The price of bacon is rising faster than tuition at Harvard, highlighting yet another way the pandemic has upended traditional metrics of inflation.

TAMPA, Fla. — This is not the year to bob for apples.

Q: My children are having a rough time as the pandemic drags on. What are the signs that they may need more support, and how can I help?

Calling all candy lovers!

Dear Healthy Men: What’s the top cause of death in men and what can guys do to reduce their risk?

Some studies have suggested switching to e-cigarettes could help smokers stay away from regular cigarettes, which generally contain more harmful chemicals when burned. But new research shows the opposite effect.

It can be a balancing act trying to figure out what's safe for your children, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and keeping them happy.

We were having breakfast at a hotel in eastern Colorado when the manager decided to give us his opinions on the state of the world. And he was very vocal about what needed to change in his community in particular.

After living atop Yankee Hill for 45 years, I may know a little about fire.

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I have been working at home for the past year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. My work requires me to be on a computer much of the day, and over the past few months, I've noticed more frequent headaches, and pain in my lower back and sometimes my neck. Could my workspace b…

LOS ANGELES — Christopher Manzo, a boy with curly brown hair and bright-blue-and-yellow glasses, has lived a third of his five years at home because of the pandemic.

TAMPA, Fla. — Historians have long debated whether Vlad Tepes, the inspiration for Dracula, ever spent time in the castle on which the character’s residence is based.

Q: I already had COVID-19 and recovered. Why should I get the vaccine when my body is already immune to it now? 

Nearly 270,000 people in the U.S. die each year as a result of sepsis, and one-third of people who die in a hospital have sepsis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Writer’s note: With the advent of cooler days and a sprinkle or two, it’s tempting to think that we here in the Mother Lode have survived one more fire season. This may not be true, but a taste of fall has convinced me that I can write about our annual, ever-worsening scourge without scaring…

Q: How much fruit, vegetables, and protein do my kids really need every day?

Apparently I am morally deficient, a fact that comes by way of my full-to-bursting bedroom closet by way of people who have made an industry out of analyzing such things.

DEAR JOAN — I am not a cat or dog lover. I have a backyard with plenty of birds and the inevitable squirrels.

Vaccinated people with substance use disorders may be at a higher risk for experiencing a breakthrough COVID-19 case, a new study shows.

After last year's halt on Halloween due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sweet relief is coming for those who celebrate the spookiest day of the year.

SAN DIEGO — Imagine surviving two brain cancer surgeries and more than 30 radiation treatments only to end up getting COVID-19.

LOS ANGELES — After getting blowback on Twitter, the social media team behind Netflix’s Twitter handle for LGBTQ+ storytelling unleashed their frustration, saying “this week f—ing sucks.”

WASHINGTON — It should have been the safest of political appearances — a group of kids gushing about their love of science and space exploration with Vice President Kamala Harris.

Q: I've heard some theories circulating about the COVID-19 vaccine, including that it was developed to control the general population through microchip tracking or "nanotransducers" in our brains. I've also heard that it will alter my DNA. Are these theories true? 

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom inducted the late lesbian rights activists and married couple Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin into the California Hall of Fame during a virtual Tuesday ceremony honoring six Golden State icons.

I hadn’t expected the tears.

PHILADELPHIA — Anyone who has been near a gym in the last decade has heard the buzz about strengthening “the core” — muscles in the trunk and abdomen that can be targeted with crunches, planks, and other gut-busting exertions.

BALTIMORE — As Maria Young came to, she had visions of being held captive on a cruise ship. Trapped against her will, she cried out for help.

"Long-haul COVID," "long COVID" and "post-COVID syndrome" are references to patients who have been infected with COVID-19 and are still experiencing long-term effects and symptoms.

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I've heard several drugs mentioned as possible treatments for COVID-19. What are they, and how do they work?

Before Tyler Blaylock died of COVID-19, his mom said he wished he had been vaccinated against the coronavirus. Tyler’s family wishes that, too.

We all need to muse more, and fall is the perfect time for sitting, pondering and reflecting, particularly in front of a fire. So says a piece I read recently. This was good news because all our adult children have outdoor fire pits. Lucky for us, from time to time we are invited to join them.

Have you noticed large, tender veins in your legs? Do you experience aching or swelling in your legs at the end of the day? Do suffer from restless legs? Have you noticed changes in the color or texture of the skin near your ankles?

Do you wonder how many people stay ahead of the clock? Do you worry they have a secret you haven’t discovered?

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. The doctor mentioned using immunotherapy. What is immunotherapy, and how does it differ from chemotherapy, which I've traditionally heard about for treating cancer?

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Viral loads of the delta variant of coronavirus are similar between unvaccinated and vaccinated persons who are infected, as well as between symptomatic and asymptomatic cases, UC Davis and UC San Francisco researchers wrote in a recent study that aligns with similar fin…

I get these ah-ha moments at the weirdest times. During my afternoon tea break at work, I decided to add a small packet of lemon juice to my iced tea. That’s pretty good!, I realized. Why don’t I do this more often?

LOS ANGELES — Artist Mipa Shin sits on a low metal stool next to her pottery wheel and prepares to talk houseplants. Smiling, pointing to the planters that line the shelves of her single-car-garage-turned-ceramics-studio, her excitement grows, just like her favorite plant: the tall, sculptur…

LOS ANGELES — Oh, please, not another dead kitten. 

Q: How can I be expected to trust the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine when it was developed so rapidly? 

LOS ANGELES — At the beginning of the pandemic, Penny Weismuller, director of Cal State Fullerton's School of Nursing, said everyone in her Southern California neighborhood would come outside at 7 p.m. to make noise in celebration of the health care workers on the front lines.

PHILADELPHIA — The world had lurched into a dark and uncertain winter. Americans were dying by the thousands, and the rhythms of everyday life seemed to carry only mournful notes of loss and deprivation.

DETROIT — A lack of confidence in science and a boundless supply of misinformation spread via social media has led America to where it is today — a nation still grappling with the coronavirus pandemic, unable to get enough people fully vaccinated to stop its spread, said Dr. Marc Rosenthal, …

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — When Dimeji Lawal rolled out of the Intensive Care Unit at Cleveland Clinic in Weston, Florida — hospital staff cheering him in his wheelchair — he began to comprehend that he had survived COVID-19. More than two months on a ventilator, he had beat the disease and was…

When COVID-19 struck last year, Travis Warner’s company became busier than ever. He installs internet and video systems, and with people suddenly working from home, service calls surged.

It's happened again - no one won the Powerball  jackpot as a result of Saturday's drawing. That means the grand prize will be even bigger Monday: an estimated $670 million.

LOS ANGELES — Bentley seemed to be in a haze. Normally this 12-pound Chihuahua-terrier mix would never refuse hot, fresh French fries from a drive-through fast food joint. But on a recent warm afternoon, he turned his head away at his owner's offer.

LOS ANGELES — It's early on a cool, gray September morning at the Hollywood Forever cemetery, and people are gathering amid the tombs to do yoga. Kundalini yoga, to be precise. With some hypnosis thrown in.

PHILADELPHIA — Telemedicine has become immensely popular during the COVID-19 pandemic as a safe and convenient way to see a medical provider without leaving home.