Beginning two decades ago, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnoses jumped to 11 percent of American children aged 4 to 17 even though neuroscientists still did not know biologically what ADHD is. 

A new integrative medicine paper examines the role of gut bacteria on the maturation of the immune system and claims evidence supporting the use of butyrate as therapy for inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn's disease, based on mouse models.

Butyrate, a by-product of the digestion of dietary fiber by gut microbes, is believed to act as an epigenetic switch that boosts the immune system by inducing the production of regulatory T cells in the gut. 

A new paper in the Journal of Food Science says the buffaloberry could be the next super food du jour because it contains large amounts of lycopene and a related acidic compound, methyl-lycopenoate, which are important antioxidants and nutrients beneficial for human health.

The bright red fruit has a tart flavor, and was historically used as a source of nutrients for Native Americans. The sugar and acidity of the fruit make it desirable as a fresh or dried product.

In addition to its potential health benefits, lycopenoate may also be used as a natural food colorant. Recently the buffaloberry has drawn attention from several commercial wine producers.

A comprehensive analysis of more than 1 million hospital admissions has found that over 50 percent of non-surgical patients were prescribed 
opioid pain medications
 during their hospitalizations, often at very high doses, and that more than half of those exposed were still receiving these medications on the day they were discharged from the hospital.

Opioids are narcotic pain medications including morphine, oxycodone and fentanyl. In recent years, the problem of opioid addiction and overdoses has grown more acute, with updated figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reporting that the rate of fatal overdoses from opioids nearly quadrupled over the last decade, with estimates of more than 14,000 deaths from opioid overdoses annually.

Regular, moderate coffee consumption may decrease an individual's risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to research in a report published by the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee. 

More than 370 million people worldwide have diabetes making it one of the most significant health problems. To mark World Diabetes Day, 
the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee
 released an updated report outlining the latest research on coffee and type 2 diabetes. 
The updated report is based on a report from the World Congress on Prevention of Diabetes, held in 2012 and is updated with the latest research from this field published over the past year. 

Key research findings include:

Panthera blytheae is the oldest big cat fossil ever found and fills a significant gap in the fossil record, according to results announced today.

The Panthera blytheae skull was excavated and described by a team led by Jack Tseng, a postdoctoral fellow at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York.