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MONDAY, March 9, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Your morning cup of coffee may help your focus and problem-solving skills, but it won't kick-start your creativity, a new study says. "In Western cultures, caffeine is stereotypically associated with creative occupations and lifestyles, from writers and their coffee to programmers and their energy drinks, and there's more than a kernel of truth to these stereotypes," said study first author Darya Zabelina, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Arkansas. Increased alertness, heightened vigilance, greater focus and improved motor performance are known to be associated with caffeine, but its impact on creativity is less known, Zabelina noted. She and her colleagues assessed the effects of caffeine on 80 volunteers'...

MONDAY, March 9, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Wash your hands. Don't touch your face. Don't grab that door handle. Put the toilet seat lid down before you flush. COVID-19 has prompted a mountain of advice about how to protect yourself against coronavirus infection, and now a trio of studies of infected patients offer very encouraging news on what works. The bad news first -- people infected with the new coronavirus appear to shed it everywhere. The virus was found all over the hospital rooms of three COVID-19 patients in Singapore, a report published online March 4 in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed. The virus was found on a host of surfaces, including bed rails, door handles, chairs, light switches, windows, sinks, stethoscopes, air fans and toilets, according...

MONDAY, March 9, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The coronavirus crisis has millions of Americans questioning whether it's wise, or even safe, to travel this spring. Now, an infectious disease expert has created a checklist to help you decide whether to go ahead with your trip or cancel it. COVID-19 is an illness caused by a new coronavirus. For most people with healthy immune systems, infection appears to result in mild symptoms -- similar to a cold or flu. However, infection appears to be most severe, and occasionally fatal, for the frail elderly or those with chronic health issues or compromised immune systems. Dr. Susan Wootton, an infectious disease pediatrician at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, has developed this nine-point checklist to help you decide...

MONDAY, March 8, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- As the number of U.S. coronavirus cases climbed past 530 in at least 34 states and the death toll hit 22, the State Department issued an advisory Sunday that urged all Americans to avoid cruise travel. "U.S. citizens, particularly travelers with underlying health conditions, should not travel by cruise ship," the State Department advised. "In order to curb the spread of COVID-19, many countries have implemented strict screening procedures that have denied port entry rights to ships and prevented passengers from disembarking. In some cases, local authorities have permitted disembarkation but subjected passengers to local quarantine procedures." The statement went even further, adding that, "While the U.S. government has evacuated some cruise...