10 things infectious-disease experts don't worry about

Plus: soccer and the brain, flesh-eating bacteria, and other health news  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Mandy Oaklander | August 10, 2026   These are boom times for infectious-disease experts. Media types like us have been calling upon them more often than usual to explain recent pathogen-related crises, from the cruise-ship hantavirus outbreak in the spring and the ongoing Ebola emergency in the Democratic Republic of Congo to the spate of foodborne illnesses in the U.S. You might assume these experts are some of the most germaphobic folks around. But when my colleague Angela Haupt asked a bunch of them what microbial threats they don’t worry about, a surprising number of common concerns made the list. Among them: dirty sheets, reusable grocery totes, and slightly grimy phones. TODAY’S TOPICS Soccer’s link to brain damage Flesh-eating bacteria are creeping northward Got a question for us? The best time to eat dinner     MORNING CHAT The link between soccer and brain damage Few sports can draw a global audience for 104 matches over 39 days, yet the recently concluded World Cup managed that remarkable feat. But a recent early study raised concern about the game’s potential effects on the brains of players, who head the ball with force. It found that retired professional soccer players had worse results on a battery of cognitive tests and imaging than non-athletes. I talked to Dr. Thomas Parker, senior author of that study and clinical lecturer and consultant neurologist at Imperial College London, about his research. —Jeffrey Kluger This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity. yangyang—Getty Images American football players are frequently diagnosed with the form of brain damage known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) as a result of repeated hits to the head. Did you find anything similar in your work? This was a preliminary analysis of former soccer players at midlife and represents a baseline study for future work. We did not specifically look at CTE, as this is something that currently can only be diagnosed at post-mortem. This is a single snapshot, and longitudinal follow-up will be much more important for understanding the brain health of retired soccer players over time. What cognitive symptoms did the players exhibit? We did find elevated rates of certain symptoms including memory and thinking concerns, anxiety, and depression in the retired players, although it is important to say these symptoms are common in the general population and the exact relevance is uncertain. We did not find clear-cut objective evidence of dementia at this stage overall. I think the main message is not that former players are necessarily showing overt dementia-like symptoms in midlife, but rather that there are early biological and psychological signals that warrant careful follow-up. Can we say the linkage between soccer play and these problems is definitive, or might it just be associative? It is difficult to draw firm causal conclusions at this stage. Longitudinal follow-up will be very helpful to determine whether these early imaging and symptom differences are associated with later cognitive decline or neurodegenerative disease.     PRESENTED BY Afternoon energy. Minus the afternoon coffee. Pique’s new X·E Fountain energy drink delivers clean, caffeine-free energy without the jitters, crash, or dehydration. Vitamin B Complex, magnesium, and electrolytes help support steady focus, while crisp cucumber-celery-lime makes every sip ridiculously refreshing. Get 15% off for life.     TODAY I LEARNED “Flesh-eating” bacteria could be coming to a seaside near you A scanning electron micrograph of the "flesh-eating" bacteria Vibrio vulnificus. Getty Images/Callista Images Since I last reported on Vibrio vulnificus—less than a week ago—more U.S. states have reported deaths from the “flesh-eating” bacteria. Seven people in the U.S. have died so far. The bacteria thrive in warm, shallow, and slightly salty (called “brackish”) water. Infections are, fortunately, rare, and most of them occur in the U.S. along the Gulf Coast during the summer months. But climate change is expanding the geographical range of the bacteria and lengthening the seasonal window during which it thrives. A 2023 study found that the northern boundary of Vibrio vulnificus infections on the East Coast had crept northwards by a rate of 30 miles per year since 1998. In about 50 years, the authors predicted, Vibrio vulnificus infections may be present in every eastern U.S. state. —Dominique Mosbergen     PRESENTED BY Fresh-Roasted Coffee, Without Leaving the House A third-generation LA roaster ships 50+ coffees — single origins, flavored favorites, decafs, even teas — days after roasting. Mix and match Keurig®-compatible boxes for tiered savings up to 34% off. First order? Take an extra 15% off, automatically. Taste It Fresh     PLEASE ADVISE Ask the health team Have a burning health or wellness question? Wondering how to handle a tricky social situation? Please write to healthmatters@time.com, and we might tackle it in a future edition of the newsletter.     PRESENTED BY 1,000,000 Men Use This. You Probably Know One. Most men don't think about their skin until eye bags, dark spots, and wrinkles show up at once. Particle Face Cream is a groundbreaking men's formula that fights all three, while also restoring firmness and hydrating deeply. No complicated routine. Trusted by over a million men. 30-day money-back guarantee. 20% off with code BH20. Get 20% Off Today     WHAT WE’RE READING When skateboarding got hard on his body, Darren Miles switched to a different kind of downhill racing. Now, at 60, he’s headed to the world championships, he tells the Guardian. Mergers of large hospital systems are increasing health care costs, Peter Whoriskey writes for KFF Health News. What time of day you eat meals might affect your health, thanks to your circadian clock, writes Melissa Hogenboom for BBC Future.   EMAIL US: healthmatters@time.com   More Newsletters from Click to sign up. THE BRIEF +D.C. BRIEF +FUTURE PROOF +INSIDE TIME +IN THE LOOP +WORTH YOUR TIME +   Connect with TIME PRIVACY POLICY   © 2026 TIME USA, LLC. All rights reserved. TIME Customer Service, P.O. Box 37508 Boone, IA 50037-0508, United States Unsubscribe

