Category: Health

• A new position statement from the Royal College of Psychiatrists discusses the link between menopause and the onset of new mental health conditions.
• The statement notes that only 21% of females knew that menopause was associated with mental health conditions like depression and bipolar disorder.
• It further notes that research is needed to increase awareness of how hormonal changes during menopause can impact mental health.

There are various symptoms that people can experience before, during, and after menopause.

One of the lesser-known symptoms is the effect that menopause can have on mental health.

“I believe this is a much-needed conversation that I have been seeing in my clinical practice for years” said Menijie Boduryan-Turner, PsyD, licensed psychologist and founder of Embracing You Therapy in Woodland Hills, CA.

“There has been a significant increase in insomnia, depression, anxiety, changes in concentration, memory impairment, and body image issues correlated with menopause. As suggested, most women are unaware of this link because for decades we have treated menopause as a medical condition, given the obvious reasons, and have been ignorant of the impact it has on women’s mental health,” Boduryan-Turner told Healthline.

This is a major contrast to the number of females who are aware of other associated issues, such as hot flashes and reduced sex drive.

“Menopause can have a significant yet often overlooked impact on women’s mental health and well-being. Women account for 51% of the population, and all will experience menopause at some point,” Lade Smith, president of the RC Psych, told The Guardian.

“This is a societal issue for everyone. Simply put, we must do better,” Smith said.

According to the RC Psych, only 21% of females were aware that menopause can be associated with mental health issues.

This is in contrast to 81% who were aware of hot flashes due to menopause, and 64% aware of a reduced sex drive.

RC Psych published its position statement with certain key aims in mind, such as:

• More training and education for the psychiatric workforce.
• Promoting a wider understanding and awareness of the association between menopause and mental health.
• Enhancing equity in the identification of, and access to support and appropriate treatment for, females with menopausal symptoms and pre-existing mental health needs.
• Advocating for comprehensive, interdisciplinary approaches to menopause support and treatment across health systems.
• Considering how a female’s experience of menopause and mental health can impact their relationships with children and family.
• Setting out key evidence to illuminate existing knowledge and treatment gaps about menopause regarding its interplay with mental health.

“I think it’s important to know that mental health challenges that occur or are exacerbated by menopause are common,” said Amy Roskin, MD, JD, board certified OB-GYN and Chief Medical Officer at Seven Starling, a women’s health platform.

“It’s essential to be aware of this and have support from your healthcare providers in order to best diagnose and manage these issues,” Roskin told Healthline.

The position statement points out the mental health effects that perimenopause can have. Anxiety and low mood are fairly common side effects of hormonal changes associated with menopause. However, for some females, menopause can significantly increase the risk of developing a serious mental health condition.

The physical and hormonal changes during menopause can also lead to relapse or trigger eating disorders. The report also notes that suicide rates are higher among those of menopausal age.

“With greater public awareness, there is more conversation and dialogue. There is more compassion and willingness to seek help. When mental health experiences are normalized, we are more likely to seek support and not suffer alone,” said Boduryan-Turner.

“I have worked with clients who struggled with severe depression with suicidal ideation; therefore, it is extremely necessary for us to have more education, information, and awareness on this topic.”

The statement notes that for females with a history of mental illness who are entering menopause, hormone therapy can be a key treatment to address both their physical health risks, as well as their mental health symptoms.

Some experts may recommend a combination of hormone therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) rather than antidepressants for perimenopause-associated anxiety and low mood symptoms.

There is some older evidence to show that females experiencing depressive episodes during menopause may not respond as well to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), a common type of antidepressant. It also shows that there may be significant discontinuation rates associated with adverse effects.

“A healthy diet, exercise, work/life balance, psychotherapy, psychiatric medications, and HRT can all be important parts of strong emotional health for women in midlife,” said Nissa Keyashian, MD, board certified psychiatrist and author of “Practicing Stillness.”

“I recommend finding a psychiatrist with expertise in women’s health who has expertise in HRT and menopause,” Keyashian told Healthline.

“There are many different formulations of HRT that can minimize risks and side effects and maximize benefits to your emotional health and well-being.”

• Everclear frontman Art Alexakis is sharing his decade-long journey with Multiple Sclerosis.
• He was diagnosed with relapsing MS in 2016.
• He discusses his most recent treatment and other ways he cares for himself.

Art Alexakis, singer and frontman of the Grammy-nominated rock band Everclear, wrapped up a 43-show tour celebrating the 30th anniversary of the band’s album, Sparkle and Fade.

The anniversary was extra special for the 63-year-old rock star as he has been living with relapsing Multiple Sclerosis (MS) for 10 years.

“I’m grateful for aging. I’m grateful for the MS. It makes me try harder. I get to play so many shows a year, and having to go through airports is hard, but doing that, keeping moving and keeping working at it is one of the things that has really helped me with my gratitude and with my mental outlook,” he told Healthline.

“If you try to do something and you accomplish it, it feels good. And even though it gets harder, I can still do it right now. I’m feeling pretty good.”

Alexakis was diagnosed with MS following a car accident in 2016. A few weeks after the accident, he began experiencing a tweak in his neck. His doctor suggested he get an MRI.

“So, I go get the MRI, I show up in his examination room, and there were six guys in there. They went on to tell me that two of them were neurologists, and that the pathologist who read the MRI had seen lesions on my spine and my brain, and they were pretty certain that they were MS,” he said.

Once Alexakis received the diagnosis at 54 years old, he realized he had been experiencing symptoms since his 20s, including balance and walking issues, fatigue, and skin sensations.

“They thought that I had it for over 25 years just by the look of the lesions. In my 20s, I would have pretty severe vertigo. Rage is a thing. As I got older, these things became more pronounced, especially the balance and just skin feeling weird, and sometimes my arm not working well out of nowhere,” he said. “It was a blessing to me to get that diagnosis because a lot of people go through life and never get diagnosed correctly.”

Alexakis’ neurologist Regina Berkovich, MD, PhD, said a misconception about MS is that it can only occur between the ages of 18 and 40.

