Author Archives: Karely Vega, MD

Numerous factors contribute to skin aging, including environmental, genetics and lifestyle. Researchers at the Center for Microbiome Innovation (CMI) at the University of California San Diego (UC San Diego) and L’Oréal Research and Innovation discovered the skin microbiome could hold the key to understanding how the skin ages. Their findings were recently published in Frontiers […]

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in plastics pose a serious threat to public health and cost the U.S. an estimated $250 billion in increased health care costs in 2018, according to new research published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society. Plastics contain many hazardous, endocrine-disrupting chemicals that leach and contaminate humans and the environment. These chemicals […]

Individuals with obesity are more likely to have monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), a benign blood condition that often precedes multiple myeloma, according to new research published in Blood Advances. Multiple myeloma is a blood cancer of the plasma cells, a type of white blood cells that produce antibodies to fight infection.  MGUS, characterized […]

The use of the antipsychotic drugs quetiapine and haloperidolis associated with an increased risk of ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death (SCD) caused by drug-induced QT prolongation, reports a new study in Heart Rhythm, the official journal of the Heart Rhythm Society, the Cardiac Electrophysiology Society, and the Pediatric & Congenital Electrophysiology Society, published by […]

In people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), changes in neurons appear to activate immune cells. Lowering the inflammation could reduce the symptoms of the disease, according to a study led by Chantelle Sephton, a professor at Université Laval’s Faculty of Medicine. ALS is caused by the loss of upper motor neurons, located in the brain, […]

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a common infection in children and senior adults, can also infect nerve cells and trigger inflammation leading to nerve damage, according to a new Tulane University study. RSV can cause mild symptoms such as coughing, sneezing and fever or lead to more severe conditions such as pneumonia or bronchiolitis. But since […]

Soy compounds called isoflavones are among the plant-derived compounds that may significantly reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence or death, according to a new meta-analysis co-directed by investigators from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. The results were published in the journal JNCI Cancer Spectrum. Investigators in Australia, Denmark, England, Norway and the U.S. […]

Chronic exposure to arsenic, often through contaminated groundwater, has been associated with Type 2 diabetes in humans, and there are new clues that males may be more susceptible to the disease when exposed. A new Cornell University study — using lab mice genetically modified with a human gene to shed light on the potential link […]

In recent years, there has been rising concern that tiny particles known as microplastics are showing up basically everywhere on Earth, from polar ice to soil, drinking water and food. Formed when plastics break down into progressively smaller bits, these particles are being consumed by humans and other creatures, with unknown potential health and ecosystem […]