Experts at the University of Sydney are urging people, especially those with existing heart or vascular conditions, to seek medical advice before attempting to lose weight using water-only fasting diets. 

While health status is an important factor in whether a person is able to grow old in their home and community (age in place), researchers at McGill University have shed new light on the social factors that can also have an impact, both directly and through their impact on health over a lifetime. 

“The main takeaway from our research is that aging in place is not equally accessible to everyone,” said Amélie Quesnel-Vallée, the senior author on the paper and the Inaugural Chair and Professor in the Department of Equity, Ethics and Policy and the Canada Research Chair in Policies and Health Inequalities. 

 

Researchers from Tulane University and the Proyecto Templo Mayor analyzed 788 obsidian artifacts from Tenochtitlan, revealing that the Mexica (Aztec) Empire sourced this important material from at least eight different locations, including regions outside their political control. While 90% of artifacts were made from green obsidian from Sierra de Pachuca (especially for ceremonial purposes), the diversity of obsidian sources suggests sophisticated trade networks rather than just conquest-based acquisition. The study tracked changes in obsidian use from 1375-1520 CE, showing how the Mexica standardized ritual obsidian sources after consolidating power around 1430 CE, providing insights into the empire's economic networks and political influence.