“However, we can see it in childhood and as late as senior age,” she told Healthline. “The lesson is that MS doesn’t follow any rules and that’s why it’s so fascinating to deal with the condition on a professional level, and at times, it can get challenging on the level of individual patients.”

Berkovich has helped Alexakis find a treatment that works for him: Tysabri, a monoclonal antibody administered as an intravenous infusion.

“An important learning experience I take for myself from Art’s story is that not every medication works the same for different people or even for the same person during different periods of life,” said Berkovich. “Tysabri was not his first medication, but it was definitely the one that really made the difference.”

Within the last few decades, she said, treatment has evolved from focusing on symptoms or relapse treatment to a disease-modifying therapy era.

“Since the 1990s, we started having disease-modifying therapies, and those therapies, if applied properly and for the right person, may show true modification of the long-term outlook, meaning improvement as compared to someone not being treated,” Berkovich said.

She hopes Alexakis’ story inspires others to seek out treatment that works for them.

“A lot of patients don’t feel empowered to ask questions and advocate for themselves to try different therapies, so it’s important that Art is showing the example of having these open discussions and setting up his personal goals around treatments,” said Berkovich.

“As an MS specialist, you constantly learn so much from every person you get to treat, and I’ve learned tremendously from Art. His resilience, positive thinking, and trust are truly inspiring, and I feel empowered by him.”

Healthline spoke with Alexakis to learn more about his MS journey, the early symptoms he missed, and what’s next for Everclear.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length.

Alexakis: I can’t run like I used to, so I swim. I do physical therapy three times a week. I try to stay away from inflammatory foods, for the most part. And I do my treatment, my medication, and it works for me. I have to work harder, and I’m okay with that.

I follow the world champion Seahawks and the world champion L.A. Dodgers, and both my teams in different cities won it all this year, so that helps me.

Other than cooking and doing things with my family around the house, I don’t really have a lot of hobbies. I don’t go to clubs anymore because that’s where I work.

I [listen to] a lot of podcasts, specifically Seahawks podcasts or Dodger podcasts, and I enjoy it. You get older, you find things you like, you find things you don’t like. Stick to the things you like, especially when they’re not bad for you.

Alexakis: I don’t want to say I like to use my attention to do this and this. I just want to be of service to people. It’s part of the program. I have learned through my relationship with my higher power to be a force of good in this world.

I’m 36, almost 37, years sober. I feel pretty confident about it because of where my head’s at and [I have] gratitude, and being of service to people is huge for me and a huge part of my program that I work every day.

I am not religious at all, but I’m very spiritual, and thanks to my program and my fellowship of guys that I work with that are sober guys like me. I’m blessed.

My family is like, you’re the best person when you’re working your program. I went through some periods of being sober but not working my program, and in the program, we call Dry Drunk, I went through fame. There were times when I wasn’t doing [the program].

• A recent study suggests that GLP-1 drugs, like Ozempic, may make people with chronic migraine less likely to require emergency care.
• People using GLP-1s may be less likely to need new preventive migraine medications.
• The study does not prove that GLP-1s lower emergency care needs for people with chronic migraine, but it shows an association.
• More research is needed to determine how GLP-1s could help in the future of migraine management.

Migraine is a common condition both worldwide and throughout the United States. It may affect females more than males, but anyone can experience migraine.

This condition affects 37 million people in the United States. It is the third most common disease in the world and one of the 10 most disabling conditions.

Of those who experience migraine, 2% experience chronic migraine. Migraine is considered chronic when a person experiences 15 or more days per month with a headache for more than 3 months. Of these, at least 8 days per month have other features of migraine, such as aura, nausea, and heightened sensitivity to light and sound.

A recent preliminary study by researchers in Brazil and the United States suggests that GLP-1 medications for weight loss, such as Ozempic and Wegovy, may reduce the need for emergency care among people with chronic migraine compared with those who are treated with topiramate for migraine prevention.

“People with chronic migraine often end up in the emergency room, or they need to try several preventive medications before finding one that can work for them,” study author Vitoria Acar, MD, of the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and one of the study authors, said in a press release.

“Seeing these patterns of lower use of emergency care and lower use of drugs to stop migraines or trying additional drugs to prevent migraines among people taking GLP-1 drugs for other conditions suggests that these therapies may help stabilize the disease burden in ways that we haven’t fully appreciated yet,” Acar said.

For this study, the researchers analyzed data from a health record database of people with chronic migraine based on medical records.

They compared people who had begun taking a GLP-1 medication for other reasons, like weight loss, within a year of receiving a diagnosis of chronic migraine to individuals who started taking topiramate during the same period.

Each group consisted of around 11,000 people. The two groups were matched for factors such as:

The GLP-1 medications included in the study were:

The researchers found that 23.7% of people using GLP-1 drugs visited the emergency room in the following year. This is compared to 26.4% of those using topiramate.

Overall, they found that individuals using GLP-1s were 10% less likely to visit the emergency room, 14% less likely to be hospitalized, and around 13% less likely to need a nerve block procedure or receive a triptan prescription than those taking topiramate.

“The mechanisms are not yet fully understood in humans, but preclinical studies point to several overlapping pathways,” said Hsiangkuo (Scott) Yuan, MD, associate professor at Thomas Jefferson University, clinical research director at Jefferson Headache Center, and one of the study authors.

“These include anti-inflammatory effects within the trigeminal pain system, reduction of intracranial pressure through decreased CSF [cerebrospinal fluid] secretion, and modulation of CGRP [calcitonin gene-related peptide] (a key migraine-promoting signaling molecule),” Yuan said.

“Weight loss itself, regardless of how it is achieved, has also been associated with migraine improvement in patients with obesity, as supported by recent meta-analyses, though high quality RCT evidence remains limited,” he told Healthline.

The researchers also found that the group that was using GLP-1s was less likely to need new preventive migraine medications.

