Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is going to allow younger girls to have full access to Plan B, also known as the morning after pill.

A U.S. court ruled not long ago that girls who are 17-years-old should have access to the morning after pill. Continue Reading

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - A new study published in the journal Neurology has found that painkillers are useless in terms of preventing the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

In the past it was believed that these drugs, known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatories or NSAIDS, could actually prevent Alzheimer’s. Continue Reading

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - Rwanda will be the first developing country to launch a new vaccine program against pneumococcal disease.

The program will aim to immunize nearly 400,000 infants by the end of the year 2009.

This will help save the lives of thousands of children in the developing country of Rwanda.

This was announced by the GAVI Alliance, made up of many world organizations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Pneumococcal disease causes the deaths of children all over the world year after year.

This is the first program of its kind in a developing country to take on the disease aggressively.

The hope is that over time, by immunizing these kids, they can systematically work to try and rid of the disease in the decades to come.

Pneumococcal meningitis is one of the most preventable diseases via vaccination.

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - The shortage of nurses in the state of Texas may soon be reversed thanks to newly announced incentives.

As of right now, it is estimated that the shortage of nurses is at 22,000. Continue Reading

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - It appears that the missing vials of a virus from the Army biomedical facility, Fort Detrick may never be found.

Army investigators have come out and stated that there appears to be no criminal misconduct surrounding the 3 missing vials of Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus. Continue Reading

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - An unknown strain of the swine flu has popped up with two cases in California.

Investigators are looking into two cases of the unknown strain of the swine flu. Continue Reading

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - A new study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation has found that drinks with fructose actually increase your risk of heart attack and stroke.

The study was carried out by researchers from the University of California at Davis, and was led by Peter Havel. Continue Reading

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - A new study presented at the 100th annual meeting in Denver of the American Association for Cancer Research has found that eating walnuts can cut your risk of developing breast cancer.

Waltnuts have been known to be a very healthy food, as they are beneficial to your health in many ways. Continue Reading

Washington (SmartAboutHealth) - The Mayo Clinic has teamed up with Microsoft to offer a new online service which will consist of free online personal health records.

The name of the new service is the Mayo Clinic Health Manager, and will run on the power of the Microsoft HealthVault. Continue Reading

Boston (SmartAboutHealth) - A new study published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynaecology has found that mothers who breastfeed reduce their risk of both heart attack, as well as stroke.

This new study showcases one of the many health benefits of breastfeeding for both the mother as well as the baby. Continue Reading