The European Space Agency on Wednesday selected the world’s first astronaut with a disability. John McFall, whose right leg was amputated at age 19, is the first recruit for a new program investigating accommodations for astronauts with disabilities.Th…
The best fitness gifts for your friends who work out
Fitness fanatics can be pretty intense. You’ll probably identify us from miles away, decked out in workout gear, obsessing over the food we eat, or discussing our gains nonstop. A fitness lover has probably invested a lot of time and money into tools t…
Unlocking the potential of technology to support health
This week kicked off the HLTH Conference in Las Vegas where thousands of healthcare leaders, care providers, patients and other people in the industry — like our teams at Google — are coming together to discuss how to create a healthier world.At Google…
Amazon Clinic is a virtual healthcare service over text chat
Amazon has launched a new virtual health service that gives you a way to consult healthcare professionals for common conditions and get prescriptions for them without heaving to make a video call. This new product is called Amazon Clinic, and it offers…
Soft robotic device stimulates muscles, sparks hope for ALS and MS patients
Today, muscle atrophy is often unavoidable when you can’t move due to severe injury, old age or diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and multiple sclerosis (MS). However, Harvard researchers see hope in soft robotics that could someday str…
VR-controlled robots are being designed to treat injured soldiers
If you think of robots in the military, your mind may conjure dystopian images of science-fiction battlefields with AI-powered machines trading laser fire. But in a much more humane application, UK researchers are developing a potentially lifesaving me…
YouTube opens up a verification program for healthcare professionals
YouTube is attempting to make it easier for folks to find reliable and high-quality health information on the platform. It’s opening up its health product features to certain healthcare professionals and information providers in the US. It started offe…
7 ways to help make better sense of your health information
When I’m sick or someone I care about is sick, one of the first things I do — even as a doctor myself — is seek out more information, whether it’s searching for answers to questions online, making an appointment with a doctor or connecting with others …
The cutting-edge cellular therapies aiming to ease America’s organ shortage
Despite being the wealthiest nation on the face of the planet, the United States chronically runs short of transplantable organs. Kidneys are far and away the most sought-after organ for transplantation, followed by livers. While the liver is the only …
Google Assistant offers information and hope for Breast Cancer Awareness Month
It has been nearly 15 years since that otherwise ordinary Thursday afternoon when my mom came home with a diagnosis that would change our lives, irrevocably and forever: Stage II breast cancer. Despite the visceral and all-consuming fear that accompani…