When compared to those taking topiramate, GLP-1 users were:

However, there was no significant difference between the two groups, and the need to begin taking beta-blockers.

Yuan noted that it is important to remember that this was observational data: it shows an association, not causation.

“We cannot yet conclude that GLP‑1 RAs treat migraine, and patients should not seek these medications specifically for that purpose outside of a clinical trial or established indication,” he said.

“It is also worth noting that our comparison with topiramate, which shares a weight loss property, may partly reflect topiramate’s poor real-world tolerability and compliance rather than a true pharmacological advantage of GLP‑1 RAs.”

However, he also stated that the overall signal is encouraging and justifies further investigation.

Medhat Mikhael, MD, pain management specialist and medical director of the non-operative program at the Spine Health Center at MemorialCare Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, who was not involved in the study, agreed.

“I believe it is a good start, but it is far too early to consider it as an agent or drug to use for [the] prevention of migraine. We need several large-scale trials to assess safety, particularly in young and middle-aged women, [who] constitute the majority of the population with migraine.”

The main goal of migraine management is to treat the symptoms and prevent future attacks.

“Managing migraine nowadays has been very advanced, and it depends on the cause and frequency of the migraine,” said Mikhael.

Some quick steps to ease symptoms include:

• rest or nap in a quiet, dark room
• place an ice pack or cool cloth on your forehead
• drink plenty of fluids, especially if the migraine causes vomiting

Short-term treatments include:

• triptan drugs
• CGRP drugs
• over-the-counter medications, such as ibuprofen, aspirin, or acetaminophen
• nausea relief medications

Preventive medications include:

If you experience migraine, speak with your healthcare professional to decide what care plan is best for you.

• A new study reports that GLP-1 semaglutide medications may help reverse the effects of osteoarthritis in the joints.
• The researchers say the drugs accomplish this by repairing tissue damage by reprogramming cells that maintain healthy cartilage.
• Experts say weight loss is the most effective strategy to combat osteoarthritis, but regular exercise and a healthy diet can also help.

Researchers report that a specific type of GLP-1 weight loss medication may help reverse tissue damage in people with osteoarthritis.

A new study published on March 3 in Cell Metabolism found that GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, which contain the active ingredient semaglutide, can help ease the effects of osteoarthritis on joints.

The findings suggest that the benefits go beyond weight loss, which, in itself, can ease osteoarthritis by reducing pressure on joints.

The researchers say that semaglutide drugs help repair tissue damage by reprogramming the metabolism of cells that synthesize and maintain healthy cartilage. This allows cartilage to generate more energy.

“This work not only highlights the potential off-target effect of semaglutide as an effective drug to treat metabolic osteoarthritis but also reveals a weight loss-independent repair mechanism that targets metabolic pathways and mediators essential to cartilage repair under osteoarthritis conditions,” the study authors wrote.

“This may lead to new strategies to develop disease-modifying therapies for osteoarthritis,” they continued.

Matthew Baker, MD, an assistant professor of medicine in immunology and rheumatology at Stanford University in California, said the study, although limited in size and scope, does provide a hypothesis for future breakthroughs. Baker wasn’t involved in the study.

“Most current therapies target symptoms such as pain rather than the underlying structural drivers of disease,” Baker told Healthline. “As a result, truly disease-modifying osteoarthritis drugs have remained elusive despite decades of research.”

The other group contains the active ingredient semaglutide. The medications sold under the brand names Ozempic and Wegovy are among them.

Both types of GLP-1 drugs have proven to be effective in helping people lose weight by using mechanisms that help suppress appetite.

Losing weight is considered one of the best ways to help reduce the symptoms of osteoarthritis, especially in the knee joints. It works by reducing pressure on joint cartilage and lowering inflammation.

In their new study, researchers said they wanted to determine whether the reduction in osteoarthritis symptoms with GLP-1 drugs extended beyond weight loss.

They first experimented with an animal model, examining obese mice with osteoarthritis. Some of the mice were treated with semaglutide drugs while others weren’t. The researchers reported that both groups lost similar amounts of weight, but the semaglutide mice received better cartilage protection.

The results were due to a complicated metabolic pathway that affects how various cells produce energy.

The researchers then studied 20 people ages 50 to 75 with obesity and osteoarthritis. Some of this group, which comprised seven males and 13 females, received semaglutide medications while others did not.

The researchers reported that at the end of a 24-week treatment period, subjects who received semaglutide had significant improvements in knee joint function.

They noted that MRI analyses revealed thicker cartilage and recent cartilage growth in the inner joint areas among the semaglutide group.

Bert Mandelbaum, MD, a sports medicine specialist, orthopedic surgeon, and co-director of the Regenerative Orthobiologic Center at Cedars-Sinai Orthopedics in Los Angeles, said it’s possible that healthier cells provide better oxidation and can help preserve healthy cartilage. Mandelbaum wasn’t involved in the study.

“We’re learning more as we go,” Mandelbaum told Healthline. “It’s like trying to put together a big puzzle.”

“Rather than regenerating cartilage de novo, semaglutide likely stabilizes cartilage and enables limited repair by improving the metabolic environment within the joint,” said Baker.

It is a degenerative condition that causes inflammation in the joints. Some of the common symptoms include:

• pain or stiffness in the joints
• loss of flexibility
• reduced range of motion
• tenderness when pressing on an affected area
• grating or clicking sounds when joints are moved
• bone spurs

Osteoarthritis is caused by gradual joint and cartilage damage. Risk factors include:

• genetics
• previous injuries
• being over the age of 50
• menopause
• having an occupation that requires kneeling, climbing, or heavy lifting
• obesity

Mandelbaum and Baker agreed that weight is the number one factor in the development and progression of osteoarthritis.

“There is no question that there is an association between osteoarthritis and body weight,” said Mandelbaum.

“Excess body weight is one of the strongest modifiable risk factors for osteoarthritis, particularly for knee osteoarthritis,” said Baker. “Higher body mass increases mechanical load across joints, accelerating cartilage wear with every step.”

