C-Reactive Protein as a Predictor of CVD Risk

In nearly 450,000 adults without known atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD), elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) independently predicted major adverse CVD events and mortality, outperformed several conventional risk factors, and significantly improved the Systematic COronary Risk Evaluation 2 (SCORE2)-based risk prediction. In this UK Biobank study, participants had a median age […]

Biological Aging Pace Helps Explain Sex Differences in CVD Risk

In a population-based analysis of 371,032 UK Biobank participants, faster biological aging in males explained a substantial proportion of their higher cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk compared with females, accounting for about 60–68% of the excess risk across major CVD outcomes. Although males and females had similar chronological ages, males consistently […]

Reducing Saturated Fat Intake: Modest Benefits Overall, Meaningful Gains for High-Risk Individuals

A systematic review of 17 randomized trials involving 66,337 adults found that reducing or modifying saturated fat intake offers little or no clinically meaningful benefit over five years for people at low cardiovascular risk, but may lead to important reductions in mortality and major cardiovascular events among those at high […]

Even Moderate Drinking Raises Cancer Risk across Multiple Cancer Types

Even moderate alcohol consumption was consistently linked to a higher risk of multiple cancers, with clear dose–response relationships showing that risk rises with greater frequency and quantity of drinking. In this systematic review of 62 U.S.-based studies, alcohol use was most strongly associated with increased risks of breast, colorectal, and […]

Gradual Antidepressant Tapering With Therapy Reduced Relapse Risk

Slow tapering with psychological support is just as effective as continuing antidepressants—and clearly safer than abrupt or rapid discontinuation—in preventing relapse among people whose depression is in remission. In this systematic review and network meta-analysis of 76 trials including 17,379 adults with remitted depression or anxiety, several strategies outperformed abrupt […]

Corticosteroids Reduce Short-Term Deaths in Severe Pneumonia and ARDS

Adjunct low-dose, short-course corticosteroids probably reduce short-term mortality in adults with severe pneumonia or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), according to a review of 20 randomized trials involving 3459 participants. Drawing from major medical databases through September 2025, the analysis found that corticosteroids (3 mg/kg of body weight per day […]

Ultra-Processed Foods: A Key Driver of Modern Health Problems

A growing body of evidence shows that ultra-processed foods are displacing traditional, whole-food diets worldwide and driving major diet-related chronic diseases. Drawing on decades of dietary surveys, global sales data, cohort studies, randomized trials, and mechanistic research, this first paper in a three-part Lancet Series reports that ultra-processed foods have […]

The Surprising Gap in Heart Attack Prediction

Traditional atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk- and symptom-based screening misses nearly half of patients under age 66 who go on to experience their first myocardial infarction (MI), revealing major shortcomings in current preventive strategies. In this US retrospective study of 465 adults presenting with a first type 1 MI, simulation […]

Carotid-Artery Stenting Beneficial for Carotid Stenosis

Adding carotid-artery stenting—but not carotid endarterectomy—to intensive medical management reduced the risk of stroke or death in patients with high-grade asymptomatic carotid stenosis. In two parallel, observer-blinded trials including more than 2,400 participants with ≥70% stenosis, the 4-year incidence of the primary composite outcome (any stroke or death from randomization […]

Mental Wellbeing Mitigated IBS Risk

Better mental wellbeing substantially reduces the risk of developing irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), with effects that are independent of genetic predisposition and partly mediated through lower depression and anxiety. In this prospective UK Biobank cohort of 75,842 IBS-free participants followed for 12.4 years, 1,400 incident IBS cases occurred, and higher […]