HB Mag Health Research Team

A tire fire is not a fire you fight. It is a fire you contain, evacuate around, and let burn under supervision — because the standard tools people reach for first, water and a household extinguisher, can make the situation more dangerous rather than less. The correct response is simple: call 911, move upwind and … Read more

How marijuana is metabolized, how it affects liver fat, and how THC moves through the body are three separate questions that often get tangled together. The short answer: THC is processed mainly by liver enzymes called cytochrome P450, especially CYP2C9 and CYP3A4, which convert it into psychoactive and non-psychoactive metabolites. Separately, the relationship between cannabis … Read more

Walking speed is one of the most studied physical measurements in medicine, and it turns out to be far more informative than most people realize. If you naturally walk fast — outpacing friends on sidewalks, finishing crosswalks early, feeling vaguely impatient behind slow movers — there are real reasons for it, and some of them … Read more

Second-guessing yourself is a normal part of how the human brain makes decisions. Your mind runs a quick review of a choice, checks it against past experience, and asks whether the first answer was good enough. That process becomes a problem when it runs on a loop, when it fires on small decisions, or when … Read more

Smelling bubblegum when there is no gum, candy, or air freshener nearby is a phantom odor. It happens when something in your nose, sinuses, nervous system, or brain creates a smell signal that is not coming from the outside world. Most phantom smells are not dangerous, but a few causes need medical attention, so the … Read more

Only certain colors of Jell-O are allowed before a colonoscopy, and the rule is about what you can see through the bowel, not about flavor. Clear or light-colored gelatin is generally acceptable. Red, purple, orange, and blue are not. The reason is simple: those colors can leave residue in the colon that looks like blood … Read more

If you want to fall asleep fast, the most reliable approach is to stop trying to force it. Sleep onset is a physiological process driven by rising sleep pressure and a drop in arousal, not by willpower. The strategies that work best are the ones that lower your core body temperature, quiet your nervous system, … Read more

Aluminum salts in deodorant and antiperspirant work by dissolving into the sweat on your skin and forming a temporary plug at the top of your sweat ducts. That plug physically blocks sweat from reaching the surface. The effect is real and well documented — it is how antiperspirants reduce sweating. What aluminum does not do … Read more

Sperm count is not fixed. The body makes new sperm continuously, roughly every 60 to 90 days, which means recent habits, health, and exposures can show up in a semen analysis. The steps with the strongest evidence behind them are straightforward: stop smoking, limit alcohol, avoid excessive heat to the testicles, maintain a healthy weight, … Read more