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Daily Edition • Saturday, Sept 19
SPONSORED BY
Daily Edition • Saturday, Sept 19
SPONSORED BY
These days on a college campus, chances are you’ll find fewer keg stands and Animal House-style parties, and maybe more group yoga and cold plunges. “Wellness darties” (daytime parties) are the latest campus social trend, built around fitness, recovery, and alcohol-free mornings. The “wellness darty” — both admired and despised by old heads watching the shift unfold on TikTok — is the latest example of a trend we’ve been watching for awhile: Gen Z is generally drinking less than generations past.
But while young people are cutting back, a recent study found that alcohol-related cancer deaths are still on the rise in older generations. Read on for our full story about why, despite the growing popularity of booze-free lifestyles, even modest drinking habits are still affecting Americans later in life.
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Health Tech
Psilocybin May Protect Your Nerves During Chemo
All Healthy Design Studio
Calm Your Nerves: There’s no question that chemotherapy saves lives, but it also leaves behind lasting effects like nerve damage (called chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy) for many patients. This condition causes tingling and numbness in the hands and feet and affects more than 60% of people on certain cancer drugs. Unfortunately, there’s currently no proven drug to prevent it, but an unorthodox new mouse study out of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center offers some promise.
The Study:Researchers gave mice two doses of psilocybin, the psychedelic compound found in magic mushrooms, before chemotherapy and found it protected nerve endings through six treatment cycles, with the effect lasting up to eight months. It worked by keeping mitochondria (the cells’ energy source) moving properly inside nerve fibers, without blunting chemo’s ability to fight the tumor. A non-hallucinogenic version worked too, so tripping might not be necessary to get the benefits.
The Takeaway: A compound given before chemotherapy may prevent nerve damage, one of the more common and lasting side effects of treatment.
Keep in Mind: This was done in mice, not people, so it’s still in the early stages. But the findings provide the basis for a planned Phase 2 trial in chemotherapy patients, which will test whether the effects translate to people.
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Courtesy: CURREX
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Its Dynamic Arch Technology™ comes in HIGH, MEDIUM, and LOW profiles to support landing, transition, and toe-off, without turning your favorite trainers into stiff orthotics.
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Personal Growth
Americans Are Drinking Less. Why Are Alcohol-Cancer Deaths Rising?
Devin Nelson/Unsplash
The Trend: Americans are drinking less than ever, according to a 2026 Gallup poll. In 2025 and 2026, just 54% said they drink alcohol — the lowest figure since Gallup started surveying people’s drinking habits in 1939. More people (51%) also think drinking one or two drinks a day is bad for your health (compared to just 27% in 2001). But even as drinking has decreased, alcohol-related cancers have increased. A recent study found these deaths more than doubled from 1990 to 2023. If people are drinking less, why are more dying from alcohol-related cancers?
What People Are Saying: Alcohol is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, alongside asbestos, processed meat, tobacco, and ultraviolet rays. Several types of cancers are tied to alcohol consumption. This study found deaths from liver and colorectal cancer increased in male drinkers and from breast cancer in female drinkers, compared to non-drinkers. Male adults aged 55 and older were disproportionately affected.
What to Know: The risks were larger among heavy drinkers, but there was still an increase among light drinkers. While attitudes towards drinking have changed in recent decades, the health effects of past drinking habits are likely still showing up in older generations.This research adds to the growing body of evidence that there’s no risk-free amount of alcohol.
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Hormonal Health
Should You Get a DEXA Scan to Check for Osteoporosis?
Accuray/Unsplash
You Should Know: A DEXA (or DXA) scan uses low-dose X-rays to measure bone mineral density, usually at the hip and spine. The standard recommendation is to screen women at 65, but some doctors are now calling for earlier screening. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force also recommends screening postmenopausal womenunder 65 who are at increased risk for fractures.
Going Deeper: Menopause itself isn’t an automatic prescription for a scan. Instead, doctors consider your overall fracture risk. Factors that can push screening earlier include low body weight, smoking, heavy alcohol use, a familial history of fractures, certain medications such as long-term corticosteroids, and some medical conditions. And while DEXA is useful, bone density is only one piece of fracture risk: age, fall risk, balance, and stability also factor in.
Takeaway: Getting tested earlier makes sense if your risk profile warrants it, but not solely because you’ve reached menopause.
Bottom Line: 65 remains the routine screening age, and earlier testing is already science-backed for higher-risk postmenopausal women — so there’s no black-and-white rule for when you should get scanned. Your primary care provider can help you decide.
Wear and Tear — This common mistake could make your knees hurt more as you age.
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What We're Cooking
High-Protein Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps
Courtesy: Better Plates
Serves: 3 | Cook Time: 30 minutes
These turkey lettuce wraps bring taco-night flavor to a lighter, protein-packed dinner. Lean ground turkey is simmered with bell peppers, garlic, and no-salt bone broth, which adds savory depth and moisture while boosting the protein to 34 grams per serving. Crisp butter lettuce replaces tortillas for a fresh, crunchy base, and the whole meal comes together in a single skillet in about 30 minutes. It’s an easy weeknight option when you want something satisfying without a heavy meal.
This: Add one thing with crunch Not That: Accepting a sad, soft pile of dinner
Texture can make a meal feel more satisfying. Add cucumbers, cabbage, nuts, seeds, roasted chickpeas, pickled onions, or toasted breadcrumbs. It’s a tiny upgrade, but it can turn leftovers or a basic bowl into something you actually want to eat.
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Sponsored
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Here’s something you may not know: your everyday sneakers can quietly sabotage your runs. If they are too stiff or too squishy, your feet work overtime before you ever start a workout.
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HEALTHY HABIT
Make Your Morning Less Loud
Before the group chats, headlines, and work messages get a say, give yourself a short buffer. Keep your phone on Do Not Disturb for the first 10 minutes, or just avoid opening the apps. The world can wait briefly while your brain comes online.
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Final Thought
Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.”
