National Geographic | Mind, Body, Wonder

This week, we discover efforts to delay menopause to help women live longer, get hope that long COVID isn't forever, delve into a thorny question about old age, and learn about plummeting sperm counts. Plus, orangutan—heal yourself!

MICROGRAPH BY DAVID PEPIN

COULD MENOPAUSE BE DELAYED?

The answer could lead to longer lifespans for women. Scientists are learning that ovaries (pictured above, in a micrograph) aren’t just important for making babies—they also keep the heart, brain, and bones healthy.

WHY OVARIES MATTER

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Is it possible to cure hot flashes? We may be getting closer.

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What happens during menopause? Science is finally piecing it together.

A triathlete trains at a swimming pool in Japan

PHOTOGRAPH BY NORIKO HAYASHI, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION

WHEN EXACTLY DOES OLD AGE BEGIN?

Does it begin at 62, an often-cited average age for Americans to retire? Or has the real start of old age been pushed much later, as a new study of Americans’ attitudes reports?
But is improved health behind that idea of a more extended age—or is the idea rooted in society’s aversion to the term old age? (Above, a triathlete in training.)

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Does your face reveal your real age?

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How to take better care of your aging brain?

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How your senses change as you age—and how to keep them sharp

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It’s not your life span you need to be concerned with. It’s your health span.

A micrographic view of a large macrophage; two smaller spiky appearing dendritic cells

COMPOSITE MICROGRAPH BY STEVE GSCHMEISSNER, SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

GOOD NEWS ON LONG COVID?

Not forever? A new study has clues. Research hints that many of those millions of people with crippling symptoms long after COVID (above, an electron micrograph of immune cells) may see an improvement after two years.

AN ENCOURAGING CLUE

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Can COVID-19 alter your personality? Here’s what brain research shows.

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Why does COVID-19 cause brain fog?

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Long COVID can destroy your ability to exercise. Now we know why.

An adult male orangutan with a fresh, pink and red wound visible below its eye

PHOTOGRAPH BY ARMAS

THIS MEDIC IS AN ORANGUTAN

In a first, researchers have observed an orangutan who sought out and correctly applied a medicinal plant to treat his wound (pictured above). (And it worked!) Where did the animal learn this?

CAN HUMANS USE THIS?

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This ancient cure was just revived in a lab. Does it actually work?

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See rare photos of chimpanzees treating their wounds with insects

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Colored Scanning Electron Micrograph (SEM) of several mature human sperm

MICROGRAPH BY DR TONY BRAIN, SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

THE PROBLEM WITH SPERM COUNTS

They’re plummeting faster than we thought. “We may cross a tipping point when most men will be sub-fertile,” says one expert. Here are environmental and lifestyle factors that could increase a man’s risk. (Pictured above, a Colored Scanning Electron Micrograph (SEM) of several mature human sperm.)

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How a man produces 1,500 sperm a second

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