Baker noted that osteoarthritis can be difficult to treat.

“Osteoarthritis is difficult to treat because cartilage has very limited intrinsic healing capacity due to its avascular, low-cellularity structure,” he said. “Osteoarthritis is also biologically heterogeneous, involving cartilage, bone, synovium, nerves, and systemic metabolic factors rather than a single disease pathway.”

Mandelbaum said there are lifestyle factors people can adopt to help lower the risk of osteoarthritis as well as its painful effects. They include:

• maintaining a healthy body weight
• exercising regularly
• adopting a plant-based diet such as the Mediterranean diet
• limiting alcohol consumption

Baker agreed there are strategies to help reduce risks.

“Maintaining a healthy weight or preventing further weight gain is one of the most effective ways to reduce osteoarthritis risk, particularly for the knees,” he said.

“Regular physical activity, including low impact aerobic exercise and strength training, helps preserve joint function, improve biomechanics, and reduce pain,” he added. “Preventing joint injuries through balance training, fall prevention, and appropriate footwear is especially important in older adults.”

“Managing metabolic health conditions such as diabetes and insulin resistance may also reduce osteoarthritis risk by limiting systemic inflammatory and metabolic stress on joint tissues,” Baker said.

The latest research is not the first to report that GLP-1 drugs have benefits beyond weight loss.

In a 2023 study, researchers said that GLP-1 drugs’ anti-inflammatory properties may help reduce cancer risks.

In 2025, researchers reported that GLP-1 medications can reduce the risk of sudden death and hospitalization in people with a common type of heart failure.

In another 2025 study, GLP-1 drugs were found to be beneficial in lowering the risk of heart disease and stroke in people with type 2 diabetes.

In February 2026, researchers concluded that weight loss drugs containing tirzepatide may help lower the risk of eye disease in people with type 2 diabetes.

• Looksmaxxing, a social media-driven trend encouraging men to aggressively “optimize” their appearance, is gaining popularity.
• It’s related to similar appearance-based trends, like softmaxxing and hardmaxxing.
• While often framed as self-improvement, experts warn these trends can fuel body dysmorphia, anxiety, eating disorders, and even self-harm.
• Young men may be particularly vulnerable due to several factors, including online messaging about masculinity and worth.

A growing trend on social media is encouraging young men to “maximize” their appearance.

Known as looksmaxxing, the trend focuses on pursuing the “ideal” face and body. It follows similar social media trends, known as softmaxxing and hardmaxxing, which encourage everything from intensive grooming routines to cosmetic procedures and extreme body modification.

While proponents say these practices can be empowering, mental health experts warn they can fuel body dysmorphia, anxiety, and other unhealthy behaviors.

Jason Fierstein, MA, LPC, founder of Phoenix Men’s Counseling, said these trends are toxic and harmful.

“Young men fall into this false sense of acceptance, and what they believe women want from them,” he told Healthline. “They can get caught up in potentially lifelong struggles with feeling inadequate and handling that inadequacy.”

He further described looksmaxxing as a “social media-driven body dysmorphia trend.”

“People will focus their energies on improving their physique based on feelings of inferiority or inadequacy,” Fierstein said.

“Men can get caught in a cycle of trying to ‘optimize’ their looks, but as mental health clinicians, we know that if you’re feeling inadequate or inferior, those are the issues to work on with a qualified therapist.”

While the terminology differs, the trends all have one thing in common: the desire to obsessively change one’s appearance.

“Looksmaxxing is essentially self-improvement put on overdrive. It’s reframing the male physique as something to be engineered,” Fierstein explained.

While softmaxxing involves subtler changes to one’s appearance, often achieved through grooming and lifestyle adjustments, hardmaxxing is more extreme.

“It involves serious methods to change your looks, such as nose jobs, Botox, hair transplants, and chin surgery. The obvious issue with this is that once you open that Pandora’s Box, it’s hard to close the lid,” Fierstein noted.

Christine Ruberti-Bruning, MA, ATR-BC, CEDS, LPC, licensed therapist and certified eating disorder specialist, summed up the differences.

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to look good, and caring for your appearance can build confidence and be gender affirming. But the big difference is that looksmaxxing is rooted in self-hate and trying to fit in, at the cost of your health and safety,” she pointed out.

“Hardmaxxing, meanwhile, seems to be dipping its toe into self-harm territory, especially some of its associated trends, like smashing your face with a hammer.”

Why does looksmaxxing seem to be resonating with young men in particular?

Fierstein said young men, especially teens, are typically at a stage of their lives when they are still figuring out who they are, and many may be searching for ways to project what they perceive as “the ‘correct’ version of masculinity.”

Fierstein believes trends like looksmaxxing may be related to incel culture and the manosphere, too.

“It started several years ago, with male gurus like Jordan Peterson, Joe Rogan, and the Tate brothers. These types of ‘masculine’ influencers led men astray,” he said.

Ruberti-Bruning shared another perspective about potential contributing factors.

“Mental health issues and loneliness are also prevalent right now, making young men especially vulnerable,” she noted.

Recognizing the line between taking pride in your appearance and an unhealthy obsession with how you look can be challenging for many people.

“Self-improvement practices become harmful when anxiety is the main motivator; when your rituals are taking up so much mental space that you can’t be present in your life and relationships,” Ruberti-Bruning said.

There are several risks associated with these types of unhealthy behaviors.

“Eating disorders and self-harm behaviours are commonly associated with body dysmorphia, anxiety, and low self-esteem,” Ruberti-Bruning said.

“Men are at risk of feeling shame around their bodies due to societal messaging that they must be muscular and fit. And for some men, it can feel like a threat to their masculinity and self-worth.”

Fierstein said that, for some people who attempt to make purely superficial changes to their physique, it can open the door to harmful, obsessive psychological needs.

“It can spin out of control, and you may feel you need to do something to help yourself feel better rather than feeling comfortable in your own skin.”

Ultimately, he said, healthy self-improvement usually doesn’t look like the kind of self-care content that’s popular on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram.

