A Danish ethics panel and Guinea-Bissau approve a US-funded trial that delays the hepatitis B vaccine for half of 14,000 newborns

The rest of the day

18 more stories on this beat.

Each with its own sources. None of these is a link to the story above.

1. 02

   Psychiatrists warn over a livestreamed execution

   The US defence department confirmed on Thursday that it will livestream the firing-squad execution of Nidal Hasan at Fort Hood on 3 December. [10][11] Hasan, a former army psychiatrist, killed 13 people and wounded 32 at the base in 2009. [17] It would be the first US military execution since 1961, and the first public execution in the US since the 1930s. [17][16] Mental health experts warned that watching could cause post-traumatic stress, most of all in people with existing mental health problems. [9] The UN human rights office said broadcasting the killing would breach the ban on torture. [11]

   123

   1,9301,9802,030

   1. 1Last big public execution in the US1,936
   2. 2Last US military execution1,961
   3. 3Planned livestreamed execution at Fort Hood2,026

   Why it matters — Research after other attacks points the same way. After 9/11, how much coverage people watched was linked to stress symptoms for three years, and among 744 Israeli teenagers surveyed after the 7 October attack, heavy news-watchers had more symptoms. [13][12] Distress also drives people to watch more, which brings more distress. [14] Amnesty International counted at least 17 public executions in 2025, 11 in Iran and 6 in Afghanistan. [15]

2. 03

   Fever after a vaccine traced to gut bacteria

   A study published in the journal Science on Thursday found that people who ran a fever after a Covid vaccine shared features in their gut bacteria. [18] Ruth Ley's team at the Max Planck Institute for Biology in Tubingen, Germany, tested stool from more than 170 people before and after a second or third dose. [18] Those with worse fevers had more flagellin, the protein in the tiny tails bacteria use to swim, and more inflamed guts. [18] Mice given the fever-linked bacteria reacted strongly, and much less when they could not sense flagellin. [18]

   Why it matters — Ley hopes that easing this side effect could one day lead more people to get vaccinated. [18] People who said they were vegetarian had less flagellin, but why is still unknown. [18]

3. 04

   England to inspect private ADHD clinics

   England's care inspector, the Care Quality Commission, said on Friday it will start inspecting private clinics that only diagnose ADHD and autism. [19] Until now they did not have to register with it. [19] It follows a government review led by Professor Peter Fonagy, which warned private firms may be tempted to diagnose people who do not qualify. [19] The NHS Alliance, which represents NHS trusts, confirmed staff are leaving for private clinics. [19] One NHS trust, Herefordshire and Worcestershire, limited under-18s to the most urgent cases after most of its leavers went private. [19]

   Why it matters — About 810,000 children and adults in England are waiting for an assessment, 1,298 of them for two years or more at that one trust. [19] Thea Stein of the Nuffield Trust, a health research charity, says people who can pay will be seen faster as NHS teams shrink. [19]

4. 05

   Census changes would bend US health figures

   The Trump administration has proposed three changes to the 2030 US census. [20][21] It would count only citizens and lawful permanent residents, count people where they lived most between 3 January and 1 April, and stop asking about race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. [20] The plan was published on 10 September, and public pushback got the comment deadline moved from 13 October to 2 November. [20] Nancy Krieger, an epidemiologist at Harvard, notes that a death rate is deaths divided by the number of people counted. [20]

   Why it matters — If fewer people are counted and the deaths stay the same, US death and illness rates will jump in 2030 without anyone getting sicker, Krieger writes. [20] Census counts also decide where hospitals and clinics are planned and where federal money goes. [20]

5. 06

   A numbing fluid eases IUD fitting

   Helena Kopp Kallner, a gynaecologist at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, told Scientific American about a way to numb the womb before an IUD is fitted. [22] An IUD is a small T-shaped device placed in the womb that prevents pregnancy for years, and fitting it can be very painful. [22] Her team runs a numbing drug called mepivacaine through a soft tube 1.3mm wide, with no needle. [22] Across three trials that let chance decide who got it, with about 600 people, it lowered pain scores and caused no complications. [22]

   Why it matters — Ibuprofen taken beforehand is still the most common choice, though many trials show it does not prevent the pain. [22] The pain was long overlooked because it is brief, and because IUDs used to go mainly to women who had given birth, who feel less of it. [22]

6. 07

   Muscle and liver cells remember training

   Exercise scientists, writing in The Conversation and republished by Scientific American on Saturday, described work showing that cells keep a record of past training. [23] Mice that trained, stopped and trained again grew bigger muscle fibres than mice with no training history. [23] The liver remembered too: in mice and in people who trained, stopped and restarted, it released more of the enzymes that break down fat so muscle can burn it. [23] Mice whose parents exercised for three to four weeks had better blood sugar for a year. [23]

