conditions, a new study finds.

Until now, the most troubling Zika-related illness in adults has been Guillain-Barre syndrome, which causes muscle weakness and paralysis.

A review of 35 Zika-infected pati... Full Page

MONDAY, Aug. 14, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- If you want to stay as fit as possible well into your 80s, the answer may be as simple as standing on your own two feet.

New research shows that a standing-exercise program is more effective for older adults than commonly used seated exercises.

Among nearly 300 participants who were a... Full Page