Health & Safety

This gladiator tombstone was excavated in a cemetery for these ancient power athletes in what was once Ephesus, in modern-day Turkey.

Gladiator Gatorade? Ancient Athletes Had A Recovery Drink, Too

5:54pm November 04, 2014

by Maria Godoy

Gladiators guzzled a drink made from plant ash to help their bodies recover after a hard day of sword fighting, according to Roman accounts. New tests of old bones back up that idea.

Health & Safety

Apple's Siri Helps Autistic Teen With Communication Skills

12:35pm November 04, 2014

We hear from author Judith Newman, a mother with an autistic son, who wrote in The New York Times about how Siri, the voice from her iPhone, touched her autistic son.

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Dr. Curtis Chan, a dentist in Del Mar, Calif., loads up a truck with 5,456 pounds of candy to deliver to Operation Gratitude during the Halloween Candy Buyback on Nov. 8 last year. Chan personally collected 3,542 pounds of candy from patients.

Health & Safety

Cash For Halloween Candy? Dentists' Buyback Program Is Booming

11:04am November 04, 2014

by Allison Aubrey

If you're like many parents, by tomorrow morning you'll be facing a candy glut. One possible solution? Sell it to a dentist participating in a program that sends candy care packages to troops.

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New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, center, addressed a gathering on Ebola preparedness last month at Hackensack University Medical Center.

The Election Day Ebola Quiz: Match The Politician And The Quote

7:03am November 04, 2014

by NPR Staff

It seems that every politician has an opinion about the virus. Do you know which public figure made which statement?

A child receives a polio vaccine during National Immunization Days in the Nigerian city of Kano.

It Turns Out That Fighting Polio Is Good Training To Fight Ebola

4:31pm November 03, 2014

by Joanne Silberner

Nigeria knows how to beat back polio. And that's helped in the battle against Ebola. But other West African countries are struggling to beat the deadly virus — and neglecting anti-polio efforts.

Health & Safety

Seeing Red During Breast Cancer Awareness Month

3:16pm November 03, 2014

by Anne Loeser

Decades of effort to raise awareness of breast cancer hasn't helped to reduce the death toll once it spreads. One woman living with metastatic breast cancer says it's way past time for a change.

Women Increasingly Pick Brains Over Looks In Choosing Egg Donors

1:50pm November 03, 2014

by Robin Marantz Henig

As using egg donors becomes more common, women are more likely to choose donors based on smarts and athletic skill rather than trying to have a child who will look like just them.

Children play in the West Point neighborhood of Monrovia last week. West Point has been hit hard by Ebola. So local leaders formed their own Ebola task force, which goes door to door looking for cases.

How Liberia Is Starting To Beat Ebola, With Fingers Crossed

12:04pm November 03, 2014

by Michaeleen Doucleff

There's potentially some good news about Ebola: While cases are still rising in Sierra Leone, the outbreak shows signs of slowing in Liberia. Communities are banding together to get Ebola out.

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Man, that PPE is hot. And not in a good way. One challenge for the designers was to come up a way to give health workers more time in personal protective equipment without overheating.

Ebola Design Challenge Says Yes To The Wedding Dress Designer

10:32am November 03, 2014

by Linda Poon

There were engineers. And virologists. And one wedding dress designer. Together, they're trying to devise a better design for protective gear worn by health workers in the Ebola ward.

A map of toxic waste sites can be combined with maps of waterways and cities to reveal potential health risks.

A Field Of Medicine That Wants To Know Where You Live

8:39am November 03, 2014

by Alison Bruzek

Where do you live? Health specialists think that simple question could make a difference in how doctors prevent and treat diseases for individuals. That's expanding its storied role in public health.