The real reason your partner says you don't listen

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Mandy Oaklander | August 09, 2026   Good morning! My husband just walked in to tell me something, but I waved him off because I had to write to you about my colleague Angela Haupt's useful piece on how to become a better listener. (Guess I'll have to take her advice later.) Most people think being a good listener means nodding your head and saying “hm!” a lot. Not so. To truly, deeply listen to someone else—and intuit what they need from you—pay closer attention to their cues. TODAY’S TOPICS The deadly toll of mass shootings Got a question for us? The risks of feeding AI your test results     WEEKEND ESSAY The death toll of a mass shooting doesn’t end at the scene By Vishal R. Patel, Christopher M. Worsham, and Anupam Jena Police stand behind a crime scene tape near the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub on in Orlando, Fla. on June 12, 2016.Mandel Ngan—AFP via Getty Images When a mass shooting tears through an American community, we count the dead. That number—26 at Sandy Hook Elementary, 49 at Pulse nightclub, 58 in Las Vegas—becomes the headline, the official measure of the scope of the horror. But anyone who has watched the alerts pile up on their phone, felt their stomach drop, and struggled to focus for the rest of the day knows the damage doesn’t stop at the victims. It ripples outward across the country, affecting in one way or another millions of Americans who were nowhere near the scene. Intuitively, we can all sense the broader harm, but it is remarkably hard to measure. Nearly two-thirds of Americans say mass shootings are a significant source of stress in their lives. Researchers have found that after these events, antidepressant use rises among teenagers living near a school shooting. Gun purchases made in response to events have been shown, grimly, to lead to still more accidental gun deaths.  In a recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry, we set out to measure another channel through which a mass shooting’s harm could quietly spread: deaths on the road. At first glance, it might seem like mass shootings and car crashes have little to do with each other. But decades of research show that stress and distraction make drivers more dangerous, and driving is one of the riskiest things most Americans do every day. In the months after the Sept. 11 attacks, fatal crashes rose in part because travelers traded planes for cars—but there was also evidence of an increase in crashes per mile driven, an increase believed to be linked to the fear and stress that spread nationwide. We wondered whether the country’s deadliest shootings might leave a similar mark.  Read the full essay here.     PRESENTED BY Skincare built by longevity scientists Most skincare treats the symptoms of aging. OS-01 FACE was built by longevity scientists to address the cause. With age, some skin cells stop functioning – accelerating the visible skin decline that most skincare was never designed to address. OneSkin is different. It's skincare with better science and real results. Save 15% on OS-01 FACE *Explore the claims at oneskin.co     PLEASE ADVISE Ask the health team Have a burning health or wellness question? Wondering how to handle a tricky social situation? Please write to healthmatters@time.com, and we’ll weigh in weekly in the newsletter.     PRESENTED BY Chef-Crafted, Dietitian-Designed Meals Ready in 2 Minutes Try Factor, America's #1 ready-to-eat meal delivery service. Made from ingredients you recognize. Whole food. Nothing unnecessary. Let’s eat real. Get 50% off your first Factor box + Free Breakfast for a year *1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription active. Try Factor Now     WHAT WE’RE READING Britain's growing "switch-off" movement is replacing doomscrolling with phone-free pubs, sauna book clubs, and floating retreats, the Guardian reports. A growing number of Americans are uploading their health tests results to AI chatbots to learn more. Doctors wish they’d stop, Alex Janin reports for the Wall Street Journal. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a new cooking show to help viewers make “healthy, affordable meals.” Bloomberg Businessweek’s Deena Shanker reviews the first episode.     PRESENTED BY Same Color. No Dye. No Smell. No Roots. Hair dye fixes the gray. It also gives you roots, a smell, and a hairline that looks painted. Particle Anti-Gray Serum restores natural color gradually — hair and beard, no dye, no mess. Five seconds a day. 30-day guarantee. 20% off, code BH20. Try It Risk-Free   EMAIL US: healthmatters@time.com   More Newsletters from Click to sign up. THE BRIEF +D.C. BRIEF +FUTURE PROOF +INSIDE TIME +IN THE LOOP +WORTH YOUR TIME +   TIME may receive compensation for some links to products and services in this email. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Connect with TIME: PRIVACY POLICY | YOUR CALIFORNIA PRIVACY RIGHTS Questions? Contact healthmatters@time.com   © 2026 TIME USA, LLC. All rights reserved. TIME Customer Service, P.O. Box 37508 Boone, IA 50037-0508, United States Unsubscribe