“It’s about taking care of yourself from the inside,” he said.

Practising greater self-acceptance isn’t something that happens overnight, but there are healthy steps you can take to begin that journey.

Firstly, Ruberti-Bruning said having complicated feelings about your body and appearance is valid and natural.

She suggested “leaning into” that and finding an outlet for it.

“Creativity is a great way to let those feelings out in a way that might even be fun. Consider drawing, collaging, or making a book to document your journey,” she advised.

While social media use can fuel unhealthy behaviors and feelings, there are ways to reduce these risks.

“Follow accounts that promote body acceptance and healthy masculinity. Or follow people who don’t fit into the narrow view of masculinity perpetuated by society,” Ruberti-Bruning said.

And finally, spend more time with friends and family.

“It sounds simple, but feeling connected to others helps us get out of our own heads. Our communities can help us stay true to ourselves,” Ruberti-Bruning said.

• Colorectal cancer in people under 50 is on the rise and is now the leading cause of cancer-related death for younger adults.
• Experts say it’s still unclear why cases are rising among people under 50.
• Gabby Zappia is sharing her journey navigating diagnosis and treatment after her initial symptoms were misdiagnosed as pregnancy-related.

In 2024, Gabby Zappia was 36 years old and pregnant with her third child when she noticed blood in her stool.

“I brought it up to my OB, and she said it was likely pregnancy-related hemorrhoids. That explanation made sense, and I wanted it to make sense, so I trusted it,” she told Healthline.

After her son was born, her symptoms persisted, and she pushed for answers.

“A colonoscopy changed my life overnight. Instead of finding hemorrhoids, they found a large mass in my colon,” Zappia said.

In December 2024, Zappia was diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer that had spread to her liver.

“I was a full-time mom, managing all aspects of my kids’ schedules, and I also had a small part-time job,” she said. “After my diagnosis, I had to stop working to focus on appointments and recovery. My husband took over most of the day-to-day tasks that I had handled, and I had to step back significantly in my role as a mom.”

Zappia immediately had a colon resection and, after recovering, started chemotherapy and immunotherapy in January 2025 at City of Hope.

In April 2025, she took a break from chemotherapy and underwent liver resection surgery and implantation of an HAI pump. Then she resumed chemotherapy after recovery.

“After 15 rounds of chemotherapy, I was declared no evidence of disease and rang the survivor bell in September 2025. A few months later, ctDNA tests showed cancer detection, and a PET scan confirmed activity in my liver,” said Zappia.

She underwent another liver surgery in January 2026. Because her ctDNA remains detectable, she is now exploring clinical trials.

“Colon cancer is no longer just a disease of older adults, and it is on the rise. You know your body better than anyone. If something feels off, ask questions and request additional testing. Push for answers. Ask for the colonoscopy,” Zappia said.

If you’re not being heard, she stressed seeking a second opinion.

“We need more awareness. We need to listen to young patients. I am just one of many young faces of colon cancer, and if sharing my story helps even one person catch their cancer earlier, then sharing this journey has purpose,” said Zappia.

Once considered an older person’s disease, colorectal cancer is now the leading cause of cancer-related death in adults under 50.

According to a January 2026 JAMA study, colorectal cancer has surpassed breast and lung cancer to become the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in U.S. adults under 50.

Physicians at City of Hope, where Zappia received treatment, say they are now treating dozens of patients in their 20s, 30s, and 40s each week, reflecting what’s happening nationwide.

Pashtoon Kasi, MD, MS, Medical Director of GI Medical Oncology at City of Hope Orange County, who treated Gabby, said three out of four people under the age of 50 are diagnosed with advanced disease.

“There are no screening guidelines for somebody below the age of 45. It’s important to reiterate that the age of screening has moved from 50 to 45, [but] we’re frequently seeing individuals in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and because there is no screening test when they’re diagnosed, they’re often advanced or metastatic,” Kasi said.

While genetics can be a factor in a small percentage of early onset colorectal cancer, Kasi said the rise of colorectal cancer in younger people often occurs in people without any risk factors.

Researchers are looking into possible contributing factors, such as antibiotic use, the microbiome, diet, and microplastics, but no single factor explains the rise.

Paying attention to your body and symptoms is the strongest defense right now, said Kasi.

“A lot of our individuals, of course, they are young, so we’ve seen this cancer being diagnosed during or after pregnancy, and often it gets labeled as hemorrhoids or something that is not concerning, but in hindsight, probably should have warranted attention earlier,” he said.

Symptoms like rectal bleeding — which researchers say is a strong indication of early onset colorectal cancer in adults under 50 — changes in bowel habits, unexplained pain, and unintentional weight loss should be taken seriously.

“[The] fact that, at least right now, we don’t have guideline-approved screening tests for these younger individuals, these are symptoms that do warrant more attention,” Kasi said.

According to City of Hope doctors, researchers are working on ways to improve treatments, including an emphasis on improving immunotherapy response, targeted therapies, and conducting clinical trials for rectal cancer that combine chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiosensitizers.

Exploration of cellular and CAR-T therapies in highly refractory cases is also underway.

Ajay Goel, PhD, professor and Chair of the Department of Molecular Diagnostics and Experimental Therapeutics at City of Hope, is working on blood-based tests to detect colorectal cancer in younger patients.

“Over the past decade or so, [we] have developed now a blood-based test, which can find evidence of early onset colon cancers, with fairly high accuracy. So, somewhere in 90% accurate test for finding patients with young-onset colon cancer. So that was quite exciting,” he said.

While the test is not available publicly yet, Goel said it is promising. He envisions the test being given as part of annual labs drawn by primary care doctors starting with patients as young as 18.

“We are continuing to work on this, and we are hoping that we can, at some point, bring this test to the clinic once we can validate it in larger patient populations,” he said.

• A new study suggests that certain “forever chemicals” may quietly accelerate biological aging at the cellular level.
• Researchers found that higher levels of specific PFAS were linked to several years of accelerated aging, especially among middle-aged men.
• The findings raise new concerns about long-term health risks, given the widespread PFAS exposure in the United States.

