Growing older can take a serious toll on the body. Bones become brittle, muscle shrinks, the immune system loses strength, and age-related ailments like arthritis can set in. More serious complications like declining cognitive function and heart disease can also take hold as the later years of life progress.

IN THE EVER-EVOLVING PURSUIT OF LIVING LONGER AND HEALTHIER, we know diet plays a pivotal role. In recent years, scientists have also focused on the potential of intermittent fasting — a diet regimen that hinges on when you eat, not what you eat. New research, however, suggests it doesn't deliver on what some intermittent fasters are looking for when they adopt it as an eating pattern.

A massive new study has found evidence that blood iron levels could play a role in influencing how long you live.

Marrying biology and engineering permits the design or redesign of biological molecules and complex systems that do not exist naturally in the world – the applications of which are unprecedented.

New research suggests mate choice continues after sex because human eggs can favor some sperm over others. An analysis of the microscopic dynamics between sperm and egg has revealed a fascinating twist to a phenomenon called female "cryptic choice." According to a new study, eggs use various chemical signals to attract different men's sperm — and not necessarily the sperm of their chosen partners.

While identical twins are seen more as an accidental splitting of a single egg, there could be a good reason mothers produce non-identical twins from two separate eggs.

In the early 1950s, a young lieutenant realized the fatal flaw in the cockpit design of U.S. air force jets.

Purnima or full moon day have great effects on humans and animals. Read more to understand the impact and significance of Purnima vrat in detail.

It’s a question that has baffled scholars for centuries: is pain a bodily experience or a mental one? Rich Harrison explains why this is such a complex problem to solve

Lost, wet and alone in a freezing, snow covered landscape, an Icelandic fisherman’s story of survival against the odds reveals the human body’s remarkable ability to adapt to the cold.

We spoke to a mountaineer about the effect high altitude has on blood pressure... and dicks.

Whether you’ve got a wrist sprain a stomachache or a disease that is chronic, one of the things nurses and doctors will do in a consultation will be take your temperature. A temperature that is standard means your body is humming across. A temperature means you demonstrates that your body could be fighting with an illness, and have a fever.

The effect has even been seen in people who had smoked for 40 years.

The effect has even been seen in people who had smoked for 40 years.

Complaining about winter is one of the few remaining bastions of reliably safe small talk. Some people protest—I absolutely love freezing—but most will happily engage in winter bashing. In addition to widespread access to heated homes, offices, and vehicles, new industries continue to emerge on the promise of combatting winter. Moisturizing skin-care regimens are sold as the only way to keep our skin in one piece, and massive down coats are deemed necessary for spending even a few minutes outside. Sun-imitating lamps and vitamins promise to help us maintain a will to live.

Knowing an animal's normal lifespan is hugely important for conservation efforts, but it's harder to find out than you'd think.

About 1 in 3 American adults have metabolic syndrome, a group of early warning signs for increased risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. To help avoid such health problems, these folks are often advised to pay close attention to the amount and type of foods they eat. And now it seems there may be something else to watch: how food intake is spaced over a 24-hour period.

As we age, we lose collagen in our skin. Collagen is responsible for helping the skin maintain its elasticity. It's what helps overturn cells to make room for new ones. Once our skin starts producing less collagen, it never regains its ability to do it as before.

Noise is not the same as noise – and even a quiet environment does not have the same effect as white noise. With a background of continuous white noise, hearing pure sounds becomes even more precise, as researchers from the University of Basel have shown in a study in Cell Reports. Their findings could be applied to the further development of cochlear implants.

As you sleep, slow waves of electrical activity in your brain seem to help rinse away harmful waste products that could otherwise damage your brain cells. The process may play a role in preventing neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease.