(HealthDay News) -- Lactose intolerance occurs when the body can't digest lactose, a sugar found in dairy products.

(HealthDay News) -- Gums can swell and become tender as a result of gingivitis, a side effect of certain drugs or pregnancy.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- A person's brain works hard to empathize or understand what it's like to walk in other people's shoes, no matter how different they may be, a new study indicates.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- In the days after they start taking non-SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants, such as bupropion or venlafaxine, nursing home residents are at significantly greater risk for falls, according to a new study.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Despite recent moves by some states to restrict access to abortion, more Americans now support a woman's right to choose than they did two years ago, a new Harris Interactive/HealthDay poll finds.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Despite dramatic improvements in Afghanistan's health services between 2004 and 2008, security issues for the country's health staff and patients remain a serious concern, researchers warn.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Mutations in three genes have been found to be more common among people with disorders of the esophagus, including esophageal cancer and Barrett esophagus (a complication of gastroesophageal reflux disease), a new study shows.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) The obesity epidemic is being fueled still further by a growing trend among kids to eat out and bring take-out food home, University of North Carolina researchers say.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Depression rates are higher in richer countries than in low- or middle-income nations, according to researchers who compared socioeconomic conditions with depression.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Only about one-sixth of fast food restaurant customers in New York City use calorie information provided on menus and menu boards, but they do tend to buy food with fewer calories, a new study shows.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- New research suggests that fatty foods do more than satisfy our stomachs. They may also soothe our psyche, literally serving as comfort foods.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- A lymph node-sparing test hailed as revolutionary for its conservative approach does not lead to longer survival times for women undergoing lumpectomies whose early-stage breast cancer has spread microscopically, a large, new study suggests.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Prevention is the key to stemming the soaring cost of heart disease in the United States, which reached $450 billion last year, according to a new policy statement from the American Heart Association (AHA).

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- People who abuse methamphetamine or other stimulants are at increased risk for Parkinson's disease, a new study warns.

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- The savings for U.S. seniors who participate in the Medicare Part D prescription drug plan may extend far beyond the cost of medications, a new study indicates.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Genetics may play more of a role in heart attacks than in strokes, a new British study suggests.

TUESDAY, July 26 (HealthDay News) -- Children who are born at extremely low birth weights (below 2.2 pounds) are susceptible to a number of chronic health conditions, such as asthma. But, new research suggests that between 8 and 14 years of age, any lingering chronic illness in extremely low birth weight babies tends to stay about the same -- not getting better, but also not getting worse.