HEALTH

Forgetting appointments, deadlines and that call to Mom − the phenomenon of prospective memory and how to improve yours. Have you ever walked into a room and then wondered why you went there? If you’ve experienced this phenomenon, you’ve had a prospective memory lapse. Memory usually means remembering things that have already happened. But prospective memory is the ability to remember to do something in the future – such as stopping to get milk on the way home from work, calling your mom on her birthday or remembering to take your casserole out of the oven. Sometimes, errors lead to heartbreaking results – such as forgetting to take your toddler out of the car on a hot day. I am a clinical neuropsychologist and a professor of psychology and neuroscience. For the past 30 years, my r...

FDA authorized the sale of menthol-flavored e-cigarettes – a health policy expert explains how the benefits may outweigh the risks. On June 21, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the marketing of the first electronic cigarette products in flavors other than tobacco in the U.S. Of the four new authorized products, two are sealed, prefilled pods with menthol flavored nicotine liquid that can be used in certain types of e-cigarettes. The other two are disposable nicotine e-cigarettes – meaning once the prefilled menthol liquid is used, the device cannot be used again. The Conversation asked Jamie Hartmann-Boyce, a health policy expert who specializes in tobacco control and e-cigarette products, to explain the pros and cons of the FDA’s authorization and what it could...

Healthy teeth are wondrous and priceless – a dentist explains why and how best to protect them. At an auction in England in 2011, one of John Lennon’s teeth sold for just over US$31,000. How much are your teeth worth? Teeth are amazing little miracles. They light up our smiles, we use them to speak and we chew with them more than 600 times at every meal. Yet, in a society where 1 out of 5 Americans ages 75 and up live without their teeth, many people may not realize that teeth are designed to stay with us for a lifetime. I’m a dentist and an assistant professor spanning clinical dentistry and craniofacial regeneration research. Researchers like me are still deepening our understanding of tooth development, with the ultimate goal of serving patients with on-demand regrown ones. In...

Cannabis legalization has led to a boom in potent forms of the drug that present new hazards for adolescents. Eventually, most adults reach a point where we realize we are out of touch with those much younger than us. Perhaps it is a pop culture reference that sparks the realization. For me, this moment happened when I was in my late 20s and working with adolescents in school settings to help them quit smoking. When other drugs would occasionally come up, I didn’t understand some of the slang terms they used for these drugs. Many people may have that feeling now when the topic of cannabis comes up – especially in its different and newer forms. As a professor of psychology, I focus my research on substance use in adolescents and young adults. A major change during my time in research...