Health Problems

Pediatrician discusses the importance of vaccines

With vaccinations a major topic of continuing interest in mainstream news, we asked Dr. Jody Terranova, a pediatrician and assistant professor of pediatrics at UConn Health, to provide some insight, exploring several different angles of the ongoing discussions. What is the importance of being vaccinated? Vaccines save lives. Immunizations protect against diseases that cause significant […]

Health Problems

New paper stresses the importance of ecological thinking and diverse study samples to improve psychological science

For decades, consensus among psychologists has held that a cluster of five personality traits—or a slight variation thereof—universally defines the structure of human personality.Previous research conducted in high-income countries and across many cultures found strong support for what experts refer to as the “Big Five”—openness, conscientiousness, agreeableness, extraversion and neuroticism. However, when UC Santa Barbara […]

Health News

Tongue microbiome research underscores importance of dental health

Elderly individuals with fewer teeth, poor dental hygiene, and more cavities constantly ingest more dysbiotic microbiota, which could be harmful to their respiratory health, according to new research published in the journal mSphere. The findings come from a large, population-based study that identified variations in the tongue microbiota among community-dwelling elderly adults in Japan. “Fewer […]

Health Problems

New research underscores the importance of language development in low-income, high-risk children

Language sets the stage for how children grow, develop, and learn. University of Miami Assistant Professor of Psychology Lynn Perry, whose research focuses on language and cognitive development in children, says a child’s early years of language development are critical for the fundamentals of school readiness, such as literacy skills and social and emotional growth. […]