From proposing to a loved one to going on a shopping spree, many of life's decisions are guided by the brain chemical dopamine. Scientists now say dopamine might explain why some people are more impulsive than others when it comes to planning and thinking.

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Calcium supplements, which many people consume hoping to ward off osteoporosis, may increase the risk of heart attack by as much as 30 percent, researchers reported Friday.

San Francisco sends out seven ambulances in response to people thought to be in cardiac or respiratory arrest for every one person that is actually in cardiac arrest, according to a new study of the city's Emergency Medical Dispatch system.

Doctors may be able to watch for kidney injury and protect patients by looking for protein in urine, researchers reported on Thursday.

WEDNESDAY, July 28 (HealthDay News) -- For the first time, scientists have been able to grow an entire joint from stem cells, albeit in rabbits not humans. And the joints worked.

(HealthDay News) -- It's common for young children to have a tough time when mom or dad leaves them with someone else.

(HealthDay News) -- Hyperglycemia, the medical term for high blood sugar, is a prime cause of complications among people with diabetes.

THURSDAY, July 29 (HealthDay News) -- Will the new health-reform legislation mean higher taxes for the middle class? Will panels decide what care very sick, older people should receive?

THURSDAY, July 29 (HealthDay News) -- Children adopted by gay or lesbian parents develop as well as those adopted by heterosexual couples, a new study has found.

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

THURSDAY, July 29 (HealthDay News) -- Cuvposa (glycopyrrolate) Oral Solution has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat chronic drooling in children aged 3 to 16.

THURSDAY, July 29 (HealthDay News) -- Weight loss has been noted among patients who've had a knee or hip replacement, a new study says.

THURSDAY, July 29 (HealthDay News) -- Even in so-called "good" neighborhoods, there's a significantly increased risk of violence if teens gather with nothing to do and no adult supervision, a new study suggests.

THURSDAY, July 29 (HealthDay News) -- Among black teens, vitamin D deficiency is associated with arterial stiffness -- a risk factor for heart disease and stroke -- but adequate supplementation may resolve the problem, a new study has found.

Ordinary calcium supplements taken by the elderly to strengthen bones may boost the risk of heart attacks, according to a study released Friday.

Overweight volunteers who took Orexigen's experimental drug Contrave, designed to reduce cravings, lost about 13 pounds (6 kg) over a year, U.S. researchers reported on Thursday.

Sanofi-Aventis failed to follow proper manufacturing procedures at a vaccine plant in France, U.S. regulators said in a letter released on Thursday.

San Francisco sends out seven ambulances in response to people thought to be in cardiac or respiratory arrest for every one person that is actually in cardiac arrest, according to a new study of the city's Emergency Medical Dispatch system.

The US Army on Thursday said leadership and discipline have deteriorated at bases in the United States, with officers missing warning signs of soldiers on the verge of suicide.

Proteins are large molecules consisting of amino acids which our bodies and the cells in our bodies need to function properly. Our body structures, functions, the regulation of the body's cells, tissues and organs cannot exist without proteins. Our muscles, skin, bones and many other parts of the body contain significant amounts of protein. Protein accounts for 20% of total body weight...