“Forever chemicals” are linked to accelerated aging at the cellular level, particularly among middle-aged men, a new study suggests.

The findings add to growing concerns about widespread exposure to PFAS chemicals.

PFAS are used in products such as nonstick cookware, waterproof clothing, stain-resistant fabrics, and some firefighting foams. This is because they repel water, oil, and heat, making materials more durable and resistant to damage. The nickname reflects the fact that these chemicals break down very slowly and can linger for years in the environment and in human bodies.

Epigenetic aging estimates biological age at a cellular level based on chemical markers found on DNA. Researchers also found that specific PFAS compounds affected individuals differently. While the association was present across the broader study population, it was most pronounced among middle-aged men.

“While the study does not prove causation, it suggests that PFAS exposure may be linked to molecular changes related to aging and long-term health risk,” Xiangwei Li, PhD, professor of epidemiology at the Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine and senior author of the research, told Healthline.

While most research on forever chemicals has focused on two compounds, PFOS and PFOA, those chemicals are now considered “legacy” PFAS because they were largely phased out in the United States in the early 2000s.

Researchers are now shifting their focus to other PFAS compounds that, like legacy chemicals, are also persistent in the environment and potentially toxic, but less well studied. This study examined two additional PFAS compounds: perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorosulfonic acids (PFSA).

The findings track with prior research in this area, said Andres Cardenas, PhD, assistant professor of epidemiology and population health at Stanford University. Cardenas wasn’t involved in the research.

“Our group looked at exactly this data and question before in 2025. Similarly, we found strong evidence that PFNA accelerated multiple epigenetic clocks in males,” he said.

Blood samples were tested for several PFAS chemicals, including PFNA and PFSA, which were detected in more than 95% of participants.

The team then examined epigenetic “clocks,” tools that estimate biological age based on chemical markers attached to DNA. Specifically, they measure DNA methylation patterns, which signal how fast the body is aging at a molecular level.

“Unlike chronological age, epigenetic age keeps track of the molecular ’wear and tear’ of genomic control,” Cardenas said.

Different epigenetic clocks have been developed over time to capture distinct biological processes linked to aging, such as inflammation and mortality risk.

The GrimAge clock, for example, is designed to predict risk of death and age-related disease, incorporating signals tied to inflammation and cardiovascular risk. LinAge, on the other hand, is linked more closely to life span prediction and fat metabolism.

Using these clocks, the researchers calculated whether a person’s biological age appeared older or younger than their actual years and tested whether higher PFAS levels were associated with faster biological aging.

The researchers found that higher levels of PFNA were associated with 2 to 4 years of accelerated aging, as measured by GrimAge. This association was strongest in adults ages 50 to 64 and in men.

PFSA showed a distinct association with LinAge-accelerated aging, suggesting that different PFAS chemicals may influence aging via distinct biological pathways.

The study does not explain why this association is strongest in middle-aged men, but Li has some hypotheses.

“Midlife is often a period when cardiometabolic function, inflammation, and stress-response systems begin to change more rapidly,” he said. “Together, these factors may make aging-related molecular pathways more responsive — or more vulnerable — to environmental stressors in midlife.”

Men may be more susceptible to the deleterious effects of PFAS than women due to biological differences such as hormones, body composition, and metabolism.

While the study cannot prove these chemicals cause faster aging, it suggests that certain PFAS may be linked to measurable changes in the body’s biological aging process, particularly during midlife.

Nearly all Americans have some level of PFAS in their blood. However, the levels of some specific chemicals, such as the legacy chemicals PFOS and PFOA, have declined significantly over time.

Since 2000, blood PFOS levels have declined by more than 85% and PFOA levels by more than 70%.

“Complete avoidance of PFAS is unrealistic, but exposure can be reduced,” said Li.

Since drinking water can be a source of forever chemicals, using certain water filters can help reduce exposure. Reverse osmosis and granular activated carbon filters can help, but effectiveness will vary.

“Drinking water and diet are likely major exposure routes for the majority of the population. Checking your water quality report from the municipal source or city is helpful in making decisions about potential filters to use if you live in an area affected by PFAS contamination,” said Cardenas.

• Swap out nonstick cookware (especially old scratched pans) for steel or glass.
• Eat less takeout and fast food (PFAS are commonly found in wrappers and containers)
• Avoid waterproof and stain-resistant clothing, furniture, and upholstery.

“In general, choosing greener consumer products and PFAS-free products, such as cookware or consumer products, is a good step,” Cardenas said.

• States are limiting or considering limits on programs that help people access HIV medications.
• Reductions include lowering income eligibility thresholds, restricting drug coverage, and tightening enrollment rules.
• Federal funding for HIV programs has remained largely flat for years, contributing to state budget shortfalls and is a key driver behind state-level restrictions.

Several states are cutting or considering reductions to programs that help people access HIV medications as federal funding has failed to keep pace with rising costs, according to a new report.

The February 2026 ADAP Watch report from the National Association of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD), which tracks the fiscal health of state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs), warns that federal funding has “remained relatively unchanged over the last decade,” even as enrollment and healthcare costs have increased.

At least 18 states have already implemented cost-containment measures, and several others are weighing similar steps as budget shortfalls grow.

Several states have lowered income eligibility thresholds for their ADAPs or reduced the scope of covered medications, the report noted.

Florida, for example, recently reduced ADAP eligibility from 400% to 130% of the federal poverty level — a change estimated to affect more than 12,000 clients and leave many without direct access to antiretroviral medications or insurance premium assistance.

As part of its cost-containment strategy, the state has also dropped coverage of Biktarvy, a commonly prescribed single-tablet HIV regimen, and restricted coverage of Descovy to patients with specific clinical needs.

Other states have also tightened their rules. Pennsylvania lowered its eligibility from 500% to 350% of the federal poverty level, affecting roughly 1,600 clients.

