Many of us believe that we are great drinkers and that alcohol does not affect us as much. People who are able to drink without showing any sign of inebriation are known as social drinkers. In short, they are not addicted to alcohol but will not turn down the opportunity to have a good time! While it may seem like it doesn’t affect you, new studies suggest that it is just an illusion, even if you have high tolerance, alcohol affects your cognitive and motor functions more than you think.

The study reveals the below implications and techniques:

• Researchers used a new MRI technique to precisely measure brain electrical activity.
• By comparing brain scans before and after drinking, scientists identified specific areas affected by alcohol and how much brain activity slowed down.
• Participants were chosen to be regular social drinkers without alcohol addiction, ensuring the study focused on the effects of alcohol alone.
• MRI technology provided reliable data on brain activity changes caused by alcohol consumption.

How does the brain react to alcohol?

Think of it as the foundation for your brain's performance. When brain conductivity is high, information flows smoothly, and that helps your brain in rapid processing and response. On the other hand, low conductivity can hinder cognitive function, leading to slower thinking, impaired memory, and difficulties with coordination.

A study conducted at the Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) and UNSW Science unveiled a startling connection between alcohol consumption and brain conductivity.

What is the connection between alcohol consumption and brain activity?

While many people brush off the effects of alcohol as temporary changes in behaviour, the reality is much more complex. Beyond the obvious impacts on coordination and judgment, alcohol significantly alters brain function. Alcohol dramatically slowed down brain activity, especially in areas responsible for decision-making, planning, and physical coordination. This decline was so significant that it resembled the brain changes seen in normal ageing. This means even one drink could temporarily accelerate the ageing process of your brain.

Alcohol and Brain activity: What does the study Imply?

The implications of this research are far-reaching. It provides compelling evidence that alcohol consumption has a direct and measurable impact on brain function. The discovery that alcohol can significantly reduce brain conductivity opens new avenues for understanding the neurocognitive effects of alcohol abuse and dependence. While you may not feel like alcohol is affecting you and you have a high tolerance, it most definitely changes and affects your decision-making abilities and impulse control.

Furthermore, the MRI technique employed in the study could be a valuable tool for assessing the impact of other substances on the brain and for developing interventions to mitigate alcohol-related brain damage.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), a condition affecting more than 170 million women worldwide, has now been officially renamed Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS), according to a global study published today in The Lancet.

The new name reflects a major shift in understanding the condition — from being viewed primarily as a gynecological disorder to being recognized as a complex, multisystem condition affecting several aspects of health.

The new term PMOS acknowledges that the condition involves:

• Endocrine health
• Metabolic health
• Reproductive health
• Dermatological health
• Psychological health

“For too long, the narrow definition of PCOS has overlooked its metabolic and hormonal complexity, leaving many patients undiagnosed or misunderstood,” Cree added.

Why Was PCOS Renamed To PMOS?

Calls to rename PCOS date back to the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2012, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommended a name change after experts concluded that the term PCOS was misleading and confusing for both patients and healthcare providers.

“The name focuses on a criterion — polycystic ovarian morphology — which is neither necessary nor sufficient to diagnose the syndrome,” NIH experts wrote in the report.

Although PCOS has long been understood as a metabolic condition, experts said the name inaccurately narrowed its scope and overemphasized ovarian cysts and fertility issues.

This often led to:

• Delayed diagnoses
• Fragmented care
• Stigma
• Missed opportunities for early intervention

How Was The Name Change Decided?

The renaming process involved consultations with thousands of patients and healthcare professionals across the world.

The effort was supported by 56 academic, clinical, and patient organizations.

Experts said the transition from PCOS to PMOS will occur over the next three years through a phased global implementation strategy.

What Does PMOS Mean?

The new name aims to explain the condition more accurately and comprehensively.

Polyendocrine means it affects multiple hormones in the body.

Metabolic refers to issues linked to weight, insulin, blood sugar, and heart health.

Ovarian highlights its impact on ovulation and reproductive health.

Syndrome refers to a group of symptoms occurring together.

In simple terms, PMOS is a hormonal and metabolic condition that can affect periods, fertility, skin, mood, weight, and long-term health.

Experts said the new terminology intends to:

• Reflect the condition’s hormonal complexity
• Acknowledge its strong metabolic and cardiometabolic effects
• Continue emphasizing ovarian involvement without over-focusing on fertility

According to the study, PMOS could also:

• Promote earlier and more accurate diagnosis
• Support more holistic, patient-centered care
• Reduce stigma associated with fertility-focused terminology
• Expand research into metabolic and systemic impacts

Hantavirus cases have climbed to 11, including three deaths, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said today.

During a media briefing on hantavirus, Tedros stated that all eleven cases are among passengers or crew members onboard the MV Hondius.

“Nine of the eleven have been confirmed as Andes virus, and the other two are probable,” he added.

All suspected and confirmed cases have been isolated and managed under strict medical supervision, minimizing any risk of further transmission.

