The Recovery Room: News beyond the pandemic

As we reported this week, you might also increase your chances of enjoying old age by cutting out ultra-processed foods, reducing your calorie intake, or taking a drug that mimics calorie restriction.Finally, we round off this week’s Recovery Room with news of a possible treatment for muscular dystrophy and an explanation of why a baby’s smile may not mean that they’re happy.Below are 10 recent stories that people may have missed amid all the COVID-19 fervor.This week, MNT published the first article in a new series examining medical curiosities. This new research uses a novel measure of two types of vitamin D to forecast the risk of death rather than to establish an association after the fact.Learn more here.Our report on the link between anticholinergic medications and mild cognitive impairment, which can lead to dementia, was also very widely read this week. The article has attracted more than 42,000 page views on the MNT website since Wednesday.Researchers describe the effects of these drugs as a “double hit” on people who are already genetically susceptible to Alzheimer’s disease.Learn more here.Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are tasty, inexpensive, and widely available. The compound may also be a candidate drug for other conditions that involve tissue scarring, including chronic liver disease.Learn more here.As well as covering the latest medical news and research, MNT‘s editorial team works tirelessly to answer thousands of questions that people may have about their health and that of their family members.