A three-year world cruise has been canceled less than two weeks before it was scheduled to set sail. Life at Sea Cruises’ first three-year sailing was announced in March and promised passengers willing to fork out at least $29,999 per year — a one-of-a-kind voyage organized by parent company, Turkey-based Miray Cruises, that would cover 130,000 miles, … Read more
Despite ongoing efforts to curtail its spread in the U.S. and abroad, the lethal chronic wasting disease (CWD) remains a threat — with no vaccine or cure. In 2005, the “zombie deer” disease struck New York after several deer infected with chronic wasting disease (CWD) escaped from a fenced-in pen in Oneida County, a largely … Read more
To act your age is a virtue — but what that entails has gotten a lot more complicated since the pandemic. The global outbreak of COVID-19 had a detrimental effect on everyone’s mental health, a toll still felt today. Research has shown that kids are still struggling in school, while young adults complain their maturity has been … Read more
When it comes to preventing a miserable, deadly disease — better late than never. Health professionals are reminding people that there’s still time to get vaccinated before Thanksgiving, especially as the threat of a possible “tripledemic” of flu, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) looms. “The bottom line is that the flu is not to … Read more
After being stuffed into an airplane cabin for a long, redeye flight from overseas, you’re finally on your way home — but first, the government wants to shove a cotton swab up your nose. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is asking passengers returning from international destinations at four U.S. airports to volunteer for … Read more
“Yellow jack” is back. The mosquito-borne disease known as yellow fever is primed for a resurgence, say medical experts, and the US is woefully unprepared. Yellow fever joins other diseases — malaria, dengue, leishmaniasis — that were once confined to the tropics, but have now spread northwards into the US due to a warming climate. … Read more
Years of budget cuts and staffing shortages have left the New York City Department of Health too hobbled to contain a sharp rise in local cases of tuberculosis (TB), according to a bombshell new report. TB is the world’s deadliest infectious disease, and there have been about 500 NYC cases of active TB so far … Read more
These hotels mean business — and fun. Travelers are prioritizing a good night’s sleep, amenities that promote a healthy lifestyle, and rooms with “smart” technology, according to a 2024 travel forecast from Hilton out this week. Thanks to the rise in “bleisure” travel — adding a vacation to a work trip — jet-setters are extending … Read more
Bird flu is back with a vengeance. Medical experts have discovered that one variant of the avian flu virus, dubbed H3N8, has undergone several mutations and can now cause more severe infections. Additionally, the H3N8 virus — which is endemic among poultry farms throughout China — is transmissible by airborne droplets between animals that have … Read more
They were the kids most disrupted by the pandemic, the ones who were still learning to write their names and tie their shoes when schools shut down in the spring of 2020. Now, they’re the big kids at elementary schools across the United States. Many still need profound help overcoming the effects of the pandemic. To catch up, … Read more
She’s living her best life, thanks to “death meditation.” Repeating one phrase to herself — “I may die today, I may die today” — is the first step in the unique mindfulness practice that Lina Bertucci, a 15-year student of Tibetan meditation in Manhattan, credits with helping her cherish every moment. Next, she relaxes into … Read more
A national state of emergency has been declared in Peru as doctors battle an outbreak of a rare disease that can cause lifelong paralysis or death. More than 230 cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome, or GBS, have been reported in the South American country, with more than half the cases occurring in a brief five-week period … Read more
Years after the COVID-19 pandemic started, is the US prepared for the next pandemic? No, according to the outgoing director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Rochelle Walensky. “Decades of underinvestment in public health rendered the United States ill prepared for a global pandemic,” Walensky, 54, wrote Tuesday in a New York … Read more
Your mind isn’t playing tricks on you — the pandemic may have altered your memory. According to a study published Wednesday in the journal PLOS One, COVID-19 lockdowns caused people to lose track of time. Scottish researchers found people made errors when trying to remember events from 2021, findings that are consistent with memory lapses … Read more
The World Health Organization (WHO) keeps a short list of “priority diseases” that could cause the next deadly pandemic. Most of the diseases are already known to us — Ebola, SARS and Zika made the cut — but the final entry has the terrifying name “Disease X.” The term Disease X is used by the WHO as … Read more
The head of the World Health Organization warned that the world must prepare for the next pandemic, which could be “even deadlier” than the COVID-19 pandemic. In a meeting of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday, director-general Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus sounded an alarm that the COVID-19 pandemic is far from over. … Read more
The World Health Organization said Friday that COVID-19 no longer qualifies as a global emergency, marking a symbolic end to the devastating coronavirus pandemic that triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns, upended economies worldwide and killed at least 7 million people worldwide. WHO said that even though the emergency phase was over, the pandemic hasn’t come to an … Read more
Despite the world shutting down for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it apparently hasn’t negatively affected people’s overall happiness. According to a study published in the annual World Happiness Report that surveyed more than 100,000 people in 137 countries, respondents are happier now than before the coronavirus caused worldwide lockdowns and worldwide uncertainty. The … Read more
While Americans were mostly sitting at home at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, their daily step count was a lot lower, and a new study suggests they still haven’t gotten back into the habit. The study published in JAMA Network Open looked at steps taken by nearly 5,500 participants — mostly white women with … Read more
Kelly Gartland still remembers the feeling of excitement the day she got her driver’s license in 1993. Savoring her first real taste of freedom while behind the wheel of her family car, the then-17-year-old high schooler felt as if she was flying on the 10-minute drive from her home in Woonsocket, RI, to her part-time … Read more