In our last post we highlighted a few of the coolest (in our opinion!) health-related developments of 2009.   But human genetics isn’t all about disease.   Here are a...

Editor’s note: Pending an FDA decision, 23andMe no longer offers new customers access to health reports referred to in this post. Customers who purchased prior to November 22, 2013 will...

A new study has identified more common genetic variants associated with increased risk for cleft lip and palate.   Combined with two previous studies, there are now four variations that...

More than a million Americans have Parkinson’s disease, and another 50,000 are diagnosed each year. There is active research to try to understand this devastating condition, but scientists still don’t...

By now, you’re probably sick of hearing about the 2009 H1N1 flu, also known as the swine flu.   But if you believe you’ve had it, and you’ve already recovered...

Leprosy is a chronic, disabling disease caused by a bacterium (Mycobacterium leprae) that infects only humans and armadillos. The disease affects the skin and peripheral nerves, leading to sores, numbness...

Multiple sclerosis (MS) afflicts the central nervous system, causing unpredictable and varying symptoms that differ from person to person. About one in 700 people in the United States is affected...

Nobody likes that sick feeling you get in your stomach when you watch a young college athlete hit the ground in pain and you wonder if his or her career...

From alchemists and the Philosopher’s Stone to Ponce de Leon and the Fountain of Youth, history is full of stories of people searching for a way to extend life indefinitely....

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a rare and deadly neurological disorder affecting voluntary muscle movement. It typically claims victims’ lives about three years after symptoms begin. In the United States,...