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July 06, 2025
 

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HEALTH

Even a slightly high blood pressure raises the risk of strokes and other diseases, a study finds.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 14, 2024
Even slightly high blood pressure ups vascular disease risks
According to the Japanese Society of Hypertension, the country has an estimated 43 million hypertension patients.
Pasco Shikishima has recalled 104,000 packs of its white Chojuku bread after parts of a rat's body were discovered in two of them.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 9, 2024
Japan bread recalled after rat parts found inside packs
Pasco Shikishima has recalled over 100,000 packets of its processed white Chojuku bread and suspended the assembly line that produces it pending a probe.
The H5N1 bird flu virus, which has been found in cattle, is a pathogen that has loomed large in the minds of infectious disease experts for its potential to cause a deadly human pandemic.
COMMENTARY / World
May 9, 2024
The bird flu outbreak brings more questions than answers
This is a pathogen that has loomed large in the minds of infectious disease experts for its potential to cause a deadly human pandemic.
Medical workers take care of a COVID-19 patient on a mechanical ventilator, in a negative pressure room in an intensive care unit at St. Marianna University School of Medicine Yokohama City Seibu Hospital in Yokohama in August 2021.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 8, 2024
Many still face COVID aftereffects a year after assessment downgrade
As there is no cure yet for long-lasting symptoms, doctors are calling on people to continue taking infection preventative measures.
Cold medicine packages at a drug store. Japan has faced unseasonal and larger-than-usual outbreaks of infectious diseases over the past year after the COVID-19's downgrade to the same level as flu.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 7, 2024
Anti-infection measures still needed, one year after COVID-19 downgrade
Despite the drop in COVID-19 cases, childhood infectious diseases and the flu have spread in the country over the past year.
While a new Alzheimer’s test offers hope for early intervention, it also raises complex ethical and practical questions about its implementation and potential impact on individuals' lives.
COMMENTARY / World
May 5, 2024
Do you really want to find out if you'll get Alzheimer's?
Would you want to know there’s something going wrong in your brain — even if there’s no cure?
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a news conference at WHO headquarters in Geneva in July 2020.
WORLD / Science & Health
May 4, 2024
'Get this done,' WHO chief urges pandemic accord talks
World Health Organization member states have spent the last two years drafting an international accord on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
JAPAN / Science & Health / EXPLAINER
Apr 30, 2024
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
Yellow sand gets carried by the wind from the deserts of China and Mongolia to Japan along with man-made pollutants, causing a host of symptoms.
We don't know how much damage these polymers do to our health. But we can make significant inroads on litter and emissions to tackle this issue head-on.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 30, 2024
Plastic pollution is a growing problem. Here are some ideas on how to solve it.
International cooperation and proactive measures are needed to mitigate the harmful effects of plastics.
Health ministry officials enter Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's factory in the city of Osaka on March 30.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 26, 2024
Kobayashi Pharma to cover bills of people who got ill after taking supplements
The Osaka company’s board has also set up a third-party panel to probe the company’s handling of the issue.
Cracked and dry earth in the wide riverbed of the Loire River near the Anjou-Bretagne bridge, amid a heat wave in Ancenis-Saint-Gereon, France, in 2022
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Apr 22, 2024
Europe's record 'extreme heat stress' days in 2023 put lives at risk: report
Prolonged exposure to heat stress is particularly dangerous for vulnerable people such as the elderly or those with preexisting health conditions.
A woman in the Tokai region posts her meals on social media and gives advice to young people suffering from eating disorders.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Regional voices: Chubu
Apr 22, 2024
Woman with eating disorder looks to help young sufferers via social media
The woman is letting people know that a person’s value is not determined by their body shape.
Studies have observed that patients eventually diagnosed with multiple sclerosis initially complain of common issues like anxiety, fatigue or bladder problems. Researcher may be on the road to developing a simple test that can definitively tell a patient if they have the disease.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 21, 2024
This multiple sclerosis discovery could be a breakthrough
Researchers have found evidence that neurons are being damaged years before the disease makes itself known.
Boxes of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 developed by Walvax Biotechnology and Abogen Biosciences
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health / FOCUS
Apr 20, 2024
China's drugmakers can't sell mRNA shots but haven't quit yet
While Chinese firms are pursuing new targets for the novel messenger RNA technology, they face a tough path, crimped by a lack of revenue.
A microscopic view of the SARS-CoV-2 virus particles.
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 20, 2024
It’s taken 100 scientists two years to rename airborne viruses after COVID mistakes
While the discussion may seem trivial, terminology carries important economic and public health consequences.
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's Tokyo office. The company has received 88,000 inquiries about health damage from its supplements.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 20, 2024
More unexpected compounds found in Kobayashi Pharma's beni kōji supplements
At least two compounds not normally found in the supplements were detected in an analysis of ingredient samples.
A new study has found that women with long COVID had significantly lower levels of testosterone compared to those who had recovered from their infection.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2024
Sex differences could be key to the successful treatment of long COVID
New research links testosterone levels to the severity of long COVID in women.
As of April 4, the bird flu virus had been confirmed in more than a dozen herds across six U.S. states, with Kansas, Idaho, Michigan, New Mexico, Ohio and Texas all reporting infected cows.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2024
Bird flu in cows demands vigilance, not panic
Bird flu had been confirmed in herds across six U.S. states, with Kansas, Idaho, Michigan, New Mexico, Ohio and Texas all reporting infected cows.
The U.S. military’s Kawakami Ammunition Depot in Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture. High levels of PFAS have been detected in well water around the facility.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Apr 15, 2024
U.S.-Japan pact hampers PFAS survey at U.S. facility in Hiroshima
The bilateral Status of Forces Agreement gives exclusive authority to the U.S. forces over the management of their facilities in Japan.
A survey of the 6,975 products with the functional food label was initiated by the government last month following the scandal over Kobayashi Pharmaceuticals’ beni kōji supplements.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 12, 2024
Probe finds 18 functional food products with past reports of health damage in Japan
The survey results come as the industry reels from deaths linked to Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's beni kōji supplements.
Japan braces for more quakes as authorities dismiss doomsday hype
Evacuees from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecuture, arrive at Kagoshima Port on Friday.
Hidden AI prompts in academic papers spark concern about research integrity
Waseda University is one of 14 institutions in eight countries found to have used hidden prompts in research papers.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
U.S. military apologizes over Okinawa sexual assault case
Col. Neil Owens (right), chief of staff for the 3rd Marine Division, bows in apology at the Okinawa Prefectural Government office in Naha on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Muji has been sustainable from the beginning
Muji has been sustainable from the beginning

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