Kansas has dropped its premium-assistance eligibility from 400% to 250%, while Delaware and Rhode Island have also reduced eligibility caps.

Some states have tightened recertification requirements or reduced formularies, including Arizona, Michigan, and Nevada, while several — such as Alaska and Oklahoma — have reinstated stricter six-month recertification policies.

In total, more than 20 states have adopted restrictions or are considering measures to reduce program spending.

The report points to flat federal funding for the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program as a key factor behind states’ cost-containment measures.

Although enrollment and medication costs have increased, federal appropriations have not kept pace, leaving states to shoulder more of the financial burden.

Those pressures follow broader federal funding reductions in HIV programs in recent years, including cuts to research and prevention initiatives.

In a press release, Carl Baloney, Jr., President and CEO of AIDS United, recently noted that sustained federal investment is essential to maintaining treatment access.

“Ending the HIV epidemic in the United States requires major investment from our federal government in HIV prevention, treatment, and support services in every state, county, and city in the country,” Baloney said.

“These investments prevent transmission, keep communities safe, save money over time by avoiding more expensive care later, and save lives. Each HIV infection prevented saves an estimated half-million dollars in lifetime treatment costs. Cutting public health infrastructure now is cutting our future,” Baloney continued.

ADAPs provide access to antiretroviral therapy and insurance assistance for low- and middle-income people living with HIV.

Consistent treatment enables people to achieve viral suppression, protecting their health and preventing transmission of the virus to others.

Reductions in eligibility, formulary changes, or limits on insurance assistance could disrupt medication access for some patients.

When treatment is interrupted, HIV can begin replicating again, weakening the immune system and increasing the risk of serious illness.

Interruptions may also increase the risk of drug resistance, potentially limiting future treatment options and making it harder to maintain current rates of viral suppression nationwide.

• A recent study suggested that 7 hours and 18 minutes of sleep may be the optimal amount to reduce the risk of insulin resistance, a precursor to type 2 diabetes.
• The study noted that catching up on sleep on the weekend may actually increase the risk of impaired glucose metabolism.
• Sleep, along with other lifestyle changes, can greatly reduce your risk of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

There is a long-standing relationship between type 2 diabetes and sleep. Type 2 diabetes can disrupt your sleep, while certain sleep disorders can increase your risk of developing it.

“There are many benefits to getting adequate sleep. These include better cognitive function, emotional well-being, immune function, weight management, athletic performance, and even longevity,” David Cutler, MD, board certified family medicine physician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, who was not involved in the study, told Healthline.

“Improved metabolic function and a lower risk of diabetes is also dependent on getting the right amount of sleep.”

A recent study published in the open-access journal BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care suggests that 7 hours and 18 minutes may be the “sweet spot” for reducing your risk of insulin resistance.

Insulin resistance is when cells in your muscles, fat, and liver don’t respond properly to insulin, leading to a buildup of glucose in your blood. This is a precursor to type 2 diabetes.

“Importantly, there appears to be a bidirectional relationship between sleep and metabolism. For instance, poor glycemic status itself has been linked to a higher likelihood of both short and extended sleep durations, as well as sleep disorders,” the researchers of the recent study said.

“This creates a potential vicious cycle wherein metabolic dysregulation disrupts normal sleep patterns, and the resultant abnormal sleep (including extended duration) further aggravates metabolic health.”

The researchers explain that the estimated glucose disposal rate (eGDR) is considered a reliable substitute for insulin resistance.

eGDR is a measure of insulin sensitivity. The higher the eGDR, the lower the risk.

The study’s researchers set out to investigate the association between weekday sleep duration and eGDR, as well as the moderating effects of weekend catch-up sleep.

The researchers categorized weekend sleep as:

• none
• up to 1 hour
• 1 to 2 hours
• more than 2 hours

They calculated the eGDR using a formula that involved:

The average eGDR was 8.23. Individuals slept for an average of 7 hours and 30 minutes on weekdays. A little over 48% of participants reported catching up on sleep on the weekend. They slept for an average of 8 hours during this time.

Analysis of the data showed an inverted U-shaped relationship between sleep duration and eGDR. The “sweet spot” appeared to be at 7 hours 18 minutes.

Below this threshold, greater nightly sleep was associated with higher eGDR. Above the threshold, more nightly sleep was associated with a lower eGDR. This was particularly true among females and those between the ages of 40 to 59.

Further analysis showed that for those sleeping less than the optimal threshold during the week, 1 to 2 hours of catch-up sleep at the weekend was associated with a higher eGDR compared with no catch-up sleep.

For those who slept more than the optimal threshold during the week, 2 hours of catch-up sleep at the weekend was associated with a lower eGDR after accounting for potentially influential factors, such as:

• lifestyle
• ethnicity
• marital status
• educational attainment

“What a great study, and so good to see further evidence that the myth of 8 hours of sleep is too much. This supports a prior study between the U.K. and China, which also showed 7 hours to be optimal for mental health and cognitive performance,” said Alex Dimitriu, MD, double board certified in Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, who was not involved in the study.

“In the end, our lives exist on a spectrum between sleep and wake — too much sleep is often linked to illness and depression, while too little sleep is linked to anxiety and insomnia. Our autonomic nervous system sets this balance, and here we see additional support for an optimal balance — around 7 hours of sleep.”

This was an observational study, which means that no firm conclusions about cause and effect can be drawn. The researchers acknowledged that the study relied on self-reported data. They also noted that they couldn’t rule out reverse causation, meaning that disrupted glucose metabolism may interfere with sleep rather than the other way around.

“These correlational findings suggest that sleep patterns, particularly weekend recovery sleep, may be relevant for metabolic regulation in diabetes and could inform considerations for healthcare professionals in managing patient care,” said the research team.

“Sleep loves regularity and rhythmicity — and is one of the biggest metabolic levers we have. This study adds further support for the importance of sleeping about 7 to 7.5 hours per night. No need to stress that you didn’t sleep 8 hours. But also, don’t let this be a slippery slope to start getting 6,” said Dimitriu.

