Health & behavior

The increasing production and use of antibiotics, about half of which are used in animal production, is mirrored by the growing number of antibiotic resistance genes, or ARGs, effectively reducing antibiotics’ ability to fend off diseases - in animals and humans.

A study in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that China - the world’s largest producer and consumer of antibiotics - and many other countries don’t monitor the powerful medicine’s usage or impact on the environment.

Children who are bullied online or by mobile phone are just as likely to skip school or consider suicide as kids who are physically bullied, according to a study led by a Michigan State University criminologist.

The findings, published in the International Criminal Justice Review, suggest parents, school officials and policymakers should consider bullying experiences both on and offline when creating anti-bullying policies and procedures.

Young urban black women who are exposed to severe abuse within their families are much more likely to be victims of dating violence, according to a study led by a Michigan State University researcher.

Angie Kennedy, MSU associate professor of social work, said efforts to prevent dating violence should include discussion of what might be going on in the victim’s home.

Short interruptions – such as the few seconds it takes to silence that buzzing smartphone – have a surprisingly large effect on one’s ability to accurately complete a task, according to new research led by Michigan State University.

The study, in which 300 people performed a sequence-based procedure on a computer, found that interruptions of about three seconds doubled the error rate.