The hidden cost of sperm storage: Ejaculates found to deteriorate across the animal kingdom
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Updates every hour. Last Updated: 6-Jun-2026 09:16 ET (6-Jun-2026 13:16 GMT/UTC)
Current World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines typically recommend 2–7 days of abstinence before taking semen samples or assisted reproduction. However, a new study led by Oxford University researchers suggests that regular ejaculation – whether through sexual activity or masturbation – results in higher quality sperm, with less DNA damage.
Evidence-based parenting programmes delivered through community organisations can support family wellbeing and should be considered as part of wider strategies to reduce health inequalities, a landmark UCL study has found.
Packaged foods offer convenience for families and individuals, but they can be a major source of saturated fat, sodium and added sugars, which when consumed in excess contribute to chronic disease. To help people build healthier diets, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration proposed a new front-of-package nutrition label in January 2025 that would inform consumers about the presence of these nutrients.
While the FDA works to finalize the label, a research team led by the University of California, Davis, suggested a design that highlights products that are high in added sugar, sodium or saturated fat. They suggest in a new study an easy-to-understand label that make the healthfulness of foods more apparent.
Preparing a home cooked meal at least once a week may cut older people’s risk of dementia by 30%, suggests research published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. And this risk may be 70% lower in older novice cooks with few culinary skills, the findings indicate.
Maternal deaths rise by around 11% in countries that rely on US aid following a switch from a Democratic to a Republican administration, suggest the findings of a data analysis published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health. This is equivalent to around 45 additional deaths for every 100,000 live births, eroding a fifth of the decline in global maternal deaths that has been achieved since 1985, conclude the researchers.
Researchers developed a web-based intervention to educate people with cancer about the impact genetic variants can have on their family. It includes education and decision support to help patients feel comfortable communicating genetic testing information to their relatives. The platform also allows patients to invite first- and second-degree relatives to the site. Relatives get information about genetic risk, tools to help them decide if they want to receive genetic testing and access to testing.
Severe infections increase the risk of dementia independently of other coexisting illnesses, according to a new study published March 24th in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine by Pyry Sipilä of the University of Helsinki, Finland, and colleagues.