No glowing red nose required: Real reindeer don’t need Rudolph’s help to find the Arctic food they love most, new research shows. If you’re a reindeer, your go-to favorite food is a humble moss-like lichen called Cladonia rangiferina, explained researchers at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H. Trouble is, in the darkness of a northern winter spotting the lichen can be really tough. Luckily, the eyes of countless generations of reindeer have evolved to see light on the ultraviolet (UV) spectrum. C. rangiferina does not reflect UV light; it instead absorbs it, the researchers pointed out. Reindeer eyes have evolved to pick up on that. “Reindeer are so cool, but many people think about them only at Christmas,” study first author and anthropology professor Nathaniel Dominy said in a Dartmouth news release. “Now is a good time to alert people to their extraordinary visual system.” To the human eye, C. rangiferina appears to disappear into the landscape, especially in hours ruled by darkness. However, working with researchers from St. Andrews University in Scotland, Dominy helped discover that the lichen absorbs UV light. This means that, to the reindeer’s eye, C. rangiferina stands out easily amid other Arctic mosses, lichens and grasses. The lichen appears as darker patches against a light background. “If you can put yourself in their hooves looking at this white landscape, you would…  read on >  read on >

Screens are everywhere — on desks, in laps, on the wall — and eye strain is a temporary but uncomfortable condition that comes with overuse. Folks spending too much time with screens can develop dry eyes, blurry vision, tearing or watering eyes, or a headache, warns the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). That’s because humans tend to blink less while staring at these devices, the AAO says. People normally blink around 15 times per minute, but this blink rate can be cut in half while staring at screens, the academy says. To reduce eye strain, the AAO recommends taking frequent breaks along the lines of the “20-20-20” rule. Every 20 minutes, look away from your screen and instead look at an object 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. This gives your eyes a chance to reset. People can also: Use artificial tears to lubricate eyes when they feel dry. Sit arm’s length from your screen and adjust its height so you’re looking slightly downward at it. Apply a matte screen filter to reduce glare from glass screens. Adjust brightness and contrast of your screen, and dim lighting near the screen. Wear eyeglasses rather than contact lenses when working on a computer or tablet for longer periods. The AAO notes that blue light from computers have not been shown to increase risk of eye…  read on >  read on >

Using a weight-loss medication to help you shed pounds gradually appears to help extend life for people with arthritis of the hips or knees, a new study finds. However, folks with arthritis who dropped pounds very quickly showed no benefit in terms of survival, and even a slight uptick in their risk for heart disease, a team of American and Chinese researchers found. The study’s take-home message: “Gradual weight loss by anti-obesity medications may improve the overall wellness of overweight or obesity patients with knee or hip osteoarthritis,” concluded a team led by Jie Wei of Central South University in Changsha, China. The findings were published recently in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatology. Obesity can exacerbate arthritis in the joints, and is a known risk factor for an early death. In the new study, Wi’s group tracked outcomes for over 6,500 British people, aged 40 or older, who were overweight or obese and also had knee or hip arthritis. Some took weight-loss drugs to help them shed excess pounds. Wei’s team tracked their outcomes for various health conditions and death over a five-year period. The data was collected between 2000 and March of 2022 — before the advent of blockbuster weight-loss medications such as Wegovy and Zepbound. Instead, patients were taking drugs such as orlistat (Alli), sibutramine and rimonabant (Zimulti) to help them get slimmer.…  read on >  read on >

Even Valentine’s Day apparently doesn’t trump the start of a brand new year when it comes to getting frisky. Sales of the morning-after pill surged across the U.S. after New Year 2022, new research shows. Nearly 41,000 extra pills were sold in the following week, a period linked to increased risks of unprotected sex.  Sales of emergency contraception also rose after other holidays such as Valentine’s and Independence Day but not as much, a team led by Brandon Wagner of Texas Tech University report in the Christmas issue of the BMJ. While the annual New Year’s sale spike might seem funny,  Wagner’s team points out in a journal news release that “it  is indicative of unmet contraceptive need that calls for further attention” amid tightened restrictions on abortions in many U.S. states. The increased sexual activity associated with New Year’s is less likely to be protected due to increased drinking, they point out. New Year’s Eve has also been linked to increased rates of sexual assault and limited access to other forms of birth control because clinics, medical offices and shops close early or altogether. For the new study, researchers analyzed retail scan data for levonorgestrel, an over-the-counter medication available without age restrictions.  While effective when taken within as many 96, and possibly 120, after unprotected sex, it’s more likely to work the sooner it…  read on >  read on >

Dozens of over-the-counter lubricating eyedrops and artificial tears faced recall in 2023, due to contamination and unsafe manufacturing practices. “This year, we’ve seen an especially large number of recalls in ophthalmologic products,” said Gary Novack, a clinical professor with the UC Davis Health Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences in Davis, Calif. People who regularly use eye drops to fend off dry eyes or help with contact lenses should be aware of these recalls, and take steps to protect themselves, Novack said. “Now that the public health emergency phase of the pandemic is over, the FDA is doing more inspections and they are finding a number of issues at manufacturing plants,” Novack explained in a university news release. The recalls began in February with three brands taken off shelves, including one linked to serious infections, vision loss and four deaths, Novack said. “It’s very rare to get infections from eye drops. However, what we learned this year is that it can happen,” Novack said. “It’s serious not only for potentially losing vision, but in some rare cases patients developed systemic infections and died.” Additional recalls followed in August, October and November, leaving consumers confused about whether any over-the-counter eye drops are safe to use. Products like eye drops are particularly tricky to manufacture because they need to be sterile and germ-free, and they must be…  read on >  read on >