Houston Matters

Playwright Anna Deveare Smith Helps Houstonians Cope With Aging and Declining Health

Posted on · Baylor College of Medicine's Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy wants to engage Houstonians in learning how to "face disease and frailty before you get there." Let's face it: while we know we're all mortal, and that as we age, we decline physically and sometimes mentally. It's an inevitability we don't really want to […]

Houston Matters

Researchers Face Uncertain Times for Government-Funded Programs

Posted on · With a new administration headed to the White House, it's an uncertain time for researchers in medicine, genetics, disease and many other disciplines that rely on government grants for funding. For instance, President-elect Trump's pick to lead the Office of Management and Budget, Rep. Mick Mulvaney, suggested in a since-deleted Sept. 9, 2016 Facebook post […]

Houston Matters

How What You’re Exposed To In Your Earliest Days Affects What Diseases You Might Get Later in Life

Posted on · Things you were exposed to as child in the womb – or even things your parents were exposed to before you were even conceived – could play a role in your likelihood to develop certain diseases later in life. Studying those causes is the focus of a new center just opened last week (Aug. 29, […]

Houston Matters

Germophobia: How Afraid Should You Really Be of Germs in Everyday Life?

Posted on · Germophobes of the world unite! Now, technically, “germophobia” is not a real word. The actual word is mysophobia. It’s an abnormal fear of or distaste for uncleanliness or contamination. If germs give you the creepy-crawlies, well, then, either this is the absolute best or worst conversation for you. We talk about why some of us […]

Houston Matters

Chikungunya: What Is It and What Are the Risks?

Posted on · A man near Austin was recently diagnosed with the state’s first case of a mosquito-borne illness called chikungunya. We learn more about the illness, as Houston Public Media health and science reporter Carrie Feibel talks with Scott Weaver, Director of the Institute for Human Infections and Immunity at The University of Texas Medical Branch at […]

Houston Matters

Helping Houstonians with HIV/AIDS

Posted on · National HIV Testing Day is this Friday, and the Texas Department of State Health Services is hosting an HIV/STD Conference later this summer in Austin. The city of Houston is partnering with AIDS Foundation Houston to test 15,000 Houstonians for HIV this summer. About 27,000 Houstonians are HIV positive, and thousands more are believed to […]