Rebel News - Independent News and Analysis

Inability to taste fat in food is one of the reasons contributing to excess weight and obesity in some individuals, a new study finds.

The tongue has long been believed to have the ability to detect the main five tastes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami.

FDA officials have added a new warning label to the anti-clotting drug Plavix, stressing that not metabolizing the pill may cause non-responsiveness in some patients.

Plavix, the second most commonly used blood thinner, is believed to reduce the risk of heart attack, unstable angina, stroke and cardiovascular death in patients with heart disease.

While certain vaccines had long been linked to autism, the US vaccine court says vaccines containing mercury-based preservatives cannot cause autism on their own.

Many parents blame a combo vaccine used for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) for causing autistic symptoms in their children. The US Institute of Medicine, however, has recurrently rejected such a link.

Latest figures have revealed that one in every six American is infected with genital herpes, making it one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the country.

According to the report recently released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 16 percent of Americans aged between 14 and 49 are infected with the herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2).

Despite the general belief, a new study finds that lowering blood pressure and lipid levels to normal values does not reduce the risk of heart disease in type 2 diabetics.

Previous studies had reported that intensive blood pressure and lipid control can lower the risk of developing fatal or nonfatal cardiovascular disease in individuals with type 2 diabetes.

While gum diseases in pregnant women had long been linked to early birth, a new study finds that treating the condition can lower the risk of premature birth.

According to the study presented at the annual conference of the American Association for Dental Research, women with untreated gum diseases are three times more likely to give birth to a child before 35 weeks of pregnancy.

US researchers say skin transplant surgery is an effective way in treating vitiligo, a skin condition with no definite treatment.

Vitiligo, a chronic disorder characterized by depigmented skin patches, occurs when the melanocytes responsible for skin pigmentation die or become non-functional. The disease is most famously associated with the late artist Michael Jackson.

Compared to their normal-weight counterparts, overweight drinkers are at a greater risk of developing liver diseases, a new study finds.

Previous studies had reported liver cirrhosis as the major complications among regular drinkers. A new study, however, shows the risk to be higher among individuals with excess weight.

Individuals occasionally diagnosed with high blood pressure levels are reported to be at a greater risk of experiencing a stroke in the long run.

According to a study published in The Lancet Neurology, individuals with fluctuating blood pressure levels at different readings are more vulnerable to a future stroke regardless of their average blood pressure level.

Apart from various health benefits reported for calcium intake, a new study shows adopting a diet rich in calcium can increase one's mortality rate.

Previous studies had reported that higher calcium intake was associated with lower mortality in both men and women. Following a diet rich in calcium with the addition of magnesium was also linked with reduced risk of developing chronic diseases.