Author: Reporter

The Washington National Cathedral in the nation’s capital is a church that tells the story of America on hallowed ground. Presidents from Dwight D. Eisenhower to Jimmy Carter have received state funerals at the gothic-style cathedral. Funeral services have also been held there for Thurgood Marshall, the first Black Supreme Court Justice, and the moonwalking astronaut Neil Armstrong. The list of notable figures interred at the cathedral includes the author and activist Hellen Keller. Just one president, Woodrow Wilson, is buried there. The church’s history and tradition, said Washington National Cathedral Provost Rev. Canon Jan Naylor Cope, put it...

About a million Americans a year are expected to develop dementia by 2060, roughly double today’s toll, researchers reported in January. That estimate is based on a new study that found a higher lifetime risk than previously thought: After age 55, people have up to a 4 in 10 chance of eventually developing dementia – if they live long enough. It is a sobering number but there are steps people can take to reduce that risk, such as controlling high blood pressure and other bad-for-the-brain health problems. And it is not too late to try even in middle age....

In the Trump administration’s quest to “Make America Healthy Again,” there may be no bigger target than ultraprocessed foods. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s new health secretary, has cited “highly chemically processed foods” as a chief culprit behind an epidemic of chronic disease in the U.S., including ailments such as obesity, diabetes, and autoimmune disorders. Such foods are “poisoning” people, particularly children, Kennedy said during Senate confirmation hearings. He has vowed to work to remove such foods from federal programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. “I will do everything in my power to put...

You can have your cake and eat it too, just do it slowly. Experts tend to focus on the kinds of foods you can eat to improve your health. But the speed at which you devour your dinner matters just as much. There are risks with eating too fast — think stuck food and the potential to overeat before your brain tells you to stop. Inhaling your food also risks annoying your slower-paced dining companions or the person who took the time to cook your meal. Here are some tips from scientists on how to slow down and take...

When Claire Paré was a classroom teacher, working in a setting where every minute, down to the bathroom breaks, was scheduled, she brought granola bars, fruit, and protein shakes to school so she would be prepared when hunger hits. Then she transitioned to a job at education publisher McGraw Hill. Working remotely at home in New Hampshire, her children’s cheddar bunny crackers and Fruit Roll-Ups lured her to the pantry, confounding her commitment to healthy snacking. “I have the opportunity to be judicious, but I choose not to most of the time,” Paré said. “I really do enjoy being...

One way to be climate-friendly is to shop sustainably. But figuring out which products count as “sustainable” can be hard, especially when buying online. As ordering with a computer or phone becomes more ubiquitous, the number of online products labeled sustainable is also increasing. Yet there is no single seal of approval across e-commerce platforms that verifies whether something is climate-friendly, partly because there are multiple ways to define sustainability. Third-party nonprofit organizations study manufacturers and sellers’ practices and offer certifications that are displayed online. Government programs such as the Agriculture Department’s organic certification or Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy...