DISEASE

A 911 Call About a Raccoon Invasion Is a Good Reminder Never to Feed Wild Animals

Where there is one hungry raccoon, there are likely dozens, as one unfortunate woman found out.

Scurvy decimated sailors, explorers, and regular citizens for centuries before a cure for the vitamin deficiency was discovered.

Scurvy—a “Disease of the Past”—Is Making a Comeback

A case study of a man in Australia is highlighting the return of a disease associated with Elizabethan sailors and polar explorers.

Get a better sense of how illnesses have shaped history in these gripping reads.

12 Fascinating Books on History’s Most Notorious Diseases

Get a better sense of how illnesses have shaped history with these gripping reads about history’s most notorious diseases.

The FDA Wants You to Beware of Unpasteurized Apple Cider This Autumn

Fresh apple cider is delicious. It’s also potentially teeming with bacteria.

Don’t expect 120th birthdays to become the norm anytime soon.

The Average Human Lifespan May Be Reaching a Plateau

Barring some dramatic medical advancements, living into your eighties remains the best-case scenario.

Quitting Smoking Is Beneficial Even in Old Age, Study Finds

Science reinforces that it’s never too late to stop smoking.

Old age may precede dying, but it doesn’t directly cause it.

Do People Really Die of ‘Old Age’?

Can an octogenarian really just collapse from the wear and tear of life?

Little brown bats like this one are at risk from white nose syndrome.

A Bright Side for Bats: Scientists Make Progress Against White Nose Syndrome

The deadly fungus has decimated bat populations across North America. But recently, scientists have found reasons to hope their efforts to save bats are working.

Legionella in a Petri dish under UV light.

What Is Legionnaires’ Disease?

The unusual respiratory illness was named for a 1976 outbreak among attendees of an American Legion conference.

Shiitake mushrooms (left) are edible, while fly agaric (right) is extremely toxic, causing serious symptoms like dizziness, confusion, and hallucinations.

Mushrooms vs. Toadstools: What’s the Difference?

The definitions of toadstools and mushrooms are a bit intertwined.

A health care worker prepares to deliver an mpox vaccine during the 2022 outbreak.

8 Times the World Health Organization Declared a Public Health Emergency (Including for Mpox)

All of the WHO's declarations of emergency since 2007 have been for viral diseases, including the most recent one for mpox.

A scanning electron micrograph of ‘Mycobacterium tuberculosis’ particles (colorized red), the bacterium that causes TB.

6 of the World’s Oldest Diseases

Ailments as diverse as tooth decay and malaria have caused suffering for thousands, even millions, of years—and they’re not done with us yet.

Climate Change Is Making Seafood Dangerous to Eat

Mercury in seafood is another growing concern thanks to global warming.

Popular Deli Meat Maker Boar’s Head Recalls 7 Million Pounds Of Meat After Listeria Outbreak

Boar’s Head Recalls 71 Products in Light of Listeria Outbreak

“Out of an abundance of caution, we decided to immediately and voluntarily expand our recall to include all items produced at the Jarratt facility,” the company said in a statement.

Transorbital lobotomies have now entered the chat.

10 Riveting Nonfiction Books on History’s Greatest Medical Mysteries

These gory yet fascinating reads delve into the weirdest chapters of medical history, from the dancing plague of 1518 to the bizarre saga of Typhoid Mary.

Don't crack open a cold coffee before you check the label.

Hundreds of Canned Coffee Products Recalled Over Botulism Fears

The word to look for on the label is ‘Snapchill.’

Quiz: Can You Match the Historical Remedy with the Illness?

Figure it out, stat!

Where 7 Dangerous, Disease-Spreading Ticks Live in the U.S.—Mapped

American dog ticks, blacklegged ticks, and Lone Star ticks can all spread devastating diseases. Here's a map of where these ticks live.

This tick probably couldn’t wait to dig into this person’s skin.

3 Simple Ways to Stay Tick-Free This Summer

There are several precautions you can take to keep ticks at bay this summer.

The vast majority of tonsillectomies are performed on children.

Why Don’t Doctors Perform Tonsillectomies Like They Used To?

The surgical extraction of the tonsils was a hallmark of a 1950s childhood, but now the operation is not nearly as common.

A lock of Ludwig van Beethoven's hair in the collection of San José State University.

Beethoven’s Hair Reveals He Suffered from Lead Poisoning

Researchers speculate that ingesting lead may have contributed to the famous composer’s hearing loss and other unexplained ailments.

8 Myths About Dead Bodies, Debunked

Corpses are less scary than you think.

Fifteenth-century woodcut of a young woman who represents syphilis with the skeletons of dead lovers behind her bed.

Quiz: Can You Match the Disease to Its Olde-Tyme Name?

Ailments have gone by various names over the centuries. How many of these can you guess correctly?

“The Plague Hospital,” a painting by Francisco Goya.

13 Facts About the Black Death

The Black Death—the world's second bubonic plague pandemic—decimated the populations of Asia, the Middle East, and Europe in the 14th century. But there was a silver lining.