Health
Finding good health news amidst a pandemic can be quite daunting. That’s not the case with The Optimist Daily, where positive news is in high supply. Our Health section covers the latest good news from the health sector, featuring solutions ranging from mental and physical health to immunity, nutrition, and cutting edge medical research.
McDonald’s is introducing a vegan burger to its menus
In an attempt to appeal to a wider audience, McDonald’s is going to start selling a vegan burger in hundreds of restaurants across Sweden and Finland. The meatless burger, which has been dubbed the McVegan, consists of a soy patty, bun, tomato, pickles, onion, ketchup, mustard, oil and an Read More...
Researchers develop first diagnostic test for Parkinson’s thanks to this woman’s sense of smell
A Scottish woman claimed her husband’s smell changed subtly before he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. When researchers conducted tests with the woman, they found she was able to identify people living with Parkinson’s from people without the condition by smelling skin swabs taken from Read More...
This anti-inflammatory food medicine is as tasty as it is healthy
Did you know the largest of the Caribbean's sugar islands, Cuba, is also celebrated for another traditional sweetener? Turns out that honey is a leading agricultural activity. (The island has 170,000 hives!) This sweet nectar is the country's Read More...
California just issued an advisory to residents to limit exposure to cellphones
California’s Department of Public Health passed an advisory that suggests residents should take steps to limit exposure to cellphones. The notice advises against keeping your phone in your pocket, and avoiding phone use when unnecessary. The notice doesn't mean that debate about the health impact Read More...
Older adults' forgetfulness tied to faulty brain rhythms in sleep
Older brains may forget more because they lose their rhythm at night. During deep sleep, older people have less coordination between two brain waves that are important to saving new memories, a team reports in the journal Read More...
Giant rats increase their attack on tuberculosis in Tanzania
The use of giant rats to sniff out the potentially deadly disease tuberculosis (TB) in Tanzania is set to nearly double by the end of the year due to successful detection rates, a charity who trains them Read More...
How black farmers are fighting discrimination by growing food
Did you know that more than 90 percent of farmers in the U.S. are white? Did you know that African-Americans are also 1.5 times as likely to be obese as white people, and that they eat fewer vegetables than other racial groups? For these reasons, a number of activists have started a movement in Read More...
Study: Living near fracking site can cause low birth weight in newborns
Not only is fracking terrible for the environment, it also has adverse effects on the health of infants. New research recently found a link between infants’ birth weight and their mothers’ proximity to hydraulic fracturing sites in Pennsylvania. They found that a mother who lived within one Read More...
Blockchain technology will bring the food industry some much needed transparency
The global food chain is complex, bringing together farmers, warehousing, shipping companies, distributors, and grocers. Involving so many different parties also means involving many different types of record keeping methods, from Excel sheets to emails to paper printouts. Not only is this system Read More...
Tea time: Ward off dementia by drinking a couple mugs of green tea every day
If you’re looking to keep your mind sharp, simply having two or more cups of green tea can help do the trick. Recent research found that regular tea drinkers who consume at least two mugs a day reduce their risk of developing dementia by nearly 30 percent. Although it’s not known exactly why Read More...