Tedros said individual countries were now responsible for their citizens after the evacuation, adding: “I hope they will take care of the patients and the passengers, helping them and also protecting their citizens as well. That’s what we expect.”

Will Hantavirus Become A Public Health Threat?

Noting that “at the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak,” Tedros said the situation could still change.

“Given the long incubation period of the virus, it’s possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks,” he said.

Acclaimed vaccine scientist Prof. Peter Hotez from the Texas Medical Center (TMC) also said more cases could emerge, but ruled out the risk of a major epidemic.

“We might see additional cases, but I don't think this will be a major epidemic beyond the obvious human tragedy of those who lost their lives, and possibly a few others who could still get very sick,” he said in a post on social media platform X.

“New World hantavirus infections are rough stuff. Once symptoms begin, the resulting cytokine storm and ARDS means there's not much of a window before getting patients into an ICU, and often on ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation), which requires a high level of skill,” Prof. Peter said.

He also linked increasing zoonotic spillovers and rising arthropod-borne illnesses to “climate change pushing animal reservoirs to explore new habitats, together with deforestation and urbanization.”

“It's animals and vectors closer to humans and people coming closer to animals and vectors,” he added.

“I don't think this particular hantavirus outbreak will accelerate much beyond where it is now, but that's not the point.”

Dutch Hospital Quarantines 12 Healthcare Workers

Meanwhile, Radboud University Medical Center (Radboudumc) in the Netherlands has placed 12 employees in quarantine for six weeks as a precaution after incorrect procedures were followed while caring for a hantavirus-infected patient from the Dutch cruise ship.

The hospital said on Monday that the issue involved procedures for drawing and processing blood samples, as well as the disposal of the patient's urine, according to Xinhua news agency.

Also read: Fact Check: Can Ivermectin Help Treat Hantavirus?

“This blood was processed according to standard procedure. Due to the nature of the virus, this blood should have been processed according to a stricter procedure,” Radboudumc said in a statement, without specifying what the stricter measures should have entailed.

Read More: Donald Trump Says Hantavirus Is 'Under Control'; Questions Grow Over CDC Research Cuts

WHO Guidelines On Hantavirus

The WHO recommends that people exposed to hantavirus should be:

• Monitored actively at a specified quarantine facility
• Monitored at home for 42 days from the last exposure

The White House has informed that US President Donald Trump is getting another medical and dental checkup at the end of May.

This will be his fourth publicized visit to medical experts in his second term as US President. The White House described it as "an annual physical and regular preventive care", AP reported.

Trump, who turns 80 next month, will see his doctors at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on May 26, the White House said in a brief statement.

The president’s health has been the subject of tremendous scrutiny — ranging from his mental state to visible bruising around his hands.

While past presidents have opted for the White House's on-site clinic, Trump went for a local dentist instead, a choice he made previously in January.

Trump — who has been frequently critical of former President Joe Biden for age-related health and fitness issues — has recently remarked how good he feels despite his years.

Earlier Monday, Trump said he feels the same as he did 50 years ago. “I feel literally the same,” he said at an Oval Office event. “I don’t know why. It’s not because I eat the best foods”, AP reported.

Last week, he joked about his exercise regimen, saying that he works out “like about one minute a day, max.”

Also read: Was Trump Sleeping During Oval Office Event? White House Reacts

Trump's Health Checkups

The first visit was reported last April, when Trump had a checkup after noticing what the White House described as “mild swelling” in his lower legs. Tests by the White House medical unit found that Trump had chronic venous insufficiency, a condition common in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins.

During the medical exam in October, which the White House called a “semiannual physical,” he also got his yearly flu shot and a COVID-19 booster vaccine. He later told The Wall Street Journal that he underwent advanced imaging on his heart and abdomen in October as preventive screening.

The upcoming evaluation follows two other recent visits to a local dentist near his estate in Florida, where Trump often spends his weekends.

Also read: Donald Trump’s Swollen, Heavily Bruised Hands Raise Fresh Health Concerns

Experts Claim Trump's Mental Health Is Deteriorating

Read More: Fact Check: Can Ivermectin Help Treat Hantavirus?

A group of medical experts has sounded the alarm over what they’ve described as Trump’s deteriorating mental health, The Daily Beast Reported.

The three dozen medical professionals include neurologists, psychiatrists, and other physicians with extensive experience diagnosing cognitive disorders and evaluating patients.

The experts have not specifically examined Trump face-to-face. But, based on his statements and behaviors over the past year, they stated that he’s “mentally unfit” and must be removed from office “with the greatest urgency” amid the escalating tension around the world, the report said.

“It is our professional opinion that they (Trump's statements) reflect a rapidly worsening, reality-untethered, increasingly dangerous decline,” the experts said in a statement.

They also listed some of Trump’s observable serious medical issues, such as “Marked deterioration in cognitive functioning, evidenced by disorganized and tangential speech, rambling digressions, factual confusions, unexplained sudden changes of course in strategic matters, both national and international, episodes of apparent somnolence during critical public proceedings.”