   Why it matters — It suggests months off for an injury or a new baby do not wipe out all the gains. [23] The authors say past training cannot replace training now, and most of the evidence so far comes from mice. [23]

7. 08

   Walking faster matched walking further

   A study of 64,743 adults in the UK, average age 62, measured their steps and walking pace with wrist trackers for a week, then followed them for about eight years. [24] During that time 1,697 of them died, 502 from heart and blood vessel disease. [24] People who took fewer than 5,000 steps a day, but briskly, had a death risk similar to people taking 5,000 to 7,500 slower steps. [24] The lowest death rates came at 7,500 to 10,000 steps a day. [24]

   Why it matters — The authors suggest about 30 minutes a day at 90 to 100 steps a minute as a target, which helps people who are short of time or cannot walk far. [24] The study watched people rather than assigning them how to walk, so it shows a link, not proof that speed causes the benefit. [24]

8. 09

   A low-glutamate diet tried on Gulf War veterans

   Kathleen Holton, a nutrition researcher at American University in Washington, is testing a diet low in glutamate on US veterans with Gulf War Illness. [25] Up to 300,000 service members sent to the Gulf in the early 1990s later reported fatigue, pain, headaches and memory problems, the US veterans' department says. [25] Glutamate is a chemical messenger in the brain, and it is also added to food as MSG. [25] In her 2020 trial of 40 veterans, symptom scores averaged 11.7 after a month, against 18.1 in a group that did not change diet. [25]

   Why it matters — Holton says up to 80% of veterans improve, a figure that mixes their own reports with her team's measurements. [25] In 2022 the US defence department gave her $6.4 million to study more than 100 veterans. [25] The US food regulator considers MSG safe, partly because a barrier around the brain keeps most glutamate from food out. [25]

9. 10

   More US counties lose private Medicare drug plans

   In 2027, 193 US counties will have no private Medicare plan with drug cover open to everyone, up from 123 this year, says KFF, a US health research group. [26] Medicare is the US government's health insurance for people aged 65 and over, and private Medicare Advantage plans are the alternative to it. [26] About 638,000 people live in those counties, and there is no such plan anywhere in Alaska. [26] UnitedHealth Group is leaving 228 counties and entering 9, and Humana is leaving 62 and entering 4. [26]

   2026123

   2027193

   Why it matters — The average Medicare member can still choose from 28 such plans, so the losses fall on 193 counties in 16 states. [26] UnitedHealth Group and Humana are the two largest private Medicare insurers. [26]

10. 11

    A second UK health body drops Teva

    The Royal College of Pharmacy, the professional body for Britain's pharmacists, has dropped Teva UK as a sponsor of its conference next month. [27] Teva UK is the British arm of Teva, an Israeli company that mostly makes generic medicines, which are copies of existing drugs. [27] The college said a review had found Teva activities that did not match its values, without saying which. [27] Last week the Royal College of Nursing, which represents 500,000 nurses, also cut its ties with Teva. [27]

    Why it matters — The college's decision followed an open letter from pro-Palestinian health campaigners, who now want the colleges for GPs, psychiatrists and hospital doctors to do the same. [27] Teva said healthcare should not become politicised. [27]

11. 12

    Teen podcasts on memory and dyslexia win

    NPR, the US public radio network, named the winners of its Student Podcast Challenge, chosen from about 1,500 entries. [28][29] The high school winner, Amit Biligiri, 16, asked why he forgets last week's lessons but remembers sharing fries with his great-grandfather at age six. [28] His answer was that emotion gives a memory a better chance of sticking, and sleep clears out much of the rest. [28] The middle school winner, Cora Walsh, waited almost five years for a diagnosis of dyslexia, a difficulty reading words, and now reads for fun after two years of tutoring. [29]

    Why it matters — Research backs part of Amit's answer: emotional moments are often remembered with high confidence, though reviews find the boost does not show up in every study. [30] Cora hopes her podcast makes dyslexia less frightening for younger students still working out how they learn. [29]

12. 13

    Most English adults with high blood pressure do not know

    An Oxford study, first published before this week and covered by Euronews on 10 October, used clinic readings from about 1.4 million adults in England in the Our Future Health programme. [31] More than a third had high blood pressure: a reading of 140 over 90 or more, or already taking pills for it. [31] About 59% of them did not know and were not treated, and half of those on pills were still above that line. [31] It affected 15% of people aged 18 to 39 and 71% of those aged 80 and over. [31]

