Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Disease and Illnesses

Intermittent fasting involves cycling between periods of eating normally and fasting

Intermittent Fasting Might Not Live Up to the Hype When It Comes to Weight Loss, New Research Suggests

The popular eating strategy is about as effective as doing nothing to lose weight, according to a review of several clinical trials

This 2014 artwork by J.R. superimposes a historic photograph of immigrants on a broken window at the Ellis Island hospital.

A Stay at Ellis Island Hospital Could Determine Whether an Immigrant Had a Chance to Start a New Life in America

Some 276,000 patients were admitted to the medical facility between 1892 and 1951. But the abandoned complex has long been overlooked, and preservationists are fighting to save it

Researchers developed a tiny fart-measuring device that snaps into underwear. 

How Often Do You Fart? This ‘Smart Underwear’ Can Keep Track, Because Figuring Out a Baseline Is Important for Science

Researchers have launched a study to find a typical range for flatulence, which has been harder to measure than you might expect

Rhesus macaques at the Oregon National Primate Research Center

A Massive Monkey Research Center Might Turn Into a Primate Sanctuary. Animal Activists Rejoice, While Scientists Worry

The Oregon National Primate Research Center will explore a potentially federally supported transition with the National Institutes of Health

The study involved nearly 132,000 participants whose habits were tracked for roughly 40 years.

Your Daily Coffee Might Be Protecting Your Brain From Dementia, a New Study Suggests

Two to three caffeinated cups a day may help keep the cognitive condition away

Chris Buck at work in a kitchen lab

This Scientist Brewed and Drank His Own ‘Vaccine Beer’ to Combat a Dangerous Virus. It Seems to Have Worked

Blood tests revealed that the beverage elicited an immune response, according to preliminary research. But far more safety and efficacy testing would be needed before this vaccine could become available

HPV testing is crucial for cervical cancer prevention, but many people miss their exams. 

Testing Menstrual Blood for HPV Might Provide a Less Invasive Way to Screen for Cervical Cancer, a New Study Suggests

While the method shows promise, some experts say that other self-collection devices are more readily available

Tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption were responsible for 15 percent and 3 percent of all cancer cases diagnosed in 2022, a new study suggests.

Nearly Four in Ten New Cancer Cases Might Be Preventable, According to the World Health Organization

A landmark global study suggests that tobacco smoking, infection and alcohol consumption are the leading causes of preventable cancers

Though still in early stages, some experts say that A.I.-supported screenings could help save patients' health, time and money.

A.I. Could Help Doctors Spot Hard-to-Detect Signs of Breast Cancer During Routine Screenings, a Clinical Trial Suggests

Standard testing can miss some tumors, which are later diagnosed and called interval cancers. They’re often more aggressive than screening-detected disease

Surgeons removed the patient's failing lungs and temporarily replaced them with an artificial version, saving his life.

Artificial Lungs Kept a Dying Man Alive For 48 Hours—Until He Was Well Enough to Receive an Organ Transplant

The patient is faring well nearly three years later, thanks to the life-saving device

The human genome is made up of about three billion pairs of DNA units called nucleotides.

Google Researchers Say Their New A.I. Tool AlphaGenome Can Help Decode the Human Genetic Instruction Book

The computer model might help scientists better understand the biological impacts of typos in DNA

Researchers traced a pathway between the heart and the brain.

After a Heart Attack, the Brain’s Response Might Make Recovery Harder. Cutting Some Communication Between the Organs Could Help

The new study in mice could lead to innovative treatments for heart attacks

Ötzi the Iceman is housed at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology, where conservationists periodically humidify his remains.

Ötzi the Iceman May Have Carried a Cancer-Causing Strain of HPV, a Common Virus Still Plaguing Humans Today

A new study, which also found evidence of the high-risk strain in 45,000-year-old remains, suggests HPV has evolved alongside humans for many millennia

Naked mole-rats are unusual for their long lives and resistance to cancer. Now, researchers suggest the rodents not only tolerate but prefer to be in low-oxygen air.

Naked Mole-Rats Prefer Low-Oxygen Air That Would Kill Most Mammals, Adding to Their List of Death-Defying Superpowers

These underground rodents are the first mammals found to actively choose air with lower-than-normal oxygen levels. Their remarkable ability to survive these conditions could offer a key model for researchers studying new treatments for stroke or lung diseases in humans

Researchers investigated the associations between preservatives and the risk of developing cancer and type 2 diabetes.

Eating Large Amounts of Certain Preservatives Might Increase Your Risk of Developing Cancer and Type 2 Diabetes

Two studies tracked more than 100,000 participants over 14 years to reveal the trends. But they can’t confirm a direct link between eating these preservatives and developing disease, especially because some of the additives were eaten in foods that contain known carcinogens

Many public health experts, immunologists and pediatricians criticized the revised childhood vaccine schedule, arguing that the changes will likely lead to more disease outbreaks.

U.S. Overhauls Immunization Schedule for Kids, Removing Recommendations for Vaccines Against the Flu, RSV and More

Announced on Monday, the revised schedule drops the number of recommended immunizations from 17 to 11. The CDC suggests that only “high-risk” kids should get many of the vaccines that are no longer endorsed

A humpback whale off the coast of Iceland

By Collecting Whale Breath, Researchers Detected a Deadly Virus in the Arctic for the First Time

Flying a drone with Petri dishes above exhaling whales helped scientists identify a dangerous pathogen that can damage the animals’ respiratory, immune and nervous systems

Estrogen may cause certain colon cells, shown in green in this microscope image, to release a hormone called peptide YY. This, in turn, causes a different type of colon cell, colored magenta, to pump out the chemical messenger serotonin, which activates pain-sensing nerve fibers.

Women Are More Likely to Have Irritable Bowel Syndrome. This Newfound Gut Pain Pathway Might Explain Why

The hormone estrogen—which female animals typically have more of than males—triggers a molecular cascade in the gut that leads to pain signals, a study in mice suggests

Nanoflowers, which look white, can help healthy cells, colored yellow, deliver mitochondria, colored red, to nearby cells. 

A New Way to Boost the Powerhouses of the Cell Might Combat Aging and Degenerative Diseases, Lab Study Suggests

Creating mini mitochondria factories helped recharge damaged cells in a dish, providing proof-of-concept work that could pave the way to new regenerative medicine therapies

In 2025, researchers watched an interstellar comet, learned about human origins and traced the spread of measles.

The Ten Most Significant Science Stories of 2025, From Medical Breakthroughs to an Interstellar Visitor

All year long, these moments captivated the public, demonstrated dangerous trends, and pushed research and innovation forward

Page 3 of 45