Previous research has shown a direct link between sleep habits and type 2 diabetes.

Individuals with type 2 diabetes often experience issues with sleep. This can negatively affect their mood, health, and quality of life.

“Sleeping less than 7 hours may be associated with an elevated state of alertness, which also comes with elevated adrenaline and cortisol levels, all of which can raise blood glucose. Conversely, sleeping too much may be associated with other illnesses and lack of mobility — both of which can also have negative metabolic impacts,” said Dimtriu.

The reverse is also true, however. Sleep disorders, like obstructive sleep apnea, can increase the risk of metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes.

“Diet and exercise are also major determinants in controlling the development of diabetes. But since poor sleep will often trigger a worse diet and a diminished capacity for exercise, focusing on sleep can target many birds with one stone,” said Cutler.

• The American Cancer Society reports that the incidence of colorectal cancer cases in U.S. adults ages 20 to 49 has been rising about 3% per year.
• Experts say there may be a number of factors for this increase, including unhealthy diets, sedentary lifestyles, and the impact of microplastics on the human body.
• They recommend that most adults start colorectal cancer screenings at age 45.

A new report from the American Cancer Society (ACS) highlights what’s being described as an alarming increase in colorectal cancer cases in young adults.

In their findings, published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, officials at the ACS report that the overall incidence of colorectal cancer in adults in the United States decreased by nearly 1% annually between 2013 and 2022.

The decline was mostly driven by a 2.5% annual decrease in colorectal cancer cases among U.S. adults ages 65 years and older.

However, the report found that colorectal cancer cases have increased by 0.4% annually in U.S. adults ages 50 to 64.

More alarming, the authors said, was the 3% annual increase in colorectal cancer cases in U.S. adults ages 20 to 49.

They project that 45% of colorectal cancer diagnoses this year will be in individuals younger than 65, up from 27% in 1995. They predict that one-third of the expected 55,000 colorectal cancer deaths in the United States this year will be in people younger than 65.

The findings also show that rectal cancer cases now represent 32% of all colorectal cancer cases, up from 27% two decades ago.

Nikita Wagle, PhD, a principal scientist in cancer surveillance research at the ACS and second author of the new report, said the trend is a call to action for the medical community.

“Despite decades of progress in the fight against cancer, colorectal cancer death rates are increasing among younger men and women,” Wagle told Healthline. “It is important that we intensify research to uncover the causes as well as take action to prevent these deaths.”

In their report, ACS officials state that colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in both males and females in the United States.

They say it’s the second most common cancer-related death in the United States overall. It’s the number one cause of cancer-related death in U.S. adults under 50 years of age.

The ACS estimates there will be 158,850 new cases of colorectal cancer in the United States in 2026, including 108,860 colon tumors and 49,990 rectal tumors.

In its report, the ACS states that more than one-half of colorectal cancer cases are attributable to modifiable risk factors, such as:

Nilesh Vora, MD, a medical oncologist and medical director of the MemorialCare Todd Cancer Institute at Long Beach Medical Center, has witnessed an uptick in colorectal cancer patients and said the numbers didn’t surprise him. Vora wasn’t involved in the report.

“It doesn’t change the concern I already have about this trend,” he told Healthline.

Geoffrey Buckle, MD, a gastrointestinal medical oncologist at the University of California, San Francisco, said the new ACS statistics align with what he and his colleagues have noticed in their practices. Buckle wasn’t involved in the report.

“We are seeing a growing incidence of colorectal cancer that is indeed alarming,” said Buckle. “The statistics reflect what we see in our clinics every day.”

Buckle told Healthline that there are various factors driving the increase in early onset colorectal cancer cases, including:

Some research has indicated that an overabundance of microplastics in the bodies of younger adults may be another factor, Buckle said.

Another theory suggests that toxins produced by the bacteria E. coli, which damage DNA, could be contributing to rising colorectal cancer cases.

Wagle agreed there may be new factors affecting younger adults’ risk of colorectal cancer.

“Since the late 20th century, there have been many newer exposures, such as ultra-processed food and microplastics, that may influence cancer risk, and to which younger generations have had greater cumulative exposure than older adults, who have had a lifetime of cumulative exposures,” she explained.

Vora echoed that there may be some credence to these theories. “Other environmental factors need to be considered,” he said.

The issue came to the forefront in August 2020, when Chadwick Boseman, the star of the film “Black Panther,” died from colon cancer at 43.

In 2024, a study presented at the Digestive Disease Week conference reported that colorectal cancer cases had tripled among U.S. teens from 1999 to 2020.

In October 2025, researchers reported that rectal bleeding is a strong indication of early onset colorectal cancer in adults under 50.

The issue was highlighted again in early February when James Van Der Beek, an actor best-known for his role on the television series “Dawson’s Creek,” died from colon cancer at the age of 48.

The trends prompted the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force to revise its guidelines for colorectal cancer screening. The agency now recommends that these screenings begin at age 45 for most adults.

There are different options for colorectal cancer screening that range from a colonoscopy to at-home stool-based tests.

Buckle said screening is the most important tool in the prevention of colorectal cancer. He added that young adults should be aware of the early warning signs of the disease, such as:

Buckle said that adults in their late 40s and 50s have become increasingly aware of the risk of colorectal cancer and the potential symptoms.

However, he said that adults under 45 aren’t as attuned to the issues. “There is a definitive lack of recognition,” Buckle said.

Buckle noted that younger adults should also be aware of their family history of colorectal cancer.

He recommended regular exercise as well as a diet that avoids ultra-processed foods, sugar, and red meat and includes plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits.

Wagle recommended that younger adults avoid smoking, limit their alcohol use, and maintain a healthy weight.

Vora said it’s important for younger adults to be diligent in monitoring symptoms and getting screened.

“You should get screened on time for colorectal cancer even if you don’t have symptoms,” said Vora. “And if you have symptoms, seek medical care as soon as possible.”