    6 of 10

    of every 10 adults with high blood pressure did not know they had it

    Why it matters — England's NHS health check starts at 40, so most young adults with high blood pressure are never routinely tested, says the lead researcher, Wenyu Liu. [31] The British Heart Foundation says high blood pressure is linked to about half of the UK's heart attacks and strokes. [31]

13. 14

    A blood clue to how the immune system ages

    Scientists in the US and at King's College London studied about 12.4 million immune cells from the blood of over 2,600 adults aged 20 to over 90. [32] Older people's immune systems varied more than younger people's. [32] The team ranked people by the balance between two kinds of white blood cell, one making a protein called granzyme B and one making granzyme K. [32] Among 50,000 UK Biobank volunteers, those leaning towards granzyme B were more likely to die or develop diabetes, high blood pressure or kidney failure within ten years. [32]

    Why it matters — It may help explain why two people born the same year face different risks of disease decades later. [32] The team is building a simple blood test, but for the 50,000 volunteers the balance was estimated from blood proteins rather than counted, so it is an early clue. [32]

14. 15

    Eye-damage lawsuits over weight-loss drugs

    Dozens of people are suing Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the makers of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic, MIT Technology Review reports. [33] They say the drugs damaged the nerves behind their eyes, a rare condition that can bring sudden loss of sight. [33] Both companies dispute the claims. [33] Research on whether the drugs cause the condition is mixed so far. [33]

    Why it matters — About 11% of Americans now take one of these drugs to lose weight, so even a rare harm could reach many people. [33] Side effects in children are still little studied. [33]

15. 16

    US measles cases pass 4,000

    The US CDC, the national public health agency, reported 4,080 confirmed measles cases this year as of 8 October, 193 more than a week earlier. [34] About 1 in 10 patients, 414 people, needed hospital care, against 244 hospital stays in all of 2025. [34] The CDC counts two measles deaths this year, while Pennsylvania alone has reported five. [34] Pennsylvania's own count has reached 1,136 cases, 219 of them taken to hospital. [34]

    Why it matters — Children and teenagers aged 5 to 19 make up 42% of cases, and adults another 40%. [34] Last month the CDC switched to national death records for its measles death count, a change that has drawn criticism. [34]

16. 17

    A Catholic memorial to people lost to suicide

    The Catholic archdiocese of Chicago has dedicated a memorial to people who died by suicide and to their families, at the Queen of Heaven cemetery in Hillside, Illinois. [35] It says this is the first memorial of its kind by any US archdiocese. [35] Until a church law was revised in 1983, people who died by suicide were refused Catholic burial on consecrated ground. [35] The memorial honours the Rev Charles Rubey, who in 1979 founded a support programme for families bereaved by suicide. [35]

    Why it matters — Catholic teaching now says mental illness can lead people to suicide, and Pope Leo XIV has given monthly prayers to people with suicidal thoughts. [35] A Vatican meeting on how parishes respond to mental illness is timed for World Mental Health Day, 10 October. [35]

17. 18

    Gambling-addiction charity chief quits over Kalshi money

    Heather Maurer, head of the National Council on Problem Gambling, the largest US charity against gambling addiction, resigned in late September, as Barron's first reported and Fortune repeated on 9 October. [36] She had accepted $2 million from Kalshi, a prediction market where people bet on events, without asking the board first. [36] Directors asked whether Kalshi would pay for safety measures or promote addiction helplines, and she said it would not. [36] Gambling councils in Washington and Nevada, and gaming regulators in Ohio and Michigan, cut ties with the charity over the gift. [36]

    Why it matters — Prediction markets let anyone aged 18 or over bet on almost anything, and advocates say that easy access raises the risk of addiction. [36] Kalshi says its business is not gambling, so the charity created a separate donor category for it. [36]

18. 19

    Australian PMOS group asks for subsidised weight-loss drugs

    An Australian patient group wants GLP-1 weight-loss drugs paid for by Australia's government medicine subsidy scheme for women with PMOS. [37] PMOS, the new name for polycystic ovary syndrome, affects about one in eight women and raises the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer of the womb lining. [37] Doctors already prescribe the drugs for it outside their approved use, at a cost of several hundred dollars a month. [37] Australia's medicines advisory committee meets next month to consider subsidising Wegovy for obesity. [37]

    Why it matters — Magdalena Simonis of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians says subsidies for PMOS may never come, because women's conditions are traditionally left out. [37] QENDO, another patient group, says more research is needed on long-term safety for PMOS. [37]