President Barack Obama warned America will not balance its budget within a decade because Republican plans to do so would entail slashing social programs many citizens rely on for support.

Technology capable of diagnosing Alzheimer's disease long before its symptoms appear won a coveted honor for innovation Tuesday at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival.

Technology capable of diagnosing Alzheimer's disease long before its symptoms appear won a coveted honor for innovation at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival.

Technology capable of diagnosing Alzheimer's disease long before its symptoms appear won a coveted honor for innovation at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival.

Gains in life expectancy across Europe could be reversed if cash-strapped governments cut health budgets, the World Health Organisation has warned in a new report.

Quitting smoking sharply reduces the risk of heart disease -- even if kicking the habit comes along with a few extra pounds, according to a long-term study.

Vaccination in the United States against H1N1 "swine" flu, which swept the world in 2009-10, carried a small but tolerable risk of Guillain-Barre syndrome, a disorder that can cause muscle weakness or temporary paralysis, a study published, on Wednesday, said.

A SARS-like virus that has struck in Britain and the Middle East has claimed a new victim in Saudi Arabia, bringing the global toll from the mystery illness to nine, the World Health Organisation said Tuesday.

The White House warned Tuesday that a new Republican budget plan did not add up, would hike taxes on the middle class or fail to cut the deficit and would be sure to hurt healthcare for the elderly.

A British man hailed as a hero for wrestling a shark away from an Australian beach said Tuesday he had been sacked after it emerged that he was on sick leave at the time.

Scientists used an iPhone and a camera lens to diagnose intestinal worms in rural Tanzania, a breakthrough that could help doctors treat patients infected with the parasites, a study said on Tuesday.

Vietnam was on Tuesday urged to do more to fight the illegal trade in rhino horn, which is highly prized in the Southeast Asian nation for its supposed medicinal qualities.

Sixty people have died in Libya from drinking homemade alcohol and hundreds more been poisoned, the government said on Monday as authorities in the Muslim state vowed a crackdown on booze trafficking.

Indian Olympic bronze-medallist boxer Vijender Singh has been questioned over his alleged links to a $24-million heroin haul and has refused to give blood or hair samples, police said Tuesday.

British singer and ex-Smiths frontman Morrissey has postponed a US show due to double pneumonia, his publicist said Monday, but denied he had been hospitalized.

A New York judge blocked mayor Michael Bloomberg's planned ban on giant sodas, dealing a setback to his public health agenda just hours before curbs on selling such drinks were due to begin.

Australian scientists on Tuesday hailed a breakthrough discovery in the hunt for a vaccine against a savage facial tumour disease threatening the endangered Tasmanian devil with extinction.

A New York judge blocked mayor Michael Bloomberg's planned ban on giant sodas, dealing a setback to his public health agenda just hours before curbs on selling such drinks were due to begin.

An estimated 233 million women in their fertile years will lack access to modern contraception by 2015, up from 221 million in 2010, according to a study published on Tuesday.

Helmets and mouthguards can prevent serious head and facial injuries, but there is no evidence they specifically stave off concussion, top authorities in sports medicine say.