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A new study has provided a physiological measurement of how interacting with pets can decrease anxiety in children with autism. “Previous studies suggest that in the presence of companion animals, children with autism spectrum disorders function better socially,” James Griffin, of the National Institutes of Health’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, which helped fund the new research, told the website Disability Scoop. “This study provides physiological evidence that the proximity of animals eases the stress that children with autism may experience in social situations.” For the study, researchers worked with 114 children between the ages of five and 12, a third of whom were on the autism spectrum. All the children were outfitted with wrist ...

A new meta-analysis suggests a positive link between depression and low back pain, which could lead to more effective treatments for pain. According to the analysis, patients who suffer from depression have an increased risk of developing new episodes of low back pain; furthermore, patients with more severe depression have a correspondingly greater risk. The meta analysis included data from 11 different studies; the combined data showed that those with symptoms of depression had a 60% higher chance of also experiencing new back pain, compared to patients who do not suffer from depressive symptoms. Some of the studies even revealed that patients with low levels of depression still had an increased risk of pain episodes, almost 50% higher. And among the studies that did include the severit...

A new law in Ontario now prohibits the sale of e-cigarettes to anyone under 19, thereby making e-cig sales just as restricted as regular cigarettes. Additionally, it is now illegal to smoke e-cigarettes in public places where smoking has been prohibited under Canadian federal law. The official legislation is called the Making Healthier Choices Act, and it addressed several health issues, including the concern that more teens have taken up smoking as e-cigarettes have become more accessible. In the U.S., e-cigs have become popular alternatives to smoking regular tobacco -- between 2008 and 2012, sales of e-cigarettes increase from 50,000 to 3.5 million. The trend hasn't caught on quite so quickly in Canada, but Canadian officials have been much quicker to address concerns over whether e-...

Between medical conditions, sedentary jobs, and habits that more often include a Netflix marathon than a trip to the gym, back pain is one of the most commonly reported health problems in the United States. In fact, over 26 million Americans aged 20 to 64 say they live with back pain on a frequent basis. Now, doctors and researchers are finding new ways to treat back pain -- including a little known device and spider venom. A surgeon at the Toronto Western Hospital, Dr. Mohammed Shamji, says that an underused device could be the key to preventing and treating chronic back pain. The device, a neurostimulator, blocks pain signals as they're traveling to receptors in the brain. "We have other clinicians who are not necessarily aware that the technology could provide benefit for their patien...

You've graduated from college, landed a great job in your field, with benefits -- no more waiting tables or brewing lattes for you -- and maybe even bought your own home. Congratulations! You're an adult now. If that's the case, however, how come your skin keeps breaking out? Isn't acne supposed to be a teenage thing that goes away once you trade in your textbooks for a 401K? According to a survey completed in the U.K. and reported by the Mirror, the number of women over the age of 35 seeking acne treatment has skyrocketed -- by about 214%. The website WhatClinic.com conducted the survey, asking nearly one hundred British skin clinics to report on trends in their patient demographics and treatment requests. “Acne can really impact confidence, no matter what age you are,” says WhatClini...

California is naturally a great state for anyone with a green thumb and an eye toward alternative energy; not only is the state sunny enough year-round to support a solar energy system, but state lawmakers have dedicated plenty of legislation toward protecting homeowners who use wind and solar energy. Previously, alternative energy usage was restricted to the wealthier homeowners in California simply because, despite a 20% increase in solar energy usage over the past 15 years, it’s still expensive to have a complete system installed. The average rooftop solar installation in California costs about $15,000, the SF Gate reports, and an overwhelming majority (67%) of solar arrays installed in Californian homes in 2013 went to households where the total income was between $40,000 and $90,000...

Millennials are now dominating the American workplace, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, and they're also working more hours per week than employed Americans of any other generation. More importantly, it's becoming clear that these Millennial workers are actually changing the way businesses operate -- for the better. According to a recent survey by Ernst and Young's Global Generation Research, 47% of Millennials are working more hours per week than they worked just five years ago; only 38% of Gen X workers are working more, and only 28% of Baby Boomers are doing so. As TIME and Medical Daily both report, Millennials are struggling more to manage the responsibilities of work, family, and personal life; for this reason, they're placing a higher value on flexibility in the work...

Salmon are one of anglers' most sought-after catches. Not only are they delicious to eat, but they can also be quite a challenge to land. King salmon, the largest species in the Pacific salmon genus, have weighed in at up to 100 pounds in Alaska, for example. However, humans aren't the fish's biggest threat. Predatory seabirds have been having a devastating impact on salmon populations. Consequently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services is preparing a plan to hunt thousands of hungry double crested cormorants, to reduce the numbers of baby salmon being preyed upon. Biologists blame double crested cormorants, which are large black birds that have long necks, webbed feet, and hooked bills used to dive below water surfaces and catch small fish, for damaging salmon populati...

Olympic gold medalist and reality star Bruce Jenner is now facing a lawsuit for wrongful death and negligence stemming from a February car crash that killed one woman and injured five others. Reuters reported that the two stepchildren of Kimberly Howe, 69, who died in the Feb. 7 car crash on the Malibu stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway, filed the lawsuit against Jenner. The lawsuit claims that Jenner, 65, driving his Cadillac Escalade and towing an off-road vehicle, struck Howe's car from behind, sending her vehicle into oncoming traffic, where she collided head-on with a Hummer. Jenner had "violated the rules of the road" and was "negligent, careless and reckless" in causing the accident, states the lawsuit, which was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court on May 1. The suit als...

Each year, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) releases reports containing a variety of statistics. Among these statistics is the country's birth rate, which is at an all-time low, according to the CDC's most recent report. Published early this month in the academic journal Pediatrics, this year's birth rate metrics have sparked concern across the nation. By itself, the numbers do seem alarming, but when examined as a whole rather just a piece of the puzzle, they make more sense. The trend of attended college and focusing on one's career means fewer babies being born each year. Originally published by the CDC in January, the statistics revealed that a mere 3.9 million babies were born in 2013, a decrease of roughly 20,000 from figures recorded in 2012. Birth rates h...