Some recent studies seem to suggest taking a new and more cautious look at plastic water bottles and frozen meal containers. A surge in research into plastics in food and water is raising questions about the accumulation of microplastics in the body. But the field is young and studies so far are limited. The World Health Organization report concluded two years ago that there was no clear risk to human health. But researchers only started measuring plastics in the human body — and trying to assess the health effects — in recent years.

An autopsy of a Massachusetts teen who died after participating in a spicy tortilla chip challenge says his death was caused by eating a large quantity of chile pepper extract. The results obtained by The Associated Press also note that 14-year-old Harris Wolobah had a congenital heart defect. Harris died on Sept. 1, 2023, after eating the Paqui chip. The autopsy lists the cause of death as cardiopulmonary arrest "in the setting of recent ingestion of food substance with high capsaicin concentration." Capsaicin is the component that gives chile peppers their heat. The Associated Press sent an email seeking comment Thursday to the Hershey Co., which owns Paqui. Paqui pulled the product from store shelves shortly after Harris' death.

A boy from the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians has inspired his community to try to boost organ donor numbers. Greyson Parisien's journey to correct an irregular heart led the tribe to add the option of organ donation to tribal IDs. And the tribe hopes it will inspire others. The IDs were unveiled during a November ceremony. The rate of organ donations among Native Americans is much lower than other ethnic groups. For some tribes, cultural beliefs are a factor. In rural communities, time, distance and spotty access can hinder the process.

New York researchers transplanted pig hearts into two brain-dead people over the last month, the latest in a string of developments in the lon…

The first person to receive a heart transplant from a pig has died, two months after the groundbreaking experiment, the Maryland hospital that…