The brain has no nociceptors – the nerves that detect damage or threat of damage to our body and signal this to the spinal cord and brain. This has led to the belief that the brain feels no pain. A belief that has entered popular culture.

The sensation of sound occurs when the vibrations from sounds enter our ear and cause little hairlike structures – called hair cells – within our inner ear to move back and forth. The hair cells transform this movement into an electrical signal that the brain can use.

Spending on pharmaceuticals is on the rise worldwide. And it well should be. Today, we are able to cure some diseases like hepatitis C that were virtual death sentences just a few years ago. This progress required significant investments by governments and private companies alike. Unquestionably, the world is better off for it.

To what extent would people be willing to sacrifice robots to save human lives? An interesting question asked by researchers from Radbout Unviersity and LMU München

Loneliness affects people of all ages, young as much as old. It’s now seen as so serious it’s classified as a public health problem. It’s presented as an “epidemic” causing a wide range of health problems that threaten to cripple health services.

Plenty of us have been there: waking up after a night out with a thumping headache, feeling sick and swearing never to touch alcohol again. If only there were a way to prevent these terrible hangovers.

Capsule that releases insulin in the stomach could replace injections for patients with type 1 diabetes.

Worldwide, more than 300 million people live with depression. Without effective treatment, the condition can make it difficult to work and maintain relationships with family and friends.

The term and even diagnosis of “depression” can have different meanings and consequences. Depression can be a normal mood state, a clinical disorder, and even a disease.

For most people, teeth cleaning may just be a normal part of your daily routine. But what if the way you clean your teeth today, might affect your chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease in years to come?

Breathing in sea air helps to fight cancer and to prevent high cholesterol. This is shown by research from the Ghent University and the Flemish Institute for the Sea.

Imagine there was a store where there were no prices on items, and you never knew what you’d pay until you’d picked out your purchases and were leaving the shop. You might be skeptical that the store would have any incentive to offer reasonable prices.

Antibiotic resistance in bacteria is spreading rapidly worldwide and has even been called a global threat to humans as serious as climate change. Excessive and imprudent use of antibiotics is usually blamed, but the rate and extent of the spread can’t be explained by overuse alone.

Meal-replacement diets, where some meals are replaced with soups, shakes or bars, have been making a comeback. They first took off during the early days of space travel when the public became obsessed with the idea of a nutritionally complete meal in a single drink or bar. These products remained popular for most of the 70s and 80s, but gradually fell from favour as people began to question the health benefits of these diets.