Researchers on Wednesday reported an "excess number of cases" of childhood leukemia around 19 French nuclear plants between 2003 and 2007.

That excess cancer rate disappeared, however, when the data was extended to cover a longer period, the researchers reported in a study, published earlier this month in the International Journal of Cancer.

An appetite-curbing hormone found in the gut may help overweight and obese people shed weight, lower blood pressure and reduce cholesterol levels, according to a study released Wednesday.

Known as glucagon-like peptide-1, or GLP-1, the hormone is naturally secreted from the intestine when we eat.

People who occasionally smoke marijuana do not suffer long-term lung damage the way cigarette smokers do, and may actually experience a slight improvement, said a 20-year U.S. study published Tuesday.

Since the research included more than 5,000 people over a long time span, the authors said it should help clear up some of the confusion about the risks of marijuana smoking, which is increasingly common in the United States.

College-age drinkers average nine drinks when they get drunk, government health officials said Tuesday. That surprising statistic is part of a new report highlighting the dangers of binge drinking, which usually means four to five drinks at a time.

Overall, about 1 in 6 U.S. adults surveyed said they had binged on alcohol at least once in the previous month, though it was more than 1 in 4 for those ages 18 to 34.

Older adults who are starting to have problems with memory may benefit from small amounts of nicotine therapy, according to a U.S. study published on Monday.

The research in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, included 74 non-smokers with an average age of 76. Half were given a daily nicotine patch for six months, the other half wore a placebo patch.

Post-menopausal women who take medication to lower their cholesterol face a higher risk of getting diabetes than women who do not take the popular drugs, known as statins, said a U.S. study on Monday.

The risk was apparent even after researchers adjusted for variables such as age, race/ethnicity and body mass index, said the study in the Archives of Internal Medicine, a publication of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

Grief over the death of a loved one can cause a huge spike in a person's risk of heart attack, especially in the early days after the loss, said a U.S. study on Monday.

The research tracked nearly 2,000 adults who survived a heart attack and found that among those who had just lost a loved one, the risk of a heart attack soared 21 times higher than normal in the first day.

Gums, patches and nasal sprays that supply smokers with nicotine do not help people quit cigarettes over the long term any better than going it alone, a U.S. study said on Monday.

The research by the Harvard University School of Public Health followed 787 adults in the state of Massachusetts who had recently quit smoking, and found that over time just as many relapsed after nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) as without -- about a third.

Drinkers should have at least two alcohol-free days each week, a committee of British MPs has recommended.

The House of Commons Science and Technology Committee also called for a review of safe drinking guidelines but ruled out any increase in drinking limits.

Simply eating healthier may improve the behavior of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder if therapy and medication fail, said a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

Researchers, however, said that their review of recent controlled scientific studies had shown conflicting evidence on the impact of supplements and restricted diets -- in some cases they were no better than the placebo effect.